Day 23 covers all of Chapter 18, The Merits of a Person Who Rejoices at Hearing This Sutra, and opens Chapter 19, The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma.

Having last month concluded Day 23’s portion of The Merits of the Teacher of the Dharma, it’s time to return to the Merits of the Person Who Rejoices at Hearing This Sutra.

Thereupon Maitreya Bodhisattva-mahasattva said to the Buddha: “World-Honored One! How many merits will be given to a good man or woman who rejoices at hearing this Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma?” He sang in a gatha:

How many merits will be given
To a person who rejoices
At hearing this sutra
After your extinction?

Thereupon the Buddha said to Maitreya Bodhisattva-­mahasattva: Ajita! Suppose a bhiksu, a bhiksuni, an upasaka, an upasika, or some other wise person, whether young or old, rejoices at hearing this sutra in a congregation after my extinction. After leaving the congregation, he or she goes to some other place, for instance, to a monastery, a retired place, a city, a street, a town, or a village. There he or she expounds this sutra, as he or she has heard it, to his or her father, mother, relative, friend or acquaintance as far as he or she can. Another person who has heard [this sutra from him or her], rejoices, goes [to some other place] and expounds it to a third person. The third person also rejoices at hearing it and expounds it to a fourth person. In this way this sutra is heard by a fiftieth person. Ajita! Now I will tell you the merits of the fiftieth good man or woman who rejoices at hearing [this sutra]. Listen attentively!

Suppose the Jambudvipa was filled with wonderful treasures such as gold, silver, lapis lazuli, shell, agate, coral and amber; elephant-carts and horse-carts; and palaces and stately buildings made of the even treasures. Suppose a man who was seeking merits gave all those pleasing things [filling the Jambudvipa] to the living beings of four hundred billion asamkhya worlds according to their wishes. A world consists of the six regions. The living beings [of the six regions] are of one or another of the four kinds of births: oviparous, viviparous, from moisture, or without any medium: Some of them have form while others do not. Some have desire while others do not. Some have no feet while other have two feet or four or more. Having continued giving those alms to them for eighty years, this great almsgiver thought, ‘I gave those pleasing things to them according to their wishes. Now they are old and decrepit. They are more than eighty years old. Their hair is grey; and their faces, wrinkled. They will die before long. I will lead them by the Dharma of the Buddha.’

Then he collected them. He propagated the Dharma to them, led them by the Dharma, showed them the Dharma, taught them, benefited them, and caused them to rejoice. He caused them to attain in a moment the enlightenment of the Srotapanna, of the Sakrdagamin, of the Anagamin or of the Arhat, eliminate all asravas, practice deep dhyana-concentration without hindrance, and obtain the eight emancipations. What do you think of this? Do you think that the merits obtained by this great almsgiver were many or not?

Maitreya said to the Buddha:

World-Honored One! I think that his merits were many, immeasurable and limitless. His merits were already immeasurable when he gave all those pleasing things to them. Needless to say, so were his merits when he caused them to attain Arhatship.

The Buddha said to Maitreya:

Now I will tell you clearly. The merits of the person who gave The merits of the person who gave all those pleasing things to the living beings of the six regions of four hundred billion asaṃkhya worlds, and caused them to attain Arhatship are less than the merits of the fiftieth person who rejoices at hearing even a gāthā of this Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma.

The Daily Dharma of March 29, 2016, offers this explanation:

The Buddha gives this explanation to Maitreya (whom he calls Ajita – Invincible) in Chapter Eighteen of the Lotus Sūtra. He compares the benefit created by someone who teaches innumerable beings and makes exorbitant offerings through following the pre-Lotus sūtras to the benefits of finding joy in the Buddha’s Highest teaching. This joy is not the same as just getting what we want, or being relieved from what we do not want. It is the joy of seeing the world for what it is, and our place in it as Bodhisattvas who exist for the benefit of all beings.

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Day 22 covers all of Chapter 17, The Variety of Merits.

Having last month covered the merits of those who do not speak ill of this sutra but rejoice at hearing it after my extinction, it’s on to the merits of those who read, recite or keep this sutra, expound it to others, copies it, or causes others to copy it.

Ajita! Anyone who, after hearing this sutra, keeps or copies it or causes others to copy it after my extinction, should be considered to have already built many hundreds of thousands of billions of monasteries, that is to say, innumerable monasteries, each of which was installed with thirty-two beautiful halls made of red candana, eight times as tall as the tala-tree, and spacious enough to accommodate one hundred thousand bhiksus. He also should be considered to have already furnished [those monasteries] with gardens, forests, pools for bathing, promenades, and caves for the practice of dhyana, and filled [those monasteries] with clothing, food, drink, bedding, medicine, and things for amusements, and offered [those monasteries] to me and to the Samgha of bhiksus in my presence. Therefore, I say, ‘Anyone who keeps, reads or recites this sutra, expounds it to others, copies it, causes others to copy it, or makes offerings to a copy of it after my extinction, need not build a stupa or a monastery, or make offering to the Samgha.’ Needless to say, anyone who not only keeps this sutra but also gives alms, observes the precepts, practices patience, makes endeavors, concentrates his mind, and seeks wisdom, will be able to obtain the most excellent and innumerable merits. His merits will be as limitless as the sky is in the east, west, south, north, the four intermediate quarters, the zenith, and the nadir. These innumerable merits of his will help him obtain the knowledge of the equality and differences of all things.

Anyone who reads, recites or keeps this sutra, expounds it to others, copies it, or causes others to copy it [in my lifetime,] should be considered to have already built stupas and monasteries, made offerings to the Samgha of Sravakas, praised them, praised Bodhisattvas for their merits by hundreds of thousands of billions of ways of praising, expounded this Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma to others with various stories of previous lives according to the meanings of it, observed the precepts without fallacy, lived with gentle persons, practiced patience, refrained from anger, become resolute in mind, preferred sitting in dhyana, practiced deep concentrations of mind, become strenuous and brave, practiced good teachings, become clever and wise, and answered questions satisfactorily. Ajita! Any good man or woman who keeps, reads, or recites this sutra after my extinction, also will be able to obtain these merits. Know this! He or she should be considered to have already reached the place of enlightenment, approached Anuttara-­samyak-sambodhi, and sat under the tree of enlightenment. Ajita! Erect a stupa in the place where he or she sat, stood or walked! All gods and men should make offerings to that stupa just as they do to the stupa of a Buddha.

The Daily Dharma from Aug. 15, 2016, offers this:

Ajita! Any good man or woman who keeps, reads, or recites this sūtra after my extinction, also will be able to obtain these merits. Know this! He or she should be considered to have already reached the place of enlightenment, approached Anuttara-samyak-saṃbodhi, and sat under the tree of enlightenment. Ajita! Erect a stūpa in the place where he or she sat, stood or walked! All gods and men should make offerings to that stūpa just as they do to the stūpa of a Buddha.

Day 21 covers all of Chapter 16, The Duration of the Life of the Tathāgata.

Having last month concluded the chapter, it is time to begin again.

Thereupon the Buddha said to the great multitude including Bodhisattvas and others, ‘Good men! Understand my sincere and infallible words by faith!’

He said to the great multitude again, ‘Understand my sincere and infallible words by faith!’

He said to them once again, ‘Understand my sincere and infallible words by faith!’

Thereupon the great multitude of Bodhisattvas, headed by Maitreya, joined their hands together and said to the Buddha,

World-Honor done, tell us! We will receive your words by faith.

They said this three times. Then they said once again, ‘Tell us! We will receive your words by faith.’

Thereupon the World-Honored One, seeing that they repeated their appeal even after they repeated it three times, said to them:

Listen to me attentively! I will tell you about my hidden core and supernatural powers.

The Daily Dharma from April 10, 2016, offers this insight:

Thereupon the Buddha said to the great multitude including Bodhisattvas and others, “Good men! Understand my sincere and infallible words by faith!”