Category: DAB Readings

Moses’s Blessings

33 This is the blessing that Moses, the man of God, gave the Israelites before his death.^{(A) 2} He said:

⁷ He said this about Judah:

⁸ He said about Levi:

¹² He said about Benjamin:

¹³ He said about Joseph:

¹⁸ He said about Zebulun:

²⁰ He said about Gad:

²² He said about Dan:

²³ He said about Naphtali:

²⁴ He said about Asher:

Repent or Perish

13 At that time,^(A) some people came and reported to him about the Galileans^(B) whose blood Pilate^(C) had mixed with their sacrifices. ² And he^[a] responded to them, “Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered these things?^{(D) 3} No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well. ⁴ Or those eighteen that the tower in Siloam^(E) fell on and killed—do you think they were more sinful than all the other people who live in Jerusalem? ⁵ No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well.”

The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree

⁶ And he told this parable:^(F) “A man had a fig tree that was planted in his vineyard. He came looking for fruit on it and found none.^{(G) 7} He told the vineyard worker, ‘Listen, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down!^(H) Why should it even waste the soil?’^(I)

⁸ “But he replied to him, ‘Sir,^[b] leave it this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.^{(J) 9} Perhaps it will produce fruit next year, but if not, you can cut it down.’”

Healing a Daughter of Abraham

¹⁰ As he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath,^{(K) 11} a woman was there who had been disabled by a spirit^[c](L) for over eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all.^{[d] 12} When Jesus saw her, he called out to her,^[e] “Woman, you are free of your disability.” ¹³ Then he laid his hands on her,^(M) and instantly she was restored^(N) and began to glorify God.^(O)

¹⁴ But the leader of the synagogue, indignant^(P) because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, responded by telling the crowd, “There are six days when work should be done;^(Q) therefore come on those days and be healed and not on the Sabbath day.”

¹⁵ But the Lord answered him and said, “Hypocrites!^(R) Doesn’t each one of you untie his ox^(S) or donkey from the feeding trough^(T) on the Sabbath and lead it to water?^{(U) 16} Satan^(V) has bound^(W) this woman, a daughter of Abraham,^(X) for eighteen years—shouldn’t she be untied from this bondage^[f] on the Sabbath day?”

¹⁷ When he had said these things, all his adversaries^(Y) were humiliated,^(Z) but the whole crowd was rejoicing over all the glorious things he was doing.^(AA)

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and of the Leaven

¹⁸ He said, therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like,^(AB) and what can I compare it to? ¹⁹ It’s like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

²⁰ Again he said, “What can I compare the kingdom of God^(AC) to? ²¹ It’s like leaven^[g](AD) that a woman took and mixed into fifty pounds^[h] of flour until all of it was leavened.”

⁴⁴ Moses came with Joshua^[k] son of Nun and recited all the words of this song in the presence of the people. ⁴⁵ After Moses finished reciting all these words to all Israel, ⁴⁶ he said to them, “Take to heart all these words I am giving as a warning to you today,^(K) so that you may command your children to follow all the words of this law carefully.^{(L) 47} For they are not meaningless words to you but they are your life,^(M) and by them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

Moses’s Impending Death

⁴⁸ On that same day the Lord spoke to Moses,^{(N) 49} “Go up Mount Nebo^(O) in the Abarim range in the land of Moab, across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan I am giving the Israelites as a possession. ⁵⁰ Then you will die on the mountain that you go up, and you will be gathered to your people,^(P) just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people.^{(Q) 51} For both of you broke faith with me among the Israelites at the Waters of Meribath-kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin by failing to treat me as holy in their presence. ⁵² Although from a distance you will view the land that I am giving the Israelites, you will not go there.”^(R)

Ready for the Master’s Return

³⁵ “Be ready for service^[a] and have your lamps lit.^{(A) 36} You are to be like people waiting for their master^(B) to return from the wedding banquet^(C) so that when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him at once.^{(D) 37} Blessed will be those servants the master finds alert^(E) when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will get ready,^[b] have them recline at the table, then come and serve them.^{(F) 38} If he comes in the middle of the night, or even near dawn,^[c] and finds them alert, blessed are those servants. ³⁹ But know this: If the homeowner had known at what hour the thief was coming,^(G) he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also be ready,^(H) because the Son of Man^(I) is coming at an hour you do not expect.”^(J)

Rewards and Punishment

⁴¹ “Lord,” Peter asked, “are you telling this parable to us or to everyone?”

⁴² The Lord said: “Who then is the faithful and sensible manager^(K) his master will put in charge of his household servants to give them their allotted food^(L) at the proper time? ⁴³ Blessed is that servant whom the master finds doing his job when he comes. ⁴⁴ Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁵ But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’^(M) and starts to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, ⁴⁶ that servant’s master will come on a day he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know. He will cut him to pieces^[d] and assign him a place with the unfaithful.^{[e] 47} And that servant who knew his master’s will and didn’t prepare himself or do it^[f] will be severely beaten.^{(N) 48} But the one who did not know and did what deserved^(O) punishment will receive a light beating. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be expected.^[g](P)

Not Peace but Division

⁴⁹ “I came^(Q) to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already set ablaze! ⁵⁰ But I have a baptism to undergo,^(R) and how it consumes^(S) me until it is finished!^{(T) 51} Do you think that I came here to bring peace on the earth?^(U) No, I tell you, but rather division. ⁵² From now on, five in one household will be divided: three against two, and two against three.

Interpreting the Time

⁵⁴ He also said to the crowds:^(W) “When you see a cloud rising in the west, right away you say, ‘A storm is coming,’ and so it does.^{(X) 55} And when the south wind is blowing, you say, ‘It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. ⁵⁶ Hypocrites!^(Y) You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky, but why don’t you know how to interpret this present time?^(Z)

Settling Accounts

⁵⁷ “Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right?^{(AA) 58} As you are going with your adversary^(AB) to the ruler, make an effort to settle with him on the way. Then he won’t drag you before the judge,^(AC) the judge hand you over to the bailiff, and the bailiff throw you into prison.^{(AD) 59} I tell you, you will never get out of there until you have paid the last cent.”^[i](AE)

Joshua Takes Moses’s Place

31 Then Moses continued to speak these^[a] words to all Israel, ² saying, “I am now 120 years old;^(A) I can no longer act as your leader.^[b] The Lord has told me, ‘You will not cross the Jordan.’^{(B) 3} The Lord your God is the one who will cross ahead of you.^(C) He will destroy these nations before you, and you will drive them out. Joshua is the one who will cross ahead of you, as the Lord has said.^{(D) 4} The Lord will deal with them as he did Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and their land when he destroyed them.^{(E) 5} The Lord will deliver them over to you, and you must do to them exactly as I have commanded you. ⁶ Be strong and courageous;^(F) don’t be terrified or afraid of them. For the Lord your God is the one who will go with you;^(G) he will not leave you or abandon you.”^(H)

⁷ Moses then summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will go with^[c] this people into the land the Lord swore to give to their fathers.^(I) You will enable them to take possession of it. ⁸ The Lord is the one who will go before you.^(J) He will be with you; he will not leave you or abandon you.^(K) Do not be afraid or discouraged.”

⁹ Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the Lord’s covenant, and to all the elders of Israel. ¹⁰ Moses commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the year of debt cancellation,^(L) during the Festival of Shelters,^{(M) 11} when all Israel assembles^[d] in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he chooses,^(N) you are to read this law aloud before all Israel.^{(O) 12} Gather the people—men, women, dependents, and the resident aliens within your city gates—so that they may listen and learn to fear^(P) the Lord your God and be careful to follow all the words of this law. ¹³ Then their children^(Q) who do not know the law will listen and learn to fear the Lord your God as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

¹⁴ The Lord said to Moses, “The time of your death is now approaching. Call Joshua and present yourselves at the tent of meeting so that I may commission him.” When Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the tent of meeting, ¹⁵ the Lord appeared at the tent in a pillar of cloud,^(R) and the cloud stood at the entrance to the tent.^(S)

¹⁶ The Lord said to Moses, “You are about to rest with your fathers,^(T) and these people will soon prostitute themselves with the foreign gods^(U) of the land they are entering. They will abandon me^(V) and break the covenant^(W) I have made with them. ¹⁷ My anger will burn against them on that day;^(X) I will abandon them and hide my face from them so that they will become easy prey.^[e](Y) Many troubles and afflictions will come to them. On that day they will say, ‘Haven’t these troubles come to us because our God is no longer with us?’ ¹⁸ I will certainly hide my face on that day because of all the evil they have done by turning to other gods. ¹⁹ Therefore write down this song^(Z) for yourselves and teach it to the Israelites; have them sing it,^[f] so that this song may be a witness for me against the Israelites. ²⁰ When I bring them into the land I swore to give their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey,^(AA) they will eat their fill^(AB) and prosper.^[g] They will turn to other gods and worship them, despising me^(AC) and breaking my covenant.^{(AD) 21} And when many troubles and afflictions come to them, this song will testify against them, because^[h] their descendants will not have forgotten it. For I know what they are prone to do,^[i] even before I bring them into the land I swore to give them.” ²² So Moses wrote down this song on that day and taught it to the Israelites.

²³ The Lord commissioned Joshua son of Nun, “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I swore to them, and I will be with you.”^(AE)

Moses Warns the People

²⁴ When Moses had finished writing down on a scroll every single word^[j] of this law, ²⁵ he commanded the Levites who carried the ark of the Lord’s covenant, ²⁶ “Take this book of the law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God so that it may remain there as a witness against you. ²⁷ For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you are rebelling against the Lord now, while I am still alive, how much more will you rebel after I am dead! ²⁸ Assemble all your tribal elders and officers before me so that I may speak these words directly to them and call heaven and earth as witnesses against them.^{(AF) 29} For I know that after my death you will become completely corrupt and turn from the path I have commanded you. Disaster will come to you in the future, because you will do what is evil in the Lord’s sight, angering him with what your hands have made.”^{(AG) 30} Then Moses recited aloud every single word^[k] of this song to the entire assembly of Israel:

Song of Moses

Acknowledging Christ

⁸ “And I say to you, anyone who acknowledges^(A) me before others, the Son of Man^(B) will also acknowledge him before the angels of God,^{(C) 9} but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God.^{(D) 10} Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven,^(E) but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit^(F) will not be forgiven. ¹¹ Whenever^(G) they bring you before synagogues and rulers and authorities,^(H) don’t worry^(I) about how you should defend^(J) yourselves or what you should say. ¹² For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what must be said.”^(K)

The Parable of the Rich Fool

¹³ Someone from the crowd said to him, “Teacher,^(L) tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

¹⁴ “Friend,”^[a] he said to him, “who appointed me a judge or arbitrator over you?” ¹⁵ He then told them, “Watch out and be on guard^(M) against all greed,^(N) because one’s life is not in the abundance of his possessions.”^(O)

¹⁶ Then he told them a parable:^(P) “A rich^(Q) man’s land was very productive. ¹⁷ He thought to himself, ‘What should I do, since I don’t have anywhere to store my crops? ¹⁸ I will do this,’ he said. ‘I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones and store all my grain and my goods there. ¹⁹ Then I’ll say to myself, “You have many goods stored up for many years. Take it easy;^(R) eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.”’^(S)

²⁰ “But God said to him, ‘You fool!^(T) This very night your life is demanded of you. And the things you have prepared—whose will they be?’^(U)

²¹ “That’s how it is with the one who stores up treasure^(V) for himself and is not rich toward God.”^(W)

The Cure for Anxiety

²² Then he said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you,^(X) don’t worry about your life, what you will eat; or about the body, what you will wear.^{(Y) 23} For life is more than food and the body more than clothing. ²⁴ Consider the ravens:^(Z) They don’t sow or reap; they don’t have a storeroom or a barn; yet God feeds them.^(AA) Aren’t you worth much more than the birds? ²⁵ Can any of you add one moment to his life span^[b] by worrying?^{(AB) 26} If then you’re not able to do even a little thing, why worry about the rest?

²⁷ “Consider how the wildflowers grow: They don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon^(AC) in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. ²⁸ If that’s how God clothes the grass, which is in the field today and is thrown into the furnace tomorrow, how much more will he do for you—you of little faith?^{(AD) 29} Don’t strive for what you should eat and what you should drink, and don’t be anxious. ³⁰ For the Gentile world eagerly seeks^(AE) all these things, and your Father^(AF) knows that you need them.

³¹ “But seek his kingdom,^(AG) and these things will be provided for you.^{(AH) 32} Don’t be afraid,^(AI) little flock,^(AJ) because your Father delights^(AK) to give you the kingdom.^{(AL) 33} Sell^(AM) your possessions and give to the poor.^(AN) Make money-bags^(AO) for yourselves that won’t grow old, an inexhaustible treasure^(AP) in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.^(AQ)

Renewing the Covenant

29 These are the words of the covenant^(A) the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Horeb.^{(B) 2} Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “You have seen with your own eyes^(C) everything the Lord did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials, and to his entire land. ³ You saw with your own eyes the great trials and those great signs and wonders.^{(D) 4} Yet to this day the Lord has not given you a mind to understand, eyes to see, or ears to hear.^{(E) 5} I led you forty years in the wilderness; your clothes and the sandals on your feet did not wear out;^{(F) 6} you did not eat food or drink wine or beer—so that you might know that I am the Lord your God.^{(G) 7} When you reached this place, King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan came out against us in battle, but we defeated them.^{(H) 8} We took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh.^{(I) 9} Therefore, observe the words of this covenant^(J) and follow them, so that you will succeed in everything you do.^(K)

¹⁰ “All of you are standing today before the Lord your God—your leaders, tribes, elders, officials, all the men of Israel, ¹¹ your dependents, your wives, and the resident aliens in your camps who cut your wood and draw your water— ¹² so that you may enter into the covenant of the Lord your God, which he is making with you today, so that you may enter into his oath ¹³ and so that he may establish you today as his people and he may be your God as he promised you and as he swore to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.^{(L) 14} I am making this covenant and this oath not only with you, ¹⁵ but also with those who are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God and with those who are not here today.

Abandoning the Covenant

¹⁶ “Indeed, you know how we lived in the land of Egypt and passed through the nations where you traveled. ¹⁷ You saw their abhorrent images and idols made of wood, stone, silver, and gold, which were among them.^{(M) 18} Be sure there is no man, woman, clan, or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the Lord our God to go and worship the gods of those nations. Be sure there is no root among you bearing poisonous and bitter fruit.^{(N) 19} When someone hears the words of this oath, he may consider himself exempt,^[a] thinking, ‘I will have peace even though I follow my own stubborn heart.’ This will lead to the destruction of the well-watered land as well as the dry land. ²⁰ The Lord will not be willing to forgive him. Instead, his anger and jealousy will burn against that person, and every curse written in this scroll will descend on him. The Lord will blot out his name under heaven,^{(O) 21} and single him out for harm from all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant written in this book of the law.

²² “Future generations of your children who follow you and the foreigner who comes from a distant country will see the plagues of that land and the sicknesses the Lord has inflicted on it. ²³ All its soil will be a burning waste of sulfur and salt, unsown, producing nothing, with no plant growing on it, just like the fall of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord demolished in his fierce anger.^{(P) 24} All the nations will ask, ‘Why has the Lord done this to this land? Why this intense outburst of anger?’ ²⁵ Then people will answer, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers, which he had made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. ²⁶ They began to serve other gods, bowing in worship to gods they had not known^(Q)—gods that the Lord had not permitted them to worship.^{(R) 27} Therefore the Lord’s anger burned against this land, and he brought every curse written in this book on it. ²⁸ The Lord uprooted them from their land in his anger, rage, and intense wrath, and threw them into another land where they are today.’ ²⁹ The hidden things belong to the Lord our God, but the revealed things belong to us and our children forever, so that we may follow all the words of this law.

Returning to the Lord

30 “When all these things happen to you—the blessings and curses I have set before you—and you come to your senses while you are in all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you,^{(S) 2} and you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey him with all your heart and all your soul^(T) by doing^[b] everything I am commanding you today, ³ then he will restore your fortunes,^[c](U) have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you.^{(V) 4} Even if your exiles are at the farthest horizon,^[d] he will gather you and bring you back from there.^{(W) 5} The Lord your God will bring you into the land your fathers possessed, and you will take possession of it.^(X) He will cause you to prosper and multiply you more than he did your fathers.^{(Y) 6} The Lord your God will circumcise your heart^(Z) and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love him with all your heart and all your soul so that you will live.^{(AA) 7} The Lord your God will put all these curses on your enemies who hate and persecute you. ⁸ Then you will again obey him and follow all his commands I am commanding you today. ⁹ The Lord your God will make you prosper abundantly in all the work of your hands,^(AB) your offspring,^[e] the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your land. Indeed, the Lord will again delight in your prosperity, as he delighted in that of your fathers, ¹⁰ when you obey the Lord your God by keeping his commands and statutes that are written in this book of the law and return to him with all your heart and all your soul.

Choose Life

¹¹ “This command that I give you today is certainly not too difficult or beyond your reach. ¹² It is not in heaven so that you have to ask, ‘Who will go up to heaven, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow it?’ ¹³ And it is not across the sea so that you have to ask, ‘Who will cross the sea, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow it?’ ¹⁴ But the message is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may follow it.^{(AC) 15} See, today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and adversity.^{(AD) 16} For^[f] I am commanding you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, statutes, and ordinances, so that you may live^[g] and multiply, and the Lord your God may bless you in the land you are entering to possess. ¹⁷ But if your heart turns away and you do not listen and you are led astray to bow in worship to other gods and serve them, ¹⁸ I tell you today that you will certainly perish and will not prolong your days in the land you are entering to possess across the Jordan. ¹⁹ I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life^(AE) so that you and your descendants may live, ²⁰ love the Lord your God, obey him, and remain faithful^[h] to him. For he is your life, and he will prolong your days as you live in the land the Lord swore to give to your fathers^(AF) Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

Religious Hypocrisy Denounced

³⁷ As he was speaking, a Pharisee^(A) asked him to dine with him. So he went in and reclined at the table. ³⁸ When the Pharisee saw this, he was amazed that he did not first perform the ritual washing^[a](B) before dinner.^{(C) 39} But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed^(D) and evil.^{(E) 40} Fools!^(F) Didn’t he who made the outside make the inside too? ⁴¹ But give from what is within to the poor,^[b](G) and then everything is clean^(H) for you.

⁴² “But woe^(I) to you Pharisees! You give a tenth^[c](J) of mint, rue, and every kind of herb, and you bypass^[d] justice^(K) and love for God.^[e](L) These things you should have done without neglecting the others.

⁴³ “Woe to you Pharisees! You love the front seat^(M) in the synagogues^(N) and greetings in the marketplaces.

⁴⁴ “Woe to you!^[f] You are like unmarked graves; ^(O) the people who walk over them don’t know it.”

⁴⁵ One of the experts in the law^(P) answered him, “Teacher, when you say these things you insult us too.”

⁴⁶ Then he said: “Woe also to you experts in the law! You load people with burdens^(Q) that are hard to carry, and yet you yourselves don’t touch these burdens with one of your fingers.^(R)

⁴⁷ “Woe to you! You build tombs^[g] for the prophets,^(S) and your fathers killed^(T) them. ⁴⁸ Therefore, you are witnesses^(U) that you approve^[h](V) the deeds of your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their monuments.^{[i] 49} Because of this, the wisdom of God^(W) said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles,^(X) and some of them they will kill and persecute,’^{(Y) 50} so that this generation^(Z) may be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world^[j](AA) — ⁵¹ from the blood of Abel^(AB) to the blood of Zechariah,^(AC) who perished between the altar and the sanctuary.

“Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible.^[k]

⁵² “Woe to you experts in the law! You have taken away the key to knowledge.^(AD) You didn’t go in yourselves, and you hindered^(AE) those who were trying to go in.”

⁵³ When he left there,^[l] the scribes and the Pharisees began to oppose^(AF) him fiercely and to cross-examine him about many things; ⁵⁴ they were lying in wait^(AG) for him to trap him in something he said.^[m](AH)

Beware of Religious Hypocrisy

12 Meanwhile, a crowd of many thousands came together, so that they were trampling^(AI) on one another. He began to say to his disciples first,^(AJ) “Be on your guard^(AK) against the leaven^[n](AL) of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.^{(AM) 2} There is nothing covered that won’t be uncovered,^(AN) nothing hidden that won’t be made known.^{(AO) 3} Therefore, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in an ear in private rooms^(AP) will be proclaimed on the housetops.^(AQ)

Fear God

⁴ “I say to you, my friends,^(AR) don’t fear^(AS) those who kill the body, and after that can do nothing more. ⁵ But I will show you the one to fear: Fear^(AT) him who has authority to throw people into hell^(AU) after death. Yes, I say to you, this is the one to fear! ⁶ Aren’t five sparrows sold for two pennies?^[o] Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight.^{(AV) 7} Indeed, the hairs of your head are all counted. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Psalm 78

Lessons from Israel’s Past

A Maskil of Asaph.^(A)

Blessings for Obedience

28 “Now^(A) if you faithfully obey the Lord your God^(B) and are careful to follow all his commands I am giving you today,^(C) the Lord your God will put you far above all the nations of the earth.^{(D) 2} All these blessings will come and overtake^(E) you, because you obey the Lord your God:

⁷ “The Lord will cause the enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you. They will march out against you from one direction but flee from you in seven directions. ⁸ The Lord will grant you a blessing on your barns and on everything you do;^[b](I) he will bless you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.^{(J) 9} The Lord will establish you as his holy people,^(K) as he swore to you, if you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways. ¹⁰ Then all the peoples of the earth will see that you bear the Lord’s name,^(L) and they will stand in awe of you.^{(M) 11} The Lord will make you prosper abundantly with offspring,^[c] the offspring of your livestock, and your land’s produce in the land the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. ¹² The Lord will open for you his abundant storehouse,^(N) the sky, to give your land rain in its season and to bless all the work of your hands.^(O) You will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow. ¹³ The Lord will make you the head and not the tail;^(P) you will only move upward and never downward if you listen to the Lord your God’s commands I am giving you today and are careful to follow them. ¹⁴ Do not turn aside to the right or the left from all the things I am commanding you today,^(Q) and do not follow other gods to worship them.

Curses for Disobedience

¹⁵ “But if you do not obey the Lord your God by carefully following all his commands and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overtake^(R) you:^(S)

²⁰ The Lord will send against you curses, confusion,^(T) and rebuke in everything you do until you are destroyed and quickly perish,^(U) because of the wickedness of your actions in abandoning me.^{(V) 21} The Lord will make pestilence cling to you until he has exterminated you from the land you are entering to possess.^{(W) 22} The Lord will afflict you with wasting disease, fever, inflammation, burning heat, drought,^[d] blight, and mildew;^(X) these will pursue you until you perish. ²³ The sky above you will be bronze, and the earth beneath you iron. ²⁴ The Lord will turn the rain of your land into falling^[e] dust; it will descend on you from the sky until you are destroyed. ²⁵ The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them from one direction but flee from them in seven directions.^(Y) You will be an object of horror^(Z) to all the kingdoms of the earth. ²⁶ Your corpses will be food for all the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the earth, with no one to scare them away.^(AA)

²⁷ “The Lord will afflict you with the boils of Egypt,^(AB) tumors, a festering rash, and scabies, from which you cannot be cured. ²⁸ The Lord will afflict you with madness, blindness, and mental confusion,^{(AC) 29} so that at noon you will grope as a blind person gropes in the dark.^(AD) You will not be successful in anything you do. You will only be oppressed and robbed continually, and no one will help you.^{(AE) 30} You will become engaged to a woman, but another man will rape her. You will build a house but not live in it.^(AF) You will plant a vineyard but not enjoy its fruit. ³¹ Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will not eat any of it. Your donkey will be taken away from you and not returned to you. Your flock will be given to your enemies, and no one will help you. ³² Your sons and daughters will be given to another people, while your eyes grow weary looking for them every day. But you will be powerless to do anything.^{[f](AG) 33} A people you don’t know will eat your land’s produce and everything you have labored for. You will only be oppressed and crushed continually.^{(AH) 34} You will be driven mad by what you see. ³⁵ The Lord will afflict you with painful and incurable boils on your knees and thighs—from the sole of your foot to the top of your head.^(AI)

³⁶ “The Lord will bring you and your king that you have appointed to a nation neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you will worship other gods, of wood and stone.^{(AJ) 37} You will become an object of horror, scorn, and ridicule among all the peoples where the Lord will drive you.^(AK)

³⁸ “You will sow much seed in the field but harvest little, because locusts will devour it. ³⁹ You will plant and cultivate vineyards but not drink the wine or gather the grapes, because worms will eat them. ⁴⁰ You will have olive trees throughout your territory but not moisten your skin with oil, because your olives will drop off. ⁴¹ You will father sons and daughters, but they will not remain yours, because they will be taken prisoner. ⁴² Buzzing insects will take possession of all your trees and your land’s produce. ⁴³ The resident alien among you will rise higher and higher above you, while you sink lower and lower. ⁴⁴ He will lend to you, but you won’t lend to him. He will be the head, and you will be the tail.

⁴⁵ “All these curses will come, pursue, and overtake you until you are destroyed, since you did not obey the Lord your God and keep the commands and statutes he gave you. ⁴⁶ These curses will be a sign and a wonder^(AL) against you and your descendants forever. ⁴⁷ Because you didn’t serve the Lord your God with joy and a cheerful heart,^(AM) even though you had an abundance of everything, ⁴⁸ you will serve your enemies the Lord will send against you, in famine, thirst, nakedness, and a lack of everything. He will place an iron yoke^(AN) on your neck until he has destroyed you. ⁴⁹ The Lord will bring a nation from far away, from the ends of the earth,^(AO) to swoop down on you like an eagle,^(AP) a nation whose language you won’t understand,^{(AQ) 50} a ruthless nation,^[g] showing no respect for the old and not sparing the young. ⁵¹ They will eat the offspring of your livestock and your land’s produce until you are destroyed. They will leave you no grain, new wine, fresh oil, young of your herds, or newborn of your flocks until they cause you to perish. ⁵² They will besiege you within all your city gates until your high and fortified walls, that you trust in, come down throughout your land. They will besiege you within all your city gates throughout the land the Lord your God has given you.

⁵³ “You will eat your offspring,^[h] the flesh of your sons and daughters the Lord your God has given you^(AR) during the siege and hardship your enemy imposes on you. ⁵⁴ The most sensitive and refined man among you will look grudgingly^[i] at his brother, the wife he embraces,^[j] and the rest of his children, ⁵⁵ refusing to share with any of them his children’s flesh that he will eat because he has nothing left during the siege and hardship your enemy imposes on you in all your towns. ⁵⁶ The most sensitive and refined woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her refinement and sensitivity, will begrudge the husband she embraces, her son, and her daughter, ⁵⁷ the afterbirth that comes out from between her legs and the children she bears, because she will secretly eat them for lack of anything else during the siege and hardship your enemy imposes on you within your city gates.

⁵⁸ “If you are not careful to obey all the words of this law, which are written in this scroll, by fearing this glorious and awe-inspiring name—the Lord, your God— ⁵⁹ he will bring wondrous plagues on you and your descendants, severe and lasting plagues, and terrible and chronic sicknesses. ⁶⁰ He will afflict you again with all the diseases of Egypt,^(AS) which you dreaded, and they will cling to you. ⁶¹ The Lord will also afflict you with every sickness and plague not recorded in the book of this law, until you are destroyed. ⁶² Though you were as numerous as the stars of the sky, you will be left with only a few people, because you did not obey the Lord your God. ⁶³ Just as the Lord was glad to cause you to prosper and to multiply you, so he will also be glad to cause you to perish and to destroy you. You will be ripped out of the land you are entering to possess. ⁶⁴ Then the Lord will scatter you among all peoples from one end of the earth to the other,^(AT) and there you will worship other gods, of wood and stone,^(AU) which neither you nor your fathers have known.^{(AV) 65} You will find no peace among those nations, and there will be no resting place^(AW) for the sole of your foot. There the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and a despondent spirit. ⁶⁶ Your life will hang in doubt before you. You will be in dread night and day, never certain of survival. ⁶⁷ In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were evening!’ and in the evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’—because of the dread you will have in your heart and because of what you will see. ⁶⁸ The Lord will take you back in ships to Egypt by a route that I said you would never see again.^(AX) There you will sell yourselves to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.”

A House Divided

¹⁴ Now^(A) he was driving out a demon^(B) that was mute.^(C) When the demon came out, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were amazed. ¹⁵ But some of them said, “He drives out demons by Beelzebul,^(D) the ruler^(E) of the demons.”^{(F) 16} And others, as a test,^(G) were demanding of him a sign^(H) from heaven.

¹⁷ Knowing their thoughts,^(I) he told them, “Every kingdom divided^(J) against itself is headed for destruction, and a house divided against itself falls. ¹⁸ If Satan^(K) also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom^(L) stand? For you say I drive out demons by Beelzebul. ¹⁹ And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons^(M) drive them out? For this reason they will be your judges. ²⁰ If I drive out demons by the finger of God,^(N) then the kingdom of God^(O) has come upon you. ²¹ When a strong man, fully armed, guards his estate, his possessions are secure. ²² But when one stronger than he attacks and overpowers^(P) him, he takes from him all his weapons^[a](Q) he trusted^(R) in, and divides up his plunder.^{(S) 23} Anyone who is not with me is against me,^(T) and anyone who does not gather with me scatters.

An Unclean Spirit’s Return

²⁴ “When^(U) an unclean spirit^(V) comes out of a person, it roams through waterless places looking for rest,^(W) and not finding rest, it then^[b] says, ‘I’ll go back to my house that I came from.’ ²⁵ Returning, it finds the house swept and put in order. ²⁶ Then it goes and brings seven other spirits^(X) more evil than itself, and they enter and settle down there. As a result, that person’s last condition is worse than the first.”^(Y)

True Blessedness

²⁷ As he was saying these things, a woman from the crowd^(Z) raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the one who nursed you!” ^(AA)

²⁸ He said, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God^(AB) and keep it.”^(AC)

The Sign of Jonah

²⁹ As the crowds were increasing, he began saying: “This generation^(AD) is an evil generation.^(AE) It demands a sign,^(AF) but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.^{[c](AG) 30} For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so also the Son of Man^(AH) will be to this generation. ³¹ The queen of the south^(AI) will rise up at the judgment^(AJ) with the men of this generation and condemn^(AK) them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon,^(AL) and look—something greater than Solomon is here. ³² The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at Jonah’s preaching, and look—something greater than Jonah is here.

The Lamp of the Body

³³ “No^(AM) one lights a lamp^(AN) and puts it in the cellar or under a basket,^[d] but on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see its light. ³⁴ Your eye is the lamp of the body.^(AO) When your eye is healthy, your whole body is also full of light. But when it is bad,^(AP) your body is also full of darkness. ³⁵ Take care, then, that the light in you is not darkness. ³⁶ If, therefore, your whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, it will be entirely illuminated, as when a lamp shines its light on you.”

Psalm 77

Confidence in a Time of Crisis

For the choir director: according to Jeduthun. Of Asaph.^(A) A psalm.

Firstfruits and Tithes

26 When you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance and have taken possession of it and settled in it, ² take some of the firstfruits^(A) of all that you produce from the soil of the land the Lord your God is giving you and put them in a basket. Then go to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name^{(B) 3} and say to the priest in office at the time, “I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the land the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us.” ⁴ The priest shall take the basket from your hands and set it down in front of the altar of the Lord your God. ⁵ Then you shall declare before the Lord your God: “My father was a wandering^(C) Aramean,^(D) and he went down into Egypt with a few people^(E) and lived there and became a great nation,^(F) powerful and numerous. ⁶ But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer,^(G) subjecting us to harsh labor.^{(H) 7} Then we cried out to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, and the Lord heard our voice^(I) and saw^(J) our misery,^(K) toil and oppression.^{(L) 8} So the Lord brought us out of Egypt^(M) with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm,^(N) with great terror and with signs and wonders.^{(O) 9} He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey;^{(P) 10} and now I bring the firstfruits of the soil that you, Lord, have given me.^(Q)” Place the basket before the Lord your God and bow down before him. ¹¹ Then you and the Levites^(R) and the foreigners residing among you shall rejoice^(S) in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household.

¹² When you have finished setting aside a tenth^(T) of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe,^(U) you shall give it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. ¹³ Then say to the Lord your God: “I have removed from my house the sacred portion and have given it to the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, according to all you commanded. I have not turned aside from your commands nor have I forgotten any of them.^{(V) 14} I have not eaten any of the sacred portion while I was in mourning, nor have I removed any of it while I was unclean,^(W) nor have I offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the Lord my God; I have done everything you commanded me. ¹⁵ Look down from heaven,^(X) your holy dwelling place, and bless^(Y) your people Israel and the land you have given us as you promised on oath to our ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey.”

Follow the Lord’s Commands

¹⁶ The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.^{(Z) 17} You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in obedience to him, that you will keep his decrees, commands and laws—that you will listen to him.^{(AA) 18} And the Lord has declared this day that you are his people, his treasured possession^(AB) as he promised, and that you are to keep all his commands. ¹⁹ He has declared that he will set you in praise,^(AC) fame and honor high above all the nations^(AD) he has made and that you will be a people holy^(AE) to the Lord your God, as he promised.

The Altar on Mount Ebal

27 Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people: “Keep all these commands^(AF) that I give you today. ² When you have crossed the Jordan^(AG) into the land the Lord your God is giving you, set up some large stones^(AH) and coat them with plaster.^{(AI) 3} Write on them all the words of this law when you have crossed over to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey,^(AJ) just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you. ⁴ And when you have crossed the Jordan, set up these stones on Mount Ebal,^(AK) as I command you today, and coat them with plaster. ⁵ Build there an altar^(AL) to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. Do not use any iron tool^(AM) on them. ⁶ Build the altar of the Lord your God with fieldstones and offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God. ⁷ Sacrifice fellowship offerings^(AN) there, eating them and rejoicing^(AO) in the presence of the Lord your God.^{(AP) 8} And you shall write very clearly all the words of this law on these stones^(AQ) you have set up.”^(AR)

Curses From Mount Ebal

⁹ Then Moses and the Levitical^(AS) priests said to all Israel, “Be silent, Israel, and listen! You have now become the people of the Lord your God.^{(AT) 10} Obey the Lord your God and follow his commands and decrees that I give you today.”

¹¹ On the same day Moses commanded the people:

¹² When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes shall stand on Mount Gerizim^(AU) to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar,^(AV) Joseph and Benjamin.^{(AW) 13} And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal^(AX) to pronounce curses: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali.

¹⁴ The Levites shall recite to all the people of Israel in a loud voice:

At the Home of Martha and Mary

³⁸ As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha^(A) opened her home to him. ³⁹ She had a sister called Mary,^(B) who sat at the Lord’s feet^(C) listening to what he said. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care^(D) that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

⁴¹ “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried^(E) and upset about many things, ⁴² but few things are needed—or indeed only one.^[a](F) Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Jesus’ Teaching on Prayer^(G)(H)

11 One day Jesus was praying^(I) in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord,^(J) teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

² He said to them, “When you pray, say:

⁵ Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; ⁶ a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ ⁷ And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ ⁸ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity^[f] he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.^(N)

⁹ “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you;^(O) seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

¹¹ “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for^[g] a fish, will give him a snake instead? ¹² Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? ¹³ If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Psalm 76^[a]

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.

Exclusion From the Assembly

23 ^[a]No one who has been emasculated^(A) by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the Lord.

² No one born of a forbidden marriage^[b] nor any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.

³ No Ammonite^(B) or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.^{(C) 4} For they did not come to meet you with bread and water^(D) on your way when you came out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam^(E) son of Beor from Pethor in Aram Naharaim^[c](F) to pronounce a curse on you.^{(G) 5} However, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse^(H) into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves^(I) you. ⁶ Do not seek a treaty^(J) of friendship with them as long as you live.^(K)

⁷ Do not despise an Edomite,^(L) for the Edomites are related to you.^(M) Do not despise an Egyptian, because you resided as foreigners in their country.^{(N) 8} The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the Lord.

Uncleanness in the Camp

⁹ When you are encamped against your enemies, keep away from everything impure.^{(O) 10} If one of your men is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.^{(P) 11} But as evening approaches he is to wash himself, and at sunset^(Q) he may return to the camp.^(R)

¹² Designate a place outside the camp where you can go to relieve yourself. ¹³ As part of your equipment have something to dig with, and when you relieve yourself, dig a hole and cover up your excrement. ¹⁴ For the Lord your God moves^(S) about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy,^(T) so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you.

Miscellaneous Laws

¹⁵ If a slave has taken refuge^(U) with you, do not hand them over to their master.^{(V) 16} Let them live among you wherever they like and in whatever town they choose. Do not oppress^(W) them.

¹⁷ No Israelite man^(X) or woman is to become a shrine prostitute.^{(Y) 18} You must not bring the earnings of a female prostitute or of a male prostitute^[d] into the house of the Lord your God to pay any vow, because the Lord your God detests them both.^(Z)

¹⁹ Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest.^{(AA) 20} You may charge a foreigner^(AB) interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless^(AC) you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.

²¹ If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it,^(AD) for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.^{(AE) 22} But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty.^{(AF) 23} Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth.

²⁴ If you enter your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat all the grapes you want, but do not put any in your basket. ²⁵ If you enter your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing grain.^(AG)

24 If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him^(AH) because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce,^(AI) gives it to her and sends her from his house, ² and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man, ³ and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies, ⁴ then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the Lord. Do not bring sin upon the land the Lord^(AJ) your God is giving you as an inheritance.

⁵ If a man has recently married, he must not be sent to war or have any other duty laid on him. For one year he is to be free to stay at home and bring happiness to the wife he has married.^(AK)

⁶ Do not take a pair of millstones—not even the upper one—as security for a debt, because that would be taking a person’s livelihood as security.^(AL)

⁷ If someone is caught kidnapping a fellow Israelite and treating or selling them as a slave, the kidnapper must die.^(AM) You must purge the evil from among you.^(AN)

⁸ In cases of defiling skin diseases,^[e] be very careful to do exactly as the Levitical^(AO) priests instruct you. You must follow carefully what I have commanded them.^{(AP) 9} Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam along the way after you came out of Egypt.^(AQ)

¹⁰ When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, do not go into their house to get what is offered to you as a pledge.^{(AR) 11} Stay outside and let the neighbor to whom you are making the loan bring the pledge out to you. ¹² If the neighbor is poor, do not go to sleep with their pledge^(AS) in your possession. ¹³ Return their cloak by sunset^(AT) so that your neighbor may sleep in it.^(AU) Then they will thank you, and it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the Lord your God.^(AV)

¹⁴ Do not take advantage of a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether that worker is a fellow Israelite or a foreigner residing in one of your towns.^{(AW) 15} Pay them their wages each day before sunset, because they are poor^(AX) and are counting on it.^(AY) Otherwise they may cry to the Lord against you, and you will be guilty of sin.^(AZ)

¹⁶ Parents are not to be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their parents; each will die for their own sin.^(BA)

¹⁷ Do not deprive the foreigner or the fatherless^(BB) of justice,^(BC) or take the cloak of the widow as a pledge. ¹⁸ Remember that you were slaves in Egypt^(BD) and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. That is why I command you to do this.

¹⁹ When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it.^(BE) Leave it for the foreigner,^(BF) the fatherless and the widow,^(BG) so that the Lord your God may bless^(BH) you in all the work of your hands. ²⁰ When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time.^(BI) Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. ²¹ When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. ²² Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this.^(BJ)

25 When people have a dispute, they are to take it to court and the judges^(BK) will decide the case,^(BL) acquitting^(BM) the innocent and condemning the guilty.^{(BN) 2} If the guilty person deserves to be beaten,^(BO) the judge shall make them lie down and have them flogged in his presence with the number of lashes the crime deserves, ³ but the judge must not impose more than forty lashes.^(BP) If the guilty party is flogged more than that, your fellow Israelite will be degraded in your eyes.^(BQ)

⁴ Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.^(BR)

⁵ If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her.^{(BS) 6} The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.^(BT)

⁷ However, if a man does not want to marry his brother’s wife,^(BU) she shall go to the elders at the town gate^(BV) and say, “My husband’s brother refuses to carry on his brother’s name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me.”^{(BW) 8} Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, “I do not want to marry her,” ⁹ his brother’s widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals,^(BX) spit in his face^(BY) and say, “This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother’s family line.” ¹⁰ That man’s line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.

¹¹ If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, ¹² you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.^(BZ)

¹³ Do not have two differing weights in your bag—one heavy, one light.^{(CA) 14} Do not have two differing measures in your house—one large, one small. ¹⁵ You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long^(CB) in the land the Lord your God is giving you. ¹⁶ For the Lord your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.^(CC)

¹⁷ Remember what the Amalekites^(CD) did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. ¹⁸ When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and attacked all who were lagging behind; they had no fear of God.^{(CE) 19} When the Lord your God gives you rest^(CF) from all the enemies^(CG) around you in the land he is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you shall blot out the name of Amalek^(CH) from under heaven. Do not forget!

¹³ “Woe to you,^(A) Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth^(B) and ashes. ¹⁴ But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. ¹⁵ And you, Capernaum,^(C) will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.^[a]

¹⁶ “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”^(D)

¹⁷ The seventy-two^(E) returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”^(F)

¹⁸ He replied, “I saw Satan^(G) fall like lightning from heaven.^{(H) 19} I have given you authority to trample on snakes^(I) and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. ²⁰ However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”^(J)

²¹ At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.^(K) Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.

²² “All things have been committed to me by my Father.^(L) No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”^(M)

²³ Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. ²⁴ For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”^(N)

The Parable of the Good Samaritan^(O)

²⁵ On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”^(P)

²⁶ “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

²⁷ He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’^[b];^(Q) and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[c]”^(R)

²⁸ “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”^(S)

²⁹ But he wanted to justify himself,^(T) so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

³⁰ In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side.^{(U) 32} So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan,^(V) as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii^[d] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

³⁶ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

³⁷ The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Psalm 75^[a]

For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” A psalm of Asaph. A song.