The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) - Day 240: Remaining Humble (2024)

Episode Date: August 27, 2024

Fr. Mike touches on Proverbs 16:3, which is about giving everything in our lives to the service of the Lord. He also emphasizes how important it is to humble ourselves before the Lord, so to avoid becoming like the false prophets Jeremiah talks about today. Today's readings are Jeremiah 23, Daniel 4-5, and Proverbs 16:1-4. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz, and you're listening to the Bible in a Year podcast, where we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of Scripture. The Bible in a Year podcast is brought to you by Ascension. Using the Great Adventure Bible timeline, we'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story today. It is day 240. Congratulations for making it this far. We're reading today Jeremiah 23, as well as Daniel chapters four and five. We're also reading Proverbs chapter 16,

new chapter for Proverbs, verses one through four. As always, the Bible translation that I'm reading from is the Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition. I'm using the Great Adventure Bible from Ascension. If you want to download your own Bible in a Year reading plan, you can visit ascensionpress.com slash Bible in a year. You can also subscribe to this podcast by clicking on subscribe and receiving daily episodes and receiving daily updates as it is today, day 240. That means you have 125, 365, yep, 125 more days left. But gosh, I think this is two thirds-ish, two thirds-ish of the way through. And just imagine the gift. I just even realized just for-ish, two thirds-ish of the way through. And just imagine the gift. I just even realized just for right now, not only the gift of being able to journey as this

part of this community through the Bible in a year, but also the gift of being able to every day, whenever you've pressed play, to be able to just hear God's word in your ear and in our hearts. What a gift. As I said, it's day 240. We're reading Jeremiah chapter 23, Daniel chapter 4 and 5 in Proverbs chapter 16, verses 1 through 4. The book of the prophet Jeremiah chapter 23, a remnant to be restored after exile. Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, says the Lord. Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for my people, you have scattered my flock and have

driven them away and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the Lord. Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and I will bring them back to their fold and they shall be fruitful The righteous branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days, Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called. The Lord is our righteousness. Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when men shall no longer say, as the Lord lives who brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt, but as the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them, then they shall dwell in their own land.

False prophets denounced. Concerning the prophets, My heart is broken within me, all my bones shake. I am like a drunken man, like a man overcome by wine, because of the Lord and because of his holy words. For the land is full of adulterers, because of the curse the land mourns, and the pastures of the wilderness are dried up. Their course is evil and their might is not right. Both prophet and priest are ungodly.

Even in my house, I have found their wickedness, says the Lord. Therefore, their way shall be to them like slippery paths in the darkness, into which they shall be driven and fall. For I will bring evil upon them in the year of their punishment, says the Lord. In the prophets of Samaria, I saw an unsavory thing. They prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray. But in the prophets of Jerusalem, I have seen a horrible thing. They commit adultery and walk in lies.

They strengthen the hands of evildoers so that no one turns from his wickedness. All of them have become like Sodom to me, and its inhabitants like Gomorrah. Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets, Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and give them poisoned water to drink. For from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has gone forth into all the land. Thus says the Lord of hosts, Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, it shall be well

with you. And to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, no evil shall come upon you. For who among them has stood in the counsel of the Lord, to perceive and to hear his word, or who has given heed to his word and listened? Behold, the storm of the Lord. Wrath has gone forth, a whirling tempest. It will burst upon the head of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until he has executed and accomplished the intent of his mind. In the latter days, you will understand it clearly. I did not send the prophets, yet they ran. I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied. If they had stood in my counsel, then they would have proclaimed my

words to the people and they would have turned them from their evil way and from the evil of their doings. Am I a God at hand, says the Lord, and not a God afar off? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him, says the Lord? Do I not fill heaven and earth, says the Lord? I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesied lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. How long shall there be lies in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart, who think to make my people forget my name by their dreams, which they tell one another, even as their fathers forgot my name

for Baal. Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let him who has my word speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat, says the Lord, is not my word like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer which breaks the rock in pieces. Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who steal my words from one another. Behold, I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who use their tongues and say says the lord behold i am against those who prophesy lying dreams says the lord and who tell them and lead my people astray by their lies and their recklessness when i did not send them or charge them so they do not profit this people at all says the lord when one of this people, or a prophet, or a priest asks you, What is the burden of the Lord?

