Today’s Reading :  Ezekiel  44 - 45  and  Matthew 14   (KJV)   

Ezekiel  44

Eze 44:1  Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut.

Eze 44:2  Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut.

Eze 44:3  It is for the prince; the prince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.

Eze 44:4  Then brought he me the way of the north gate before the house: and I looked, and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD: and I fell upon my face.

Eze 44:5  And the LORD said unto me, Son of man, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark well the entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary.

Eze 44:6  And thou shalt say to the rebellious, even to the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O ye house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations,

Eze 44:7  In that ye have brought into my sanctuary strangers, uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, even my house, when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant because of all your abominations.

Eze 44:8  And ye have not kept the charge of mine holy things: but ye have set keepers of my charge in my sanctuary for yourselves.

Eze 44:9  Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any stranger that is among the children of Israel.

Eze 44:10  And the Levites that are gone away far from me, when Israel went astray, which went astray away from me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity.

Eze 44:11  Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having charge at the gates of the house, and ministering to the house: they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them.

Eze 44:12  Because they ministered unto them before their idols, and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity; therefore have I lifted up mine hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity.

Eze 44:13  And they shall not come near unto me, to do the office of a priest unto me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place: but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.

Eze 44:14  But I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.

Eze 44:15  But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister unto me, and they shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord GOD:

Eze 44:16  They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.

Eze 44:17  And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.

Eze 44:18  They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat.

Eze 44:19  And when they go forth into the utter court, even into the utter court to the people, they shall put off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments; and they shall not sanctify the people with their garments.

Eze 44:20  Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.

Eze 44:21  Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.

Eze 44:22  Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had a priest before.

Eze 44:23  And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.

Eze 44:24  And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.

Eze 44:25  And they shall come at no dead person to defile themselves: but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister that hath had no husband, they may defile themselves.

Eze 44:26  And after he is cleansed, they shall reckon unto him seven days.

Eze 44:27  And in the day that he goeth into the sanctuary, unto the inner court, to minister in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin offering, saith the Lord GOD.

Eze 44:28  And it shall be unto them for an inheritance: I am their inheritance: and ye shall give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession.

Eze 44:29  They shall eat the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; and every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs.

Eze 44:30  And the first of all the firstfruits of all things, and every oblation of all, of every sort of your oblations, shall be the priest's: ye shall also give unto the priest the first of your dough, that he may cause the blessing to rest in thine house.

Eze 44:31  The priests shall not eat of any thing that is dead of itself, or torn, whether it be fowl or beast.

Ezekiel  45

Eze 45:1  Moreover, when ye shall divide by lot the land for inheritance, ye shall offer an oblation unto the LORD, a holy portion of the land: the length shall be the length of five and twenty thousand reeds, and the breadth shall be ten thousand. This shall be holy in all the borders thereof round about.

Eze 45:2  Of this there shall be for the sanctuary five hundred in length, with five hundred in breadth, square round about; and fifty cubits round about for the suburbs thereof.

Eze 45:3  And of this measure shalt thou measure the length of five and twenty thousand, and the breadth of ten thousand: and in it shall be the sanctuary and the most holy place.

Eze 45:4  The holy portion of the land shall be for the priests the ministers of the sanctuary, which shall come near to minister unto the LORD: and it shall be a place for their houses, and a holy place for the sanctuary.

Eze 45:5  And the five and twenty thousand of length, and the ten thousand of breadth, shall also the Levites, the ministers of the house, have for themselves, for a possession for twenty chambers.

Eze 45:6  And ye shall appoint the possession of the city five thousand broad, and five and twenty thousand long, over against the oblation of the holy portion: it shall be for the whole house of Israel.

Eze 45:7  And a portion shall be for the prince on the one side and on the other side of the oblation of the holy portion, and of the possession of the city, before the oblation of the holy portion, and before the possession of the city, from the west side westward, and from the east side eastward: and the length shall be over against one of the portions, from the west border unto the east border.

