The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday February 25, 2022 (NIV)

²⁹ “This is to be a permanent statute^(A) for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month you are to practice self-denial^(B) and do no work,^(C) both the native and the alien^(D) who resides among you. ³⁰ Atonement will be made for you on this day to cleanse you,^(E) and you will be clean from all your sins before the Lord. ³¹ It is a Sabbath^(F) of complete rest for you,^(G) and you must practice self-denial; it is a permanent statute. ³² The priest who is anointed and ordained^[a](H) to serve as high priest^(I) in place of his father will make atonement. He will put on the linen garments, the holy garments, ³³ and make atonement for the most holy place. He will make atonement for the tent of meeting and the altar and will make atonement for the priests and all the people of the assembly. ³⁴ This is to be a permanent statute for you, to make atonement for the Israelites once a year^(J) because of all their sins.” And all this was done as the Lord commanded Moses.

Forbidden Sacrifices

17 The Lord spoke to Moses: ² “Speak to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites and tell them: This is what the Lord has commanded: ³ Anyone from the house of Israel who slaughters^(K) an ox, sheep, or goat in the camp, or slaughters it outside the camp, ⁴ instead of bringing it to the entrance to the tent of meeting to present it as an offering to the Lord before his tabernacle—that person will be considered guilty.^[b](L) He has shed blood^(M) and is to be cut off from his people.^{(N) 5} This is so the Israelites will bring to the Lord the sacrifices^(O) they have been offering in the open country. They are to bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting and offer them as fellowship sacrifices^(P) to the Lord. ⁶ The priest will then splatter the blood on the Lord’s altar at the entrance to the tent of meeting and burn the fat as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. ⁷ They must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat-demons^(Q) that they have prostituted^(R) themselves with. This will be a permanent statute^(S) for them throughout their generations.

⁸ “Say to them: Anyone from the house of Israel or from the aliens^(T) who reside among them who offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice ⁹ but does not bring it to the entrance to the tent of meeting to sacrifice it to the Lord, that person is to be cut off from his people.

Eating Blood and Carcasses Prohibited

¹⁰ “Anyone from the house of Israel or from the aliens who reside among them who eats any blood,^(U) I will turn^[c] against that person who eats blood and cut him off from his people. ¹¹ For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have appointed it to you to make atonement on the altar for^[d] your lives, since it is the lifeblood that makes atonement.^{(V) 12} Therefore I say to the Israelites: None of you and no alien who resides among you may eat blood.

¹³ “Any Israelite or alien residing among them, who hunts^(W) down a wild animal or bird that may be eaten must drain its blood^(X) and cover it with dirt. ¹⁴ Since the life of every creature is its blood, I have told the Israelites: You are not to eat the blood of any creature,^(Y) because the life of every creature is its blood; whoever eats it must be cut off.

¹⁵ “Every person, whether the native or the resident alien,^(Z) who eats an animal that died a natural death or was mauled by wild beasts^(AA) is to wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will remain unclean until evening; then he will be clean. ¹⁶ But if he does not wash his clothes and bathe himself, he will bear his iniquity.”

Prohibited Pagan Practices

18 The Lord spoke to Moses: ² “Speak to the Israelites and tell them: I am the Lord your God.^{(AB) 3} Do not follow the practices of the land of Egypt,^(AC) where you used to live, or follow the practices of the land of Canaan,^(AD) where I am bringing you. You must not follow their customs.^{(AE) 4} You are to practice my ordinances^(AF) and you are to keep my statutes^(AG) by following them; I am the Lord your God. ⁵ Keep my statutes and ordinances; a person will live^(AH) if he does them.^(AI) I am the Lord.

⁶ “You are not to come near^(AJ) any close relative^[e] for sexual intercourse;^(AK) I am the Lord. ⁷ You are not to violate the intimacy that belongs to your father^(AL) and mother.^[f] She is your mother; you must not have sexual intercourse with her. ⁸ You are not to have sex with your father’s wife;^(AM) she is your father’s family.^{(AN) 9} You are not to have sexual intercourse with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s,^(AO) whether born at home or born elsewhere. You are not to have sex with her. ¹⁰ You are not to have sexual intercourse with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter, for they are your family.^{[g] 11} You are not to have sexual intercourse with your father’s wife’s daughter, who is adopted by^[h] your father; she is your sister. ¹² You are not to have sexual intercourse with your father’s sister;^(AP) she is your father’s close relative. ¹³ You are not to have sexual intercourse with your mother’s sister,^(AQ) for she is your mother’s close relative. ¹⁴ You are not to violate the intimacy that belongs to^[i] your father’s brother by approaching his wife to have sexual intercourse; she is your aunt.^{(AR) 15} You are not to have sexual intercourse with your daughter-in-law.^(AS) She is your son’s wife; you are not to have sex with her. ¹⁶ You are not to have sexual intercourse with your brother’s wife; she is your brother’s family.^{(AT) 17} You are not to have sexual intercourse with a woman and her daughter.^(AU) You are not to marry her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter and have sex with her. They are close relatives; it is depraved.^{(AV) 18} You are not to marry a woman as a rival to her sister and have sexual intercourse with her during her sister’s lifetime.^(AW)