You shall say to them, You are the burden, and I will cast you off, says the Lord. And as for the prophet, priest, or one of the people who says, The burden of the Lord, I will punish that man and his household. Thus shall you say, everyone to his neighbor and everyone to his brother, What has the Lord answered? Or what has the Lord spoken? But the burden of the Lord you shall mention no more. For the burden is every man's own word, and you pervert the words of the living God, the Lord of hosts, our God. Thus you shall say to the prophet, what has the Lord answered you? Or what has the Lord spoken? But if you say, The burden of the Lord, thus says the Lord,

because you have said these words, The burden of the Lord, when I sent to you, saying, You shall not say, The burden of the Lord. Therefore, behold, I will surely lift you up and cast you away from my presence, you and the city which I gave to you and your fathers. And I will bring upon you everlasting reproach and perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten. The Book of Daniel, Chapter 4. Nebuchadnezzar's Second Dream. King Nebuchadnezzar, to all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth, peace be multiplied to you. It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God

has wrought toward me. How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation. I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace. I had a dream which made me afraid. As I lay in bed, the fancies and the visions of my head alarmed me. Therefore, I made a decree that all the wise men of Babylon should be brought before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream. Then the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers came in, and I told them the dream, but they could not make known to me its interpretation. At last Daniel came in before me, he who was named Belteshazzar, after the name of my God, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods, and I told him the dream, saying,

O Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that no mystery is difficult for you. Here is the dream which I saw. Tell me its interpretation. The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these. I saw, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great. The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth. Its leaves were fair, and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, and the birds of the air dwelt in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it. I saw in the visions of my head as I lay in bed, and behold,

a watcher, a holy one, came down from heaven. He cried aloud and said thus, Hew down the tree and cut off its branches, strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches, but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze amid the tender grass of the field. Let him be wet with the dew of heaven. Let his lot be with the beasts in tender grass of the field. Let him be wet with the dew of heaven. Let his lot be with the beasts in the grass of the earth. Let his mind be changed from a man's, and let a beast's mind be given to him, and let seven times pass over him. The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living

may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men. This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, saw. And you, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation, because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation, but you are able, for the spirit of the holy gods is in you. Daniel interprets the second dream. Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was dismayed for a moment, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king said, Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you. Belteshazzar answered, My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you,

and its interpretation for your enemies. The tree you saw, which grew and became strong, so that its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth, whose leaves were fair and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which beasts of the field found shade, and in whose branches the birds of the air dwelt. It is you, O king, who have grown and become strong. Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven and your dominion to the ends of the earth. And whereas the king saw a watcher, a holy one coming down from heaven and saying, hew down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a

band of iron and bronze in the tender grass of the field and let him be wet with the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, and let him be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his lot be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass over him, this is the interpretation, O king. It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. And as it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of

the tree, your kingdom shall be sure for you from the time that you know that heaven rules. Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you. Break off your sins by practicing righteousness and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your tranquility. All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar at the end of twelve months. He was walking on the roof of the royal palace in Babylon. And the king said, is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty? While the words were still in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven. Oh, King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken. The kingdom has departed from you and you shall be driven

from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven times shall pass over you until you have learned that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. Immediately the word was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagle's feathers and his nails were like bird's claws. Nebuchadnezzar praises God. At the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven and my reason returned to me and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored him who lives forever for his dominion is an everlasting dominion and his kingdom endures

from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing and he does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth and none can stay his hand or say to him, what have you done? At the same time, my reason returned to me and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me. My counselors and my lords sought me and I was established in my kingdom and still more greatness was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the king of heaven for all his works are right and his ways are just, and those who walk in pride he is able to abase. Chapter 5. Belshazzar's Feast. King Belshazzar made a great feast for a

