The Ignatius Bible 2nd Edition - Ignatius Press

THE HOLY BIBLE
Revised Standard Version | Second Catholic Edition
TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL TONGUES

BEING THE VERSION SET FORTH A.D. 1611
OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS REVISED A.D. 1881-1885 AND A.D. 1901
(APOCRYPHA REVISED A.D. 1894)
COMPARED WITH THE MOST ANCIENT AUTHORITIES

AND REVISED A.D. 1952
(APOCRYPHA REVISED A.D. 1957)
THE ORIGINAL CATHOLIC EDITION OF THE RSV TRANSLATION

WAS PREPARED BY THE
CATHOLIC BIBLICAL ASSOCIATION OF GREAT BRITAIN
THIS EDITION WAS REVISED ACCORDING TO

LITURGIAM AUTHENTICAM, 2002
IGNATIUS PRESS
San Francisco
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The Names and Order of the Books
THE OLD TESTAMENT
Abbreviations in the Notes
Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1 Samuel (1 Kings)
2 Samuel (2 Kings)
1 Kings (3 Kings)
2 Kings (4 Kings)
1 Chronicles (1 Paralipomenon)
2 Chronicles (2 Paralipomenon)
Ezra (1 Esdras)
Nehemiah (2 Esdras)
Tobit (Tobias)
Judith
Esther
Job
Psalms
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
Song of Solomon (Canticle of Canticles)
The Wisdom of Solomon (Wisdom)
Sirach (Ecclesiasticus)
Isaiah (Isaias)
Jeremiah (Jeremias)
Lamentations
Baruch
Ezekiel (Ezechiel)
Daniel
Hosea (Osee)
Joel
Amos
Obadiah (Abdias)
Jonah (Jonas)
Micah (Michaes)
Nahum
Habakkuk (Habacuc)
Zephaniah (Sophonias)
Haggai (Aggeus)
Zechariah (Zacharias)
Malachi (Malachias)
1 Maccabees (1 Machabees)
2 Maccabees (2 Machabees)
The books of the Apocrypha and the Deuterocanonical Books of the

Catholic Old Testament are related as follows:
Apocrypha
Deuterocanonical Books
1 (3) Esdras
Not included
2 (4) Esdras
Not included
Tobit
Tobit
Judith
Judith
Additions to Esther
Esther (part of)
The Wisdom of Solomon

The Wisdom of Solomon
Sirach
Sirach
Baruch
Baruch 1-5
The Letter of Jeremiah

Baruch 6
The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young Men
Daniel 3 (part of)
Susanna
Daniel 13
Bel and the Dragon

Daniel 14
The Prayer of Manasseh

Not included
1 Maccabees
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
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The Names and Order of the Books
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
The Acts
Romans
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Titus
Philemon
Hebrews
James
1 Peter
2 Peter
1 John
2 John
3 John
Jude
Revelation of John (The Apocalypse)
Parallel Notes
Doctrinal Notes
Exegetical Notes
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Abbreviations in the Notes
In the notes to the books of the Old Testament, the following abbreviations
are used: Ms for manuscript; Mss for manuscripts. Heb denotes the Hebrew
of the consonantal Masoretic Text of the Old Testament; and MT denotes
the Hebrew of the pointed Masoretic Text of the Old Testament. The
ancient versions of the Old Testament are indicated by:
Gk Septuagint Greek Version of Old Testament
Lat Latin Version of Tobit, Judith, and 2 Maccabees
Sam Samaritan Hebrew text of Old Testament
Syr Syriac Version of Old Testament
Tg Targum
Vg Vulgate, Latin Version of Old Testament
Cn indicates a correction made where the text has suffered in transmission

and the versions provide no satisfactory restoration but the Committee
agrees with the judgment of competent scholars as to the most probable
reconstruction of the original text.
References to quoted and parallel passages are given following the textual
notes on pages where these are relevant.
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THE OLD TESTAMENT
TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK

REVISED A.D. 1881 AND A.D. 1901

WAS PREPARED BY THE

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Genesis
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
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GENESIS
Six Days of Creation and the Sabbath
1* In the beginning God created a the heavens and the earth. 2The earth
was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep;
and the Spirit b of God was moving over the face of the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4And God saw
that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
5God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was
evening and there was morning, one day.

6 And God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and
let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7And God made the firmament
and separated the waters which were under the firmament from the waters
which were above the firmament. And it was so. 8And God called the
firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second
day.
9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together
into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10God called the
dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas.
And God saw that it was good. 11And God said, “Let the earth put forth
vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is
their seed, each according to its kind, upon the earth.” And it was so. 12The
earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own
kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its
kind. And God saw that it was good. 13And there was evening and there
was morning, a third day.
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to
separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons
and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the firmament of the
heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16And God made the
two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule
the night; he made the stars also. 17And God set them in the firmament of
the heavens to give light upon the earth, 18to rule over the day and over the
night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was
good. 19And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
20 And God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures,
and let birds fly above the earth across the firmament of the heavens.” 21So
God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves,
with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged
bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22And God
blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the
seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23And there was evening and
there was morning, a fifth day.
24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to
their kinds: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to
their kinds.” And it was so. 25And God made the beasts of the earth
according to their kinds and the cattle according to their kinds, and
everything that creeps upon the ground according to its kind. And God saw
that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and
let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the
air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing
that creeps upon the earth.” 27So God created man in his own image, in the
image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28And God
blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the
earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the
birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”
29And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which
is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you
shall have them for food. 30And to every beast of the earth, and to every
bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that
has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was
so. 31And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very
good. And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.
2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done, and he
rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. 3So God
blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all
his work which he had done in creation.
Another Account of Creation
4 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were
created.
* In the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, 5when no
plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung
up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there
was no man to till the ground; 6but a mist c went up from the earth and
watered the whole face of the ground—7then the LORD God formed man of
dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and
man became a living soul. 8And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in
the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9And out of the
ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight
and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and
became four rivers. 11The name of the first is Pi'shon; it is the one which
flows around the whole land of Hav'ilah, where there is gold; 12and the gold
of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13The name of the
second river is Gi'hon; it is the one which flows around the whole land of
Cush. 14And the name of the third river is Tigris, which flows east of
Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphra'tes.
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it
and keep it. 16And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may
freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall
die.”
18 Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I
will make him a helper fit for him.” 19So out of the ground the LORD God
formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them
to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called
every living creature, that was its name. 20The man gave names to all cattle,
and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for the man
there was not found a helper fit for him. 21So the LORD God caused a deep
sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and
closed up its place with flesh; 22and the rib which the LORD God had taken
from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23Then the
man said,
“This at last is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called Woman,d
because she was taken out of Man.” e
24Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife,
and they become one flesh. 25And the man and his wife were both naked,
and were not ashamed.
The Fall of Man
3 Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the
LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not
eat of any tree of the garden’?” 2And the woman said to the serpent, “We
may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3but God said, ‘You shall not
eat of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, neither shall
you touch it, lest you die.' " 4But the serpent said to the woman, “You will
not die. 5For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened,
and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6So when the woman
saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes,
and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit
and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate. 7Then the eyes
of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed
fig leaves together and made themselves aprons.
8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the
cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence
of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9But the LORD God called
to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” 10And he said, “I heard the
sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid
myself.” 11He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of
the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12The man said, “The
woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I
ate.” 13Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have
done?” The woman said, “The serpent beguiled me, and I ate.” 14The LORD
God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all cattle,
and above all wild animals;
upon your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
15I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your seed and her seed;

he shall bruise your head, *
and you shall bruise his heel.”
16To the woman he said,
“I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing;

in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”
17And to Adam he said,
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife,

and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
18thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.

19In the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread

till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
20 The man called his wife’s name Eve, f because she was the mother of all
living. 21And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of
skins, and clothed them.
22 Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us,
knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of
the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever”—23therefore the LORD God sent
him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was
taken. 24He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he
placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard
the way to the tree of life.
Cain and Abel
4 * Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain,
saying, “I have gotten g a man with the help of the LORD.” 2And again, she
bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of
the ground. 3In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of
the fruit of the ground, 4and Abel brought some of the firstlings of his flock
and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering,
5but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry,
and his countenance fell. 6The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and
why has your countenance fallen? 7If you do well, will you not be
accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; its desire is
for you, but you must master it.”
8 Cain said to Abel his brother, “Let us go out to the field.” h And when
they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and killed him.
9Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do
not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” 10And the LORD said, “What have
you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the
ground. 11And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its
mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12When you till the
ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive
and a wanderer on the earth.” 13Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is
greater than I can bear. 14Behold, you have driven me this day away from
the ground; and from your face I shall be hidden; and I shall be a fugitive
and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will slay me.” 15Then
the LORD said to him, “Not so! i If any one slays Cain, vengeance shall be
taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest any who
came upon him should kill him. 16Then Cain went away from the presence
of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, j east of Eden.
Beginnings of Civilization
17 Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore E'noch; and he built a
city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch. 18To
E'noch was born I'rad; and Irad was the father of Mehu'ja-el, and Mehuja-el
the father of Methu'sha-el, and Methusha-el the father of La'mech. 19And
La'mech took two wives; the name of the one was A'dah, and the name of
the other Zillah. 20A'dah bore Ja'bal; he was the father of those who dwell in
tents and have cattle. 21His brother’s name was Ju'bal; he was the father of
all those who play the lyre and pipe. 22Zillah bore Tu'bal-cain; he was the
forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-cain was
Na'amah.
23 La'mech said to his wives:
“A'dah and Zillah, hear my voice;

you wives of Lamech, hearken to what I say:
I have slain a man for wounding me,
a young man for striking me.
24If Cain is avenged sevenfold,
truly La'mech seventy-sevenfold.”

25 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name
Seth, for she said, “God has appointed for me another child instead of Abel,
for Cain slew him.” 26To Seth * also a son was born, and he called his name
E'nosh. At that time men began to call upon the name of the LORD.
Adam’s Descendants to Noah
5 This is the book of the generations * of Adam. When God created man,
he made him in the likeness of God. 2Male and female he created them, and
he blessed them and named them Man when they were created. 3When
Adam had lived a hundred and thirty years, he became the father of a son in
his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4The days of Adam
after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years; and he had
other sons and daughters. 5Thus all the days that Adam lived were nine
hundred and thirty years; and he died.
6 When Seth had lived a hundred and five years, he became the father of
E'nosh. 7Seth lived after the birth of E'nosh eight hundred and seven years,
and had other sons and daughters. 8Thus all the days of Seth were nine
hundred and twelve years; and he died.
9 When E'nosh had lived ninety years, he became the father of Ke'nan.
10E'nosh lived after the birth of Ke'nan eight hundred and fifteen years, and
had other sons and daughters. 11Thus all the days of E'nosh were nine
hundred and five years; and he died.
12 When Ke'nan had lived seventy years, he became the father of Ma-
hal'alel. 13Ke'nan lived after the birth of Ma-hal'alel eight hundred and forty
years, and had other sons and daughters. 14Thus all the days of Ke'nan were
nine hundred and ten years; and he died.
15 When Ma-hal'alel had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of
Jar'ed. 16Ma-hal'alel lived after the birth of Jar'ed eight hundred and thirty
years, and had other sons and daughters. 17Thus all the days of Ma-hal'alel
were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died.
18 When Jar'ed had lived a hundred and sixty-two years he became the
father of E'noch. 19Jared lived after the birth of E'noch eight hundred years,
and had other sons and daughters. 20Thus all the days of Jar'ed were nine
hundred and sixty-two years; and he died.
21 When E'noch had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of
Methu'selah. 22E'noch walked with God after the birth of Methu'selah three
hundred years, and had other sons and daughters. 23Thus all the days of
E'noch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24E'noch walked with God;
and he was not, for God took him.
25 When Methu'selah had lived a hundred and eighty-seven years, he
became the father of La'mech. 26Methu'selah lived after the birth of

La'mech seven hundred and eighty-two years, and had other sons and
daughters. 27Thus all the days of Methu'selah were nine hundred and sixty-
nine years; and he died.
28 When La'mech had lived a hundred and eighty-two years, he became
the father of a son, 29and called his name Noah, saying, “Out of the ground
which the LORD has cursed this one shall bring us relief from our work and
from the toil of our hands.” 30La'mech lived after the birth of Noah five
hundred and ninety-five years, and had other sons and daughters. 31Thus all
the days of La'mech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he
died.
32 After Noah was five hundred years old, Noah became the father of
Shem, Ham, and Ja'pheth.

The Wickedness of Mankind
6 When men began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters
were born to them, 2the sons of God * saw that the daughters of men were
fair; and they took to wife such of them as they chose. 3Then the LORD said,
“My spirit shall not abide in man for ever, for he is flesh, but his days shall
be a hundred and twenty years.” 4The Neph'ilim were on the earth in those
days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of
men, and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men that were
of old, the men of renown.
5 The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and
that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
6And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved
him to his heart. 7So the LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have
created from the face of the ground, man and beast and creeping things and
birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8But Noah found
favor in the eyes of the LORD.
9 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless
in his generation; Noah walked with God. 10And Noah had three sons,
Shem, Ham, and Ja'pheth.
Noah Makes the Ark as God Commands
11 * Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled
with violence. 12And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all
flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. 13And God said to Noah, “I
have determined to make an end of all flesh; for the earth is filled with
violence through them; behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14Make
yourself an ark of gopher wood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside
and out with pitch. 15This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark
three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.
16Make a roof k for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above; and set the door
of the ark in its side; make it with lower, second, and third decks. 17For
behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in
which is the breath of life from under heaven; everything that is on the earth
shall die. 18But I will establish my covenant with you; and you shall come
into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.
19And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort
into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.
20Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their
kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground according to its kind, two of
every sort shall come in to you, to keep them alive. 21Also take with you
every sort of food that is eaten, and store it up; and it shall serve as food for
you and for them.” 22Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.
The Great Flood
7 Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your
household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this
generation. 2Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals, the male and
his mate; and a pair of the animals that are not clean, the male and his mate;
3and seven pairs of the birds of the air also, male and female, to keep their
kind alive upon the face of all the earth. 4For in seven days I will send rain
upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living thing that I have
made I will blot out from the face of the ground.” 5And Noah did all that
the LORD had commanded him.
6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came upon the
earth. 7And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him
went into the ark, to escape the waters of the flood. 8Of clean animals, and
of animals that are not clean, and of birds, and of everything that creeps on
the ground, 9two and two, male and female, went into the ark with Noah, as
God had commanded Noah. 10And after seven days the waters of the flood
came upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the
seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep
burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened. 12And rain fell
upon the earth forty days and forty nights. 13On the very same day Noah
and his sons, Shem and Ham and Ja'pheth, and Noah’s wife and the three
wives of his sons with them entered the ark, 14they and every beast
according to its kind, and all the cattle according to their kinds, and every
creeping thing that creeps on the earth according to its kind, and every bird
according to its kind, every bird of every sort. 15They went into the ark with
Noah, two and two of all flesh in which there was the breath of life. 16And
they that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had
commanded him; and the LORD shut him in.
17 The flood continued forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased,
and bore up the ark, and it rose high above the earth. 18The waters prevailed
and increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark floated on the face of the
waters. 19And the waters prevailed so mightily upon the earth that all the
high mountains under the whole heaven were covered; 20the waters
prevailed above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits deep. 21And all
flesh died that moved upon the earth, birds, cattle, beasts, all swarming
creatures that swarm upon the earth, and every man; 22everything on the dry
land in whose nostrils was the breath of life died. 23He blotted out every
living thing that was upon the face of the ground, man and animals and
creeping things and birds of the air; they were blotted out from the earth.
Only Noah was left, and those that were with him in the ark. 24And the
waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days.
The Flood Subsides
8 But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle that
were with him in the ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and
the waters subsided; 2the fountains of the deep and the windows of the
heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained, 3and the
waters receded from the earth continually. At the end of a hundred and fifty
days the waters had abated; 4and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth
day of the month, the ark came to rest upon the mountains of Ar'arat. 5And
the waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on
the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen.
6 At the end of forty days Noah opened the window of the ark which he
had made, 7and sent forth a raven; and it went to and fro until the waters
were dried up from the earth. 8Then he sent forth a dove from him, to see if
the waters had subsided from the face of the ground; 9but the dove found no
place to set her foot, and she returned to him to the ark, for the waters were
still on the face of the whole earth. So he put forth his hand and took her
and brought her into the ark with him. 10He waited another seven days, and
again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; 11and the dove came back to him
in the evening, and behold, in her mouth a freshly plucked olive leaf; so
Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth. 12Then he waited
another seven days, and sent forth the dove; and she did not return to him
any more.
13 In the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the
month, the waters were dried from off the earth; and Noah removed the
covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the face of the ground was dry.
14In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth
was dry. 15Then God said to Noah, 16“Go forth from the ark, you and your
wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17Bring forth with you
every living thing that is with you of all flesh—birds and animals and every
creeping thing that creeps on the earth—that they may breed abundantly on
the earth, and be fruitful and multiply upon the earth.” 18So Noah went
forth, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. 19And every
beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves upon the
earth, went forth by families out of the ark.
God’s Promise to Noah
20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean animal
and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21And
when the LORD smelled the pleasing odor, the LORD said in his heart, “I will
never again curse the ground because of man, for the imagination of man’s
heart is evil from his youth; neither will I ever again destroy every living
creature as I have done. 22While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”
The Covenant with Noah
9 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful and
multiply, and fill the earth. 2The fear of you and the dread of you shall be
upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air, upon
everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea; into your
hand they are delivered. 3Every moving thing that lives shall be food for
you; and as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything. 4Only you
shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. 5For your lifeblood I will
surely require a reckoning; of every beast I will require it and of man; of
every man’s brother I will require the life of man. 6Whoever sheds the
blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for God made man in his
own image. 7And you, be fruitful and multiply, bring forth abundantly on
the earth and multiply in it.”
8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, 9 “Behold, I establish
my covenant with you and your descendants after you, 10and with every
living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the
earth with you, as many as came out of the ark.l 11I establish my covenant
with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood,
and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12And God said,
“This is the sign of the covenant which I make between me and you and
every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: 13I set my
bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the
earth. 14When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the
clouds, 15I will remember my covenant which is between me and you and
every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a
flood to destroy all flesh. 16When the bow is in the clouds, I will look upon
it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living
creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.” 17God said to Noah, “This is the
sign of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that
is upon the earth.”
Noah and His Sons
18 The sons of Noah who went forth from the ark were Shem, Ham, and
Ja'pheth. Ham was the father of Canaan. 19These three were the sons of
Noah; and from these the whole earth was peopled.
20 Noah was the first tiller of the soil. He planted a vineyard; 21and he
drank of the wine, and became drunk, and lay uncovered in his tent. 22And
Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two
brothers outside. 23Then Shem and Ja'pheth took a garment, laid it upon
both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of
their father; their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s
nakedness. 24When Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest
son had done to him, 25he said,
“Cursed be Canaan;
a slave of slaves shall he be to his brothers.”
26He also said,
“Blessed by the LORD my God be Shem; m

and let Canaan be his slave.
27God enlarge Ja'pheth,
and let him dwell in the tents of Shem;

and let Canaan be his slave.”
28 After the flood Noah lived three hundred and fifty years. 29All the days
of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years; and he died.

Nations Descended from Noah
10 These are the generations * of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and
Ja'pheth; sons were born to them after the flood.
2 The sons of Ja'pheth: Gomer, Ma'gog, Ma'dai, Ja'van, Tu'bal, Me'shech,
and Ti'ras. 3The sons of Gomer: Ash'kenaz, Ri'phath, and Togar'mah. 4The
sons of Ja'van: Eli'shah, Tar'shish, Kittim, and Do'danim. 5From these the
coastland peoples spread. These are the sons of Ja'pheth n in their lands,
each with his own language, by their families, in their nations.
6 The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. 7The sons of Cush:
Seba, Hav'ilah, Sabtah, Ra'amah, and Sab'teca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba
and De'dan. 8Cush became the father of Nimrod; he was the first on earth to
be a mighty man. 9He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; therefore it is
said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.” 10The beginning of
his kingdom was Ba'bel, E'rech, and Accad, all of them in the land of
Shi'nar. 11From that land he went into Assyria, and built Nin'eveh,
Reho'both-Ir, Ca'lah, and 12Re'sen between Nin'eveh and Ca'lah; that is the
great city. 13Egypt became the father of Lu'dim, An'amim, Leha'bim,
Naph'tuhim, 14Pathru'sim, Caslu'him (whence came the Philis'tines), and
Caph'torim.
15 Canaan became the father of Si'don his first-born, and Heth, 16and the
Jeb'usites, the Am'orites, the Gir'gashites, 17the Hi'vites, the Arkites, the
Si'nites, 18the Ar'vadites, the Zem'arites, and the Ha'mathites. Afterward the
families of the Canaanites spread abroad. 19And the territory of the
Canaanites extended from Si'don, in the direction of Ge'rar, as far as Gaza,
and in the direction of Sodom, Gomor'rah, Admah, and Zeboi'im, as far as
La'sha. 20These are the sons of Ham, by their families, their languages, their
lands, and their nations.
21 To Shem also, the father of all the children of E'ber, the elder brother of
Ja'pheth, children were born. 22The sons of Shem: E'lam, Asshur,

Arpach'shad, Lud, and Ar'am. 23The sons of Ar'am: Uz, Hul, Ge'ther, and
Mash. 24Arpach'shad became the father of She'lah; and Shelah became the
father of E'ber. 25To E'ber were born two sons: the name of the one was
Pe'leg,o for in his days the earth was divided, and his brother’s name was
Joktan. 26Joktan became the father of Almo'dad, She'leph, Haz''arma'veth,
Je'rah, 27Hador'am, U'zal, Diklah, 28O'bal, Abim'a-el, Sheba, 29O'phir,
Hav'ilah, and Jo'bab; all these were the sons of Joktan. 30The territory in
which they lived extended from Me'sha in the direction of Se'phar to the hill
country of the east. 31These are the sons of Shem, by their families, their
languages, their lands, and their nations.
32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, according to their
genealogies, in their nations; and from these the nations spread abroad on
the earth after the flood.
The Tower of Babel
11 * Now the whole earth had one language and few words. 2And as
men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and
settled there. 3And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and
burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for
mortar. 4Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower
with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be
scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” 5And the LORD came
down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built. 6And
the LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one
language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing
that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 7Come, let us go
down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one
another’s speech.” 8So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the
face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 9Therefore its name
was called Ba'bel, because there the LORD confused p the language of all the
earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all
the earth.
Descendants of Shem
10 These are the descendants of Shem. When Shem was a hundred years
old, he became the father of Arpach'shad two years after the flood; 11and
Shem lived after the birth of Arpach'shad five hundred years, and had other
sons and daughters.
12 When Arpach'shad had lived thirty-five years, he became the father of
She'lah; 13and Arpach'shad lived after the birth of She'lah four hundred and
three years, and had other sons and daughters.
14 When She'lah had lived thirty years, he became the father of E'ber;
15and She'lah lived after the birth of E'ber four hundred and three years, and
had other sons and daughters.
16 When E'ber had lived thirty-four years, he became the father of Pe'leg;
17and E'ber lived after the birth of Pe'leg four hundred and thirty years, and

18 When Pe'leg had lived thirty years, he became the father of Re'u; 19and
Pe'leg lived after the birth of Re'u two hundred and nine years, and had
other sons and daughters.
20 When Re'u had lived thirty-two years, he became the father of Se'rug;
21and Re'u lived after the birth of Se'rug two hundred and seven years, and
22 When Se'rug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Na'hor;
23and Se'rug lived after the birth of Na'hor two hundred years, and had other
sons and daughters.

24 When Na'hor had lived twenty-nine years, he became the father of
Te'rah; 25and Na'hor lived after the birth of Te'rah a hundred and nineteen
years, and had other sons and daughters.
26 When Te'rah had lived seventy years, he became the father of Abram,
Na'hor, and Haran.

Descendants of Terah
27 Now these are the descendants of Te'rah. Terah was the father of
Abram, Na'hor, and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot. 28Haran died
before his father Te'rah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chalde'ans.
29And Abram and Na'hor took wives; the name of Abram’s wife was Sar'ai,
and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of
Milcah and Is'cah. 30Now Sar'ai was barren; she had no child.
31 Te'rah took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and
Sar'ai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife, and they went forth
together from Ur of the Chalde'ans to go into the land of Canaan; but when
they came to Haran, they settled there. 32The days of Te'rah were two
hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran.
The Call of Abram
12 * Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your
kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2And I will
make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and him
who curses you I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall
bless themselves.” q
4 So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him.
Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5And
Abram took Sar'ai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their
possessions which they had gathered, and the persons that they had gotten
in Haran; and they set forth to go to the land of Canaan. When they had
come to the land of Canaan, 6Abram passed through the land to the place at
She'chem, to the Oak r of Mo'reh. At that time the Canaanites were in the
land. 7Then the LORD appeared to Abram, and said, “To your descendants I
will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the LORD, who had
appeared to him. 8Thence he removed to the mountain on the east of Bethel,
and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there
he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. 9And
Abram journeyed on, still going toward the Neg'eb.
Abram and Sarai in Egypt
10 Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to
sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. 11When he was about
to enter Egypt, he said to Sar'ai his wife, “I know that you are a woman
beautiful to behold; 12and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This
is his wife’; then they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13Say you are
my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may
be spared on your account.” 14When Abram entered Egypt the Egyptians
saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15And when the princes of Pharoah
saw her, they praised her to Pharoah. And the woman was taken into
Pharoah’s house. 16And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had
sheep, oxen, he-donkeys, menservants, maidservants, she-donkeys, and
camels.
17 But the LORD afflicted Pharoah and his house with great plagues
because of Sar'ai, Abram’s wife. 18So Pharoah called Abram, and said,
“What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was
your wife? 19Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for my
wife? Now then, here is your wife, take her, and be gone.” 20And Pharoah
gave men orders concerning him; and they set him on the way, with his wife
and all that he had.
Abram and Lot Separate
13 So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife, and all that he had,
and Lot with him, into the Neg'eb.
2 Now Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. 3And he
journeyed on from the Neg'eb as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent
had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, 4to the place where he
had made an altar at the first; and there Abram called on the name of the
LORD. 5And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and
tents, 6so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for
their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, 7and
there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdsmen
of Lot’s cattle. At that time the Canaanites and the Per'izzites dwelt in the
land.
8 Then Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me, and
between your herdsmen and my herdsmen; for we are kinsmen. 9Is not the
whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left
hand, then I will go to the right; or if you take the right hand, then I will go
to the left.” 10And Lot lifted up his eyes, and saw that the Jordan valley was
well watered everywhere like the garden of the LORD, like the land of
Egypt, in the direction of Zoar; this was before the LORD destroyed Sodom
and Gomor'rah. 11So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan valley, and Lot
journeyed east; thus they separated from each other. 12Abram dwelt in the
land of Canaan, while Lot dwelt among the cities of the valley and moved
his tent as far as Sodom. 13Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great
sinners against the LORD.
14 The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up
your eyes, and look from the place where you are, northward and southward
and eastward and westward; 15for all the land which you see I will give to
you and to your descendants for ever. 16I will make your descendants as the
dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your
descendants also can be counted. 17Arise, walk through the length and the
breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.” 18So Abram moved his tent,
and came and dwelt by the Oaks s of Mamre, which are at He'bron; and
there he built an altar to the LORD.
Lot’s Captivity and Rescue
14 In the days of Am'raphel king of Shi'nar, Ar'ioch king of Ella'sar,
Ched''-or-lao'mer king of E'lam, and Ti'dal king of Goi'im, 2these kings
made war with Be'ra king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomor'rah, Shi'nab
king of Admah, Sheme'ber king of Zeboi'im, and the king of Be'la (that is,
Zoar). 3And all these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt
Sea). 4Twelve years they had served Ched''-or-lao'mer, but in the thirteenth
year they rebelled. 5In the fourteenth year Ched''-or-lao'mer and the kings
who were with him came and subdued the Reph'aim in Ash'teroth-karna'im,
the Zu'zim in Ham, the E'mim in Sha'veh-kir''iatha'im, 6and the Horites in
their Mount Se'ir as far as El-par'an on the border of the wilderness; 7then
they turned back and came to Enmish'pat (that is, Ka'desh), and subdued all
the country of the Amal'ekites, and also the Am'orites who dwelt in
Haz'azon-ta'mar. 8Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomor'rah, the king
of Admah, the king of Zeboi'im, and the king of Be'la (that is, Zoar) went
out, and they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim 9with Ched''-or-lao'mer
king of E'lam, Ti'dal king of Goi'im, Am'raphel king of Shi'nar, and Ar'ioch
king of Ella'sar, four kings against five. 10Now the Valley of Siddim was
full of bitumen pits; and as the kings of Sodom and Gomor'rah fled, some
fell into them, and the rest fled to the mountain. 11So the enemy took all the
goods of Sodom and Gomor'rah, and all their provisions, and went their
way; 12they also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who dwelt in Sodom,
and his goods, and departed.
13 Then one who had escaped came, and told Abram the Hebrew, who was
living by the Oaks s of Mamre the Am'orite, brother of Eshcol and of A'ner;
these were allies of Abram. 14When Abram heard that his kinsman had been
taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, three hundred
and eighteen of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15And he divided
his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and routed them and
pursued them to Ho'bah, north of Damascus. 16Then he brought back all the
goods, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his goods, and the
women and the people.
Melchizedek Blesses Abram
17 After his return from the defeat of Ched''-or-lao'mer and the kings who
were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of
Sha'veh (that is, the King’s Valley). 18And Mel-chiz'edek * king of Salem
brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High. 19And he
blessed him and said,
“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
maker of heaven and earth;
20and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”

And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. 21And the king of Sodom
said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.”
22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have sworn to the LORD God
Most High, maker of heaven and earth, 23that I would not take a thread or a
sandal-thong or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made
Abram rich.’ 24I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and
the share of the men who went with me; let A'ner, Eshcol, and Mamre take
their share.”
God’s Covenant with Abram
15 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision,
“Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” * 2But
Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless,
and the heir of my house is Elie'zer of Damascus?” 3And Abram said,
“Behold, you have given me no offspring; and a slave born in my house
will be my heir.” 4And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, “This
man shall not be your heir; your own son shall be your heir.” 5And he
brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars,
if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your
descendants be.” 6And he believed the LORD; and he reckoned it to him as
righteousness.
7 And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the
Chalde'ans, to give you this land to possess.” 8But he said, “O Lord GOD,
how am I to know that I shall possess it?” 9He said to him, “Bring me a
heifer three years old, a she-goat three years old, a ram three years old, a
turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10And he brought him all these, cut them
in two, and laid each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds
in two. 11And when birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, Abram
drove them away.
12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram; and behold, a
dread and great darkness fell upon him. 13Then the LORD said to Abram,
“Know of a surety that your descendants will be sojourners in a land that is
not theirs, and will be slaves there, and they will be oppressed for four
hundred years; 14but I will bring judgment on the nation which they serve,
and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15As for yourself,
you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
16And they shall come back here in the fourth generation; for the iniquity of
the Am'orites is not yet complete.”

17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire
pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18On that day the
LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I give
this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphra'tes,
19the land of the Kenites, the Ken'izzites, the Kad'monites, 20the Hittites,
the Per'izzites, the Reph'aim, 21the Am'orites, the Canaanites, the

Gir'gashites and the Jeb'usites.”
The Birth of Ishmael
16 Now Sar'ai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an
Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar; 2and Sar'ai said to Abram, “Behold
now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my maid; it
may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice
of Sar'ai. 3So, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, Sar'ai,
Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to Abram
her husband as a wife. 4And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived; * and
when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her
mistress. 5And Sar'ai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on
you! I gave my maid to your embrace, and when she saw that she had
conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the LORD judge between
you and me!” 6But Abram said to Sar'ai, “Behold, your maid is in your
power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she
fled from her.
7 The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness,
the spring on the way to Shur. 8And he said, “Hagar, maid of Sar'ai, where
have you come from and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing
from my mistress Sarai.” 9The angel of the LORD said to her, “Return to
your mistress, and submit to her.” 10The angel of the LORD also said to her,
“I will so greatly multiply your descendants that they cannot be numbered
for multitude.” 11And the angel of the LORD said to her, “Behold, you are
with child, and shall bear a son; you shall call his name Ish'mael; t because
the LORD has given heed to your affliction. 12He shall be a wild donkey of a
man, his hand against every man and every man’s hand against him; and he
shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.” 13So she called the name of the
LORD who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing”; for she said, “Have I
really seen God and remained alive after seeing him?” u 14Therefore the
well was called Be'er-la'hai-roi; v it lies between Ka'desh and Be'red.
15 And Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son,
whom Hagar bore, Ish'mael. 16Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar
bore Ish'mael to Abram.
The Sign of the Covenant
17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to
Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; w walk before me, and be
blameless. 2And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will
multiply you exceedingly.” 3Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to
him, 4“Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a
multitude of nations. 5No longer shall your name be Abram, x but your
name shall be Abraham; y for I have made you the father of a multitude of
nations. 6I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of
you, and kings shall come forth from you. 7And I will establish my
covenant between me and you and your descendants after you throughout
their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your
descendants after you. 8And I will give to you, and to your descendants
after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an
everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
9 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant,
you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10This is
my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your
descendants after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11You
shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of
the covenant between me and you. 12He that is eight days old among you
shall be circumcised; every male throughout your generations, whether born
in your house, or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of
your offspring, 13both he that is born in your house and he that is bought
with your money, shall be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your
flesh an everlasting covenant. 14Any uncircumcised male who is not
circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he
has broken my covenant.”
15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sar'ai your wife, you shall not call
her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16I will bless her, and
moreover I will give you a son by her; I will bless her, and she shall be a
mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” 17Then Abraham
fell on his face and laughed, and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a
man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear
a child?” 18And Abraham said to God, “O that Ish'mael might live in your
sight!” 19God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you
shall call his name Isaac. z I will establish my covenant with him as an
everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 20As for Ish'mael, I have
heard you; behold, I will bless him and make him fruitful and multiply him
exceedingly; he shall be the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a
great nation. 21But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah
shall bear to you at this season next year.”
22 When he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.
23Then Abraham took Ish'mael his son and all the slaves born in his house
or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house,
and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had
said to him. 24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised
in the flesh of his foreskin. 25And Ish'mael his son was thirteen years old
when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 26That very day
Abraham and his son Ish'mael were circumcised; 27and all the men of his
house, those born in the house and those bought with money from a
foreigner, were circumcised with him.
A Son Promised to Abraham and Sarah
18 And the LORD appeared to him by the Oaks a of Mamre, as he sat at
the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2He lifted up his eyes and looked,
and behold, three men stood in front of him. When he saw them, he ran
from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the earth, 3and said,
“My lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.
4Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under
the tree, 5while I fetch a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves,
and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So
they said, “Do as you have said.” 6And Abraham hastened into the tent to
Sarah, and said, “Make ready quickly three measures b of fine meal, knead
it, and make cakes.” 7And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender
and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. 8Then he
took curds, and milk, and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before
them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
9 They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in
the tent.” 10The LORD said, “I will surely return to you in the spring, and
Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door
behind him. 11Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had
ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 12So Sarah laughed to
herself, saying, “After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I
have pleasure?” 13The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, and
say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ 14Is anything too hard c
for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, in the spring, and
Sarah shall have a son.” 15But Sarah denied, saying, “I did not laugh”; for
she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”
Abraham Intercedes for Sodom
16 Then the men set out from there, and they looked toward Sodom; and
Abraham went with them to set them on their way. 17The LORD said, “Shall
I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18seeing that Abraham shall
become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall
bless themselves by him?d 19No, for I have chosen e him, that he may
charge his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD
by doing righteousness and justice; so that the LORD may bring to Abraham
what he has promised him.” 20Then the LORD said, “Because the outcry
against Sodom and Gomor'rah is great and their sin is very grave, 21I will
go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry
which has come to me; and if not, I will know.”
22 So the men turned from there, and went toward Sodom; but Abraham
still stood before the LORD. 23Then Abraham drew near, and said, “Will you
indeed destroy the righteous with the wicked? 24Suppose there are fifty
righteous within the city; will you then destroy the place and not spare it for
the fifty righteous who are in it? 25Far be it from you to do such a thing, to
slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked!
Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” 26And
the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the
whole place for their sake.” 27Abraham answered, “Behold, I have taken
upon myself to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. 28Suppose
five of the fifty righteous are lacking? Will you destroy the whole city for
lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
29Again he spoke to him, and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He
answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” 30Then he said, “Oh let
not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He
answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” 31He said, “Behold, I have
taken upon myself to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.”
He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” 32Then he said,
“Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose
ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy
it.” 33And the LORD went his way, when he had finished speaking to
Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place.
The Immorality of Sodom
19 * The two angels came to Sodom in the evening; and Lot was sitting
in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and
bowed himself with his face to the earth, 2and said, “My lords, turn aside, I
pray you, to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet;
then you may rise up early and go on your way.” They said, “No; we will
spend the night in the street.” 3But he urged them strongly; so they turned
aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked
unleavened bread, and they ate. 4But before they lay down, the men of the
city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man,
surrounded the house; 5and they called to Lot, “Where are the men who
came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, that we may know them.” 6Lot
went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him, 7and said, “I beg
you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. 8Behold, I have two daughters
who have not known man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as
you please; only do nothing to these men, for they have come under the
shelter of my roof.” 9But they said, “Stand back!” And they said, “This
fellow came to sojourn, and he would play the judge! Now we will deal
worse with you than with them.” Then they pressed hard against the man
Lot, and drew near to break the door. 10But the men put forth their hands
and brought Lot into the house to them, and shut the door. 11And they
struck with blindness the men who were at the door of the house, both small
and great, so that they wearied themselves groping for the door.
Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed
12 Then the men said to Lot, “Have you any one else here? Sons-in-law,
sons, daughters, or any one you have in the city, bring them out of the
place; 13for we are about to destroy this place, because the outcry against its
people has become great before the LORD, and the LORD has sent us to
destroy it.” 14So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to
marry his daughters, “Up, get out of this place; for the LORD is about to
destroy the city.” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.
15 When morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Arise, take your
wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the
punishment of the city.” 16But he lingered; so the men seized him and his
wife and his two daughters by the hand, the LORD being merciful to him,
and they brought him forth and set him outside the city. 17And when they
had brought them forth, they f said, “Flee for your life; do not look back or
stop anywhere in the valley; flee to the hills, lest you be consumed.” 18And
Lot said to them, “Oh, no, my lords; 19behold, your servant has found favor
in your sight, and you have shown me great kindness in saving my life; but
I cannot flee to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me, and I die. 20Behold,
yonder city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape
there—is it not a little one? —and my life will be saved!” 21He said to him,
“Behold, I grant you this favor also, that I will not overthrow the city of
which you have spoken. 22Make haste, escape there; for I can do nothing till
you arrive there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. g 23The
sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar.
24 Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomor'rah brimstone and fire
from the LORD out of heaven; 25and he overthrew those cities, and all the
valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
26But Lot’s wife behind him looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
27And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood
before the LORD; 28and he looked down toward Sodom and Gomor'rah and
toward all the land of the valley, and beheld, and behold, the smoke of the
land went up like the smoke of a furnace.
29 So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God
remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when
he overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.
The Shameful Origin of the Moabites and Ammonites
30 Now Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the hills with his two
daughters, for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar; so he dwelt in a cave with his
two daughters. 31And the first-born said to the younger, “Our father is old,
and there is not a man on earth to come in to us after the manner of all the
earth. 32Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him,
that we may preserve offspring through our father.” 33So they made their
father drink wine that night; and the first-born went in, and lay with her
father; he did not know when she lay down or when she arose. 34And on the
next day, the first-born said to the younger, “Behold, I lay last night with
my father; let us make him drink wine tonight also; then you go in and lie
with him, that we may preserve offspring through our father.” 35So they
made their father drink wine that night also; and the younger arose, and lay
with him; and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
36Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father. 37The first-
born bore a son, and called his name Moab; he is the father of the Moabites
to this day. 38The younger also bore a son, and called his name Ben-am'mi;
he is the father of the Am'monites to this day.
Abraham and Sarah at Gerar
20 From there Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the Neg'eb,
and dwelt between Ka'desh and Shur; and he sojourned in Ge'rar. 2And
Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abim'elech king of
Ge'rar sent and took Sarah. 3But God came to Abim'elech in a dream by
night, and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man, because of the woman
whom you have taken; for she is a man’s wife.” 4Now Abim'elech had not
approached her; so he said, “Lord, will you slay an innocent people? 5Did
he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is
my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I
have done this.” 6Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you
have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from
sinning against me; therefore I did not let you touch her. 7Now then restore
the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you, and you shall
live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you, and
all that are yours.”
8 So Abim'elech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and
told them all these things; and the men were very much afraid. 9Then
Abim'elech called Abraham, and said to him, “What have you done to us?
And how have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and my
kingdom a great sin? You have done to me things that ought not to be
done.” 10And Abim'elech said to Abraham, “What were you thinking of,
that you did this thing?” 11Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, There
is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my
wife. 12Besides she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father but not
the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 13And when God
caused me to wander from my father’s house, I said to her, ‘This is the
kindness you must do me: at every place to which we come, say of me, He
is my brother.’ ” 14Then Abim'elech took sheep and oxen, and male and
female slaves, and gave them to Abraham, and restored Sarah his wife to
him. 15And Abim'elech said, “Behold, my land is before you; dwell where it
pleases you.” 16To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a
thousand pieces of silver; it is your vindication in the eyes of all who are
with you; and before every one you are righted.” 17Then Abraham prayed to
God; and God healed Abim'elech, and also healed his wife and female
slaves so that they bore children. 18For the LORD had closed all the wombs
of the house of Abim'elech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
The Birth of Isaac
21 The LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as
he had promised. 2And Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old
age at the time of which God had spoken to him. 3Abraham called the name
of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac. 4And
Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had
commanded him. 5Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac
was born to him. 6And Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; every
one who hears will laugh over me.” 7And she said, “Who would have said
to Abraham that Sarah would suckle children? Yet I have borne him a son
in his old age.”
Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away
8 And the child grew, and was weaned; and Abraham made a great feast
on the day that Isaac was weaned. 9But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the
Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac.h
10So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the
son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.” 11And the
thing was very displeasing to Abraham on account of his son. 12But God
said to Abraham, “Be not displeased because of the lad and because of your
slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for through
Isaac shall your descendants be named. 13And I will make a nation of the
son of the slave woman also, because he is your offspring.” 14So Abraham
rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water, and gave it to
Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away.
And she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Be'er-she'ba.
15 When the water in the skin was gone, she cast the child under one of the
bushes. 16Then she went, and sat down over against him a good way off,
about the distance of a bowshot; for she said, “Let me not look upon the
death of the child.” And as she sat over against him, the child lifted up his
voice i and wept. 17And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of
God called to Hagar from heaven, and said to her, “What troubles you,
Hagar? Fear not; for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.
18Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him fast with your hand; for I will make
him a great nation.” 19Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of
water; and she went, and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink.
20And God was with the lad, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness,
and became an expert with the bow. 21He lived in the wilderness of Par'an;
and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Abraham and Abimelech Make a Covenant
22 At that time Abim'elech and Phi'col the commander of his army said to
Abraham, “God is with you in all that you do; 23now therefore swear to me
here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my offspring or
with my posterity, but as I have dealt loyally with you, you will deal with
me and with the land where you have sojourned.” 24And Abraham said, “I
will swear.”
25 When Abraham complained to Abim'elech about a well of water which
Abimelech’s servants had seized, 26Abim'elech said, “I do not know who

has done this thing; you did not tell me, and I have not heard of it until
today.” 27So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abim'elech,
and the two men made a covenant. 28Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the
flock apart. 29And Abim'elech said to Abraham, “What is the meaning of
these seven ewe lambs which you have set apart?” 30He said, “These seven
ewe lambs you will take from my hand, that you may be a witness for me
that I dug this well.” 31Therefore that place was called Be'er-she'ba; j
because there both of them swore an oath. 32So they made a covenant at
Be'er-she'ba. Then Abim'elech and Phi'col the commander of his army rose
up and returned to the land of the Philis'tines. 33Abraham planted a tamarisk
tree in Be'er-she'ba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the
Everlasting God. 34And Abraham sojourned many days in the land of the
Philis'tines.
God Tests Abraham
22 * After these things God tested Abraham, and said to him,
“Abraham!” And he said, “Here am I.” 2He said, “Take your son, your
only-begotten son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Mori'ah, and
offer him there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountains of which I
shall tell you.” 3So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey,
and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; and he cut the
wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God
had told him. 4On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the
place afar off. 5Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the
donkey; I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.”
6And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it on Isaac his
son; * and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of
them together. 7And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he
said, “Here am I, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood; but
where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8Abraham said, “God will provide
himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them
together.
9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built
an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid
him on the altar, upon the wood. 10Then Abraham put forth his hand, and
took the knife to slay his son. 11But the angel of the LORD called to him
from heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here am I.”
12He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him; for now
I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your
only-begotten son, from me.” 13And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked,
and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns; and
Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up as a burnt offering
instead of his son. 14So Abraham called the name of that place The LORD
will provide; k as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the LORD it shall be
provided.” l
15 And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from
heaven, 16and said, “By myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you
have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only-begotten son, 17I
will indeed bless you, and I will multiply your descendants as the stars of
heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore. And your descendants
shall possess the gate of their enemies, 18and by your descendants shall all
the nations of the earth bless themselves, because you have obeyed my
voice.” 19So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went
together to Be'er-she'ba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.
The Children of Nahor
20 Now after these things it was told Abraham, “Behold, Milcah also has
borne children to your brother Na'hor: 21Uz the first-born, Buz his brother,
Ke'muel the father of Ar'am, 22Che'sed, Ha'zo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and
Bethu'el.” 23Bethu'el became the father of Rebekah. These eight Milcah
bore to Na'hor, Abraham’s brother. 24Moreover, his concubine, whose name
was Reu'mah, bore Te'bah, Ga'ham, Ta'hash, and Ma'acah.
Sarah’s Death and Burial
23 Sarah lived a hundred and twenty-seven years; these were the years
of the life of Sarah. 2And Sarah died at Kir'iath-ar'ba (that is, He'bron) in
the land of Canaan; and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep
for her. 3And Abraham rose up from before his dead, and said to the
Hittites, 4“I am a stranger and a sojourner among you; give me property
among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”
5The Hittites answered Abraham, 6 “Hear us, my lord; you are a mighty
prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our sepulchres; none of
us will withhold from you his sepulchre, or hinder you from burying your
dead.” 7Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land.
8And he said to them, “If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of
my sight, hear me, and entreat for me E'phron the son of Zo'har, 9that he
may give me the cave of Mach-pe'lah, which he owns; it is at the end of his
field. For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as a
possession for a burying place.” 10Now E'phron was sitting among the
Hittites; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the
Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city, 11“No, my lord, hear me; I
give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it; in the presence of the
sons of my people I give it to you; bury your dead.” 12Then Abraham
bowed down before the people of the land. 13And he said to E'phron in the
hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me; I will give the
price of the field; accept it from me, that I may bury my dead there.”
14E'phron answered Abraham, 15“My lord, listen to me; a piece of land
worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that between you and me?
Bury your dead.” 16Abraham agreed with E'phron; and Abraham weighed
out for Ephron the silver which he had named in the hearing of the Hittites,
four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the
merchants.
17 So the field of E'phron in Mach-pe'lah, which was to the east of Mamre,
the field with the cave which was in it and all the trees that were in the
field, throughout its whole area, was made over 18to Abraham as a
possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate
of his city. 19After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the
field of Mach-pe'lah east of Mamre (that is, He'bron) in the land of Canaan.
20The field and the cave that is in it were made over to Abraham as a
possession for a burying place by the Hittites.

The Marriage of Isaac and Rebekah
24 Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years; and the LORD had
blessed Abraham in all things. 2And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest
of his house, who had charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my
thigh, 3and I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and of
the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the
Canaanites, among whom I dwell, 4but will go to my country and to my
kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5The servant said to him,
“Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land; must I
then take your son back to the land from which you came?” 6Abraham said
to him, “See to it that you do not take my son back there. 7The LORD, the
God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of
my birth, and who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘To your descendants I
will give this land,’ he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a
wife for my son from there. 8But if the woman is not willing to follow you,
then you will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son
back there.” 9So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his
master, and swore to him concerning this matter.
10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, taking all
sorts of choice gifts from his master; and he arose, and went to
Mesopota'mia, to the city of Na'hor. 11And he made the camels kneel down
outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when
women go out to draw water. 12And he said, “O LORD, God of my master
Abraham, grant me success today, I beg you, and show mercy to my master
Abraham. 13Behold, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters
of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14Let the maiden to
whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall
say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you
have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have
shown mercy to my master.”
15 Before he had done speaking, behold, Rebekah, who was born to
Bethu'el the son of Milcah, the wife of Na'hor, Abraham’s brother, came out
with her water jar upon her shoulder. 16The maiden was very fair to look
upon, a virgin, whom no man had known. She went down to the spring, and
filled her jar, and came up. 17Then the servant ran to meet her, and said,
“Please give me a little water to drink from your jar.” 18She said, “Drink,
my lord”; and she quickly let down her jar upon her hand, and gave him a
drink. 19When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw
for your camels also, until they have done drinking.” 20So she quickly
emptied her jar into the trough and ran again to the well to draw, and she
drew for all his camels. 21The man gazed at her in silence to learn whether
the LORD had prospered his journey or not.
22 When the camels had done drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing
a half shekel, and two bracelets for her arms weighing ten gold shekels,
23and said, “Tell me whose daughter you are. Is there room in your father’s
house for us to lodge in?” 24She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethu'el
the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Na'hor.” 25She added, “We have both
straw and food enough, and room to lodge in.” 26The man bowed his head
and worshiped the LORD, 27and said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my
master Abraham, who has not forsaken his mercy and his faithfulness
toward my master. As for me, the LORD has led me in the way to the house
of my master’s kinsmen.”
28 Then the maiden ran and told her mother’s household about these
things. 29Rebekah had a brother whose name was La'ban; and Laban ran out
to the man, to the spring. 30When he saw the ring, and the bracelets on his
sister’s arms, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, “Thus the
man spoke to me,” he went to the man; and behold, he was standing by the
camels at the spring. 31He said, “Come in, O blessed of the LORD; why do
you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and a place for the
camels.” 32So the man came into the house; and La'ban ungirded the
camels, and gave him straw and food for the camels, and water to wash his
feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33Then food was set before
him to eat; but he said, “I will not eat until I have told my errand.” He said,
“Speak on.”
34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35The LORD has greatly blessed
my master, and he has become great; he has given him flocks and herds,
silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, camels and donkeys. 36And
Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old; and to
him he has given all that he has. 37My master made me swear, saying, ‘You
shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in
whose land I dwell; 38but you shall go to my father’s house and to my
kindred, and take a wife for my son.’ 39I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the
woman will not follow me.’ 40But he said to me, ‘The LORD, before whom I
walk, will send his angel with you and prosper your way; and you shall take
a wife for my son from my kindred and from my father’s house; 41then you
will be free from my oath, when you come to my kindred; and if they will
not give her to you, you will be free from my oath.’
42 “I came today to the spring, and said, ‘O LORD, the God of my master
Abraham, if now you will prosper the way which I go, 43behold, I am
standing by the spring of water; let the young woman who comes out to
draw, to whom I shall say, “Please give me a little water from your jar to
drink,” 44and who will say to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels
also,” let her be the woman whom the LORD has appointed for my master’s
son.’
45 “Before I had done speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out
with her water jar on her shoulder; and she went down to the spring, and
drew. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46She quickly let down her jar
from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels drink also.’
So I drank, and she gave the camels drink also. 47Then I asked her, ‘Whose
daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethu'el, Na'hor’s son, whom
Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her
arms. 48Then I bowed my head and worshiped the LORD, and blessed the
LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to
take the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. 49Now then, if you
will deal loyally and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, tell me; that I
may turn to the right hand or to the left.”
50 Then La'ban and Bethu'el answered, “The thing comes from the LORD;
we cannot speak to you bad or good. 51Behold, Rebekah is before you, take
her and go, and let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has
spoken.”
52 When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the
earth before the LORD. 53And the servant brought forth jewelry of silver and
of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave to her brother
and to her mother costly ornaments. 54And he and the men who were with
him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. When they arose in the
morning, he said, “Send me back to my master.” 55Her brother and her
mother said, “Let the maiden remain with us a while, at least ten days; after
that she may go.” 56But he said to them, “Do not delay me, since the LORD
has prospered my way; let me go that I may go to my master.” 57They said,
“We will call the maiden, and ask her.” 58And they called Rebekah, and said
to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will go.” 59So they sent
away Rebekah their sister and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his
men. 60And they blessed Rebekah, and said to her, “Our sister, be the
mother of thousands of ten thousands; and may your descendants possess
the gate of those who hate them!” 61Then Rebekah and her maids arose, and
rode upon the camels and followed the man; thus the servant took Rebekah,
and went his way.
62 Now Isaac had come from n Be'er-la'hai-roi, and was dwelling in the
Neg'eb. 63And Isaac went out to meditate in the field in the evening; and he
lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, there were camels coming. 64And
Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she alighted from the
camel, 65and said to the servant, “Who is the man yonder, walking in the
field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took her veil
and covered herself. 66And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had
done. 67Then Isaac brought her into the tent,o and took Rebekah, and she
became his wife; and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his
mother’s death.
Abraham Marries Keturah
25 Abraham took another wife, whose name was Ketu'rah. 2She bore
him Zimran, Jokshan, Me'dan, Mid'ian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3Jokshan was
the father of Sheba and De'dan. The sons of Dedan were Asshu'rim,
Letu'shim, and Le-um'mim. 4The sons of Mid'ian were E'phah, E'pher,
Ha'noch, Abi'da, and Elda'ah. All these were the children of Ketu'rah.
5Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. 6But to the sons of his concubines
Abraham gave gifts, and while he was still living he sent them away from
his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.
The Death of Abraham
7 These are the days of the years of Abraham’s life, a hundred and
seventy-five years. 8Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age,
an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people. 9Isaac and
Ish'mael his sons buried him in the cave of Mach-pe'lah, in the field of
E'phron the son of Zo'har the Hittite, east of Mamre, 10the field which
Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with
Sarah his wife. 11After the death of Abraham God blessed Isaac his son.
And Isaac dwelt at Be'er-la'hai-roi.
The Descendants of Ishmael
12 These are the descendants of Ish'mael, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the
Egyptian, Sarah’s maid, bore to Abraham. 13These are the names of the
sons of Ish'mael, named in the order of their birth: Neba'ioth, the first-born
of Ishmael; and Ke'dar, Ad'beel, Mibsam, 14Mishma, Du'mah, Massa,
15Ha'dad, Te'ma, Je'tur, Na'phish, and Ked'emah. 16These are the sons of
Ish'mael and these are their names, by their villages and by their
encampments, twelve princes according to their tribes. 17(These are the
years of the life of Ish'mael, a hundred and thirty-seven years; he breathed
his last and died, and was gathered to his kindred.) 18They dwelt from
Hav'ilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt in the direction of Assyria; he
settled p over against all his people.
The Birth of Esau and Jacob
19 * These are the descendants of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham was the
father of Isaac, 20and Isaac was forty years old when he took to wife
Rebekah, the daughter of Bethu'el the Arame'an of Pad'dan-ar'am, the sister
of La'ban the Aramean. 21And Isaac prayed to the LORD for his wife,
because she was barren; and the LORD granted his prayer, and Rebekah his
wife conceived. 22The children struggled together within her; and she said,
“If it is thus, why do I live?” q So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23And
the LORD said to her,
“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples, born of you, shall be divided;
the one shall be stronger than the other,
the elder shall serve the younger.”
24When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins
in her womb. 25The first came forth red, all his body like a hairy mantle; so
they called his name Esau. 26Afterward his brother came forth, and his hand
had taken hold of Esau’s heel; so his name was called Jacob.r Isaac was
sixty years old when she bore them.
Esau Sells His Birthright
27 When the boys grew up, Esau was a skilful hunter, a man of the field,
while Jacob was a quiet man, dwelling in tents. 28Isaac loved Esau, because
he ate of his game; but Rebekah loved Jacob.
29 Once when Jacob was boiling pottage, Esau came in from the field, and
he was famished. 30And Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red
pottage, for I am famished!” (Therefore his name was called E'dom.) s
31Jacob said, “First sell me your birthright.” 32Esau said, “I am about to die;
of what use is a birthright to me?” 33Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” t So he

swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34Then Jacob gave Esau
bread and pottage of lentils, and he ate and drank, and rose and went his
way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.
Isaac and Abimelech
26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that
was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Ge'rar, to Abim'elech king
of the Philis'tines. 2And the LORD appeared to him, and said, “Do not go
down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3Sojourn in this
land, and I will be with you, and will bless you; for to you and to your
descendants I will give all these lands, and I will fulfil the oath which I
swore to Abraham your father. 4I will multiply your descendants as the stars
of heaven, and will give to your descendants all these lands; and by your
descendants all the nations of the earth shall bless themselves: 5because
Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my
statutes, and my laws.”
6 So Isaac dwelt in Ge'rar. 7When the men of the place asked him about
his wife, he said, “She is my sister”; for he feared to say, “My wife,”
thinking, “lest the men of the place should kill me for the sake of Rebekah”;
because she was fair to look upon. 8When he had been there a long time,
Abim'elech king of the Philis'tines looked out of a window and saw Isaac
fondling Rebekah his wife. 9So Abim'elech called Isaac, and said, “Behold,
she is your wife; how then could you say, ‘She is my sister’? ” Isaac said to
him, “Because I thought, ‘Lest I die because of her.' " 10Abim'elech said,
“What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain
with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.” 11So
Abim'elech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever touches this man or
his wife shall be put to death.”
12 And Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a
hundredfold. The LORD blessed him, 13and the man became rich, and gained
more and more until he became very wealthy. 14He had possessions of
flocks and herds, and a great household, so that the Philis'tines envied him.
15(Now the Philis'tines had stopped and filled with earth all the wells which
his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father.) 16And
Abim'elech said to Isaac, “Go away from us; for you are much mightier
than we.”
17 So Isaac departed from there, and encamped in the valley of Ge'rar and
dwelt there. 18And Isaac dug again the wells of water which had been dug
in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philis'tines had stopped them after
the death of Abraham; and he gave them the names which his father had
given them. 19But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a
well of springing water, 20the herdsmen of Ge'rar quarreled with Isaac’s
herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well
E'sek,u because they contended with him. 21Then they dug another well,
and they quarreled over that also; so he called its name Sitnah.v 22And he
moved from there and dug another well, and over that they did not quarrel;
so he called its name Reho'both,w saying, “For now the LORD has made
room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”
23 From there he went up to Be'er-she'ba. 24And the LORD appeared to him
the same night and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father; fear not,
for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your descendants for my
servant Abraham’s sake.” 25So he built an altar there and called upon the
name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there. And there Isaac’s servants dug
a well.
26 Then Abim'elech went to him from Ge'rar with Ahuz'zath his adviser
and Phi'col the commander of his army. 27Isaac said to them, “Why have
you come to me, seeing that you hate me and have sent me away from
you?” 28They said, “We see plainly that the LORD is with you; so we say, let
there be an oath between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you,
29that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have
done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are
now the blessed of the LORD.” 30So he made them a feast, and they ate and
drank. 31In the morning they rose early and took oath with one another; and
Isaac set them on their way, and they departed from him in peace. 32That
same day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well which they had
dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” 33He called it Shi'bah;
therefore the name of the city is Be'er-she'ba to this day.
Esau’s Hittite Wives
34 When Esau was forty years old, he took to wife Judith the daughter of
Bee'ri the Hittite, and Bas'emath the daughter of E'lon the Hittite; 35and they
made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.
Isaac Blesses Jacob
27 When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see,
he called Esau his older son, and said to him, “My son”; and he answered,
“Here I am.” 2He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my
death. 3Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out
to the field, and hunt game for me, 4and prepare for me savory food, such as
I love, and bring it to me that I may eat; that I may bless you before I die.”
5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when
Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, 6Rebekah said to her
son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, 7‘Bring me
game, and prepare for me savory food, that I may eat it, and bless you
before the LORD before I die.’ 8Now therefore, my son, obey my word as I
command you. 9Go to the flock, and fetch me two good kids, that I may
prepare from them savory food for your father, such as he loves; 10and you
shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”
11But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, my brother Esau is a
hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 12Perhaps my father will feel me, and I
shall seem to be mocking him, and bring a curse upon myself and not a
blessing.” 13His mother said to him, “Upon me be your curse, my son; only
obey my word, and go, fetch them to me.” 14So he went and took them and
brought them to his mother; and his mother prepared savory food, such as
his father loved. 15Then Rebekah took the best garments of Esau her older
son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger
son; 16and the skins of the kids she put upon his hands and upon the smooth
part of his neck; 17and she gave the savory food and the bread, which she
had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
18 So he went in to his father, and said, “My father”; and he said, “Here I
am; who are you, my son?” 19Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your first-
born. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that you
may bless me.” 20But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it
so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the LORD your God granted
me success.” 21Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near, that I may feel you,
my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” 22So Jacob
went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s
voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23And he did not recognize
him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he
blessed him. 24He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I
am.” 25Then he said, “Bring it to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and
bless you.” So he brought it to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine,
and he drank. 26Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me,
my son.” 27So he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his
garments, and blessed him, and said,
“See, the smell of my son
is as the smell of a field which the LORD has blessed!
28May God give you of the dew of heaven,
and of the fatness of the earth,

and plenty of grain and wine.
29Let peoples serve you,
and nations bow down to you.