¹⁹ “You are not to approach^(AX) a woman during her menstrual impurity to have sexual intercourse with her.^{(AY) 20} You are not to have sexual intercourse with^[j] your neighbor’s wife, defiling yourself with her.^(AZ)

²¹ “You are not to sacrifice any of your children in the fire^[k] to Molech.^(BA) Do not profane the name^(BB) of your God; I am the Lord. ²² You are not to sleep with a man as with a woman;^(BC) it is detestable.^{(BD) 23} You are not to have sexual intercourse with^[l] any animal, defiling yourself with it; a woman is not to present herself to an animal to mate with it;^(BE) it is a perversion.

²⁴ “Do not defile yourselves by any of these practices, for the nations I am driving out before you have defiled themselves by all these things. ²⁵ The land has become defiled, so I am punishing it for its iniquity, and the land will vomit out its inhabitants.^{(BF) 26} But you are to keep my statutes and ordinances. You must not commit any of these detestable acts—not the native or the alien who resides among you. ²⁷ For the people who were in the land prior to you have committed all these detestable acts, and the land has become defiled. ²⁸ If you defile the land, it will vomit^(BG) you out as it has vomited out the nations that were before you. ²⁹ Any person who does any of these detestable practices is to be cut off from his people. ³⁰ You must keep my instruction to not do any of the detestable customs^(BH) that were practiced before you, so that you do not defile yourselves by them; I am the Lord your God.”

A Gentile Mother’s Faith

²⁴ He got up and departed from^(A) there to the region of Tyre.^[a](B) He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it, but he could not escape notice. ²⁵ Instead, immediately after hearing about him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit^(C) came and fell at his feet.^{(D) 26} The woman was a Gentile,^[b](E) a Syrophoenician by birth, and she was asking him to cast the demon^(F) out of her daughter. ²⁷ He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, because it isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”^(G)

²⁸ But she replied to him, “Lord,^(H) even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

²⁹ Then he told her, “Because of this reply, you may go. The demon has left your daughter.” ³⁰ When she went back to her home, she found her child lying on the bed, and the demon was gone.

Jesus Does Everything Well

³¹ Again, leaving the region of Tyre,^(I) he went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee,^(J) through^[c] the region of the Decapolis.^{(K) 32} They brought to him a deaf^(L) man who had difficulty speaking^(M) and begged Jesus to lay his hand on^(N) him. ³³ So he took him away from the crowd in private. After putting his fingers in the man’s ears and spitting,^(O) he touched his tongue. ³⁴ Looking up to heaven,^(P) he sighed deeply and said to him, “Ephphatha!”^[d] (that is, “Be opened!”). ³⁵ Immediately his ears were opened,^(Q) his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly.^{(R) 36} He ordered them to tell no one,^(S) but the more he ordered them, the more they proclaimed it.^(T)

³⁷ They were extremely astonished and said, “He has done everything well.^(U) He even makes the deaf^(V) hear and the mute speak.”^(W)

Feeding Four Thousand

8 In^(X) those days there was again a large crowd, and they had nothing to eat. He called^(Y) the disciples^(Z) and said to them, ² “I have compassion^(AA) on the crowd, because they’ve already stayed with me three days and have nothing to eat. ³ If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way,^(AB) and some of them have come a long distance.”

⁴ His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread here in this desolate place to feed^(AC) these people?”

⁵ “How many loaves do you have?” he asked them.

“Seven,” they said. ⁶ He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground. Taking the seven loaves, he gave thanks, broke^(AD) them, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. So they served them to the crowd. ⁷ They also had a few small fish, and after he had blessed them, he said these were to be served as well. ⁸ They ate and were satisfied. Then they collected seven large baskets of leftover pieces. ⁹ About four thousand were there. He dismissed them. ¹⁰ And he immediately got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

Psalm 41

Victory in spite of Betrayal

For the choir director. A psalm of David.