Reflective Bible Study

¹ Let’s return to the Lord.
    He has torn us to shreds,
but he will bandage our wounds
    and make us well.

² In two or three days
    he will heal us
and restore our strength
    that we may live with him.

³ Let’s do our best
    to know the Lord.
His coming is as certain
    as the morning sun;
he will refresh us like rain
renewing the earth
    in the springtime.

⁴ People of Israel and Judah,
    what can I do with you?
Your love for me disappears
more quickly
than mist
    or dew at sunrise.

⁵ That’s why I slaughtered you
with the words
    of my prophets.
That’s why my judgments blazed
    like the dawning sun.

⁶ I’d rather for you to be faithful
and to know me
    than to offer sacrifices.

⁷ At a place named Adam,
you betrayed me
    by breaking our agreement.

⁸ Everyone in Gilead is evil;
your hands are stained
    with the blood of victims.

⁹ You priests are like a gang
    of robbers in ambush.
On the road to Shechem
you murder
and commit
    other horrible crimes.

¹⁰ I have seen a terrible thing
    in Israel—
you are unfaithful
    and unfit to worship me.

¹¹ People of Judah,
    your time is coming too.
I, the Lord, would like to make
my nation prosper again.

Read Hosea 6:1-11 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

¹ “The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at daybreak to hire workers for his vineyard. ² After agreeing to pay the workers the usual day’s wages, he sent them to work in his vineyard. ³ About 9 a.m. he saw others standing in the marketplace without work. ⁴ He said to them, ‘Work in my vineyard, and I’ll give you whatever is right.’ So they went.

⁵ “He went out again about noon and 3 p.m. and did the same thing. ⁶ About 5 p.m. he went out and found some others standing around. He said to them, ‘Why are you standing here all day long without work?’

⁷ “‘No one has hired us,’ they answered him.

“He said to them, ‘Work in my vineyard.’

⁸ “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard told the supervisor, ‘Call the workers, and give them their wages. Start with the last, and end with the first.’

⁹ “Those who started working about 5 p.m. came, and each received a day’s wages. ¹⁰ When those who had been hired first came, they expected to receive more. But each of them received a day’s wages. ¹¹ Although they took it, they began to protest to the owner. ¹² They said, ‘These last workers have worked only one hour. Yet, you’ve treated us all the same, even though we worked hard all day under a blazing sun.’

¹³ “The owner said to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m not treating you unfairly. Didn’t you agree with me on a day’s wages? ¹⁴ Take your money and go! I want to give this last worker as much as I gave you. ¹⁵ Can’t I do what I want with my own money? Or do you resent my generosity towards others?’

¹⁶ “In this way the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Read Matthew 20:1-16 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

¹³ “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴ But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Read Matthew 7:13-14 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

¹ “You must not pass along false rumors. You must not cooperate with evil people by lying on the witness stand.

² “You must not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you are called to testify in a dispute, do not be swayed by the crowd to twist justice. ³ And do not slant your testimony in favor of a person just because that person is poor.

⁴ “If you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey that has strayed away, take it back to its owner. ⁵ If you see that the donkey of someone who hates you has collapsed under its load, do not walk by. Instead, stop and help.

⁶ “In a lawsuit, you must not deny justice to the poor.

⁷ “Be sure never to charge anyone falsely with evil. Never sentence an innocent or blameless person to death, for I never declare a guilty person to be innocent.

⁸ “Take no bribes, for a bribe makes you ignore something that you clearly see. A bribe makes even a righteous person twist the truth.

⁹ “You must not oppress foreigners. You know what it’s like to be a foreigner, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.

¹⁰ “Plant and harvest your crops for six years, ¹¹ but let the land be renewed and lie uncultivated during the seventh year. Then let the poor among you harvest whatever grows on its own. Leave the rest for wild animals to eat. The same applies to your vineyards and olive groves.

¹² “You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but on the seventh day you must stop working. This gives your ox and your donkey a chance to rest. It also allows your slaves and the foreigners living among you to be refreshed.

¹³ “Pay close attention to all my instructions. You must not call on the name of any other gods. Do not even speak their names.

Read Exodus 23:1-13 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!