Be lord over your brothers,
and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be every one who curses you,
and blessed be every one who blesses you!”
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Esau’s Lost Blessing
30 As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely
gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in
from his hunting. 31He also prepared savory food, and brought it to his
father. And he said to his father, “Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s
game, that you may bless me.” 32His father Isaac said to him, “Who are
you?” He answered, “I am your son, your first-born, Esau.” 33Then Isaac
trembled violently, and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and
brought it to me, and I ate it all x before you came, and I have blessed him?
—yes, and he shall be blessed.” 34When Esau heard the words of his father,
he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father,
“Bless me, even me also, O my father!” 35But he said, “Your brother came
with guile, and he has taken away your blessing.” 36Esau said, “Is he not
rightly named Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took
away my birthright; and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then
he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” 37Isaac answered Esau,
“Behold, I have made him your lord, and all his brothers I have given to
him for servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. What then
can I do for you, my son?” 38Esau said to his father, “Have you but one
blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted
up his voice and wept.
39 Then Isaac his father answered him:
“Behold, away from y the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be,
and away from y the dew of heaven on high.
40By your sword you shall live,
and you shall serve your brother;

but when you break loose
you shall break his yoke from your neck.”
Jacob Escapes Esau’s Fury
41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father
had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my
father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42But the words
of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah; so she sent and called Jacob her
younger son, and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau comforts himself
by planning to kill you. 43Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee
to La'ban my brother in Haran, 44and stay with him a while, until your
brother’s fury turns away; 45until your brother’s anger turns away, and he
forgets what you have done to him; then I will send, and fetch you from
there. Why should I be bereft of you both in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of the
Hittite women. If Jacob marries one of the Hittite women such as these, one
of the women of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
28 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, “You
shall not marry one of the Canaanite women. 2Arise, go to Pad'dan-ar'am to
the house of Bethu'el your mother’s father; and take as wife from there one
of the daughters of La'ban your mother’s brother. 3God Almighty z bless
you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a
company of peoples. 4May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to
your descendants with you, that you may take possession of the land of
your sojournings which God gave to Abraham!” 5Thus Isaac sent Jacob
away; and he went to Pad'dan-ar'am to La'ban, the son of Bethu'el the
Arame'an, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.
Esau Marries Ishmael’s Daughter
6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to
Pad'dan-ar'am to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he

charged him, “You shall not marry one of the Canaanite women,” 7and that
Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to Pad'dan-ar'am. 8So
when Esau saw that the Canaanite women did not please Isaac his father,
9Esau went to Ish'mael and took to wife, besides the wives he had,
Maha'lath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham’s son, the sister of Neba'ioth.
Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10 * Jacob left Be'er-she'ba, and went toward Haran. 11And he came to a
certain place, and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking
one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that
place to sleep. 12And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth,
and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were
ascending and descending on it! 13And behold, the LORD stood above it a
and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of
Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your descendants;
14and your descendants shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall
spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south;
and by you and your descendants shall all the families of the earth bless
themselves. b 15Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go,
and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have
done that of which I have spoken to you.” 16Then Jacob awoke from his
sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place; and I did not know it.”
17And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none
other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”
18 So Jacob rose early in the morning, and he took the stone which he had
put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it.
19He called the name of that place Bethel; c but the name of the city was
Luz at the first. 20Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me,
and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and
clothing to wear, 21so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then
the LORD shall be my God, 22and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar,
shall be God’s house; and of all that you give me I will give the tenth to
you.”
Jacob Meets Rachel
29 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came to the land of the people
of the east. 2As he looked, he saw a well in the field, and behold, three
flocks of sheep lying beside it; for out of that well the flocks were watered.
The stone on the well’s mouth was large, 3and when all the flocks were
gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the
well, and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place upon the
mouth of the well.
4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where do you come from?” They said,
“We are from Haran.” 5He said to them, “Do you know La'ban the son of
Na'hor?” They said, “We know him.” 6He said to them, “Is it well with
him?” They said, “It is well; and see, Rachel his daughter is coming with
the sheep!” 7He said, “Behold, it is still high day, it is not time for the
animals to be gathered together; water the sheep, and go, pasture them.”
8But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and the
stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”
9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s
sheep; for she kept them. 10Now when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of
La'ban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother,
Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the
flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and wept
aloud. 12And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that
he was Rebekah’s son; and she ran and told her father.
13 When La'ban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister’s son, he ran to meet
him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house.
Jacob told Laban all these things, 14and La'ban said to him, “Surely you are
my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month.
Jacob Marries Laban’s Daughters
15 Then La'ban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you
therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” 16Now
La'ban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of
the younger was Rachel. 17Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful
and lovely. 18Jacob loved Rachel; and he said, “I will serve you seven years
for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19La'ban said, “It is better that I give
her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” 20So
Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days
because of the love he had for her.
21 Then Jacob said to La'ban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her,
for my time is completed.” 22So La'ban gathered together all the men of the
place, and made a feast. 23But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and
brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. 24(La'ban gave his maid Zilpah
to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) 25And in the morning, behold, it was
Leah; and Jacob said to La'ban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I
not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26La'ban
said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the first-
born. 27Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also
in return for serving me another seven years.” 28Jacob did so, and
completed her week; then La'ban gave him his daughter Rachel to wife.
29(La'ban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her maid.) 30So
Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and
served La'ban for another seven years.
31 When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb; but
Rachel was barren. 32And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called
his name Reuben; d for she said, “Because the LORD has looked upon my
affliction; surely now my husband will love me.” 33She conceived again
and bore a son, and said, “Because the LORD has heard e that I am hated, he
has given me this son also”; and she called his name Simeon. 34Again she
conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be
joined f to me, because I have borne him three sons”; therefore his name
was called Levi. 35And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This
time I will praise g the LORD”; therefore she called his name Judah; then
she ceased bearing.
30 When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her
sister; and she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2Jacob’s
anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God,
who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3Then she said, “Here
is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, that she may bear upon my knees, and even
I may have children through her.” 4So she gave him her maid Bilhah as a
wife; and Jacob went in to her. 5And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a
son. 6Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice
and given me a son”; therefore she called his name Dan.h 7Rachel’s maid
Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8Then Rachel said,
“With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled i with my sister, and have
prevailed”; so she called his name Naph'tali.
9 When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her maid
Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10Then Leah’s maid Zilpah bore
Jacob a son. 11And Leah said, “Good fortune!” so she called his name Gad.j
12Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13And Leah said, “Blessed
am I! For the women will call me blessed”; so she called his name Asher.k
14 In the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the
field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah,
“Give me, I pray, some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15But she said to her, “Is
it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take
away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie with you
tonight for your son’s mandrakes.” 16When Jacob came from the field in the
evening, Leah went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me;
for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that
night. 17And God hearkened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a
fifth son. 18Leah said, “God has given me my hire l because I gave my maid
to my husband”; so she called his name Is'sachar. 19And Leah conceived
again, and she bore Jacob a sixth son. 20Then Leah said, “God has endowed
me with a good dowry; now my husband will honor m me, because I have
borne him six sons”; so she called his name Zeb'ulun. 21Afterwards she
bore a daughter, and called her name Dinah. 22Then God remembered
Rachel, and God hearkened to her and opened her womb. 23She conceived
and bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach”; 24and she
called his name Joseph,n saying, “May the LORD add to me another son!”
Jacob Prospers
25 When Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to La'ban, “Send me away,
that I may go to my own home and country. 26Give me my wives and my

children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know the
service which I have given you.” 27But La'ban said to him, “If you will
allow me to say so, I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed
me because of you; 28name your wages, and I will give it.” 29Jacob said to
him, “You yourself know how I have served you, and how your cattle have
fared with me. 30For you had little before I came, and it has increased
abundantly; and the LORD has blessed you wherever I turned. But now
when shall I provide for my own household also?” 31He said, “What shall I
give you?” Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything; if you will do this
for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it: 32let me pass through all
your flock today, removing from it every speckled and spotted sheep and
every black lamb, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and such
shall be my wages. 33So my honesty will answer for me later, when you
come to look into my wages with you. Every one that is not speckled and
spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, shall
be counted stolen.” 34La'ban said, “Good! Let it be as you have said.” 35But
that day La'ban removed the he-goats that were striped and spotted, and all
the she-goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white on it,
and every lamb that was black, and put them in charge of his sons; 36and he
set a distance of three days’ journey between himself and Jacob; and Jacob
fed the rest of La'ban’s flock.
37 Then Jacob took fresh rods of poplar and almond and plane, and peeled
white streaks in them, exposing the white of the rods. 38He set the rods
which he had peeled in front of the flocks in the runnels, that is, the
watering troughs, where the flocks came to drink. And since they bred
when they came to drink, 39the flocks bred in front of the rods and so the
flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. 40And Jacob separated
the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the striped and all the black
in the flock of La'ban; and he put his own droves apart, and did not put
them with Laban’s flock. 41Whenever the stronger of the flock were
breeding Jacob laid the rods in the runnels before the eyes of the flock, that
they might breed among the rods, 42but for the feebler of the flock he did
not lay them there; so the feebler were La'ban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.
43Thus the man grew exceedingly rich, and had large flocks, maidservants
and menservants, and camels and donkeys.

Jacob Flees with His Family and Flocks
31 Now Jacob heard that the sons of La'ban were saying, “Jacob has
taken all that was our father’s; and from what was our father’s he has
gained all this wealth.” 2And Jacob saw that La'ban did not regard him with
favor as before. 3Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your
fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.” 4So Jacob sent and
called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was, 5and said to
them, “I see that your father does not regard me with favor as he did before.
But the God of my father has been with me. 6You know that I have served
your father with all my strength; 7yet your father has cheated me and
changed my wages ten times, but God did not permit him to harm me. 8If he
said, ‘The spotted shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore spotted; and
if he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped.
9Thus God has taken away the cattle of your father, and given them to me.
10In the mating season of the flock I lifted up my eyes, and saw in a dream
that the he-goats which leaped upon the flock were striped, spotted, and
mottled. 11Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I
said, ‘Here I am!’ 12And he said, ‘Lift up your eyes and see, all the goats
that leap upon the flock are striped, spotted, and mottled; for I have seen all
that La'ban is doing to you. 13I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a
pillar and made a vow to me. Now arise, go forth from this land, and return
to the land of your birth.' " 14Then Rachel and Leah answered him, “Is there
any portion or inheritance left to us in our father’s house? 15Are we not
regarded by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and he has been using up
the money given for us. 16All the property which God has taken away from
our father belongs to us and to our children; now then, whatever God has
said to you, do.”
17 So Jacob arose, and set his sons and his wives on camels; 18and he
drove away all his cattle, all his livestock which he had gained, the cattle in
his possession which he had acquired in Pad'dan-ar'am, to go to the land of
Canaan to his father Isaac. 19La'ban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel
stole her father’s household gods. 20And Jacob outwitted La'ban the
Arame'an, in that he did not tell him that he intended to flee. 21He fled with
all that he had, and arose and crossed the Euphra'tes, and set his face toward
the hill country of Gilead.
Laban Overtakes Jacob
22 When it was told La'ban on the third day that Jacob had fled, 23he took
his kinsmen with him and pursued him for seven days and followed close
after him into the hill country of Gilead. 24But God came to La'ban the
Arame'an in a dream by night, and said to him, “Take heed that you say not
a word to Jacob, either good or bad.”
25 And La'ban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill
country, and Laban with his kinsmen encamped in the hill country of
Gilead. 26And La'ban said to Jacob, “What have you done, that you have
cheated me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the sword?
27Why did you flee secretly, and cheat me, and did not tell me, so that I
might have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre?
28And why did you not permit me to kiss my sons and my daughters
farewell? Now you have done foolishly. 29It is in my power to do you harm;
but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Take heed that
you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.’ 30And now you have gone away
because you longed greatly for your father’s house, but why did you steal
my gods?” 31Jacob answered La'ban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought
that you would take your daughters from me by force. 32Any one with
whom you find your gods shall not live. In the presence of our kinsmen
point out what I have that is yours, and take it.” Now Jacob did not know
that Rachel had stolen them.
33 So La'ban went into Jacob’s tent, and into Leah’s tent, and into the tent
of the two maidservants, but he did not find them. And he went out of
Leah’s tent, and entered Rachel’s. 34Now Rachel had taken the household
gods and put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat upon them. La'ban felt all
about the tent, but did not find them. 35And she said to her father, “Let not
my lord be angry that I cannot rise before you, for the way of women is
upon me.” So he searched, but did not find the household gods.
36 Then Jacob became angry, and upbraided La'ban; Jacob said to Laban,
“What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me?
37Although you have felt through all my goods, what have you found of all
your household goods? Set it here before my kinsmen and your kinsmen,
that they may decide between us two. 38These twenty years I have been
with you; your ewes and your she-goats have not miscarried, and I have not
eaten the rams of your flocks. 39That which was torn by wild beasts I did
not bring to you; I bore the loss of it myself; of my hand you required it,
whether stolen by day or stolen by night. 40Thus I was; by day the heat
consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes.
41These twenty years I have been in your house; I served you fourteen years
for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed
my wages ten times. 42If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the
Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me
away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands, and
rebuked you last night.”
Laban and Jacob Make a Covenant
43 Then La'ban answered and said to Jacob, “The daughters are my
daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all
that you see is mine. But what can I do this day to these my daughters, or to
their children whom they have borne? 44Come now, let us make a covenant,
you and I; and let it be a witness between you and me.” 45So Jacob took a
stone, and set it up as a pillar. 46And Jacob said to his kinsmen, “Gather
stones,” and they took stones, and made a heap; and they ate there by the
heap. 47La'ban called it Je'gar-sahadu'tha: o but Jacob called it Gale'ed. p
48La'ban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me today.”
Therefore he named it Gale'ed, 49and the pillar q Mizpah, r for he said, “The
LORD watch between you and me, when we are absent one from the other.
50If you ill-treat my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters,
although no man is with us, remember, God is witness between you and
me.”
51 Then La'ban said to Jacob, “See this heap and the pillar, which I have
set between you and me. 52This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness,
that I will not pass over this heap to you, and you will not pass over this
heap and this pillar to me, for harm. 53The God of Abraham and the God of
Na'hor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the
Fear of his father Isaac, 54and Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and
called his kinsmen to eat bread; and they ate bread and tarried all night on
the mountain.
55 s Early in the morning La'ban arose, and kissed his grandchildren and
his daughters and blessed them; then he departed and returned home.
32 1Jacob went on his way and the angels of God met him; 2and when
Jacob saw them he said, “This is God’s army!” So he called the name of
that place Ma''hana'im. t
Jacob Sends Gifts to Appease Esau
3 And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother in the land of
Se'ir, the country of Edom, 4instructing them, “Thus you shall say to my
lord Esau: Thus says your servant Jacob, ‘I have sojourned with La'ban, and
stayed until now; 5and I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, menservants, and
maidservants; and I have sent to tell my lord, in order that I may find favor
in your sight.' "
6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother
Esau, and he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men with him.”
7Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people
that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two
companies, 8thinking, “If Esau comes to the one company and destroys it,
then the company which is left will escape.”
9 And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father
Isaac, O LORD who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred,
and I will do you good,’ 10I am not worthy of the least of all the mercy and
all the faithfulness which you have shown to your servant, for with only my
staff I crossed this Jordan; and now I have become two companies.
11Deliver me, I beg you, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of
Esau, for I fear him, lest he come and slay us all, the mothers with the
children. 12But you said, ‘I will do you good, and make your descendants as
the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.' "
13 So he lodged there that night, and took from what he had with him a
present for his brother Esau, 14two hundred she-goats and twenty he-goats,
two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15thirty milch camels and their colts,
forty cows and ten bulls, twenty she-donkeys and ten he-donkeys. 16These
he delivered into the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to
his servants, “Pass on before me, and put a space between drove and
drove.” 17He instructed the foremost, “When Esau my brother meets you,
and asks you, ‘To whom do you belong? Where are you going? And whose
are these before you?’ 18then you shall say, ‘They belong to your servant
Jacob; they are a present sent to my lord Esau; and moreover he is behind
us.' " 19He likewise instructed the second and the third and all who followed
the droves, “You shall say the same thing to Esau when you meet him,
20and you shall say, ‘Moreover your servant Jacob is behind us.’ ” For he
thought, “I may appease him with the present that goes before me, and
afterwards I shall see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” 21So the present
passed on before him; and he himself lodged that night in the camp.
Jacob Wrestles at Peniel
22 The same night he arose and took his two wives, his two maids, and his
eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23He took them and
sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. 24And
Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the
day. 25When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched
the hollow of his thigh; and Jacob’s thigh was put out of joint as he wrestled
with him. 26Then he said, “Let me go, for the day is breaking.” But Jacob
said, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.” 27And he said to him,
“What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28Then he said, “Your name
shall no more be called Jacob, but Israel, u for you have striven with God
and with men, and have prevailed.” 29Then Jacob asked him, “Tell me, I
pray, your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And
there he blessed him. 30So Jacob called the name of the place Peni'el, v
saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved.”
31The sun rose upon him as he passed Penu'el, limping because of his thigh.
32Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the sinew of the hip which is
upon the hollow of the thigh, because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s
thigh on the sinew of the hip. *
Jacob and Esau Meet
33 1 And Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, Esau was
coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children among
Leah and Rachel and the two maids. 2And he put the maids with their
children in front, then Leah with her children, and Rachel and Joseph last of
all. 3He himself went on before them, bowing himself to the ground seven
times, until he came near to his brother.
4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and
kissed him, and they wept. 5And when Esau raised his eyes and saw the
women and children, he said, “Who are these with you?” Jacob said, “The
children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6Then the maids
drew near, they and their children, and bowed down; 7Leah likewise and her
children drew near and bowed down; and last Joseph and Rachel drew near,
and they bowed down. 8Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company
which I met?” Jacob answered, “To find favor in the sight of my lord.” 9But
Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.”
10Jacob said, “No, I beg you, if I have found favor in your sight, then accept
my present from my hand; for truly to see your face is like seeing the face
of God, with such favor have you received me. 11Accept, I beg you, my gift
that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and
because I have enough.” Thus he urged him, and he took it.
12 Then Esau said, “Let us journey on our way, and I will go before you.”
13But Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail, and that
the flocks and herds giving suck are a care to me; and if they are overdriven
for one day, all the flocks will die. 14Let my lord pass on before his servant,
and I will lead on slowly, according to the pace of the cattle which are
before me and according to the pace of the children, until I come to my lord
in Se'ir.”
15 So Esau said, “Let me leave with you some of the men who are with
me.” But he said, “What need is there? Let me find favor in the sight of my
lord.” 16So Esau returned that day on his way to Se'ir. 17But Jacob
journeyed to Succoth,w and built himself a house, and made booths for his
cattle; therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.
Jacob Comes to Shechem
18 And Jacob came safely to the city of She'chem, which is in the land of
Canaan, on his way from Pad'dan-ar'am; and he camped before the city.
19And from the sons of Ha'mor, She'chem’s father, he bought for a hundred
pieces of money x the piece of land on which he had pitched his tent.
20There he erected an altar and called it El-El'ohe-Israel. y
Shechem Defiles Dinah

34 Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob,
went out to visit the women of the land; 2and when She'chem the son of
Ha'mor the Hi'vite, the prince of the land, saw her, he seized her and lay
with her and humbled her. 3And his soul was drawn to Dinah the daughter
of Jacob; he loved the maiden and spoke tenderly to her. 4So She'chem
spoke to his father Ha'mor, saying, “Get me this maiden for my wife.”
5Now Jacob heard that he had defiled his daughter Dinah; but his sons were
with his cattle in the field, so Jacob held his peace until they came. 6And
Ha'mor the father of She'chem went out to Jacob to speak with him. 7The
sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard of it; and the men
were indignant and very angry, because he had wrought folly in Israel by
lying with Jacob’s daughter, for such a thing ought not to be done.
8 But Ha'mor spoke with them, saying, “The soul of my son She'chem
longs for your daughter; I beg you, give her to him in marriage. 9Make
marriages with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for
yourselves. 10You shall dwell with us; and the land shall be open to you;
dwell and trade in it, and get property in it.” 11She'chem also said to her
father and to her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever
you say to me I will give. 12Ask of me ever so much as marriage present
and gift, and I will give according as you say to me; only give me the
maiden to be my wife.”
13 The sons of Jacob answered She'chem and his father Ha'mor deceitfully,
because he had defiled their sister Dinah. 14They said to them, “We cannot
do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would
be a disgrace to us. 15Only on this condition will we consent to you: that
you will become as we are and every male of you be circumcised. 16Then
we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to
ourselves, and we will dwell with you and become one people. 17But if you
will not listen to us and be circumcised, then we will take our daughter, and
we will be gone.”
18 Their words pleased Ha'mor and Hamor’s son She'chem. 19And the
young man did not delay to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s
daughter. Now he was the most honored of all his family. 20So Ha'mor and
his son She'chem came to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their
city, saying, 21“These men are friendly with us; let them dwell in the land
and trade in it, for behold, the land is large enough for them; let us take their
daughters in marriage, and let us give them our daughters. 22Only on this
condition will the men agree to dwell with us, to become one people: that
every male among us be circumcised as they are circumcised. 23Will not
their cattle, their property and all their beasts be ours? Only let us agree
with them, and they will dwell with us.” 24And all who went out of the gate
of his city hearkened to Ha'mor and his son She'chem; and every male was
circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city.
Dinah Is Avenged by Her Brothers
25 On the third day, when they were sore, two of the sons of Jacob,
Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, took their swords and came upon the
city unawares, and killed all the males. 26They slew Ha'mor and his son
She'chem with the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and
went away. 27And the sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the
city, because their sister had been defiled; 28they took their flocks and their
herds, their donkeys, and whatever was in the city and in the field; 29all
their wealth, all their little ones and their wives, all that was in the houses,
they captured and made their prey. 30Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi,
“You have brought trouble on me by making me odious to the inhabitants of
the land, the Canaanites and the Per'izzites; my numbers are few, and if they
gather themselves against me and attack me, I shall be destroyed, both I and
my household.” 31But they said, “Should he treat our sister as a harlot?”
Jacob Returns to Bethel
35 God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there; and
make there an altar to the God who appeared to you when you fled from
your brother Esau.” 2So Jacob said to his household and to all who were
with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and purify
yourselves, and change your garments; 3then let us arise and go up to
Bethel, that I may make there an altar to the God who answered me in the
day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4So they
gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in
their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was near She'chem.
5 And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were
round about them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. 6And Jacob
came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the
people who were with him, 7and there he built an altar, and called the place
El-beth'el,z because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled
from his brother. 8And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried
under an oak below Bethel; so the name of it was called Al'lon-bac'uth. a
9 God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Pad'dan-ar'am, and
blessed him. 10And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall
your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.” So his name was
called Israel. 11And God said to him, “I am God Almighty: b be fruitful and
multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings
shall spring from you. 12The land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will
give to you, and I will give the land to your descendants after you.” 13Then
God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. 14And
Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of
stone; and he poured out a drink offering on it, and poured oil on it. 15So
Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him, Bethel.
The Birth of Benjamin and the Death of Rachel
16 Then they journeyed from Bethel; and when they were still some
distance from Eph'rath, Rachel went into labor, and she had hard labor.
17And when she was in her hard labor, the midwife said to her, “Fear not;
for now you will have another son.” 18And as her soul was departing (for
she died), she called his name Ben-o'ni; c but his father called his name
Benjamin.d 19So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Eph'rath
(that is, Bethlehem), 20and Jacob set up a pillar upon her grave; it is the
pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day. 21Israel journeyed on,
and pitched his tent beyond the tower of E'der.
22 While Israel dwelt in that land Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his
father’s concubine; and Israel heard of it.

Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23The sons of Leah: Reuben (Jacob’s
first-born), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Is'sachar, and Zeb'ulun. 24The sons of
Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maid: Dan
and Naph'tali. 26The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maid: Gad and Asher. These
were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Pad'dan-ar'am.
The Death of Isaac
27 And Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, or Kir'iath-ar'ba (that is,
He'bron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28Now the days of Isaac
were a hundred and eighty years. 29And Isaac breathed his last; and he died
and was gathered to his people, old and full of days; and his sons Esau and
Jacob buried him.
Esau’s Descendants
36 These are the descendants of Esau (that is, E'dom). 2Esau took his
wives from the Canaanites: A'dah the daughter of E'lon the Hittite,
Oholiba'mah the daughter of An'ah the son e of Zib'eon the Hi'vite, 3and
Bas'emath, Ish'mael’s daughter, the sister of Neba'ioth. 4And A'dah bore to
Esau, Eli'phaz; Bas'emath bore Reu'el; 5and Oholiba'mah bore Je'ush,
Ja'lam, and Ko'rah. These are the sons of Esau who were born to him in the
land of Canaan.
6 Then Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the members
of his household, his cattle, all his beasts, and all his property which he had
acquired in the land of Canaan; and he went into a land away from his
brother Jacob. 7For their possessions were too great for them to dwell
together; the land of their sojournings could not support them because of
their cattle. 8So Esau dwelt in the hill country of Se'ir; Esau is E'dom.
9 These are the descendants of Esau the father of the E'domites in the hill
country of Se'ir. 10These are the names of Esau’s sons: Eli'phaz the son of
A'dah the wife of Esau, Reu'el the son of Bas'emath the wife of Esau. 11The
sons of Eli'phaz were Te'man, Omar, Ze'pho, Ga'tam, and Ke'naz. 12(Timna
was a concubine of Eli'phaz, Esau’s son; she bore Am'alek to Eliphaz.)
These are the sons of A'dah, Esau’s wife. 13These are the sons of Reu'el:
Na'hath, Ze'rah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the sons of Bas'emath,
Esau’s wife. 14These are the sons of Oholiba'mah the daughter of An'ah the
son f of Zib'eon, Esau’s wife: she bore to Esau Je'ush, Ja'lam, and Ko'rah.
Chiefs and Kings of Edom
15 These are the chiefs of the sons of Esau. The sons of Eli'phaz the first-
born of Esau: the chiefs Te'man, Omar, Ze'pho, Ke'naz, 16Ko'rah, Ga'tam,
and Am'alek; these are the chiefs of Eli'phaz in the land of E'dom; they are
the sons of A'dah. 17These are the sons of Reu'el, Esau’s son: the chiefs
Na'hath, Ze'rah, Shammah, and Mizzah; these are the chiefs of Reu'el in the
land of E'dom; they are the sons of Bas'emath, Esau’s wife. 18These are the
sons of Oholiba'mah, Esau’s wife: the chiefs Je'ush, Ja'lam, and Ko'rah;
these are the chiefs born of Oholiba'mah the daughter of An'ah, Esau’s wife.
19These are the sons of Esau (that is, E'dom), and these are their chiefs.
20 These are the sons of Se'ir the Horite, the inhabitants of the land: Lo'tan,
Sho'bal, Zib'eon, An'ah, 21Di'shon, E'zer, and Di'shan; these are the chiefs
of the Horites, the sons of Se'ir in the land of E'dom. 22The sons of Lo'tan
were Ho'ri and He'man; and Lo'tan’s sister was Timna. 23These are the sons
of Sho'bal: Alvan, Man'ahath, E'bal, She'pho, and Onam. 24These are the
sons of Zib'eon: A'iah and An'ah; he is the Anah who found the hot springs
in the wilderness, as he pastured the donkeys of Zibeon his father. 25These
are the children of An'ah: Di'shon and Oholiba'mah the daughter of Anah.
26These are the sons of Di'shon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Che'ran.
27These are the sons of E'zer: Bilhan, Za'avan, and A'kan. 28These are the
sons of Di'shan: Uz and Ar'an. 29These are the chiefs of the Horites: the
chiefs Lo'tan, Sho'bal, Zib'eon, An'ah, 30Di'shon, E'zer, and Di'shan; these
are the chiefs of the Horites, according to their clans in the land of Se'ir.
31 These are the kings who reigned in the land of E'dom, before any king
reigned over the Israelites. 32Be'la the son of Beor reigned in E'dom, the
name of his city being Din'habah. 33Be'la died, and Jo'bab the son of Ze'rah
of Bozrah reigned in his stead. 34Jo'bab died, and Hu'sham of the land of the
Te'manites reigned in his stead. 35Hu'sham died, and Ha'dad the son of
Be'dad, who defeated Mid'ian in the country of Moab, reigned in his stead,
the name of his city being A'vith. 36Ha'dad died, and Samlah of Masre'kah
reigned in his stead. 37Samlah died, and Sha'ul of Reho'both on the
Euphra'tes reigned in his stead. 38Sha'ul died, and Ba'al-ha'nan the son of
Achbor reigned in his stead. 39Ba'al-ha'nan the son of Achbor died, and
Hadar reigned in his stead, the name of his city being Pa'u; his wife’s name
was Mehet'abel, the daughter of Ma'tred, daughter of Me'zahab.
40 These are the names of the chiefs of Esau, according to their families
and their dwelling places, by their names: the chiefs Timna, Alvah, Je'theth,
41Oholiba'mah, E'lah, Pi'non, 42Ke'naz, Te'man, Mibzar, 43Mag'diel, and
I'ram; these are the chiefs of E'dom (that is, Esau, the father of Edom),
according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession.
Joseph Dreams of Greatness
37 Jacob dwelt in the land of his father’s sojournings, in the land of
Canaan. 2This is the history of the family of Jacob.
* Joseph, being seventeen years old, was shepherding the flock with his
brothers; he was a lad with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s
wives; and Joseph brought an ill report of them to their father. 3Now Israel
loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of
his old age; and he made him a long robe with sleeves. 4But when his
brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they
hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him.
5 Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they only
hated him the more. 6He said to them, “Hear this dream which I have
dreamed: 7behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my
sheaf arose and stood upright; and behold, your sheaves gathered round it,
and bowed down to my sheaf.” 8His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed
to reign over us? Or are you indeed to have dominion over us?” So they
hated him yet more for his dreams and for his words. 9Then he dreamed
another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, “Behold, I have
dreamed another dream; and behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars
were bowing down to me.” 10But when he told it to his father and to his
brothers, his father rebuked him, and said to him, “What is this dream that
you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brothers indeed come
to bow ourselves to the ground before you?” 11And his brothers were
jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.
Joseph Is Sold by His Brothers
12 Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near She'chem.
13And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at
She'chem? Come, I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “Here I
am.” 14So he said to him, “Go now, see if it is well with your brothers, and
with the flock; and bring me word again.” So he sent him from the valley of
He'bron, and he came to She'chem. 15And a man found him wandering in
the fields; and the man asked him, “What are you seeking?” 16 “I am
seeking my brothers,” he said, “tell me, I beg you, where they are pasturing
the flock.” 17And the man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them
say, ‘Let us go to Do'than.' " So Joseph went after his brothers, and found
them at Dothan. 18They saw him afar off, and before he came near to them
they conspired against him to kill him. 19They said to one another, “Here
comes this dreamer. 20Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of
the pits; then we shall say that a wild beast has devoured him, and we shall
see what will become of his dreams.” 21But when Reuben heard it, he
delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” 22And
Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; cast him into this pit here in the
wilderness, but lay no hand upon him”—that he might rescue him out of
their hand, to restore him to his father. 23So when Joseph came to his
brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the long robe with sleeves that he
wore; 24and they took him and cast him into a pit. The pit was empty, there
was no water in it.
25 Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of
Ish'maelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing gum, balm, and
myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 26Then Judah said to his
brothers, “What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood?
27Come, let us sell him to the Ish'maelites, and let not our hand be upon
him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers heeded him.
28Then Mid'ianite traders passed by; and they drew Joseph up and lifted him
out of the pit, and sold him to the Ish'maelites for twenty shekels of silver;
and they took Joseph to Egypt.
29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit,
he tore his clothes 30and returned to his brothers, and said, “The lad is gone;
and I, where shall I go?” 31Then they took Joseph’s robe, and killed a goat,
and dipped the robe in the blood; 32and they sent the long robe with sleeves
and brought it to their father, and said, “This we have found; see now
whether it is your son’s robe or not.” 33And he recognized it, and said, “It is
my son’s robe; a wild beast has devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn
to pieces.” 34Then Jacob tore his garments, and put sackcloth upon his
loins, and mourned for his son many days. 35All his sons and all his
daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted, and said,
“No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Thus his father wept
for him. 36Meanwhile the Mid'ianites had sold him in Egypt to Pot'iphar, an
officer of Pharoah, the captain of the guard.
Judah and Tamar
38 It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers,
and turned in to a certain Adul'lamite, whose name was Hi'rah. 2There
Judah saw the daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua; he
married her and went in to her, 3and she conceived and bore a son, and he
called his name Er. 4Again she conceived and bore a son, and she called his
name O'nan. 5Yet again she bore a son, and she called his name She'lah.
She g was in Che'zib when she bore him. 6And Judah took a wife for Er his
first-born, and her name was Ta'mar. 7But Er, Judah’s first-born, was
wicked in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD slew him. 8Then Judah said
to O'nan, “Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a brother-
in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.” 9But O'nan knew that
the offspring would not be his; so when he went in to his brother’s wife he
spilled the semen on the ground, lest he should give offspring to his brother.
10And what he did was displeasing in the sight of the LORD, and he slew
him also. 11Then Judah said to Ta'mar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a

widow in your father’s house, till She'lah my son grows up”—for he feared
that he would die, like his brothers. So Ta'mar went and dwelt in her
father’s house.
12 In course of time the wife of Judah, Shua’s daughter, died; and when
Judah was comforted, he went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers, he and

his friend Hi'rah the Adul'lamite. 13And when Tamar was told, “Your father-
in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14she put off her widow’s
garments, and put on a veil, wrapping herself up, and sat at the entrance to
Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that She'lah was grown
up, and she had not been given to him in marriage. 15When Judah saw her,
he thought her to be a harlot, for she had covered her face. 16He went over
to her at the road side, and said, “Come, let me come in to you,” for he did
not know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, “What will you give
me, that you may come in to me?” 17He answered, “I will send you a kid
from the flock.” And she said, “Will you give me a pledge, till you send it?”
18He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” She replied, “Your signet and
your cord, and your staff that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her, and
went in to her, and she conceived by him. 19Then she arose and went away,
and taking off her veil she put on the garments of her widowhood.
20 When Judah sent the kid by his friend the Adul'lamite, to receive the
pledge from the woman’s hand, he could not find her. 21And he asked the
men of the place, “Where is the harlot h who was at Ena'im by the
wayside?” And they said, “No harlot h has been here.” 22So he returned to
Judah, and said, “I have not found her; and also the men of the place said,
‘No harlot h has been here.’ ” 23And Judah replied, “Let her keep the things
as her own, lest we be laughed at; you see, I sent this kid, and you could not
find her.”
24 About three months later Judah was told, “Ta'mar your daughter-in-law
has played the harlot; and moreover she is with child by harlotry.” And
Judah said, “Bring her out, and let her be burned.” 25As she was being
brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, “By the man to whom these
belong, I am with child.” And she said, “Mark, I beg you, whose these are,
the signet and the cord and the staff.” 26Then Judah acknowledged them and
said, “She is more righteous than I, inasmuch as I did not give her to my
son She'lah.” And he did not lie with her again.
27 When the time of her delivery came, there were twins in her womb.
28And when she was in labor, one put out a hand; and the midwife took and
bound on his hand a scarlet thread, saying, “This came out first.” 29But as
he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out; and she said, “What a
breach you have made for yourself!” Therefore his name was called Per'ez. i
30Afterward his brother came out with the scarlet thread upon his hand; and
his name was called Ze'rah.

Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife
39 Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt, and Pot'iphar, an officer of
Pharoah, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the
Ish'maelites who had brought him down there. 2The LORD was with Joseph,
and he became a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the
Egyptian, 3and his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the
LORD caused all that he did to prosper in his hands. 4So Joseph found favor
in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and
put him in charge of all that he had. 5From the time that he made him
overseer in his house and over all that he had the LORD blessed the
Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the LORD was upon all
that he had, in house and field. 6So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge;
and having him he had no concern for anything but the food which he ate.
Now Joseph was handsome and good-looking. 7And after a time his
master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph, and said, “Lie with me.” 8But he
refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, having me my master has no
concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has
in my hand; 9he is not greater in this house than I am; nor has he kept back
anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife; how then can I
do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” 10And although she spoke
to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie with her or to be
with her. 11But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and
none of the men of the house was there in the house, 12she caught him by
his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand, and
fled and got out of the house. 13And when she saw that he had left his
garment in her hand, and had fled out of the house, 14she called to the men
of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought among us a
Hebrew to insult us; he came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a
loud voice; 15and when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, he left
his garment with me, and fled and got out of the house.” 16Then she laid up
his garment by her until his master came home, 17and she told him the same
story, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us,
came in to me to insult me; 18but as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried,
he left his garment with me, and fled out of the house.”
19 When his master heard the words which his wife spoke to him, “This is
the way your servant treated me,” his anger was kindled. 20And Joseph’s
master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s
prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison. 21But the LORD was
with Joseph and showed him mercy, and gave him favor in the sight of the
keeper of the prison. 22And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s
care all the prisoners who were in the prison; and whatever was done there,
he was the doer of it; 23the keeper of the prison paid no heed to anything
that was in Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with him; and whatever he
did, the LORD made it prosper.
The Dreams of Two Prisoners
40 Some time after this, the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker
offended their lord the king of Egypt. 2And Pharoah was angry with his two
officers, the chief butler and the chief baker, 3and he put them in custody in
the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison where Joseph was
confined. 4The captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he
waited on them; and they continued for some time in custody. 5And one
night they both dreamed—the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt,
who were confined in the prison—each his own dream, and each dream
with its own meaning. 6When Joseph came to them in the morning and saw
them, they were troubled. 7So he asked Pharoah’s officers who were with
him in custody in his master’s house, “Why are your faces downcast
today?” 8They said to him, “We have had dreams, and there is no one to
interpret them.” And Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to
God? Tell them to me, I beg you.”
9 So the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my
dream there was a vine before me, 10and on the vine there were three
branches; as soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and the clusters
ripened into grapes. 11Pharoah’s cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes
and pressed them into Pharoah’s cup, and placed the cup in Pharoah’s
hand.” 12Then Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three
branches are three days; 13within three days Pharoah will lift up your head
and restore you to your office; and you shall place Pharoah’s cup in his
hand as formerly, when you were his butler. 14But remember me, when it is
well with you, and do me the kindness, I beg you, to make mention of me to
Pharoah, and so get me out of this house. 15For I was indeed stolen out of
the land of the Hebrews; and here also I have done nothing that they should
put me into the dungeon.”
16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said
to Joseph, “I also had a dream: there were three cake baskets on my head,
17and in the uppermost basket there were all sorts of baked food for
Pharoah, but the birds were eating it out of the basket on my head.” 18And
Joseph answered, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days;
19within three days Pharoah will lift up your head—from you!—and hang
you on a tree; and the birds will eat the flesh from you.”
20 On the third day, which was Pharoah’s birthday, he made a feast for all
his servants, and lifted up the head of the chief butler and the head of the
chief baker among his servants. 21He restored the chief butler to his
butlership, and he placed the cup in Pharoah’s hand; 22but he hanged the
chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. 23Yet the chief butler did not
remember Joseph, but forgot him.
Joseph Interprets Pharoah’s Dream
41 After two whole years, Pharoah dreamed that he was standing by the
Nile, 2and behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows sleek and fat,
and they fed in the reed grass. 3And behold, seven other cows, gaunt and
thin, came up out of the Nile after them, and stood by the other cows on the
bank of the Nile. 4And the gaunt and thin cows ate up the seven sleek and
fat cows. And Pharoah awoke. 5And he fell asleep and dreamed a second
time; and behold, seven ears of grain, plump and good, were growing on
one stalk. 6And behold, after them sprouted seven ears, thin and blighted by
the east wind. 7And the thin ears swallowed up the seven plump and full
ears. And Pharoah awoke, and behold, it was a dream. 8So in the morning
his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt
and all its wise men; and Pharoah told them his dream, but there was none
who could interpret it j to Pharoah.
9 Then the chief butler said to Pharoah, “I remember my faults today.
10When Pharoah was angry with his servants, and put me and the chief
baker in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, 11we dreamed on
the same night, he and I, each having a dream with its own meaning. 12A
young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard; and
when we told him, he interpreted our dreams to us, giving an interpretation
to each man according to his dream. 13And as he interpreted to us, so it
came to pass; I was restored to my office, and the baker was hanged.”
14 Then Pharoah sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out
of the dungeon; and when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes,
he came in before Pharoah. 15And Pharoah said to Joseph, “I have had a
dream, and there is no one who can interpret it; and I have heard it said of
you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” 16Joseph answered
Pharoah, “It is not in me; God will give Pharoah a favorable answer.”
17Then Pharoah said to Joseph, “Behold, in my dream I was standing on the
banks of the Nile; 18and seven cows, fat and sleek, came up out of the Nile
and fed in the reed grass; 19and seven other cows came up after them, poor
and very gaunt and thin, such as I had never seen in all the land of Egypt.
20And the thin and gaunt cows ate up the first seven fat cows, 21but when
they had eaten them no one would have known that they had eaten them, for
they were still as gaunt as at the beginning. Then I awoke. 22I also saw in
my dream seven ears growing on one stalk, full and good; 23and seven ears,
withered, thin, and blighted by the east wind, sprouted after them, 24and the
thin ears swallowed up the seven good ears. And I told it to the magicians,
but there was no one who could explain it to me.”
25 Then Joseph said to Pharoah, “The dream of Pharoah is one; God has
revealed to Pharoah what he is about to do. 26The seven good cows are
seven years, and the seven good ears are seven years; the dream is one.
27The seven lean and gaunt cows that came up after them are seven years,
and the seven empty ears blighted by the east wind are also seven years of
famine. 28It is as I told Pharoah, God has shown to Pharoah what he is
about to do. 29There will come seven years of great plenty throughout all
the land of Egypt, 30but after them there will arise seven years of famine,
and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt; the famine will
consume the land, 31and the plenty will be unknown in the land by reason
of that famine which will follow, for it will be very grievous. 32And the
doubling of Pharoah’s dream means that the thing is fixed by God, and God
will shortly bring it to pass. 33Now therefore let Pharoah select a man
discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. 34Let Pharoah
proceed to appoint overseers over the land, and take the fifth part of the
produce of the land of Egypt during the seven plenteous years. 35And let
them gather all the food of these good years that are coming, and lay up
grain under the authority of Pharoah for food in the cities, and let them keep
it. 36That food shall be a reserve for the land against the seven years of
famine which are to befall the land of Egypt, so that the land may not perish
through the famine.”
Joseph’s Rise to Power in Egypt
37 This proposal seemed good to Pharoah and to all his servants. 38And
Pharoah said to his servants, “Can we find such a man as this, in whom is
the Spirit of God?” 39So Pharoah said to Joseph, “Since God has shown you
all this, there is none so discreet and wise as you are; 40you shall be over
my house, and all my people shall order themselves as you command; only
as regards the throne will I be greater than you.” 41And Pharoah said to
Joseph, “Behold, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” 42Then Pharoah
took his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and arrayed
him in garments of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; 43and he
made him to ride in his second chariot; and they cried before him, “Bow the
knee!” k Thus he set him over all the land of Egypt. 44Moreover Pharoah
said to Joseph, “I am Pharoah, and without your consent no man shall lift
up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” 45And Pharoah called Joseph’s
name Zaph'enath-pane'ah; and he gave him in marriage As'enath, the
daughter of Poti'phera priest of On. So Joseph went out over the land of
Egypt.
46 Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharoah king
of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharoah, and went
through all the land of Egypt. 47During the seven plenteous years the earth
brought forth abundantly, 48and he gathered up all the food of the seven
years when there was plenty l in the land of Egypt, and stored up food in the
cities; he stored up in every city the food from the fields around it. 49And
Joseph stored up grain in great abundance, like the sand of the sea, until he
ceased to measure it, for it could not be measured.
50 Before the year of famine came, Joseph had two sons, whom As'enath,
the daughter of Poti'phera priest of On, bore to him. 51Joseph called the
name of the first-born Manas'seh, m “For,” he said, “God has made me
forget all my hardship and all my father’s house.” 52The name of the second
he called E'phraim, n “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my
affliction.”
53 The seven years of plenty that prevailed in the land of Egypt came to an
end; 54and the seven years of famine began to come, as Joseph had said.
There was famine in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.
55When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharoah for
bread; and Pharoah said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; what he says to
you, do.” 56So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened
all the storehouses, o and sold to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in
the land of Egypt. 57Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy
grain, because the famine was severe over all the earth.
Joseph’s Brothers Go to Egypt
42 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his
sons, “Why do you look at one another?” 2And he said, “Behold, I have
heard that there is grain in Egypt; go down and buy grain for us there, that
we may live, and not die.” 3So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy
grain in Egypt. 4But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with his
brothers, for he feared that harm might befall him. 5Thus the sons of Israel
came to buy among the others who came, for the famine was in the land of
Canaan.
6 Now Joseph was governor over the land; he it was who sold to all the
people of the land. And Joseph’s brothers came, and bowed themselves
before him with their faces to the ground. 7Joseph saw his brothers, and
knew them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke roughly to them.
“Where do you come from?” he said. They said, “From the land of Canaan,
to buy food.” 8Thus Joseph knew his brothers, but they did not know him.
9And Joseph remembered the dreams which he had dreamed of them; and
he said to them, “You are spies, you have come to see the weakness of the
land.” 10They said to him, “No, my lord, but to buy food have your servants
come. 11We are all sons of one man, we are honest men, your servants are
not spies.” 12He said to them, “No, it is the weakness of the land that you
have come to see.” 13And they said, “We, your servants, are twelve
brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and behold, the
youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.” 14But Joseph said
to them, “It is as I said to you, you are spies. 15By this you shall be tested:
by the life of Pharoah, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest
brother comes here. 16Send one of you, and let him bring your brother,
while you remain in prison, that your words may be tested, whether there is
truth in you; or else, by the life of Pharoah, surely you are spies.” 17And he
put them all together in prison for three days.
18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I
fear God: 19if you are honest men, let one of your brothers remain confined
in your prison, and let the rest go and carry grain for the famine of your
households, 20and bring your youngest brother to me; so your words will be
verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. 21Then they said to one
another, “In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the
distress of his soul, when he begged us and we would not listen; therefore is
this distress come upon us.” 22And Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell
you not to sin against the lad? But you would not listen. So now there
comes a reckoning for his blood.” 23They did not know that Joseph
understood them, for there was an interpreter between them. 24Then he
turned away from them and wept; and he returned to them and spoke to
them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes.
25And Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, and to replace every
man’s money in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. This
was done for them.
Joseph’s Brothers Return to Canaan
26 Then they loaded their donkeys with their grain, and departed. 27And as
one of them opened his sack to give his donkey food at the lodging place,
he saw his money in the mouth of his sack; 28and he said to his brothers,
“My money has been put back; here it is in the mouth of my sack!” At this
their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying,
“What is this that God has done to us?”
29 When they came to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan, they told
him all that had befallen them, saying, 30 “The man, the lord of the land,
spoke roughly to us, and took us to be spies of the land. 31But we said to
him, ‘We are honest men, we are not spies; 32we are twelve brothers, sons
of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in
the land of Canaan.’ 33Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By
this I shall know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with
me, and take grain for the famine of your households, and go your way.
34Bring your youngest brother to me; then I shall know that you are not
spies but honest men, and I will deliver to you your brother, and you shall
trade in the land.’ ”
35 As they emptied their sacks, behold, every man’s bundle of money was
in his sack; and when they and their father saw their bundles of money, they
were dismayed. 36And Jacob their father said to them, “You have bereaved
me of my children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you
would take Benjamin; all this has come upon me.” 37Then Reuben said to
his father, “Slay my two sons if I do not bring him back to you; put him in
my hands, and I will bring him back to you.” 38But he said, “My son shall
not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he only is left. If harm
should befall him on the journey that you are to make, you would bring
down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol.”
Joseph’s Brothers Bring Benjamin to Egypt
43 Now the famine was severe in the land. 2And when they had eaten
the grain which they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, “Go
again, buy us a little food.” 3But Judah said to him, “The man solemnly
warned us, saying, ‘You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with
you.’ 4If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you
food; 5but if you will not send him, we will not go down, for the man said
to us, ‘You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.’ ” 6Israel
said, “Why did you treat me so ill as to tell the man that you had another
brother?” 7They replied, “The man questioned us carefully about ourselves
and our kindred, saying, ‘Is your father still alive? Have you another
brother?’ What we told him was in answer to these questions; could we in
any way know that he would say, ‘Bring your brother down’?” 8And Judah
said to Israel his father, “Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go,
that we may live and not die, both we and you and also our little ones. 9I
will be surety for him; of my hand you shall require him. If I do not bring
him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame for
ever; 10for if we had not delayed, we would now have returned twice.”
11 Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: take
some of the choice fruits of the land in your bags, and carry down to the
man a present, a little balm and a little honey, gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts,
and almonds. 12Take double the money with you; carry back with you the
money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks; perhaps it was an
oversight. 13Take also your brother, and arise, go again to the man; 14may
God Almighty p grant you mercy before the man, that he may send back
your other brother and Benjamin. If I am bereaved of my children, I am
bereaved.” 15So the men took the present, and they took double the money
with them, and Benjamin; and they arose and went down to Egypt, and
stood before Joseph.
16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his
house, “Bring the men into the house, and slaughter an animal and make
ready, for the men are to dine with me at noon.” 17The man did as Joseph
bade him, and brought the men to Joseph’s house. 18And the men were
afraid because they were brought to Joseph’s house, and they said, “It is
because of the money, which was replaced in our sacks the first time, that
we are brought in, so that he may seek occasion against us and fall upon us,
to make slaves of us and seize our donkeys.” 19So they went up to the
steward of Joseph’s house, and spoke with him at the door of the house,
20and said, “Oh, my lord, we came down the first time to buy food; 21and
when we came to the lodging place we opened our sacks, and there was
every man’s money in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight; so
we have brought it again with us, 22and we have brought other money down
in our hand to buy food. We do not know who put our money in our sacks.”
23He replied, “Rest assured, do not be afraid; your God and the God of your
father must have put treasure in your sacks for you; I received your money.”
Then he brought Simeon out to them. 24And when the man had brought the
men into Joseph’s house, and given them water, and they had washed their
feet, and when he had given their donkeys food, 25they made ready the
present for Joseph’s coming at noon, for they heard that they should eat
bread there.
26 When Joseph came home, they brought into the house to him the
present which they had with them, and bowed down to him to the ground.
27And he inquired about their welfare, and said, “Is your father well, the old
man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?” 28They said, “Your servant our
father is well, he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads and made
obeisance. 29And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his
mother’s son, and said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke
to me? God be gracious to you, my son!” 30Then Joseph made haste, for his
heart yearned for his brother, and he sought a place to weep. And he entered
his chamber and wept there. 31Then he washed his face and came out; and
controlling himself he said, “Let food be served.” 32They served him by
himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by
themselves, because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews,
for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. 33And they sat before him, the
first-born according to his birthright and the youngest according to his
youth; and the men looked at one another in amazement. 34Portions were
taken to them from Joseph’s table, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as
much as any of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.
Joseph Detains Benjamin
44 Then he commanded the steward of his house, “Fill the men’s sacks
with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the
mouth of his sack, 2and put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack
of the youngest, with his money for the grain.” And he did as Joseph told
him. 3As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away with their
donkeys. 4When they had gone but a short distance from the city, Joseph
said to his steward, “Up, follow after the men; and when you overtake
them, say to them, ‘Why have you returned evil for good? Why have you
stolen my silver cup? q 5Is it not from this that my lord drinks, and by this
that he divines? You have done wrong in so doing.' "
6 When he overtook them, he spoke to them these words. 7They said to
him, “Why does my lord speak such words as these? Far be it from your
servants that they should do such a thing! 8Behold, the money which we
found in the mouth of our sacks, we brought back to you from the land of
Canaan; how then should we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house?
9With whomever of your servants it be found, let him die, and we also will
be my lord’s slaves.” 10He said, “Let it be as you say: he with whom it is

found shall be my slave, and the rest of you shall be blameless.” 11Then
every man quickly lowered his sack to the ground, and every man opened
his sack. 12And he searched, beginning with the eldest and ending with the
youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13Then they tore their
clothes, and every man loaded his donkey, and they returned to the city.
14 When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, he was still there;
and they fell before him to the ground. 15Joseph said to them, “What deed is
this that you have done? Do you not know that such a man as I can indeed
divine?” 16And Judah said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we
speak? Or how can we clear ourselves? God has found out the guilt of your
servants; behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we and he also in whose
hand the cup has been found.” 17But he said, “Far be it from me that I
should do so! Only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my
slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”
Judah Pleads for Benjamin’s Release
18 Then Judah went up to him and said, “O my lord, let your servant, I beg
you, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not your anger burn against
your servant; for you are like Pharoah himself. 19My lord asked his
servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’ 20And we said to my
lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his
old age; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother’s
children; and his father loves him.’ 21Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring
him down to me, that I may set my eyes upon him.’ 22We said to my lord,
‘The lad cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father
would die.’ 23Then you said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother
comes down with you, you shall see my face no more.’ 24When we went
back to your servant my father we told him the words of my lord. 25And
when our father said, ‘Go again, buy us a little food,’ 26we said, ‘We cannot
go down. If our youngest brother goes with us, then we will go down; for
we cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me
two sons; 28one left me, and I said, Surely he has been torn to pieces; and I
have never seen him since. 29If you take this one also from me, and harm
befalls him, you will bring down my gray hairs in sorrow to Sheol.’ 30Now
therefore, when I come to your servant my father, and the lad is not with us,
then, as his life is bound up in the lad’s life, 31when he sees that the lad is
not with us, he will die; and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of
your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol. 32For your servant became
surety for the lad to my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you,
then I shall bear the blame in the sight of my father all my life.’ 33Now
therefore, let your servant, I beg you, remain instead of the lad as a slave to
my lord; and let the lad go back with his brothers. 34For how can I go back
to my father if the lad is not with me? I fear to see the evil that would come
upon my father.”
Joseph Makes Himself Known to His Brothers
45 Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by
him; and he cried, “Make every one go out from me.” So no one stayed
with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. 2And he wept
aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharoah heard it.
3And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph; is my father still alive?” But
his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.
4 So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, I beg you.” And they
came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into
Egypt. 5And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because
you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. 6For the
famine has been in the land these two years; and there are yet five years in
which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. 7And God sent me before
you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many
survivors. 8So it was not you who sent me here, but God; and he has made
me a father to Pharoah, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land
of Egypt. 9Make haste and go up to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says
your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do
not tarry; 10 you shall dwell in the land of Go'shen, and you shall be near
me, you and your children and your children’s children, and your flocks,
your herds, and all that you have; 11and there I will provide for you, for
there are yet five years of famine to come; lest you and your household, and
all that you have, come to poverty.’ 12And now your eyes see, and the eyes
of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth that speaks to you. 13You
must tell my father of all my splendor in Egypt, and of all that you have
seen. Make haste and bring my father down here.” 14Then he fell upon his
brother Benjamin’s neck and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck.
15And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his
brothers talked with him.

16 When the report was heard in Pharoah’s house, “Joseph’s brothers have
come,” it pleased Pharoah and his servants well. 17And Pharoah said to
Joseph, “Say to your brothers, ‘Do this: load your beasts and go back to the
land of Canaan; 18and take your father and your households, and come to
me, and I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the
fat of the land.’ 19Command them r also, ‘Do this: take wagons from the
land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father,
and come. 20Give no thought to your goods, for the best of all the land of
Egypt is yours.' "
21 The sons of Israel did so; and Joseph gave them wagons, according to
the command of Pharoah, and gave them provisions for the journey. 22To
each and all of them he gave festal garments; but to Benjamin he gave three
hundred shekels of silver and five festal garments. 23To his father he sent as
follows: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten she-
donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provision for his father on the
journey. 24Then he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to
them, “Do not quarrel on the way.” 25So they went up out of Egypt, and
came to the land of Canaan to their father Jacob. 26And they told him,
“Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” And his
heart fainted, for he did not believe them. 27But when they told him all the
words of Joseph, which he had said to them, and when he saw the wagons
which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived;
28and Israel said, “It is enough; Joseph my son is still alive; I will go and
see him before I die.”

Jacob Brings His Whole Family to Egypt
46 So Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Be'er-
she'ba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. 2And God
spoke to Israel in visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he
said, “Here am I.” 3Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not
be afraid to go down to Egypt; for I will there make of you a great nation. 4I
will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again; and
Joseph’s hand shall close your eyes.” 5Then Jacob set out from Be'er-she'ba;
and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, their little ones, and their
wives, in the wagons which Pharoah had sent to carry him. 6They also took
their cattle and their goods, which they had gained in the land of Canaan,
and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him, 7his sons, and
his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters; all his
offspring he brought with him into Egypt.
8 Now these are the names of the descendants of Israel, who came into
Egypt, Jacob and his sons. Reuben, Jacob’s first-born, 9and the sons of
Reuben: Ha'noch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. 10The sons of Simeon:
Jemu'el, Ja'min, O'had, Ja'chin, Zo'har, and Sha'ul, the son of a Canaanitish
woman. 11The sons of Levi: Gershon, Ko'hath, and Merar'i. 12The sons of
Judah: Er, O'nan, She'lah, Per'ez, and Ze'rah (but Er and Onan died in the
land of Canaan); and the sons of Perez were Hezron and Ha'mul. 13The sons
of Is'sachar: To'la, Pu'vah, I'ob, and Shimron. 14The sons of Zeb'ulun:
Se'red, E'lon, and Jah'leel 15(these are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to
Jacob in Pad'dan-ar'am, together with his daughter Dinah; altogether his
sons and his daughters numbered thirty-three). 16The sons of Gad: Ziph'ion,
Haggi, Shu'ni, Ezbon, E'ri, Aro'di, and Are'li. 17The sons of Asher: Imnah,
Ishvah, Ishvi, Beri'ah, with Se'rah their sister. And the sons of Beriah:
He'ber and Mal'chi-el 18(these are the sons of Zilpah, whom La'ban gave to
Leah his daughter; and these she bore to Jacob—sixteen persons). 19The
sons of Rachel, Jacob’s wife: Joseph and Benjamin. 20And to Joseph in the
land of Egypt were born Manas'seh and E'phraim, whom As'enath, the
daughter of Poti'phera the priest of On, bore to him. 21And the sons of
Benjamin: Be'la, Be'cher, Ashbel, Ge'ra, Na'aman, E'hi, Rosh, Muppim,
Huppim, and Ard 22(these are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob
—fourteen persons in all). 23The sons of Dan: Hu'shim. 24The sons of
Naph'tali: Jah'zeel, Gu'ni, Je'zer, and Shillem 25(these are the sons of
Bilhah, whom La'ban gave to Rachel his daughter, and these she bore to
Jacob—seven persons in all). 26All the persons belonging to Jacob who
came into Egypt, who were his own offspring, not including Jacob’s sons’
wives, were sixty-six persons in all; 27and the sons of Joseph, who were
born to him in Egypt, were two; all the persons of the house of Jacob, that
came into Egypt, were seventy.
Jacob Dwells in the Land of Goshen
28 He sent Judah before him to Joseph, to appear s before him in Go'shen;
and they came into the land of Goshen. 29Then Joseph made ready his
chariot and went up to meet Israel his father in Go'shen; and he presented
himself to him, and fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.
30Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face and
know that you are still alive.” 31Joseph said to his brothers and to his
father’s household, “I will go up and tell Pharoah, and will say to him, ‘My
brothers and my father’s household, who were in the land of Canaan, have
come to me; 32and the men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of
cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they
have.’ 33When Pharoah calls you, and says, ‘What is your occupation?’
34you shall say, ‘Your servants have been keepers of cattle from our youth
even until now, both we and our fathers,’ in order that you may dwell in the
land of Go'shen; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians.”
47 So Joseph went in and told Pharoah, “My father and my brothers,
with their flocks and herds and all that they possess, have come from the
land of Canaan; they are now in the land of Go'shen.” 2And from among his
brothers he took five men and presented them to Pharoah. 3Pharoah said to
his brothers, “What is your occupation?” And they said to Pharoah, “Your
servants are shepherds, as our fathers were.” 4They said to Pharoah, “We
have come to sojourn in the land; for there is no pasture for your servants’
flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan; and now, we pray
you, let your servants dwell in the land of Go'shen.” 5Then Pharoah said to
Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6The land of
Egypt is before you; settle your father and your brothers in the best of the
land; let them dwell in the land of Go'shen; and if you know any able men
among them, put them in charge of my cattle.”
7 Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharoah, and
Jacob blessed Pharoah. 8And Pharoah said to Jacob, “How many are the
days of the years of your life?” 9And Jacob said to Pharoah, “The days of
the years of my sojourning are a hundred and thirty years; few and evil have
been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days
of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.” 10And
Jacob blessed Pharoah, and went out from the presence of Pharoah. 11Then
Joseph settled his father and his brothers, and gave them a possession in the
land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Ram'eses, as Pharoah
had commanded. 12And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his
father’s household with food, according to the number of their dependents.
The Famine in Egypt and Canaan
13 Now there was no food in all the land; for the famine was very severe,
so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished by reason of the
famine. 14And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land
of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, for the grain which they bought; and
Joseph brought the money into Pharoah’s house. 15And when the money
was all spent in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the
Egyptians came to Joseph, and said, “Give us food; why should we die
before your eyes? For our money is gone.” 16And Joseph answered, “Give
your cattle, and I will give you food in exchange for your cattle, if your
money is gone.” 17So they brought their cattle to Joseph; and Joseph gave
them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the
donkeys: and he supplied them with food in exchange for all their cattle that
year. 18And when that year was ended, they came to him the following year,
and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord that our money is all spent;
and the herds of cattle are my lord’s; there is nothing left in the sight of my
lord but our bodies and our lands. 19Why should we die before your eyes,
both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land
will be slaves to Pharoah; and give us seed, that we may live, and not die,
and that the land may not be desolate.”
20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharoah; for all the
Egyptians sold their fields, because the famine was severe upon them. The
land became Pharoah’s; 21and as for the people, he made slaves of them t
from one end of Egypt to the other. 22Only the land of the priests he did not
buy; for the priests had a fixed allowance from Pharoah, and lived on the
allowance which Pharoah gave them; therefore they did not sell their land.
23Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, I have this day bought you and
your land for Pharoah. Now here is seed for you, and you shall sow the
land. 24And at the harvests you shall give a fifth to Pharoah, and four fifths
shall be your own, as seed for the field and as food for yourselves and your
households, and as food for your little ones.” 25And they said, “You have
saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be slaves to Pharoah.” 26So
Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt, and it stands to this
day, that Pharoah should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not
become Pharoah’s.
The Last Days of Jacob
27 Thus Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the land of Go'shen; and they
gained possessions in it, and were fruitful and multiplied exceedingly.

28And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the days of
Jacob, the years of his life, were a hundred and forty-seven years.
29 And when the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son
Joseph and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, put your
hand under my thigh, and promise to deal loyally and truly with me. Do not
bury me in Egypt, 30but let me lie with my fathers; carry me out of Egypt
and bury me in their burying place.” He answered, “I will do as you have
said.” 31And he said, “Swear to me”; and he swore to him. Then Israel
bowed himself upon the head of his bed.
Jacob Blesses Joseph and His Sons
48 After this Joseph was told, “Behold, your father is ill”; so he took
with him his two sons, Manas'seh and E'phraim. 2And it was told to Jacob,
“Your son Joseph has come to you”; then Israel summoned his strength, and
sat up in bed. 3And Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty u appeared to me
at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, 4and said to me, ‘Behold, I
will make you fruitful, and multiply you, and I will make of you a company
of peoples, and will give this land to your descendants after you for an
everlasting possession.’ 5And now your two sons, who were born to you in
the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; E'phraim and
Manas'seh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are. 6And the offspring
born to you after them shall be yours; they shall be called by the name of
their brothers in their inheritance. 7For when I came from Paddan, Rachel to
my sorrow died in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was still some
distance to go to Eph'rath; and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that
is, Bethlehem).”
8 When Israel saw Joseph’s sons, he said, “Who are these?” 9Joseph said
to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” And he
said, “Bring them to me, I pray you, that I may bless them.” 10Now the eyes
of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought
them near him; and he kissed them and embraced them. 11And Israel said to
Joseph, “I had not thought to see your face; and behold, God has let me see
your children also.” 12Then Joseph removed them from his knees, and he
bowed himself with his face to the earth. 13And Joseph took them both,
E'phraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manas'seh in his
left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. 14And
Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it upon the head of E'phraim,
who was the younger, and his left hand upon the head of Manas'seh,
crossing his hands, for Manasseh was the first-born. 15And he blessed
Joseph, and said,
“The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked,
the God who has led me all my life long to this day,
16the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads;
and in them let my name be perpetuated, and the name of my fathers

Abraham and Isaac;
and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.”
17 When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of
E'phraim, it displeased him; and he took his father’s hand, to remove it from
Ephraim’s head to Manas'seh’s head. 18And Joseph said to his father, “Not
so, my father; for this one is the first-born; put your right hand upon his
head.” 19But his father refused, and said, “I know, my son, I know; he also
shall become a people, and he also shall be great; nevertheless his younger
brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a
multitude of nations.” 20So he blessed them that day, saying,
“By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying,
‘God make you as E'phraim and as Manas'seh' ";
and thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 21Then Israel said to Joseph,
“Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you, and will bring you
again to the land of your fathers. 22Moreover I have given to you rather than
to your brothers one mountain slope v which I took from the hand of the
Am'orites with my sword and with my bow.”
Jacob’s Last Words to His Sons
49 * Then Jacob called his sons, and said, “Gather yourselves together,
that I may tell you what shall befall you in days to come.
2Assemble and hear, O sons of Jacob,
and hearken to Israel your father.

3Reuben, you are my first-born,
my might, and the first fruits of my strength,
pre-eminent in pride and pre-eminent in power.
4Unstable as water, you shall not have pre-eminence
because you went up to your father’s bed;

then you defiled it—you w went up to my couch!
5Simeon and Levi are brothers;
weapons of violence are their swords.
6O my soul, come not into their council;
O my spirit,x be not joined to their company;

for in their anger they slay men,
and in their wantonness they hamstring oxen.
7Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;
and their wrath, for it is cruel!
I will divide them in Jacob
and scatter them in Israel.
8Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;

your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
9Judah is a lion’s whelp;
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.

He stooped down, he lurked as a lion,
and as a lioness; who dares rouse him up?
10The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,

until he comes to whom it belongs; y
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
11Binding his foal to the vine
and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,

he washes his garments in wine
and his vesture in the blood of grapes;
12his eyes shall be red with wine,
and his teeth white with milk.

13Zeb'ulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea;
he shall become a haven for ships,
and his border shall be at Si'don.
14Is'sachar is a strong donkey,
crouching between the sheepfolds;
15he saw that a resting place was good,
and that the land was pleasant;

so he bowed his shoulder to bear,
and became a slave at forced labor.
16Dan shall judge his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.
17Dan shall be a serpent in the way,
a viper by the path,

that bites the horse’s heels
so that his rider falls backward.
18I wait for your salvation, O LORD.
19Raiders z shall raid Gad,
but he shall raid at their heels.
20Asher’s food shall be rich,
and he shall yield royal dainties.
21Naph'tali is a deer let loose,
that bears comely fawns. a
22Joseph is a fruitful bough,
a fruitful bough by a spring;
his branches run over the wall.
23The archers fiercely attacked him,
shot at him, and harassed him sorely;

24yet his bow remained unmoved,
his arms b were made agile

by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob
(by the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel),
25by the God of your father who will help you,
by God Almighty u who will bless you

with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
26The blessings of your father
are mighty beyond the blessings of the eternal mountains, c

the bounties of the everlasting hills;
may they be on the head of Joseph,
and on the brow of him who was separate from his brothers.
27Benjamin is a ravenous wolf,
in the morning devouring the prey,
and at evening dividing the spoil.”
Jacob’s Death and Burial
28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel; and this is what their father said
to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing suitable to him.
29Then he charged them, and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my
people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of E'phron
the Hittite, 30in the cave that is in the field at Mach-pe'lah, to the east of
Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from
E'phron the Hittite to possess as a burying place. 31There they buried
Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife;
and there I buried Leah—32the field and the cave that is in it were
purchased from the Hittites.” 33When Jacob finished charging his sons, he
drew up his feet into the bed, and breathed his last, and was gathered to his
people.
50 Then Joseph fell on his father’s face, and wept over him, and kissed
him. 2And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his
father. So the physicians embalmed Israel; 3forty days were required for it,
for so many are required for embalming. And the Egyptians wept for him
seventy days.
4 And when the days of weeping for him were past, Joseph spoke to the
household of Pharoah, saying, “If now I have found favor in your eyes,
speak, I beg you, in the ears of Pharoah, saying, 5My father made me swear,
saying, ‘I am about to die: in my tomb which I hewed out for myself in the
land of Canaan, there shall you bury me.’ Now therefore let me go up, I beg
you, and bury my father; then I will return.” 6And Pharoah answered, “Go
up, and bury your father, as he made you swear.” 7So Joseph went up to
bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharoah, the elders
of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8as well as all the
household of Joseph, his brothers, and his father’s household; only their
children, their flocks, and their herds were left in the land of Go'shen. 9And
there went up with him both chariots and horsemen; it was a very great
company. 10When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is
beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and sorrowful
lamentation; and he made a mourning for his father seven days. 11When the
inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning on the threshing
floor of Atad, they said, “This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians.”
Therefore the place was named A'bel-miz'raim; d it is beyond the Jordan.
12Thus his sons did for him as he had commanded them; 13for his sons
carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field at
Mach-pe'lah, to the east of Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field
from E'phron the Hittite, to possess as a burying place. 14After he had
buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who
had gone up with him to bury his father.
Joseph Forgives His Brothers
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It
may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil which we
did to him.” 16So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, “Your father gave
this command before he died, 17‘Say to Joseph, Forgive, I beg you, the
transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.’
And now, we pray you, forgive the transgression of the servants of the God
of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18His brothers also
came and fell down before him, and said, “Behold, we are your servants.”
19But Joseph said to them, “Fear not, for am I in the place of God? 20As for
you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about
that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. 21So do not fear; I
will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he reassured them and
comforted them.
Joseph’s Last Days and Death
22 So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father’s house; and Joseph lived a
hundred and ten years. 23And Joseph saw E'phraim’s children of the third
generation; the children also of Ma'chir the son of Manas'seh were born
upon Joseph’s knees. 24And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die;
but God will visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which
he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” 25Then Joseph took an oath
of the sons of Israel, saying, “God will visit you, and you shall carry up my
bones from here.” 26So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old; and
they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.
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Exodus
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
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THE BOOK OF EXODUS
The Sons of Israel
1 These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with
Jacob, each with his household: 2Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,
3Is'sachar, Zeb'ulun, and Benjamin, 4Dan and Naph'tali, Gad and Asher.
5All the offspring of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in
Egypt. 6Then Joseph died, and all his brothers, and all that generation. 7But
the descendants of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied
and grew exceedingly strong; so that the land was filled with them.
The Israelites Are Oppressed by the Egyptians
8 Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. 9And
he said to his people, “Behold, the sons of Israel are too many and too
mighty for us. 10Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply,
and, if war befall us, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape
from the land.” 11Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them
with heavy burdens; and they built for Pharaoh store-cities, Pithom and Ra-
am'ses. 12But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and
the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the sons
of Israel. 13So they made the sons of Israel serve with rigor, 14and made
their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of
work in the field; in all their work they made them serve with rigor.
15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was
named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16“When you serve as midwife to the
Hebrew women, and see them upon the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall
kill him; but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” 17But the midwives feared
God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male
children live. 18So the king of Egypt called the midwives, and said to them,
“Why have you done this, and let the male children live?” 19The midwives
said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian
women; for they are vigorous and are delivered before the midwife comes
to them.” 20So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied
and grew very strong. 21And because the midwives feared God he gave
them families. 22Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every son that
is born to the Hebrewsa you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every
daughter live.”
Birth and Youth of Moses
2 Now a man from the house of Levi went and took to wife a daughter
of Levi. 2The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he
was a goodly child, she hid him three months. 3And when she could hide
him no longer she took for him a basket made of bulrushes, and daubed it
with bitumen and pitch; and she put the child in it and placed it among the
reeds at the river’s brink. 4And his sister stood at a distance, to know what
would be done to him. 5Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe
at the river, and her maidens walked beside the river; she saw the basket
among the reeds and sent her maid to fetch it. 6When she opened it she saw
the child; and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said,
“This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” 7Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s
daughter, “Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse
the child for you?” 8And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” So the girl
went and called the child’s mother. 9And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her,
“Take this child away, and nurse him for me, and I will give you your
wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him. 10And the child grew,
and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son; and she
named him Moses,b for she said, “Because I drew him out c of the water.”
Moses Flees to Midian
11 One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and
looked on their burdens; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of
his people. 12He looked this way and that, and seeing no one he killed the
Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13When he went out the next day, behold,
two Hebrews were struggling together; and he said to the man that did the
wrong, “Why do you strike your fellow?” 14He answered, “Who made you
a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the
Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is
known.” 15When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses.
But Moses fled from Pharaoh, and stayed in the land of Mid'ian; and he
sat down by a well. 16Now the priest of Mid'ian had seven daughters; and
they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s
flock. 17The shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and
helped them, and watered their flock. 18When they came to their father
Reu'el, he said, “How is it that you have come so soon today?” 19They said,
“An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and even drew
water for us and watered the flock.” 20He said to his daughters, “And where
is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.” 21And
Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter
Zippo'rah. 22She bore a son, and he called his name Gershom; for he said, “I
have been a sojournerd in a foreign land.”
23 In the course of those many days the king of Egypt died. And the sons
of Israel groaned under their bondage, and cried out for help, and their cry
under bondage came up to God. 24And God heard their groaning, and God
remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25And
God saw the sons of Israel, and God knew their condition.
Moses and the Burning Bush
3 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the
priest of Mid'ian; and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness, and
came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2And the angel of the LORD appeared
to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and
behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3And Moses said, “I
will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.” 4When
the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush,
“Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here am I.” 5Then he said, “Do not come
near; put off your shoes from your feet, for the place on which you are
standing is holy ground.” 6And he said, “I am the God of your father, the
God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid
his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the LORD said, “I have seen the affliction of my people who are in
Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters; I know their
sufferings, 8and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the
Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a
land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the
Hittites, the Am'orites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites. 9And
now, behold, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to me, and I have seen
the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10Come, I will send
you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out
of Egypt.” 11But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to
Pharaoh, and bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” 12He said, “But I will
be with you; and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when
you have brought forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon
this mountain.”
God Reveals His Name
13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the sons of Israel and say to
them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What
is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14God said to Moses, “I AM WHO
I AM.” e * And he said, “Say this to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to
you.’ ” 15God also said to Moses, “Say this to the sons of Israel, ‘The
LORD,f the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and
the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’: this is my name for ever, and thus I
am to be remembered throughout all generations. 16Go and gather the elders
of Israel together, and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the
God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I
have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt; 17and I promise
that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, to the land of the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the Am'orites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the
Jeb'usites, a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ 18And they will listen to
your voice; and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt
and say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and
now, we beg you, let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that
we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.’ 19I know that the king of Egypt will
not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand.g 20So I will stretch out
my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders which I will do in it; after
that he will let you go. 21And I will give this people favor in the sight of the
Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22but each woman
shall ask of her neighbor, and of her who sojourns in her house, jewelry of
silver and of gold, and clothing, and you shall put them on your sons and on
your daughters; thus you shall despoil the Egyptians.”
God Gives Moses Help for His Mission
4 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will ot believe me or listen to
my voice, for they will say, ‘The LORD did not appear to you.’ ” 2The LORD
said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A rod.” 3And he said,
“Cast it on the ground.” So he cast it on the ground, and it became a
serpent; and Moses fled from it. 4But the LORD said to Moses, “Put out your
hand, and take it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it
became a rod in his hand—5“that they may believe that the LORD, the God
of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob, has appeared to you.” 6Again, the LORD said to him, “Put your hand
into your bosom.” And he put his hand into his bosom; and when he took it
out, behold, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. 7Then God said, “Put
your hand back into your bosom.” So he put his hand back into his bosom;
and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh.
8“If they will not believe you,” God said, “or heed the first sign, they may
believe the latter sign. 9If they will not believe even these two signs or heed
your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it upon the
dry ground; and the water which you shall take from the Nile will become
blood upon the dry ground.”
10 But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either
heretofore or since you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of

speech and of tongue.” 11Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s
mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the
LORD? 12Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you
what you shall speak.” 13But he said, “Oh, my Lord, send, I pray, some
other person.” 14Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses and
he said, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can
speak well; and behold, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you
he will be glad in his heart. 15And you shall speak to him and put the words
in his mouth; and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and will
teach you what you shall do. 16He shall speak for you to the people; and he
shall be a mouth for you, and you shall be to him as God. 17And you shall
take in your hand this rod, with which you shall do the signs.”
Moses Returns to Egypt
18 Moses went back to Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Let me go
back, I beg, to my kinsmen in Egypt and see whether they are still alive.”
And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” 19And the LORD said to Moses in
Mid'ian, “Go back to Egypt; for all the men who were seeking your life are
dead.” 20So Moses took his wife and his sons and set them on a donkey, and
went back to the land of Egypt; and in his hand Moses took the rod of God.
21 And the LORD said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you
do before Pharaoh all the miracles which I have put in your power; but I
will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. 22And you shall
say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my first-born son, 23and I say
to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me”; if you refuse to let him go,
behold, I will slay your first-born son.' "
24 At a lodging place on the way the LORD met him and sought to kill him.
25Then Zippo'rah took a flint and cut off her son’s foreskin, and touched
Moses’ feet with it, and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to
me!” 26So he let him alone. Then it was that she said, “You are a
bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision.
27 The LORD said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” So he
went, and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. 28And Moses
told Aaron all the words of the LORD with which he had sent him, and all
the signs which he had charged him to do. 29Then Moses and Aaron went
and gathered together all the elders of the sons of Israel. 30And Aaron spoke
all the words which the LORD had spoken to Moses, and did the signs in the
sight of the people. 31And the people believed; and when they heard that the
LORD had visited the sons of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they
bowed their heads and worshiped.
Bricks without Straw
5 Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “Thus says the
LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to
me in the wilderness.' " 2But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should
heed his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover I
will not let Israel go.” 3Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met
with us; let us go, we beg, a three days’ journey into the wilderness, and
sacrifice to the LORD our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with
the sword.” 4But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do
you take the people away from their work? Get to your burdens.” 5And
Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many and you make
them rest from their burdens!” 6The same day Pharaoh commanded the
taskmasters of the people and their foremen, 7“You shall no longer give the
people straw to make bricks, as heretofore; let them go and gather straw for
themselves. 8But the number of bricks which they made heretofore you
shall lay upon them, you shall by no means lessen it; for they are idle;
therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ 9Let heavier
work be laid upon the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to
lying words.”
10 So the taskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to
the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. 11Go yourselves,
get your straw wherever you can find it; but your work will not be lessened
in the least.' " 12So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land
of Egypt, to gather stubble for straw. 13The taskmasters were urgent, saying,
“Complete your work, your daily task, as when there was straw.” 14And the
foremen of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over
them, were beaten, and were asked, “Why have you not done all your task
of making bricks today, as before?”
15 Then the foremen of the sons of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh,
“Why do you deal thus with your servants? 16No straw is given to your
servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are
beaten; but the fault is in your own people.” 17But he said, “You are idle,
you are idle; therefore you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.’ 18Go
now, and work; for no straw shall be given you, yet you shall deliver the
same number of bricks.” 19The foremen of the sons of Israel saw that they
were in evil plight, when they said, “You shall by no means lessen your
daily number of bricks.” 20They met Moses and Aaron, who were waiting
for them, as they came forth from Pharaoh; 21and they said to them, “The
LORD look upon you and judge, because you have made us offensive in the
sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and have put a sword in their hand to kill
us.”
22 Then Moses turned again to the LORD and said, “O LORD, why have you
done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? 23For since I came to
Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you
have not
6 delivered your people at all.” 1But the Lord said to Moses, “Now you
shall see what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a strong hand he will send them
out, yes, with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.”
God Promises Deliverance
2 And God said to Moses, “I am the LORD. 3I appeared to Abraham, to
Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty,h but by my name the LORD I did not
make myself known to them. 4I also established my covenant with them, to
give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they dwelt as sojourners.
5Moreover I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel whom the
Egyptians hold in bondage and I have remembered my covenant. 6Say

therefore to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from
under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their
bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great
acts of judgment, 7and I will take you for my people, and I will be your
God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought
you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8And I will bring you into
the land which I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; I will
give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.’ ” 9Moses spoke thus to the
sons of Israel; but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken
spirit and their cruel bondage.
10 And the LORD said to Moses, 11“Go in, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let
the sons of Israel go out of his land.” 12But Moses said to the LORD,
“Behold, the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then shall Pharaoh
listen to me, who am a man of uncircumcised lips?” 13But the LORD spoke
to Moses and Aaron, and gave them a charge to the sons of Israel and to
Pharaoh king of Egypt to bring the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt.
The Genealogy of Moses and Aaron
14 These are the heads of their fathers’ houses: the sons of Reuben, the
first-born of Israel: Ha'noch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; these are the
families of Reuben. 15The sons of Simeon: Jemu'el, Ja'min, O'had, Ja'chin,
Zo'har, and Sha'ul, the son of a Canaanite woman; these are the families of
Simeon. 16These are the names of the sons of Levi according to their
generations: Gershon, Ko'hath, and Merar'i, the years of the life of Levi
being a hundred and thirty-seven years. 17The sons of Gershon: Libni and
Shim'e-i, by their families. 18The sons of Ko'hath: Amram, Izhar, He'bron,
and Uz'ziel, the years of the life of Kohath being a hundred and thirty-three
years. 19The sons of Merar'i: Mah'li and Mu'shi. These are the families of
the Levites according to their generations. 20Amram took to wife Joch'ebed
his father’s sister and she bore him Aaron and Moses, the years of the life of
Amram being one hundred and thirty-seven years. 21The sons of Izhar:
Ko'rah, Ne'pheg, and Zich'ri. 22And the sons of Uz'ziel: Mish'a-el,
El'zaphan, and Sithri. 23Aaron took to wife Eli'sheba, the daughter of
Ammin'adab and the sister of Nahshon; and she bore him Na'dab, Abi'hu,
Elea'zar, and Ith'amar. 24The sons of Ko'rah: Assir, Elka'nah, and Abi'asaph;
these are the families of the Ko'rahites. 25Elea'zar, Aaron’s son, took to wife
one of the daughters of Pu'ti-el; and she bore him Phin'ehas. These are the
heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites by their families.
26 These are the Aaron and Moses to whom the LORD said: “Bring out the
sons of Israel from the land of Egypt by their hosts.” 27It was they who
spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt about bringing out the sons of Israel from
Egypt, this Moses and this Aaron.
Moses and Aaron Obey God’s Commands
28 On the day when the LORD spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, 29the
LORD said to Moses, “I am the LORD; tell Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I
say to you.” 30But Moses said to the LORD, “Behold, I am of uncircumcised
lips; how then shall
7 Pharaoh listen to me?” 1And the LORD said to Moses, “See, I make
you as God to Pharaoh; and Aaron your brother shall be your prophet. 2You
shall speak all that I command you; and Aaron your brother shall tell
Pharaoh to let the sons of Israel go out of his land. 3But I will harden
Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in the land of
Egypt, 4Pharaoh will not listen to you; then I will lay my hand upon Egypt
and bring forth my hosts, my people the sons of Israel, out of the land of
Egypt by great acts of judgment. 5And the Egyptians shall know that I am
the LORD, when I stretch forth my hand upon Egypt and bring out the sons
of Israel from among them.” 6And Moses and Aaron did so; they did as the
LORD commanded them. 7Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron
eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
Aaron’s Miraculous Rod
8 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 9 “When Pharaoh says to you,
‘Prove yourselves by working a miracle,’ then you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take
your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent.’ ”
10So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did as the LORD commanded;
Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a
serpent. 11Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers; and
they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same by their secret arts. 12For
every man cast down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod
swallowed up their rods. 13Still Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he
would not listen to them; as the LORD had said.
The First Plague: Water of the Nile Turned to Blood
14 * Then the LORD said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuses
to let the people go. 15Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to
the water; wait for him by the river’s brink, and take in your hand the rod
which was turned into a serpent. 16And you shall say to him, ‘The LORD, the
God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, “Let my people go, that they
may serve me in the wilderness; and behold, you have not yet obeyed.”
17Thus says the LORD, “By this you shall know that I am the LORD: behold,
I will strike the water that is in the Nile with the rod that is in my hand, and
it shall be turned to blood, 18and the fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile
shall become foul, and the Egyptians will loathe to drink water from the
Nile.” ' " 19And the LORD said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and
stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, their
canals, and their ponds, and all their pools of water, that they may become
blood; and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in
vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.’ ”
20 Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded; in the sight of Pharaoh
and in the sight of his servants, he lifted up the rod and struck the water that
was in the Nile, and all the water that was in the Nile turned to blood. 21And
the fish in the Nile died; and the Nile became foul, so that the Egyptians
could not drink water from the Nile; and there was blood throughout all the
land of Egypt. 22But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret
arts; so Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to
them; as the LORD had said. 23Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and
he did not lay even this to heart. 24And all the Egyptians dug round about
the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile.
The Second Plague: Frogs
25 Seven days passed after the LORD had
8 istruckthe Nile. 1Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and
say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Let my people go, that they may serve
me. 2But if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will plague all your country
with frogs; 3the Nile shall swarm with frogs which shall come up into your
house, and into your bedchamber and on your bed, and into the houses of
your servants and of your people,j and into your ovens and your kneading
bowls; 4the frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on all your
servants.” ’ ” 5k And the LORD said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out
your hand with your rod over the rivers, over the canals, and over the pools,
and cause frogs to come upon the land of Egypt!’ ” 6So Aaron stretched out
his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up and covered the
land of Egypt. 7But the magicians did the same by their secret arts, and
brought frogs upon the land of Egypt.
8 Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and said, “Entreat the LORD to
take away the frogs from me and from my people; and I will let the people
go to sacrifice to the LORD.” 9Moses said to Pharaoh, “Be pleased to
command me when I am to entreat, for you and for your servants and for
your people, that the frogs be destroyed from you and your houses and be
left only in the Nile.” 10And he said, “Tomorrow.” Moses said, “Be it as you
say, that you may know that there is no one like the LORD our God. 11The
frogs shall depart from you and your houses and your servants and your
people; they shall be left only in the Nile.” 12So Moses and Aaron went out
from Pharaoh; and Moses cried to the LORD concerning the frogs, as he had
agreed with Pharaoh.l 13And the LORD did according to the word of Moses;
the frogs died out of the houses and courtyards and out of the fields. 14And
they gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. 15But when
Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart, and would not
listen to them; as the LORD had said.
The Third Plague: Gnats
16 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out your rod and
strike the dust of the earth, that it may become gnats throughout all the land
of Egypt.’ ” 17And they did so; Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod,
and struck the dust of the earth, and there came gnats on man and beast; all
the dust of the earth became gnats throughout all the land of Egypt. 18The
magicians tried by their secret arts to bring forth gnats, but they could not.
So there were gnats on man and beast. 19And the magicians said to Pharaoh,
“This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he
would not listen to them; as the LORD had said.
The Fourth Plague: Swarms of Flies
20 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and wait
for Pharaoh, as he goes out to the water, and say to him, ‘Thus says the
LORD, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 21Else, if you will not let
my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on you and your servants
and your people, and into your houses; and the houses of the Egyptians
shall be filled with swarms of flies, and also the ground on which they
stand. 22But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where my
people dwell, so that no swarms of flies shall be there; that you may know
that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. 23Thus I will put a divisionm
between my people and your people. By tomorrow shall this sign be.” ’ ”
24And the LORD did so; there came great swarms of flies into the house of
Pharaoh and into his servants’ houses, and in all the land of Egypt the land
was ruined by reason of the flies.
25 Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and said, “Go, sacrifice to your
God within the land.” 26But Moses said, “It would not be right to do so; for
we shall sacrifice to the LORD our God offerings abominable to the
Egyptians. If we sacrifice offerings abominable to the Egyptians before
their eyes, will they not stone us? 27We must go three days’ journey into the
wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD our God as he will command us.” 28So
Pharaoh said, “I will let you go, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in the
wilderness; only you shall not go very far away. Make entreaty for me.”
29Then Moses said, “Behold, I am going out from you and I will pray to the
LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants,
and from his people, tomorrow; only let not Pharaoh deal falsely again by
not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.” 30So Moses went out
from Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD. 31And the LORD did as Moses asked,
and removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from
his people; not one remained. 32But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time
also, and did not let the people go.
The Fifth Plague: Death of the Egyptians’ Livestock
9 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh, and say to him,
‘Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they
may serve me. 2For if you refuse to let them go and still hold them, 3behold,
the hand of the LORD will fall with a very severe plague upon your cattle
which are in the field, the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the herds, and
the flocks. 4But the LORD will make a distinction between the cattle of
Israel and the cattle of Egypt, so that nothing shall die of all that belongs to
the sons of Israel.” ' " 5And the LORD set a time, saying, “Tomorrow the
LORD will do this thing in the land.” 6And the next day the LORD did this
thing; all the cattle of the Egyptians died, but of the cattle of the sons of
Israel not one died. 7And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not one of the cattle of
the Israelites was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did
not let the people go.
The Sixth Plague: Boils
8 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of ashes from
the kiln, and let Moses throw them toward heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.
9And it shall become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and become boils
breaking out in sores on man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt.”
10So they took ashes from the kiln, and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses
threw them toward heaven, and it became boils breaking out in sores on
man and beast. 11And the magicians could not stand before Moses because
of the boils, for the boils were upon the magicians and upon all the
Egyptians. 12But the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not
listen to them; as the LORD had spoken to Moses.
The Seventh Plague: Thunder and Hail
13 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand
before Pharaoh, and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of the
Hebrews, “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14For this time I will
send all my plagues upon your heart, and upon your servants and your
people, that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15For
by now I could have put forth my hand and struck you and your people with
pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth; 16but for this
purpose have I let you live, to show you my power, so that my name may be
declared throughout all the earth. 17You are still exalting yourself against
my people, and will not let them go. 18Behold, tomorrow about this time I
will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the
day it was founded until now. 19Now therefore send, get your cattle and all
that you have in the field into safe shelter; for the hail shall come down
upon every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home, and
they shall die.” ’ ” 20Then he who feared the word of the LORD among the
servants of Pharaoh made his slaves and his cattle flee into the houses; 21but
he who did not regard the word of the LORD left his slaves and his cattle in
the field.
22 And the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch forth your hand toward heaven,
that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man and beast and
every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” 23Then Moses
stretched forth his rod toward heaven; and the LORD sent thunder and hail,
and fire ran down to the earth. And the LORD rained hail upon the land of
Egypt; 24there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the
hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it
became a nation. 25The hail struck down everything that was in the field
throughout all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and the hail struck
down every plant of the field, and shattered every tree of the field. 26Only in
the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail.
27 Then Pharaoh sent, and called Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I
have sinned this time; the LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in
the wrong. 28Entreat the LORD; for there has been enough of this thunder
and hail; I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” 29Moses said to
him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to
the LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, that you
may know that the earth is the LORD’s. 30But as for you and your servants,
I know that you do not yet fear the LORD God.” 31(The flax and the barley
were ruined, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud. 32But the
wheat and the spelt were not ruined, for they are late in coming up.) 33So
Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and stretched out his hands to the
LORD; and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured
upon the earth. 34But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the
thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again, and hardened his heart, he and his
servants. 35So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the
sons of Israel go; as the LORD had spoken through Moses.
The Eighth Plague: Locusts
10 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh; for I have
hardened his heart and the heart of his servants, that I may show these signs
of mine among them, 2and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and
of your son’s son how I have made sport of the Egyptians and what signs I
have done among them; that you may know that I am the LORD.”
3 So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, “Thus says the
LORD, the God of the Hebrews, ‘How long will you refuse to humble
yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me. 4For if you
refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your
country, 5and they shall cover the face of the land, so that no one can see the
land; and they shall eat what is left to you after the hail, and they shall eat
every tree of yours which grows in the field, 6and they shall fill your
houses, and the houses of all your servants and of all the Egyptians; as
neither your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen, from the day they
came on earth to this day.’ ” Then he turned and went out from Pharaoh.
7 And Pharaoh’s servants said to him, “How long shall this man be a snare
to us? Let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God; do you not
yet understand that Egypt is ruined?” 8So Moses and Aaron were brought
back to Pharaoh; and he said to them, “Go, serve the LORD your God; but
who are to go?” 9And Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old;
we will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds, for
we must hold a feast to the LORD.” 10And he said to them, “The LORD be
with you, if ever I let you and your little ones go! Look, you have some evil
purpose in mind.n 11No! Go, the men among you, and serve the LORD, for
that is what you desire.” And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s
presence.
12 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of
Egypt for the locusts, that they may come upon the land of Egypt, and eat
every plant in the land, all that the hail has left.” 13So Moses stretched forth
his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the
land all that day and all that night; and when it was morning the east wind
had brought the locusts. 14And the locusts came up over all the land of
Egypt, and settled on the whole country of Egypt, such a dense swarm of
locusts as had never been before, nor ever shall be again. 15For they
covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and they
ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had
left; not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through
all the land of Egypt. 16Then Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron in haste, and
said, “I have sinned against the LORD your God, and against you. 17Now
therefore, forgive my sin, I beg you, only this once, and entreat the LORD
your God only to remove this death from me.” 18So he went out from
Pharaoh, and entreated the LORD. 19And the LORD turned a very strong west
wind, which lifted the locusts and drove them into the Red Sea; not a single
locust was left in all the country of Egypt. 20But the LORD hardened
Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the children of Israel go.
The Ninth Plague: Darkness
21 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven
that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt.”
22So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was thick
darkness in all the land of Egypt three days; 23they did not see one another,
nor did any rise from his place for three days; but all the sons of Israel had
light where they dwelt. 24Then Pharaoh called Moses, and said, “Go, serve
the LORD; your children also may go with you; only let your flocks and your
herds remain behind.” 25But Moses said, “You must also let us have
sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.
26Our cattle also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we
must take of them to serve the LORD our God, and we do not know with
what we must serve the LORD until we arrive there.” 27But the LORD
hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go. 28Then Pharaoh
said to him, “Get away from me; take heed to yourself; never see my face
again; for in the day you see my face you shall die.” 29Moses said, “As you
say! I will not see your face again.”
Warning of the Final Plague
11 The LORD said to Moses, “Yet one plague more I will bring upon
Pharaoh and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go from here; when he
lets you go, he will drive you away completely. 2Speak now in the hearing
of the people, that they ask, every man of his neighbor and every woman of
her neighbor, jewelry of silver and of gold.” 3And the LORD gave the people
favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very
great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight
of the people.
4 And Moses said, “Thus says the LORD: About midnight I will go forth in
the midst of Egypt; 5and all the first-born in the land of Egypt shall die,
from the first-born of Pharaoh who sits upon his throne, even to the first-
born of the maidservant who is behind the mill; and all the first-born of the
cattle. 6And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such
as there has never been, nor ever shall be again. 7But against any of the sons
of Israel, either man or beast, not a dog shall growl; that you may know that
the LORD makes a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel. 8And all
these your servants shall come down to me, and bow down to me, saying,
‘Get you out, and all the people who follow you.’ And after that I will go
out.” And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. 9Then the LORD said to
Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you; that my wonders may be multiplied
in the land of Egypt.”
10 Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh; and the LORD
hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the sons of Israel go out of his
land.
The Passover Instituted
12 * The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This
month shall be for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month
of the year for you. 3Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day
of this month they shall take every man a lamb according to their fathers’
houses, a lamb for a household; 4and if the household is too small for a
lamb, then a man and his neighbor next to his house shall take according to
the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your
count for the lamb. 5Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old;
you shall take it from the sheep or from the goats; 6and you shall keep it
until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the
congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs in the evening.o 7Then they
shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel
of the houses in which they eat them. 8They shall eat the flesh that night,
roasted; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. 9Do not eat
any of it raw or boiled with water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its
inner parts. 10And you shall let none of it remain until the morning,
anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 11In this manner
you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff
in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover. 12For
I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the first-
born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt
I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. 13The blood shall be a sign for
you, upon the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass
over you, and no plague shall fall upon you to destroy you, when I strike the
land of Egypt.
14 “This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a
feast to the LORD; throughout your generations you shall observe it as an
ordinance for ever. 15Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; on the first
day you shall put away leaven out of your houses, for if any one eats what
is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut
off from Israel. 16On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the
seventh day a holy assembly; no work shall be done on those days; but what
every one must eat, that only may be prepared by you. 17And you shall
observe the feast of unleavened bread, for on this very day I brought your
hosts out of the land of Egypt: therefore you shall observe this day,
throughout your generations, as an ordinance for ever. 18In the first month,
on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened
bread, and so until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19For seven
days no leaven shall be found in your houses; for if any one eats what is
leavened, that person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel,
whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. 20You shall eat nothing
leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.”
21 Then Moses called all the elders of Israel, and said to them, “Select
lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb.
22Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and
touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood which is in the basin;
and none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.
23For the LORD will pass through to slay the Egyptians; and when he sees
the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the
door, and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to slay you.
24You shall observe this rite as an ordinance for you and for your sons for
ever. 25And when you come to the land which the LORD will give you, as he
has promised, you shall keep this service. 26And when your children say to
you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice
of the LORD’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the sons of Israel
in Egypt, when he slew the Egyptians but spared our houses.' " And the
people bowed their heads and worshiped.
28 Then the sons of Israel went and did so; as the LORD had commanded
Moses and Aaron, so they did.

The Tenth Plague: The Death of Egypt’s First-born
29 At midnight the LORD struck all the first-born in the land of Egypt, from
the first-born of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the first-born of the
captive who was in the dungeon, and all the first-born of the cattle. 30And
Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians;
and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where one was
not dead. 31And he summoned Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise
up, go forth from among my people, both you and the sons of Israel; and
go, serve the LORD, as you have said. 32Take your flocks and your herds, as
you have said, and be gone; and bless me also!”
The Exodus: From Rameses to Succoth
33 And the Egyptians were urgent with the people, to send them out of the
land in haste; for they said, “We are all dead men.” 34So the people took
their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in
their mantles on their shoulders. 35The sons of Israel had also done as
Moses told them, for they had asked of the Egyptians jewelry of silver and
of gold, and clothing; 36and the LORD had given the people favor in the
sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus
they despoiled the Egyptians.
37 And the sons of Israel journeyed from Ram'eses to Succoth, about six
hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. 38A mixed
multitude also went up with them, and very many cattle, both flocks and
herds. 39And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had
brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out
of Egypt and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any
provisions.
40 The time that the sons of Israel dwelt in Egypt was four hundred and
thirty years. 41And at the end of four hundred and thirty years, on that very
day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. 42It was a
night of watching by the LORD, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so
this same night is a night of watching kept to the LORD by all the sons of
Israel throughout their generations.
The Ordinance of the Passover
43 And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the
Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it; 44but every slave that is bought for
money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. 45No sojourner or
hired servant may eat of it. 46In one house shall it be eaten; you shall not
carry forth any of the flesh outside the house; and you shall not break a
bone of it. 47All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48And when a
stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the LORD,
let all his males be circumcised, then he may come near and keep it; he
shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it.
49There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns
among you.”
50 Thus did all the sons of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses and
Aaron, so they did. 51And on that very day the LORD brought the sons of
Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.
13 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the first-born;
whatever is the first to open the womb among the sons of Israel, both of
man and of beast, is mine.”
The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3 And Moses said to the people, “Remember this day, in which you came
out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage, for by strength of hand the
LORD brought you out from this place; no leavened bread shall be eaten.
4This day you are to go forth, in the month of Abib. 5And when the LORD
brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Am'orites, the
Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a
land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.
6Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there
shall be a feast to the LORD. 7Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven
days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen
with you in all your territory. 8And you shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is
because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9And it
shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your
eyes, that the law of the LORD may be in your mouth; for with a strong hand
the LORD has brought you out of Egypt. 10You shall therefore keep this
ordinance at its appointed time from year to year.
The Consecration of First-born Males
11 “And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he
swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12you shall set apart
to the LORD all that first opens the womb. All the firstlings of your cattle
that are males shall be the LORD’s. 13Every firstling of a donkey you shall
redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck.
Every first-born of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14And when in
time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to
him, ‘By strength of hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house
of bondage. 15For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD
slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both the first-born of man and
the first-born of cattle. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all the males that
first open the womb; but all the first-born of my sons I redeem.’ 16It shall be
as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes; for by a strong hand
the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”
The Pillar of Cloud and the Pillar of Fire
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the
land of the Philis'tines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest the
people repent when they see war, and return to Egypt.” 18But God led the
people round by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the
sons of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19And
Moses took the bones of Joseph with him; for Joseph had solemnly sworn
the sons of Israel, saying, “God will visit you; then you must carry my
bones with you from here.” 20And they moved on from Succoth, and
encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21And the LORD went
before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by
night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and
by night; 22the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not
depart from before the people.
Crossing the Red Sea
14 Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Tell the sons of Israel to turn back
and encamp in front of Piha-hi'roth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of
Ba'al-ze'phon; you shall encamp over against it, by the sea. 3For Pharaoh
will say of the sons of Israel, ‘They are entangled in the land; the wilderness
has shut them in.’ 4And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue
them and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host; and the Egyptians
shall know that I am the LORD.” And they did so.
5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of
Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said,
“What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?”
6So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, 7and took six
hundred picked chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers
over all of them. 8And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of
Egypt and he pursued the sons of Israel as they went forth defiantly. 9The
Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen
and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Piha-hi'roth, in
front of Ba'al-ze'phon.
10 When Pharaoh drew near, the sons of Israel lifted up their eyes, and
behold, the Egyptians were marching after them; and they were in great
fear. And the sons of Israel cried out to the LORD; 11and they said to Moses,
“Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to
die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, in bringing us out of
Egypt? 12Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, ‘Let us alone and let us
serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the
Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” 13And Moses said to the people,
“Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work
for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see
again. 14The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be still.” 15The
LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the sons of Israel to go
forward. 16Lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and
divide it, that the sons of Israel may go on dry ground through the sea.
17And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after
them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his
horsemen. 18And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have
gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
19 Then the angel of God who went before the host of Israel moved and
went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and
stood behind them, 20coming between the host of Egypt and the host of
Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness; and the night passedp
without one coming near the other all night.
21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD drove the
sea back by a strong east wind all night, and made the sea dry land, and the
waters were divided. 22And the sons of Israel went into the midst of the sea
on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on
their left. 23The Egyptians pursued, and went in after them into the midst of
the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24And in the
morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down upon
the host of the Egyptians, and discomfited the host of the Egyptians,
25cloggingq their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily; and the
Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel; for the LORD fights for them
against the Egyptians.”
The Egyptians Drown in the Sea
26 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that
the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon
their horsemen.” 27So Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the
sea returned to its usual flow when the morning appeared; and the
Egyptians fled into it, and the LORD routedr the Egyptians in the midst of
the sea. 28The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen
and all the hosts of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea; not so
much as one of them remained. 29But the sons of Israel walked on dry
ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand
and on their left.
30 Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians;
and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the seashore. 31And Israel saw the
great work which the LORD did against the Egyptians, and the people feared
the LORD; and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.
The Songs of Moses and Miriam
15 Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to the LORD,
saying,
“I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his ridert he has thrown into the sea.
2The Lord is my strength and my song,
and he has become my salvation;

this is my God, and I will praise him,
my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
3The LORD is a man of war;
the LORD is his name.
4“Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea;

and his picked officers are sunk in the Red Sea.
5The floods cover them;
they went down into the depths like a stone.
6Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power,
your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy.
7In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;
you send forth your fury, it consumes them like stubble.

8At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up,
the floods stood up in a heap;

the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
9The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.’
10You blew with your wind, the sea covered them;
they sank as lead in the mighty waters.
11“Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods?
Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
terrible in glorious deeds, doing wonders?
12You stretched out your right hand,
the earth swallowed them.

13“You have led in your merciful love the people whom you have
redeemed,
you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.
14The peoples have heard, they tremble;
pangs have seized on the inhabitants of Philistia.

15Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed;
the leaders of Moab, trembling seizes them;

all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
16Terror and dread fall upon them;
because of the greatness of your arm, they are as still as a stone,

till your people, O LORD, pass by,
till the people pass by whom you have purchased.
17You will bring them in, and plant them on your own mountain,
the place, O LORD, which you have made for your abode,
the sanctuary, O LORD, which your hands have established.
18The LORD will reign for ever and ever.”
19 For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen
went into the sea, the LORD brought back the waters of the sea upon them;
but the sons of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea. 20Then
Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and
all the women went out after her with timbrels and dancing. 21And Miriam
sang to them:
“Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”
Bitter Water Is Made Sweet
22 Then Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went into the
wilderness of Shur; they went three days in the wilderness and found no
water. 23When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah
because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah.u 24And the people
murmured against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25And he cried to
the LORD; and the LORD showed him a tree, and he threw it into the water,
and the water became sweet.
There the LORDv made for them a statute and an ordinance and there he
tested them, 26saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD
your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give heed to his
commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases
upon you which I put upon the Egyptians; for I am the LORD, your healer.”
27 Then they came to E'lim, where there were twelve springs of water and
seventy palm trees; and they encamped there by the water.

Manna from Heaven
16 They set out from E'lim, and all the congregation of the sons of
Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on
the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land
of Egypt. 2And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel murmured
against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3and said to them, “Would that
we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by
the fleshpots and ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this
wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for
you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I
may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. 5On the sixth day,
when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they
gather daily.” 6So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel, “At
evening you shall know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the
land of Egypt, 7and in the morning you shall see the glory of the LORD,
because he has heard your murmurings against the LORD. For what are we,
that you murmur against us?” 8And Moses said, “When the LORD gives you
in the evening flesh to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the
LORD has heard your murmurings which you murmur against him—what
are we? Your murmurings are not against us but against the LORD.”
9 And Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the sons of
Israel, ‘Come near before the LORD, for he has heard your murmurings.’ ”
10And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, they
looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared
in the cloud. 11And the LORD said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the
murmurings of the sons of Israel; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat
flesh, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread; then you shall
know that I am the LORD your God.’ ”
13 In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the
morning dew lay round about the camp. 14And when the dew had gone up,
there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as
hoarfrost on the ground.* 15When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one
another, “What is it?”w For they did not know what it was. And Moses said
to them, “It is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat. 16This is what
the LORD has commanded: ‘Gather of it, every man of you, as much as he
can eat; you shall take an omer apiece, according to the number of the
persons whom each of you has in his tent.’ ” 17And the sons of Israel did so;
they gathered, some more, some less. 18But when they measured it with an
omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little
had no lack; each gathered according to what he could eat. 19And Moses
said to them, “Let no man leave any of it till the morning.” 20But they did
not listen to Moses; some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms
and became foul; and Moses was angry with them. 21Morning by morning
they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it
melted.
22 On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers apiece;
and when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, 23he said
to them, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of
solemn rest, a holy sabbath to the LORD; bake what you will bake and boil
what you will boil, and all that is left over lay by to be kept till the
morning.' " 24So they laid it by till the morning, as Moses bade them; and it
did not become foul, and there were no worms in it. 25Moses said, “Eat it
today, for today is a sabbath to the LORD; today you will not find it in the
field. 26Six days you shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is a
sabbath, there will be none.” 27On the seventh day some of the people went
out to gather, and they found none. 28And the LORD said to Moses, “How
long do you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? 29See! The
LORD has given you the sabbath, therefore on the sixth day he gives you
bread for two days; remain every man of you in his place, let no man go out
of his place on the seventh day.” 30So the people rested on the seventh day.
31 Now the house of Israel called its name manna; it was like coriander
seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. 32And
Moses said, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Let an omer of it be
kept throughout your generations, that they may see the bread with which I
fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’ ”
33And Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it,
and place it before the LORD, to be kept throughout your generations.” 34As
the LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the covenant, to be
kept. 35And the sons of Israel ate the manna forty years, till they came to a
habitable land; they ate the manna, till they came to the border of the land
of Canaan. 36(An omer is the tenth part of an ephah.)
Water from the Rock
17 All the congregation of the sons of Israel moved on from the
wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the LORD,
and camped at Reph'idim; but there was no water for the people to drink.
2Therefore the people found fault with Moses, and said, “Give us water to
drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you find fault with me? Why do
you put the LORD to the test?” 3But the people thirsted there for water, and
the people murmured against Moses, and said, “Why did you bring us up
out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst?” 4So
Moses cried to the LORD, “What shall I do with this people? They are
almost ready to stone me.” 5And the LORD said to Moses, “Pass on before
the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your
hand the rod with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6Behold, I will stand
before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and
water shall come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so, in
the sight of the elders of Israel. 7And he called the name of the place
Massahx and Mer'ibah,y because of the fault-finding of the sons of Israel,
and because they put the LORD to the test by saying, “Is the LORD among us
or not?”
Amalek Attacks Israel and Is Defeated
8 Then came Am'alek and fought with Israel at Reph'idim. 9And Moses
said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out, fight with Am'alek;
tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my
hand.” 10So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Am'alek; and
Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11Whenever Moses
held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand,
Am'alek prevailed. 12But Moses’ hands grew weary; so they took a stone
and put it under him, and he sat upon it, and Aaron and Hur held up his
hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were
steady until the going down of the sun. 13And Joshua mowed down Am'alek
and his people with the edge of the sword.
14 And the LORD said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and
recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of
Am'alek from under heaven.” 15And Moses built an altar and called the
name of it, The LORD is my banner, 16saying, “A hand upon the banner of
the LORD! z The LORD will have war with Am'alek from generation to
generation.”
Jethro’s Counsel to Moses
18 Jethro, the priest of Mid'ian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that
God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how the LORD had
brought Israel out of Egypt. 2Now Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, had taken
Zippo'rah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her away, 3and her two sons, of
whom the name of the one was Gershom (for he said, “I have been a
sojournera in a foreign land”), 4and the name of the other, Elie'zer b (for he
said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword
of Pharaoh”). 5And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his
wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was encamped at the mountain of
God. 6And when one told Moses, “Behold,c your father-in-law Jethro is
coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her,” 7Moses went out
to meet his father-in-law, and did obeisance and kissed him; and they asked
each other of their welfare, and went into the tent. 8Then Moses told his
father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for
Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how
the LORD had delivered them. 9And Jethro rejoiced for all the good which
the LORD had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand
of the Egyptians.
10 And Jethro said, “Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you out of
the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh. 11Now I know
that the LORD is greater than all gods, because he delivered the people from
under the hand of the Egyptians,d when they dealt arrogantly with them.”
12And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, offerede a burnt offering and sacrifices
to God; and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with
Moses’ father-in-law before God.
13 The next day Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood about
Moses from morning till evening. 14When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that
he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this that you are doing for the
people? Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand about you from
morning till evening?” 15And Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the
people come to me to inquire of God; 16when they have a dispute, they
come to me and I decide between a man and his neighbor, and I make them
know the statutes of God and his decisions.” 17Moses’ father-in-law said to
him, “What you are doing is not good. 18You and the people with you will
wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you; you are not able to
perform it alone. 19Listen now to my voice; I will give you counsel, and
God be with you! You shall represent the people before God, and bring their
cases to God; 20and you shall teach them the statutes and the decisions, and
make them know the way in which they must walk and what they must do.
21Moreover choose able men from all the people, such as fear God, men
who are trustworthy and who hate a bribe; and place such men over the
people as rulers of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. 22And let
them judge the people at all times; every great matter they shall bring to
you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves; so it will be easier
for you, and they will bear the burden with you. 23If you do this, and God
so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all this people also
will go to their place in peace.”
24 So Moses gave heed to the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he
had said. 25Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads
over the people, rulers of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.
26And they judged the people at all times; hard cases they brought to
Moses, but any small matter they decided themselves. 27Then Moses let his
father-in-law depart, and he went his way to his own country.
The Israelites Reach Mount Sinai
19 On the third new moon after the sons of Israel had gone forth out of
the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. 2And
when they set out from Reph'idim and came into the wilderness of Sinai,
they encamped in the wilderness; and there Israel encamped before the
mountain. 3And Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him out of
the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the
sons of Israel: * 4You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore
you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5Now therefore, if you
will obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my own possession
among all peoples; for all the earth is mine, 6and you shall be to me a
kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall
speak to the children of Israel.”
7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them
all these words which the LORD had commanded him. 8And all the people
answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.”
And Moses reported the words of the people to the LORD. 9And the LORD
said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people
may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you for ever.”
Then Moses told the words of the people to the LORD. 10And the LORD
said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow,
and let them wash their garments, 11and be ready by the third day; for on the
third day the LORD will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the
people. 12And you shall set bounds for the people round about, saying,
‘Take heed that you do not go up into the mountain or touch the border of it;
whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death; 13no hand shall touch
him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’
When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.”
14So Moses went down from the mountain to the people, and consecrated
the people; and they washed their garments. 15And he said to the people,
“Be ready by the third day; do not go near a woman.”
God Speaks to Moses on the Mountain
16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, and a
thick cloud upon the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the
people who were in the camp trembled. 17Then Moses brought the people
out of the camp to meet God; and they took their stand at the foot of the
mountain. 18And Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the LORD
descended upon it in fire; and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a
kiln, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. 19And as the sound of the
trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in
thunder. 20And the LORD came down upon Mount Sinai, to the top of the
mountain; and the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and
Moses went up. 21And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down and warn the
people, lest they break through to the LORD to gaze and many of them
perish. 22And also let the priests who come near to the LORD consecrate
themselves, lest the LORD break out upon them.” 23And Moses said to the
LORD, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai; for you yourself
charged us, saying, ‘Set bounds about the mountain, and consecrate it.’ ”
24And the LORD said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with
you; but do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to
the LORD, lest he break out against them.” 25So Moses went down to the
people and told them.
The Ten Commandments
20 And God spoke all these words, saying,*
2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of
Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3 “You shall have no other gods before f me.
4 You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of
anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in
the water under the earth; 5you shall not bow down to them or serve them;
for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who
hate me, 6but showing mercy to thousands of those who love me and keep
my commandments.
7 “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain; for the LORD
will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
8 “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9Six days you shall labor,
and do all your work; 10but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your
God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter,
your manservant, or your maidservant, or your cattle, or the sojourner who
is within your gates; 11for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the
sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD
blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.
12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the
land which the LORD your God gives you.

13 “You shall not kill.
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your
neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his

donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
18 Now when all the people perceived the thunder and the lightning and
the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid
and trembled; and they stood afar off, 19and said to Moses, “You speak to
us, and we will hear; but let not God speak to us, lest we die.” 20And Moses
said to the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that the
fear of him may be before your eyes, that you may not sin.”
God Gives Moses Laws about Sacrifice
21 And the people stood afar off, while Moses drew near to the thick
darkness where God was. 22And the LORD said to Moses, “Thus you shall
say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have talked
with you from heaven. 23You shall not make gods of silver to be with me,
nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. 24An altar of earth you
shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace
offerings, your sheep and your oxen; in every place where I cause my name
to be remembered I will come to you and bless you. 25And if you make me
an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones; for if you wield your
tool upon it you profane it. 26And you shall not go up by steps to my altar,
that your nakedness be not exposed on it.’
Laws concerning Slaves
21 “Now these are the ordinances which you shall set before them.
2When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh
he shall go out free, for nothing. 3If he comes in single, he shall go out
single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. 4If his
master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and
her children shall be her master’s and he shall go out alone. 5But if the slave
plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out
free,’ 6then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the
door or the doorpost; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl;
and he shall serve him for life.
7 “When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the
male slaves do. 8If she does not please her master, who has designated her g
for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed; he shall have no right to sell
her to a foreign people, since he has dealt faithlessly with her. 9If he
designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. 10If he
takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing,
or her marital rights. 11And if he does not do these three things for her, she
shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.
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Laws concerning Violence and Harm
12 “Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. 13But if he
did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will
appoint for you a place to which he may flee. 14But if a man willfully
attacks another to kill him treacherously, you shall take him from my altar,
that he may die.
15 “Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death.
16 “Whoever steals a man, whether he sells him or is found in possession
of him, shall be put to death.

17 “Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.
18 “When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his
fist and the man does not die but keeps his bed, 19then if the man rises again
and walks abroad with his staff, he that struck him shall be clear; only he
shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed.
20 “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave
dies under his hand, he shall be punished. 21But if the slave survives a day
or two, he is not to be punished; for the slave is his money.
22 “When men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that there
is a miscarriage, and yet no harm follows, the one who hurt her shallh be
fined, according as the woman’s husband shall lay upon him; and he shall
pay as the judges determine. 23If any harm follows, then you shall give life
for life, 24eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25burn
for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
26 “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys
it, he shall let the slave go free for the eye’s sake. 27If he knocks out the
tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free for the
tooth’s sake.
28 “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned,
and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be clear. 29But
if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been
warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be
stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. 30If a ransom is laid on him,
then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is laid upon him.
31If it gores a man’s son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this
same rule. 32If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to
their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.
33 “When a man leaves a pit open, or when a man digs a pit and does not
cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34the owner of the pit shall
make it good; he shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be
his.
35 “When one man’s ox hurts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell
the live ox and divide the price of it; and the dead beast also they shall
divide. 36Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the
past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall pay ox for ox, and the dead
beast shall be his.
Laws of Restitution
22i “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall pay
five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.j He shall make restitution;
if he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 4If the stolen beast is
found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he
shall pay double.
2k “If a thief is found breaking in, and is struck so that he dies, there shall
be no bloodguilt for him; 3but if the sun has risen upon him, there shall be
bloodguilt for him.
5 “When a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets his
beast loose and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution
from the best in his own field and in his own vineyard.
6 “When fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or
the standing grain or the field is consumed, he that kindled the fire shall
make full restitution.
7 “If a man delivers to his neighbor money or goods to keep, and it is
stolen out of the man’s house, then, if the thief is found, he shall pay
double. 8If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to
God, to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s goods.
9 “For every breach of trust, whether it is for ox, for donkey, for sheep, for
clothing, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ the
case of both parties shall come before God; he whom God shall condemn
shall pay double to his neighbor.
10 “If a man delivers to his neighbor a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any
beast to keep, and it dies or is hurt or is driven away, without any one
seeing it, 11an oath by the LORD shall be between them both to see whether
he has not put his hand to his neighbor’s property; and the owner shall
accept the oath, and he shall not make restitution. 12But if it is stolen from
him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13If it is torn by beasts, let him
bring it as evidence; he shall not make restitution for what has been torn.
14 “If a man borrows anything of his neighbor, and it is hurt or dies, the
owner not being with it, he shall make full restitution. 15If the owner was
with it, he shall not make restitution; if it was hired, it came for its hire.l
Social and Religious Laws
16 “If a man seduces a virgin who is not betrothed, and lies with her, he
shall give the marriage present for her, and make her his wife. 17If her father
utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money equivalent to the
marriage present for virgins.
18 “You shall not permit a sorceress to live.
19 “Whoever lies with a beast shall be put to death.
20 “Whoever sacrifices to any god, save to the LORD only, shall be utterly
destroyed.
21 “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers
in the land of Egypt. 22You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. 23If you
do afflict them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry; 24and my
wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall
become widows and your children fatherless.
25 “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall
not be to him as a creditor, and you shall not exact interest from him. 26If
ever you take your neighbor’s garment in pledge, you shall restore it to him
before the sun goes down; 27for that is his only covering, it is his mantle for
his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he cries to me, I will hear, for I
am compassionate.
28 “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.
29 “You shall not delay to offer from the fulness of your harvest and from
the outflow of your presses.
“The first-born of your sons you shall give to me. 30You shall do likewise
with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall be with its dam; on
the eighth day you shall give it to me.
31 “You shall be men consecrated to me; therefore you shall not eat any
flesh that is torn by beasts in the field; you shall cast it to the dogs.
Laws concerning Justice
23 “You shall not utter a false report. You shall not join hands with a
wicked man, to be a malicious witness. 2You shall not follow a multitude to
do evil; nor shall you bear witness in a suit, turning aside after a multitude,
so as to pervert justice; 3nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his suit.
4 “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall bring
it back to him. 5If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its
burden, you shall refrain from leaving him with it, you shall help him to lift
it up.m
6 “You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in his suit. 7Keep far
from a false charge, and do not slay the innocent and righteous, for I will
not acquit the wicked. 8And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the
officials, and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.
9 “You shall not oppress a stranger; you know the heart of a stranger, for
you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

The Sabbatical Year and the Sabbath
10 “For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield; 11but the
seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people
may eat; and what they leave the wild beasts may eat. You shall do likewise
with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard.
12 “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest;
that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your
maidservant, and the alien, may be refreshed. 13Take heed to all that I have
said to you; and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let such
be heard out of your mouth.
Annual Feasts
14 “Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. 15You shall keep
the feast of unleavened bread; as I commanded you, you shall eat

unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of
Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. None shall appear before me empty-
handed. 16You shall keep the feast of harvest, of the first fruits of your
labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the feast of ingathering
at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your
labor. 17Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord
GOD.
18 “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread, or
let the fat of my feast remain until the morning.

19 “The first of the first fruits of your ground you shall bring into the
house of the LORD your God.

“You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.
The Conquest of Canaan Promised
20 “Behold, I send an angel before you, to guard you on the way and to
bring you to the place which I have prepared. 21Give heed to him and listen
to his voice, do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your
transgression; for my name is in him.
22 “But if you listen attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will
be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.

23 “When my angel goes before you, and brings you in to the Am'orites,
and the Hittites, and the Per'izzites, and the Canaanites, the Hi'vites, and the
Jeb'usites, and I blot them out, 24you shall not bow down to their gods, nor
serve them, nor do according to their works, but you shall utterly overthrow
them and break their pillars in pieces. 25You shall serve the LORD your God,
and I n will bless your bread and your water; and I will take sickness away
from the midst of you. 26None shall cast her young or be barren in your
land; I will fulfil the number of your days. 27I will send my terror before
you, and will throw into confusion all the people against whom you shall
come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. 28And I will
send hornets before you, which shall drive out Hi'vite, Canaanite, and
Hittite from before you. 29I will not drive them out from before you in one
year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you.
30Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you are
increased and possess the land. 31And I will set your bounds from the Red
Sea to the sea of the Philis'tines, and from the wilderness to the Euphra'tes;
for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall
drive them out before you. 32You shall make no covenant with them or with
their gods. 33They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin
against me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”
The Blood of the Covenant
24 And he said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron,
Na'dab, and Abi'hu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship afar off.
2Moses alone shall come near to the LORD; but the others shall not come
near, and the people shall not come up with him.”

3 Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the
ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, “All the
words which the LORD has spoken we will do.” 4And Moses wrote all the
words of the LORD. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at
the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes
of Israel. 5And he sent young men of the sons of Israel, who offered burnt
offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. 6And Moses
took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw
against the altar. 7Then he took the book of the covenant, and read it in the
hearing of the people; and they said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will
do, and we will be obedient.” 8And Moses took the blood and threw it upon
the people, and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant which the LORD has
made with you in accordance with all these words.”
On the Mountain of God
9 Then Moses and Aaron, Na'dab, and Abi'hu, and seventy of the elders of
Israel went up, 10and they saw the God of Israel; and there was under his
feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for
clearness. 11And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of
Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank.
12 The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain, and wait
there; and I will give you the tables of stone, with the law and the
commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” 13So Moses rose
with his servant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God.
14And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us, until we come to you again;
and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a cause, let him go
to them.”
15 Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the
mountain. 16The glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud
covered it six days; and on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the
midst of the cloud. 17Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like
a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the sons of Israel.
18And Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. And Moses
was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
Offerings for the Tabernacle
25 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, that they
take for me an offering; from every man whose heart makes him willing
you shall receive the offering for me. 3And this is the offering which you
shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, 4blue and purple and
scarlet stuff and fine twined linen, goats’ hair, 5tanned rams’ skins,
goatskins, acacia wood, 6oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and
for the fragrant incense, 7onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod
and for the breastpiece. 8And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may
dwell in their midst. 9According to all that I show you concerning the
pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.
The Ark of the Covenant
10 “They shall make an ark of acacia wood; two cubits and a half shall be
its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height.
11And you shall overlay it with pure gold, within and without shall you
overlay it, and you shall make upon it a molding of gold round about. 12And
you shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two
rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. 13You shall
make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 14And you shall
put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark by them.
15The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from
it. 16And you shall put into the ark the covenant which I shall give you.
17Then you shall make a mercy seat o of pure gold; two cubits and a half
shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. 18And you shall make
two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two
ends of the mercy seat. 19Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub
on the other end; of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the
cherubim on its two ends. 20The cherubim shall spread out their wings
above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to
another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. 21And
you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark; and in the ark you shall
put the covenant that I shall give you. 22There I will meet with you, and
from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are upon
the ark of the covenant, I will speak with you of all that I will give you in
commandment for the sons of Israel.
The Table for the Bread of the Presence
23 “And you shall make a table of acacia wood; two cubits shall be its
length, a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. 24You shall
overlay it with pure gold, and make a molding of gold around it. 25And you
shall make around it a frame a handbreadth wide, and a molding of gold
around the frame. 26And you shall make for it four rings of gold, and fasten
the rings to the four corners at its four legs. 27Close to the frame the rings
shall lie, as holders for the poles to carry the table. 28You shall make the
poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, and the table shall be
carried with these. 29And you shall make its plates and dishes for incense,
and its flagons and bowls with which to pour libations; of pure gold you
shall make them. 30And you shall set the bread of the Presence on the table
before me always.
The Lampstand
31 “And you shall make a lampstand of pure gold. The base and the shaft
of the lampstand shall be made of hammered work; its cups, its capitals, and
its flowers shall be of one piece with it; 32and there shall be six branches
going out of its sides, three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it
and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it; 33three cups
made like almonds, each with capital and flower, on one branch, and three
cups made like almonds, each with capital and flower, on the other branch
—so for the six branches going out of the lampstand; 34and on the
lampstand itself four cups made like almonds, with their capitals and
flowers, 35and a capital of one piece with it under each pair of the six
branches going out from the lampstand. 36Their capitals and their branches
shall be of one piece with it, the whole of it one piece of hammered work of
pure gold. 37And you shall make the seven lamps for it; and the lamps shall
be set up so as to give light upon the space in front of it. 38Its snuffers and
their trays shall be of pure gold. 39Of a talent of pure gold shall it be made,
with all these utensils. 40And see that you make them after the pattern for
them, which is being shown you on the mountain.
The Tabernacle
26 “Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine
twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet stuff; with cherubim skilfully
worked shall you make them. 2The length of each curtain shall be twenty-
eight cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains
shall have one measure. 3Five curtains shall be coupled to one another; and
the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. 4And you shall make
loops of blue on the edge of the outmost curtain in the first set; and likewise
you shall make loops on the edge of the outmost curtain in the second set.
5Fifty loops you shall make on the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall
make on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be
opposite one another. 6And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple
the curtains one to the other with the clasps, that the tabernacle may be one
whole.
7 “You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the
tabernacle; eleven curtains shall you make. 8The length of each curtain shall
be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; the eleven
curtains shall have the same measure. 9And you shall couple five curtains
by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and the sixth curtain you
shall double over at the front of the tent. 10And you shall make fifty loops
on the edge of the curtain that is outmost in one set, and fifty loops on the
edge of the curtain which is outmost in the second set.
11 “And you shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and put the clasps into the
loops, and couple the tent together that it may be one whole. 12And the part
that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall
hang over the back of the tabernacle. 13And the cubit on the one side, and
the cubit on the other side, of what remains in the length of the curtains of
the tent shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and that
side, to cover it. 14And you shall make for the tent a covering of tanned
rams’ skins and goatskins.
The Framework
15 “And you shall make upright frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood.
16Ten cubits shall be the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the
breadth of each frame. 17There shall be two tenons in each frame, for fitting
together; so shall you do for all the frames of the tabernacle. 18You shall
make the frames for the tabernacle: twenty frames for the south side; 19and
forty bases of silver you shall make under the twenty frames, two bases
under one frame for its two tenons, and two bases under another frame for
its two tenons; 20and for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side
twenty frames, 21and their forty bases of silver, two bases under one frame,
and two bases under another frame; 22and for the rear of the tabernacle
westward you shall make six frames. 23And you shall make two frames for
corners of the tabernacle in the rear; 24they shall be separate beneath, but
joined at the top, at the first ring; thus shall it be with both of them; they
shall form the two corners. 25And there shall be eight frames, with their
bases of silver, sixteen bases; two bases under one frame, and two bases
under another frame.
26 “And you shall make bars of acacia wood, five for the frames of the one
side of the tabernacle, 27and five bars for the frames of the other side of the
tabernacle, and five bars for the frames of the side of the tabernacle at the
rear westward. 28The middle bar, halfway up the frames, shall pass through
from end to end. 29You shall overlay the frames with gold, and shall make
their rings of gold for holders for the bars; and you shall overlay the bars
with gold. 30And you shall erect the tabernacle according to the plan for it
which has been shown you on the mountain.
The Veil and the Screen
31 “And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine
twined linen; in skilled work shall it be made, with cherubim; 32and you
shall hang it upon four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of
gold, upon four bases of silver. 33And you shall hang the veil from the
clasps, and bring the ark of the covenant in there within the veil; and the
veil shall separate for you the holy place from the most holy. 34You shall
put the mercy seat upon the ark of the covenant in the most holy place.
35And you shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand on the
south side of the tabernacle opposite the table; and you shall put the table
on the north side.
36 “And you shall make a screen for the door of the tent, of blue and
purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined linen, embroidered with
needlework. 37And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia, and
overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be of gold, and you shall cast five
bases of bronze for them.
The Altar of Burnt Offering
27 “You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five
cubits broad; the altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits.
2And you shall make horns for it on its four corners; its horns shall be of
one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze. 3You shall make pots
for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and firepans; all
its utensils you shall make of bronze. 4You shall also make for it a grating, a
network of bronze; and upon the net you shall make four bronze rings at its
four corners. 5And you shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that the net
shall extend half way down the altar. 6And you shall make poles for the
altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze; 7and the poles
shall be put through the rings, so that the poles shall be upon the two sides
of the altar, when it is carried. 8You shall make it hollow, with boards; as it
has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made.
The Court and Its Hangings
9 “You shall make the court of the tabernacle. On the south side the court
shall have hangings of fine twined linen a hundred cubits long for one side;
10their pillars shall be twenty and their bases twenty, of bronze, but the
hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. 11And likewise for its
length on the north side there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, their
pillars twenty and their bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars
and their fillets shall be of silver. 12And for the breadth of the court on the
west side there shall be hangings for fifty cubits, with ten pillars and ten
bases. 13The breadth of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits.
14The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with three
pillars and three bases. 15On the other side the hangings shall be fifteen
cubits, with three pillars and three bases. 16For the gate of the court there
shall be a screen twenty cubits long, of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and
fine twined linen, embroidered with needlework; it shall have four pillars
and with them four bases. 17All the pillars around the court shall be filleted
with silver; their hooks shall be of silver, and their bases of bronze. 18The
length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty, and the
height five cubits, with hangings of fine twined linen and bases of bronze.
19All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, and all its pegs and all the
pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.

The Oil for the Lamp
20 “And you shall command the sons of Israel that they bring to you pure
beaten olive oil for the light, that a lamp may be set up to burn continually.
21In the tent of meeting, outside the veil which is before the covenant,
Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before the LORD.
It shall be a statute for ever to be observed throughout their generations by
the sons of Israel.
Holy Garments for the Priests
28 “Then bring near to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him,
from among the sons of Israel, to serve me as priests— Aaron and Aaron’s
sons, Na'dab and Abi'hu, Elea'zar and Ith'amar. 2And you shall make holy
garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. 3And you shall
speak to all who have ability, whom I have endowed with an able mind, that
they make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him for my priesthood. 4These
are the garments which they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a
coat of checker work, a turban, and a sash; they shall make holy garments
for Aaron your brother and his sons to serve me as priests.
The Ephod
5 “They shall receive gold, blue and purple and scarlet stuff, and fine
twined linen. 6And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue and purple
and scarlet stuff, and of fine twined linen, skilfully worked. 7It shall have
two shoulder-pieces attached to its two edges, that it may be joined together.
8And the skilfully woven band upon it, to belt it on, shall be of the same
workmanship and materials, of gold, blue and purple and scarlet stuff, and
fine twined linen. 9And you shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on
them the names of the sons of Israel, 10six of their names on the one stone,
and the names of the remaining six on the other stone, in the order of their
birth. 11As a jeweler engraves signets, so shall you engrave the two stones
with the names of the sons of Israel; you shall enclose them in settings of
gold filigree. 12And you shall set the two stones upon the shoulder-pieces of
the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel; and Aaron shall
bear their names before the LORD upon his two shoulders for remembrance.
13And you shall make settings of gold filigree, 14and two chains of pure
gold, twisted like cords; and you shall attach the corded chains to the
settings.
The Breastpiece of Judgment
15 “And you shall make a breastpiece of judgment, in skilled work; like
the work of the ephod you shall make it; of gold, blue and purple and
scarlet stuff, and fine twined linen shall you make it. 16It shall be square and
double, a span its length and a span its breadth. 17And you shall set in it
four rows of stones. A row of sardius, topaz, and carbuncle shall be the first
row; 18and the second row an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond; 19and the
third row a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 20and the fourth row a beryl,
an onyx, and a jasper; they shall be set in gold filigree. 21There shall be
twelve stones with their names according to the names of the sons of Israel;
they shall be like signets, each engraved with its name, for the twelve tribes.
22And you shall make for the breastpiece twisted chains like cords, of pure
gold; 23and you shall make for the breastpiece two rings of gold, and put the
two rings on the two edges of the breastpiece. 24And you shall put the two
cords of gold in the two rings at the edges of the breastpiece; 25the two ends
of the two cords you shall attach to the two settings of filigree, and so attach
it in front to the shoulder-pieces of the ephod. 26And you shall make two
rings of gold, and put them at the two ends of the breastpiece, on its inside
edge next to the ephod. 27And you shall make two rings of gold, and attach
them in front to the lower part of the two shoulder-pieces of the ephod, at its
joining above the skilfully woven band of the ephod. 28And they shall bind
the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that
it may lie upon the skilfully woven band of the ephod, and that the
breastpiece shall not come loose from the ephod. 29So Aaron shall bear the
names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment upon his heart,
when he goes into the holy place, to bring them to continual remembrance
before the LORD. 30And in the breastpiece of judgment you shall put the
U'rim and the Thummim, and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart, when he
goes in before the LORD; thus Aaron shall bear the judgment of the sons of
Israel upon his heart before the LORD continually.
The Robe of the Ephod
31 “And you shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue. 32It shall have in
it an opening for the head, with a woven binding around the opening, like
the opening in a garment,p that it may not be torn. 33On its skirts you shall
make pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet stuff, around its skirts,
with bells of gold between them, 34a golden bell and a pomegranate, a
golden bell and a pomegranate, round about on the skirts of the robe. 35And
it shall be upon Aaron when he ministers, and its sound shall be heard when
he goes into the holy place before the LORD, and when he comes out, lest he
die.
Other Priestly Garments
36 “And you shall make a plate of pure gold, and engrave on it, like the
engraving of a signet, ‘Holy to the LORD.’ 37And you shall fasten it on the
turban by a lace of blue; it shall be on the front of the turban. 38It shall be
upon Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron shall take upon himself any guilt
incurred in the holy offering which the sons of Israel hallow as their holy
gifts; it shall always be upon his forehead, that they may be accepted before
the LORD.
39 “And you shall weave the coat in checker work of fine linen, and you
shall make a turban of fine linen, and you shall make a sash embroidered
with needlework.
40 “And for Aaron’s sons you shall make coats and sashes and caps; you
shall make them for glory and beauty. 41And you shall put them upon Aaron
your brother, and upon his sons with him, and shall anoint them and ordain
them and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. 42And you
shall make for them linen breeches to cover their naked flesh; from the loins
to the thighs they shall reach; 43and they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his
sons, when they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the
altar to minister in the holy place; lest they bring guilt upon themselves and
die. This shall be a perpetual statute for him and for his descendants after
him.
The Ordination of Priests
29 “Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, that they
may serve me as priests. Take one young bull and two rams without
blemish, 2and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and
unleavened wafers spread with oil. You shall make them of fine wheat flour.
3And you shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, and
bring the bull and the two rams. 4You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the
door of the tent of meeting, and wash them with water. 5And you shall take
the garments, and put on Aaron the coat and the robe of the ephod, and the
ephod, and the breastpiece, and belt him with the skilfully woven band of
the ephod; 6and you shall set the turban on his head, and put the holy crown
upon the turban. 7And you shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on his
head and anoint him. 8Then you shall bring his sons, and put coats on them,
9and you shall belt them with sashes q and bind caps on them; and the
priesthood shall be theirs by a perpetual statute. Thus you shall ordain

Aaron and his sons.
10 “Then you shall bring the bull before the tent of meeting. Aaron and his
sons shall lay their hands upon the head of the bull, 11and you shall kill the
bull before the LORD, at the door of the tent of meeting, 12and shall take part
of the blood of the bull and put it upon the horns of the altar with your
finger, and the rest of r the blood you shall pour out at the base of the altar.
13And you shall take all the fat that covers the entrails, and the appendage
of the liver, and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them, and burn them
upon the altar. 14But the flesh of the bull, and its skin, and its dung, you
shall burn with fire outside the camp; it is a sin offering.
15 “Then you shall take one of the rams, and Aaron and his sons shall lay
their hands upon the head of the ram, 16and you shall slaughter the ram, and
shall take its blood and throw it against the altar round about. 17Then you
shall cut the ram into pieces, and wash its entrails and its legs, and put them
with its pieces and its head, 18and burn the whole ram upon the altar; it is a
burnt offering to the LORD; it is a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the
LORD.
19 “You shall take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their
hands upon the head of the ram, 20and you shall kill the ram, and take part
of its blood and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron and upon the
tips of the right ears of his sons, and upon the thumbs of their right hands,
and upon the great toes of their right feet, and throw the rest of the blood
against the altar round about. 21Then you shall take part of the blood that is
on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron and his
garments, and upon his sons and his sons’ garments with him; and he and
his garments shall be holy, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him.
22 “You shall also take the fat of the ram, and the fat tail, and the fat that
covers the entrails, and the appendage of the liver, and the two kidneys with
the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of ordination),
23and one loaf of bread, and one cake of bread with oil, and one wafer, out
of the basket of unleavened bread that is before the LORD; 24and you shall
put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and wave
them for a wave offering before the LORD. 25Then you shall take them from
their hands, and burn them on the altar in addition to the burnt offering, as a
pleasing odor before the LORD; it is an offering by fire to the LORD.
26 “And you shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s ordination and
wave it for a wave offering before the LORD; and it shall be your portion.
27And you shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering, and the thigh of
the priests’ portion, which is waved, and which is offered from the ram of
ordination, since it is for Aaron and for his sons. 28It shall be for Aaron and
his sons as a perpetual debt from the sons of Israel, for it is the priests’
portion to be offered by the sons of Israel from their peace offerings; it is
their offering to the LORD.
29 “The holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him, to be
anointed in them and ordained in them. 30The son who is priest in his place
shall wear them seven days, when he comes into the tent of meeting to
minister in the holy place.
31 “You shall take the ram of ordination, and boil its flesh in a holy place;
32and Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram and the bread that is
in the basket, at the door of the tent of meeting. 33They shall eat those
things with which atonement was made, to ordain and consecrate them, but
an outsider shall not eat of them, because they are holy. 34And if any of the
flesh for the ordination, or of the bread, remain until the morning, then you
shall burn the remainder with fire; it shall not be eaten, because it is holy.
35 “Thus you shall do to Aaron and to his sons, according to all that I have
commanded you; through seven days shall you ordain them, 36and every
day you shall offer a bull as a sin offering for atonement. Also you shall
offer a sin offering for the altar, when you make atonement for it, and shall
anoint it, to consecrate it. 37Seven days you shall make atonement for the
altar, and consecrate it, and the altar shall be most holy; whatever touches
the altar shall become holy.
The Daily Offerings
38 “Now this is what you shall offer upon the altar: two lambs a year old
day by day continually. 39One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the
other lamb you shall offer in the evening; 40and with the first lamb a tenth
measure of fine flour mingled with a fourth of a hin of beaten oil, and a
fourth of a hin of wine for a libation. 41And the other lamb you shall offer in
the evening, and shall offer with it a cereal offering and its libation, as in
the morning, for a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the LORD. 42It shall
be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the
tent of meeting before the LORD, where I will meet with you, to speak there
to you. 43There I will meet with the sons of Israel, and it shall be sanctified
by my glory; 44I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar; Aaron
also and his sons I will consecrate, to serve me as priests. 45And I will dwell
among the sons of Israel, and will be their God. 46And they shall know that
I am the LORD their God, who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt
that I might dwell among them; I am the LORD their God.
The Altar of Incense
30 “You shall make an altar to burn incense upon; of acacia wood shall
you make it. 2A cubit shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth; it shall be
square, and two cubits shall be its height; its horns shall be of one piece
with it. 3And you shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and its sides round
about and its horns; and you shall make for it a molding of gold round
about. 4And two golden rings shall you make for it; under its molding on
two opposite sides of it shall you make them, and they shall be holders for
poles with which to carry it. 5You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and
overlay them with gold. 6And you shall put it before the veil that is by the
ark of the covenant, before the mercy seat that is over the covenant, where I
will meet with you. 7And Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it; every
morning when he dresses the lamps he shall burn it, 8and when Aaron sets
up the lamps in the evening, he shall burn it, a perpetual incense before the
LORD throughout your generations. 9You shall offer no unholy incense
thereon, nor burnt offering, nor cereal offering; and you shall pour no
libation thereon. 10Aaron shall make atonement upon its horns once a year;
with the blood of the sin offering of atonement he shall make atonement for
it once in the year throughout your generations; it is most holy to the
LORD.”
The Half Shekel for the Sanctuary
11 The LORD said to Moses, 12 “When you take the census of the sons of
Israel, then each shall give a ransom for himself to the LORD when you
number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them.
13Each who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel
according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a
shekel as an offering to the LORD. 14Every one who is numbered in the
census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the LORD’s offering.
15The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half
shekel, when you give the LORD’s offering to make atonement for
yourselves. 16And you shall take the atonement money from the sons of
Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tent of meeting; that it may
bring the sons of Israel to remembrance before the LORD, so as to make
atonement for yourselves.”
The Bronze Laver
17 The LORD said to Moses, 18 “You shall also make a laver of bronze,
with its base of bronze, for washing. And you shall put it between the tent
of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, 19with which Aaron
and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet. 20When they go into the
tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an
offering by fire to the LORD, they shall wash with water, lest they die.
21They shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die: it shall be a
statute for ever to them, even to him and to his descendants throughout their
generations.”
The Anointing Oil and Incense
22 Moreover, the LORD said to Moses, 23“Take the finest spices: of liquid
myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon half as much,

that is, two hundred and fifty, and of aromatic cane two hundred and fifty,
24and of cassia five hundred, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and
of olive oil a hin; 25and you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil
blended as by the perfumer; a holy anointing oil it shall be. 26And you shall
anoint with it the tent of meeting and the ark of the covenant, 27and the
table and all its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of
incense, 28and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils and the laver
and its base; 29you shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy;
whatever touches them will become holy. 30And you shall anoint Aaron and
his sons, and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. 31And you
shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘This shall be my holy anointing oil
throughout your generations. 32It shall not be poured upon the bodies of
ordinary men, and you shall make no other like it in composition; it is holy,
and it shall be holy to you. 33Whoever compounds any like it or whoever
puts any of it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’ ”
34 And the LORD said to Moses, “Take sweet spices, stacte, and onycha,
and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense (of each shall there be
an equal part), 35and make an incense blended as by the perfumer, seasoned
with salt, pure and holy; 36and you shall beat some of it very small, and put
part of it before the covenant in the tent of meeting where I shall meet with
you; it shall be for you most holy. 37And the incense which you shall make
according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves; it shall be
for you holy to the LORD. 38Whoever makes any like it to use as perfume
shall be cut off from his people.”
Bezalel and Oholiab
31 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “See, I have called by name Bez'alel the
son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: 3and I have filled him with the
Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all
craftsmanship, 4to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and
bronze, 5in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, for work in
every craft. 6And behold, I have appointed with him Oho'liab, the son of
Ahis'amach, of the tribe of Dan; and I have given to all able men ability,
that they may make all that I have commanded you: 7the tent of meeting,
and the ark of the covenant, and the mercy seat that is thereon, and all the
furnishings of the tent, 8the table and its utensils, and the pure lampstand
with all its utensils, and the altar of incense, 9and the altar of burnt offering
with all its utensils, and the laver and its base, 10and the finely worked
garments, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his
sons, for their service as priests, 11and the anointing oil and the fragrant
incense for the holy place. According to all that I have commanded you
they shall do.”
The Sabbath Law
12 And the LORD said to Moses, 13 “Say to the sons of Israel, ‘You shall
keep my sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your
generations, that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you. 14You shall
keep the sabbath, because it is holy for you; every one who profanes it shall
be put to death; whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from
among his people. 15Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a
sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the LORD; whoever does any work on the
sabbath day shall be put to death. 16Therefore the sons of Israel shall keep
the sabbath, observing the sabbath throughout their generations, as a
perpetual covenant. 17It is a sign for ever between me and the sons of Israel
that in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he
rested, and was refreshed.’ ”
The Tables of the Covenant
18 And he gave to Moses, when he had made an end of speaking with him
upon Mount Sinai, the two tables of the covenant, tables of stone, written
with the finger of God.
The Golden Calf
32 When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the
mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron, and said to
him, “Up, make us gods, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man
who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has
become of him.” 2And Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold
which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and
bring them to me.” 3So all the people took off the rings of gold which were
in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. 4And he received the gold at their
hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made a molten calf; and they
said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of
Egypt!” 5When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made
proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.” 6And they
rose up early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought peace
offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
7 And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down; for your people, whom you
brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves; 8they have
turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them; they have
made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to
it, and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the
land of Egypt!’ ” 9And the LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people,
and behold, it is a stiff-necked people; 10now therefore let me alone, that my
wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; but of you I will
make a great nation.”
11 But Moses begged the LORD his God, and said, “O LORD, why does
your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought forth out
of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12Why
should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent he brought them forth, to slay
them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’?
Turn from your fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against your people.
13Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore
by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the
stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your
descendants, and they shall inherit it for ever.’ ” 14And the LORD repented of
the evil which he thought to do to his people.
15 And Moses turned, and went down from the mountain with the two
tables of the covenant in his hands, tables that were written on both sides;
on the one side and on the other were they written. 16And the tables were
the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the
tables. 17When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said
to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.” 18But he said, “It is not the
sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the
sound of singing that I hear.” 19And as soon as he came near the camp and
saw the calf and the dancing, Moses’ anger burned hot, and he threw the
tables out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. 20And he
took the calf which they had made, and burnt it with fire, and ground it to
powder, and scattered it upon the water, and made the sons of Israel drink it.
21 And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you
have brought a great sin upon them?” 22And Aaron said, “Let not the anger
of my lord burn hot; you know the people, that they are set on evil. 23For
they said to me, ‘Make us gods, who shall go before us; as for this Moses,
the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what
has become of him.’ 24And I said to them, ‘Let any who have gold take it
off’; so they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and there came out
this calf.”
25 And when Moses saw that the people had broken loose (for Aaron had
let them break loose, to their shame among their enemies), 26then Moses
stood in the gate of the camp, and said, “Who is on the LORD’s side? Come
to me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.
27And he said to them, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘Put every man
his sword on his side, and go back and forth from gate to gate throughout
the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion,
and every man his neighbor.’ ” 28And the sons of Levi did according to the
word of Moses; and there fell of the people that day about three thousand
men. 29And Moses said, “Today you have ordained yourselvess for the
service of the LORD, each one at the cost of his son and of his brother, that
he may bestow a blessing upon you this day.”
30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin.
And now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your
sin.” 31So Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Alas, this people have
sinned a great sin; they have made for themselves gods of gold. 32But now,
if you will forgive their sin—and if not, blot me, I beg you, out of your
book which you have written.” 33But the LORD said to Moses, “Whoever
has sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. 34But now go, lead
the people to the place of which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel
shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their
sin upon them.”
35 And the LORD sent a plague upon the people, because they made the
calf which Aaron made.

The Command to Leave Sinai
33 The LORD said to Moses, “Depart, go up from here, you and the
people whom you have brought up out of the land of Egypt, to the land of
which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘To your descendants I
will give it.’ 2And I will send an angel before you, and I will drive out the
Canaanites, the Am'orites, the Hittites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the
Jeb'usites. 3Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go
up among you, lest I consume you in the way, for you are a stiff-necked
people.”
4 When the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned; and no man put
on his ornaments. 5For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the sons of
Israel, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up
among you, I would consume you. So now put off your ornaments from
you, that I may know what to do with you.’ ” 6Therefore the sons of Israel
stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward.
The Tent of Meeting
7 Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off
from the camp; and he called it the tent of meeting. And every one who
sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the
camp. 8Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose up, and
every man stood at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he had gone
into the tent. 9When Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would
descend and stand at the door of the tent, and the LORD would speak with
Moses. 10And when all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the
door of the tent, all the people would rise up and worship, every man at his
tent door. 11Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man
speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his servant
Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tent.
Moses’ Intercession
12 Moses said to the LORD, “See, you say to me, ‘Bring up this people’;
but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have
said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’
13Now therefore, I beg you, if I have found favor in your sight, show me
now your ways, that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider
too that this nation is your people.” 14And he said, “My presence will go
with you, and I will give you rest.” 15And he said to him, “If your presence
will not go with me, do not carry us up from here. 16For how shall it be
known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in
your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from all other
people that are upon the face of the earth?”
17 And the LORD said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I
will do; for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.”
18Moses said, “I beg you, show me your glory.” 19And he said, “I will make
all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you my name
‘The LORD’; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will
show mercy on whom I will show mercy. 20But,” he said, “you cannot see
my face; for man shall not see me and live.” 21And the LORD said, “Behold,
there is a place by me where you shall stand upon the rock; 22and while my
glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you
with my hand until I have passed by; 23then I will take away my hand, and
you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.”
New Tables of Stone
34 The LORD said to Moses, “Cut two tables of stone like the first; and I
will write upon the tables the words that were on the first tables, which you
broke. 2Be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount
Sinai, and present yourself there to me on the top of the mountain. 3No man
shall come up with you, and let no man be seen throughout all the
mountain; let no flocks or herds feed before that mountain.” 4So Moses cut
two tables of stone like the first; and he rose early in the morning and went
up on Mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him, and took in his hand
two tables of stone. 5And the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with
him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. 6The LORD passed before
him, and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger, and abounding in mercy and faithfulness, 7keeping merciful
love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who
will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon
the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth
generation.” 8And Moses made haste to bow his head toward the earth, and
worshiped. 9And he said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, O Lord,
let the Lord, I beg you, go in the midst of us, although it is a stiff-necked
people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your
inheritance.”
The Covenant Renewed
10 And he said, “Behold, I make a covenant. Before all your people I will
do marvels, such as have not been wrought in all the earth or in any nation;
and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the LORD; for
it is a terrible thing that I will do with you.
11 “Observe what I command you this day. Behold, I will drive out before
you the Am'orites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites,
and the Jeb'usites. 12Take heed to yourself, lest you make a covenant with
the inhabitants of the land where you go, lest it become a snare in your
midst. 13You shall tear down their altars, and break their pillars, and cut
down their Ashe'rim 14(for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD,
whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), 15lest you make a covenant with
the inhabitants of the land, and when they play the harlot after their gods
and sacrifice to their gods and one invites you, you eat of his sacrifice,
16and you take of their daughters for your sons, and their daughters play the
harlot after their gods and make your sons play the harlot after their gods.
17 “You shall make for yourself no molten gods.
18 “The feast of unleavened bread you shall keep. Seven days you shall eat
unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month

Abib; for in the month of Abib you came out from Egypt. 19All that opens
the womb is mine, all your malex cattle, the firstlings of cow and sheep.
20The firstling of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not
redeem it you shall break its neck. All the first-born of your sons you shall
redeem. And none shall appear before me empty.
21 “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; in
plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. 22And you shall observe the
feast of weeks, the first fruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering
at the year’s end. 23Three times in the year shall all your males appear
before the LORD God, the God of Israel. 24For I will cast out nations before
you, and enlarge your borders; neither shall any man desire your land, when
you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times in the year.
25 “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall
the sacrifice of the feast of the Passover be left until the morning. 26The
first of the first fruits of your ground you shall bring to the house of the
LORD your God. You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.”
27 And the LORD said to Moses, “Write these words; in accordance with
these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.” 28And he
was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he neither ate bread
nor drank water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant,
the ten commandments.t
The Shining Face of Moses
29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tables of the
covenant in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not
know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.
30And when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of
his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. 31But Moses called
to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him,
and Moses talked with them. 32And afterward all the sons of Israel came
near, and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with
him in Mount Sinai. 33And when Moses had finished speaking with them,
he put a veil on his face; 34but whenever Moses went in before the LORD to
speak with him, he took the veil off, until he came out; and when he came
out, and told the sons of Israel what he was commanded, 35the sons of Israel
saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone; and Moses
would put the veil upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.
Sabbath Regulations
35 Moses assembled all the congregation of the sons of Israel, and said
to them, “These are the things which the LORD has commanded you to do.
2Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy
sabbath of solemn rest to the LORD; whoever does any work on it shall be
put to death; 3you shall kindle no fire in all your habitations on the sabbath
day.”
Preparations for Making the Tabernacle
4 Moses said to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, “This is the thing
which the LORD has commanded. 5Take from among you an offering to the
LORD; whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the LORD’s offering:
gold, silver, and bronze; 6blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined
linen; goats’ hair, 7tanned rams’ skins, and goatskins; acacia wood, 8oil for
the light, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 9and onyx
stones and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece.
10 “And let every able man among you come and make all that the LORD
has commanded: the tabernacle, 11its tent and its covering, its hooks and its
frames, its bars, its pillars, and its bases; 12the ark with its poles, the mercy
seat, and the veil of the screen; 13the table with its poles and all its utensils,
and the bread of the Presence; 14the lampstand also for the light, with its
utensils and its lamps, and the oil for the light; 15and the altar of incense,
with its poles, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the screen
for the door, at the door of the tabernacle; 16the altar of burnt offering, with
its grating of bronze, its poles, and all its utensils, the laver and its base;
17the hangings of the court, its pillars and its bases, and the screen for the
gate of the court; 18the pegs of the tabernacle and the pegs of the court, and
their cords; 19the finely wrought garments for ministering in the holy place,
the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, for
their service as priests.”
Offerings Brought for the Tabernacle
20 Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel departed from the
presence of Moses. 21And they came, every one whose heart stirred him,
and every one whose spirit moved him, and brought the LORD’s offering to
be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy
garments. 22So they came, both men and women; all who were of a willing
heart brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and armlets, all sorts
of gold objects, every man dedicating an offering of gold to the LORD.
23And every man with whom was found blue or purple or scarlet stuff or
fine linen or goats’ hair or tanned rams’ skins or goatskins, brought them.
24Every one who could make an offering of silver or bronze brought it as
the LORD’s offering; and every man with whom was found acacia wood of
any use in the work, brought it. 25And all women who had ability spun with
their hands, and brought what they had spun in blue and purple and scarlet
stuff and fine twined linen; 26all the women whose hearts were moved with
ability spun the goats’ hair. 27And the leaders brought onyx stones and
stones to be set, for the ephod and for the breastpiece, 28and spices and oil
for the light, and for the anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense. 29All the
men and women, the sons of Israel, whose heart moved them to bring
anything for the work which the LORD had commanded by Moses to be
done, brought it as their freewill offering to the LORD.
Bezalel and Oholiab Receive the Offerings
30 And Moses said to the sons of Israel, “See, the LORD has called by name
Bez'alel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; 31and he has filled
him with the Spirit of God, with ability, with intelligence, with knowledge,
and with all craftsmanship, 32to devise artistic designs, to work in gold and
silver and bronze, 33in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, for
work in every skilled craft. 34And he has inspired him to teach, both him
and Oho'liab the son of Ahis'amach of the tribe of Dan. 35He has filled them
with ability to do every sort of work done by a craftsman or by a designer
or by an embroiderer in blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined
linen, or by a weaver—by any sort of workman or skilled
36 designer. 1Bez'alel and Oho'liab and every able man in whom the
LORD has put ability and intelligence to know how to do any work in the
construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with all that the
LORD has commanded.”
2 And Moses called Bez'alel and Oho'liab and every able man in whose
mind the LORD had put ability, every one whose heart stirred him up to
come to do the work; 3and they received from Moses all the freewill
offering which the sons of Israel had brought for doing the work on the
sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning,
4so that all the able men who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary
came, each from the task that he was doing, 5and said to Moses, “The
people bring much more than enough for doing the work which the LORD
has commanded us to do.” 6So Moses gave command, and word was
proclaimed throughout the camp, “Let neither man nor woman do anything
more for the offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from
bringing; 7for the stuff they had was sufficient to do all the work, and more.
Construction of the Tabernacle
8 And all the able men among the workmen made the tabernacle with ten
curtains; they were made of fine twined linen and blue and purple and
scarlet stuff, with cherubim skilfully worked. 9The length of each curtain
was twenty-eight cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; all the
curtains had the same measure.
10 And he coupled five curtains to one another, and the other five curtains
he coupled to one another. 11And he made loops of blue on the edge of the
outmost curtain of the first set; likewise he made them on the edge of the
outmost curtain of the second set; 12he made fifty loops on the one curtain,
and he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was in the second
set; the loops were opposite one another. 13And he made fifty clasps of
gold, and coupled the curtains one to the other with clasps; so the tabernacle
was one whole.
14 He also made curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; he
made eleven curtains. 15The length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and the
breadth of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains had the same
measure. 16He coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by
themselves. 17And he made fifty loops on the edge of the outmost curtain of
the one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the other connecting curtain.
18And he made fifty clasps of bronze to couple the tent together that it
might be one whole. 19And he made for the tent a covering of tanned rams’
skins and goatskins.
20 Then he made the upright frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood.
21Ten cubits was the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the breadth of
each frame. 22Each frame had two tenons, for fitting together; he did this
for all the frames of the tabernacle. 23The frames for the tabernacle he made
thus: twenty frames for the south side; 24and he made forty bases of silver
under the twenty frames, two bases under one frame for its two tenons, and
two bases under another frame for its two tenons. 25And for the second side
of the tabernacle, on the north side, he made twenty frames 26and their forty
bases of silver, two bases under one frame and two bases under another
frame. 27And for the rear of the tabernacle westward he made six frames.
28And he made two frames for corners of the tabernacle in the rear. 29And
they were separate beneath, but joined at the top, at the first ring; he made
two of them thus, for the two corners. 30There were eight frames with their
bases of silver: sixteen bases, under every frame two bases.
31 And he made bars of acacia wood, five for the frames of the one side of
the tabernacle, 32and five bars for the frames of the other side of the
tabernacle, and five bars for the frames of the tabernacle at the rear
westward. 33And he made the middle bar to pass through from end to end
halfway up the frames. 34And he overlaid the frames with gold, and made
their rings of gold for holders for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.
35 And he made the veil of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine
twined linen; with cherubim skilfully worked he made it. 36And for it he
made four pillars of acacia, and overlaid them with gold; their hooks were
of gold, and he cast for them four bases of silver. 37He also made a screen
for the door of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined
linen, embroidered with needlework; 38and its five pillars with their hooks.
He overlaid their capitals, and their fillets were of gold, but their five bases
were of bronze.
Making the Ark of the Covenant
37 Bez'alel made the ark of acacia wood; two cubits and a half was its
length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. 2And
he overlaid it with pure gold within and without, and made a molding of
gold around it. 3And he cast for it four rings of gold for its four corners, two
rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. 4And he made poles of
acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, 5and put the poles into the rings
on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark. 6And he made a mercy seat of pure
gold; two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth.
7And he made two cherubim of hammered gold; on the two ends of the
mercy seat he made them, 8one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on
the other end; of one piece with the mercy seat he made the cherubim on its
two ends. 9The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the
mercy seat with their wings, with their faces one to another; toward the
mercy seat were the faces of the cherubim.
Making the Table
10 He also made the table of acacia wood; two cubits was its length, a
cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height; 11and he overlaid it with
pure gold, and made a molding of gold around it. 12And he made around it a
frame a handbreadth wide, and made a molding of gold around the frame.
13He cast for it four rings of gold, and fastened the rings to the four corners
at its four legs. 14Close to the frame were the rings, as holders for the poles
to carry the table. 15He made the poles of acacia wood to carry the table,
and overlaid them with gold. 16And he made the vessels of pure gold which
were to be upon the table, its plates and dishes for incense, and its bowls
and flagons with which to pour libations.
Making the Lampstand
17 He also made the lampstand of pure gold. The base and the shaft of the
lampstand were made of hammered work; its cups, its capitals, and its
flowers were of one piece with it. 18And there were six branches going out
of its sides, three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it and three
branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it; 19three cups made like
almonds, each with capital and flower, on one branch, and three cups made
like almonds, each with capital and flower, on the other branch—so for the
six branches going out of the lampstand. 20And on the lampstand itself were
four cups made like almonds, with their capitals and flowers, 21and a capital
of one piece with it under each pair of the six branches going out of it.
22Their capitals and their branches were of one piece with it; the whole of it
was one piece of hammered work of pure gold. 23And he made its seven
lamps and its snuffers and its trays of pure gold. 24He made it and all its
utensils of a talent of pure gold.
Making the Altar of Incense
25 He made the altar of incense of acacia wood; its length was a cubit, and
its breadth was a cubit; it was square, and two cubits was its height; its
horns were of one piece with it. 26He overlaid it with pure gold, its top, and
its sides round about, and its horns; and he made a molding of gold round
about it, 27and made two rings of gold on it under its molding, on two
opposite sides of it, as holders for the poles with which to carry it. 28And he
made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold.
Making the Anointing Oil and Incense
29 He made the holy anointing oil also, and the pure fragrant incense,
blended as by the perfumer.

Making the Altar of Burnt Offering
38 He made the altar of burnt offering also of acacia wood; five cubits
was its length, and five cubits its breadth; it was square, and three cubits
was its height. 2He made horns for it on its four corners; its horns were of
one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze. 3And he made all the
utensils of the altar, the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the
firepans: all its utensils he made of bronze. 4And he made for the altar a
grating, a network of bronze, under its ledge, extending halfway down. 5He
cast four rings on the four corners of the bronze grating as holders for the
poles; 6he made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with bronze.
7And he put the poles through the rings on the sides of the altar, to carry it
with them; he made it hollow, with boards.

Making the Laver and the Court
8 And he made the laver of bronze and its base of bronze, from the mirrors
of the ministering women who ministered at the door of the tent of meeting.
9 And he made the court; for the south side the hangings of the court were
of fine twined linen, a hundred cubits; 10their pillars were twenty and their
bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of
silver. 11And for the north side a hundred cubits, their pillars twenty, their
bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of
silver. 12And for the west side were hangings of fifty cubits, their pillars ten,
and their sockets ten; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver.
13And for the front to the east, fifty cubits. 14The hangings for one side of
the gate were fifteen cubits, with three pillars and three bases. 15And so for
the other side; on this hand and that hand by the gate of the court were
hangings of fifteen cubits, with three pillars and three bases. 16All the
hangings round about the court were of fine twined linen. 17And the bases
for the pillars were of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets
were of silver; the overlaying of their capitals was also of silver, and all the
pillars of the court were filleted with silver. 18And the screen for the gate of
the court was embroidered with needlework in blue and purple and scarlet
stuff and fine twined linen; it was twenty cubits long and five cubits high in
its breadth, corresponding to the hangings of the court. 19And their pillars
were four; their four bases were of bronze, their hooks of silver, and the
overlaying of their capitals and their fillets of silver. 20And all the pegs for
the tabernacle and for the court round about were of bronze.
Materials of the Tabernacle
21 This is the sum of the things for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the
covenant, as they were counted at the commandment of Moses, for the

work of the Levites under the direction of Ith'amar the son of Aaron the
priest. 22Bez'alel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all
that the LORD commanded Moses; 23and with him was Oho'liab the son of
Ahis'amach, of the tribe of Dan, a craftsman and designer and embroiderer
in blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined linen.
24 All the gold that was used for the work, in all the construction of the
sanctuary, the gold from the offering, was twenty-nine talents and seven
hundred and thirty shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary. 25And the silver
from those of the congregation who were numbered was a hundred talents
and a thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, by the shekel of the
sanctuary: 26a beka a head (that is, half a shekel, by the shekel of the
sanctuary), for every one who was numbered in the census, from twenty
years old and upward, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and
fifty men. 27The hundred talents of silver were for casting the bases of the
sanctuary, and the bases of the veil; a hundred bases for the hundred talents,
a talent for a base. 28And of the thousand seven hundred and seventy-five
shekels he made hooks for the pillars, and overlaid their capitals and made
fillets for them. 29And the bronze that was contributed was seventy talents,
and two thousand and four hundred shekels; 30with it he made the bases for
the door of the tent of meeting, the bronze altar and the bronze grating for it
and all the utensils of the altar, 31the bases round about the court, and the
bases of the gate of the court, all the pegs of the tabernacle, and all the pegs
round about the court.
Making the Priests’ Garments
39 And of the blue and purple and scarlet stuff they made finely
wrought garments, for ministering in the holy place; they made the holy
garments for Aaron; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
2 And he made the ephod of gold, blue and purple and scarlet stuff, and
fine twined linen. 3And gold leaf was hammered out and cut into threads to
work into the blue and purple and the scarlet stuff, and into the fine twined
linen, in skilled design. 4They made for the ephod shoulder-pieces, joined to
it at its two edges. 5And the skilfully woven band upon it, to belt it on, was
of the same materials and workmanship, of gold, blue and purple and
scarlet stuff, and fine twined linen; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
6 The onyx stones were prepared, enclosed in settings of gold filigree and
engraved like the engravings of a signet, according to the names of the sons
of Israel. 7And he set them on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, to be stones
of remembrance for the sons of Israel; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
8 He made the breastpiece, in skilled work, like the work of the ephod, of
gold, blue and purple and scarlet stuff, and fine twined linen. 9It was square;
the breastpiece was made double, a span its length and a span its breadth
when doubled. 10And they set in it four rows of stones. A row of sardius,
topaz, and carbuncle was the first row; 11and the second row, an emerald, a
sapphire, and a diamond; 12and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an
amethyst; 13and the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they were
enclosed in settings of gold filigree. 14There were twelve stones with their
names according to the names of the sons of Israel; they were like signets,
each engraved with its name, for the twelve tribes. 15And they made on the
breastpiece twisted chains like cords, of pure gold; 16and they made two
settings of gold filigree and two gold rings, and put the two rings on the two
edges of the breastpiece; 17and they put the two cords of gold in the two
rings at the edges of the breastpiece. 18Two ends of the two cords they had
attached to the two settings of filigree; thus they attached it in front to the
shoulder-pieces of the ephod. 19Then they made two rings of gold, and put
them at the two ends of the breastpiece, on its inside edge next to the ephod.
20And they made two rings of gold, and attached them in front to the lower
part of the two shoulder-pieces of the ephod, at its joining above the
skilfully woven band of the ephod. 21And they bound the breastpiece by its
rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, so that it should lie upon
the skilfully woven band of the ephod, and that the breastpiece should not
come loose from the ephod; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
22 He also made the robe of the ephod woven all of blue; 23and the
opening of the robe in it was like the opening in a garment, with a binding
around the opening, that it might not be torn. 24On the skirts of the robe
they made pomegranates of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine
twined linen. 25They also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between
the pomegranates upon the skirts of the robe round about, between the
pomegranates; 26a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate round
about upon the skirts of the robe for ministering; as the LORD had
commanded Moses.
27 They also made the coats, woven of fine linen, for Aaron and his sons,
28and the turban of fine linen, and the caps of fine linen, and the linen
breeches of fine twined linen, 29and the sash of fine twined linen and of
blue and purple and scarlet stuff, embroidered with needlework; as the
LORD had commanded Moses.
30 And they made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote upon
it an inscription, like the engraving of a signet, “Holy to the LORD.” 31And

they tied to it a lace of blue, to fasten it on the turban above; as the LORD
had commanded Moses.
The Work Finished
32 Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished;
and the sons of Israel had done according to all that the LORD had
commanded Moses; so had they done. 33And they brought the tabernacle to
Moses, the tent and all its utensils, its hooks, its frames, its bars, its pillars,
and its bases; 34the covering of tanned rams’ skins and goatskins, and the
veil of the screen; 35the ark of the covenant with its poles and the mercy
seat; 36the table with all its utensils, and the bread of the Presence; 37the
lampstand of pure gold and its lamps with the lamps set and all its utensils,
and the oil for the light; 38the golden altar, the anointing oil and the fragrant
incense, and the screen for the door of the tent; 39the bronze altar, and its
grating of bronze, its poles, and all its utensils; the laver and its base; 40the
hangings of the court, its pillars, and its bases, and the screen for the gate of
the court, its cords, and its pegs; and all the utensils for the service of the
tabernacle, for the tent of meeting; 41the finely worked garments for
ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and
the garments of his sons to serve as priests. 42According to all that the LORD
had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel had done all the work. 43And
Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it; as the LORD had
commanded, so had they done it. And Moses blessed them.
Erection of the Tabernacle
40 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “On the first day of the first month you
shall erect the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. 3And you shall put in it the
ark of the covenant, and you shall screen the ark with the veil. 4And you
shall bring in the table, and set its arrangements in order; and you shall
bring in the lampstand, and set up its lamps. 5And you shall put the golden
altar for incense before the ark of the covenant, and set up the screen for the
door of the tabernacle. 6You shall set the altar of burnt offering before the
door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, 7and place the laver between
the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. 8And you shall set up
the court round about, and hang up the screen for the gate of the court.
9Then you shall take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and all that
is in it, and consecrate it and all its furniture; and it shall become holy.
10You shall also anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and
consecrate the altar; and the altar shall be most holy. 11You shall also anoint
the laver and its base, and consecrate it. 12Then you shall bring Aaron and
his sons to the door of the tent of meeting, and shall wash them with water,
13and put upon Aaron the holy garments, and you shall anoint him and
consecrate him, that he may serve me as priest. 14You shall bring his sons
also and put coats on them, 15and anoint them, as you anointed their father,
that they may serve me as priests: and their anointing shall admit them to a
perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.”
16 Thus did Moses; according to all that the LORD commanded him, so he
did. 17And in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the
month, the tabernacle was erected. 18Moses erected the tabernacle; he laid
its bases, and set up its frames, and put in its poles, and raised up its pillars;
19and he spread the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent
over it, as the LORD had commanded Moses. 20And he took the covenant
and put it into the ark, and put the poles on the ark, and set the mercy seat
above on the ark; 21and he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up
the veil of the screen, and screened the ark of the covenant; as the LORD had
commanded Moses. 22And he put the table in the tent of meeting, on the
north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil, 23and set the bread in order on
it before the LORD; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 24And he put the
lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the table on the south side of the
tabernacle, 25and set up the lamps before the LORD; as the LORD had
commanded Moses. 26And he put the golden altar in the tent of meeting
before the veil, 27and burnt fragrant incense upon it; as the LORD had
commanded Moses. 28And he put in place the screen for the door of the
tabernacle. 29And he set the altar of burnt offering at the door of the
tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered upon it the burnt offering and
the cereal offering; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 30And he set the
laver between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for
washing, 31with which Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands
and their feet; 32when they went into the tent of meeting, and when they
approached the altar, they washed; as the LORD commanded Moses. 33And
he erected the court round the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen
of the gate of the court. So Moses finished the work.
The Cloud and the Glory of the Lord
34 Then the cloud * covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD
filled the tabernacle. 35And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting,
because the cloud abode upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the
tabernacle. 36Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken
up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would go onward; 37but if the
cloud was not taken up, then they did not go onward till the day that it was
taken up. 38For throughout all their journeys the cloud of the LORD was
upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the
house of Israel.
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Leviticus
Chapters
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LEVITICUS
Burnt Offerings
1 The LORD called Moses, and spoke to him from the tent of meeting,
saying, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them, When any man of
you brings an offering to the LORD, you shall bring your offering of cattle
from the herd or from the flock.
3 “If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male
without blemish; he shall offer it at the door of the tent of meeting, that he
may be accepted before the LORD; 4he shall lay his hand upon the head of
the burnt offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for
him. 5Then he shall kill the bull before the LORD; and Aaron’s sons the
priests shall present the blood, and throw the blood round about against the
altar that is at the door of the tent of meeting. 6And he shall flay the burnt
offering and cut it into pieces; 7and the sons of Aaron the priest shall put
fire on the altar, and lay wood in order upon the fire; 8and Aaron’s sons the
priests shall lay the pieces, the head, and the fat, in order upon the wood
that is on the fire upon the altar; 9but its entrails and its legs he shall wash
with water. And the priest shall burn the whole on the altar, as a burnt
offering, an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD.
10 “If his gift for a burnt offering is from the flock, from the sheep or
goats, he shall offer a male without blemish; 11and he shall kill it on the
north side of the altar before the LORD, and Aaron’s sons the priests shall
throw its blood against the altar round about. 12And he shall cut it into
pieces, with its head and its fat, and the priest shall lay them in order upon
the wood that is on the fire upon the altar; 13but the entrails and the legs he
shall wash with water. And the priest shall offer the whole, and burn it on
the altar; it is a burnt offering, an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the
LORD.
14 “If his offering to the LORD is a burnt offering of birds, then he shall
bring his offering of turtledoves or of young pigeons. 15And the priest shall
bring it to the altar and wring off its head, and burn it on the altar; and its
blood shall be drained out on the side of the altar; 16and he shall take away
its crop with the feathers, and cast it beside the altar on the east side, in the
place for ashes; 17he shall tear it by its wings, but shall not divide it asunder.
And the priest shall burn it on the altar, upon the wood that is on the fire; it
is a burnt offering, an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD.
Cereal Offerings
2 “When any one brings a cereal offering as an offering to the LORD, his
offering shall be of fine flour; he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense
on it, 2and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. And he shall take from it a
handful of the fine flour and oil, with all of its frankincense; and the priest
shall burn this as its memorial portion upon the altar, an offering by fire, a
pleasing odor to the LORD. 3And what is left of the cereal offering shall be
for Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the offerings by fire to the
LORD.
4 “When you bring a cereal offering baked in the oven as an offering, it
shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, or unleavened

wafers spread with oil. 5And if your offering is a cereal offering baked on a
griddle, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mixed with oil; 6you shall break
it in pieces, and pour oil on it; it is a cereal offering. 7And if your offering is
a cereal offering cooked in a pan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.
8And you shall bring the cereal offering that is made of these things to the
LORD; and when it is presented to the priest, he shall bring it to the altar.
9And the priest shall take from the cereal offering its memorial portion and
burn this on the altar, an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD.
10And what is left of the cereal offering shall be for Aaron and his sons; it is
a most holy part of the offerings by fire to the LORD.
11 “No cereal offering which you bring to the LORD shall be made with
leaven; for you shall burn no leaven nor any honey as an offering by fire to
the LORD. 12As an offering of first fruits you may bring them to the LORD,
but they shall not be offered on the altar for a pleasing odor. 13You shall
season all your cereal offerings with salt; you shall not let the salt of the
covenant with your God be lacking from your cereal offering; with all your
offerings you shall offer salt.
14 “If you offer a cereal offering of first fruits to the LORD, you shall offer
for the cereal offering of your first fruits crushed new grain from fresh ears,
parched with fire. 15And you shall put oil upon it, and lay frankincense on
it; it is a cereal offering. 16And the priest shall burn as its memorial portion
part of the crushed grain and of the oil with all of its frankincense; it is an
offering by fire to the LORD.
Peace Offerings
3 “If a man’s offering is a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offers an
animal from the herd, male or female, he shall offer it without blemish
before the LORD. 2And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering
and kill it at the door of the tent of meeting; and Aaron’s sons the priests
shall throw the blood against the altar round about. 3And from the sacrifice
of the peace offering, as an offering by fire to the LORD, he shall offer the
fat covering the entrails and all the fat that is on the entrails, 4and the two
kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the appendage of the
liver which he shall take away with the kidneys. 5Then Aaron’s sons shall
burn it on the altar upon the burnt offering, which is upon the wood on the
fire; it is an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD.
6 “If his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering to the LORD is an animal
from the flock, male or female, he shall offer it without blemish. 7If he
offers a lamb for his offering, then he shall offer it before the LORD, 8laying
his hand upon the head of his offering and killing it before the tent of
meeting; and Aaron’s sons shall throw its blood against the altar round
about. 9Then from the sacrifice of the peace offering as an offering by fire
to the LORD he shall offer its fat, the fat tail entire, taking it away close by
the backbone, and the fat that covers the entrails, and all the fat that is on
the entrails, 10and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins,
and the appendage of the liver which he shall take away with the kidneys.
11And the priest shall burn it on the altar as food offered by fire to the LORD.
12 “If his offering is a goat, then he shall offer it before the LORD, 13and
lay his hand upon its head, and kill it before the tent of meeting; and the
sons of Aaron shall throw its blood against the altar round about. 14Then he
shall offer from it, as his offering for an offering by fire to the LORD, the fat
covering the entrails, and all the fat that is on the entrails, 15and the two
kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the appendage of the
liver which he shall take away with the kidneys. 16And the priest shall burn
them on the altar as food offered by fire for a pleasing odor. All fat is the
LORD’s. 17It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations, in all
your dwelling places, that you eat neither fat nor blood.”
Sin Offerings
4 And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, If any one
sins unwittingly in any of the things which the LORD has commanded not to
be done, and does any one of them, 3if it is the anointed priest who sins,
thus bringing guilt on the people, then let him offer for the sin which he has
committed a young bull without blemish to the LORD for a sin offering. 4He
shall bring the bull to the door of the tent of meeting before the LORD, and
lay his hand on the head of the bull, and kill the bull before the LORD. 5And
the anointed priest shall take some of the blood of the bull and bring it to
the tent of meeting; 6and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and
sprinkle part of the blood seven times before the LORD in front of the veil of
the sanctuary. 7And the priest shall put some of the blood on the horns of
the altar of fragrant incense before the LORD which is in the tent of meeting,
and the rest of the blood of the bull he shall pour out at the base of the altar
of burnt offering which is at the door of the tent of meeting. 8And all the fat
of the bull of the sin offering he shall take from it, the fat that covers the
entrails and all the fat that is on the entrails, 9and the two kidneys with the
fat that is on them at the loins, and the appendage of the liver which he shall
take away with the kidneys 10(just as these are taken from the ox of the
sacrifice of the peace offerings), and the priest shall burn them upon the
altar of burnt offering. 11But the skin of the bull and all its flesh, with its
head, its legs, its entrails, and its dung, 12the whole bull he shall carry forth
outside the camp to a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and shall
burn it on a fire of wood; where the ashes are poured out it shall be burned.
13 “If the whole congregation of Israel commits a sin unwittingly and the
thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they do any one of the
things which the LORD has commanded not to be done and are guilty;
14when the sin which they have committed becomes known, the assembly
shall offer a young bull for a sin offering and bring it before the tent of
meeting; 15and the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands upon the
head of the bull before the LORD, and the bull shall be killed before the
LORD. 16Then the anointed priest shall bring some of the blood of the bull to
the tent of meeting, 17and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and
sprinkle it seven times before the LORD in front of the veil. 18And he shall
put some of the blood on the horns of the altar which is in the tent of
meeting before the LORD; and the rest of the blood he shall pour out at the
base of the altar of burnt offering which is at the door of the tent of meeting.
19And all its fat he shall take from it and burn upon the altar. 20Thus shall he
do with the bull; as he did with the bull of the sin offering, so shall he do
with this; and the priest shall make atonement for them, and they shall be
forgiven. 21And he shall carry forth the bull outside the camp, and burn it as
he burned the first bull; it is the sin offering for the assembly.
22 “When a ruler sins, doing unwittingly any one of all the things which
the LORD his God has commanded not to be done, and is guilty, 23if the sin
which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring as his
offering a goat, a male without blemish, 24and shall lay his hand upon the
head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering
before the LORD; it is a sin offering. 25Then the priest shall take some of the
blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar
of burnt offering, and pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of
burnt offering. 26And all its fat he shall burn on the altar, like the fat of the
sacrifice of peace offerings; so the priest shall make atonement for him for
his sin, and he shall be forgiven.
27 “If any one of the common people sins unwittingly in doing any one of
the things which the LORD has commanded not to be done, and is guilty,
28when the sin which he has committed is made known to him he shall
bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he
has committed. 29And he shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering,
and kill the sin offering in the place of burnt offering. 30And the priest shall
take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of
burnt offering, and pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar.
31And all its fat he shall remove, as the fat is removed from the peace
offerings, and the priest shall burn it upon the altar for a pleasing odor to the
LORD; and the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be
forgiven.
32 “If he brings a lamb as his offering for a sin offering, he shall bring a
female without blemish, 33and lay his hand upon the head of the sin
offering, and kill it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt
offering. 34Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering
with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and
pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 35And all its fat he shall
remove as the fat of the lamb is removed from the sacrifice of peace
offerings, and the priest shall burn it on the altar, upon the offerings by fire
to the LORD; and the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which
he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.
5 “If any one sins in that he hears a public adjuration to testify and
though he is a witness, whether he has seen or come to know the matter, yet
does not speak, he shall bear his iniquity. 2Or if any one touches an unclean
thing, whether the carcass of an unclean beast or a carcass of unclean cattle
or a carcass of unclean swarming things, and it is hidden from him, and he
has become unclean, he shall be guilty. 3Or if he touches human
uncleanness, of whatever sort the uncleanness may be with which one
becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it he
shall be guilty. 4Or if any one utters with his lips a rash oath to do evil or to
do good, any sort of rash oath that men swear, and it is hidden from him,
when he comes to know it he shall in any of these be guilty. 5When a man is
guilty in any of these, he shall confess the sin he has committed, 6and he
shall bring his guilt offering to the LORD for the sin which he has
committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin offering; and
the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin.
7 “But if he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring, as his guilt offering
to the LORD for the sin which he has committed, two turtledoves or two
young pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. 8He
shall bring them to the priest, who shall offer first the one for the sin
offering; he shall wring its head from its neck, but shall not sever it, 9and he
shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar,
while the rest of the blood shall be drained out at the base of the altar; it is a
sin offering. 10Then he shall offer the second for a burnt offering according
to the ordinance; and the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin
which he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.
11 “But if he cannot afford two turtledoves or two young pigeons, then he
shall bring, as his offering for the sin which he has committed, a tenth of an
ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall put no oil upon it, and shall
put no frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering. 12And he shall bring it to
the priest, and the priest shall take a handful of it as its memorial portion
and burn this on the altar, upon the offerings by fire to the LORD; it is a sin
offering. 13Thus the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which
he has committed in any one of these things, and he shall be forgiven. And
the remainder shall be for the priest, as in the cereal offering.”
Guilt Offerings
14 The LORD said to Moses, 15 “If any one commits a breach of faith and
sins unwittingly in any of the holy things of the LORD, he shall bring, as his
guilt offering to the LORD, a ram without blemish out of the flock, valued by
you in shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary; it is a guilt
offering. 16He shall also make restitution for what he has done amiss in the
holy thing, and shall add a fifth to it and give it to the priest; and the priest
shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and he
shall be forgiven.
17 “If any one sins, doing any of the things which the LORD has
commanded not to be done, though he does not know it, yet he is guilty and
shall bear his iniquity. 18He shall bring to the priest a ram without blemish
out of the flock, valued by you at the price for a guilt offering, and the priest
shall make atonement for him for the error which he committed unwittingly,
and he shall be forgiven. 19It is a guilt offering; he is guilty before the
LORD.”
6 a The LORD said to Moses, 2 “If any one sins and commits a breach of
faith against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor in a matter of deposit or
security, or through robbery, or if he has oppressed his neighbor 3or has
found what was lost and lied about it, swearing falsely—in any of all the
things which men do and sin therein, 4when one has sinned and become
guilty, he shall restore what he took by robbery, or what he got by
oppression, or the deposit which was committed to him, or the lost thing
which he found, 5or anything about which he has sworn falsely; he shall
restore it in full, and shall add a fifth to it, and give it to him to whom it
belongs, on the day of his guilt offering. 6And he shall bring to the priest his
guilt offering to the LORD, a ram without blemish out of the flock, valued by
you at the price for a guilt offering; 7and the priest shall make atonement for
him before the LORD, and he shall be forgiven for any of the things which
one may do and thereby become guilty.”
The Law of Offerings
8b The LORD said to Moses, 9 “Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This
is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering shall be on the hearth
upon the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be
kept burning on it. 10And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and put
his linen breeches upon his body, and he shall take up the ashes to which
the fire has consumed the burnt offering on the altar, and put them beside
the altar. 11Then he shall put off his garments, and put on other garments,
and carry forth the ashes outside the camp to a clean place. 12The fire on the
altar shall be kept burning on it, it shall not go out; the priest shall burn
wood on it every morning, and he shall lay the burnt offering in order upon
it, and shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings. 13Fire shall be kept
burning upon the altar continually; it shall not go out.
14 “And this is the law of the cereal offering. The sons of Aaron shall offer
it before the LORD, in front of the altar. 15And one shall take from it a
handful of the fine flour of the cereal offering with its oil and all the
frankincense which is on the cereal offering, and burn this as its memorial
portion on the altar, a pleasing odor to the LORD. 16And the rest of it Aaron
and his sons shall eat; it shall be eaten unleavened in a holy place; in the
court of the tent of meeting they shall eat it. 17It shall not be baked with
leaven. I have given it as their portion of my offerings by fire; it is a thing
most holy, like the sin offering and the guilt offering. 18Every male among
the children of Aaron may eat of it, as decreed for ever throughout your
generations, from the LORD’s offerings by fire; whoever touches them
shall become holy.”
19 The LORD said to Moses, 20 “This is the offering which Aaron and his
sons shall offer to the LORD on the day when he is anointed: a tenth of an
ephah of fine flour as a regular cereal offering, half of it in the morning and
half in the evening. 21It shall be made with oil on a griddle; you shall bring
it well mixed, in baked c pieces like a cereal offering, and offer it for a
pleasing odor to the LORD. 22The priest from among Aaron’s sons, who is
anointed to succeed him, shall offer it to the LORD as decreed for ever; the
whole of it shall be burned. 23Every cereal offering of a priest shall be
wholly burned; it shall not be eaten.”
24 The LORD said to Moses, 25 “Say to Aaron and his sons, This is the law
of the sin offering. In the place where the burnt offering is killed shall the
sin offering be killed before the LORD; it is most holy. 26The priest who
offers it for sin shall eat it; in a holy place it shall be eaten, in the court of
the tent of meeting. 27Whatever d touches its flesh shall be holy; and when
any of its blood is sprinkled on a garment, you shall wash that on which it
was sprinkled in a holy place. 28And the earthen vessel in which it is boiled
shall be broken; but if it is boiled in a bronze vessel, that shall be scoured,
and rinsed in water. 29Every male among the priests may eat of it; it is most
holy. 30But no sin offering shall be eaten from which any blood is brought
into the tent of meeting to make atonement in the holy place; it shall be
burned with fire.
7 “This is the law of the guilt offering. It is most holy; 2in the place
where they kill the burnt offering they shall kill the guilt offering, and its
blood shall be thrown on the altar round about. 3And all its fat shall be
offered, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, 4the two kidneys with the
fat that is on them at the loins, and the appendage of the liver which he shall
take away with the kidneys; 5the priest shall burn them on the altar as an
offering by fire to the LORD; it is a guilt offering. 6Every male among the
priests may eat of it; it shall be eaten in a holy place; it is most holy. 7The
guilt offering is like the sin offering, there is one law for them; the priest
who makes atonement with it shall have it. 8And the priest who offers any
man’s burnt offering shall have for himself the skin of the burnt offering
which he has offered. 9And every cereal offering baked in the oven and all
that is prepared on a pan or a griddle shall belong to the priest who offers it.
10And every cereal offering, mixed with oil or dry, shall be for all the sons
of Aaron, one as well as another.

Further Instructions
11 “And this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings which one may
offer to the LORD. 12If he offers it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer
with the thank offering unleavened cakes mixed with oil, unleavened wafers
spread with oil, and cakes of fine flour well mixed with oil. 13With the
sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving he shall bring his offering
with cakes of leavened bread. 14And of such he shall offer one cake from
each offering, as an offering to the LORD; it shall belong to the priest who
throws the blood of the peace offerings. 15And the flesh of the sacrifice of
his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten on the day of his
offering; he shall not leave any of it until the morning. 16But if the sacrifice
of his offering is a votive offering or a freewill offering, it shall be eaten on
the day that he offers his sacrifice, and the next day what remains of it shall
be eaten, 17but what remains of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day
shall be burned with fire. 18If any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace
offering is eaten on the third day, he who offers it shall not be accepted,
neither shall it be credited to him; it shall be an abomination, and he who
eats of it shall bear his iniquity.
19 “Flesh that touches any unclean thing shall not be eaten; it shall be
burned with fire. All who are clean may eat flesh, 20but the person who eats
of the flesh of the sacrifice of the LORD’s peace offerings while an
uncleanness is on him, that person shall be cut off from his people. 21And if
any one touches an unclean thing, whether the uncleanness of man or an
unclean beast or any unclean abomination, and then eats of the flesh of the
sacrifice of the LORD’s peace offerings, that person shall be cut off from
his people.”
22 The LORD said to Moses, 23 “Say to the people of Israel, You shall eat
no fat, of ox, or sheep, or goat. 24The fat of an animal that dies of itself, and
the fat of one that is torn by beasts, may be put to any other use, but on no
account shall you eat it. 25For every person who eats of the fat of an animal
of which an offering by fire is made to the LORD shall be cut off from his
people. 26Moreover you shall eat no blood whatever, whether of fowl or of
animal, in any of your dwellings. 27Whoever eats any blood, that person
shall be cut off from his people.”
28 The LORD said to Moses, 29 “Say to the sons of Israel, He that offers the
sacrifice of his peace offerings to the LORD shall bring his offering to the
LORD; from the sacrifice of his peace offerings 30he shall bring with his own
hands the offerings by fire to the LORD; he shall bring the fat with the
breast, that the breast may be waved as a wave offering before the LORD.
31The priest shall burn the fat on the altar, but the breast shall be for Aaron
and his sons. 32And the right thigh you shall give to the priest as an offering
from the sacrifice of your peace offerings; 33he among the sons of Aaron
who offers the blood of the peace offerings and the fat shall have the right
thigh for a portion. 34For the breast that is waved and the thigh that is
offered I have taken from the sons of Israel, out of the sacrifices of their
peace offerings, and have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons, as
a perpetual debt from the sons of Israel. 35This is the portion of Aaron and
of his sons from the offerings made by fire to the LORD, consecrated to them
on the day they were presented to serve as priests of the LORD; 36the LORD
commanded this to be given them by the sons of Israel, on the day that they
were anointed; it is a perpetual debt throughout their generations.”
37 This is the law of the burnt offering, of the cereal offering, of the sin
offering, of the guilt offering, of the consecration, and of the peace

offerings, 38which the LORD commanded Moses on Mount Sinai, on the day
that he commanded the sons of Israel to bring their offerings to the LORD, in
the wilderness of Sinai.
The Rites of Ordination
8 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the
garments, and the anointing oil, and the bull of the sin offering, and the two
rams, and the basket of unleavened bread; 3and assemble all the
congregation at the door of the tent of meeting.” 4And Moses did as the
LORD commanded him; and the congregation was assembled at the door of
the tent of meeting.
5 And Moses said to the congregation, “This is the thing which the LORD
has commanded to be done.” 6And Moses brought Aaron and his sons, and
washed them with water. 7And he put on him the coat, and girded him with
the sash, and clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and
girded him with the skilfully woven band of the ephod, binding it to him
therewith. 8And he placed the breastpiece on him, and in the breastpiece he
put the U'rim and the Thummim. 9And he set the turban upon his head, and
on the turban, in front, he set the golden plate, the holy crown, as the LORD
commanded Moses.
10 Then Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all
that was in it, and consecrated them. 11And he sprinkled some of it on the
altar seven times, and anointed the altar and all its utensils, and the laver
and its base, to consecrate them. 12And he poured some of the anointing oil
on Aaron’s head, and anointed him, to consecrate him. 13And Moses
brought Aaron’s sons, and clothed them with coats, and girded them with
sashes, and bound caps on them, as the LORD commanded Moses.
14 Then he brought the bull of the sin offering; and Aaron and his sons laid
their hands upon the head of the bull of the sin offering. 15And Moses killed
it, and took the blood, and with his finger put it on the horns of the altar
round about, and purified the altar, and poured out the blood at the base of
the altar, and consecrated it, to make atonement for it. 16And he took all the
fat that was on the entrails, and the appendage of the liver, and the two
kidneys with their fat, and Moses burned them on the altar. 17But the bull,
and its skin, and its flesh, and its dung, he burned with fire outside the
camp, as the LORD commanded Moses.
18 Then he presented the ram of the burnt offering; and Aaron and his sons
laid their hands on the head of the ram. 19And Moses killed it, and threw the
blood upon the altar round about. 20And when the ram was cut into pieces,
Moses burned the head and the pieces and the fat. 21And when the entrails
and the legs were washed with water, Moses burned the whole ram on the
altar, as a burnt offering, a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the LORD, as
the LORD commanded Moses.
22 Then he presented the other ram, the ram of ordination; and Aaron and
his sons laid their hands on the head of the ram. 23And Moses killed it, and
took some of its blood and put it on the tip of Aaron’s right ear and on the
thumb of his right hand and on the great toe of his right foot. 24And Aaron’s
sons were brought, and Moses put some of the blood on the tips of their
right ears and on the thumbs of their right hands and on the great toes of
their right feet; and Moses threw the blood upon the altar round about.
25Then he took the fat, and the fat tail, and all the fat that was on the
entrails, and the appendage of the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat,
and the right thigh; 26and out of the basket of unleavened bread which was
before the LORD he took one unleavened cake, and one cake of bread with
oil, and one wafer, and placed them on the fat and on the right thigh; 27and
he put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and
waved them as a wave offering before the LORD. 28Then Moses took them
from their hands, and burned them on the altar with the burnt offering, as an
ordination offering, a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the LORD. 29And
Moses took the breast, and waved it for a wave offering before the LORD; it
was Moses’ portion of the ram of ordination, as the LORD commanded
Moses.
30 Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and of the blood which was
on the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron and his garments, and also upon
his sons and his sons’ garments; so he consecrated Aaron and his garments,
and his sons and his sons’ garments with him.
31 And Moses said to Aaron and his sons, “Boil the flesh at the door of the
tent of meeting, and there eat it and the bread that is in the basket of
ordination offerings, as I commanded, saying, ‘Aaron and his sons shall eat
it’; 32and what remains of the flesh and the bread you shall burn with fire.
33And you shall not go out from the door of the tent of meeting for seven
days, until the days of your ordination are completed, for it will take seven
days to ordain you. 34As has been done today, the LORD has commanded to
be done to make atonement for you. 35At the door of the tent of meeting
you shall remain day and night for seven days, performing what the LORD
has charged, lest you die; for so I am commanded.” 36And Aaron and his
sons did all the things which the LORD commanded by Moses.
Aaron’s Priesthood Inaugurated
9 On the eighth day Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of
Israel; 2and he said to Aaron, “Take a bull calf for a sin offering, and a ram
for a burnt offering, both without blemish, and offer them before the LORD.
3And say to the sons of Israel, ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, and a
calf and a lamb, both a year old without blemish, for a burnt offering, 4and
an ox and a ram for peace offerings, to sacrifice before the LORD, and a
cereal offering mixed with oil; for today the LORD will appear to you.’ ”
5And they brought what Moses commanded before the tent of meeting; and
all the congregation drew near and stood before the LORD. 6And Moses
said, “This is the thing which the LORD commanded you to do; and the
glory of the LORD will appear to you.” 7Then Moses said to Aaron, “Draw
near to the altar, and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering, and
make atonement for yourself and for the people; and bring the offering of
the people, and make atonement for them; as the LORD has commanded.”
8 So Aaron drew near to the altar, and killed the calf of the sin offering,
which was for himself. 9And the sons of Aaron presented the blood to him,
and he dipped his finger in the blood and put it on the horns of the altar, and
poured out the blood at the base of the altar; 10but the fat and the kidneys
and the appendage of the liver from the sin offering he burned upon the
altar, as the LORD commanded Moses. 11The flesh and the skin he burned
with fire outside the camp.
12 And he killed the burnt offering; and Aaron’s sons delivered to him the
blood, and he threw it on the altar round about. 13And they delivered the
burnt offering to him, piece by piece, and the head; and he burned them
upon the altar. 14And he washed the entrails and the legs, and burned them
with the burnt offering on the altar.
15 Then he presented the people’s offering, and took the goat of the sin
offering which was for the people, and killed it, and offered it for sin, like
the first sin offering. 16And he presented the burnt offering, and offered it
according to the ordinance. 17And he presented the cereal offering, and
filled his hand from it, and burned it upon the altar, besides the burnt
offering of the morning.
18 He killed the ox also and the ram, the sacrifice of peace offerings for
the people; and Aaron’s sons delivered to him the blood, which he threw
upon the altar round about, 19and the fat of the ox and of the ram, the fat
tail, and that which covers the entrails, and the kidneys, and the appendage
of the liver; 20and they put the fat upon the breasts, and he burned the fat
upon the altar, 21but the breasts and the right thigh Aaron waved for a wave
offering before the LORD; as Moses commanded.
22 Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them; and
he came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the
peace offerings. 23And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting; and
when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the LORD
appeared to all the people. 24And fire came forth from before the LORD and
consumed the burnt offering and the fat upon the altar; and when all the
people saw it, they shouted, and fell on their faces.
Nadab and Abihu
10 Now Na'dab and Abi'hu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer,
and put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and offered unholy fire before the
LORD, such as he had not commanded them. 2And fire came forth from the
presence of the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
3Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD has said, ‘I will show
myself holy among those who are near me, and before all the people I will
be glorified.’ ” And Aaron held his peace.
4 And Moses called Mish'a-el and El'zaphan, the sons of Uz'ziel the uncle
of Aaron, and said to them, “Draw near, carry your brethren from before the
sanctuary out of the camp.” 5So they drew near, and carried them in their
coats out of the camp, as Moses had said. 6And Moses said to Aaron and to
Elea'zar and Ith'amar, his sons, “Do not let the hair of your heads hang
loose, and do not rend your clothes, lest you die, and lest wrath come upon
all the congregation; but your brethren, the whole house of Israel, may
bewail the burning which the LORD has kindled. 7And do not go out from
the door of the tent of meeting, lest you die; for the anointing oil of the
LORD is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.
8 And the LORD spoke to Aaron, saying, 9 “Drink no wine nor strong drink,
you nor your sons with you, when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you
die; it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations. 10You are to
distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and
the clean; 11and you are to teach the sons of Israel all the statutes which the
LORD has spoken to them by Moses.”
12 And Moses said to Aaron and to Elea'zar and Ith'amar, his sons who
were left, “Take the cereal offering that remains of the offerings by fire to
the LORD, and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for it is most holy; 13you
shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons’ due, from
the offerings by fire to the LORD; for so I am commanded. 14But the breast
that is waved and the thigh that is offered you shall eat in any clean place,
you and your sons and your daughters with you; for they are given as your
due and your sons’ due, from the sacrifices of the peace offerings of the
sons of Israel. 15The thigh that is offered and the breast that is waved they
shall bring with the offerings by fire of the fat, to wave for a wave offering
before the LORD, and it shall be yours, and your sons’ with you, as a debt
for ever; as the LORD has commanded.”
16 Now Moses diligently inquired about the goat of the sin offering, and
behold, it was burned! And he was angry with Elea'zar and Ith'amar, the
sons of Aaron who were left, saying, 17 “Why have you not eaten the sin
offering in the place of the sanctuary, since it is a thing most holy and has
been given to you that you may bear the iniquity of the congregation, to
make atonement for them before the LORD? 18Behold, its blood was not
brought into the inner part of the sanctuary. You certainly ought to have
eaten it in the sanctuary, as I commanded.” 19And Aaron said to Moses,
“Behold, today they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering
before the LORD; and yet such things as these have befallen me! If I had
eaten the sin offering today, would it have been acceptable in the sight of
the LORD?” 20And when Moses heard that, he was content.
Clean and Unclean Foods
11 * And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 2“Say to the sons of Israel,
These are the living things which you may eat among all the beasts that are
on the earth. 3Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the
cud, among the animals, you may eat. 4Nevertheless among those that chew
the cud or part the hoof, you shall not eat these: The camel, because it
chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. 5And the rock
badger, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to
you. 6And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is
unclean to you. 7And the swine, because it parts the hoof and is cloven-
footed but does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. 8Of their flesh you
shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch; they are unclean to
you.
9 “These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the
waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you may
eat. 10But anything in the seas or the rivers that has not fins and scales, of
the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in
the waters, is an abomination to you. 11They shall remain an abomination to
you; of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall have in
abomination. 12Everything in the waters that has not fins and scales is an
abomination to you.
Unclean Creatures
13 “And these you shall have in abomination among the birds, they shall
not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the osprey,
14the kite, the falcon according to its kind, 15every raven according to its
kind, 16the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk according to its
kind, 17the owl, the cormorant, the ibis, 18the water hen, the pelican, the
carrion vulture, 19the stork, the heron according to its kind, the hoopoe, and
the bat.
20 “All winged insects that go upon all fours are an abomination to you.
21Yet among the winged insects that go on all fours you may eat those
which have legs above their feet, with which to leap on the earth. 22Of them
you may eat: the locust according to its kind, the bald locust according to its
kind, the cricket according to its kind, and the grasshopper according to its
kind. 23But all other winged insects which have four feet are an
abomination to you.
24 “And by these you shall become unclean; whoever touches their carcass
shall be unclean until the evening, 25and whoever carries any part of their
carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. 26Every
animal which parts the hoof but is not cloven-footed or does not chew the
cud is unclean to you; every one who touches them shall be unclean. 27And
all that go on their paws, among the animals that go on all fours, are
unclean to you; whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the
evening, 28and he who carries their carcass shall wash his clothes and be
unclean until the evening; they are unclean to you.
29 “And these are unclean to you among the swarming things that swarm
upon the earth: the weasel, the mouse, the great lizard according to its kind,
30the gecko, the land crocodile, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the
chameleon. 31These are unclean to you among all that swarm; whoever
touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening. 32And
anything upon which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean,
whether it is an article of wood or a garment or a skin or a sack, any vessel
that is used for any purpose; it must be put into water, and it shall be
unclean until the evening; then it shall be clean. 33And if any of them falls
into any earthen vessel, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you shall break
it. 34Any food in it which may be eaten, upon which water may come, shall
be unclean; and all drink which may be drunk from every such vessel shall
be unclean. 35And everything upon which any part of their carcass falls
shall be unclean; whether oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces; they
are unclean, and shall be unclean to you. 36Nevertheless a spring or a
cistern holding water shall be clean; but whatever touches their carcass shall
be unclean. 37And if any part of their carcass falls upon any seed for sowing
that is to be sown, it is clean; 38but if water is put on the seed and any part
of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.
39 “And if any animal of which you may eat dies, he who touches its
carcass shall be unclean until the evening, 40and he who eats of its carcass
shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; he also who carries
the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.
41 “Every swarming thing that swarms upon the earth is an abomination; it
shall not be eaten. 42Whatever goes on its belly, and whatever goes on all
fours, or whatever has many feet, all the swarming things that swarm upon
the earth, you shall not eat; for they are an abomination. 43You shall not
make yourselves abominable with any swarming thing that swarms; and
you shall not defile yourselves with them, lest you become unclean. 44For I
am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I
am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that
crawls upon the earth. 45For I am the LORD who brought you up out of the
land of Egypt, to be your God; you shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”
46 This is the law pertaining to beast and bird and every living creature
that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms upon the
earth, 47to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean and
between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that
may not be eaten.
Purification of Women
12 The LORD said to Moses, 2“Say to the sons of Israel, If a woman
conceives, and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as
at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. 3And on the eighth
day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. 4Then she shall continue
for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying; she shall not touch any
hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying
are completed. 5But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean
two weeks, as in her menstruation; and she shall continue in the blood of
her purifying for sixty-six days.
6 “And when the days of her purifying are completed, whether for a son or
for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the door of the tent of meeting
a lamb a year old for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove
for a sin offering, 7and he shall offer it before the LORD, and make
atonement for her; then she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This
is the law for her who bears a child, either male or female. 8And if she
cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two young
pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering; and the
priest shall make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.”
Skin Diseases
13 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 2“When a man has on the skin
of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a leprous
disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest
or to one of his sons the priests, 3and the priest shall examine the diseased
spot on the skin of his body; and if the hair in the diseased spot has turned
white and the disease appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a
leprous disease; when the priest has examined him he shall pronounce him
unclean. 4But if the spot is white in the skin of his body, and appears no
deeper than the skin, and the hair in it has not turned white, the priest shall
shut up the diseased person for seven days; 5and the priest shall examine
him on the seventh day, and if in his eyes the disease is checked and the
disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall shut him up seven
days more; 6and the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day, and
if the diseased spot is dim and the disease has not spread in the skin, then
the priest shall pronounce him clean; it is only an eruption; and he shall
wash his clothes, and be clean. 7But if the eruption spreads in the skin, after
he has shown himself to the priest for his cleansing, he shall appear again
before the priest; 8and the priest shall make an examination, and if the
eruption has spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean;
it is leprosy.
9 “When a man is afflicted with leprosy, he shall be brought to the priest;
10and the priest shall make an examination, and if there is a white swelling
in the skin, which has turned the hair white, and there is quick raw flesh in
the swelling, 11it is a chronic leprosy in the skin of his body, and the priest
shall pronounce him unclean; he shall not shut him up, for he is unclean.
12And if the leprosy breaks out in the skin, so that the leprosy covers all the
skin of the diseased person from head to foot, so far as the priest can see,
13then the priest shall make an examination, and if the leprosy has covered
all his body, he shall pronounce him clean of the disease; it has all turned
white, and he is clean. 14But when raw flesh appears on him, he shall be
unclean. 15And the priest shall examine the raw flesh, and pronounce him
unclean; raw flesh is unclean, for it is leprosy. 16But if the raw flesh turns
again and is changed to white, then he shall come to the priest, 17and the
priest shall examine him, and if the disease has turned white, then the priest
shall pronounce the diseased person clean; he is clean.
18 “And when there is in the skin of one’s body a boil that has healed,
19and in the place of the boil there comes a white swelling or a reddish-
white spot, then it shall be shown to the priest; 20and the priest shall make
an examination, and if it appears deeper than the skin and its hair has turned
white, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is the disease of
leprosy, it has broken out in the boil. 21But if the priest examines it, and the
hair on it is not white and it is not deeper than the skin, but is dim, then the
priest shall shut him up seven days; 22and if it spreads in the skin, then the
priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is diseased. 23But if the spot remains
in one place and does not spread, it is the scar of the boil; and the priest
shall pronounce him clean.
24 “Or, when the body has a burn on its skin and the raw flesh of the burn
becomes a spot, reddish-white or white, 25the priest shall examine it, and if
the hair in the spot has turned white and it appears deeper than the skin,
then it is leprosy; it has broken out in the burn, and the priest shall
pronounce him unclean; it is a leprous disease. 26But if the priest examines
it, and the hair in the spot is not white and it is no deeper than the skin, but
is dim, the priest shall shut him up seven days, 27and the priest shall
examine him the seventh day; if it is spreading in the skin, then the priest
shall pronounce him unclean; it is a leprous disease. 28But if the spot
remains in one place and does not spread in the skin, but is dim, it is a
swelling from the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him clean; for it is
the scar of the burn.
29 “When a man or woman has a disease on the head or the beard, 30the
priest shall examine the disease; and if it appears deeper than the skin, and
the hair in it is yellow and thin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean;
it is an itch, a leprosy of the head or the beard. 31And if the priest examines
the itching disease, and it appears no deeper than the skin and there is no
black hair in it, then the priest shall shut up the person with the itching
disease for seven days, 32and on the seventh day the priest shall examine the
disease; and if the itch has not spread, and there is in it no yellow hair, and
the itch appears to be no deeper than the skin, 33then he shall shave himself,
but the itch he shall not shave; and the priest shall shut up the person with
the itching disease for seven days more; 34and on the seventh day the priest
shall examine the itch, and if the itch has not spread in the skin and it
appears to be no deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him
clean; and he shall wash his clothes, and be clean. 35But if the itch spreads
in the skin after his cleansing, 36then the priest shall examine him, and if the
itch has spread in the skin, the priest need not seek for the yellow hair; he is
unclean. 37But if in his eyes the itch is checked, and black hair has grown in
it, the itch is healed, he is clean; and the priest shall pronounce him clean.
38 “When a man or a woman has spots on the skin of the body, white
spots, 39the priest shall make an examination, and if the spots on the skin of
the body are of a dull white, it is tetter that has broken out in the skin; he is
clean.
40 “If a man’s hair has fallen from his head, he is bald but he is clean.
41And if a man’s hair has fallen from his forehead and temples, he has
baldness of the forehead but he is clean. 42But if there is on the bald head or
the bald forehead a reddish-white diseased spot, it is leprosy breaking out
on his bald head or his bald forehead. 43Then the priest shall examine him,
and if the diseased swelling is reddish-white on his bald head or on his bald
forehead, like the appearance of leprosy in the skin of the body, 44he is a
leprous man, he is unclean; the priest must pronounce him unclean; his
disease is on his head.
45 “The leper who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair
of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry, ‘Unclean,
unclean.’ 46He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease; he is
unclean; he shall dwell alone in a habitation outside the camp.
47 “When there is a leprous disease in a garment, whether a woolen or a
linen garment, 48in warp or woof of linen or wool, or in a skin or in

anything made of skin, 49if the disease shows greenish or reddish in the
garment, whether in warp or woof or in skin or in anything made of skin, it
is a leprous disease and shall be shown to the priest. 50And the priest shall
examine the disease, and shut up that which has the disease for seven days;
51then he shall examine the disease on the seventh day. If the disease has
spread in the garment, in warp or woof, or in the skin, whatever be the use
of the skin, the disease is a malignant leprosy; it is unclean. 52And he shall
burn the garment, whether diseased in warp or woof, woolen or linen, or
anything of skin, for it is a malignant leprosy; it shall be burned in the fire.
53 “And if the priest examines, and the disease has not spread in the
garment in warp or woof or in anything of skin, 54then the priest shall

command that they wash the thing in which is the disease, and he shall shut
it up seven days more; 55and the priest shall examine the diseased thing
after it has been washed. And if the diseased spot has not changed color,
though the disease has not spread, it is unclean; you shall burn it in the fire,
whether the leprous spot is on the back or on the front.
56 “But if the priest examines, and the disease is dim after it is washed, he
shall tear the spot out of the garment or the skin or the warp or woof; 57then
if it appears again in the garment, in warp or woof, or in anything of skin, it
is spreading; you shall burn with fire that in which is the disease. 58But the
garment, warp or woof, or anything of skin from which the disease departs
when you have washed it, shall then be washed a second time, and be
clean.”
59 This is the law for a leprous disease in a garment of wool or linen,
either in warp or woof, or in anything of skin, to decide whether it is clean

or unclean.
The Cleansing of Lepers
14 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “This shall be the law of the leper for the
day of his cleansing. He shall be brought to the priest; 3and the priest shall
go out of the camp, and the priest shall make an examination. Then, if the
leprous disease is healed in the leper, 4the priest shall command them to
take for him who is to be cleansed two living clean birds and cedarwood
and scarlet stuff and hyssop; 5and the priest shall command them to kill one
of the birds in an earthen vessel over running water. 6He shall take the
living bird with the cedarwood and the scarlet stuff and the hyssop, and dip
them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the
running water; 7and he shall sprinkle it seven times upon him who is to be
cleansed of leprosy; then he shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the
living bird go into the open field. 8And he who is to be cleansed shall wash
his clothes, and shave off all his hair, and bathe himself in water, and he
shall be clean; and after that he shall come into the camp, but shall dwell
outside his tent seven days. 9And on the seventh day he shall shave all his
hair off his head; he shall shave off his beard and his eyebrows, all his hair.
Then he shall wash his clothes, and bathe his body in water, and he shall be
clean.
10 “And on the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish,
and one ewe lamb a year old without blemish, and a cereal offering of three
tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, and one log of oil. 11And the
priest who cleanses him shall set the man who is to be cleansed and these
things before the LORD, at the door of the tent of meeting. 12And the priest
shall take one of the male lambs, and offer it for a guilt offering, along with
the log of oil, and wave them for a wave offering before the LORD; 13and he
shall kill the lamb in the place where they kill the sin offering and the burnt
offering, in the holy place; for the guilt offering, like the sin offering,
belongs to the priest; it is most holy. 14The priest shall take some of the
blood of the guilt offering, and the priest shall put it on the tip of the right
ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on
the great toe of his right foot. 15Then the priest shall take some of the log of
oil, and pour it into the palm of his own left hand, 16and dip his right finger
in the oil that is in his left hand, and sprinkle some oil with his finger seven
times before the LORD. 17And some of the oil that remains in his hand the
priest shall put on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and
on the thumb of his right hand, and on the great toe of his right foot, upon
the blood of the guilt offering; 18and the rest of the oil that is in the priest’s
hand he shall put on the head of him who is to be cleansed. Then the priest
shall make atonement for him before the LORD. 19The priest shall offer the
sin offering, to make atonement for him who is to be cleansed from his
uncleanness. And afterward he shall kill the burnt offering; 20and the priest
shall offer the burnt offering and the cereal offering on the altar. Thus the
priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be clean.
21 “But if he is poor and cannot afford so much, then he shall take one
male lamb for a guilt offering to be waved, to make atonement for him, and
a tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering, and a
log of oil; 22also two turtledoves or two young pigeons, such as he can
afford; the one shall be a sin offering and the other a burnt offering. 23And
on the eighth day he shall bring them for his cleansing to the priest, to the
door of the tent of meeting, before the LORD; 24and the priest shall take the
lamb of the guilt offering, and the log of oil, and the priest shall wave them
for a wave offering before the LORD. 25And he shall kill the lamb of the
guilt offering; and the priest shall take some of the blood of the guilt
offering, and put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed,
and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the great toe of his right foot.
26And the priest shall pour some of the oil into the palm of his own left
hand; 27and shall sprinkle with his right finger some of the oil that is in his
left hand seven times before the LORD; 28and the priest shall put some of the
oil that is in his hand on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed,
and on the thumb of his right hand, and the great toe of his right foot, in the
place where the blood of the guilt offering was put; 29and the rest of the oil
that is in the priest’s hand he shall put on the head of him who is to be
cleansed, to make atonement for him before the LORD. 30And he shall offer,
of the turtledoves or young pigeons such as he can afford, 31one x for a sin
offering and the other for a burnt offering, along with a cereal offering; and
the priest shall make atonement before the LORD for him who is being
cleansed. 32This is the law for him in whom is a leprous disease, who
cannot afford the offerings for his cleansing.”
Cleansing of Leprous Houses
33 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 34 “When you come into the land
of Canaan, which I give you for a possession, and I put a leprous disease in
a house in the land of your possession, 35then he who owns the house shall
come and tell the priest, ‘There seems to me to be some sort of disease in
my house.’ 36Then the priest shall command that they empty the house
before the priest goes to examine the disease, lest all that is in the house be
declared unclean; and afterward the priest shall go in to see the house.
37And he shall examine the disease; and if the disease is in the walls of the
house with greenish or reddish spots, and if it appears to be deeper than the
surface, 38then the priest shall go out of the house to the door of the house,
and shut up the house seven days. 39And the priest shall come again on the
seventh day, and look; and if the disease has spread in the walls of the
house, 40then the priest shall command that they take out the stones in
which is the disease and throw them into an unclean place outside the city;
41and he shall cause the inside of the house to be scraped round about, and
the plaster that they scrape off they shall pour into an unclean place outside
the city; 42then they shall take other stones and put them in the place of
those stones, and he shall take other plaster and plaster the house.
43 “If the disease breaks out again in the house, after he has taken out the
stones and scraped the house and plastered it, 44then the priest shall go and
look; and if the disease has spread in the house, it is a malignant leprosy in
the house; it is unclean. 45And he shall break down the house, its stones and
timber and all the plaster of the house; and he shall carry them forth out of
the city to an unclean place. 46Moreover he who enters the house while it is
shut up shall be unclean until the evening; 47and he who lies down in the
house shall wash his clothes; and he who eats in the house shall wash his
clothes.
48 “But if the priest comes and makes an examination, and the disease has
not spread in the house after the house was plastered, then the priest shall
pronounce the house clean, for the disease is healed. 49And for the
cleansing of the house he shall take two small birds, with cedarwood and
scarlet stuff and hyssop, 50and shall kill one of the birds in an earthen vessel
over running water, 51and shall take the cedarwood and the hyssop and the
scarlet stuff, along with the living bird, and dip them in the blood of the bird
that was killed and in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times.
52Thus he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird, and with the
running water, and with the living bird, and with the cedarwood and hyssop
and scarlet stuff; 53and he shall let the living bird go out of the city into the
open field; so he shall make atonement for the house, and it shall be clean.”
54 This is the law for any leprous disease: for an itch, 55for leprosy in a
garment or in a house, 56and for a swelling or an eruption or a spot, 57to

show when it is unclean and when it is clean. This is the law for leprosy.
Concerning Men’s Bodily Discharges
15 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel,
When any man has a discharge from his body, his discharge is unclean.
3And this is the law of his uncleanness for a discharge: whether his body
runs with his discharge, or his body is stopped from discharge, it is

uncleanness in him. 4Every bed on which he who has the discharge lies
shall be unclean; and everything on which he sits shall be unclean. 5And
any one who touches his bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in
water, and be unclean until the evening. 6And whoever sits on anything on
which he who has the discharge has sat shall wash his clothes, and bathe
himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. 7And whoever touches
the body of him who has the discharge shall wash his clothes, and bathe
himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. 8And if he who has the
discharge spits on one who is clean, then he shall wash his clothes, and
bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. 9And any saddle
on which he who has the discharge rides shall be unclean. 10And whoever
touches anything that was under him shall be unclean until the evening; and
he who carries such a thing shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in
water, and be unclean until the evening. 11Any one whom he that has the
discharge touches without having rinsed his hands in water shall wash his
clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. 12And
the earthen vessel which he who has the discharge touches shall be broken;
and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
13 “And when he who has a discharge is cleansed of his discharge, then he
shall count for himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes;
and he shall bathe his body in running water, and shall be clean. 14And on
the eighth day he shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and
come before the LORD to the door of the tent of meeting, and give them to
the priest; 15and the priest shall offer them, one for a sin offering and the
other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him
before the LORD for his discharge.
16 “And if a man has an emission of semen, he shall bathe his whole body
in water, and be unclean until the evening. 17And every garment and every
skin on which the semen comes shall be washed with water, and be unclean
until the evening. 18If a man lies with a woman and has an emission of
semen, both of them shall bathe themselves in water, and be unclean until
the evening.
Concerning Women’s Bodily Discharges
19 “When a woman has a discharge of blood which is her regular
discharge from her body, she shall be in her impurity for seven days, and
whoever touches her shall be unclean until the evening. 20And everything
upon which she lies during her impurity shall be unclean; everything also
upon which she sits shall be unclean. 21And whoever touches her bed shall
wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the
evening. 22And whoever touches anything upon which she sits shall wash
his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening;
23whether it is the bed or anything upon which she sits, when he touches it
he shall be unclean until the evening. 24And if any man lies with her, and
her impurity is on him, he shall be unclean seven days; and every bed on
which he lies shall be unclean.
25 “If a woman has a discharge of blood for many days, not at the time of
her impurity, or if she has a discharge beyond the time of her impurity, all
the days of the discharge she shall continue in uncleanness; as in the days of
her impurity, she shall be unclean. 26Every bed on which she lies, all the
days of her discharge, shall be to her as the bed of her impurity; and
everything on which she sits shall be unclean, as in the uncleanness of her
impurity. 27And whoever touches these things shall be unclean, and shall
wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the
evening. 28But if she is cleansed of her discharge, she shall count for herself
seven days, and after that she shall be clean. 29And on the eighth day she
shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and bring them to the
priest, to the door of the tent of meeting. 30And the priest shall offer one for
a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make
atonement for her before the LORD for her unclean discharge.
The Law concerning Discharges
31 “Thus you shall keep the sons of Israel separate from their uncleanness,
lest they die in their uncleanness by defiling my tabernacle that is in their

midst.”
32 This is the law for him who has a discharge and for him who has an
emission of semen, becoming unclean thereby; 33also for her who is sick
with her impurity; that is, for any one, male or female, who has a discharge,
and for the man who lies with a woman who is unclean.
The Day of Atonement
16 The LORD spoke to Moses, after the death of the two sons of Aaron,
when they drew near before the LORD and died; 2and the LORD said to
Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at all times into the holy place
within the veil, before the mercy seat which is upon the ark, lest he die; for
I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. 3But thus shall Aaron come
into the holy place: with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a
burnt offering. 4He shall put on the holy linen coat, and shall have the linen
breeches on his body, be girded with the linen sash, and wear the linen
turban; these are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water, and
then put them on. 5And he shall take from the congregation of the sons of
Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.
6 “And Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall
make atonement for himself and for his house. 7Then he shall take the two
goats, and set them before the LORD at the door of the tent of meeting; 8and
Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats, one lot for the LORD and the other
lot for Aza'zel. 9And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for
the LORD, and offer it as a sin offering; 10but the goat on which the lot fell
for Aza'zel shall be presented alive before the LORD to make atonement
over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
11 “Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall
make atonement for himself and for his house; he shall kill the bull as a sin
offering for himself. 12And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from
the altar before the LORD, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small;
and he shall bring it within the veil 13and put the incense on the fire before
the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat which is
upon the covenant, lest he die; 14and he shall take some of the blood of the
bull, and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat, and
before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle the blood with his finger seven
times.
15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering which is for the people,
and bring its blood within the veil, and do with its blood as he did with the
blood of the bull, sprinkling it upon the mercy seat and before the mercy
seat; 16thus he shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the
uncleannesses of the sons of Israel, and because of their transgressions, all
their sins; and so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which abides with
them in the midst of their uncleannesses. 17There shall be no man in the tent
of meeting when he enters to make atonement in the holy place until he
comes out and has made atonement for himself and for his house and for all
the assembly of Israel. 18Then he shall go out to the altar which is before
the LORD and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the
bull and of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar round
about. 19And he shall sprinkle some of the blood upon it with his finger
seven times, and cleanse it and hallow it from the uncleannesses of the sons
of Israel.
20 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the holy place and the
tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat; 21and Aaron
shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over
him all the iniquities of the sons of Israel, and all their transgressions, all
their sins; and he shall put them upon the head of the goat, and send him
away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. 22The
goat shall bear all their iniquities upon him to a solitary land; and he shall
let the goat go in the wilderness.
23 “Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting, and shall put off the
linen garments which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall
leave them there; 24and he shall bathe his body in water in a holy place, and
put on his garments, and come forth, and offer his burnt offering and the
burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the
people. 25And the fat of the sin offering he shall burn upon the altar. 26And
he who lets the goat go to Aza'zel shall wash his clothes and bathe his body
in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 27And the bull for the
sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to
make atonement in the holy place, shall be carried forth outside the camp;
their skin and their flesh and their dung shall be burned with fire. 28And he
who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and
afterward he may come into the camp.
29 “And it shall be a statute to you for ever that in the seventh month, on
the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves, and shall do no
work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you; 30for on
this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins
you shall be clean before the LORD. 31It is a sabbath of solemn rest to you,
and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute for ever. 32And the priest who
is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father’s place shall make
atonement, wearing the holy linen garments; 33he shall make atonement for
the sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for
the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people
of the assembly. 34And this shall be an everlasting statute for you, that
atonement may be made for the sons of Israel once in the year because of
all their sins.” And Moses did as the LORD commanded him.
The Slaughter of Animals
17 * And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to Aaron and his sons, and to
all the sons of Israel, This is the thing which the LORD has commanded. 3If
any man of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp,
or kills it outside the camp, 4and does not bring it to the door of the tent of
meeting, to offer it as a gift to the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD,
bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man; he has shed blood; and that man
shall be cut off from among his people. 5This is to the end that the sons of
Israel may bring their sacrifices which they slay in the open field, that they
may bring them to the LORD, to the priest at the door of the tent of meeting,
and slay them as sacrifices of peace offerings to the LORD; 6and the priest
shall sprinkle the blood on the altar of the LORD at the door of the tent of
meeting, and burn the fat for a pleasing odor to the LORD. 7So they shall no
more slay their sacrifices for satyrs, after whom they play the harlot. This
shall be a statute for ever to them throughout their generations.
8 “And you shall say to them, Any man of the house of Israel, or of the
strangers that sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice,
9and does not bring it to the door of the tent of meeting, to sacrifice it to the
LORD; that man shall be cut off from his people.

Eating of Blood Forbidden
10 “If any man of the house of Israel or of the strangers that sojourn among
them eats any blood, I will set my face against that person who eats blood,
and will cut him off from among his people. 11For the life of the flesh is in
the blood; and I have given it for you upon the altar to make atonement for
your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement, by reason of the life.
12Therefore I have said to the sons of Israel, No person among you shall eat
blood, neither shall any stranger who sojourns among you eat blood. 13Any
man also of the sons of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among them,
who takes in hunting any beast or bird that may be eaten shall pour out its
blood and cover it with dust.
14 “For the life of every creature is the blood of it;e therefore I have said to
the sons of Israel, You shall not eat the blood of any creature, for the life of
every creature is its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off. 15And every
person that eats what dies of itself or what is torn by beasts, whether he is a
native or a sojourner, shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and
be unclean until the evening; then he shall be clean. 16But if he does not
wash them or bathe his flesh, he shall bear his iniquity.”
18 And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, I am the
LORD your God. 3You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where
you dwelt, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I
am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. 4You shall do my
ordinances and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the LORD your
God. 5You shall therefore keep my statutes and my ordinances, by doing
which a man shall live: I am the LORD.
Laws concerning Sexual Relations
6 “None of you shall approach any one near of kin to him to uncover
nakedness. I am the LORD. 7You shall not uncover the nakedness of your
father, which is the nakedness of your mother; she is your mother, you shall
not uncover her nakedness. 8You shall not uncover the nakedness of your
father’s wife; it is your father’s nakedness. 9You shall not uncover the
nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father or the daughter of your
mother, whether born at home or born abroad. 10You shall not uncover the
nakedness of your son’s daughter or of your daughter’s daughter, for their
nakedness is your own nakedness. 11You shall not uncover the nakedness of
your father’s wife’s daughter, begotten by your father, since she is your
sister. 12You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is
your father’s near kinswoman. 13You shall not uncover the nakedness of
your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s near kinswoman. 14You shall
not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother, that is, you shall not
approach his wife; she is your aunt. 15You shall not uncover the nakedness
of your daughter-in-law; she is your son’s wife, you shall not uncover her
nakedness. 16You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife;
she is your brother’s nakedness. 17You shall not uncover the nakedness of a
woman and of her daughter, and you shall not take her son’s daughter or her
daughter’s daughter to uncover her nakedness; they are yourf near
kinswomen; it is wickedness. 18And you shall not take a woman as a rival
wife to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is yet alive.
19 “You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is
in her menstrual uncleanness. 20And you shall not lie carnally with your
neighbor’s wife, and defile yourself with her. 21You shall not give any of
your children to devote them by fire to Mo'lech, and so profane the name of
your God: I am the LORD. 22You shall not lie with a male as with a woman;
it is an abomination. 23And you shall not lie with any beast and defile
yourself with it, neither shall any woman give herself to a beast to lie with
it: it is perversion.
24 “Do not defile yourselves by any of these things, for by all these the
nations I am casting out before you defiled themselves; 25and the land
became defiled, so that I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out its
inhabitants. 26But you shall keep my statutes and my ordinances and do
none of these abominations, either the native or the stranger who sojourns
among you 27(for all of these abominations the men of the land did, who
were before you, so that the land became defiled); 28lest the land vomit you
out, when you defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you.
29For whoever shall do any of these abominations, the persons that do them
shall be cut off from among their people. 30So keep my charge never to
practice any of these abominable customs which were practiced before you,
and never to defile yourselves by them: I am the LORD your God.”
Ritual and Moral Holiness
19 And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to all the congregation of the
sons of Israel, You shall be holy; for I the LORD your God am holy. 3Every
one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and you shall keep my
sabbaths: I am the LORD your God. 4Do not turn to idols or make for
yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD your God.
5 “When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to the LORD, you shall
offer it so that you may be accepted. 6It shall be eaten the same day you
offer it, or on the next day; and anything left over until the third day shall be
burned with fire. 7If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination; it
will not be accepted, 8and every one who eats it shall bear his iniquity,
because he has profaned a holy thing of the LORD; and that person shall be
cut off from his people.
9 “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field to
its very border, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest.
10And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the
fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and for the
sojourner: I am the LORD your God.
11 “You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another. 12And you
shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I
am the LORD.
13 “You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired
servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning. 14You shall
not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall
fear your God: I am the LORD.
15 “You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the
poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your
neighbor. 16You shall not go up and down as a slanderer among your
people, and you shall not stand forth against the lifeg of your neighbor: I am
the LORD.
17 “You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason with
your neighbor, lest you bear sin because of him. 18You shall not take
vengeance or bear any grudge against the sons of your own people, but you
shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.
19 “You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your cattle breed with a
different kind; you shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed; nor shall
there come upon you a garment of cloth made of two kinds of stuff.
20 “If a man lies carnally with a woman who is a slave, betrothed to
another man and not yet ransomed or given her freedom, an inquiry shall be
held. They shall not be put to death, because she was not free; 21but he shall
bring a guilt offering for himself to the LORD, to the door of the tent of
meeting, a ram for a guilt offering. 22And the priest shall make atonement
for him with the ram of the guilt offering before the LORD for his sin which
he has committed; and the sin which he has committed shall be forgiven
him.
23 “When you come into the land and plant all kinds of trees for food, then
you shall count their fruit as forbidden;h three years it shall be forbidden to
you, it must not be eaten. 24And in the fourth year all their fruit shall be
holy, an offering of praise to the LORD. 25But in the fifth year you may eat
of their fruit, that they may yield more richly for you: I am the LORD your
God.
26 “You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it. You shall not practice
augury or witchcraft. 27You shall not round off the hair on your temples or
mar the edges of your beard. 28You shall not make any cuttings in your
flesh on account of the dead or tattoo any marks upon you: I am the LORD.
29 “Do not profane your daughter by making her a harlot, lest the land fall
into harlotry and the land become full of wickedness. 30You shall keep my
sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.
31 “Do not turn to mediums or wizards; do not seek them out, to be defiled
by them: I am the LORD your God.

32 “You shall rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of an old
man, and you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.

33 “When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him
wrong. 34The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native
among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in
the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
35 “You shall do no wrong in judgment, in measures of length or weight or
quantity. 36You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a
just hin: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of
Egypt. 37And you shall observe all my statutes and all my ordinances, and
do them: I am the LORD.”
Penalties for Violations
20 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, Any man of
the sons of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, who gives any of
his children to Mo'lech shall be put to death; the people of the land shall
stone him with stones. 3I myself will set my face against that man, and will
cut him off from among his people, because he has given one of his
children to Mo'lech, defiling my sanctuary and profaning my holy name.
4And if the people of the land do at all hide their eyes from that man, when
he gives one of his children to Mo'lech, and do not put him to death, 5then I
will set my face against that man and against his family, and will cut them
off from among their people, him and all who follow him in playing the
harlot after Mo'lech.
6 “If a person turns to mediums and wizards, playing the harlot after them,
I will set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his
people. 7Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am the LORD
your God. 8Keep my statutes, and do them; I am the LORD who sanctify
you. 9For every one who curses his father or his mother shall be put to
death; he has cursed his father or his mother, his blood is upon him.
10 “If a man commits adultery with the wife of i his neighbor, both the
adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death. 11The man who lies with
his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall be
put to death, their blood is upon them. 12If a man lies with his daughter-in-
law, both of them shall be put to death; they have committed incest, their
blood is upon them. 13If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of
them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death, their blood
is upon them. 14If a man takes a wife and her mother also, it is wickedness;
they shall be burned with fire, both he and they, that there may be no
wickedness among you. 15If a man lies with a beast, he shall be put to
death; and you shall kill the beast. 16If a woman approaches any beast and
lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the beast; they shall be put to
death, their blood is upon them.
17 “If a man takes his sister, a daughter of his father or a daughter of his
mother, and sees her nakedness, and she sees his nakedness, it is a shameful
thing, and they shall be cut off in the sight of the children of their people; he
has uncovered his sister’s nakedness, he shall bear his iniquity. 18If a man
lies with a woman having her sickness, and uncovers her nakedness, he has
made naked her fountain, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood;
both of them shall be cut off from among their people. 19You shall not
uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister or of your father’s sister, for
that is to make naked one’s near kin; they shall bear their iniquity. 20If a
man lies with his uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness; they
shall bear their sin, they shall die childless. 21If a man takes his brother’s
wife, it is impurity; he has uncovered his brother’s nakedness, they shall be
childless.
22 “You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do
them; that the land where I am bringing you to dwell may not vomit you
out. 23And you shall not walk in the customs of the nation which I am
casting out before you; for they did all these things, and therefore I
abhorred them. 24But I have said to you, ‘You shall inherit their land, and I
will give it to you to possess, a land flowing with milk and honey.’ I am the
LORD your God, who have separated you from the peoples. 25You shall
therefore make a distinction between the clean beast and the unclean, and
between the unclean bird and the clean; you shall not make yourselves
abominable by beast or by bird or by anything with which the ground
teems, which I have set apart for you to hold unclean. 26You shall be holy to
me; for I the LORD am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that
you should be mine.
27 “A man or a woman who is a medium or a wizard shall be put to death;
they shall be stoned with stones, their blood shall be upon them.”
The Holiness of Priests
21 And the LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of
Aaron, and say to them that none of them shall defile himself for the dead
among his people, 2except for his nearest of kin, his mother, his father, his
son, his daughter, his brother, 3or his virgin sister (who is near to him
because she has had no husband; for her he may defile himself). 4He shall
not defile himself as a husband among his people and so profane himself.
5They shall not make tonsures upon their heads, nor shave off the edges of
their beards, nor make any cuttings in their flesh. 6They shall be holy to
their God, and not profane the name of their God; for they offer the
offerings by fire to the LORD, the bread of their God; therefore they shall be
holy. 7They shall not marry a harlot or a woman who has been defiled;
neither shall they marry a woman divorced from her husband; for the priest
is holy to his God. 8You shall consecrate him, for he offers the bread of
your God; he shall be holy to you; for I the LORD, who sanctify you, am
holy. 9And the daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the
harlot, profanes her father; she shall be burned with fire.
10 “The priest who is chief among his brethren, upon whose head the
anointing oil is poured, and who has been consecrated to wear the garments,
shall not let the hair of his head hang loose, nor tear his clothes; 11he shall
not go in to any dead body, nor defile himself, even for his father or for his
mother; 12neither shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary
of his God; for the consecration of the anointing oil of his God is upon him:
I am the LORD. 13And he shall take a wife in her virginity. 14A widow, or
one divorced, or a woman who has been defiled, or a harlot, these he shall
not marry; but he shall take to wife a virgin of his own people, 15that he
may not profane his children among his people; for I am the LORD who
sanctify him.”
16 And the LORD said to Moses, 17 “Say to Aaron, None of your
descendants throughout their generations who has a blemish may approach
to offer the bread of his God. 18For no one who has a blemish shall draw
near, a man blind or lame, or one who has a mutilated face or a limb too
long, 19or a man who has an injured foot or an injured hand, 20or a
hunchback, or a dwarf, or a man with a defect in his sight or an itching
disease or scabs or crushed testicles; 21no man of the descendants of Aaron
the priest who has a blemish shall come near to offer the LORD’s offerings
by fire; since he has a blemish, he shall not come near to offer the bread of
his God. 22He may eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy and of
the holy things, 23but he shall not come near the veil or approach the altar,
because he has a blemish, that he may not profane my sanctuaries; for I am
the LORD who sanctify them.” 24So Moses spoke to Aaron and to his sons
and to all the sons of Israel.
The Use of Holy Things
22 And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Tell Aaron and his sons to keep
away from the holy things of the sons of Israel, which they dedicate to me,
so that they may not profane my holy name: I am the LORD. 3Say to them,
‘If any one of all your descendants throughout your generations approaches
the holy things, which the sons of Israel dedicate to the LORD, while he has
an uncleanness, that person shall be cut off from my presence: I am the
LORD. 4None of the line of Aaron who is a leper or suffers a discharge may
eat of the holy things until he is clean. Whoever touches anything that is
unclean through contact with the dead or a man who has had an emission of
semen, 5and whoever touches a creeping thing by which he may be made
unclean or a man from whom he may take uncleanness, whatever his
uncleanness may be—6the person who touches any such shall be unclean
until the evening and shall not eat of the holy things unless he has bathed
his body in water. 7When the sun is down he shall be clean; and afterward
he may eat of the holy things, because such are his food. 8That which dies
of itself or is torn by beasts he shall not eat, defiling himself by it: I am the
LORD.’ 9They shall therefore keep my charge, lest they bear sin for it and
die thereby when they profane it: I am the LORD who sanctify them.
10 “An outsider shall not eat of a holy thing. A sojourner of the priest’s or
a hired servant shall not eat of a holy thing; 11but if a priest buys a slave as
his property for money, the slave may eat of it; and those that are born in his
house may eat of his food. 12If a priest’s daughter is married to an outsider
she shall not eat of the offering of the holy things. 13But if a priest’s
daughter is a widow or divorced, and has no child, and returns to her
father’s house, as in her youth, she may eat of her father’s food; yet no
outsider shall eat of it. 14And if a man eats of a holy thing unwittingly, he
shall add the fifth of its value to it, and give the holy thing to the priest.
15The priests shall not profane the holy things of the sons of Israel, which
they offer to the LORD, 16and so cause them to bear iniquity and guilt, by
eating their holy things: for I am the LORD who sanctify them.”
Acceptable Offerings
17 And the LORD said to Moses, 18 “Say to Aaron and his sons and all the
people of Israel, When any one of the house of Israel or of the sojourners in
Israel presents his offering, whether in payment of a vow or as a freewill
offering which is offered to the LORD as a burnt offering, 19to be accepted
you shall offer a male without blemish, of the bulls or the sheep or the
goats. 20You shall not offer anything that has a blemish, for it will not be
acceptable for you. 21And when any one offers a sacrifice of peace offerings
to the LORD, to fulfil a vow or as a freewill offering, from the herd or from
the flock, to be accepted it must be perfect; there shall be no blemish in it.
22Animals blind or disabled or mutilated or having a discharge or an itch or
scabs, you shall not offer to the LORD or make of them an offering by fire
upon the altar to the LORD. 23A bull or a lamb which has a part too long or
too short you may present for a freewill offering; but for a votive offering it
cannot be accepted. 24Any animal which has its testicles bruised or crushed
or torn or cut, you shall not offer to the LORD or sacrifice within your land;
25neither shall you offer as the bread of your God any such animals gotten
from a foreigner. Since there is a blemish in them, because of their

mutilation, they will not be accepted for you.”
26 And the LORD said to Moses, 27 “When a bull or sheep or goat is born, it
shall remain seven days with its mother; and from the eighth day on it shall
be acceptable as an offering by fire to the LORD. 28And whether the mother
is a cow or a ewe, you shall not kill both her and her young in one day.
29And when you sacrifice a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the LORD, you shall
sacrifice it so that you may be accepted. 30It shall be eaten on the same day,
you shall leave none of it until morning: I am the LORD.
31 “So you shall keep my commandments and do them: I am the LORD.
32And you shall not profane my holy name, but I will be hallowed among
the sons of Israel; I am the LORD who sanctify you, 33who brought you out
of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am the LORD.”
The Sabbath
23 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, The appointed
feasts of the LORD which you shall proclaim as holy convocations, my
appointed feasts, are these. 3Six days shall work be done; but on the seventh
day is a sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation; you shall do no work; it
is a sabbath to the LORD in all your dwellings.
The Passover
4 “These are the appointed feasts of the LORD, the holy convocations,
which you shall proclaim at the time appointed for them. 5In the first
month, on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening,j is the LORD’s
Passover. 6And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of
unleavened bread to the LORD; seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.
7On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no
laborious work. 8But you shall present an offering by fire to the LORD seven
days; on the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall do no laborious
work.”
The Offering of First Fruits
9 And the LORD said to Moses, 10 “Say to the sons of Israel, When you
come into the land which I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the
sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest; 11and he shall wave the
sheaf before the LORD, that you may find acceptance; on the day after the
sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12And on the day when you wave the sheaf,
you shall offer a male lamb a year old without blemish as a burnt offering to
the LORD. 13And the cereal offering with it shall be two tenths of an ephah
of fine flour mixed with oil, to be offered by fire to the LORD, a pleasing
odor; and the drink offering with it shall be of wine, a fourth of a hin. 14And
you shall eat neither bread nor grain parched or fresh until this same day,
until you have brought the offering of your God: it is a statute for ever
throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
The Feast of Weeks
15 “And you shall count from the day after the sabbath, from the day that
you brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven full weeks shall they be,
16counting fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall
present a cereal offering of new grain to the LORD. 17You shall bring from
your dwellings two loaves of bread to be waved, made of two tenths of an
ephah; they shall be of fine flour, they shall be baked with leaven, as first
fruits to the LORD. 18And you shall present with the bread seven lambs a
year old without blemish, and one young bull, and two rams; they shall be a
burnt offering to the LORD, with their cereal offering and their drink
offerings, an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD. 19And you shall
offer one male goat for a sin offering, and two male lambs a year old as a
sacrifice of peace offerings. 20And the priest shall wave them with the bread
of the first fruits as a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs;
they shall be holy to the LORD for the priest. 21And you shall make
proclamation on the same day; you shall hold a holy convocation; you shall
do no laborious work: it is a statute for ever in all your dwellings
throughout your generations.
22 “And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your
field to its very border, nor shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest;
you shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the LORD your
God.”
The Feast of Trumpets
23 And the LORD said to Moses, 24 “Say to the sons of Israel, In the seventh
month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest,
a memorial proclaimed with blast of trumpets, a holy convocation. 25You
shall do no laborious work; and you shall present an offering by fire to the
LORD.”
The Day of Atonement
26 And the LORD said to Moses, 27 “On the tenth day of this seventh month
is the day of atonement; it shall be for you a time of holy convocation, and
you shall afflict yourselves and present an offering by fire to the LORD.
28And you shall do no work on this same day; for it is a day of atonement,
to make atonement for you before the LORD your God. 29For whoever is not
afflicted on this same day shall be cut off from his people. 30And whoever
does any work on this same day, that person I will destroy from among his
people. 31You shall do no work: it is a statute for ever throughout your
generations in all your dwellings. 32It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn
rest, and you shall afflict yourselves; on the ninth day of the month
beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your
sabbath.”
The Feast of Booths
33 And the LORD said to Moses, 34 “Say to the sons of Israel, On the
fifteenth day of this seventh month and for seven days is the feast of
boothsk to the LORD. 35On the first day shall be a holy convocation; you
shall do no laborious work. 36Seven days you shall present offerings by fire
to the LORD; on the eighth day you shall hold a holy convocation and
present an offering by fire to the LORD; it is a solemn assembly; you shall
do no laborious work.
37 “These are the appointed feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim
as times of holy convocation, for presenting to the LORD offerings by fire,

burnt offerings and cereal offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on
its proper day; 38besides the sabbaths of the LORD, and besides your gifts,
and besides all your votive offerings, and besides all your freewill offerings,
which you give to the LORD.
39 “On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in
the produce of the land, you shall keep the feast of the LORD seven days; on
the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn
rest. 40And you shall take on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches
of palm trees, and boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you
shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days. 41You shall keep it as a
feast to the LORD seven days in the year; it is a statute for ever throughout
your generations; you shall keep it in the seventh month. 42You shall dwell
in booths for seven days; all that are native in Israel shall dwell in booths,
43that your generations may know that I made the sons of Israel dwell in
booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your
God.”
44 Thus Moses declared to the sons of Israel the appointed feasts of the
LORD.
The Lamp
24 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Command the sons of Israel to bring you
pure oil from beaten olives for the lamp, that a light may be kept burning
continually. 3Outside the veil of the covenant, in the tent of meeting, Aaron
shall keep it in order from evening to morning before the LORD continually;
it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations. 4He shall keep the
lamps in order upon the lampstand of pure gold before the LORD
continually.
Bread for the Tabernacle
5 “And you shall take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes of it; two tenths of
an ephah shall be in each cake. 6And you shall set them in two rows, six in
a row, upon the table of pure gold. 7And you shall put pure frankincense
with each row, that it may go with the bread as a memorial portion to be
offered by fire to the LORD. 8Every sabbath day Aaron shall set it in order
before the LORD continually on behalf of the sons of Israel as a covenant for
ever. 9And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy
place, since it is for him a most holy portion out of the offerings by fire to
the LORD, a perpetual debt.”
Blasphemy and Its Punishment
10 Now an Israelite woman’s son, whose father was an Egyptian, went out
among the sons of Israel; and the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel
quarreled in the camp, 11and the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the
Name, and cursed. And they brought him to Moses. His mother’s name was
Shelo'mith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan. 12And they put him in
custody, till the will of the LORD should be declared to them.
13 And the LORD said to Moses, 14 “Bring out of the camp him who cursed;
and let all who heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the
congregation stone him. 15And say to the sons of Israel, Whoever curses his
God shall bear his sin. 16He who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall be
put to death; all the congregation shall stone him; the sojourner as well as
the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death. 17He who
kills a man shall be put to death. 18He who kills a beast shall make it good,
life for life. 19When a man causes a disfigurement in his neighbor, as he has
done it shall be done to him, 20fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for
tooth; as he has disfigured a man, he shall be disfigured. 21He who kills a
beast shall make it good; and he who kills a man shall be put to death. 1You
shall have one law for the sojourner and for the native; for I am the LORD
your God.” 23So Moses spoke to the sons of Israel; and they brought him
who had cursed out of the camp, and stoned him with stones. Thus the sons
of Israel did as the LORD commanded Moses.
The Sabbatical Year
25 The LORD said to Moses on Mount Sinai, 2“Say to the sons of Israel,
When you come into the land which I give you, the land shall keep a
sabbath to the LORD. 3Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you
shall prune your vineyard, and gather in its fruits; 4but in the seventh year
there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the LORD;
you shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. 5What grows of itself
in your harvest you shall not reap, and the grapes of your undressed vine
you shall not gather; it shall be a year of solemn rest for the land. 6The
sabbath of the land shall provide food for you, for yourself and for your
male and female slaves and for your hired servant and the sojourner who
lives with you; 7for your cattle also and for the beasts that are in your land
all its yield shall be for food.
The Year of Jubilee
8 “And you shall count seven weeksl of years, seven times seven years, so
that the time of the seven weeks of years shall be to you forty-nine years.
9Then you shall send abroad the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the
seventh month; on the day of atonement you shall send abroad the trumpet
throughout all your land. 10And you shall hallow the fiftieth year, and
proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants; it shall be a
jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of
you shall return to his family. 11A jubilee shall that fiftieth year be to you; in
it you shall neither sow, nor reap what grows of itself, nor gather the grapes
from the undressed vines. 12For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you; you
shall eat what it yields out of the field.
13 “In this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his property. 14And if
you sell to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not wrong
one another. 15According to the number of years after the jubilee, you shall
buy from your neighbor, and according to the number of years for crops he
shall sell to you. 16If the years are many you shall increase the price, and if
the years are few you shall diminish the price, for it is the number of the
crops that he is selling to you. 17You shall not wrong one another, but you
shall fear your God; for I am the LORD your God.
18 “Therefore you shall do my statutes, and keep my ordinances and
perform them; so you will dwell in the land securely. 19The land will yield
its fruit, and you will eat your fill, and dwell in it securely. 20And if you say,
‘What shall we eat in the seventh year, if we may not sow or gather in our
crop?’ 21I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, so that it
will bring forth fruit for three years. 22When you sow in the eighth year, you
will be eating old produce; until the ninth year, when its produce comes in,
you shall eat the old. 23The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land
is mine; for you are strangers and sojourners with me. 24And in all the
country you possess, you shall grant a redemption of the land.
25 “If your brother becomes poor, and sells part of his property, then his
next of kin shall come and redeem what his brother has sold. 26If a man has
no one to redeem it, and then himself becomes prosperous and finds
sufficient means to redeem it, 27let him reckon the years since he sold it and
pay back the overpayment to the man to whom he sold it; and he shall
return to his property. 28But if he has not sufficient means to get it back for
himself, then what he sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it
until the year of jubilee; in the jubilee it shall be released, and he shall
return to his property.
29 “If a man sells a dwelling house in a walled city, he may redeem it
within a whole year after its sale; for a full year he shall have the right of
redemption. 30If it is not redeemed within a full year, then the house that is
in the walled city shall be made sure in perpetuity to him who bought it,
throughout his generations; it shall not be released in the jubilee. 31But the
houses of the villages which have no wall around them shall be reckoned
with the fields of the country; they may be redeemed, and they shall be
released in the jubilee. 32Nevertheless the cities of the Levites, the houses in
the cities of their possession, the Levites may redeem at any time. 33And if
one of the Levites does not exercisem his right of redemption, then the
house that was sold in a city of their possession shall be released in the
jubilee; for the houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among
the sons of Israel. 34But the fields of common land belonging to their cities
may not be sold; for that is their perpetual possession.
35 “And if your brother becomes poor, and cannot maintain himself with
you, you shall maintain him; as a stranger and a sojourner he shall live with
you. 36Take no interest from him or increase, but fear your God; that your
brother may live beside you. 37You shall not lend him your money at
interest, nor give him your food for profit. 38I am the LORD your God, who
brought you forth out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan,
and to be your God.
39 “And if your brother becomes poor beside you, and sells himself to you,
you shall not make him serve as a slave: 40he shall be with you as a hired
servant and as a sojourner. He shall serve with you until the year of the
jubilee; 41then he shall go out from you, he and his children with him, and
go back to his own family, and return to the possession of his fathers. 42For
they are my servants, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt; they
shall not be sold as slaves. 43You shall not rule over him with harshness, but
shall fear your God. 44As for your male and female slaves whom you may
have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are
round about you. 45You may also buy from among the strangers who
sojourn with you and their families that are with you, who have been born
in your land; and they may be your property. 46You may bequeath them to
your sons after you, to inherit as a possession for ever; you may make
slaves of them, but over your brethren the sons of Israel you shall not rule,
one over another, with harshness.
47 “If a stranger or sojourner with you becomes rich, and your brother
beside him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with
you, or to a member of the stranger’s family, 48then after he is sold he may
be redeemed; one of his brothers may redeem him, 49or his uncle, or his
cousin may redeem him, or a near kinsman belonging to his family may
redeem him; or if he grows rich he may redeem himself. 50He shall reckon
with him who bought him from the year when he sold himself to him until
the year of jubilee, and the price of his release shall be according to the
number of years; the time he was with his owner shall be rated as the time
of a hired servant. 51If there are still many years, according to them he shall
refund out of the price paid for him the price for his redemption. 52If there
remain but a few years until the year of jubilee, he shall make a reckoning
with him; according to the years of service due from him he shall refund the
money for his redemption. 53As a servant hired year by year shall he be
with him; he shall not rule with harshness over him in your sight. 54And if
he is not redeemed by these means, then he shall be released in the year of
jubilee, he and his children with him. 55For to me the sons of Israel are
servants, they are my servants whom I brought forth out of the land of
Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
Rewards for Obedience
26 “You shall make for yourselves no idols and erect no graven image
or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land, to bow down
to them; for I am the LORD your God. 2You shall keep my sabbaths and
reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.
3 “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do
them, 4then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall
yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5And your
threshing shall last to the time of vintage, and the vintage shall last to the
time for sowing; and you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your
land securely. 6And I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down,
and none shall make you afraid; and I will remove evil beasts from the land,
and the sword shall not go through your land. 7And you shall chase your
enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. 8Five of you shall
chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand; and your
enemies shall fall before you by the sword. 9And I will have regard for you
and make you fruitful and multiply you, and will confirm my covenant with
you. 10And you shall eat old store long kept, and you shall clear out the old
to make way for the new. 11And I will make my abode among you, and my
soul shall not abhor you. 12And I will walk among you, and will be your
God, and you shall be my people. 13I am the LORD your God, who brought
you forth out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves; and I
have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.
Punishment for Disobedience
14 “But if you will not listen to me, and will not do all these
commandments, 15if you spurn my statutes, and if your soul abhors my

ordinances, so that you will not do all my commandments, but break my
covenant, 16I will do this to you: I will appoint over you sudden terror,
consumption and fever that waste the eyes and cause life to pine away. And
you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it; 17I will set
my face against you, and you shall be struck down before your enemies;
those who hate you shall rule over you, and you shall flee when none
pursues you. 18And if in spite of this you will not listen to me, then I will
chastise you again sevenfold for your sins, 19and I will break the pride of
your power, and I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like
brass; 20and your strength shall be spent in vain, for your land shall not
yield its increase, and the trees of the land shall not yield their fruit.
21 “Then if you walk contrary to me, and will not listen to me, I will bring
more plagues upon you, sevenfold as many as your sins. 22And I will let
loose the wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and
destroy your cattle, and make you few in number, so that your ways shall
become desolate.
23 “And if by this discipline you are not turned to me, but walk contrary to
me, 24then I also will walk contrary to you, and I myself will strike you
sevenfold for your sins. 25And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall
execute vengeance for the covenant; and if you gather within your cities I
will send pestilence among you, and you shall be delivered into the hand of
the enemy. 26When I break your staff of bread, ten women shall bake your
bread in one oven, and shall deliver your bread again by weight; and you
shall eat, and not be satisfied.
27 “And if in spite of this you will not listen to me, but walk contrary to
me, 28then I will walk contrary to you in fury, and chastise you myself
sevenfold for your sins. 29You shall eat the flesh of your sons, and you shall
eat the flesh of your daughters. 30And I will destroy your high places, and
cut down your incense altars, and cast your dead bodies upon the dead
bodies of your idols; and my soul will abhor you. 31And I will lay your
cities waste, and will make your sanctuaries desolate, and I will not smell
your pleasing odors. 32And I will devastate the land, so that your enemies
who settle in it shall be astonished at it. 33And I will scatter you among the
nations, and I will unsheathe the sword after you; and your land shall be a
desolation, and your cities shall be a waste.
34 “Then the land shall enjoyn its sabbaths as long as it lies desolate, while
you are in your enemies’ land; then the land shall rest, and enjoyn its
sabbaths. 35As long as it lies desolate it shall have rest, the rest which it had
not in your sabbaths when you dwelt upon it. 36And as for those of you that
are left, I will send faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies;
the sound of a driven leaf shall put them to flight, and they shall flee as one
flees from the sword, and they shall fall when none pursues. 37They shall
stumble over one another, as if to escape a sword, though none pursues; and
you shall have no power to stand before your enemies. 38And you shall
perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up.
39And those of you that are left shall pine away in your enemies’ lands
because of their iniquity; and also because of the iniquities of their fathers
they shall pine away like them.
40 “But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers in
their treachery which they committed against me, and also in walking
contrary to me, 41so that I walked contrary to them and brought them into
the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and
they make amends for their iniquity; 42then I will remember my covenant
with Jacob, and I will remember my covenant with Isaac and my covenant
with Abraham, and I will remember the land. 43But the land shall be left by
them, and enjoyn its sabbaths while it lies desolate without them; and they
shall make amends for their iniquity, because they spurned my ordinances,
and their soul abhorred my statutes. 44Yet for all that, when they are in the
land of their enemies, I will not spurn them, neither will I abhor them so as
to destroy them utterly and break my covenant with them; for I am the
LORD their God; 45but I will for their sake remember the covenant with their
forefathers, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the
nations, that I might be their God: I am the LORD.”
46 These are the statutes and ordinances and laws which the LORD made
between him and the sons of Israel on Mount Sinai by Moses.

Votive Offerings
27 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, When a man
makes a special vow of persons to the LORD at your valuation, 3then your
valuation of a male from twenty years old up to sixty years old shall be fifty
shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 4If the person is a
female, your valuation shall be thirty shekels. 5If the person is from five
years old up to twenty years old, your valuation shall be for a male twenty
shekels, and for a female ten shekels. 6If the person is from a month old up
to five years old, your valuation shall be for a male five shekels of silver,
and for a female your valuation shall be three shekels of silver. 7And if the
person is sixty years old and upward, then your valuation for a male shall be
fifteen shekels, and for a female ten shekels. 8And if a man is too poor to
pay your valuation, then he shall bring the person before the priest, and the
priest shall value him; according to the ability of him who vowed the priest
shall value him.
9 “If it is an animal such as men offer as an offering to the LORD, all of
such that any man gives to the LORD is holy. 10He shall not substitute
anything for it or exchange it, a good for a bad, or a bad for a good; and if
he makes any exchange of beast for beast, then both it and that for which it
is exchanged shall be holy. 11And if it is an unclean animal such as is not
offered as an offering to the LORD, then the man shall bring the animal
before the priest, 12and the priest shall value it as either good or bad; as you,
the priest, value it, so it shall be. 13But if he wishes to redeem it, he shall
add a fifth to the valuation.
14 “When a man dedicates his house to be holy to the LORD, the priest
shall value it as either good or bad; as the priest values it, so it shall stand.
15And if he who dedicates it wishes to redeem his house, he shall add a fifth
of the valuation in money to it, and it shall be his.

16 “If a man dedicates to the LORD part of the land which is his by
inheritance, then your valuation shall be according to the seed for it; a
sowing of a homer of barley shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver. 17If he
dedicates his field from the year of jubilee, it shall stand at your full
valuation; 18but if he dedicates his field after the jubilee, then the priest
shall compute the money-value for it according to the years that remain
until the year of jubilee, and a deduction shall be made from your valuation.
19And if he who dedicates the field wishes to redeem it, then he shall add a
fifth of the valuation in money to it, and it shall remain his. 20But if he does
not wish to redeem the field, or if he has sold the field to another man, it
shall not be redeemed any more; 21but the field, when it is released in the
jubilee, shall be holy to the LORD, as a field that has been devoted; the priest
shall be in possession of it. 22If he dedicates to the LORD a field which he
has bought, which is not a part of his possession by inheritance, 23then the
priest shall compute the valuation for it up to the year of jubilee, and the
man shall give the amount of the valuation on that day as a holy thing to the
LORD. 24In the year of jubilee the field shall return to him from whom it was
bought, to whom the land belongs as a possession by inheritance. 25Every
valuation shall be according to the shekel of the sanctuary: twenty gerahs
shall make a shekel.
26 “But a firstling of animals, which as a firstling belongs to the LORD, no
man may dedicate; whether ox or sheep, it is the LORD’s. 27And if it is an

unclean animal, then he shall buy it back at your valuation, and add a fifth
to it; or, if it is not redeemed, it shall be sold at your valuation.
28 “But no devoted thing that a man devotes to the LORD, of anything that
he has, whether of man or beast, or of his inherited field, shall be sold or

redeemed; every devoted thing is most holy to the LORD. 29No one devoted,
who is to be utterly destroyed from among men, shall be ransomed; he shall
be put to death.
30 “All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit
of the trees, is the LORD’s; it is holy to the LORD. 31If a man wishes to
redeem any of his tithe, he shall add a fifth to it. 32And all the tithe of herds
and flocks, every tenth animal of all that pass under the herdsman’s staff,
shall be holy to the LORD. 33A man shall not inquire whether it is good or
bad, neither shall he exchange it; and if he exchanges it, then both it and
that for which it is exchanged shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed.”
34 These are the commandments which the LORD commanded Moses for
the sons of Israel on Mount Sinai.
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Numbers
Chapters
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29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
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NUMBERS
The First Census of Israel
1 The LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of
meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they
had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “Take a census of all the
congregation of the sons of Israel, by families, by fathers’ houses,
according to the number of names, every male, head by head; 3from twenty
years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go forth to war, you and
Aaron shall number them, company by company. 4And there shall be with
you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his
fathers. 5And these are the names of the men who shall attend you. From
Reuben, Eli'zur the son of Shed'eur; 6from Simeon, Shelu'mi-el the son of
Zurishad'dai; 7from Judah, Nahshon the son of Ammin'adab; 8from
Is'sachar, Nethan'el the son of Zu'ar; 9from Zeb'ulun, Eli'ab the son of
He'lon; 10from the sons of Joseph, from E'phraim, Elish'ama the son of
Ammi'hud, and from Manas'seh, Gama'li-el the son of Pedah'zur; 11from
Benjamin, Abi'dan the son of Gideo'ni; 12from Dan, Ahie'zer the son of
Ammishad'dai; 13from Asher, Pa'giel the son of Ochran; 14from Gad,
Eli'asaph the son of Deu'el; 15from Naph'tali, Ahi'ra the son of E'nan.”
16These were the ones chosen from the congregation, the leaders of their
ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel.

17 Moses and Aaron took these men who have been named, 18and on the
first day of the second month, they assembled the whole congregation
together, who registered themselves by families, by fathers’ houses,
according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head
by head, 19as the LORD commanded Moses. So he numbered them in the
wilderness of Sinai.
20 The people of Reuben, Israel’s first-born, their generations, by their
families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, head

by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able
to go forth to war: 21the number of the tribe of Reuben was forty-six
thousand five hundred.
22 Of the people of Simeon, their generations, by their families, by their
fathers’ houses, those of them that were numbered, according to the number
of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all
who were able to go forth to war: 23the number of the tribe of Simeon was
fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
24 Of the people of Gad, their generations, by their families, by their
fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years
old and upward, all who were able to go forth to war: 25the number of the
tribe of Gad was forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.
26 Of the people of Judah, their generations, by their families, by their
fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old
and upward, every man able to go forth to war: 27the number of the tribe of
Judah was seventy-four thousand six hundred.
28 Of the people of Is'sachar, their generations, by their families, by their
Is'sachar was fifty-four thousand four hundred.
30 Of the people of Zeb'ulun, their generations, by their families, by their
Zeb'ulun was fifty-seven thousand four hundred.
32 Of the people of Joseph, namely, of the people of E'phraim, their
generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the

number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go
forth to war: 33the number of the tribe of E'phraim was forty thousand five
hundred.
34 Of the people of Manas'seh, their generations, by their families, by their
Manas'seh was thirty-two thousand two hundred.
36 Of the people of Benjamin, their generations, by their families, by their
Benjamin was thirty-five thousand four hundred.
38 Of the people of Dan, their generations, by their families, by their
Dan was sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
40 Of the people of Asher, their generations, by their families, by their
Asher was forty-one thousand five hundred.
42 Of the people of Naph'tali, their generations, by their families, by their
Naph'tali was fifty-three thousand four hundred.
44 These are those who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron
numbered with the help of the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each
representing his fathers’ house. 45So the whole number of the sons of Israel,
by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, every man able
to go forth to war in Israel—46their whole number was six hundred and
three thousand five hundred and fifty.
47 But the Levites were not numbered by their ancestral tribe along with
them. 48For the LORD said to Moses, 49“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not
number, and you shall not take a census of them among the sons of Israel;
50but appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the covenant, and over all
its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it; they are to carry the
tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall tend it, and shall encamp
around the tabernacle. 51When the tabernacle is to set out, the Levites shall
take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set
it up. And if any one else comes near, he shall be put to death. 52The sons of
Israel shall pitch their tents by their companies, every man by his own camp
and every man by his own standard; 53but the Levites shall encamp around
the tabernacle of the covenant, that there may be no wrath upon the
congregation of the sons of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the
tabernacle of the covenant.” 54Thus did the sons of Israel; they did
according to all that the LORD commanded Moses.
Order of Encampment and Marching
2 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “The sons of Israel shall encamp
each by his own standard, with the ensigns of their fathers’ houses; they
shall encamp facing the tent of meeting on every side. 3Those to encamp on
the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of
Judah by their companies, the leader of the people of Judah being Nahshon
the son of Ammin'adab, 4his host as numbered being seventy-four thousand
six hundred. 5Those to encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Is'sachar,
the leader of the people of Issachar being Nethan'el the son of Zu'ar, 6his
host as numbered being fifty-four thousand four hundred. 7Then the tribe of
Zeb'ulun, the leader of the people of Zebulun being Eli'ab the son of He'lon,
8his host as numbered being fifty-seven thousand four hundred. 9The whole
number of the camp of Judah, by their companies, is a hundred and eighty-
six thousand four hundred. They shall set out first on the march.
10 “On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben by their
companies, the leader of the people of Reuben being Eli'zur the son of
Shed'eur, 11his host as numbered being forty-six thousand five hundred.
12And those to encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, the leader
of the people of Simeon being Shelu'mi-el the son of Zurishad'dai, 13his

host as numbered being fifty-nine thousand three hundred. 14Then the tribe
of Gad, the leader of the people of Gad being Eli'asaph the son of Reu'el,
15his host as numbered being forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.
16The whole number of the camp of Reuben, by their companies, is a
hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty. They shall set out
second.
17 “Then the tent of meeting shall set out, with the camp of the Levites in
the midst of the camps; as they encamp, so shall they set out, each in
position, standard by standard.
18 “On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of E'phraim by their
companies, the leader of the people of Ephraim being Elish'ama the son of
Ammi'hud, 19his host as numbered being forty thousand five hundred.
20And next to him shall be the tribe of Manas'seh, the leader of the people
of Manasseh being Gama'liel the son of Pedah'zur, 21his host as numbered

being thirty-two thousand two hundred. 22Then the tribe of Benjamin, the
leader of the people of Benjamin being Abi'dan the son of Gideo'ni, 23his
host as numbered being thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24The whole
number of the camp of E'phraim, by their companies, is a hundred and eight
thousand one hundred. They shall set out third on the march.
25 “On the north side shall be the standard of the camp of Dan by their
companies, the leader of the people of Dan being Ahie'zer the son of
Ammishad'dai, 26his host as numbered being sixty-two thousand seven
hundred. 27And those to encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, the
leader of the people of Asher being Pa'giel the son of Ochran, 28his host as
numbered being forty-one thousand five hundred. 29Then the tribe of
Naph'tali, the leader of the people of Naphtali being Ahi'ra the son of E'nan,
30his host as numbered being fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31The
whole number of the camp of Dan is a hundred and fifty-seven thousand six
hundred. They shall set out last, standard by standard.”
32 These are the sons of Israel as numbered by their fathers’ houses; all in
the camps who were numbered by their companies were six hundred and
three thousand five hundred and fifty. 33But the Levites were not numbered
among the sons of Israel, as the LORD commanded Moses.
34 Thus did the sons of Israel. According to all that the LORD commanded
Moses, so they encamped by their standards, and so they set out, every one
in his family, according to his fathers’ house.
Sons of Aaron
3 These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the
LORD spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. 2These are the names of the sons
of Aaron: Na'dab the first-born, and Abi'hu, Elea'zar, and Ith'amar; 3these
are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he ordained
to minister in the priest’s office. 4But Na'dab and Abi'hu died before the
LORD when they offered unholy fire before the LORD in the wilderness of
Sinai; and they had no children. So Elea'zar and Ith'amar served as priests in
the lifetime of Aaron their father.
Duties of the Levites
5 And the LORD said to Moses, 6 “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set
them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. 7They shall
perform duties for him and for the whole congregation before the tent of
meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle; 8they shall have charge of all the
furnishings of the tent of meeting, and attend to the duties for the sons of
Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. 9And you shall give the Levites to
Aaron and his sons; they are wholly given to him from among the sons of
Israel. 10And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall attend to
their priesthood; but if any one else comes near, he shall be put to death.”
11 And the LORD said to Moses, 12 “Behold, I have taken the Levites from
among the sons of Israel instead of every first-born that opens the womb
among the sons of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, 13for all the first-born
are mine; on the day that I slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, I
consecrated for my own all the first-born in Israel, both of man and of
beast; they shall be mine: I am the LORD.”
Census of the Levites
14 And the LORD said to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, 15“Number the
sons of Levi, by fathers’ houses and by families; every male from a month
old and upward you shall number.” 16So Moses numbered them according
to the word of the LORD, as he was commanded. 17And these were the sons
of Levi by their names: Gershon and Ko'hath and Merar'i. 18And these are
the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shim'e-i.
19And the sons of Ko'hath by their families: Amram, Izhar, He'bron, and
Uz'ziel. 20And the sons of Merar'i by their families: Mah'li and Mu'shi.
These are the families of the Levites, by their fathers’ houses.
21 Of Gershon were the family of the Libnites and the family of the
Shim'eites; these were the families of the Ger'shonites. 22Their number

according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward wasa
seven thousand five hundred. 23The families of the Ger'shonites were to
encamp behind the tabernacle on the west, 24with Eli'asaph, the son of La'el
as head of the fathers’ house of the Ger'shonites. 25And the charge of the
sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting was to be the tabernacle, the tent
with its covering, the screen for the door of the tent of meeting, 26the
hangings of the court, the screen for the door of the court which is around
the tabernacle and the altar, and its cords; all the service pertaining to these.
27 Of Ko'hath were the family of the Am'ramites, and the family of the
Iz'harites, and the family of the He'bronites, and the family of the
Uz'zielites; these are the families of the Ko'hathites. 28According to the
number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were eight
thousand six hundred, attending to the duties of the sanctuary. 29The
families of the sons of Ko'hath were to encamp on the south side of the
tabernacle, 30with Eliza'phan the son of Uz'ziel as head of the fathers’ house
of the families of the Ko'hathites. 31And their charge was to be the ark, the
table, the lampstand, the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the
priests minister, and the screen; all the service pertaining to these. 32And
Elea'zar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the leaders of the
Levites, and to have oversight of those who had charge of the sanctuary.
33 Of Merar'i were the family of the Mah'lites and the family of the
Mu'shites: these are the families of Merari. 34Their number according to the
number of all the males from a month old and upward was six thousand two
hundred. 35And the head of the fathers’ house of the families of Merar'i was
Zu'riel the son of Abiha'il; they were to encamp on the north side of the
tabernacle. 36And the appointed charge of the sons of Merar'i was to be the
frames of the tabernacle, the bars, the pillars, the bases, and all their
accessories; all the service pertaining to these; 37also the pillars of the court
round about, with their bases and pegs and cords.
38 And those to encamp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of
meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, having
charge of the rites within the sanctuary, whatever had to be done for the
sons of Israel; and any one else who came near was to be put to death. 39All
who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at
the commandment of the LORD, by families, all the males from a month old
and upward, were twenty-two thousand.
Redemption of the First-born
40 And the LORD said to Moses, “Number all the first-born males of the
sons of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking their number by names.
41And you shall take the Levites for me—I am the LORD—instead of all
the first-born among the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead
of all the firstlings among the cattle of the sons of Israel.” 42So Moses
numbered all the first-born among the sons of Israel, as the LORD
commanded him. 43And all the first-born males, according to the number of
names, from a month old and upward as numbered were twenty-two
thousand two hundred and seventy-three.
44 And the LORD said to Moses, 45 “Take the Levites instead of all the first-
born among the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their
cattle; and the Levites shall be mine: I am the LORD. 46And for the
redemption of the two hundred and seventy-three of the first-born of the
sons of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, 47you shall
take five shekels apiece; reckoning by the shekel of the sanctuary, the
shekel of twenty gerahs, you shall take them, 48and give the money by
which the excess number of them is redeemed to Aaron and his sons.” 49So
Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above
those redeemed by the Levites; 50from the first-born of the sons of Israel he
took the money, one thousand three hundred and sixty-five shekels,
reckoned by the shekel of the sanctuary; 51and Moses gave the redemption
money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the LORD, as the
LORD commanded Moses.
The Kohathites
4 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Take a census of the sons of
Ko'hath from among the sons of Levi, by their families and their fathers’
houses, 3from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can enter the
service, to do the work in the tent of meeting. 4This is the service of the
sons of Ko'hath in the tent of meeting: the most holy things. 5When the
camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down the veil of
the screen, and cover the ark of the covenant with it; 6then they shall put on
it a covering of goatskin, and spread over that a cloth all of blue, and shall
put in its poles. 7And over the table of the bread of the Presence they shall
spread a cloth of blue, and put upon it the plates, the dishes for incense, the
bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; the continual bread also shall
be on it; 8then they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet, and cover the
same with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. 9And they shall
take a cloth of blue, and cover the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its
snuffers, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied: 10and
they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it upon
the carrying frame. 11And over the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of
blue, and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles;
12and they shall take all the vessels of the service which are used in the
sanctuary, and put them in a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering
of goatskin, and put them on the carrying frame. 13And they shall take away
the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it; 14and they shall
put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the
firepans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar;
and they shall spread upon it a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its
poles. 15And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary
and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the
sons of Ko'hath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy
things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting which the
sons of Kohath are to carry.
16 “And Elea'zar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of the oil for
the light, the fragrant incense, the continual cereal offering, and the
anointing oil, with the oversight of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, of
the sanctuary and its vessels.”
17 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 18“ Let not the tribe of the families
of the Ko'hathites be destroyed from among the Levites; 19but deal thus
with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to the most
holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his
task and to his burden, 20but they shall not go in to look upon the holy
things even for a moment, lest they die.”
The Gershonites and Merarites
21 The LORD said to Moses, 22 “Take a census of the sons of Gershon also,
by their families and their fathers’ houses; 23from thirty years old up to fifty
years old, you shall number them, all who can enter for service, to do the
work in the tent of meeting. 24This is the service of the families of the
Ger'shonites, in serving and bearing burdens: 25they shall carry the curtains
of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting with its covering, and the covering
of goatskin that is on top of it, and the screen for the door of the tent of
meeting, 26and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the entrance of
the gate of the court which is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their
cords, and all the equipment for their service; and they shall do all that
needs to be done with regard to them. 27All the service of the sons of the
Ger'shonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they
are to carry, and in all that they have to do; and you shall assign to their
charge all that they are to carry. 28This is the service of the families of the
sons of the Ger'shonites in the tent of meeting, and their work is to be under
the oversight of Ith'amar the son of Aaron the priest.
29 “As for the sons of Merar'i, you shall number them by their families and
their fathers’ houses; 30from thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall
number them, every one that can enter the service, to do the work of the tent
of meeting. 31And this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of
their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its
bars, pillars, and bases, 32and the pillars of the court round about with their
bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories;
and you shall assign by name the objects which they are required to carry.
33This is the service of the families of the sons of Merar'i, the whole of their
service in the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ith'amar the son of Aaron
the priest.”
Census of the Levites
34 And Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation numbered
the sons of the Ko'hathites, by their families and their fathers’ houses,
35from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could enter the
service, for work in the tent of meeting; 36and their number by families was
two thousand seven hundred and fifty. 37This was the number of the
families of the Ko'hathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom
Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the LORD by
Moses.
38 The number of the sons of Gershon, by their families and their fathers’
houses, 39from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could
enter the service for work in the tent of meeting—40their number by their
families and their fathers’ houses was two thousand six hundred and thirty.
41This was the number of the families of the sons of Gershon, all who
served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according
to the commandment of the LORD.
42 The number of the families of the sons of Merar'i, by their families and
their fathers’ houses, 43from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one
that could enter the service, for work in the tent of meeting—44their number
by families was three thousand two hundred. 45These are those who were
numbered of the families of the sons of Merar'i, whom Moses and Aaron
numbered according to the commandment of the LORD by Moses.
46 All those who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron
and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and their fathers’
houses, 47from thirty years old up to fifty years old, every one that could
enter to do the work of service and the work of bearing burdens in the tent
of meeting, 48those who were numbered of them were eight thousand five
hundred and eighty. 49According to the commandment of the LORD through
Moses they were appointed, each to his task of serving or carrying; thus
they were numbered by him, as the LORD commanded Moses.
Unclean Persons
5 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Command the sons of Israel that they put
out of the camp every leper, and every one having a discharge, and every
one that is unclean through contact with the dead; 3you shall put out both
male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile
their camp, in the midst of which I dwell.” 4And the sons of Israel did so,
and drove them outside the camp; as the LORD said to Moses, so the sons of
Israel did.
Confession and Restitution
5 And the LORD said to Moses, 6 “Say to the sons of Israel, When a man or
woman commits any of the sins that men commit by breaking faith with the
LORD, and that person is guilty, 7he shall confess his sin which he has
committed; and he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to
it, and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. 8But if the man has no
kinsman to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for
wrong shall go to the LORD for the priest, in addition to the ram of
atonement with which atonement is made for him. 9And every offering, all
the holy things of the sons of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be
his; 10and every man’s holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives to
the priest shall be his.”
An Unfaithful Wife or Jealous Husband
11 And the LORD said to Moses, 12 “Say to the sons of Israel, If any man’s
wife goes astray and acts unfaithfully against him, 13if a man lies with her
carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and she is
undetected though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against
her, since she was not taken in the act; 14and if the spirit of jealousy comes
upon him, and he is jealous of his wife who has defiled herself; or if the
spirit of jealousy comes upon him, and he is jealous of his wife, though she
has not defiled herself; 15then the man shall bring his wife to the priest, and
bring the offering required of her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he
shall pour no oil upon it and put no frankincense on it, for it is a cereal
offering of jealousy, a cereal offering of remembrance, bringing iniquity to
remembrance.
16 “And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the LORD; 17and
the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the
dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18And the
priest shall set the woman before the LORD, and unbind the hair of the
woman’s head, and place in her hands the cereal offering of remembrance,
which is the cereal offering of jealousy. And in his hand the priest shall
have the water of bitterness that brings the curse. 19Then the priest shall
make her take an oath, saying, ‘If no man has lain with you, and if you have
not turned aside to uncleanness, while you were under your husband’s
authority, be free from this water of bitterness that brings the curse. 20But if
you have gone astray, though you are under your husband’s authority, and if
you have defiled yourself, and some man other than your husband has lain
with you, 21then’ (let the priest make the woman take the oath of the curse,
and say to the woman) ‘the LORD make you an execration and an oath
among your people, when the LORD makes your thigh fall away and your
body swell; 22may this water that brings the curse pass into your bowels and
make your body swell and your thigh fall away.’ And the woman shall say,
‘Amen, Amen.’
23 “Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and wash them off
into the water of bitterness; 24and he shall make the woman drink the water
of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall
enter into her and cause bitter pain. 25And the priest shall take the cereal
offering of jealousy out of the woman’s hand, and shall wave the cereal
offering before the LORD and bring it to the altar; 26and the priest shall take
a handful of the cereal offering, as its memorial portion, and burn it upon
the altar, and afterward shall make the woman drink the water. 27And when
he has made her drink the water, then, if she has defiled herself and has
acted unfaithfully against her husband, the water that brings the curse shall
enter into her and cause bitter pain, and her body shall swell, and her thigh
shall fall away, and the woman shall become an execration among her
people. 28But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, then she
shall be free and shall conceive children.
29 “This is the law in cases of jealousy, when a wife, though under her
husband’s authority, goes astray and defiles herself, 30or when the spirit of
jealousy comes upon a man and he is jealous of his wife; then he shall set
the woman before the LORD, and the priest shall execute upon her all this
law. 31The man shall be free from iniquity, but the woman shall bear her
iniquity.”
The Nazirites
6 And the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, When either
a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Naz'irite, b to separate
himself to the LORD, 3he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink;
he shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink, and shall not
drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried. 4All the days of his
separation c he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, not even
the seeds or the skins.
5 “All the days of his vow of separation no razor shall come upon his
head; until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the
LORD, he shall be holy; he shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long.
6 “All the days that he separates himself to the LORD he shall not go near a
dead body. 7Neither for his father nor for his mother, nor for brother or
sister, if they die, shall he make himself unclean; because his separation to
God is upon his head. 8All the days of his separation he is holy to the LORD.
9 “And if any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his
consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing;
on the seventh day he shall shave it. 10On the eighth day he shall bring two
turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest to the door of the tent of
meeting, 11and the priest shall offer one for a sin offering and the other for a
burnt offering, and make atonement for him, because he sinned by reason of
the dead body. And he shall consecrate his head that same day, 12and
separate himself to the LORD for the days of his separation, and bring a male
lamb a year old for a guilt offering; but the former time shall be void,
because his separation was defiled.
13 “And this is the law for the Naz'irite, when the time of his separation
has been completed: he shall be brought to the door of the tent of meeting,
14and he shall offer his gift to the LORD, one male lamb a year old without
blemish for a burnt offering, and one ewe lamb a year old without blemish
as a sin offering, and one ram without blemish as a peace offering, 15and a
basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, and
unleavened wafers spread with oil, and their cereal offering and their drink
offerings. 16And the priest shall present them before the LORD and offer his
sin offering and his burnt offering, 17and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice
of peace offering to the LORD, with the basket of unleavened bread; the
priest shall offer also its cereal offering and its drink offering. 18And the
Naz'irite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tent of meeting,
and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire
which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering. 19And the priest shall take
the shoulder of the ram, when it is boiled, and one unleavened cake out of
the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of
the Naz'irite, after he has shaven the hair of his consecration, 20and the
priest shall wave them for a wave offering before the LORD; they are a holy
portion for the priest, together with the breast that is waved and the thigh
that is offered; and after that the Naz'irite may drink wine.
21 “This is the law for the Naz'irite who takes a vow. His offering to the
LORD shall be according to his vow as a Nazirite, apart from what else he
can afford; in accordance with the vow which he takes, so shall he do
according to the law for his separation as a Nazirite.”
The Priestly Benediction
22 The LORD said to Moses, 23 “Say to Aaron and his sons, Thus you shall
bless the sons of Israel: you shall say to them,

24The LORD bless you and keep you:
25The LORD make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you:
26The LORD lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.
27 “So shall they put my name upon the sons of Israel, and I will bless
them.”
Offerings of the Leaders
7 On the day when Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, and
had anointed and consecrated it with all its furnishings, and had anointed
and consecrated the altar with all its utensils, 2the leaders of Israel, heads of
their fathers’ houses, the leaders of the tribes, who were over those who
were numbered, 3offered and brought their offerings before the LORD, six
covered wagons and twelve oxen, a wagon for every two of the leaders, and
for each one an ox; they offered them before the tabernacle. 4Then the LORD
said to Moses, 5 “Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing
the service of the tent of meeting, and give them to the Levites, to each man
according to his service.” 6So Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and
gave them to the Levites. 7Two wagons and four oxen he gave to the sons of
Gershon, according to their service; 8and four wagons and eight oxen he
gave to the sons of Merar'i, according to their service, under the direction of
Ith'amar the son of Aaron the priest. 9But to the sons of Ko'hath he gave
none, because they were charged with the care of the holy things which had
to be carried on the shoulder. 10And the leaders offered offerings for the
dedication of the altar on the day it was anointed; and the leaders offered
their offering before the altar. 11And the LORD said to Moses, “They shall
offer their offerings, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar.”
12 He who offered his offering the first day was Nahshon the son of
Ammin'adab, of the tribe of Judah; 13and his offering was one silver plate
whose weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy
shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine
flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 14one golden dish of ten shekels,
full of incense; 15one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a
burnt offering; 16one male goat for a sin offering; 17and for the sacrifice of
peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a
year old. This was the offering of Nahshon the son of Ammin'adab.
18 On the second day Nethan'el the son of Zu'ar, the leader of Is'sachar,
made an offering; 19he offered for his offering one silver plate, whose
weight was a hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy
shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine
flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering; 20one golden dish of ten shekels,
full of incense; 21one young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a
burnt offering; 22one male goat for a sin offering; 23and for the sacrifice of
peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a
year old. This was the offering of Nethan'el the son of Zu'ar.
24 On the third day Eli'ab the son of He'lon, the leader of the men of
Zeb'ulun: 25his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred
and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the
shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a
cereal offering; 26one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 27one
young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 28one
male goat for a sin offering; 29and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two
oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was
the offering of Eli'ab the son of He'lon.
30 On the fourth day Eli'zur the son of Shed'eur, the leader of the men of
Reuben: 31his offering was one silver plate whose weight was a hundred
the offering of Eli'zur the son of Shed'eur.
36 On the fifth day Shelu'mi-el the son of Zurishad'dai, the leader of the
men of Simeon: 37his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a
hundred and thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to
the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for
a cereal offering; 38one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 39one
the offering of Shelu'mi-el the son of Zurishad'dai.
42 On the sixth day Eli'asaph the son of Deu'el, the leader of the men of
Gad: 43his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and
thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel
of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal
offering; 44one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 45one young bull,
one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 46one male goat for
a sin offering; 47and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five
rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering
of Eli'asaph the son of Deu'el.
48 On the seventh day Elish'ama the son of Ammi'hud, the leader of the
men of E'phraim: 49his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a
the offering of Elish'ama the son of Ammi'hud.
54 On the eighth day Gama'liel the son of Pedah'zur, the leader of the men
of Manas'seh: 55his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a
the offering of Gama'liel the son of Pedah'zur.
60 On the ninth day Abi'dan the son of Gideo'ni, the leader of the men of
Benjamin: 61his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred
the offering of Abi'dan the son of Gideo'ni.
66 On the tenth day Ahie'zer the son of Ammishad'dai, the leader of the
men of Dan: 67his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a
the offering of Ahie'zer the son of Ammishad'dai.
72 On the eleventh day Pa'giel the son of Ochran, the leader of the men of
Asher: 73his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred and
thirty shekels, one silver basin of seventy shekels, according to the shekel
of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal
offering; 74one golden dish of ten shekels, full of incense; 75one young bull,
one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; 76one male goat for
a sin offering; 77and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five
rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering
of Pa'giel the son of Ochran.
78 On the twelfth day Ahi'ra the son of E'nan, the leader of the men of
Naph'tali: 79his offering was one silver plate, whose weight was a hundred
the offering of Ahi'ra the son of E'nan.
84 This was the dedication offering for the altar, on the day when it was
anointed, from the leaders of Israel: twelve silver plates, twelve silver
basins, twelve golden dishes, 85each silver plate weighing a hundred and
thirty shekels and each basin seventy, all the silver of the vessels two
thousand four hundred shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary,
86the twelve golden dishes, full of incense, weighing ten shekels apiece
according to the shekel of the sanctuary, all the gold of the dishes being a
hundred and twenty shekels; 87all the cattle for the burnt offering twelve
bulls, twelve rams, twelve male lambs a year old, with their cereal offering;
and twelve male goats for a sin offering; 88and all the cattle for the sacrifice
of peace offerings twenty-four bulls, the rams sixty, the male goats sixty,
the male lambs a year old sixty. This was the dedication offering for the
altar, after it was anointed.
89 And when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the LORD,
he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was
upon the ark of the covenant, from between the two cherubim; and it spoke
to him.
The Seven Lamps
8 Now the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to Aaron, When you set up the
lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand.” 3And
Aaron did so; he set up its lamps to give light in front of the lampstand, as
the LORD commanded Moses. 4And this was the workmanship of the
lampstand, hammered work of gold; from its base to its flowers, it was
hammered work; according to the pattern which the LORD had shown
Moses, so he made the lampstand.
The Levites’ Consecration and Service
5 And the LORD said to Moses, 6“Take the Levites from among the sons of
Israel, and cleanse them. 7And thus you shall do to them, to cleanse them:
sprinkle the water of expiation upon them, and let them go with a razor over
all their body, and wash their clothes and cleanse themselves. 8Then let
them take a young bull and its cereal offering of fine flour mixed with oil,
and you shall take another young bull for a sin offering. 9And you shall
present the Levites before the tent of meeting, and assemble the whole
congregation of the sons of Israel. 10When you present the Levites before
the LORD, the sons of Israel shall lay their hands upon the Levites, 11and
Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the
sons of Israel, that it may be theirs to do the service of the LORD. 12Then the
Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bulls; and you shall offer
the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the LORD, to
make atonement for the Levites. 13And you shall cause the Levites to attend
Aaron and his sons, and shall offer them as a wave offering to the LORD.
14 “Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the sons of Israel, and
the Levites shall be mine. 15And after that the Levites shall go in to do
service at the tent of meeting, when you have cleansed them and offered
them as a wave offering. 16For they are wholly given to me from among the
sons of Israel; instead of all that open the womb, the first-born of all the
sons of Israel, I have taken them for myself. 17For all the first-born among
the sons of Israel are mine, both of man and of beast; on the day that I slew
all the first-born in the land of Egypt I consecrated them for myself, 18and I
have taken the Levites instead of all the first-born among the sons of Israel.
19And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among
the sons of Israel, to do the service for the sons of Israel at the tent of
meeting, and to make atonement for the sons of Israel, that there may be no
plague among the sons of Israel in case the sons of Israel should come near
the sanctuary.”
20 Thus did Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the sons of Israel
to the Levites; according to all that the LORD commanded Moses

concerning the Levites, the sons of Israel did to them. 21And the Levites
purified themselves from sin, and washed their clothes; and Aaron offered
them as a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for
them to cleanse them. 22And after that the Levites went in to do their
service in the tent of meeting in attendance upon Aaron and his sons; as the
LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.
23 And the LORD said to Moses, 24 “This is what pertains to the Levites:
from twenty-five years old and upward they shall go in to perform the work
in the service of the tent of meeting; 25and from the age of fifty years they
shall withdraw from the work of the service and serve no more, 26but
minister to their brethren in the tent of meeting, to keep the charge, and they
shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites in assigning their
duties.”
The Passover Kept at Sinai
9 And the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first
month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt,
saying, 2 “Let the sons of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. 3On
the fourteenth day of this month, in the evening, you shall keep it at its
appointed time; according to all its statutes and all its ordinances you shall
keep it.” 4So Moses told the sons of Israel that they should keep the
Passover. 5And they kept the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth
day of the month, in the evening, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all
that the LORD commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did. 6And there were
certain men who were unclean through touching the dead body of a man, so
that they could not keep the Passover on that day; and they came before
Moses and Aaron on that day; 7and those men said to him, “We are unclean
through touching the dead body of a man; why are we kept from offering
the LORD’s offering at its appointed time among the sons of Israel?” 8And
Moses said to them, “Wait, that I may hear what the LORD will command
concerning you.”
9 The LORD said to Moses, 10 “Say to the sons of Israel, If any man of you
or of your descendants is unclean through touching a dead body, or is afar

off on a journey, he shall still keep the Passover to the LORD. 11In the
second month on the fourteenth day in the evening they shall keep it; they
shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12They shall leave none
of it until the morning, nor break a bone of it; according to all the statute for
the Passover they shall keep it. 13But the man who is clean and is not on a
journey, yet refrains from keeping the Passover, that person shall be cut off
from his people, because he did not offer the LORD’s offering at its
appointed time; that man shall bear his sin. 14And if a stranger sojourns
among you, and will keep the Passover to the LORD, according to the statute
of the Passover and according to its ordinance, so shall he do; you shall
have one statute, both for the sojourner and for the native.”
The Cloud and the Fire
15 On the day that the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the
tabernacle, the tent of the covenant; and at evening it was over the
tabernacle like the appearance of fire until morning. 16So it was continually;
the cloud covered it by day, d and the appearance of fire by night. 17And
whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tent, after that the sons of
Israel set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the sons
of Israel encamped. 18At the command of the LORD the sons of Israel set
out, and at the command of the LORD they encamped; as long as the cloud
rested over the tabernacle, they remained in camp. 19Even when the cloud
continued over the tabernacle many days, the sons of Israel kept the charge
of the LORD, and did not set out. 20Sometimes the cloud was a few days
over the tabernacle, and according to the command of the LORD they
remained in camp; then according to the command of the LORD they set out.
21And sometimes the cloud remained from evening until morning; and
when the cloud was taken up in the morning, they set out, or if it continued
for a day and a night, when the cloud was taken up they set out. 22Whether
it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over
the tabernacle, abiding there, the sons of Israel remained in camp and did
not set out; but when it was taken up they set out. 23At the command of the
LORD they encamped, and at the command of the LORD they set out; they
kept the charge of the LORD, at the command of the LORD by Moses.
The Silver Trumpets
10 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Make two silver trumpets; of hammered
work you shall make them; and you shall use them for summoning the
congregation, and for breaking camp. 3And when both are blown, all the
congregation shall gather themselves to you at the entrance of the tent of
meeting. 4But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the heads of the tribes
of Israel, shall gather themselves to you. 5When you blow an alarm, the
camps that are on the east side shall set out. 6And when you blow an alarm
the second time, the camps that are on the south side shall set out. An alarm
is to be blown whenever they are to set out. 7But when the assembly is to be
gathered together, you shall blow, but you shall not sound an alarm. 8And
the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets. The trumpets shall
be to you for a perpetual statute throughout your generations. 9And when
you go to war in your land against the adversary who oppresses you, then
you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, that you may be remembered
before the LORD your God, and you shall be saved from your enemies. 10On
the day of your gladness also, and at your appointed feasts, and at the
beginnings of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt
offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; they shall serve
you for remembrance before your God; I am the LORD your God.”
Departure from Sinai
11 In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the
month, the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle of the covenant,
12and the sons of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai; and
the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Par'an. 13They set out for the
first time at the command of the LORD by Moses. 14The standard of the
camp of the men of Judah set out first by their companies; and over their
host was Nahshon the son of Ammin'adab. 15And over the host of the tribe
of the men of Is'sachar was Nethan'el the son of Zu'ar. 16And over the host
of the tribe of the men of Zeb'ulun was Eli'ab the son of He'lon.
17 And when the tabernacle was taken down, the sons of Gershon and the
sons of Merar'i, who carried the tabernacle, set out. 18And the standard of
the camp of Reuben set out by their companies; and over their host was
Eli'zur the son of Shed'eur. 19And over the host of the tribe of the men of
Simeon was Shelu'mi-el the son of Zurishad'dai. 20And over the host of the
tribe of the men of Gad was Eli'asaph the son of Deu'el.
21 Then the Ko'hathites set out, carrying the holy things, and the
tabernacle was set up before their arrival. 22And the standard of the camp of
the men of E'phraim set out by their companies; and over their host was
Elish'ama the son of Ammi'hud. 23And over the host of the tribe of the men
of Manas'seh was Gama'liel the son of Pedah'zur. 24And over the host of the
tribe of the men of Benjamin was Abi'dan the son of Gideo'ni.
25 Then the standard of the camp of the men of Dan, acting as the rear
guard of all the camps, set out by their companies; and over their host was
Ahie'zer the son of Ammishad'dai. 26And over the host of the tribe of the
men of Asher was Pa'giel the son of Ochran. 27And over the host of the
tribe of the men of Naph'tali was Ahi'ra the son of E'nan. 28This was the
order of march of the sons of Israel according to their hosts, when they set
out.
29 And Moses said to Ho'bab the son of Reu'el the Mid'ianite, Moses’
father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the LORD said, ‘I
will give it to you’; come with us, and we will do you good; for the LORD
has promised good to Israel.” 30But he said to him, “I will not go; I will
depart to my own land and to my kindred.” 31And he said, “Do not leave us,
I beg you, for you know how we are to encamp in the wilderness, and you
will serve as eyes for us. 32And if you go with us, whatever good the LORD
will do to us, the same will we do to you.”
33 So they set out from the mount of the LORD three days’ journey; and the
ark of the covenant of the LORD went before them three days’ journey, to
seek out a resting place for them. 34And the cloud of the LORD was over
them by day, whenever they set out from the camp.
35 And whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Arise, O LORD, and let your
enemies be scattered; and let them who hate you flee before you.” 36And
when it rested, he said, “Return, O LORD, to the ten thousand thousands of
Israel.”
Complaining in the Desert
11 And the people complained in the hearing of the LORD about their
misfortunes; and when the LORD heard it, his anger was kindled, and the
fire of the LORD burned among them, and consumed some outlying parts of
the camp. 2Then the people cried to Moses; and Moses prayed to the LORD,
and the fire abated. 3So the name of that place was called Tab'erah, e
because the fire of the LORD burned among them.
4 Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving; and the
people of Israel also wept again, and said, “O that we had meat to eat! 5We
remember the fish we ate in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons,
the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; 6but now our strength is dried up, and
there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”
7 Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of
gum resin. 8The people went about and gathered it, and ground it in mills or
beat it in mortars, and boiled it in pots, and made cakes of it; and the taste
of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. 9When the dew fell upon the
camp in the night, the manna fell with it.
10 Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, every man
at the door of his tent; and the anger of the LORD blazed hotly, and Moses
was displeased. 11Moses said to the LORD, “Why have you dealt ill with
your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay
the burden of all this people upon me? 12Did I conceive all this people? Did
I bring them forth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom,
as a nurse carries the sucking child,’ to the land which you swore to give
their fathers? 13Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they
weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14I am not able to
carry all this people alone, the burden is too heavy for me. 15If you will deal
thus with me, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see
my wretchedness.”
The Seventy Elders
16 And the LORD said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men of the elders
of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over
them; and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand
there with you. 17And I will come down and talk with you there; and I will
take some of the spirit which is upon you and put it upon them; and they
shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it
yourself alone. 18And say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves for
tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept in the hearing of the
LORD, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in
Egypt.” Therefore the LORD will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19You
shall not eat one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days,
20but a whole month, until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes
loathsome to you, because you have rejected the LORD who is among you,
and have wept before him, saying, “Why did we come forth out of
Egypt?” ’ ” 21But Moses said, “The people among whom I am number six
hundred thousand on foot; and you have said, ‘I will give them meat, that
they may eat a whole month!’ 22Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for
them, to satisfy them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together
for them, to satisfy them?” 23And the LORD said to Moses, “Is the LORD’s
hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for
you or not.”
24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD; and he
gathered seventy men of the elders of the people, and placed them round
about the tent. 25Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him,
and took some of the spirit that was upon him and put it upon the seventy
elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did
so no more.
26 Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other
named Medad, and the spirit rested upon them; they were among those
registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in
the camp. 27And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are
prophesying in the camp.” 28And Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of
Moses, one of his chosen men, said, “My lord Moses, forbid them.” 29But
Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the
LORD’s people were prophets, that the LORD would put his spirit upon
them!” 30And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.*
The Quails
31 And there went forth a wind from the LORD, and it brought quails from
the sea, and let them fall beside the camp, about a day’s journey on this side
and a day’s journey on the other side, round about the camp, and about two
cubits above the face of the earth. 32And the people rose all that day, and all
night, and all the next day, and gathered the quails; he who gathered least
gathered ten homers; and they spread them out for themselves all around
the camp. 33While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was
consumed, the anger of the LORD was kindled against the people, and the
LORD struck the people with a very great plague. 34Therefore the name of
that place was called Kib'roth-hatta'avah, f because there they buried the
people who had the craving. 35From Kib'roth-hatta'avah the people
journeyed to Haze'roth; and they remained at Hazeroth.
Aaron and Miriam Speak against Moses
12 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite
woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman; 2and
they said, “Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not
spoken through us also?” And the LORD heard it. 3Now the man Moses was
very meek, more than all men that were on the face of the earth. 4And
suddenly the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron and Miriam, “Come out,
you three, to the tent of meeting.” And the three of them came out. 5And the
LORD came down in a pillar of cloud, and stood at the door of the tent, and
called Aaron and Miriam; and they both came forward. 6And he said, “Hear
my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD make myself known
to him in a vision, I speak with him in a dream. 7Not so with my servant
Moses; he is entrusted with all my house. 8With him I speak mouth to
mouth, clearly, and not in dark speech; and he beholds the form of the
LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”
9 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and he departed;
10and when the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam was
leprous, as white as snow. And Aaron turned towards Miriam, and behold,
she was leprous. 11And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not g punish
us because we have done foolishly and have sinned. 12Let her not be as one
dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his
mother’s womb.” 13And Moses cried to the LORD, “Heal her, O God, I beg
you.” 14But the LORD said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face,
should she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut up outside the camp
seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.” 15So Miriam was
shut up outside the camp seven days; and the people did not set out on the
march till Miriam was brought in again. 16After that the people set out from
Haze'roth, and encamped in the wilderness of Par'an.
Spies Sent into Canaan
13 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan,
which I give to the sons of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers shall you
send a man, every one a leader among them.” 3So Moses sent them from the
wilderness of Par'an, according to the command of the LORD, all of them
men who were heads of the sons of Israel. 4And these were their names:
From the tribe of Reuben, Sham'mu-a the son of Zaccur; 5from the tribe of
Simeon, Sha'phat the son of Ho'ri; 6from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of
Jephun'neh; 7from the tribe of Is'sachar, I'gal the son of Joseph; 8from the
tribe of E'phraim, Hoshe'a the son of Nun; 9from the tribe of Benjamin,
Palti the son of Ra'phu; 10from the tribe of Zeb'ulun, Gad'diel the son of
Sodi; 11from the tribe of Joseph (that is from the tribe of Manas'seh), Gaddi
the son of Susi; 12from the tribe of Dan, Am'miel the son of Gemal'li;
13from the tribe of Asher, Seth'ur the son of Michael; 14from the tribe of
Naph'tali, Nahbi the son of Voph'si; 15from the tribe of Gad, Geu'el the son
of Machi. 16These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out
the land. And Moses called Hoshe'a the son of Nun Joshua.
17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go
up into the Neg'eb yonder, and go up into the hill country, 18and see what
the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak,
whether they are few or many, 19and whether the land that they dwell in is
good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or
strongholds, 20and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there is
wood in it or not. Be of good courage, and bring some of the fruit of the
land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to
Re'hob, near the entrance of Ha'math. 22They went up into the Neg'eb, and
came to He'bron; and Ahi'man, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of
A'nak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
23And they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and cut down from there a branch
with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of
them; they brought also some pomegranates and figs. 24That place was
called the Valley of Eshcol, h because of the cluster which the men of Israel
cut down from there.
25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26And
they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the sons of
Israel in the wilderness of Par'an, at Ka'desh; they brought back word to
them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land.
27And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us; it flows
with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28Yet the people who dwell in the
land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; and besides, we
saw the descendants of A'nak there. 29The Amal'ekites dwell in the land of
the Neg'eb; the Hittites, the Jeb'usites, and the Am'orites dwell in the hill
country; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.”
30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at
once, and occupy it; for we are well able to overcome it.” 31Then the men
who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the
people; for they are stronger than we.” 32So they brought to the sons of
Israel an evil report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land,
through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its
inhabitants; and all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature.
33And there we saw the Neph'ilim (the sons of A'nak, who come from the
Nephilim); and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we

seemed to them.”
The People Rebel
14 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry; and the people wept that
night. 2And all the sons of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron; the
whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of
Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3Why does the LORD
bring us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones
will become a prey; would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?”
4 And they said to one another, “Let us choose a captain, and go back to
Egypt.” 5Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly
of the congregation of the sons of Israel. 6And Joshua the son of Nun and
Caleb the son of Jephun'neh, who were among those who had spied out the
land, tore their clothes, 7and said to all the congregation of the sons of
Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly
good land. 8If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and
give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey. 9Only, do not rebel
against the LORD; and do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread
for us; their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do
not fear them.” 10But all the congregation said to stone them with stones.
Then the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the sons
of Israel. 11And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people despise
me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs
which I have wrought among them? 12I will strike them with the pestilence
and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier
than they.”
Moses Intercedes for the People
13 But Moses said to the LORD, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you
brought up this people in your might from among them, 14and they will tell
the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the
midst of this people; for you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud
stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in
a pillar of fire by night. 15Now if you kill this people as one man, then the
nations who have heard your fame will say, 16‘Because the LORD was not
able to bring this people into the land which he swore to give to them,
therefore he has slain them in the wilderness.’ 17And now, I beg you, let the
power of the LORD be great as you have promised, saying, 18 ‘The LORD is
slow to anger, and abounding in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression,
but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of fathers upon
children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation.’ 19Pardon the
iniquity of this people, I beg you, according to the greatness of your mercy,
and according as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until
now.”
20 Then the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word; 21but
truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD,
22none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs which I wrought
in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the proof these ten
times and have not hearkened to my voice, 23shall see the land which I
swore to give to their fathers; and none of those who despised me shall see
it. 24But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has
followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his
descendants shall possess it. 25Now, since the Amal'ekites and the
Canaanites dwell in the valleys, turn tomorrow and set out for the
wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.”
God’s Punishment of the Disobedient
26 And the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron, 27 “How long shall this
wicked congregation murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of

the sons of Israel, which they murmur against me. 28Say to them, ‘As I
live,’ says the LORD, ‘what you have said in my hearing I will do to you:
29your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness; and of all your number,
numbered from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against
me, 30not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you
dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephun'neh and Joshua the son of Nun. 31But
your little ones, who you said would become a prey, I will bring in, and
they shall know the land which you have despised. 32But as for you, your
dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. 33And your children shall be
shepherds in the wilderness forty years, and shall suffer for your
faithlessness, until the last of your dead bodies lies in the wilderness.
34According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land,
forty days, for every day a year, you shall bear your iniquity, forty years,
and you shall know my displeasure.’ 35I, the LORD, have spoken; surely this
will I do to all this wicked congregation that are gathered together against
me: in this wilderness they shall come to a full end, and there they shall
die.”
36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, and who returned
and made all the congregation to murmur against him by bringing up an evil
report against the land, 37the men who brought up an evil report of the land,
died by plague before the LORD. 38But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the
son of Jephun'neh remained alive, of those men who went to spy out the
land.
39 And Moses told these words to all the sons of Israel, and the people
mourned greatly. 40And they rose early in the morning, and went up to the
heights of the hill country, saying, “See, we are here, we will go up to the
place which the LORD has promised; for we have sinned.” 41But Moses said,
“Why now are you transgressing the command of the LORD, for that will not
succeed? 42Do not go up lest you be struck down before your enemies, for
the LORD is not among you. 43For there the Amal'ekites and the Canaanites
are before you, and you shall fall by the sword; because you have turned
back from following the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.” 44But they
presumed to go up to the heights of the hill country, although neither the ark
of the covenant of the LORD, nor Moses, departed out of the camp. 45Then
the Amal'ekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that hill country came
down, and defeated them and pursued them, even to Hormah.
Various Offerings
15 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, When you
come into the land you are to inhabit, which I give you, 3and you offer to
the LORD from the herd or from the flock an offering by fire or a burnt
offering or a sacrifice, to fulfil a vow or as a freewill offering or at your
appointed feasts, to make a pleasing odor to the LORD, 4then he who brings
his offering shall offer to the LORD a cereal offering of a tenth of an ephah
of fine flour, mixed with a fourth of a hin of oil; 5and wine for the drink
offering, a fourth of a hin, you shall prepare with the burnt offering, or for
the sacrifice, for each lamb. 6Or for a ram, you shall prepare for a cereal
offering two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with a third of a hin of
oil; 7and for the drink offering you shall offer a third of a hin of wine, a
pleasing odor to the LORD. 8And when you prepare a bull for a burnt
offering, or for a sacrifice, to fulfil a vow, or for peace offerings to the
LORD, 9then you shall offer with the bull a cereal offering of three tenths of
an ephah of fine flour, mixed with half a hin of oil, 10and you shall offer for
the drink offering half a hin of wine, as an offering by fire, a pleasing odor
to the LORD.
11 “Thus it shall be done for each bull or ram, or for each of the male
lambs or the kids. 12According to the number that you prepare, so shall you
do with every one according to their number. 13All who are native shall do
these things in this way, in offering an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to
the LORD. 14And if a stranger is sojourning with you, or any one is among
you throughout your generations, and he wishes to offer an offering by fire,
a pleasing odor to the LORD, he shall do as you do. 15For the assembly, there
shall be one statute for you and for the stranger who sojourns with you, a
perpetual statute throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the
sojourner be before the LORD. 16One law and one ordinance shall be for you
and for the stranger who sojourns with you.”
17 The LORD said to Moses, 18 “Say to the sons of Israel, When you come
into the land to which I bring you 19and when you eat of the food of the
land, you shall present an offering to the LORD. 20Of the first of your coarse
meal you shall present a cake as an offering; as an offering from the
threshing floor, so shall you present it. 21Of the first of your coarse meal
you shall give to the LORD an offering throughout your generations.
22 “But if you err, and do not observe all these commandments which the
LORD has spoken to Moses, 23all that the LORD has commanded you by
Moses, from the day that the LORD gave commandment, and onward
throughout your generations, 24then if it was done unwittingly without the
knowledge of the congregation, all the congregation shall offer one young
bull for a burnt offering, a pleasing odor to the LORD, with its cereal
offering and its drink offering, according to the ordinance, and one male
goat for a sin offering. 25And the priest shall make atonement for all the
congregation of the sons of Israel, and they shall be forgiven; because it was
an error, and they have brought their offering, an offering by fire to the
LORD, and their sin offering before the LORD, for their error. 26And all the
congregation of the sons of Israel shall be forgiven, and the stranger who
sojourns among them, because the whole population was involved in the
error.
27 “If one person sins unwittingly, he shall offer a female goat a year old
for a sin offering. 28And the priest shall make atonement before the LORD
for the person who commits an error, when he sins unwittingly, to make
atonement for him; and he shall be forgiven. 29You shall have one law for
him who does anything unwittingly, for him who is native among the sons
of Israel, and for the stranger who sojourns among them. 30But the person
who does anything with a high hand, whether he is native or a sojourner,
reviles the LORD, and that person shall be cut off from among his people.
31Because he has despised the word of the LORD, and has broken his
commandment, that person shall be utterly cut off; his iniquity shall be
upon him.”
Punishment for Violating the Sabbath
32 While the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man
gathering sticks on the sabbath day. 33And those who found him gathering
sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation. 34They
put him in custody, because it had not been made plain what should be done
to him. 35And the LORD said to Moses, “The man shall be put to death; all
the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.” 36And all
the congregation brought him outside the camp, and stoned him to death
with stones, as the LORD commanded Moses.
Tassels on Garments
37 The LORD said to Moses, 38“Speak to the sons of Israel, and bid them to
make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations,

and to put upon the tassel of each corner a cord of blue; 39and it shall be to
you a tassel to look upon and remember all the commandments of the LORD,
to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which
you are inclined to go after wantonly. 40So you shall remember and do all
my commandments, and be holy to your God. 41I am the LORD your God,
who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD
your God.”
Revolt of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram
16 Now Ko'rah the son of Iz'har, son of Ko'hath, son of Levi, and
Da'than and Abi'ram the sons of Eli'ab, and On the son of Pe'leth, sons of
Reuben, 2took men; and they rose up before Moses, with a number of the
sons of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, chosen
from the assembly, well-known men; 3and they assembled themselves
together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, “You have
gone too far! For all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the
LORD is among them; why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly
of the LORD? ” 4When Moses heard it, he fell on his face; 5and he said to
Ko'rah and all his company, “In the morning the LORD will show who is his,
and who is holy, and will cause him to come near to him; him whom he will
choose he will cause to come near to him. 6Do this: take censers, Ko'rah
and all his company; 7put fire in them and put incense upon them before the
LORD tomorrow, and the man whom the LORD chooses shall be the holy
one. You have gone too far, sons of Levi!” 8And Moses said to Ko'rah,
“Hear now, you sons of Levi: 9is it too small a thing for you that the God of
Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near
to himself, to do service in the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before
the congregation to minister to them; 10and that he has brought you near
him, and all your brethren the sons of Levi with you? And would you seek
the priesthood also? 11Therefore it is against the LORD that you and all your
company have gathered together; what is Aaron that you murmur against
him?”
12 And Moses sent to call Da'than and Abi'ram the sons of Eli'ab; and they
said, “We will not come up. 13Is it a small thing that you have brought us up
out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that
you must also make yourself a prince over us? 14Moreover you have not
brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us
inheritance of fields and vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of these men?
We will not come up.”
15 And Moses was very angry, and said to the LORD, “Do not respect their
offering. I have not taken one donkey from them, and I have not harmed
one of them.” 16And Moses said to Ko'rah, “Be present, you and all your
company, before the LORD, you and they, and Aaron, tomorrow; 17and let
every one of you take his censer, and put incense upon it, and every one of
you bring before the LORD his censer, two hundred and fifty censers; you
also, and Aaron, each his censer.” 18So every man took his censer, and they
put fire in them and laid incense upon them, and they stood at the entrance
of the tent of meeting with Moses and Aaron. 19Then Ko'rah assembled all
the congregation against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And
the glory of the LORD appeared to all the congregation.
Korah, Dathan, and Abiram Are Punished
20 And the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron, 21 “Separate yourselves from
among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” 22And

they fell on their faces, and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh,
shall one man sin, and will you be angry with all the congregation?” 23And
the LORD said to Moses, 24 “Say to the congregation, Get away from about
the dwelling of Ko'rah, Da'than, and Abi'ram.”
25 Then Moses rose and went to Da'than and Abi'ram; and the elders of
Israel followed him. 26And he said to the congregation, “Depart, I beg you,
from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be
swept away with all their sins.” 27So they got away from about the dwelling
of Ko'rah, Da'than, and Abi'ram; and Dathan and Abiram came out and
stood at the door of their tents, together with their wives, their sons, and
their little ones. 28And Moses said, “Hereby you shall know that the LORD
has sent me to do all these works, and that it has not been of my own
accord. 29If these men die the common death of all men, or if they are
visited by the fate of all men, then the LORD has not sent me. 30But if the
LORD creates something new, and the ground opens its mouth, and swallows
them up, with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into Sheol,
then you shall know that these men have despised the LORD.”
31 And as he finished speaking all these words, the ground under them
split asunder; 32and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up,
with their households and all the men that belonged to Ko'rah and all their
goods. 33So they and all that belonged to them went down alive into Sheol;
and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the
assembly. 34And all Israel that were round about them fled at their cry; for
they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up!” 35And fire came forth from the
LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men offering the incense.
36 i Then the LORD said to Moses, 37 “Tell Elea'zar the son of Aaron the
priest to take up the censers out of the blaze; then scatter the fire far and
wide. For they are holy, 38the censers of these men who have sinned at the
cost of their lives; so let them be made into hammered plates as a covering
for the altar, for they offered them before the LORD; therefore they are holy.
Thus they shall be a sign to the sons of Israel.” 39So Elea'zar the priest took
the bronze censers, which those who were burned had offered; and they
were hammered out as a covering for the altar, 40to be a reminder to the
sons of Israel, so that no one who is not a priest, who is not of the
descendants of Aaron, should draw near to burn incense before the LORD,
lest he become as Ko'rah and as his company—as the LORD said to Elea'zar
through Moses.
A Plague Strikes the Rebels
41 But the next day all the congregation of the sons of Israel murmured
against Moses and against Aaron, saying, “You have killed the people of the
LORD.” 42And when the congregation had assembled against Moses and
against Aaron, they turned toward the tent of meeting; and behold, the
cloud covered it, and the glory of the LORD appeared. 43And Moses and
Aaron came to the front of the tent of meeting, 44and the LORD said to
Moses, 45 “Get away from the midst of this congregation, that I may
consume them in a moment.” And they fell on their faces. 46And Moses
said to Aaron, “Take your censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and
lay incense on it, and carry it quickly to the congregation, and make
atonement for them; for wrath has gone forth from the LORD, the plague has
begun.” 47So Aaron took it as Moses said, and ran into the midst of the
assembly; and behold, the plague had already begun among the people; and
he put on the incense, and made atonement for the people. 48And he stood
between the dead and the living; and the plague was stopped. 49Now those
who died by the plague were fourteen thousand seven hundred, besides
those who died in the affair of Ko'rah. 50And Aaron returned to Moses at
the entrance of the tent of meeting, when the plague was stopped.
The Blossoming of Aaron’s Rod
17 j The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and get
from them rods, one for each fathers’ house, from all their leaders
according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods. Write each man’s name
upon his rod, 3and write Aaron’s name upon the rod of Levi. For there shall
be one rod for the head of each fathers’ house. 4Then you shall deposit them
in the tent of meeting before the covenant, where I meet with you. 5And the
rod of the man whom I choose shall sprout; thus I will make to cease from
me the murmurings of the sons of Israel, which they murmur against you.”
6Moses spoke to the sons of Israel; and all their leaders gave him rods, one
for each leader, according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods; and the rod
of Aaron was among their rods. 7And Moses deposited the rods before the
LORD in the tent of the covenant.
8 And the next day Moses went into the tent of the covenant; and behold,
the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds, and
produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds. 9Then Moses brought out all
the rods from before the LORD to all the sons of Israel; and they looked, and
each man took his rod. 10And the LORD said to Moses, “Put back the rod of
Aaron before the covenant, to be kept as a sign for the rebels, that you may
make an end of their murmurings against me, lest they die.” 11Thus did
Moses; as the LORD commanded him, so he did.
12 And the sons of Israel said to Moses, “Behold, we perish, we are
undone, we are all undone. 13Every one who comes near, who comes near
to the tabernacle of the LORD, shall die. Are we all to perish?”
Duties of Priests and Levites
18 So the LORD said to Aaron, “You and your sons and your fathers’
house with you shall bear iniquity in connection with the sanctuary; and
you and your sons with you shall bear iniquity in connection with your
priesthood. 2And with you bring your brethren also, the tribe of Levi, the
tribe of your father, that they may join you, and minister to you while you
and your sons with you are before the tent of the covenant. 3They shall
attend you and attend to all duties of the tent; but shall not come near to the
vessels of the sanctuary or to the altar, lest they, and you, die. 4They shall
join you, and attend to the tent of meeting, for all the service of the tent; and
no one else shall come near you. 5And you shall attend to the duties of the
sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there be wrath no more upon the
sons of Israel. 6And behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites from
among the sons of Israel; they are a gift to you, given to the LORD, to do the
service of the tent of meeting. 7And you and your sons with you shall attend
to your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil;
and you shall serve. I give your priesthood as a gift, k and any one else who
comes near shall be put to death.”
The Priest’s Portion
8 Then the LORD said to Aaron, “And behold, I have given you whatever is
kept of the offerings made to me, all the consecrated things of the sons of
Israel; I have given them to you as a portion, and to your sons as a perpetual
debt. 9This shall be yours of the most holy things, reserved from the fire;
every offering of theirs, every cereal offering of theirs and every sin
offering of theirs and every guilt offering of theirs, which they render to me,
shall be most holy to you and to your sons. 10In a most holy place shall you
eat of it; every male may eat of it; it is holy to you. 11This also is yours, the
offering of their gift, all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel; I have
given them to you, and to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual
debt; every one who is clean in your house may eat of it. 12All the best of
the oil, and all the best of the wine and of the grain, the first fruits of what
they give to the LORD, I give to you. 13The first ripe fruits of all that is in
their land, which they bring to the LORD, shall be yours; every one who is
clean in your house may eat of it. 14Every devoted thing in Israel shall be
yours. 15Everything that opens the womb of all flesh, whether man or beast,
which they offer to the LORD, shall be yours; nevertheless the first-born of
man you shall redeem, and the firstling of unclean beasts you shall redeem.
16And their redemption price (at a month old you shall redeem them) you
shall fix at five shekels in silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary,
which is twenty gerahs. 17But the firstling of a cow, or the firstling of a
sheep, or the firstling of a goat, you shall not redeem; they are holy. You
shall sprinkle their blood upon the altar, and shall burn their fat as an
offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD; 18but their flesh shall be yours,
as the breast that is waved and as the right thigh are yours. 19All the holy
offerings which the sons of Israel present to the LORD I give to you, and to
your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual debt; it is a covenant of
salt for ever before the LORD for you and for your offspring with you.”
20And the LORD said to Aaron, “You shall have no inheritance in their land,
neither shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your
inheritance among the sons of Israel.
21 “To the Levites I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in
return for their service which they serve, their service in the tent of meeting.
22And henceforth the sons of Israel shall not come near the tent of meeting,
lest they bear sin and die. 23But the Levites shall do the service of the tent
of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a perpetual statute
throughout your generations; and among the sons of Israel they shall have
no inheritance. 24For the tithe of the sons of Israel, which they present as an
offering to the LORD, I have given to the Levites for an inheritance;
therefore I have said of them that they shall have no inheritance among the
sons of Israel.”
25 And the LORD said to Moses, 26 “Moreover you shall say to the Levites,
‘When you take from the sons of Israel the tithe which I have given you
from them for your inheritance, then you shall present an offering from it to
the LORD, a tithe of the tithe. 27And your offering shall be reckoned to you
as though it were the grain of the threshing floor, and as the fulness of the
wine press. 28So shall you also present an offering to the LORD from all
your tithes, which you receive from the sons of Israel; and from it you shall
give the LORD’s offering to Aaron the priest. 29Out of all the gifts to you,
you shall present every offering due to the LORD, from all the best of them,
giving the hallowed part from them.’ 30Therefore you shall say to them,
‘When you have offered from it the best of it, then the rest shall be
reckoned to the Levites as produce of the threshing floor, and as produce of
the wine press; 31and you may eat it in any place, you and your households;
for it is your reward in return for your service in the tent of meeting. 32And
you shall bear no sin by reason of it, when you have offered the best of it.
And you shall not profane the holy things of the sons of Israel, lest you
die.’ ”
Ceremony of the Red Heifer
19 Now the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron, 2 “This is the statute of
the law which the LORD has commanded: Tell the sons of Israel to bring you
a red heifer without defect, in which there is no blemish, and upon which a
yoke has never come. 3And you shall give her to Elea'zar the priest, and she
shall be taken outside the camp and slaughtered before him; 4and Elea'zar
the priest shall take some of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle some of
her blood toward the front of the tent of meeting seven times. 5And the
heifer shall be burned in his sight; her skin, her flesh, and her blood, with
all her dung, shall be burned; 6and the priest shall take cedarwood and
hyssop and scarlet stuff, and cast them into the midst of the burning of the
heifer. 7Then the priest shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water,
and afterwards he shall come into the camp; and the priest shall be unclean
until evening. 8He who burns the heifer shall wash his clothes in water and
bathe his body in water, and shall be unclean until evening. 9And a man
who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and deposit them
outside the camp in a clean place; and they shall be kept for the
congregation of the sons of Israel for the water for impurity, for the removal
of sin. 10And he who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes,
and be unclean until evening. And this shall be to the sons of Israel, and to
the stranger who sojourns among them, a perpetual statute.
Laws concerning the Dead
11 “He who touches the dead body of any person shall be unclean seven
days; 12he shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the
seventh day, and so be clean; but if he does not cleanse himself on the third
day and on the seventh day, he will not become clean. 13Whoever touches a
dead person, the body of any man who has died, and does not cleanse
himself, defiles the tabernacle of the LORD, and that person shall be cut off
from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown upon him, he
shall be unclean; his uncleanness is still on him.
14 “This is the law when a man dies in a tent: every one who comes into
the tent, and every one who is in the tent, shall be unclean seven days.
15And every open vessel, which has no cover fastened upon it, is unclean.
16Whoever in the open field touches one who is slain with a sword, or a
dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days.

17For the unclean they shall take some ashes of the burnt sin offering, and
running water shall be added in a vessel; 18then a clean person shall take
hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the tent, and upon all
the furnishings, and upon the persons who were there, and upon him who
touched the bone, or the slain, or the dead, or the grave; 19and the clean
person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day and on the seventh
day; thus on the seventh day he shall cleanse him, and he shall wash his
clothes and bathe himself in water, and at evening he shall be clean.
20 “But the man who is unclean and does not cleanse himself, that person
shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly, since he has defiled the
sanctuary of the LORD; because the water for impurity has not been thrown
upon him, he is unclean. 21And it shall be a perpetual statute for them. He
who sprinkles the water for impurity shall wash his clothes; and he who
touches the water for impurity shall be unclean until evening. 22And
whatever the unclean person touches shall be unclean; and any one who
touches it shall be unclean until evening.”
The Waters of Meribah
20 And the sons of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the
wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Ka'desh; and
Miriam died there, and was buried there.
2 Now there was no water for the congregation; and they assembled
themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. 3And the people
contended with Moses, and said, “Would that we had died when our
brethren died before the LORD! 4Why have you brought the assembly of the
LORD into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle?
5And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil
place? It is no place for grain, or figs, or vines, or pomegranates; and there

is no water to drink.” 6Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of
the assembly to the door of the tent of meeting, and fell on their faces. And
the glory of the LORD appeared to them, 7and the LORD said to Moses,
8 “Take the rod, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your
brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water; so you shall
bring water out of the rock for them; so you shall give drink to the
congregation and their cattle.” 9And Moses took the rod from before the
LORD, as he commanded him.
10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock,
and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for
you out of this rock?” 11And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock
with his rod twice; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation
drank, and their cattle. 12And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because
you did not believe in me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the sons of Israel,
therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given
them.” 13These are the waters of Mer'ibah, l where the sons of Israel
contended with the LORD, and he showed himself holy among them.
Passage through Edom Refused
14 Moses sent messengers from Ka'desh to the king of E'dom, “Thus says
your brother Israel: You know all the adversity that has befallen us: 15how
our fathers went down to Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the
Egyptians dealt harshly with us and our fathers; 16and when we cried to the
LORD, he heard our voice, and sent an angel and brought us forth out of
Egypt; and here we are in Ka'desh, a city on the edge of your territory.
17Now let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or
vineyard, neither will we drink water from a well; we will go along the
King’s Highway, we will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left, until
we have passed through your territory.” 18But E'dom said to him, “You shall
not pass through, lest I come out with the sword against you.” 19And the
sons of Israel said to him, “We will go up by the highway; and if we drink
of your water, I and my cattle, then I will pay for it; let me only pass
through on foot, nothing more.” 20But he said, “You shall not pass through.”
And E'dom came out against them with many men, and with a strong force.
21Thus E'dom refused to give Israel passage through his territory; so Israel
turned away from him.

The Death of Aaron
22 And they journeyed from Ka'desh, and the sons of Israel, the whole
congregation, came to Mount Hor. 23And the LORD said to Moses and
Aaron at Mount Hor, on the border of the land of E'dom, 24 “Aaron shall be
gathered to his people; for he shall not enter the land which I have given to
the sons of Israel, because you rebelled against my command at the waters
of Mer'ibah. 25Take Aaron and Elea'zar his son, and bring them up to Mount
Hor; 26and strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Elea'zar his son;
and Aaron shall be gathered to his people, and shall die there.” 27Moses did
as the LORD commanded; and they went up Mount Hor in the sight of the
congregation. 28And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and put them
upon Elea'zar his son; and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain.
Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. 29And when all the
congregation saw that Aaron was dead, all the house of Israel wept for
Aaron thirty days.
The Bronze Serpent
21 When the Canaanite, the king of Ar'ad, who dwelt in the Neg'eb,
heard that Israel was coming by the way of Ath'arim, he fought against
Israel, and took some of them captive. 2And Israel vowed a vow to the
LORD, and said, “If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I
will utterly destroy their cities.” 3And the LORD listened to the voice of
Israel, and gave over the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and
their cities; so the name of the place was called Hormah. m
4 From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around
the land of E'dom; and the people became impatient on the way. 5And the
people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up
out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and
we loathe this worthless food.” 6Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among
the people, and they bit the people, so that many sons of Israel died. 7And
the people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken
against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD, that he take away the
serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. 8And the LORD said to
Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it up as a sign; and every one who is
bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” 9So Moses made a bronze serpent, and
set it up as a sign; and if a serpent bit any man, he would look at the bronze
serpent and live.*
The Journey to Moab
10 And the sons of Israel set out, and encamped in O'both. 11And they set
out from O'both, and encamped at I'ye-ab'arim, in the wilderness which is

opposite Moab, toward the sunrise. 12From there they set out, and
encamped in the Valley of Ze'red. 13From there they set out, and encamped
on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that extends from
the boundary of the Am'orites; for the Arnon is the boundary of Moab,
between Moab and the Amorites. 14Wherefore it is said in the Book of the
Wars of the LORD,
“Wa'heb in Su'phah,
and the valleys of the Arnon,
15and the slope of the valleys
that extends to the seat of Ar,

and leans to the border of Moab.”
16 And from there they continued to Be'er; n that is the well of which the
LORD said to Moses, “Gather the people together, and I will give them
water.” 17Then Israel sang this song:
“Spring up, O well!—Sing to it!—
18the well which the princes dug,
which the nobles of the people delved,

with the scepter and with their staves.”
And from the wilderness they went on to Mat'tanah, 19and from
Mat'tanah to Nahal'iel, and from Nahaliel to Ba'moth, 20and from Ba'moth
to the valley lying in the region of Moab by the top of Pisgah which looks
down upon the desert. o
Sihon the King of the Amorites Defeated
21 Then Israel sent messengers to Si'hon king of the Am'orites, saying,
22 “Let me pass through your land; we will not turn aside into field or
vineyard; we will not drink the water of a well; we will go by the King’s
Highway, until we have passed through your territory.” 23But Si'hon would
not allow Israel to pass through his territory. He gathered all his men
together, and went out against Israel to the wilderness, and came to Ja'haz,
and fought against Israel. 24And Israel slew him with the edge of the sword,
and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as to
the Am'monites; for Ja'zer was the boundary of the Ammonites. p 25And
Israel took all these cities, and Israel settled in all the cities of the Am'orites,
in Heshbon, and in all its villages. 26For Heshbon was the city of Si'hon the
king of the Am'orites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and
taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon. 27Therefore the ballad
singers say,
“Come to Heshbon, let it be built,
let the city of Si'hon be established.
28For fire went forth from Heshbon,
flame from the city of Si'hon.

It devoured Ar of Moab,
the lords of the heights of the Arnon.
29Woe to you, O Moab!
You are undone, O people of Che'mosh!

He has made his sons fugitives, and his daughters captives, to an
Am'orite king, Si'hon.
OceanofPDF.com
30So their posterity perished from Heshbon, q as far as Di'bon,
and we laid waste until fire spread to Med'eba.” r
Og the King of Bashan Defeated
31 Thus Israel dwelt in the land of the Am'orites. 32And Moses sent to spy
out Ja'zer; and they took its villages, and dispossessed the Am'orites that
were there. 33Then they turned and went up by the way to Bashan; and Og
the king of Bashan came out against them, he and all his people, to battle at
Ed're-i. 34But the LORD said to Moses, “Do not fear him; for I have given
him into your hand, and all his people, and his land; and you shall do to him
as you did to Si'hon king of the Am'orites, who dwelt at Heshbon.” 35So
they slew him, and his sons, and all his people, until there was not one
survivor left to him; and they possessed his land.
Balak Summons Balaam
22 Then the sons of Israel set out, and encamped in the plains of Moab
beyond the Jordan at Jericho. 2And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that
Israel had done to the Am'orites. 3And Moab was in great dread of the
people, because they were many; Moab was overcome with fear of the sons
of Israel. 4And Moab said to the elders of Mid'ian, “This horde will now
lick up all that is round about us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.”
So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, 5sent
messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pe'thor, which is near the River, in
the land of Am'aw to call him, saying, “Behold, a people has come out of
Egypt; they cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me.
6Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me;
perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them from the land; for I
know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”
7 So the elders of Moab and the elders of Mid'ian departed with the fees
for divination in their hand; and they came to Balaam, and gave him
Balak’s message. 8And he said to them, “Lodge here this night, and I will
bring back word to you, as the LORD speaks to me”; so the princes of Moab
stayed with Balaam. 9And God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these
men with you?” 10And Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king
of Moab, has sent to me, saying, 11‘Behold, a people has come out of Egypt,
and it covers the face of the earth; now come, curse them for me; perhaps I
shall be able to fight against them and drive them out.’ ” 12God said to
Balaam, “You shall not go with them; you shall not curse the people, for
they are blessed.” 13So Balaam rose in the morning, and said to the princes
of Balak, “Go to your own land; for the LORD has refused to let me go with
you.” 14So the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak, and said, “Balaam
refuses to come with us.”
15 Once again Balak sent princes, more in number and more honorable
than they. 16And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak
the son of Zippor: ‘Let nothing hinder you from coming to me; 17for I will
surely do you great honor, and whatever you say to me I will do; come,
curse this people for me.’ ” 18But Balaam answered and said to the servants
of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I
could not go beyond the command of the LORD my God, to do less or more.
19Please, now, tarry here this night also, that I may know what more the
LORD will say to me.” 20And God came to Balaam at night and said to him,
“If the men have come to call you, rise, go with them; but only what I bid
you, that shall you do.”
Balaam, His Donkey, and the Angel
21 * So Balaam rose in the morning, and saddled his donkey, and went
with the princes of Moab. 22But God’s anger was kindled because he went;
and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now
he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23And the
donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road, with a drawn sword
in his hand; and the donkey turned aside out of the road, and went into the
field; and Balaam struck the donkey, to turn her into the road. 24Then the
angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall
on either side. 25And when the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she
pushed against the wall, and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he
struck her again. 26Then the angel of the LORD went ahead, and stood in a
narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the
left. 27When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under
Balaam; and Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his
staff. 28Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to
Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three
times?” 29And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made sport of
me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would kill you.” 30And the
donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, upon which you have
ridden all your life long to this day? Was I ever accustomed to do so to
you?” And he said, “No.”
31 Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the
LORD standing in the way, with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed
his head, and fell on his face. 32And the angel of the LORD said to him,
“Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come
forth to withstand you, because your way is perverse before me; 33and the
donkey saw me, and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not
turned aside from me, surely just now I would have slain you and let her
live.” 34Then Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, “I have sinned, for I did
not know that you stood in the road against me. Now therefore, if it is evil
in your sight, I will go back again.” 35And the angel of the LORD said to
Balaam, “Go with the men; but only the word which I bid you, that shall
you speak.” So Balaam went on with the princes of Balak.
36 When Balak heard that Balaam had come, he went out to meet him at
the city of Moab, on the boundary formed by the Arnon, at the extremity of
the boundary. 37And Balak said to Balaam, “Did I not send to you to call
you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not able to honor you?” 38Balaam
said to Balak, “Behold, I have come to you! Have I now any power at all to
speak anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that must I speak.”
39Then Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kir'iath-hu'zoth. 40And
Balak sacrificed oxen and sheep, and sent to Balaam and to the princes who
were with him.
Balaam’s First Oracle
41 And the next day Balak took Balaam and brought him up to Ba'moth-
ba'al; and from there

23 he saw the nearest of the people. 1And Balaam said to Balak, “Build
for me here seven altars, and provide for me here seven bulls and seven
rams.” 2Balak did as Balaam had said; and Balak and Balaam offered on
each altar a bull and a ram. 3And Balaam said to Balak, “Stand beside your
burnt offering, and I will go; perhaps the LORD will come to meet me; and
whatever he shows me I will tell you.” And he went to a bare height. 4And
God met Balaam; and Balaam said to him, “I have prepared the seven
altars, and I have offered upon each altar a bull and a ram.” 5And the LORD
put a word in Balaam’s mouth, and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you
shall speak.” 6And he returned to him, and behold, he and all the princes of
Moab were standing beside his burnt offering. 7And Balaam took up his
discourse, and said,
“From Ar'am Balak has brought me,
the king of Moab from the eastern mountains:
‘Come, curse Jacob for me,
and come, denounce Israel!’
8How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce whom the LORD has not denounced?
9For from the top of the mountains I see him,
from the hills I behold him;

behold, a people dwelling alone,
and not reckoning itself among the nations!
10Who can count the dust of Jacob,
or number the fourth part s of Israel?

Let me die the death of the righteous,
and let my end be like his!”
11 And Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to
curse my enemies, and behold, you have done nothing but bless them.”
12And he answered, “Must I not take heed to speak what the LORD puts in
my mouth?”
Balaam’s Second Oracle
13 And Balak said to him, “Come with me to another place, from which
you may see them; you shall see only the nearest of them, and shall not see
them all; then curse them for me from there.” 14And he took him to the field
of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a bull
and a ram on each altar. 15Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here beside your
burnt offering, while I meet the LORD yonder.” 16And the LORD met
Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, “Return to Balak, and thus
shall you speak.” 17And he came to him, and, behold, he was standing
beside his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said
to him, “What has the LORD spoken?” 18And Balaam took up his discourse,
and said,
“Rise, Balak, and hear;
hearken to me, O son of Zippor:
19God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should repent.
Has he said, and will he not do it?
Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfil it?
20Behold, I received a command to bless:
he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.

21He has not beheld misfortune in Jacob;
nor has he seen trouble in Israel.

The LORD their God is with them,
and the shout of a king is among them.
22God brings them out of Egypt;
they have as it were the horns of the wild ox.

23For there is no enchantment against Jacob,
no divination against Israel;

now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel,
‘What has God wrought!’
24Behold, a people! As a lioness it rises up
and as a lion it lifts itself;
it does not lie down till it devours the prey,
and drinks the blood of the slain.”
25 And Balak said to Balaam, “Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at
all.” 26But Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not tell you, ‘All that the LORD
says, that I must do’?” 27And Balak said to Balaam, “Come now, I will take
you to another place; perhaps it will please God that you may curse them
for me from there.” 28So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, that
overlooks the desert. t 29And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here
seven altars, and provide for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 30And
Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
Balaam’s Third Oracle
24 When Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not
go, as at other times, to look for omens, but set his face toward the
wilderness. 2And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and saw Israel encamping tribe
by tribe. And the Spirit of God came upon him, 3and he took up his
discourse, and said,
“The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eye is opened, u
4the oracle of him who hears the words of God,
who sees the vision of the Almighty,

falling down, but having his eyes uncovered:
5How fair are your tents, O Jacob,
your encampments, O Israel!

6Like valleys that stretch afar,
like gardens beside a river,
like aloes that the LORD has planted,
like cedar trees beside the waters.
7Water shall flow from his buckets,
and his seed shall be in many waters,

his king shall be higher than Agag,
and his kingdom shall be exalted.
8God brings him out of Egypt;
he has as it were the horns of the wild ox,

he shall eat up the nations his adversaries,
and shall break their bones in pieces,
and pierce them through with his arrows.
9He lurked, he lay down like a lion,
and like a lioness; who will rouse him up?

Blessed be every one who blesses you,
and cursed be every one who curses you.”
Balaam’s Fourth Oracle
10 And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he struck his hands
together; and Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and
behold, you have blessed them these three times. 11Therefore now flee to
your place; I said, ‘I will certainly honor you,’ but the LORD has held you
back from honor.” 12And Balaam said to Balak, “Did I not tell your
messengers whom you sent to me, 13‘If Balak should give me his house full
of silver and gold, I would not be able to go beyond the word of the LORD,
to do either good or bad of my own will; what the LORD speaks, that will I
speak’? 14And now, behold, I am going to my people; come, I will let you
know what this people will do to your people in the latter days.” 15And he
took up his discourse, and said,
“The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eye is opened, v
16the oracle of him who hears the words of God,
and knows the knowledge of the Most High,
who sees the vision of the Almighty,
falling down, but having his eyes uncovered:
17I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near:

a star shall come forth out of Jacob,
and a scepter shall rise out of Israel;
it shall crush the forehead w of Moab,
and break down all the sons of Sheth.
18E'dom shall be dispossessed,
Se'ir also, his enemies, shall be dispossessed,

while Israel does valiantly.
19By Jacob shall dominion be exercised,
and the survivors of cities be destroyed!”

20 Then he looked on Am'alek, and took up his discourse, and said,
“Amalek was the first of the nations,

but in the end he shall come to destruction.”
21 And he looked on the Kenite, and took up his discourse, and said,
“Enduring is your dwelling place,

and your nest is set in the rock;
22nevertheless Kain shall be wasted.
How long shall Asshur take you away captive?”
23 And he took up his discourse, and said,
“Alas, who shall live when God does this?

24 But ships shall come from Kittim
and shall afflict Asshur and E'ber;

and he also shall come to destruction.”
25 Then Balaam rose, and went back to his place; and Balak also went his
way.
Worship of Baal of Peor
25 While Israel dwelt in Shittim the people began to play the harlot
with the daughters of Moab. 2These invited the people to the sacrifices of
their gods, and the people ate, and bowed down to their gods. 3So Israel
yoked himself to Ba'al of Peor. And the anger of the LORD was kindled
against Israel; 4and the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the
people, and hang them in the sun before the LORD, that the fierce anger of
the LORD may turn away from Israel.” 5And Moses said to the judges of
Israel, “Every one of you slay his men who have yoked themselves to Ba'al
of Peor.”
6 And behold, one of the sons of Israel came and brought a Mid'ianite
woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole
congregation of the sons of Israel, while they were weeping at the door of
the tent of meeting. 7When Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar, son of Aaron the
priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation, and took a spear in his hand
8and went after the man of Israel into the inner room, and pierced both of
them, the man of Israel and the woman, through her body. Thus the plague
was stayed from the sons of Israel. 9Nevertheless those that died by the
plague were twenty-four thousand.
10 And the LORD said to Moses, 11“Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar, son of
Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the sons of Israel, in that
he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the
sons of Israel in my jealousy. 12Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my
covenant of peace; 13and it shall be to him, and to his descendants after him,
the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God,
and made atonement for the sons of Israel.’ ”
14 The name of the slain man of Israel, who was slain with the Mid'ianite
woman, was Zimri the son of Sa'lu, head of a fathers’ house belonging to
the Simeonites. 15And the name of the Mid'ianite woman who was slain
was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the head of the people of a fathers’
house in Mid'ian.
16 And the LORD said to Moses, 17 “Harass the Mid'ianites, and strike
them; 18for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they
beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter
of the prince of Mid'ian, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague
on account of Peor.”
Another Census of Israel
26 After the plague the LORD said to Moses and to Elea'zar the son of
Aaron, the priest, 2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of
Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers’ houses, all in
Israel who are able to go forth to war.” 3And Moses and Elea'zar the priest
spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,
4“Take a census of the people, x from twenty years old and upward,” as the
LORD commanded Moses. The sons of Israel, who came forth out of the
land of Egypt, were:
5 Reuben, the first-born of Israel; the sons of Reuben: of Ha'noch, the
family of the Ha'nochites; of Pallu, the family of the Pal'luites; 6of Hezron,
the family of the Hez'ronites; of Carmi, the family of the Carmites. 7These
are the families of the Reubenites; and their number was forty-three
thousand seven hundred and thirty. 8And the sons of Pallu: Eli'ab. 9The sons
of Eli'ab: Nem'u-el, Da'than, and Abi'ram. These are the Dathan and
Abiram, chosen from the congregation, who contended against Moses and
Aaron in the company of Ko'rah, when they contended against the LORD,
10and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up together with
Ko'rah, when that company died, when the fire devoured two hundred and
fifty men; and they became a warning. 11Notwithstanding, the sons of
Ko'rah did not die.
12 The sons of Simeon according to their families: of Nem'u-el, the family
of the Nem'u-elites; of Ja'min, the family of the Ja'minites; of Ja'chin, the

family of the Ja'chinites; 13of Ze'rah, the family of the Ze'rahites; of Sha'ul,
the family of the Sha'ulites. 14These are the families of the Simeonites,
twenty-two thousand two hundred.
15 The sons of Gad according to their families: of Ze'phon, the family of
the Ze'phonites; of Hag'gi, the family of the Haggites; of Shu'ni, the family
of the Shu'nites; 16of Ozni, the family of the Oznites; of E'ri, the family of
the E'rites; 17of Ar'od, the family of the Ar'odites; of Are'li, the family of
the Are'lites. 18These are the families of the sons of Gad according to their
number, forty thousand five hundred.
19 The sons of Judah were Er and O'nan; and Er and Onan died in the land
of Canaan. 20And the sons of Judah according to their families were: of

She'lah, the family of the She'lanites; of Per'ez, the family of the Per'ezites;
of Ze'rah, the family of the Ze'rahites. 21And the sons of Per'ez were: of
Hezron, the family of the Hez'ronites; of Ha'mul, the family of the
Ha'mulites. 22These are the families of Judah according to their number,
seventy-six thousand five hundred.
23 The sons of Is'sachar according to their families: of To'la, the family of
the To'laites; of Pu'vah, the family of the Pu'nites; 24of Jash'ub, the family of
the Jash'ubites; of Shimron, the family of the Shim'ronites. 25These are the
families of Is'sachar according to their number, sixty-four thousand three
hundred.
26 The sons of Zeb'ulun, according to their families: of Se'red, the family
of the Se'redites; of E'lon, the family of the E'lonites; of Jah'leel, the family
of the Jah'leelites. 27These are the families of the Zeb'ulunites according to
their number, sixty thousand five hundred.
28 The sons of Joseph according to their families: Manas'seh and E'phraim.
29The sons of Manas'seh: of Ma'chir, the family of the Ma'chirites; and
Machir was the father of Gilead; of Gilead, the family of the Gileadites.
30These are the sons of Gilead: of Iez'er, the family of the Iez'erites; of
He'lek, the family of the He'lekites; 31and of As'riel, the family of the
As'rielites; and of She'chem, the family of the She'chemites; 32and of
Shemi'da, the family of the Shemi'daites; and of He'pher, the family of the
He'pherites. 33Now Zeloph'ehad the son of He'pher had no sons, but
daughters: and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah,
Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 34These are the families of Manas'seh;
and their number was fifty-two thousand seven hundred.
35 These are the sons of E'phraim according to their families: of
Shu'thelah, the family of the Shu''thela'hites; of Be'cher, the family of the

Be'cherites; of Ta'han, the family of the Ta'hanites. 36And these are the sons
of Shu'thelah: of E'ran, the family of the E'ranites. 37These are the families
of the sons of E'phraim according to their number, thirty-two thousand five
hundred. These are the sons of Joseph according to their families.
38 The sons of Benjamin according to their families: of Be'la, the family of
the Be'laites; of Ash'bel, the family of the Ash'belites; of Ahi'ram, the

family of the Ahi'ramites; 39of Shephu'pham, the family of the
Shephu'phamites; of Hu'pham, the family of the Hu'phamites. 40And the
sons of Be'la were Ard and Na'aman: of Ard, the family of the Ardites; of
Naaman, the family of the Na'amites. 41These are the sons of Benjamin
according to their families; and their number was forty-five thousand six
hundred.
42 These are the sons of Dan according to their families: of Shu'ham, the
family of the Shu'hamites. These are the families of Dan according to their
families. 43All the families of the Shu'hamites, according to their number,
were sixty-four thousand four hundred.
44 The sons of Asher according to their families: of Imnah, the family of
the Imnites; of Ishvi, the family of the Ishvites; of Beri'ah, the family of the
Beri'ites. 45Of the sons of Beri'ah: of He'ber, the family of the He'berites; of
Mal'chi-el, the family of the Mal'chi-elites. 46And the name of the daughter
of Asher was Se'rah. 47These are the families of the sons of Asher according
to their number, fifty-three thousand four hundred.
48 The sons of Naph'tali according to their families: of Jah'zeel, the family
of the Jah'zeelites; of Gu'ni, the family of the Gu'nites; 49of Je'zer, the
family of the Je'zerites; of Shillem, the family of the Shil'lemites. 50These
are the families of Naph'tali according to their families; and their number
was forty-five thousand four hundred.
51 This was the number of the sons of Israel, six hundred and one thousand
seven hundred and thirty.

52 The LORD said to Moses: 53 “To these the land shall be divided for
inheritance according to the number of names. 54To a large tribe you shall
give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small
inheritance; every tribe shall be given its inheritance according to its
numbers. 55But the land shall be divided by lot; according to the names of
the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. 56Their inheritance shall be
divided according to lot between the larger and the smaller.”
57 These are the Levites as numbered according to their families: of
Gershon, the family of the Ger'shonites; of Ko'hath, the family of the
Ko'hathites; of Merar'i, the family of the Merar'ites. 58These are the families
of Levi: the family of the Libnites, the family of the He'bronites, the family
of the Mahlites, the family of the Mu'shites, the family of the Ko'rahites.
And Ko'hath was the father of Amram. 59The name of Amram’s wife was
Joch'ebed the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt; and she
bore to Amram Aaron and Moses and Miriam their sister. 60And to Aaron
were born Na'dab, Abi'hu, Elea'zar and Ith'amar. 61But Na'dab and Abi'hu
died when they offered unholy fire before the LORD. 62And those numbered
of them were twenty-three thousand, every male from a month old and
upward; for they were not numbered among the sons of Israel, because
there was no inheritance given to them among the sons of Israel.
63 These were those numbered by Moses and Elea'zar the priest, who
numbered the sons of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
64But among these there was not a man of those numbered by Moses and
Aaron the priest, who had numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of
Sinai. 65For the LORD had said of them, “They shall die in the wilderness.”
There was not left a man of them, except Caleb the son of Jephun'neh and
Joshua the son of Nun.
The Daughters of Zelophehad
27 Then drew near the daughters of Zeloph'ehad the son of He'pher,
son of Gilead, son of Ma'chir, son of Manas'seh, from the families of
Manasseh the son of Joseph. The names of his daughters were: Mahlah,
Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 2And they stood before Moses, and
before Elea'zar the priest, and before the leaders and all the congregation, at
the door of the tent of meeting, saying, 3 “Our father died in the wilderness;
he was not among the company of those who gathered themselves together
against the LORD in the company of Ko'rah, but died for his own sin; and he
had no sons. 4Why should the name of our father be taken away from his
family, because he had no son? Give to us a possession among our father’s
brethren.”
5 Moses brought their case before the LORD. 6And the LORD said to Moses,
7 “The daughters of Zeloph'ehad are right; you shall give them possession
of an inheritance among their father’s brethren and cause the inheritance of
their father to pass to them. 8And you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘If a
man dies, and has no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his
daughter. 9And if he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to
his brothers. 10And if he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance
to his father’s brothers. 11And if his father has no brothers, then you shall
give his inheritance to his kinsman that is next to him of his family, and he
shall possess it. And it shall be to the sons of Israel a statute and ordinance,
as the LORD commanded Moses.’ ”
Joshua Appointed Moses’ Successor
12 The LORD said to Moses, “Go up into this mountain of Ab'arim, and see
the land which I have given to the sons of Israel. 13And when you have seen
it, you also shall be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was
gathered, 14because you rebelled against my word in the wilderness of Zin
during the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the waters before
their eyes.” (These are the waters of Mer'ibah of Ka'desh in the wilderness
of Zin.) 15Moses said to the LORD, 16 “Let the LORD, the God of the spirits
of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation, 17who shall go out before
them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in;
that the congregation of the LORD may not be as sheep which have no
shepherd.” 18And the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a
man in whom is the spirit, and lay your hand upon him; 19cause him to
stand before Elea'zar the priest and all the congregation, and you shall
commission him in their sight. 20You shall invest him with some of your
authority, that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may obey. 21And he
shall stand before Elea'zar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the
judgment of the U'rim before the LORD; at his word they shall go out, and at
his word they shall come in, both he and all the sons of Israel with him, the
whole congregation.” 22And Moses did as the LORD commanded him; he
took Joshua and caused him to stand before Elea'zar the priest and the
whole congregation, 23and he laid his hands upon him, and commissioned
him as the LORD directed through Moses.
Daily Offerings
28 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Command the sons of Israel, and say to
them, ‘My offering, my food for my offerings by fire, my pleasing odor,
you shall take heed to offer to me in its due season.’ 3And you shall say to
them, This is the offering by fire which you shall offer to the LORD: two
male lambs a year old without blemish, day by day, as a continual offering.
4The one lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall
offer in the evening; 5also a tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a cereal
offering, mixed with a fourth of a hin of beaten oil. 6It is a continual burnt
offering, which was ordained at Mount Sinai for a pleasing odor, an offering
by fire to the LORD. 7Its drink offering shall be a fourth of a hin for each
lamb; in the holy place you shall pour out a drink offering of strong drink to
the LORD. 8The other lamb you shall offer in the evening; like the cereal
offering of the morning, and like its drink offering, you shall offer it as an
offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD.
Sabbath Offerings
9 “On the sabbath day two male lambs a year old without blemish, and
two tenths of an ephah of fine flour for a cereal offering, mixed with oil,
and its drink offering: 10this is the burnt offering of every sabbath, besides
the continual burnt offering and its drink offering.
Monthly Offerings
11 “At the beginnings of your months you shall offer a burnt offering to
the LORD: two young bulls, one ram, seven male lambs a year old without
blemish; 12also three tenths of an ephah of fine flour for a cereal offering,
mixed with oil, for each bull; and two tenths of fine flour for a cereal
offering, mixed with oil, for the one ram; 13and a tenth of fine flour mixed
with oil as a cereal offering for every lamb; for a burnt offering of pleasing
odor, an offering by fire to the LORD. 14Their drink offerings shall be half a
hin of wine for a bull, a third of a hin for a ram, and a fourth of a hin for a
lamb; this is the burnt offering of each month throughout the months of the
year. 15Also one male goat for a sin offering to the LORD; it shall be offered
besides the continual burnt offering and its drink offering.
Offerings at Passover
16 “On the fourteenth day of the first month is the LORD’s Passover.
17And on the fifteenth day of this month is a feast; seven days shall
unleavened bread be eaten. 18On the first day there shall be a holy
convocation: you shall do no laborious work, 19but offer an offering by fire,
a burnt offering to the LORD: two young bulls, one ram, and seven male
lambs a year old; see that they are without blemish; 20also their cereal
offering of fine flour mixed with oil; three tenths of an ephah shall you offer
for a bull, and two tenths for a ram; 21a tenth shall you offer for each of the
seven lambs; 22also one male goat for a sin offering, to make atonement for
you. 23You shall offer these besides the burnt offering of the morning,
which is for a continual burnt offering. 24In the same way you shall offer
daily, for seven days, the food of an offering by fire, a pleasing odor to the
LORD; it shall be offered besides the continual burnt offering and its drink
offering. 25And on the seventh day you shall have a holy convocation; you
shall do no laborious work.
Offerings at the Feast of Weeks
26 “On the day of the first fruits, when you offer a cereal offering of new
grain to the LORD at your feast of weeks, you shall have a holy convocation;
you shall do no laborious work, 27but offer a burnt offering, a pleasing odor
to the LORD: two young bulls, one ram, seven male lambs a year old; 28also
their cereal offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah
for each bull, two tenths for one ram, 29a tenth for each of the seven lambs;
30with one male goat, to make atonement for you. 31Besides the continual
burnt offering and its cereal offering, you shall offer them and their drink
offering. See that they are without blemish.
Offerings at the Feast of Trumpets
29 “On the first day of the seventh month you shall have a holy
convocation; you shall do no laborious work. It is a day for you to blow the
trumpets, 2and you shall offer a burnt offering, a pleasing odor to the LORD:
one young bull, one ram, seven male lambs a year old without blemish;
3also their cereal offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an
ephah for the bull, two tenths for the ram, 4and one tenth for each of the
seven lambs; 5with one male goat for a sin offering, to make atonement for
you; 6besides the burnt offering of the new moon, and its cereal offering,
and the continual burnt offering and its cereal offering, and their drink
offering, according to the ordinance for them, a pleasing odor, an offering
by fire to the LORD.
Offerings on the Day of Atonement
7 “On the tenth day of this seventh month you shall have a holy
convocation, and afflict yourselves; you shall do no work, 8but you shall
offer a burnt offering to the LORD, a pleasing odor: one young bull, one ram,
seven male lambs a year old; they shall be to you without blemish; 9and
their cereal offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah
for the bull, two tenths for the one ram, 10a tenth for each of the seven
lambs: 11also one male goat for a sin offering, besides the sin offering of
atonement, and the continual burnt offering and its cereal offering, and their
drink offerings.
Offerings at the Feast of Booths
12 “On the fifteenth day of the seventh month you shall have a holy
convocation; you shall do no laborious work, and you shall keep a feast to
the LORD seven days; 13and you shall offer a burnt offering, an offering by
fire, a pleasing odor to the LORD, thirteen young bulls, two rams, fourteen
male lambs a year old; they shall be without blemish; 14and their cereal
offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah for each of the
thirteen bulls, two tenths for each of the two rams, 15and a tenth for each of
the fourteen lambs; 16also one male goat for a sin offering, besides the
continual burnt offering, its cereal offering and its drink offering.
17 “On the second day twelve young bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs
a year old without blemish, 18with the cereal offering and the drink
offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by number,
according to the ordinance; 19also one male goat for a sin offering, besides
the continual burnt offering and its cereal offering, and their drink offerings.
20 “On the third day eleven bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year
old without blemish, 21with the cereal offering and the drink offerings for
the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by number, according to the
ordinance; 22also one male goat for a sin offering, besides the continual
burnt offering and its cereal offering and its drink offering.
23 “On the fourth day ten bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old
without blemish, 24with the cereal offering and the drink offerings for the
bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by number, according to the
ordinance; 25also one male goat for a sin offering, besides the continual
burnt offering, its cereal offering and its drink offering.
26 “On the fifth day nine bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old
ordinance; 28also one male goat for a sin offering; besides the continual
burnt offering and its cereal offering and its drink offering.
29 “On the sixth day eight bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old
burnt offering, its cereal offering, and its drink offerings.
32 “On the seventh day seven bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year
old without blemish, 33with the cereal offering and the drink offerings for
the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by number, according to the
burnt offering, its cereal offering, and its drink offering.
35 “On the eighth day you shall have a solemn assembly: you shall do no
laborious work, 36but you shall offer a burnt offering, an offering by fire, a
pleasing odor to the LORD: one bull, one ram, seven male lambs a year old
without blemish, 37and the cereal offering and the drink offerings for the
bull, for the ram, and for the lambs, by number, according to the ordinance;
38also one male goat for a sin offering; besides the continual burnt offering
and its cereal offering and its drink offering.

39 “These you shall offer to the LORD at your appointed feasts, in addition
to your votive offerings and your freewill offerings, for your burnt
offerings, and for your cereal offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for
your peace offerings.”
40 y And Moses told the sons of Israel everything just as the LORD had
commanded Moses.
The Keeping of Vows
30 Moses said to the heads of the tribes of the sons of Israel, “This is
what the LORD has commanded. 2When a man vows a vow to the LORD, or
swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word; he
shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth. 3Or when a woman
vows a vow to the LORD, and binds herself by a pledge, while within her
father’s house, in her youth, 4and her father hears of her vow and of her
pledge by which she has bound herself, and says nothing to her; then all her
vows shall stand, and her every pledge by which she has bound herself shall
stand. 5But if her father expresses disapproval to her on the day that he
hears of it, no vow of hers, no pledge by which she has bound herself, shall
stand; and the LORD will forgive her, because her father opposed her. 6And
if she is married to a husband, while under her vows or any thoughtless
utterance of her lips by which she has bound herself, 7and her husband
hears of it, and says nothing to her on the day that he hears; then her vows
shall stand, and her pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand.
8But if, on the day that her husband comes to hear of it, he expresses
disapproval, then he shall make void her vow which was on her, and the
thoughtless utterance of her lips, by which she bound herself; and the LORD
will forgive her. 9But any vow of a widow or of a divorced woman,
anything by which she has bound herself, shall stand against her. 10And if
she vowed in her husband’s house, or bound herself by a pledge with an
oath, 11and her husband heard of it, and said nothing to her, and did not
oppose her; then all her vows shall stand, and every pledge by which she
bound herself shall stand. 12But if her husband makes them null and void on
the day that he hears them, then whatever proceeds out of her lips
concerning her vows, or concerning her pledge of herself, shall not stand:
her husband has made them void, and the LORD will forgive her. 13Any vow
and any binding oath to afflict herself, her husband may establish, or her
husband may make void. 14But if her husband says nothing to her from day
to day, then he establishes all her vows, or all her pledges, that are upon her;
he has established them, because he said nothing to her on the day that he
heard of them. 15But if he makes them null and void after he has heard of
them, then he shall bear her iniquity.”
16 These are the statutes which the LORD commanded Moses, as between a
man and his wife, and between a father and his daughter, while in her youth,
within her father’s house.
War against Midian
31 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Avenge the sons of Israel on the
Mid'ianites; afterward you shall be gathered to your people.” 3And Moses
said to the people, “Arm men from among you for the war, that they may go
against Mid'ian, to execute the LORD’s vengeance on Midian. 4You shall
send a thousand from each of the tribes of Israel to the war.” 5So there were
provided, out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand from each tribe, twelve
thousand armed for war. 6And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand from
each tribe, together with Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar the priest, with the
vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand. 7They
warred against Mid'ian, as the LORD commanded Moses, and slew every
male. 8They slew the kings of Mid'ian with the rest of their slain, E'vi,
Re'kem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian; and they also slew
Balaam the son of Beor with the sword. 9And the sons of Israel took captive
the women of Mid'ian and their little ones; and they took as booty all their
cattle, their flocks, and all their goods. 10All their cities in the places where
they dwelt, and all their encampments, they burned with fire, 11and took all
the spoil and all the booty, both of man and of beast. 12Then they brought
the captives and the booty and the spoil to Moses, and to Elea'zar the priest,
and to the congregation of the sons of Israel, at the camp on the plains of
Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
Return from the War
13 Moses, and Elea'zar the priest, and all the leaders of the congregation,
went forth to meet them outside the camp. 14And Moses was angry with the
officers of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of
hundreds, who had come from service in the war. 16Moses said to them,
“Have you let all the women live? 16Behold, these caused the sons of Israel,
by the counsel of Balaam, to act treacherously against the LORD in the
matter of Peor, and so the plague came among the congregation of the
LORD. 17Now therefore, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every
woman who has known man by lying with him. 18But all the young girls
who have not known man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.
19Encamp outside the camp seven days; whoever of you has killed any
person, and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves and your
captives on the third day and on the seventh day. 20You shall purify every
garment, every article of skin, all work of goats’ hair, and every article of
wood.”
21 And Elea'zar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to battle:
“This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses:
22only the gold, the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead,
23everything that can stand the fire, you shall pass through the fire, and it
shall be clean. Nevertheless it shall also be purified with the water of

impurity; and whatever cannot stand the fire, you shall pass through the
water. 24You must wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you shall be
clean; and afterward you shall come into the camp.”
Division of the Booty
25 The LORD said to Moses, 26“Take the count of the booty that was taken,
both of man and of beast, you and Elea'zar the priest and the heads of the
fathers’ houses of the congregation; 27and divide the booty into two parts,
between the warriors who went out to battle and all the congregation. 28And
levy for the LORD a tribute from the men of war who went out to battle, one
out of five hundred, of the persons and of the oxen and of the donkeys and
of the flocks; 29take it from their half, and give it to Elea'zar the priest as an
offering to the LORD. 30And from the sons of Israel’s half you shall take one
drawn out of every fifty, of the persons, of the oxen, of the donkeys, and of
the flocks, of all the cattle, and give them to the Levites who have charge of
the tabernacle of the LORD.” 31And Moses and Elea'zar the priest did as the
LORD commanded Moses.
32 Now the booty remaining of the spoil that the men of war took was: six
hundred and seventy-five thousand sheep, 33seventy-two thousand cattle,

34sixty-one thousand donkeys, 35and thirty-two thousand persons in all,
women who had not known man by lying with him. 36And the half, the
portion of those who had gone out to war, was in number three hundred and
thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, 37and the LORD’s tribute of
sheep was six hundred and seventy-five. 38The cattle were thirty-six
thousand, of which the LORD’s tribute was seventy-two. 39The donkeys
were thirty thousand five hundred, of which the LORD’s tribute was sixty-
one. 40The persons were sixteen thousand, of which the LORD’s tribute was
thirty-two persons. 41And Moses gave the tribute, which was the offering
for the LORD, to Elea'zar the priest, as the LORD commanded Moses.
42 From the sons of Israel’s half, which Moses separated from that of the
men who had gone to war—43now the congregation’s half was three
hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, 44thirty-six thousand
cattle, 45and thirty thousand five hundred donkeys, 46and sixteen thousand
persons—47from the sons of Israel’s half Moses took one of every fifty,
both of persons and of beasts, and gave them to the Levites who had charge
of the tabernacle of the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.
48 Then the officers who were over the thousands of the army, the captains
of thousands and the captains of hundreds, came near to Moses, 49and said
to Moses, “Your servants have counted the men of war who are under our
command, and there is not a man missing from us. 50And we have brought
the LORD’s offering, what each man found, articles of gold, armlets and
bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and beads, to make atonement for ourselves
before the LORD.” 51And Moses and Elea'zar the priest received from them
the gold, all wrought articles. 52And all the gold of the offering that they
offered to the LORD, from the commanders of thousands and the
commanders of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty
shekels. 53(The men of war had taken booty, every man for himself.) 54And
Moses and Elea'zar the priest received the gold from the commanders of
thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the tent of meeting, as a
memorial for the sons of Israel before the LORD.
Conquest and Division of the Trans-Jordan Lands
32 Now the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad had a very great
multitude of cattle; and they saw the land of Ja'zer and the land of Gilead,
and behold, the place was a place for cattle. 2So the sons of Gad and the
sons of Reuben came and said to Moses and to Elea'zar the priest and to the
leaders of the congregation, 3 “At'aroth, Di'bon, Ja'zer, Nimrah, Heshbon,
E''lea'leh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon, 4the land which the LORD struck before
the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle; and your servants have
cattle.” 5And they said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land
be given to your servants for a possession; do not take us across the
Jordan.”
6 But Moses said to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben, “Shall
your brethren go to the war while you sit here? 7Why will you discourage
the heart of the sons of Israel from going over into the land which the LORD
has given them? 8Thus did your fathers, when I sent them from Ka'desh-
bar'nea to see the land. 9For when they went up to the Valley of Eshcol, and
saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the sons of Israel from going
into the land which the LORD had given them. 10And the LORD’s anger was
kindled on that day, and he swore, saying, 11‘Surely none of the men who
came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land
which I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, because they have
not wholly followed me; 12none except Caleb the son of Jephun'neh the
Ken'izzite and Joshua the son of Nun, for they have wholly followed the
LORD.’ 13And the LORD’s anger was kindled against Israel, and he made
them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation that had
done evil in the sight of the LORD was consumed. 14And behold, you have
risen in your fathers’ stead, a brood of sinful men, to increase still more the
fierce anger of the LORD against Israel! 15For if you turn away from
following him, he will again abandon them in the wilderness; and you will
destroy all this people.”
16 Then they came near to him, and said, “We will build sheepfolds here
for our flocks, and cities for our little ones, 17but we will take up arms,
ready to go before the sons of Israel, until we have brought them to their
place; and our little ones shall live in the fortified cities because of the
inhabitants of the land. 18We will not return to our homes until the sons of
Israel have inherited each his inheritance. 19For we will not inherit with
them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond; because our inheritance
has come to us on this side of the Jordan to the east.” 20So Moses said to
them, “If you will do this, if you will take up arms to go before the LORD
for the war, 21and every armed man of you will pass over the Jordan before
the LORD, until he has driven out his enemies from before him 22and the
land is subdued before the LORD; then after that you shall return and be free
of obligation to the LORD and to Israel; and this land shall be your
possession before the LORD. 23But if you will not do so, behold, you have
sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out. 24Build
cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do what you have
promised.” 25And the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben said to Moses,
“Your servants will do as my lord commands. 26Our little ones, our wives,
our flocks, and all our cattle, shall remain there in the cities of Gilead; 27but
your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before the
LORD to battle, as my lord orders.”
28 So Moses gave command concerning them to Elea'zar the priest, and to
Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes
of the sons of Israel. 29And Moses said to them, “If the sons of Gad and the
sons of Reuben, every man who is armed to battle before the LORD, will
pass with you over the Jordan and the land shall be subdued before you,
then you shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession; 30but if they
will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you
in the land of Canaan.” 31And the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben
answered, “As the LORD has said to your servants, so we will do. 32We will
pass over armed before the LORD into the land of Canaan, and the
possession of our inheritance shall remain with us beyond the Jordan.”
33 And Moses gave to them, to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben
and to the half-tribe of Manas'seh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Si'hon
king of the Am'orites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land and
its cities with their territories, the cities of the land throughout the country.
34And the sons of Gad built Di'bon, At'aroth, Aro'er, 35At'roth-sho'phan,
Ja'zer, Jog'behah, 36Beth-nim'rah and Beth-har'an, fortified cities, and folds

for sheep. 37And the sons of Reuben built Heshbon, E''lea'leh, Kir''iatha'im,
38Nebo, and Ba'al-me'on (their names to be changed), and Sibmah; and they
gave other names to the cities which they built. 39And the sons of Ma'chir
the son of Manas'seh went to Gilead and took it, and dispossessed the
Am'orites who were in it. 40And Moses gave Gilead to Ma'chir the son of
Manas'seh, and he settled in it. 41And Ja'ir the son of Manas'seh went and
took their villages, and called them Hav'voth-ja'ir. z 42And No'bah went and
took Ke'nath and its villages, and called it Nobah, after his own name.
The Stages of Israel’s Journey from Egypt
33 These are the stages of the sons of Israel, when they went forth out
of the land of Egypt by their hosts under the leadership of Moses and
Aaron. 2Moses wrote down their starting places, stage by stage, by
command of the LORD; and these are their stages according to their starting
places. 3They set out from Ram'eses in the first month, on the fifteenth day
of the first month; on the day after the Passover the sons of Israel went out
triumphantly in the sight of all the Egyptians, 4while the Egyptians were
burying all their first-born, whom the LORD had struck down among them;
upon their gods also the LORD executed judgments.
5 So the sons of Israel set out from Ram'eses, and encamped at Succoth.
6And they set out from Succoth, and encamped at E'tham, which is on the
edge of the wilderness. 7And they set out from E'tham, and turned back to
Pi-hahi'roth, which is east of Ba'al-ze'phon; and they encamped before
Migdol. 8And they set out from before Hahi'roth, and passed through the
midst of the sea into the wilderness, and they went a three days’ journey in
the wilderness of E'tham, and encamped at Marah. 9And they set out from
Marah, and came to E'lim; at Elim there were twelve springs of water and
seventy palm trees, and they encamped there. 10And they set out from
E'lim, and encamped by the Red Sea. 11And they set out from the Red Sea,
and encamped in the wilderness of Sin. 12And they set out from the
wilderness of Sin, and encamped at Dophkah. 13And they set out from
Dophkah, and encamped at A'lush. 14And they set out from A'lush, and
encamped at Reph'idim, where there was no water for the people to drink.
15And they set out from Reph'idim, and encamped in the wilderness of
Sinai. 16And they set out from the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped at
Kib'roth-hatta'avah. 17And they set out from Kib'roth-hatta'avah, and
encamped at Haze'roth. 18And they set out from Haze'roth, and encamped at
Rithmah. 19And they set out from Rithmah, and encamped at Rim'mon-
per'ez. 20And they set out from Rim'mon-per'ez, and encamped at Libnah.
21And they set out from Libnah, and encamped at Rissah. 22And they set
out from Rissah, and encamped at Kehela'thah. 23And they set out from
Kehela'thah, and encamped at Mount She'pher. 24And they set out from
Mount She'pher, and encamped at Hara'dah. 25And they set out from
Hara'dah, and encamped at Makhe'loth. 26And they set out from
Makhe'loth, and encamped at Ta'hath. 27And they set out from Ta'hath, and
encamped at Te'rah. 28And they set out from Te'rah, and encamped at
Mithkah. 29And they set out from Mithkah, and encamped at Hashmo'nah.
30And they set out from Hashmo'nah, and encamped at Mose'roth. 31And
they set out from Mose'roth, and encamped at Be'ne-ja'akan. 32And they set
out from Be'ne-ja'akan, and encamped at Hor-haggid'gad. 33And they set
out from Hor-haggid'gad, and encamped at Jot'bathah. 34And they set out
from Jot'bathah, and encamped at Abro'nah. 35And they set out from
Abro'nah, and encamped at E'zion-ge'ber. 36And they set out from E'zion-
ge'ber, and encamped in the wilderness of Zin (that is, Ka'desh). 37And they
set out from Ka'desh, and encamped at Mount Hor, on the edge of the land
of E'dom.
38 And Aaron the priest went up Mount Hor at the command of the LORD,
and died there, in the fortieth year after the sons of Israel had come out of
the land of Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month. 39And Aaron was a
hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor.
40 And the Canaanite, the king of Ar'ad, who dwelt in the Neg'eb in the
land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the sons of Israel.

41 And they set out from Mount Hor, and encamped at Zalmo'nah. 42And
they set out from Zalmo'nah, and encamped at Pu'non. 43And they set out
from Pu'non, and encamped at O'both. 44And they set out from O'both, and
encamped at I'ye-ab'arim, in the territory of Moab. 45And they set out from
I'yim, and encamped at Di'bon-gad. 46And they set out from Di'bon-gad,
and encamped at Al'mon-diblatha'im. 47And they set out from Al'mon-
diblatha'im, and encamped in the mountains of Ab'arim, before Nebo.
48And they set out from the mountains of Ab'arim, and encamped in the
plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho; 49they encamped by the Jordan
from Beth-jesh'imoth as far as A'bel-shit'tim in the plains of Moab.
Instructions for the Conquest of Canaan
50 And the LORD said to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at
Jericho, 51 “Say to the sons of Israel, When you pass over the Jordan into
the land of Canaan, 52then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land
from before you, and destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their
molten images, and demolish all their high places; 53and you shall take
possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given the land to you to
possess it. 54You shall inherit the land by lot according to your families; to a
large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall
give a small inheritance; wherever the lot falls to any man, that shall be his;
according to the tribes of your fathers you shall inherit. 55But if you do not
drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them
whom you let remain shall be as pricks in your eyes and thorns in your
sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell. 56And I will
do to you as I thought to do to them.”
Boundaries of the Land of Canaan
34 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Command the sons of Israel, and say to
them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to
you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan in its full extent), 3your south
side shall be from the wilderness of Zin along the side of E'dom, and your
southern boundary shall be from the end of the Salt Sea on the east; 4and
your boundary shall turn south of the ascent of Akrab'bim, and cross to Zin,
and its end shall be south of Ka'desh-bar'nea; then it shall go on to Ha'zar-
ad'dar, and pass along to Azmon; 5and the boundary shall turn from Azmon
to the Brook of Egypt, and its termination shall be at the sea.
6 “For the western boundary, you shall have the Great Sea and its a coast;
this shall be your western boundary.

7 “This shall be your northern boundary: from the Great Sea you shall
mark out your line to Mount Hor; 8from Mount Hor you shall mark it out to
the entrance of Ha'math, and the end of the boundary shall be at Ze'dad;
9then the boundary shall extend to Ziphron, and its end shall be at Ha'zar-
e'nan; this shall be your northern boundary.

10 “You shall mark out your eastern boundary from Ha'zar-e'nan to
She'pham; 11and the boundary shall go down from She'pham to Riblah on
the east side of A'in; and the boundary shall go down, and reach to the
shoulder of the sea of Chin'nereth on the east; 12and the boundary shall go
down to the Jordan, and its end shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your
land with its boundaries all round.”
13 Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the land which
you shall inherit by lot, which the LORD has commanded to give to the nine
tribes and to the half-tribe; 14for the tribe of the sons of Reuben by fathers’
houses and the tribe of the sons of Gad by their fathers’ houses have
received their inheritance, and also the half-tribe of Manas'seh; 15the two
tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan at
Jericho eastward, toward the sunrise.”
Tribal Leaders
16 The LORD said to Moses, 17 “These are the names of the men who shall
divide the land to you for inheritance: Elea'zar the priest and Joshua the son
of Nun. 18You shall take one leader of every tribe, to divide the land for
inheritance. 19These are the names of the men: Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb
the son of Jephun'neh. 20Of the tribe of the sons of Simeon, Shemu'el the
son of Ammi'hud. 21Of the tribe of Benjamin, Eli'dad the son of Chis'lon.
22Of the tribe of the sons of Dan a leader, Bukki the son of Jogli. 23Of the
sons of Joseph: of the tribe of the sons of Manas'seh a leader, Han'niel the
son of E'phod. 24And of the tribe of the sons of E'phraim a leader, Ke'muel
the son of Shiph'tan. 25Of the tribe of the sons of Zeb'ulun a leader,
Eliza'phan the son of Parnach. 26Of the tribe of the sons of Is'sachar a
leader, Pal'ti-el the son of Azzan. 27And of the tribe of the sons of Asher a
leader, Ahi'hud the son of Shelo'mi. 28Of the tribe of the sons of Naph'tali a
leader, Pedah'el the son of Ammi'hud. 29These are the men whom the LORD
commanded to divide the inheritance for the sons of Israel in the land of
Canaan.”
Cities for the Levites
35 The LORD said to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at
Jericho, 2 “Command the sons of Israel, that they give to the Levites, from
the inheritance of their possession, cities to dwell in; and you shall give to
the Levites pasture lands round about the cities. 3The cities shall be theirs to
dwell in, and their pasture lands shall be for their cattle and for their
livestock and for all their beasts. 4The pasture lands of the cities, which you
shall give to the Levites, shall reach from the wall of the city outward a
thousand cubits all round. 5And you shall measure, outside the city, for the
east side two thousand cubits, and for the south side two thousand cubits,
and for the west side two thousand cubits, and for the north side two
thousand cubits, the city being in the middle; this shall belong to them as
pasture land for their cities. 6The cities which you give to the Levites shall
be the six cities of refuge, where you shall permit the manslayer to flee, and
in addition to them you shall give forty-two cities. 7All the cities which you
give to the Levites shall be forty-eight, with their pasture lands. 8And as for
the cities which you shall give from the possession of the sons of Israel,
from the larger tribes you shall take many, and from the smaller tribes you
shall take few; each, in proportion to the inheritance which it inherits, shall
give of its cities to the Levites.”
Cities of Refuge
9 And the LORD said to Moses, 10 “Say to the sons of Israel, When you
cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 11then you shall select cities to be
cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer who kills any person without
intent may flee there. 12The cities shall be for you a refuge from the
avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the
congregation for judgment. 13And the cities which you give shall be your
six cities of refuge. 14You shall give three cities beyond the Jordan, and
three cities in the land of Canaan, to be cities of refuge. 15These six cities
shall be for refuge for the sons of Israel, and for the stranger and for the
sojourner among them, that any one who kills any person without intent
may flee there.
Concerning Murder and Revenge
16 “But if he struck him down with an instrument of iron, so that he died,
he is a murderer; the murderer shall be put to death. 17And if he struck him

down with a stone in the hand, by which a man may die, and he died, he is a
murderer; the murderer shall be put to death. 18Or if he struck him down
with a weapon of wood in the hand, by which a man may die, and he died,
he is a murderer; the murderer shall be put to death. 19The avenger of blood
shall himself put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put
him to death. 20And if he stabbed him from hatred, or hurled at him, lying
in wait, so that he died, 21or in enmity struck him down with his hand, so
that he died, then he who struck the blow shall be put to death; he is a
murderer; the avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death, when he
meets him.
22 “But if he stabbed him suddenly without enmity, or hurled anything on
him without lying in wait, 23or used a stone, by which a man may die, and
without seeing him cast it upon him, so that he died, though he was not his
enemy, and did not seek his harm; 24then the congregation shall judge
between the manslayer and the avenger of blood, in accordance with these
ordinances; 25and the congregation shall rescue the manslayer from the
hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his
city of refuge, to which he had fled, and he shall live in it until the death of
the high priest who was anointed with the holy oil. 26But if the manslayer
shall at any time go beyond the bounds of his city of refuge to which he
fled, 27and the avenger of blood finds him outside the bounds of his city of
refuge, and the avenger of blood slays the manslayer, he shall not be guilty
of blood. 28For the man must remain in his city of refuge until the death of
the high priest; but after the death of the high priest the manslayer may
return to the land of his possession.
29 “And these things shall be for a statute and ordinance to you throughout
your generations in all your dwellings. 30If any one kills a person, the
murderer shall be put to death on the evidence of witnesses; but no person
shall be put to death on the testimony of one witness. 31Moreover you shall
accept no ransom for the life of a murderer, who is guilty of death; but he
shall be put to death. 32And you shall accept no ransom for him who has
fled to his city of refuge, that he may return to dwell in the land before the
death of the high priest. 33You shall not thus pollute the land in which you
live; for blood pollutes the land, and no expiation can be made for the land,
for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of him who shed it.
34You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I
dwell; for I the LORD dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel.”
Concerning Married Women’s Inheritance
36 The heads of the fathers’ houses of the families of the sons of Gilead
the son of Ma'chir, son of Manas'seh, of the fathers’ houses of the sons of
Joseph, came near and spoke before Moses and before the leaders, the
heads of the fathers’ houses of the sons of Israel; 2they said, “The LORD
commanded my lord to give the land for inheritance by lot to the sons of
Israel; and my lord was commanded by the LORD to give the inheritance of
Zeloph'ehad our brother to his daughters. 3But if they are married to any of
the sons of the other tribes of the sons of Israel then their inheritance will be
taken from the inheritance of our fathers, and added to the inheritance of the
tribe to which they belong; so it will be taken away from the lot of our
inheritance. 4And when the jubilee of the sons of Israel comes, then their
inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe to which they
belong; and their inheritance will be taken from the inheritance of the tribe
of our fathers.”
5 And Moses commanded the sons of Israel according to the word of the
LORD, saying, “The tribe of the sons of Joseph is right. 6This is what the
LORD commands concerning the daughters of Zeloph'ehad, ‘Let them marry
whom they think best; only, they shall marry within the family of the tribe
of their father. 7The inheritance of the sons of Israel shall not be transferred
from one tribe to another; for every one of the sons of Israel shall cling to
the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers. 8And every daughter who
possesses an inheritance in any tribe of the sons of Israel shall be wife to
one of the family of the tribe of her father, so that every one of the sons of
Israel may possess the inheritance of his fathers. 9So no inheritance shall be
transferred from one tribe to another; for each of the tribes of the sons of
Israel shall cling to its own inheritance.’ ”
10 The daughters of Zeloph'ehad did as the LORD commanded Moses; 11for
Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Noah, the daughters of Zeloph'ehad,

were married to sons of their father’s brothers. 12They were married into the
families of the sons of Manas'seh the son of Joseph, and their inheritance
remained in the tribe of the family of their father.
13 These are the commandments and the ordinances which the LORD
commanded by Moses to the sons of Israel in the plains of Moab by the

