Day 360

OYB - December 26

Devotional Old Testament New Testament Psalm Proverb

Rejoice greatly, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey-even on a donkey's colt.

With amazing accuracy, Zechariah looked down the corridor of time and described Jesus Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Without the Holy Spirit, how could Zechariah have possibly known that one day Christ would indeed be riding on a little donkey, with thousands of adoring worshipers shouting and laying palm branches in the road? Matthew was an eyewitness of this exact scene and quoted Zechariah, the prophet who had predicted it (Matthew 21:5).

There are sixty-one direct prophecies such as this one, which had to be fulfilled in perfect sequence for Jesus to fulfill all the Old Testament predictions of the Messiah. According to renowned mathematician and scientist Peter Stoner, if the prophets had concocted in their own wisdom only eight prophecies, the odds of having all eight come true in any one person would be the same as the odds of someone who is blindfolded finding-on his first try-a marked silver dollar in the state of Texas, with the entire state buried two feet deep in silver dollars!

Let's bow today, not before the babe in the manger, but before the mighty King who "will bring peace to the nations" (Zechariah 9:10)!

Zechariah 9:1-17

1The burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD. 2And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise. 3And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets. 4Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire. 5Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. 6And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines. 7And I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth: but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite. 8And I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth: and no oppressor shall pass through them any more: for now have I seen with mine eyes.

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. 10And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. 11As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.

12 Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee; 13When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man. 14And the LORD shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south. 15The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar. 16And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land. 17For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids.

Revelation 17:1-18

1And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: 2With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. 3So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 6And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration. 7And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. 8The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. 9And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. 14These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. 15And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. 16And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. 17For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 18And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

Psalms 145:1-21

David’s Psalm of praise.

1I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever.

2Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.

3Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.

4One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.

5I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works.

6And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness.

7They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.

8The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

9The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.

10All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee.

11They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power;

12To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.

13Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.

14The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.

15The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season.

16Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

17The LORD is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works.

18The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.

19He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

20The LORD preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy.

21My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.

Proverbs 30:32

32If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth.