The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday February 9, 2023 (NIV)

Instructions about Consecration

29 “This is what you are to do for them to consecrate them to serve me as priests. Take a young bull and two unblemished rams, ² with unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers coated with oil. Make them out of fine wheat flour,^{(A) 3} put them in a basket, and bring them in the basket, along with the bull and two rams. ⁴ Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting and wash them with water.^{(B) 5} Then take the garments and clothe Aaron with the tunic, the robe for the ephod, the ephod itself, and the breastpiece; fasten the ephod on him with its woven waistband.^{(C) 6} Put the turban on his head and place the holy diadem^(D) on the turban. ⁷ Take the anointing oil, pour it on his head, and anoint^(E) him. ⁸ You must also bring his sons and clothe them with tunics. ⁹ Tie the sashes on Aaron and his sons and fasten headbands on them. The priesthood is to be theirs by a permanent statute. This is the way you will ordain Aaron and^[a] his sons.^(F)

¹⁰ “You are to bring the bull to the front of the tent of meeting, and Aaron and his sons must lay their hands on the bull’s head.^{(G) 11} Slaughter the bull before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ¹² Take some of the bull’s blood and apply it to the horns^(H) of the altar with your finger; then pour out all the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. ¹³ Take all the fat^(I) that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys with the fat on them, and burn them on the altar. ¹⁴ But burn the bull’s flesh, its hide, and its waste outside the camp;^(J) it is a sin offering.

¹⁵ “Take one ram, and Aaron and his sons are to lay their hands on the ram’s head.^{(K) 16} You are to slaughter the ram, take its blood, and splatter it on all sides of the altar. ¹⁷ Cut the ram into pieces. Wash its entrails and legs, and place them with its head and its pieces on the altar. ¹⁸ Then burn the whole ram on the altar; it is a burnt offering to the Lord. It is a pleasing aroma,^(L) a food offering to the Lord.

¹⁹ “You are to take the second ram, and Aaron and his sons must lay their hands on the ram’s head.^{(M) 20} Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on Aaron’s right earlobe, on his sons’ right earlobes, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Splatter the remaining blood on all sides of the altar. ²¹ Take some of the blood that is on the altar and some of the anointing oil,^(N) and sprinkle them on Aaron and his garments, as well as on his sons and their garments. So he and his garments will be holy, as well as his sons and their garments.

²² “Take the fat from the ram, the fat tail, the fat covering the entrails, the fatty lobe of the liver, the two kidneys and the fat on them, and the right thigh (since this is a ram for ordination^[b]); ²³ take one loaf of bread, one cake of bread made with oil, and one wafer from the basket of unleavened bread that is before the Lord; ²⁴ and put all of them in the hands of Aaron and his^[c] sons and present them as a presentation offering before the Lord.^{(O) 25} Take them from their hands and burn them on the altar on top of the burnt offering, as a pleasing aroma before the Lord; it is a food offering to the Lord.

²⁶ “Take the breast from the ram of Aaron’s ordination and present it as a presentation offering before the Lord; it is to be your portion.^{(P) 27} Consecrate for Aaron and his sons^(Q) the breast of the presentation offering that is presented and the thigh of the contribution that is lifted up from the ram of ordination. ²⁸ This will belong to Aaron and his sons as a regular portion from the Israelites, for it is a contribution. It will be the Israelites’ contribution from their fellowship sacrifices, their contribution to the Lord.

²⁹ “The holy garments that belong to Aaron are to belong to his sons after him, so that they can be anointed and ordained^[d] in them.^{(R) 30} Any priest who is one of his sons and who succeeds him and enters the tent of meeting to minister in the sanctuary must wear them for seven days.^(S)

³¹ “You are to take the ram of ordination and boil its flesh in a holy place. ³² Aaron and his sons are to eat the meat of the ram and the bread that is in the basket at the entrance to the tent of meeting.^{(T) 33} They must eat those things by which atonement was made at the time of their ordination^[e] and consecration. An unauthorized person must not eat^(U) them, for these things are holy. ³⁴ If any of the meat of ordination or any of the bread is left until morning, burn what is left over. It must not be eaten because it is holy.

³⁵ “This is what you are to do for Aaron and his sons based on all I have commanded you. Take seven days to ordain them. ³⁶ Sacrifice a bull as a sin offering each day for atonement. Purify^[f] the altar when you make atonement for it, and anoint it in order to consecrate it.^{(V) 37} For seven days you must make atonement for the altar and consecrate it. The altar will be especially holy. Whatever touches the altar will be consecrated.^(W)

³⁸ “This is what you are to offer regularly on the altar every day: two year-old lambs.^{(X) 39} In the morning offer one lamb, and at twilight offer the other lamb.^{(Y) 40} With the first lamb offer two quarts^[g] of fine flour mixed with one quart^[h] of oil from crushed olives, and a drink offering of one quart of wine. ⁴¹ You are to offer the second lamb at twilight. Offer a grain offering and a drink offering with it, like the one in the morning, as a pleasing aroma, a food offering to the Lord. ⁴² This will be a regular burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you^[i] to speak with you.^{(Z) 43} I will also meet with the Israelites there, and that place will be consecrated by my glory.^{(AA) 44} I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar; I will also consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve me as priests. ⁴⁵ I will dwell^(AB) among the Israelites and be their God.^{(AC) 46} And they will know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, so that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.^(AD)

The Incense Altar

30 “You are to make an altar for the burning of incense; make it of acacia wood.^{(AE) 2} It must be square, eighteen inches long and eighteen inches wide;^[j] it must be thirty-six inches high.^[k] Its horns must be of one piece with it. ³ Overlay its top, all around its sides, and its horns with pure gold; make a gold molding all around it. ⁴ Make two gold rings for it under the molding on two of its sides; put these on opposite sides of it to be holders for the poles to carry it with. ⁵ Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.

⁶ “You are to place the altar in front of the curtain by the ark of the testimony—in front of the mercy seat that is over the testimony—where I will meet with you. ⁷ Aaron must burn fragrant incense on it; he must burn it every morning when he tends the lamps.^{(AF) 8} When Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he must burn incense. There is to be an incense offering before the Lord throughout your generations. ⁹ You must not offer unauthorized incense on it,^(AG) or a burnt or grain offering; you are not to pour a drink offering on it.

¹⁰ “Once a year Aaron is to perform the atonement ceremony for the altar. Throughout your generations he is to perform the atonement ceremony for^[l] it once a year, with the blood of the sin offering for atonement on the horns.^(AH) The altar is especially holy to the Lord.”

¹⁴ Then^(A) one of the Twelve, the man called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests^{(B) 15} and said, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” So they weighed out thirty pieces of silver for him.^{(C) 16} And from that time he started looking for a good opportunity to betray him.

Betrayal at the Passover

¹⁷ On the first day of Unleavened Bread^(D) the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

¹⁸ “Go into the city to a certain man,” he said, “and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My time is near; I am celebrating the Passover at your place^[a] with my disciples.’”^{(E) 19} So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. ²⁰ When evening came, he was reclining at the table with the Twelve. ²¹ While they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.”^(F)

²² Deeply distressed, each one began to say to him, “Surely not I, Lord?”

²³ He replied, “The one who dipped his hand with me in the bowl—he will betray me. ²⁴ The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him,^(G) but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for him if he had not been born.”

²⁵ Judas, his betrayer, replied, “Surely not I, Rabbi?” ^(H)

“You have said it,” he told him.

The First Lord’s Supper

²⁶ As they were eating,^(I) Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, gave it to the disciples,^(J) and said, “Take and eat it; this is my body.”^{(K) 27} Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks, he gave it to them and said, “Drink from it, all of you. ²⁸ For this is my blood of the covenant,^[b] which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.^{(L) 29} But I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”^{(M) 30} After singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.^(N)

Peter’s Denial Predicted

³¹ Then Jesus said to them, “Tonight all of you will fall away because of me, for it is written:

³² But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.”^(P)

³³ Peter told him, “Even if everyone falls away because of you, I will never fall away.”

³⁴ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to him, “tonight, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”^(Q)

³⁵ “Even if I have to die with you,” Peter told him, “I will never deny you,” and all the disciples said the same thing.

The Prayer in the Garden

³⁶ Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane,^(R) and he told the disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled.^{(S) 38} He said to them, “I am deeply grieved^[d] to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake with me.”^{(T) 39} Going a little farther,^[e] he fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”^(U)

⁴⁰ Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. He asked Peter, “So, couldn’t you stay awake with me one hour? ⁴¹ Stay awake and pray, so that you won’t enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴² Again, a second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this^[f] cannot pass^[g] unless I drink it, your will be done.”^{(V) 43} And he came again and found them sleeping, because they could not keep their eyes open.

⁴⁴ After leaving them, he went away again and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more. ⁴⁵ Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? See, the time is near. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.^{(W) 46} Get up; let’s go. See, my betrayer is near.”