2SAMUEL 24:Yesterday we heard David's final words and the listing of the 38 mighty warriors who loyally helped David in his victories. Note that Uriah the Hittite was so poignantly included at the end of the list. And this 24th chapter seems like a postscript.

PSALM 119:17-32:Yesterday's reading included two of the most famous verses from this psalm:

9 NLT How can a young person stay pure?By obeying your word.11 I have hidden your word in my heart,that I might not sin against you.

JOHN 4:Yesterday in John 3 we heard the words of John the Baptist at what I consider his finest hour. That was where he said, "He (Jesus) must grow greater and greater, and I must become less and less." This is a worthy goal for all of us.

NLT Translation notes:2Sam. 24:16 But as the [death//0] angel was preparing to destroy Jerusalem, the LORD relented and said to the [0/death] angel, "Stop! That is enough!" At that moment the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.====John 4:21 Jesus replied, "Believe me, [0//dear woman], the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem.[I don't think there is any good equivalent in English for the Greek here. One option runs the risk of sounding terribly rude, and this one runs the risk of misunderstanding the 'dear'ness of the woman to Jesus.]27 Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked to find him talking to a woman, but none of them had the nerve to ask, "What do you want with her?" or "Why are you talking to [him//her]?"45 Yet [, suprisingly,] the Galileans welcomed him, for they had been in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration and had seen everything he did there.48 Jesus [said//asked], "Will you [people] never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?"[It is important to show that the Greek is you-plural here, otherwise Jesus seems overly frustrated with just the one man.]

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