thousand of his lords and drank wine in front of the thousand. Belshazzar, when he tasted the wine, commanded that the vessels of gold and of silver which Nebuchadnezzar, his father, had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem be brought, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. Then they brought in the gold and silver vessels, which had been taken out of the temple, the house of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone. The handwriting on the wall. Immediately, the fingers of a man's hand appeared and wrote on

the plaster of the wall of the king's palace opposite the lampstand, and the king saw the hand as it wrote. Then the king's color changed, and his thoughts alarmed him. His limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together. The king cried aloud to bring in the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers. The king said to the wise men of Babylon, Whoever reads this writing, and shows me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom. Then all the king's wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or make known to the king the interpretation. Then King Belshazzar was greatly alarmed, and his color changed,

and his lords were perplexed. The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came into the banqueting hall, and the queen said, O king, live forever. Let not your thoughts alarm you, or your color change. There is in your kingdom a man in whom is the spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, were found in him. And King Nebuchadnezzar, your father, made him chief of the magicians, enchanters, Chaldeans, and astrologers, because an excellent spirit, knowledge, and understanding to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now let Daniel be called, and he will show the interpretation.

Daniel interprets the writing on the wall. Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel, You are that Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah, whom the king, my father brought from Judah. I have heard of you that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you. Now the wise men, the enchanters have been brought in before me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not show the interpretation of the matter. But I have heard that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Now, if you

can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold about your neck and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom. Then Daniel answered before the king, let your gifts be for yourself and give your rewards to another. Nevertheless, I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation. O king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty. And because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whom he would, he slew, and whom he would, he kept alive. Whom he would, he raised up, and whom he would, he kept alive. Whom he would, he raised up, and whom he would,

he put down. But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was deposed from his kingly throne and his glory was taken from him. He was driven from among men and his mind was made like that of a beast. And his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. He was fed grass like an ox and his body was wet with the dew ofkeys, he was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of men and sets over it whom he will. And you, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this, but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven, and the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines

have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know. But the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored. Then from his presence the hand was sent, and this writing was inscribed, and this is the writing that was inscribed, Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin. This is the interpretation of the matter. Mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end. Tekel, you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting. Perez, your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Then Belshazzar commanded

and Daniel was clothed with purple. A chain of gold was put about his neck and proclamation was made concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom. That very night, Belshazzar, the Chaldean king, was slain and Darius, the Mede, received the kingdom, being about 62 years old. The Book of Proverbs chapter 16 verses 1 through 4. Solomon's Proverbs on Life and Conduct.

The plans of the mind belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit. Commit your work to the Lord and your plans will be established. The Lord has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble. Father in heaven, we give you praise and glory.

We thank you so much. Thank you for this day. Thank you for a new day. Thank you for bringing us to this moment where we get to not only hear your word, but we get to be united. We get to be united as a group of people, as a community of people are listening to your word

and are bound together, not only by your love for us, our love for you, your word, and also this bond of prayer that we lift each other up in prayer every single day, because we need your grace. We need each other. We cannot make this journey on our own. You have not left us orphans. You have called us your sons and daughters. You have become our father. You made us brothers and sisters from all across the world, Lord God, from every race, every ethnicity, from every nationality. We're united by your Holy Spirit.

And we are truly brothers and sisters belonging to you, our true dad, our true father. Thank you. Please hear our prayer in Jesus name. Amen. In the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy spirit. Amen. I love, gosh, you guys, every reading today was just fire. As they say, just gold chapter 16, verse three of Proverbs is one of those that I have had on a, like a bookmarker ever since I was a little kid, little kid. There's two Proverbs that I've had in front of me virtually my entire life. And chapter 16, verse 3 is one of those. It's commit your work to the Lord and your plans will be established. That has been before my eyes almost every day since I was maybe in second grade. Commit your works to the Lord and your plans will be established.

That sense of just being able to say, God, this is for you and everything I do, I want to do it for you. Just like Brian Adams saying, maybe not exactly like Brian Adams saying, but what a gift today to be able to go through Jeremiah. You know, Jeremiah, the weeping prophet is going to talk a lot about good shepherds and bad shepherds. He's going to talk a lot about the true prophets and the lying prophets. And he, and today is no different. Like today is no exception. But there's this section in chapter 23 where God is speaking and God says, am I God at hand? This is chapter 23, verse 23.

Am I God at hand, says the Lord, and not a God far off? And this is so key. Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? Do I not fill heaven and earth? And he says, I have heard what the prophets have said, who prophesied lies in my name saying, I have dreamed, I've dreamed. And it goes on to talk about not only those people who prophesied their own thoughts, as opposed to prophesy the words that I've spoken. And this is so, so critical because we were commanded in the commandments to not take the name of the Lord in vain. And I've heard people explain this not only means uttering the name of God without meaning or kind of carelessly, but it also, I've heard people describe it, it also means to not, to prohibit, to be a commandment against doing something in the name of the Lord that the

Lord would never endorse, right? That doing something in the name of God that actually is really truly actually only done in my own name or in the name of someone else or in the name of a political thing or the name of a cultural thing, the name of any other kind of preference. What I've done is I've ascribed or I've maybe invoked God's name upon this thing that I prefer. And that is seems to be what's happening here in chapter 23, where Jeremiah is pointing out these prophets are not prophesying what God has said. They're simply prophesying their own thing. They're simply prophesying their own heart, their own mind, their own ideas. And of course that is not prophecy at all. Really. It's that's simply them talking, not God talking. And that recognition that we are called in so many ways to humble ourselves before the

Lord and to let him teach us. That's what chapter four and five of Daniel is all about, right? Chapter four and five of Daniel is all about King Nebuchadnezzar being humbled. Is King Nebuchadnezzar being humbled before the Lord and King Nebuchadnezzar not only being humbled before the Lord, but being humbled before the Lord and then being taught by God. This is so critical that he's not simply humbled for humility's sake, right? He is humbled before the Lord. His power is taken away.

His majesty is taken away. Even his reason is taken away so that he can realize that the most high is truly God. That there's someone even above Nebuchadnezzar. He, there's no one, I mean, I'm sure his entire life, Nebuchadnezzar was the number one person. He's the top dog his entire life. And God is making it known, actually, actually there are those above you.

And he, God himself, the most high is the highest. He's the most high. And so this recognition that Nebuchadnezzar learned this is really remarkable and such a gift for all of us to note. Then, of course, in chapter five, we have the story of Belshazzar and the handwriting on the wall that is interpreted, noting that he was going to be taken down, right? He was going to be surpassed by the Persians. And so as we get to the end of chapter five of Daniel,

we have this transition. And the transition is that the Persians have now come into Babylon and they're now going to be the top dogs. And that's such a great thing. Kingdoms coming and going, like nations rising and falling, kings being lifted up and kings being brought down

is the way the world goes. And we can be so, maybe not you, Like nations rising and falling, kings being lifted up and kings being brought down is the way the world goes. And we can be so, maybe not you, but so many of us can be so preoccupied with the stories of like what's happening in the world, what's happening in politics, what's happening in the culture, as opposed to realizing this is what always happens. People come and people go. Nations rise, nations fall. Kings come, people go. Nations rise, nations fall. Kings come, kings go. And what we're

called to do is humble ourselves before the Lord, to serve the Lord, our God, to love him with everything we are, everything we have, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. And so we give God praise today and ask him to help us do that, to help us. Yep, we pay attention. We have a finger on the pulse of the world, but at the same time, our hearts belong to the Lord and our service and worship belongs to him and our care belongs to those people around us. So that's a lot. I mean, that's, that's plenty, I think for most of us. And so we need help even to do that. So we need grace. We need God's help. We need prayers. And so I am praying for you. Please pray for me. My name is father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow.

God bless.