Eze 45:8  In the land shall be his possession in Israel: and my princes shall no more oppress my people; and the rest of the land shall they give to the house of Israel according to their tribes.

Eze 45:9  Thus saith the Lord GOD; Let it suffice you, O princes of Israel: remove violence and spoil, and execute judgment and justice, take away your exactions from my people, saith the Lord GOD.

Eze 45:10  Ye shall have just balances, and a just ephah, and a just bath.

Eze 45:11  The ephah and the bath shall be of one measure, that the bath may contain the tenth part of a homer, and the ephah the tenth part of a homer: the measure thereof shall be after the homer.

Eze 45:12  And the shekel shall be twenty gerahs: twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your mina.

Eze 45:13  This is the oblation that ye shall offer; the sixth part of an ephah of a homer of wheat, and ye shall give the sixth part of an ephah of a homer of barley:

Eze 45:14  Concerning the ordinance of oil, the bath of oil, ye shall offer the tenth part of a bath out of the kor, which is a homer of ten baths; for ten baths are a homer:

Eze 45:15  And one lamb out of the flock, out of two hundred, out of the fat pastures of Israel; for a meat offering, and for a burnt offering, and for peace offerings, to make reconciliation for them, saith the Lord GOD.

Eze 45:16  All the people of the land shall give this oblation for the prince in Israel.

Eze 45:17  And it shall be the prince's part to give burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and drink offerings, in the feasts, and in the new moons, and in the sabbaths, in all solemnities of the house of Israel: he shall prepare the sin offering, and the meat offering, and the burnt offering, and the peace offerings, to make reconciliation for the house of Israel.

Eze 45:18  Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the first month, in the first day of the month, thou shalt take a young bullock without blemish, and cleanse the sanctuary:

Eze 45:19  And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering, and put it upon the posts of the house, and upon the four corners of the settle of the altar, and upon the posts of the gate of the inner court.

Eze 45:20  And so thou shalt do the seventh day of the month for every one that erreth, and for him that is simple: so shall ye reconcile the house.

Eze 45:21  In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.

Eze 45:22  And upon that day shall the prince prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bullock for a sin offering.

Eze 45:23  And seven days of the feast he shall prepare a burnt offering to the LORD, seven bullocks and seven rams without blemish daily the seven days; and a kid of the goats daily for a sin offering.

Eze 45:24  And he shall prepare a meat offering of an ephah for a bullock, and an ephah for a ram, and a hin of oil for an ephah.

Eze 45:25  In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, shall he do the like in the feast of the seven days, according to the sin offering, according to the burnt offering, and according to the meat offering, and according to the oil.

Matthew  14

Mat 14:1  At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus,

Mat 14:2  And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do show forth themselves in him.

Mat 14:3  For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife.

Mat 14:4  For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her.

Mat 14:5  And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.

Mat 14:6  But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod.

Mat 14:7  Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask.

Mat 14:8  And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist's head in a charger.

Mat 14:9  And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath's sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her.

Mat 14:10  And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.

Mat 14:11  And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother.

Mat 14:12  And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.

Mat 14:13  When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities.

Mat 14:14  And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

Mat 14:15  And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals.

Mat 14:16  But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat.

Mat 14:17  And they say unto him, We have here but five loaves, and two fishes.

Mat 14:18  He said, Bring them hither to me.

Mat 14:19  And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and broke, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.

Mat 14:20  And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full.

Mat 14:21  And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

Mat 14:22  And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.

Mat 14:23  And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.

Mat 14:24  But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.

Mat 14:25  And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.

Mat 14:26  And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.

Mat 14:27  But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

Mat 14:28  And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

Mat 14:29  And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

Mat 14:30  But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

Mat 14:31  And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

Mat 14:32  And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.

Mat 14:33  Then they that were in the ship came and worshiped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.

Mat 14:34  And when they were gone over, they came into the land of Gennesaret.

Mat 14:35  And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto him all that were diseased;

Mat 14:36  And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole.