Hosea 10:1–6

[1] Israel is a luxuriant vine

that yields its fruit.

The more his fruit increased,

the more altars he built;

as his country improved,

he improved his pillars.

[2] Their heart is false;

now they must bear their guilt.

The LORD will break down their altars

and destroy their pillars.

[3] For now they will say:

“We have no king,

for we do not fear the LORD;

and a king—what could he do for us?”

[4] They utter mere words;

with empty oaths they make covenants;

so judgment springs up like poisonous weeds

in the furrows of the field.

[5] The inhabitants of Samaria tremble

for the calf of Beth-aven.

Its people mourn for it, and so do its idolatrous priests—

those who rejoiced over it and over its glory—

for it has departed from them.

[6] The thing itself shall be carried to Assyria

as tribute to the great king.

Ephraim shall be put to shame,

and Israel shall be ashamed of his idol.

Hosea 9:10–17

[10] Like grapes in the wilderness,

I found Israel.

Like the first fruit on the fig tree

in its first season,

I saw your fathers.

But they came to Baal-peor

and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame,

and became detestable like the thing they loved.

[11] Ephraim's glory shall fly away like a bird—

no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!

[12] Even if they bring up children,

I will bereave them till none is left.

Woe to them

when I depart from them!

[13] Ephraim, as I have seen, was like a young palm planted in a meadow;

but Ephraim must lead his children out to slaughter.

[14] Give them, O LORD—

what will you give?

Give them a miscarrying womb

and dry breasts.

[15] Every evil of theirs is in Gilgal;

there I began to hate them.

Because of the wickedness of their deeds

I will drive them out of my house.

I will love them no more;

all their princes are rebels.

[16] Ephraim is stricken;

their root is dried up;

they shall bear no fruit.

Even though they give birth,

I will put their beloved children to death.

[17] My God will reject them

because they have not listened to him;

they shall be wanderers among the nations.

Hosea 9:1–9

[1] Rejoice not, O Israel!

Exult not like the peoples;

for you have played the whore, forsaking your God.

You have loved a prostitute's wages

on all threshing floors.

[2] Threshing floor and wine vat shall not feed them,

and the new wine shall fail them.

[3] They shall not remain in the land of the LORD,

but Ephraim shall return to Egypt,

and they shall eat unclean food in Assyria.

[4] They shall not pour drink offerings of wine to the LORD,

and their sacrifices shall not please him.

It shall be like mourners' bread to them;

all who eat of it shall be defiled;

for their bread shall be for their hunger only;

it shall not come to the house of the LORD.

[5] What will you do on the day of the appointed festival,

and on the day of the feast of the LORD?

[6] For behold, they are going away from destruction;

but Egypt shall gather them;

Memphis shall bury them.

Nettles shall possess their precious things of silver;

thorns shall be in their tents.

[7] The days of punishment have come;

the days of recompense have come;

Israel shall know it.

The prophet is a fool;

the man of the spirit is mad,

because of your great iniquity

and great hatred.

[8] The prophet is the watchman of Ephraim with my God;

yet a fowler's snare is on all his ways,

and hatred in the house of his God.

[9] They have deeply corrupted themselves

as in the days of Gibeah:

he will remember their iniquity;

he will punish their sins.

Hosea 8:7–14

[7] For they sow the wind,

and they shall reap the whirlwind.

The standing grain has no heads;

it shall yield no flour;

if it were to yield,

strangers would devour it.

[8] Israel is swallowed up;

already they are among the nations

as a useless vessel.

[9] For they have gone up to Assyria,

a wild donkey wandering alone;

Ephraim has hired lovers.

[10] Though they hire allies among the nations,

I will soon gather them up.

And the king and princes shall soon writhe

because of the tribute.

[11] Because Ephraim has multiplied altars for sinning,

they have become to him altars for sinning.

[12] Were I to write for him my laws by the ten thousands,

they would be regarded as a strange thing.

[13] As for my sacrificial offerings,

they sacrifice meat and eat it,

but the LORD does not accept them.

Now he will remember their iniquity

and punish their sins;

they shall return to Egypt.

[14] For Israel has forgotten his Maker

and built palaces,

and Judah has multiplied fortified cities;

so I will send a fire upon his cities,

and it shall devour her strongholds.

Acts 13:1–3

[1] Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. [2] While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” [3] Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

Acts 6:1–6

[1] Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. [2] And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. [3] Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. [4] But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” [5] And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. [6] These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.

Hosea 8:1–6

[1] Set the trumpet to your lips!

One like a vulture is over the house of the LORD,

because they have transgressed my covenant

and rebelled against my law.

[2] To me they cry,

“My God, we—Israel—know you.”

[3] Israel has spurned the good;

the enemy shall pursue him.

[4] They made kings, but not through me.

They set up princes, but I knew it not.

With their silver and gold they made idols

for their own destruction.

[5] I have spurned your calf, O Samaria.

My anger burns against them.

How long will they be incapable of innocence?

[6] For it is from Israel;

a craftsman made it;

it is not God.

The calf of Samaria

shall be broken to pieces.

Hosea 7:11–16

[11] Ephraim is like a dove,

silly and without sense,

calling to Egypt, going to Assyria.

[12] As they go, I will spread over them my net;

I will bring them down like birds of the heavens;

I will discipline them according to the report made to their congregation.

[13] Woe to them, for they have strayed from me!

Destruction to them, for they have rebelled against me!

I would redeem them,

but they speak lies against me.

[14] They do not cry to me from the heart,

but they wail upon their beds;

for grain and wine they gash themselves;

they rebel against me.

[15] Although I trained and strengthened their arms,

yet they devise evil against me.

[16] They return, but not upward;

they are like a treacherous bow;

their princes shall fall by the sword

because of the insolence of their tongue.

This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

Hosea 7:1–10

[1] when I would heal Israel,

the iniquity of Ephraim is revealed,

and the evil deeds of Samaria,

for they deal falsely;

the thief breaks in,

and the bandits raid outside.

[2] But they do not consider

that I remember all their evil.

Now their deeds surround them;

they are before my face.

[3] By their evil they make the king glad,

and the princes by their treachery.

[4] They are all adulterers;

they are like a heated oven

whose baker ceases to stir the fire,

from the kneading of the dough

until it is leavened.

[5] On the day of our king, the princes

became sick with the heat of wine;

he stretched out his hand with mockers.

[6] For with hearts like an oven they approach their intrigue;

all night their anger smolders;

in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.

[7] All of them are hot as an oven,

and they devour their rulers.

All their kings have fallen,

and none of them calls upon me.

[8] Ephraim mixes himself with the peoples;

Ephraim is a cake not turned.

[9] Strangers devour his strength,

and he knows it not;

gray hairs are sprinkled upon him,

and he knows it not.

[10] The pride of Israel testifies to his face;

yet they do not return to the LORD their God,

nor seek him, for all this.

1 Corinthians 15:12–19

[12] Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? [13] But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. [14] And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. [15] We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. [16] For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. [17] And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. [18] Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. [19] If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

Luke 9:21–27

[21] And he strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, [22] saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

[23] And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. [24] For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. [25] For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? [26] For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. [27] But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”