a thread opens
And the earth was formless and empty; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
The Vigil
Today’s scroll, one verse at a time — each linked to the last by the cross-references rather than by any model of you. The same vigil for everyone, and a different one tomorrow.
You send forth your spirit, they are created: and you renew the face of the earth.
from Genesis 1:2 · a strong link
Then he said to me, Prophesy to the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus says the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, so that they may live.
from Psalms 104:30 · a strong link
And shall put my spirit in you, and you shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall you know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, says the LORD.
from Ezekiel 37:9
a thread opens
Then Moses said to Aaron, This is it that the LORD spoke, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come near me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.
I was mute, I opened not my mouth; because you did it.
from Leviticus 10:3
And the king said, What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, because the LORD has said to him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Why have you done so?
from Psalms 39:9
Then Jesus said to Peter, Put up your sword into the sheath: the cup which my Father has given me, shall I not drink it?
from II Samuel 16:10
But Jesus answered and said, You know not what you ask. Are you able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say to him, We are able.
from John 18:11 · a strong link
Thus says your Lord the LORD, and your God that pleads the cause of his people, Look, I have taken out of your hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; you shall no more drink it again:
from Matthew 20:22
Their Redeemer is strong; the LORD of hosts is his name: he shall thoroughly plead their cause, so that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.
from Isaiah 51:22
a thread opens
Now to him that is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
from Jude 1:24
And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.
from Hebrews 13:20
Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, says the Lord GOD.
from Jeremiah 32:40
Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.
from Ezekiel 39:29
For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon your seed, and my blessing upon your offspring:
from Isaiah 32:15 · a strong link
a thread opens
Woe to them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
And the sons of Eliab; Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. This is that Dathan and Abiram, which were famous in the congregation, who strove against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korah, when they strove against the LORD:
from Jude 1:11
These were the renowned of the congregation, princes of the tribes of their fathers, heads of thousands in Israel.
from Numbers 26:9 · a strong link
And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of the house of his fathers.
from Numbers 1:16
And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
from Numbers 1:4
a thread opens
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things to himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
from Luke 2:14 · a strong link
Therefore in all things it befitted him to be made like to his brothers, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.
from Colossians 1:20
For such a high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;
from Hebrews 2:17
a thread opens
And shall not God give justice to his own elect, which cry day and night to him, though he bear long with them?
Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to repay with affliction those who afflict you;
from Luke 18:7
If I sharpen my glittering sword, and my hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to my enemies, and will reward them that hate me.
from II Thessalonians 1:6
For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.
from Deuteronomy 32:41
And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, says the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother.
from Isaiah 66:16
For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
from Ezekiel 38:21
And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man’s sword against his fellow, even throughout all the army: and the host fled to Beth-shittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abel-meholah, to Tabbath.
from II Chronicles 20:23
a thread opens
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear to myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.
from Luke 14:26 · a strong link
For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand.
from Acts 20:24
For I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
from II Timothy 4:6 · a strong link
And Jesus said to him, Truly I say to you, Today shall you be with me in paradise.
from Philippians 1:23
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also.
from Luke 23:43 · a strong link
That is the whole thread.
Every verse the cross-references reach from Genesis 1:2 along this chain. Today’s own vigil is laid separately.
Each verse follows the one before it along the chain a study Bible draws — a century old, public, and compiled by people arguing about Scripture rather than about how long you stay. Every card says which verse it came from and opens the chapter it belongs to. Today’s vigil is the same for every reader and is worked out from the date alone, so there is no account, no counter, and nothing stored in your browser or ours.
The text is the Lantern Modern Standard. The links are openbible.info’s cross-reference set (CC BY), the same apparatus behind the reader’s Echoes drawer. Read a whole book · Today’s table