Deuteronomy 33
Moses Blesses the Tribes of Israel
33 These are the blessings that Moses, the man of God, pronounced on the people of Israel before he died.
2 The Lord came from Mount Sinai;
he rose like the sun over Edom
and shone on his people from Mount Paran.
Ten thousand angels were with him,
a flaming fire at his right hand.[a]
3 The Lord loves his people[b]
and protects those who belong to him.
So we bow at[c] his feet
and obey his commands.
4 We obey the Law that Moses gave us,
our nation's most treasured possession.
5 The Lord became king of his people Israel
when their tribes and leaders were gathered together.
6 Moses said about the tribe of Reuben:
“May Reuben never die out,
Although their people are few.”
7 About the tribe of Judah he said:
“Lord, listen to their cry for help;
Unite them again with the other tribes.
Fight for them, Lord,
And help them against their enemies.”[d]
8 (A)About the tribe of Levi he said:
“You, Lord, reveal your will by the Urim and Thummim[e]
Through your faithful servants, the Levites;
You put them to the test at Massah
And proved them true at the waters of Meribah.
9 They showed greater loyalty to you
Than to parents, brothers, or children.
They obeyed your commands
And were faithful to your covenant.
10 They will teach your people to obey your Law;
They will offer sacrifices on your altar.
11 Lord, help their tribe to grow strong;
Be pleased with what they do.
Crush all their enemies;
Let them never rise again.”
12 About the tribe of Benjamin he said:
“This is the tribe the Lord loves and protects;
He guards them all the day long,
And he dwells in their midst.”[f]
13 About the tribe of Joseph he said:
“May the Lord bless their land with rain
And with water from under the earth.
14 May their land be blessed with sun-ripened fruit,
Rich with the best fruits of each season.
15 May their ancient hills be covered with choice fruit.
16 May their land be filled with all that is good,
Blessed by the goodness of the Lord,
Who spoke from the burning bush.
May these blessings come to the tribe of Joseph,
Because he was the leader among his brothers.
17 Joseph has the strength of a bull,
The horns of a wild ox.
His horns are Manasseh's thousands
And Ephraim's ten thousands.
With them he gores the nations
And pushes them to the ends of the earth.”
18 About the tribes of Zebulun and Issachar he said:
“May Zebulun be prosperous in their trade on the sea,
And may Issachar's wealth increase at home.
19 They invite foreigners to their mountain
And offer the right sacrifices there.
They get their wealth from the sea
And from the sand along the shore.”
20 About the tribe of Gad he said:
“Praise God, who made their territory large.
Gad waits like a lion
To tear off an arm or a scalp.
21 They took the best of the land for themselves;
A leader's share was assigned to them.
They obeyed the Lord's commands and laws
When the leaders of Israel were gathered together.”[g]
22 About the tribe of Dan he said:
“Dan is a young lion;
He leaps out from Bashan.”
23 About the tribe of Naphtali he said:
“Naphtali is richly blessed by the Lord's good favor;
Their land reaches to the south from Lake Galilee.”
24 About the tribe of Asher he said:
“Asher is blessed more than the other tribes.
May he be the favorite of his brothers,
And may his land be rich with olive trees.
25 May his towns be protected with iron gates,
And may he always live secure.”
26 People of Israel, no god is like your God,
riding in splendor across the sky,
riding through the clouds to come to your aid.
27 God has always been your defense;
his eternal arms are your support.
He drove out your enemies as you advanced,
and told you to destroy them all.
28 So Jacob's descendants live in peace,
secure in a land full of grain and wine,
where dew from the sky waters the ground.
29 Israel, how happy you are!
There is no one like you,
a nation saved by the Lord.
The Lord himself is your shield and your sword,
to defend you and give you victory.
Your enemies will come begging for mercy,
and you will trample them down.
Footnotes:
- Deuteronomy 33:2 Probable text Ten thousand … right hand; Hebrew unclear.
- Deuteronomy 33:3 One ancient translation his people; Hebrew the peoples.
- Deuteronomy 33:3 Probable text bow at; Hebrew unclear.
- Deuteronomy 33:7 Probable text Fight for … enemies; Hebrew The tribe of Judah will fight for itself, and the Lord will help it against its enemies.
- Deuteronomy 33:8 Two objects used by the priest to determine God's will; it is not known precisely how they were used.
- Deuteronomy 33:12 And he … midst; or They live under his protection.
- Deuteronomy 33:21 One ancient translation When the leaders … together; Hebrew unclear.
Cross references:
Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society
Luke 13:1-21
Turn from Your Sins or Die
13 At that time some people were there who told Jesus about the Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices to God. 2 Jesus answered them, “Because those Galileans were killed in that way, do you think it proves that they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? 3 No indeed! And I tell you that if you do not turn from your sins, you will all die as they did. 4 What about those eighteen people in Siloam who were killed when the tower fell on them? Do you suppose this proves that they were worse than all the other people living in Jerusalem? 5 No indeed! And I tell you that if you do not turn from your sins, you will all die as they did.”
The Parable of the Unfruitful Fig Tree
6 Then Jesus told them this parable: “There was once a man who had a fig tree growing in his vineyard. He went looking for figs on it but found none. 7 So he said to his gardener, ‘Look, for three years I have been coming here looking for figs on this fig tree, and I haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it go on using up the soil?’ 8 But the gardener answered, ‘Leave it alone, sir, just one more year; I will dig around it and put in some fertilizer. 9 Then if the tree bears figs next year, so much the better; if not, then you can have it cut down.’”
Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath
10 One Sabbath Jesus was teaching in a synagogue. 11 A woman there had an evil spirit that had kept her sick for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called out to her, “Woman, you are free from your sickness!” 13 He placed his hands on her, and at once she straightened herself up and praised God.
14 (A)The official of the synagogue was angry that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, so he spoke up and said to the people, “There are six days in which we should work; so come during those days and be healed, but not on the Sabbath!”
15 The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Any one of you would untie your ox or your donkey from the stall and take it out to give it water on the Sabbath. 16 Now here is this descendant of Abraham whom Satan has kept in bonds for eighteen years; should she not be released on the Sabbath?” 17 His answer made his enemies ashamed of themselves, while the people rejoiced over all the wonderful things that he did.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed(B)
18 Jesus asked, “What is the Kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? 19 It is like this. A man takes a mustard seed and plants it in his field. The plant grows and becomes a tree, and the birds make their nests in its branches.”
The Parable of the Yeast(C)
20 Again Jesus asked, “What shall I compare the Kingdom of God with? 21 It is like this. A woman takes some yeast and mixes it with a bushel of flour until the whole batch of dough rises.”
Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society
Psalm 78:65-72
65 At last the Lord woke up as though from sleep;
he was like a strong man excited by wine.
66 He drove his enemies back
in lasting and shameful defeat.
67 But he rejected the descendants of Joseph;
he did not select the tribe of Ephraim.
68 Instead he chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he dearly loves.
69 There he built his Temple
like his home in heaven;
he made it firm like the earth itself,
secure for all time.
70 (A)He chose his servant David;
he took him from the pastures,
71 where he looked after his flocks,
and he made him king of Israel,
the shepherd of the people of God.
72 David took care of them with unselfish devotion
and led them with skill.
Cross references:
Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society
Proverbs 12:25
25 Worry can rob you of happiness, but kind words will cheer you up.
Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society