Jordan at Jericho.
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Deuteronomy
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34
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DEUTERONOMY
Events at Horeb Recalled
1 *These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel beyond the Jordan
in the wilderness, in the Ar'abah over against Suph, between Par'an and
To'phel, La'ban, Haze'roth, and Di'zahab. 2It is eleven days’ journey from
Horeb by the way of Mount Se'ir to Ka'desh-bar'nea. 3And in the fortieth
year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the sons of
Israel according to all that the LORD had given him in commandment to
them, 4after he had defeated Si'hon the king of the Am'orites, who lived in
Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who lived in Ash'taroth and in Ed're-i.
5Beyond the Jordan, in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to explain this
law, saying, 6 “The LORD our God said to us in Horeb, ‘You have stayed
long enough at this mountain; 7turn and take your journey, and go to the hill
country of the Am'orites, and to all their neighbors in the Ar'abah, in the hill
country and in the lowland, and in the Neg'eb, and by the seacoast, the land
of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river
Euphrates. 8Behold, I have set the land before you; go in and take
possession of the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham,
to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their descendants after them.’
Appointment of Heads of the Tribes
9 “At that time I said to you, ‘I am not able alone to bear you; 10the LORD
your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are this day as the stars of
heaven for multitude. 11May the LORD, the God of your fathers, make you a
thousand times as many as you are, and bless you, as he has promised you!
12How can I bear alone the weight and burden of you and your strife?
13Choose wise, understanding, and experienced men, according to your
tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads.’ 14And you answered me,
‘The thing that you have spoken is good for us to do.’ 15So I took the heads
of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and set them as heads over you,
commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of
fifties, commanders of tens, and officers, throughout your tribes. 16And I
charged your judges at that time, ‘Hear the cases between your brethren,
and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the alien that is
with him. 17You shall not be partial in judgment; you shall hear the small
and the great alike; you shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the
judgment is God’s; and the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to
me, and I will hear it.’ 18And I commanded you at that time all the things
that you should do.
Israel’s Refusal to Enter the Land
19 “And we set out from Horeb, and went through all that great and
terrible wilderness which you saw, on the way to the hill country of the
Am'orites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Ka'desh-
bar'nea. 20And I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the
Am'orites, which the LORD our God gives us. 21Behold, the LORD your God
has set the land before you; go up, take possession, as the LORD, the God of
your fathers, has told you; do not fear or be dismayed.’ 22Then all of you
came near me, and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may explore
the land for us, and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up
and the cities into which we shall come.’ 23The thing seemed good to me,
and I took twelve men of you, one man for each tribe; 24and they turned and
went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it
out. 25And they took in their hands some of the fruit of the land and brought
it down to us, and brought us word again, and said, ‘It is a good land which
the LORD our God gives us.’
26 “Yet you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the
LORD your God; 27and you murmured in your tents, and said, ‘Because the
LORD hated us he has brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to give us
into the hand of the Am'orites, to destroy us. 28Where are we going up? Our
brethren have made our hearts melt, saying, “The people are greater and
taller than we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; and moreover
we have seen the sons of the An'akim there.” ’ 29Then I said to you, ‘Do not
be in dread or afraid of them. 30The LORD your God who goes before you
will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes,
31and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the LORD your God bore
you, as a man bears his son, in all the way that you went until you came to
this place.’ 32Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the LORD your
God, 33who went before you in the way to seek you out a place to pitch
your tents, in fire by night, to show you by what way you should go, and in
the cloud by day.
Punishment for Israel’s Rebellion
34 “And the LORD heard your words, and was angered, and he swore,
35 ‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land
which I swore to give to your fathers, 36except Caleb the son of Jephun'neh;
he shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land upon
which he has trodden, because he has wholly followed the LORD!’ 37The
LORD was angry with me also on your account, and said, ‘You also shall not
go in there; 38Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter;
encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. 39Moreover your little
ones, who you said would become a prey, and your children, who this day
have no knowledge of good or evil, shall go in there, and to them I will give
it, and they shall possess it. 40But as for you, turn, and journey into the
wilderness in the direction of the Red Sea.’
41 “Then you answered me, ‘We have sinned against the LORD; we will go
up and fight, just as the LORD our God commanded us.’ And every man of
you belted on his weapons of war, and thought it easy to go up into the hill
country. 42And the LORD said to me, ‘Say to them, Do not go up or fight, for
I am not in the midst of you; lest you be defeated before your enemies.’
43So I spoke to you, and you would not listen; but you rebelled against the
command of the LORD, and were presumptuous and went up into the hill
country. 44Then the Am'orites who lived in that hill country came out
against you and chased you as bees do and beat you down in Se'ir as far as
Hormah. 45And you returned and wept before the LORD; but the LORD did
not listen to your voice or give ear to you. 46So you remained at Ka'desh
many days, the days that you remained there.
The Years in the Wilderness
2 “Then we turned, and journeyed into the wilderness in the direction of
the Red Sea, as the LORD told me; and for many days we went about Mount
Se'ir. 2Then the LORD said to me, 3 ‘You have been going about this
mountain country long enough; turn northward. 4And command the people,
You are about to pass through the territory of your brethren the sons of
Esau, who live in Se'ir; and they will be afraid of you. So take good heed;
5do not contend with them; for I will not give you any of their land, no, not
so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on, because I have given Mount
Se'ir to Esau as a possession. 6You shall purchase food from them for
money, that you may eat; and you shall also buy water of them for money,
that you may drink. 7For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work
of your hands; he knows your going through this great wilderness; these
forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have lacked
nothing.’ 8So we went on, away from our brethren the sons of Esau who
live in Se'ir, away from the Ar'abah road from E'lath and E'zion-ge'ber.
“And we turned and went in the direction of the wilderness of Moab. 9And
the LORD said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab or contend with them in battle,
for I will not give you any of their land for a possession, because I have
given Ar to the sons of Lot for a possession.’ 10(The E'mim formerly lived
there, a people great and many, and tall as the An'akim; 11like the An'akim
they are also known as Reph'aim, but the Moabites call them E'mim. 12The
Horites also lived in Se'ir formerly, but the sons of Esau dispossessed them,
and destroyed them from before them, and settled in their stead; as Israel
did to the land of their possession, which the LORD gave to them.) 13 ‘Now
rise up, and go over the brook Ze'red.’ So we went over the brook Zered.
14And the time from our leaving Ka'desh-bar'nea until we crossed the brook
Ze'red was thirty-eight years, until the entire generation, that is, the men of
war, had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them. 15For
indeed the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from the
camp, until they had perished.
16 “So when all the men of war had perished and were dead from among
the people, 17the LORD said to me, 18 ‘This day you are to pass over the
boundary of Moab at Ar; 19and when you approach the frontier of the sons
of Ammon, do not harass them or contend with them, for I will not give you
any of the land of the sons of Ammon as a possession, because I have given
it to the sons of Lot for a possession.’ 20(That also is known as a land of
Reph'aim; Rephaim formerly lived there, but the Am'monites call them
Zamzum'mim, 21a people great and many, and tall as the An'akim; but the
LORD destroyed them before them; and they dispossessed them, and settled
in their stead; 22as he did for the sons of Esau, who live in Se'ir, when he
destroyed the Horites before them, and they dispossessed them, and settled
in their stead even to this day. 23As for the Avvim, who lived in villages as
far as Gaza, the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and
settled in their stead.) 24 ‘Rise up, take your journey, and go over the valley
of the Arnon; behold, I have given into your hand Si'hon the Am'orite, king
of Heshbon, and his land; begin to take possession, and contend with him in
battle. 25This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon the
peoples that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you
and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.’
The Defeat of Sihon the King of Heshbon
26 “So I sent messengers from the wilderness of Ked'emoth to Si'hon the
king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying, 27 ‘Let me pass through your
land; I will go only by the road, I will turn aside neither to the right nor to
the left. 28You shall sell me food for money, that I may eat, and give me
water for money, that I may drink; only let me pass through on foot, 29as the
sons of Esau who live in Se'ir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for me,
until I go over the Jordan into the land which the LORD our God gives to
us.’ 30But Si'hon the king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him; for the
LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that he
might give him into your hand, as at this day. 31And the LORD said to me,
‘Behold, I have begun to give Si'hon and his land over to you; begin to take
possession, that you may occupy his land.’ 32Then Si'hon came out against
us, he and all his people, to battle at Ja'haz. 33And the LORD our God gave
him over to us; and we defeated him and his sons and all his people. 34And
we captured all his cities at that time and utterly destroyed every city, men,
women, and children; we left none remaining; 35only the cattle we took as
spoil for ourselves, with the booty of the cities which we captured. 36From
Aro'er, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and from the city
that is in the valley, as far as Gilead, there was not a city too high for us; the
LORD our God gave all into our hands. 37Only to the land of the sons of
Ammon you did not draw near, that is, to all the banks of the river Jabbok
and the cities of the hill country, and wherever the LORD our God forbade
us.
The Defeat of Og the King of Bashan
3 “Then we turned and went up the way to Bashan; and Og the king of
Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, to battle at Ed're-i. 2But
the LORD said to me, ‘Do not fear him; for I have given him and all his
people and his land into your hand; and you shall do to him as you did to
Si'hon the king of the Am'orites, who dwelt at Heshbon.’ 3So the LORD our
God gave into our hand Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people; and
we struck him until no survivor was left to him. 4And we took all his cities
at that time—there was not a city which we did not take from them—sixty
cities, the whole region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 5All these
were cities fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, besides very many
unwalled villages. 6And we utterly destroyed them, as we did to Si'hon the
king of Heshbon, destroying every city, men, women, and children. 7But all
the cattle and the spoil of the cities we took as our booty. 8So we took the
land at that time out of the hand of the two kings of the Am'orites who were
beyond the Jordan, from the valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon 9(the
Sido'nians call Hermon Sir'ion, while the Am'orites call it Se'nir), 10all the
cities of the tableland and all Gilead and all Bashan, as far as Sal'ecah and
Ed're-i, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 11(For only Og the king of
Bashan was left of the remnant of the Reph'aim; behold, his bedstead was a
bedstead of iron; is it not in Rabbah of the Am'monites? Nine cubits was its
length, and four cubits its breadth, according to the common cubit. a )
12 “When we took possession of this land at that time, I gave to the
Reubenites and the Gadites the territory beginning at Aro'er, which is on the
edge of the valley of the Arnon, and half the hill country of Gilead with its
cities; 13the rest of Gilead, and all Bashan, the kingdom of Og, that is, all
the region of Argob, I gave to the half-tribe of Manas'seh. (The whole of
that Bashan is called the land of Reph'aim. 14Ja'ir the Manas'site took all the
region of Argob, that is, Bashan, as far as the border of the Gesh'urites and
the Ma-ac'athites, and called the villages after his own name, Hav'voth-ja'ir,
as it is to this day.) 15To Ma'chir I gave Gilead, 16and to the Reubenites and
the Gadites I gave the territory from Gilead as far as the valley of the
Arnon, with the middle of the valley as a boundary, as far over as the river
Jabbok, the boundary of the Am'monites; 17the Ar'abah also, with the
Jordan as the boundary, from Chin'nereth as far as the sea of the Arabah, the
Salt Sea, under the slopes of Pisgah on the east.
18 “And I commanded you at that time, saying, ‘The LORD your God has
given you this land to possess; all your men of valor shall pass over armed
before your brethren the sons of Israel. 19But your wives, your little ones,
and your cattle (I know that you have many cattle) shall remain in the cities
which I have given you, 20until the LORD gives rest to your brethren, as to
you, and they also occupy the land which the LORD your God gives them
beyond the Jordan; then you shall return every man to his possession which
I have given you.’ 21And I commanded Joshua at that time, ‘Your eyes have
seen all that the LORD your God has done to these two kings; so will the
LORD do to all the kingdoms into which you are going over. 22You shall not
fear them; for it is the LORD your God who fights for you.’
Moses Views Canaan from Pisgah
23 “And I begged the LORD at that time, saying, 24 ‘O Lord GOD, you have
only begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand; for
what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty
acts as yours? 25Let me go over, I pray, and see the good land beyond the
Jordan, that excellent hill country, and Lebanon.’ 26But the LORD was angry
with me on your account, and would not listen to me; and the LORD said to
me, ‘Let it satisfy you; speak no more to me of this matter. 27Go up to the
top of Pisgah, and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward
and eastward, and behold it with your eyes; for you shall not go over this
Jordan. 28But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him; for he shall
go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the
land which you shall see.’ 29So we remained in the valley opposite Beth-
pe'or.
Moses Commands Obedience to God
4 “And now, O Israel, give heed to the statutes and the ordinances which
I teach you, and do them; that you may live, and go in and take possession
of the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, gives you. 2You shall
not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it; that you may
keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.
3Your eyes have seen what the LORD did at Ba'al-pe'or; for the LORD your
God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Ba'al of Peor;
4but you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive this day. 5Behold,
I have taught you statutes and ordinances, as the LORD my God commanded
me, that you should do them in the land which you are entering to take
possession of it. 6Keep them and do them; for that will be your wisdom and
your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all
these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding
people.’ 7For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the
LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? 8And what great nation
is there, that has statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law which I
set before you this day?
9 “Only take heed, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things
which your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days
of your life; make them known to your children and your children’s
children—10how on the day that you stood before the LORD your God at
Horeb, the LORD said to me, ‘Gather the people to me, that I may let them
hear my words, so that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live
upon the earth, and that they may teach their children so.’ 11And you came
near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with
fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom. 12Then
the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of
words, but saw no form; there was only a voice. 13And he declared to you
his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the ten
commandments; b and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. 14And the
LORD commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances, that
you might do them in the land which you are going over to possess.
15 “Therefore take good heed to yourselves. Since you saw no form on the
day that the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire,
16beware lest you act corruptly by making a graven image for yourselves, in
the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, 17the likeness of any
beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air,
18the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish
that is in the water under the earth. 19And beware lest you lift up your eyes
to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host
of heaven, you be drawn away and worship them and serve them, things
which the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole
heaven. 20But the LORD has taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron
furnace, out of Egypt, to be a people of his own possession, as at this day.
21Furthermore the LORD was angry with me on your account, and he swore
that I should not cross the Jordan, and that I should not enter the good land
which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance. 22For I must die in
this land, I must not go over the Jordan; but you shall go over and take
possession of that good land. 23Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the
covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you, and make a
graven image in the form of anything which the LORD your God has
forbidden you. 24For the LORD your God is a devouring fire, a jealous God.
25 “When you beget children and children’s children, and have grown old
in the land, if you act corruptly by making a graven image in the form of
anything, and by doing what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, so as
to provoke him to anger, 26I call heaven and earth to witness against you
this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you are going
over the Jordan to possess; you will not live long upon it, but will be utterly
destroyed. 27And the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and you will
be left few in number among the nations where the LORD will drive you.
28And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of men’s
hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. 29But from there you
will seek the LORD your God, and you will find him, if you search after him
with all your heart and with all your soul. 30When you are in tribulation,
and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the
LORD your God and obey his voice, 31for the LORD your God is a merciful
God; he will not fail you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your
fathers which he swore to them.
32 “For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the
day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from one end of heaven
to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was
ever heard of. 33Did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of
the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? 34Or has God ever
attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another
nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an
outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your
God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35To you it was shown, that you
might know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides him. 36Out of
heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you; and on earth
he let you see his great fire, and you heard his words out of the midst of the
fire. 37And because he loved your fathers and chose their descendants after
them, and brought you out of Egypt with his own presence, by his great
power, 38driving out before you nations greater and mightier than
yourselves, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as at
this day; 39know therefore this day, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is
God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other.
40Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I
command you this day, that it may go well with you, and with your children
after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which the LORD
your God gives you for ever.” *
Cities of Refuge East of the Jordan
41 * Then Moses set apart three cities in the east beyond the Jordan, 42that
the manslayer might flee there, who kills his neighbor unintentionally,
without being at enmity with him in time past, and that by fleeing to one of
these cities he might save his life: 43Bezer in the wilderness on the tableland
for the Reubenites, and Ramoth in Gilead for the Gadites, and Golan in
Bashan for the Manas'sites.
Moses Sets Forth the Law
44 This is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel; 45these are
the decrees, the statutes, and the ordinances, which Moses spoke to the
children of Israel when they came out of Egypt, 46beyond the Jordan in the
valley opposite Beth-pe'or, in the land of Si'hon the king of the Am'orites,
who lived at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel defeated
when they came out of Egypt. 47And they took possession of his land and
the land of Og the king of Bashan, the two kings of the Am'orites, who
lived to the east beyond the Jordan; 48from Aro'er, which is on the edge of
the valley of the Arnon, as far as Mount Sir'ion c (that is, Hermon),
49together with all the Ar'abah on the east side of the Jordan as far as the
Sea of the Arabah, under the slopes of Pisgah.

The Ten Commandments
5 And Moses summoned all Israel, and said to them, “Hear, O Israel, the
statutes and the ordinances which I speak in your hearing this day, and you
shall learn them and be careful to do them. 2The LORD our God made a
covenant with us in Horeb. 3Not with our fathers did the LORD make this
covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive this day. 4The LORD
spoke with you face to face at the mountain, out of the midst of the fire,
5while I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to declare to you the
word of the LORD; for you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not
go up into the mountain. He said:
6 “ ‘I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of bondage.

7 “ ‘You shall have no other gods before d me.
8 You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of
anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in
the water under the earth; 9you shall not bow down to them or serve them;
for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who
hate me, 10but showing merciful love to thousands of those who love me
and keep my commandments.
11 “ ‘You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain: for the
LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
12 “ ‘Observe the sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God
commanded you. 13Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; 14but the
seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any
work, you, or your son, or your daughter, or your manservant, or your
maidservant, or your ox, or your donkey, or any of your cattle, or the
sojourner who is within your gates, that your manservant and your
maidservant may rest as well as you. 15You shall remember that you were a
servant in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from
there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your
God commanded you to keep the sabbath day.
16 “ ‘Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God
commanded you; that your days may be prolonged, and that it may go well
with you, in the land which the LORD your God gives you.
17 “ ‘You shall not kill.
18 “ ‘Neither shall you commit adultery.
19 “ ‘Neither shall you steal.
20 “ ‘Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbor.
21 “ ‘Neither shall you covet your neighbor’s wife; and you shall not desire
your neighbor’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his
ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’
Moses the Mediator of God’s Will
22 “These words the LORD spoke to all your assembly at the mountain out
of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice;
and he added no more. And he wrote them upon two tables of stone, and
gave them to me. 23And when you heard the voice out of the midst of the
darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me,
all the heads of your tribes, and your elders; 24and you said, ‘Behold, the
LORD our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his
voice out of the midst of the fire; we have this day seen God speak with
man and man still live. 25Now therefore why should we die? For this great
fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more,
we shall die. 26For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the
living God speaking out of the midst of fire, as we have, and has still lived?
27Go near, and hear all that the LORD our God will say; and speak to us all
that the LORD our God will speak to you; and we will hear and do it.’
28 “And the LORD heard your words, when you spoke to me; and the LORD
said to me, ‘I have heard the words of this people, which they have spoken
to you; they have rightly said all that they have spoken. 29Oh that they had
such a mind as this always, to fear me and to keep all my commandments,
that it might go well with them and with their children for ever! 30Go and
say to them, “Return to your tents.” 31But you, stand here by me, and I will
tell you all the commandment and the statutes and the ordinances which
you shall teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them
to possess.’ 32You shall be careful to do therefore as the LORD your God has
commanded you; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
33You shall walk in all the way which the LORD your God has commanded
you, that you may live, and that it may go well with you, and that you may
live long in the land which you shall possess.
The Great Commandment
6 “Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the ordinances
which the LORD your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do
them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it; 2that you may
fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping
all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days
of your life; and that your days may be prolonged. 3Hear therefore, O Israel,
and be careful to do them; that it may go well with you, and that you may
multiply greatly, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in
a land flowing with milk and honey.
4 * “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD; e 5and you shall love
the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all
your might. 6And these words which I command you this day shall be upon
your heart; 7and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall
talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way,
and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8And you shall bind them as a
sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9And
you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Caution against Disobedience
10 “And when the LORD your God brings you into the land which he swore
to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you, with great
and excellent cities, which you did not build, 11and houses full of all good
things, which you did not fill, and cisterns hewn out, which you did not
hew, and vineyards and olive trees, which you did not plant, and when you
eat and are full, 12then take heed lest you forget the LORD, who brought you
out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 13You shall fear the
LORD your God; you shall serve him, and swear by his name. 14You shall
not go after other gods, of the gods of the peoples who are round about you;
15for the LORD your God in the midst of you is a jealous God; lest the anger
of the LORD your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off
the face of the earth.
16 “You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at
Massah. 17You shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your
God, and his decrees, and his statutes, which he has commanded you. 18And
you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go
well with you, and that you may go in and take possession of the good land
which the LORD swore to give to your fathers 19by thrusting out all your
enemies from before you, as the LORD has promised.
20 “When your son asks you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the
decrees and the statutes and the ordinances which the LORD our God has
commanded you?’ 21then you shall say to your son, ‘We were Pharaoh’s
slaves in Egypt; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand;
22and the LORD showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against
Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes; 23and he
brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land
which he swore to give to our fathers. 24And the LORD commanded us to do
all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he
might preserve us alive, as at this day. 25And it will be righteousness for us,
if we are careful to do all this commandment before the LORD our God, as
he has commanded us.’
A Chosen People
7 “When the LORD your God brings you into the land which you are
entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you,
the Hittites, the Gir'gashites, the Am'orites, the Canaanites, the Per'izzites,
the Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites, seven nations greater and mightier than
yourselves, 2and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you
defeat them; then you must utterly destroy them; you shall make no
covenant with them, and show no mercy to them. 3You shall not make
marriages with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their
daughters for your sons. 4For they would turn away your sons from
following me, to serve other gods; then the anger of the LORD would be
kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. 5But thus shall you
deal with them: you shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their
pillars, and hew down their Ashe'rim, and burn their graven images with
fire.
6 “For you are a people holy to the LORD your God; the LORD your God
has chosen you to be a people for his own possession, out of all the peoples
that are on the face of the earth. 7It was not because you were more in
number than any other people that the LORD set his love upon you and
chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples; 8but it is because the
LORD loves you, and is keeping the oath which he swore to your fathers,
that the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you
from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 9Know
therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps
covenant and merciful love with those who love him and keep his
commandments, to a thousand generations, 10and repays to their face those
who hate him, by destroying them; he will not be slack with him who hates
him, he will repay him to his face. 11You shall therefore be careful to do the
commandment, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which I command you
this day.
Blessing for Obedience
12 “And because you listen to these ordinances, and keep and do them, the
LORD your God will keep with you the covenant and the merciful love
which he swore to your fathers to keep; 13he will love you, bless you, and
multiply you; he will also bless the fruit of your body and the fruit of your
ground, your grain and your wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle
and the young of your flock, in the land which he swore to your fathers to
give you. 14You shall be blessed above all peoples; there shall not be male
or female barren among you, or among your cattle. 15And the LORD will
take away from you all sickness; and none of the evil diseases of Egypt,
which you knew, will he inflict upon you, but he will lay them upon all who
hate you. 16And you shall destroy all the peoples that the LORD your God
will give over to you, your eye shall not pity them; neither shall you serve
their gods, for that would be a snare to you.
17 “If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I
dispossess them?’ 18you shall not be afraid of them, but you shall remember
what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt, 19the great trials
which your eyes saw, the signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, and the
outstretched arm, by which the LORD your God brought you out; so will the
LORD your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid. 20Moreover
the LORD your God will send hornets among them, until those who are left
and hide themselves from you are destroyed. 21You shall not be in dread of
them; for the LORD your God is in the midst of you, a great and terrible
God. 22The LORD your God will clear away these nations before you little
by little; you may not make an end of them at once, f lest the wild beasts
grow too numerous for you. 23But the LORD your God will give them over
to you, and throw them into great confusion, until they are destroyed. 24And
he will give their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name
perish from under heaven; not a man shall be able to stand against you, until
you have destroyed them. 25The graven images of their gods you shall burn
with fire; you shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, or take it
for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it; for it is an abomination to the
LORD your God. 26And you shall not bring an abominable thing into your
house, and become accursed like it; you shall utterly detest and abhor it; for
it is an accursed thing.
A Warning Not to Forget God
8 “All the commandment which I command you this day you shall be
careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land
which the LORD swore to give to your fathers. 2And you shall remember all
the way which the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the
wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in
your heart, whether you would keep his commandments, or not. 3And he
humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did
not know, nor did your fathers know; that he might make you know that
man does not live by bread alone, but that man lives by everything that
proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD. 4Your clothing did not wear out
upon you, and your foot did not swell, these forty years. 5Know then in
your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the LORD your God disciplines
you. 6So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, by
walking in his ways and by fearing him. 7For the LORD your God is
bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and
springs, flowing forth in valleys and hills, 8a land of wheat and barley, of
vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, 9a
land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack
nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig
copper. 10And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your
God for the good land he has given you.
11 “Take heed lest you forget the LORD your God, by not keeping his
commandments and his ordinances and his statutes, which I command you
this day: 12lest, when you have eaten and are full, and have built excellent
houses and live in them, 13and when your herds and flocks multiply, and
your silver and gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied, 14then
your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you
out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, 15who led you
through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and
scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you
water out of the flinty rock, 16who fed you in the wilderness with manna
which your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to
do you good in the end. 17Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and
the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ 18You shall remember
the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth; that he
may confirm his covenant which he swore to your fathers, as at this day.
19And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve
them and worship them, I solemnly warn you this day that you shall surely
perish. 20Like the nations that the LORD makes to perish before you, so shall
you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God.
Consequences of Rebelling against God
9 “Hear, O Israel; you are to pass over the Jordan this day, to go in to
dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourselves, cities great and
fortified up to heaven, 2a people great and tall, the sons of the An'akim,
whom you know, and of whom you have heard it said, ‘Who can stand
before the sons of A'nak?’ 3Know therefore this day that he who goes over
before you as a devouring fire is the LORD your God; he will destroy them
and subdue them before you; so you shall drive them out, and make them
perish quickly, as the LORD has promised you.
4 “Do not say in your heart, after the LORD your God has thrust them out
before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the LORD has brought me
in to possess this land’; whereas it is because of the wickedness of these
nations that the LORD is driving them out before you. 5Not because of your
righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess
their land; but because of the wickedness of these nations the LORD your
God is driving them out from before you, and that he may confirm the word
which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
6 “Know therefore, that the LORD your God is not giving you this good
land to possess because of your righteousness; for you are a stubborn

people. 7Remember and do not forget how you provoked the LORD your
God to wrath in the wilderness; from the day you came out of the land of
Egypt, until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against the
LORD. 8Even at Horeb you provoked the LORD to wrath, and the LORD was
so angry with you that he was ready to destroy you. 9When I went up the
mountain to receive the tables of stone, the tables of the covenant which the
LORD made with you, I remained on the mountain forty days and forty
nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water. 10And the LORD gave me the two
tables of stone written with the finger of God; and on them were all the
words which the LORD had spoken with you on the mountain out of the
midst of the fire on the day of the assembly. 11And at the end of forty days
and forty nights the LORD gave me the two tables of stone, the tables of the
covenant. 12Then the LORD said to me, ‘Arise, go down quickly from here;
for your people whom you have brought from Egypt have acted corruptly;
they have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them;
they have made themselves a molten image.’
13 “Furthermore the LORD said to me, ‘I have seen this people, and behold,
it is a stubborn people; 14let me alone, that I may destroy them and blot out
their name from under heaven; and I will make of you a nation mightier and
greater than they.’ 15So I turned and came down from the mountain, and the
mountain was burning with fire; and the two tables of the covenant were in
my two hands. 16And I looked, and behold, you had sinned against the
LORD your God; you had made yourselves a molten calf; you had turned
aside quickly from the way which the LORD had commanded you. 17So I
took hold of the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and broke
them before your eyes. 18Then I lay prostrate before the LORD as before,
forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of
all the sin which you had committed, in doing what was evil in the sight of
the LORD, to provoke him to anger. 19For I was afraid of the anger and hot
displeasure which the LORD bore against you, so that he was ready to
destroy you. But the LORD listened to me that time also. 20And the LORD
was so angry with Aaron that he was ready to destroy him; and I prayed for
Aaron also at the same time. 21Then I took the sinful thing, the calf which
you had made, and burned it with fire and crushed it, grinding it very small,
until it was as fine as dust; and I threw the dust of it into the brook that
descended out of the mountain.
22 “At Tab'erah also, and at Massah, and at Kib'roth-hatta'avah, you
provoked the LORD to wrath. 23And when the LORD sent you from Ka'desh-
bar'nea, saying, ‘Go up and take possession of the land which I have given
you,’ then you rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God,
and did not believe him or obey his voice. 24You have been rebellious
against the LORD from the day that I knew you.
25 “So I lay prostrate before the LORD for these forty days and forty nights,
because the LORD had said he would destroy you. 26And I prayed to the
LORD, ‘O Lord GOD, do not destroy your people and your heritage, whom
you have redeemed through your greatness, whom you have brought out of
Egypt with a mighty hand. 27Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob; do not regard the stubbornness of this people, or their wickedness, or
their sin, 28lest the land from which you brought us say, “Because the LORD
was not able to bring them into the land which he promised them, and
because he hated them, he has brought them out to slay them in the
wilderness.” 29For they are your people and your heritage, whom you
brought out by your great power and by your outstretched arm.’
The Second Pair of Stone Tables
10 “At that time the LORD said to me, ‘Hew two tables of stone like the
first, and come up to me on the mountain, and make an ark of wood. 2And I
will write on the tables the words that were on the first tables which you
broke, and you shall put them in the ark.’ 3So I made an ark of acacia wood,
and hewed two tables of stone like the first, and went up the mountain with
the two tables in my hand. 4And he wrote on the tables, as at the first
writing, the ten commandments g which the LORD had spoken to you on the
mountain out of the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly; and the
LORD gave them to me. 5Then I turned and came down from the mountain,
and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they are, as the
LORD commanded me.
6 “(The sons of Israel journeyed from Be-er'oth Be'ne-ja'akan h to
Mose'rah. There Aaron died, and there he was buried; and his son Elea'zar
ministered as priest in his stead. 7From there they journeyed to Gud'godah,
and from Gudgodah to Jot'bathah, a land with brooks of water. 8At that time
the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the
LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister to him and to bless in his name,
to this day. 9Therefore Levi has no portion or inheritance with his brothers;
the LORD is his inheritance, as the LORD your God said to him.)
10 “I stayed on the mountain, as at the first time, forty days and forty
nights, and the LORD listened to me that time also; the LORD was unwilling
to destroy you. 11And the LORD said to me, ‘Arise, go on your journey at the
head of the people, that they may go in and possess the land, which I swore
to their fathers to give them.’
The Essence of the Law
12 “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to
fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the
LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13and to keep the
commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I command you this day
for your good? 14Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the
heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it; 15yet the LORD set his
heart in love upon your fathers and chose their descendants after them, you
above all peoples, as at this day. 16Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your
heart, and be no longer stubborn. 17For the LORD your God is God of gods
and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who is not
partial and takes no bribe. 18He executes justice for the fatherless and the
widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 19Love the
sojourner therefore; for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 20You
shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve him and cling to him, and by
his name you shall swear. 21He is your praise; he is your God, who has done
for you these great and terrible things which your eyes have seen. 22Your
fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons; and now the LORD your God
has made you as the stars of heaven for multitude.
Rewards for Obedience
11 “You shall therefore love the LORD your God, and keep his charge,
his statutes, his ordinances, and his commandments always. And consider
this day (since I am not speaking to your children who have not known or
seen it), consider the discipline i of the LORD your God, his greatness, his
mighty hand and his outstretched arm, 3his signs and his deeds which he did
in Egypt to Pharaoh the king of Egypt and to all his land; 4and what he did
to the army of Egypt, to their horses and to their chariots; how he made the
water of the Red Sea overflow them as they pursued after you, and how the
LORD has destroyed them to this day; 5and what he did to you in the
wilderness, until you came to this place; 6and what he did to Da'than and
Abi'ram the sons of Eli'ab, son of Reuben; how the earth opened its mouth
and swallowed them up, with their households, their tents, and every living
thing that followed them, in the midst of all Israel; 7for your eyes have seen
all the great work of the LORD which he did.
8 “You shall therefore keep all the commandment which I command you
this day, that you may be strong, and go in and take possession of the land
which you are going over to possess, 9and that you may live long in the
land which the LORD swore to your fathers to give to them and to their
descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10For the land which you
are entering to take possession of it is not like the land of Egypt, from
which you have come, where you sowed your seed and watered it with your
feet, like a garden of vegetables; 11but the land which you are going over to
possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water by the rain from
heaven, 12a land which the LORD your God cares for; the eyes of the LORD
your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of
the year.
13 “And if you will obey my commandments which I command you this
day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and
with all your soul, 14he j will give the rain for your land in its season, the
early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your
wine and your oil. 15And he j will give grass in your fields for your cattle,
and you shall eat and be full. 16Take heed lest your heart be deceived, and
you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, 17and the anger of
the LORD be kindled against you, and he shut up the heavens, so that there
be no rain, and the land yield no fruit, and you perish quickly off the good
land which the LORD gives you.
18 “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in
your soul; and you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall
be as frontlets between your eyes. 19And you shall teach them to your
children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you
are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 20And
you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates,
21that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land
which the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens
are above the earth. 22For if you will be careful to do all this commandment
which I command you to do, loving the LORD your God, walking in all his
ways, and clinging to him, 23then the LORD will drive out all these nations
before you, and you will dispossess nations greater and mightier than
yourselves. 24Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be
yours; your territory shall be from the wilderness and Lebanon and from the
River, the river Euphrates, to the western sea. 25No man shall be able to
stand against you; the LORD your God will lay the fear of you and the dread
of you upon all the land that you shall tread, as he promised you.
26 “Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse: 27the blessing,
if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command
you this day, 28and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the
LORD your God, but turn aside from the way which I command you this
day, to go after other gods which you have not known. 29And when the
LORD your God brings you into the land which you are entering to take
possession of it, you shall set the blessing on Mount Ger'izim and the curse
on Mount E'bal. 30Are they not beyond the Jordan, west of the road, toward
the going down of the sun, in the land of the Canaanites who live in the
Ar'abah, over against Gilgal, beside the Oak k of Mo'reh? 31For you are to
pass over the Jordan to go in to take possession of the land which the LORD
your God gives you; and when you possess it and live in it, 32you shall be
careful to do all the statutes and the ordinances which I set before you this
day.
Pagan Shrines to Be Destroyed
12 “These are the statutes and ordinances which you shall be careful to
do in the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to
possess, all the days that you live upon the earth. 2 * You shall surely
destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess served
their gods, upon the high mountains and upon the hills and under every
green tree; 3you shall tear down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars,
and burn their Ashe'rim with fire; you shall hew down the graven images of
their gods, and destroy their name out of that place. 4You shall not do so to
the LORD your God. 5But you shall seek the place which the LORD your God
will choose out of all your tribes to put his name and make his habitation
there; there you shall go, 6and there you shall bring your burnt offerings and
your sacrifices, your tithes and the offering that you present, your votive
offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herd and of your
flock; 7and there you shall eat before the LORD your God, and you shall
rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the
LORD your God has blessed you. 8You shall not do according to all that we
are doing here this day, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes;
9for you have not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the
LORD your God gives you. 10But when you go over the Jordan, and live in
the land which the LORD your God gives you to inherit, and when he gives
you rest from all your enemies round about, so that you live in safety, 11then
to the place which the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell
there, there you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings and
your sacrifices, your tithes and the offering that you present, and all your
votive offerings which you vow to the LORD. 12And you shall rejoice before
the LORD your God, you and your sons and your daughters, your
menservants and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your
towns, since he has no portion or inheritance with you. 13Take heed that you
do not offer your burnt offerings at every place that you see; 14but at the
place which the LORD will choose in one of your tribes, there you shall offer
your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I am commanding you.
Concerning Eating
15 “However, you may slaughter and eat flesh within any of your towns, as
much as you desire, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which
he has given you; the unclean and the clean may eat of it, as of the gazelle
and as of the deer. 16Only you shall not eat the blood; you shall pour it out
upon the earth like water. 17You may not eat within your towns the tithe of
your grain or of your wine or of your oil, or the firstlings of your herd or of
your flock, or any of your votive offerings which you vow, or your freewill
offerings, or the offering that you present; 18but you shall eat them before
the LORD your God in the place which the LORD your God will choose, you
and your son and your daughter, your manservant and your maidservant,
and the Levite who is within your towns; and you shall rejoice before the
LORD your God in all that you undertake. 19Take heed that you do not
forsake the Levite as long as you live in your land.
20 “When the LORD your God enlarges your territory, as he has promised
you, and you say, ‘I will eat flesh,’ because you crave flesh, you may eat as
much flesh as you desire. 21If the place which the LORD your God will
choose to put his name there is too far from you, then you may kill any of
your herd or your flock, which the LORD has given you, as I have
commanded you; and you may eat within your towns as much as you
desire. 22Just as the gazelle or the deer is eaten, so you may eat of it; the
unclean and the clean alike may eat of it. 23Only be sure that you do not eat
the blood; for the blood is the life, and you shall not eat the life with the
flesh. 24You shall not eat it; you shall pour it out upon the earth like water.
25You shall not eat it; that all may go well with you and with your children
after you, when you do what is right in the sight of the LORD. 26But the holy
things which are due from you, and your votive offerings, you shall take,
and you shall go to the place which the LORD will choose, 27and offer your
burnt offerings, the flesh and the blood, on the altar of the LORD your God;
the blood of your sacrifices shall be poured out on the altar of the LORD
your God, but the flesh you may eat. 28Be careful to heed all these words
which I command you, that it may go well with you and with your children
after you for ever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the
LORD your God.
Warning against Idolatry
29 “When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations whom you
go in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, 30take
heed that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been
destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying,
‘How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do likewise.’
31You shall not do so to the LORD your God; for every abominable thing
which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn
their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.
32 l “Everything that I command you you shall be careful to do; you shall
not add to it or take from it.

13 “If a prophet arises among you, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives
you a sign or a wonder, 2and the sign or wonder which he tells you comes to
pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not
known, ‘and let us serve them,’ 3you shall not listen to the words of that
prophet or to that dreamer of dreams; for the LORD your God is testing you,
to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with
all your soul. 4You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear him, and
keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and
cling to him. 5But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to
death, because he has taught rebellion against the LORD your God, who
brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you out of the house of
bondage, to make you leave the way in which the LORD your God
commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from the midst of you.
6 “If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son, or your daughter,
or the wife of your bosom, or your friend who is as your own soul, entices
you secretly, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods,’ which neither you
nor your fathers have known, 7some of the gods of the peoples that are
round about you, whether near you or far off from you, from the one end of
the earth to the other, 8you shall not yield to him or listen to him, nor shall
your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him, nor shall you conceal him; 9but
you shall kill him; your hand shall be first against him to put him to death,
and afterwards the hand of all the people. 10You shall stone him to death
with stones, because he sought to draw you away from the LORD your God,
who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
11And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and never again do any such
wickedness as this among you.

12 “If you hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God gives you
to dwell there, 13that certain base fellows have gone out among you and
have drawn away the inhabitants of the city, saying, ‘Let us go and serve
other gods,’ which you have not known, 14then you shall inquire and make
search and ask diligently; and behold, if it be true and certain that such an
abominable thing has been done among you, 15you shall surely put the
inhabitants of that city to the sword, destroying it utterly, all who are in it
and its cattle, with the edge of the sword. 16You shall gather all its spoil into
the midst of its open square, and burn the city and all its spoil with fire, as a
whole burnt offering to the LORD your God; it shall be a heap for ever, it
shall not be built again. 17None of the devoted things shall cling to your
hand; that the LORD may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and show
you mercy, and have compassion on you, and multiply you, as he swore to
your fathers, 18if you obey the voice of the LORD your God, keeping all his
commandments which I command you this day, and doing what is right in
the sight of the LORD your God.
Pagan Practices Forbidden
14 “You are the sons of the LORD your God; you shall not cut
yourselves or make any baldness on your foreheads for the dead. 2For you
are a people holy to the LORD your God, and the LORD has chosen you to be
a people for his own possession, out of all the peoples that are on the face of
the earth.
3 “You shall not eat any abominable thing. 4These are the animals you
may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, 5the deer, the gazelle, the roebuck, the
wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain-sheep. 6Every animal
that parts the hoof and has the hoof cloven in two, and chews the cud,
among the animals, you may eat. 7Yet of those that chew the cud or have
the hoof cloven you shall not eat these: The camel, the hare, and the rock
badger, because they chew the cud but do not part the hoof, are unclean for
you. 8And the swine, because it parts the hoof but does not chew the cud, is
unclean for you. Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall
not touch.
9 “Of all that are in the waters you may eat these: Whatever has fins and
scales you may eat. 10And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall
not eat; it is unclean for you.
11 “You may eat all clean birds. 12But these are the ones which you shall
not eat: the eagle, the vulture, the osprey, 13the buzzard, the kite, after their
kinds; 14every raven after its kind; 15the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull,
the hawk, after their kinds; 16the little owl and the great owl, the water hen
17and the pelican, the carrion vulture and the cormorant, 18the stork, the
heron, after their kinds; the hoopoe and the bat. 19And all winged insects
are unclean for you; they shall not be eaten. 20All clean winged things you
may eat.
21 “You shall not eat anything that dies of itself; you may give it to the
alien who is within your towns, that he may eat it, or you may sell it to a
foreigner; for you are a people holy to the LORD your God.
“You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.
Regulations concerning Tithes
22 “You shall tithe all the yield of your seed, which comes forth from the
field year by year. 23And before the LORD your God, in the place which he
will choose, to make his name dwell there, you shall eat the tithe of your
grain, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstlings of your herd and
flock; that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always. 24And if the
way is too long for you, so that you are not able to bring the tithe, when the
LORD your God blesses you, because the place is too far from you, which
the LORD your God chooses, to set his name there, 25then you shall turn it
into money, and bind up the money in your hand, and go to the place which
the LORD your God chooses, 26and spend the money for whatever you
desire, oxen, or sheep, or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite
craves; and you shall eat there before the LORD your God and rejoice, you
and your household. 27And you shall not forsake the Levite who is within
your towns, for he has no portion or inheritance with you.
28 “At the end of every three years you shall bring forth all the tithe of
your produce in the same year, and lay it up within your towns; 29and the
Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance with you, and the
sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, who are within your towns, shall
come and eat and be filled; that the LORD your God may bless you in all the
work of your hands that you do.
Concerning the Sabbatical Year
15 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release. 2And this
is the manner of the release: every creditor shall release what he has lent to
his neighbor; he shall not exact it of his neighbor, his brother, because the
LORD’s release has been proclaimed. 3Of a foreigner you may exact it; but
whatever of yours is with your brother your hand shall release. 4But there
will be no poor among you (for the LORD will bless you in the land which
the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance to possess), 5if only you
will obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all this
commandment which I command you this day. 6For the LORD your God will
bless you, as he promised you, and you shall lend to many nations, but you
shall not borrow; and you shall rule over many nations, but they shall not
rule over you.
7 “If there is among you a poor man, one of your brethren, in any of your
towns within your land which the LORD your God gives you, you shall not
harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, 8but you
shall open your hand to him, and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever
it may be. 9Take heed lest there be a base thought in your heart, and you
say, ‘The seventh year, the year of release is near,’ and your eye be hostile
to your poor brother, and you give him nothing, and he cry to the LORD
against you, and it be sin in you. 10You shall give to him freely, and your
heart shall not be grudging when you give to him; because for this the LORD
your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake.
11For the poor will never cease out of the land; therefore I command you,
You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor,
in the land.
12 “If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he
shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free
from you. 13And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him
go empty-handed; 14you shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of
your threshing floor, and out of your wine press; as the LORD your God has
blessed you, you shall give to him. 15You shall remember that you were a
slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore
I command you this today. 16But if he says to you, ‘I will not go out from
you,’ because he loves you and your household, since he fares well with
you, 17then you shall take an awl, and thrust it through his ear into the door,
and he shall be your bondman for ever. And to your bondwoman you shall
do likewise. 18It shall not seem hard to you, when you let him go free from
you; for at half the cost of a hired servant he has served you six years. So
the LORD your God will bless you in all that you do.
Regulations concerning Livestock
19 “All the firstling males that are born of your herd and flock you shall
consecrate to the LORD your God; you shall do no work with the firstling of
your herd, nor shear the firstling of your flock. 20You shall eat it, you and
your household, before the LORD your God year by year at the place which
the LORD will choose. 21But if it has any blemish, if it is lame or blind, or
has any serious blemish whatever, you shall not sacrifice it to the LORD
your God. 22You shall eat it within your towns; the unclean and the clean
alike may eat it, as though it were a gazelle or a deer. 23Only you shall not
eat its blood; you shall pour it out on the ground like water.
Keeping the Passover
16 “Observe the month of A'bib, and keep the Passover to the LORD
your God; for in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you out of
Egypt by night. 2And you shall offer the Passover sacrifice to the LORD
your God, from the flock or the herd, at the place which the LORD will
choose, to make his name dwell there. 3You shall eat no leavened bread
with it; seven days you shall eat it with unleavened bread, the bread of
affliction—for you came out of the land of Egypt in hurried flight—that all
the days of your life you may remember the day when you came out of the
land of Egypt. 4No leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory for
seven days; nor shall any of the flesh which you sacrifice on the evening of
the first day remain all night until morning. 5You may not offer the Passover
sacrifice within any of your towns which the LORD your God gives you;
6but at the place which the LORD your God will choose, to make his name
dwell in it, there you shall offer the Passover sacrifice, in the evening at the
going down of the sun, at the time you came out of Egypt. 7And you shall
boil it and eat it at the place which the LORD your God will choose; and in
the morning you shall turn and go to your tents. 8For six days you shall eat
unleavened bread; and on the seventh day there shall be a solemn assembly
to the LORD your God; you shall do no work on it.
Keeping the Feast of Weeks
9 “You shall count seven weeks; begin to count the seven weeks from the
time you first put the sickle to the standing grain. 10Then you shall keep the
feast of weeks to the LORD your God with the tribute of a freewill offering
from your hand, which you shall give as the LORD your God blesses you;
11and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and
your daughter, your manservant and your maidservant, the Levite who is
within your towns, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow who are
among you, at the place which the LORD your God will choose, to make his
name dwell there. 12You shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt; and
you shall be careful to observe these statutes.
Keeping the Feast of Booths
13 “You shall keep the feast of booths seven days, when you make your
ingathering from your threshing floor and your wine press; 14you shall
rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter, your manservant
and your maidservant, the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the
widow who are within your towns. 15For seven days you shall keep the
feast to the LORD your God at the place which the LORD will choose;
because the LORD your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the
work of your hands, so that you will be altogether joyful.
16 “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your
God at the place which he will choose: at the feast of unleavened bread, at
the feast of weeks, and at the feast of booths. They shall not appear before
the LORD empty-handed; 17every man shall give as he is able, according to
the blessing of the LORD your God which he has given you.
Appointing Judges and Officers
18 “You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns which the LORD
your God gives you, according to your tribes; and they shall judge the
people with righteous judgment. 19You shall not pervert justice; you shall
not show partiality; and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the
eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous. 20Justice, and only
justice, you shall follow, that you may live and inherit the land which the
LORD your God gives you.
Forbidden Forms of Worship
21 “You shall not plant any tree as an Ashe'rah beside the altar of the LORD
your God which you shall make. 22And you shall not set up a pillar, which
the LORD your God hates.
17 “You shall not sacrifice to the LORD your God an ox or a sheep in
which is a blemish, any defect whatever; for that is an abomination to the
LORD your God.
2 “If there is found among you, within any of your towns which the LORD
your God gives you, a man or woman who does what is evil in the sight of
the LORD your God, in transgressing his covenant, 3and has gone and served
other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or the moon or any of the host of
heaven, which I have forbidden, 4and it is told you and you hear of it; then
you shall inquire diligently, and if it is true and certain that such an
abominable thing has been done in Israel, 5then you shall bring forth to your
gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you shall stone
that man or woman to death with stones. 6On the evidence of two witnesses
or of three witnesses he that is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not
be put to death on the evidence of one witness. 7The hand of the witnesses
shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all
the people. So you shall purge the evil from the midst of you.
Legal Decisions by Priests and Judges
8 “If any case arises requiring decision between one kind of homicide and
another, one kind of legal right and another, or one kind of assault and
another, any case within your towns which is too difficult for you, then you
shall arise and go up to the place which the LORD your God will choose,
9and coming to the Levitical priests, and to the judge who is in office in
those days, you shall consult them, and they shall declare to you the
decision. 10Then you shall do according to what they declare to you from
that place which the LORD will choose; and you shall be careful to do
according to all that they direct you; 11according to the instructions which
they give you, and according to the decision which they pronounce to you,
you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict which they declare to
you, either to the right hand or to the left. 12The man who acts
presumptuously, by not obeying the priest who stands to minister there
before the LORD your God, or the judge, that man shall die; so you shall
purge the evil from Israel. 13And all the people shall hear, and fear, and not
act presumptuously again.
Limitations of Royal Authority
14 “When you come to the land which the LORD your God gives you, and
you possess it and dwell in it, and then say, ‘I will set a king over me, like
all the nations that are round about me’; 15you may indeed set as king over
you him whom the LORD your God will choose. One from among your
brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not put a foreigner over
you, who is not your brother. 16Only he must not multiply horses for
himself, or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to multiply horses,
since the LORD has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’
17And he shall not multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor
shall he greatly multiply for himself silver and gold.

18 “And when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for
himself in a book a copy of this law, from that which is in the charge of the
Levitical priests; 19and it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the
days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, by keeping all
the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them; 20that his heart
may not be lifted up above his brethren, and that he may not turn aside from
the commandment, either to the right hand or to the left; so that he may
continue long in his kingdom, he and his children, in Israel.
Privileges of Priests and Levites
18 “The Levitical priests, that is, all the tribe of Levi, shall have no
portion or inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the offerings by fire to the
LORD, and his rightful dues. 2They shall have no inheritance among their
brethren; the LORD is their inheritance, as he promised them. 3And this shall
be the priests’ due from the people, from those offering a sacrifice, whether
it be ox or sheep: they shall give to the priest the shoulder and the two
cheeks and the stomach. 4The first fruits of your grain, of your wine and of
your oil, and the first of the fleece of your sheep, you shall give him. 5For
the LORD your God has chosen him out of all your tribes, to stand and
minister in the name of the LORD, him and his sons for ever.
6 “And if a Levite comes from any of your towns out of all Israel, where
he lives—and he may come when he desires—to the place which the LORD
will choose, 7then he may minister in the name of the LORD his God, like all
his fellow Levites who stand to minister there before the LORD. 8They shall
have equal portions to eat, besides what he receives from the sale of his
patrimony. m
Abominable Practices Prohibited
9 “When you come into the land which the LORD your God gives you, you
shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. 10There
shall not be found among you any one who burns his son or his daughter as
an offering, n any one who practices divination, a soothsayer, or an augur, or
a sorcerer, 11or a charmer, or a medium, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
12For whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD; and
because of these abominable practices the LORD your God is driving them
out before you. 13You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. 14For
these nations, which you are about to dispossess, give heed to soothsayers
and to diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not allowed you so
to do.
15 “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from
among you, from your brethren—him you shall heed—16just as you desired
of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said,
‘Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, or see this great fire
any more, lest I die.’ 17And the LORD said to me, ‘They have rightly said all
that they have spoken. 18I will raise up for them a prophet * like you from
among their brethren; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall
speak to them all that I command him. 19And whoever will not give heed to
my words which he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.
20But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name which I have
not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that
same prophet shall die.’ 21And if you say in your heart, ‘How may we know
the word which the LORD has not spoken?’—22when a prophet speaks in the
name of the LORD, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a
word which the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it
presumptuously, you need not be afraid of him.
Cities of Refuge
19 “When the LORD your God cuts off the nations whose land the LORD
your God gives you, and you dispossess them and dwell in their cities and
in their houses, 2you shall set apart three cities for you in the land which the
LORD your God gives you to possess. 3You shall prepare the roads, and
divide into three parts the area of the land which the LORD your God gives
you as a possession, so that any manslayer can flee to them.
4 “This is the provision for the manslayer, who by fleeing there may save
his life. If any one kills his neighbor unintentionally without having been at
enmity with him in time past—5as when a man goes into the forest with his
neighbor to cut wood, and his hand swings the axe to cut down a tree, and
the head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies—he
may flee to one of these cities and save his life; 6lest the avenger of blood in
hot anger pursue the manslayer and overtake him, because the way is long,
and wound him mortally, though the man did not deserve to die, since he
was not at enmity with his neighbor in time past. 7Therefore I command
you, You shall set apart three cities. 8And if the LORD your God enlarges
your border, as he has sworn to your fathers, and gives you all the land
which he promised to give to your fathers—9provided you are careful to
keep all this commandment, which I command you this day, by loving the
LORD your God and by walking ever in his ways—then you shall add three
other cities to these three, 10lest innocent blood be shed in your land which
the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, and so the guilt of
bloodshed be upon you.
11 “But if any man hates his neighbor, and lies in wait for him, and attacks
him, and wounds him mortally so that he dies, and the man flees into one of
these cities, 12then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him from there,
and hand him over to the avenger of blood, so that he may die. 13Your eye
shall not pity him, but you shall purge the guilt of innocent blood o from
Israel, so that it may be well with you.
Concerning Landmarks
14 “In the inheritance which you will hold in the land that the LORD your
God gives you to possess, you shall not remove your neighbor’s landmark,
which the men of old have set.
Concerning Witnesses
15 “A single witness shall not prevail against a man for any crime or for
any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed; only on
the evidence of two witnesses, or of three witnesses, shall a charge be
sustained. 16If a malicious witness rises against any man to accuse him of
wrongdoing, 17then both parties to the dispute shall appear before the LORD,
before the priests and the judges who are in office in those days; 18the
judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has
accused his brother falsely, 19then you shall do to him as he had meant to do
to his brother; so you shall purge the evil from the midst of you. 20And the
rest shall hear, and fear, and shall never again commit any such evil among
you. 21Your eye shall not pity; it shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for
tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
Concerning Warfare
20 “When you go forth to war against your enemies, and see horses and
chariots and an army larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them;
for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you up out of the land of
Egypt. 2And when you draw near to the battle, the priest shall come forward
and speak to the people, 3and shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel, you draw
near this day to battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint; do not
fear, or tremble, or be in dread of them; 4for the LORD your God is he that
goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the
victory.’ 5Then the officers shall speak to the people, saying, ‘What man is
there that has built a new house and has not dedicated it? Let him go back
to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man dedicate it. 6And what
man is there that has planted a vineyard and has not enjoyed its fruit? Let
him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man enjoy its
fruit. 7And what man is there that has betrothed a wife and has not taken
her? Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man
take her.’ 8And the officers shall speak further to the people, and say, ‘What
man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go back to his house,
lest the heart of his fellows melt as his heart.’ 9And when the officers have
made an end of speaking to the people, then commanders shall be appointed
at the head of the people.
10 “When you draw near to a city to fight against it, offer terms of peace to
it. 11And if its answer to you is peace and it opens to you, then all the
people who are found in it shall do forced labor for you and shall serve you.
12But if it makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you
shall besiege it; 13and when the LORD your God gives it into your hand you
shall put all its males to the sword, 14but the women and the little ones, the
cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty
for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the
LORD your God has given you. 15Thus you shall do to all the cities which
are very far from you, which are not cities of the nations here. 16But in the
cities of these peoples that the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance,
you shall save alive nothing that breathes, 17but you shall utterly destroy
them, the Hittites and the Am'orites, the Canaanites and the Per'izzites, the
Hi'vites and the Jeb'usites, as the LORD your God has commanded; 18that
they may not teach you to do according to all their abominable practices
which they have done in the service of their gods, and so to sin against the
LORD your God.
19 “When you besiege a city for a long time, making war against it in
order to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an axe against
them; for you may eat of them, but you shall not cut them down. Are the
trees in the field men that they should be besieged by you? 20Only the trees
which you know are not trees for food you may destroy and cut down that
you may build siegeworks against the city that makes war with you, until it
falls.
Concerning the Slain
21 “If in the land which the LORD your God gives you to possess, any
one is found slain, lying in the open country, and it is not known who killed
him, 2then your elders and your judges shall come forth, and they shall
measure the distance to the cities which are around him that is slain; 3and
the elders of the city which is nearest to the slain man shall take a heifer
which has never been worked and which has not pulled in the yoke. 4And
the elders of that city shall bring the heifer down to a valley with running
water, which is neither plowed nor sown, and shall break the heifer’s neck
there in the valley. 5And the priests the sons of Levi shall come forward, for
the LORD your God has chosen them to minister to him and to bless in the
name of the LORD, and by their word every dispute and every assault shall
be settled. 6And all the elders of that city nearest to the slain man shall wash
their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley; 7and they
shall testify, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, neither did our eyes see it
shed. 8Forgive, O LORD, your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, and
set not the guilt of innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel; but let
the guilt of blood be forgiven them.’ 9So you shall purge the guilt of
innocent blood from your midst, when you do what is right in the sight of
the LORD.
Women Taken Captive
10 “When you go forth to war against your enemies, and the LORD your
God gives them into your hands, and you take them captive, 11and see
among the captives a beautiful woman, and you have desire for her and
would take her for yourself as wife, 12then you shall bring her home to your
house, and she shall shave her head and pare her nails. 13And she shall put
off her captive’s garb, and shall remain in your house and bewail her father
and her mother a full month; after that you may go in to her, and be her
husband, and she shall be your wife. 14Then, if you have no delight in her,
you shall let her go where she will; but you shall not sell her for money, you
shall not treat her as a slave, since you have humiliated her.
Right of the First-born Son
15 “If a man has two wives, the one loved and the other disliked, and they
have borne him children, both the loved and the disliked, and if the first-
born son is hers that is disliked, 16then on the day when he assigns his
possessions as an inheritance to his sons, he may not treat the son of the
loved as the first-born in preference to the son of the disliked, who is the
first-born, 17but he shall acknowledge the first-born, the son of the disliked,
by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is the first issue of
his strength; the right of the first-born is his.
Rebellious Sons
18 “If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son, who will not obey the
voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they chastise him,
will not give heed to them, 19then his father and his mother shall take hold
of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place
where he lives, 20and they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This our son is
stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a
drunkard.’ 21Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with
stones; so you shall purge the evil from your midst; and all Israel shall hear,
and fear.
Miscellaneous Laws
22 “And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put
to death, and you hang him on a tree, 23his body shall not remain all night
upon the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is
accursed by God; you shall not defile your land which the LORD your God
gives you for an inheritance.
22 “You shall not see your brother’s ox or his sheep go astray, and
withhold your help p from them; you shall take them back to your brother.
2And if he is not near you, or if you do not know him, you shall bring it
home to your house, and it shall be with you until your brother seeks it;
then you shall restore it to him. 3And so you shall do with his donkey; so
you shall do with his garment; so you shall do with any lost thing of your
brother’s, which he loses and you find; you may not withhold your help.
4You shall not see your brother’s donkey or his ox fallen down by the way,
and withhold your help p from them; you shall help him to lift them up
again.
5 “A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a
man put on a woman’s garment; for whoever does these things is an

abomination to the LORD your God.
6 “If you chance to come upon a bird’s nest, in any tree or on the ground,
with young ones or eggs and the mother sitting upon the young or upon the
eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young; 7you shall let the
mother go, but the young you may take to yourself; that it may go well with
you, and that you may live long.
8 “When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof,
that you may not bring the guilt of blood upon your house, if any one fall
from it.
9 “You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, lest the whole
yield be forfeited to the sanctuary, q the crop which you have sown and the
yield of the vineyard. 10You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey
together. 11You shall not wear a mingled stuff, wool and linen together.
12 “You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of your cloak with
which you cover yourself.

Concerning Sexual Relations
13 “If any man takes a wife, and goes in to her, and then spurns her, 14and
charges her with shameful conduct, and brings an evil name upon her,
saying, ‘I took this woman, and when I came near her, I did not find in her
the tokens of virginity,’ 15then the father of the young woman and her
mother shall take and bring out the tokens of her virginity to the elders of
the city in the gate; 16and the father of the young woman shall say to the
elders, ‘I gave my daughter to this man to wife, and he spurns her; 17and
behold, he has made shameful charges against her, saying, “I did not find in
your daughter the tokens of virginity.” And yet these are the tokens of my
daughter’s virginity.’ And they shall spread the garment before the elders of
the city. 18Then the elders of that city shall take the man and whip him;
19and they shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver, and give them to the
father of the young woman, because he has brought an evil name upon a
virgin of Israel; and she shall be his wife; he may not put her away all his
days. 20But if the thing is true, that the tokens of virginity were not found in
the young woman, 21then they shall bring out the young woman to the door
of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with
stones, because she has wrought folly in Israel by playing the harlot in her
father’s house; so you shall purge the evil from the midst of you.
22 “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them
shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall
purge the evil from Israel.
23 “If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies
with her, 24then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and
you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she
did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he
violated his neighbor’s wife; so you shall purge the evil from the midst of
you.
25 “But if in the open country a man meets a young woman who is
betrothed, and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who
lay with her shall die. 26But to the young woman you shall do nothing; in
the young woman there is no offense punishable by death, for this case is
like that of a man attacking and murdering his neighbor; 27because he came
upon her in the open country, and though the betrothed young woman cried
for help there was no one to rescue her.
28 “If a man meets a virgin who is not betrothed, and seizes her and lies
with her, and they are found, 29then the man who lay with her shall give to
the father of the young woman fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his
wife, because he has violated her; he may not put her away all his days.
30 r “A man shall not take his father’s wife, nor shall he uncover her who
is his father’s. s
Exclusion from the Assembly
23 “He whose testicles are crushed or whose male member is cut off
shall not enter the assembly of the LORD.
2 “No bastard shall enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth
generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD.
3 “No Am'monite or Moabite shall enter the assembly of the LORD; even
to the tenth generation none belonging to them shall enter the assembly of
the LORD for ever; 4because they did not meet you with bread and with
water on the way, when you came forth out of Egypt, and because they
hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pe'thor of Mesopota'mia, to
curse you. 5Nevertheless the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam;
but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the
LORD your God loved you. 6You shall not seek their peace or their
prosperity all your days for ever.
7 “You shall not abhor an E'domite, for he is your brother; you shall not
abhor an Egyptian, because you were a sojourner in his land. 8The children
of the third generation that are born to them may enter the assembly of the
LORD.
Sanitary, Ritual, and
Humanitarian Precepts
9 “When you go forth against your enemies and are in camp, then you
shall keep yourself from every evil thing.

10 “If there is among you any man who is not clean by reason of a
nocturnal emission, then he shall go outside the camp, he shall not come
within the camp; 11but when evening comes on, he shall bathe himself in
water, and when the sun is down, he may come within the camp.
12 “You shall have a place outside the camp and you shall go out to it;
13and you shall have a stick with your weapons; and when you relieve
yourself outside, you shall dig a hole with it, and turn back and cover up
your excrement. 14Because the LORD your God walks in the midst of your
camp, to save you and to give up your enemies before you, therefore your
camp must be holy, that he may not see anything indecent among you, and
turn away from you.
15 “You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his
master to you; 16he shall dwell with you, in your midst, in the place which
he shall choose within one of your towns, where it pleases him best; you
shall not oppress him.
17 “There shall be no cult prostitute of the daughters of Israel, neither shall
there be a cult prostitute of the sons of Israel. 18You shall not bring the hire
of a harlot, or the wages of a dog, t into the house of the LORD your God in
payment for any vow; for both of these are an abomination to the LORD
your God.
19 “You shall not lend upon interest to your brother, interest on money,
interest on victuals, interest on anything that is lent for interest. 20To a

foreigner you may lend upon interest, but to your brother you shall not lend
upon interest; that the LORD your God may bless you in all that you
undertake in the land which you are entering to take possession of it.
21 “When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not be slack to
pay it; for the LORD your God will surely require it of you, and it would be
sin in you. 22But if you refrain from vowing, it shall be no sin in you. 23You
shall be careful to perform what has passed your lips, for you have
voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God what you have promised with your
mouth.
24 “When you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of
grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in your vessel.
25When you go into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the ears
with your hand, but you shall not put a sickle to your neighbor’s standing
grain.
Laws concerning Marriage and Divorce
24 * “When a man takes a wife and marries her, if then she finds no
favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes
her a bill of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house,
and she departs out of his house, 2and if she goes and becomes another
man’s wife, 3and the latter husband dislikes her and writes her a bill of
divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter
husband dies, who took her to be his wife, 4then her former husband, who
sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after she has been
defiled; for that is an abomination before the LORD, and you shall not bring
guilt upon the land which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance.
Various Laws
5 “When a man is newly married, he shall not go out with the army or be
charged with any business; he shall be free at home one year, to be happy
with his wife whom he has taken.
6 “No man shall take a mill or an upper millstone in pledge; for he would
be taking a life in pledge.

7 “If a man is found stealing one of his brethren, the sons of Israel, and if
he treats him as a slave or sells him, then that thief shall die; so you shall
purge the evil from the midst of you.
8 “Take heed, in an attack of leprosy, to be very careful to do according to
all that the Levitical priests shall direct you; as I commanded them, so you
shall be careful to do. 9Remember what the LORD your God did to Miriam
on the way as you came forth out of Egypt.
10 “When you make your neighbor a loan of any sort, you shall not go into
his house to fetch his pledge. 11You shall stand outside, and the man to
whom you make the loan shall bring the pledge out to you. 12And if he is a
poor man, you shall not sleep in his pledge; 13when the sun goes down, you
shall restore to him the pledge that he may sleep in his cloak and bless you;
and it shall be righteousness to you before the LORD your God.
14 “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether
he is one of your brethren or one of the sojourners who are in your land
within your towns; 15you shall give him his hire on the day he earns it,
before the sun goes down (for he is poor, and sets his heart upon it); lest he
cry against you to the LORD, and it be sin in you.
16 “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor shall the
children be put to death for the fathers; every man shall be put to death for
his own sin.
17 “You shall not pervert the justice due to the sojourner or to the
fatherless, or take a widow’s garment in pledge; 18but you shall remember

that you were a slave in Egypt and the LORD your God redeemed you from
there; therefore I command you to do this.
19 “When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgotten a sheaf
in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the sojourner, the
fatherless, and the widow; that the LORD your God may bless you in all the
work of your hands. 20When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over
the boughs again; it shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.
21When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not glean it
afterward; it shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. 22You
shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I
command you to do this.
25 “If there is a dispute between men, and they come into court, and the
judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the
guilty, 2then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall cause
him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with a number of stripes in
proportion to his offense. 3Forty stripes may be given him, but not more;
lest, if one should go on to beat him with more stripes than these, your
brother be degraded in your sight.
4 “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.
Duty to a Brother’s Widow

5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the
wife of the dead shall not be married outside the family to a stranger; her
husband’s brother shall go in to her, and take her as his wife, and perform
the duty of a husband’s brother to her. 6And the first son whom she bears
shall succeed to the name of his brother who is dead, that his name may not
be blotted out of Israel. 7And if the man does not wish to take his brother’s
wife, then his brother’s wife shall go up to the gate to the elders, and say,
‘My husband’s brother refuses to perpetuate his brother’s name in Israel; he
will not perform the duty of a husband’s brother to me.’ 8Then the elders of
his city shall call him, and speak to him: and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not
wish to take her,’ 9then his brother’s wife shall go up to him in the presence
of the elders, and pull his sandal off his foot, and spit in his face; and she
shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up
his brother’s house.’ 10And the name of his house u shall be called in Israel,
The house of him that had his sandal pulled off.
Various Commands
11 “When men fight with one another, and the wife of the one draws near
to rescue her husband from the hand of him who is beating him, and puts
out her hand and seizes him by the private parts, 12then you shall cut off her
hand; your eye shall have no pity.
13 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a
small. 14You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large
and a small. 15A full and just weight you shall have, a full and just measure
you shall have; that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD
your God gives you. 16For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly,
are an abomination to the LORD your God.
1717 “Remember what Am'alek did to you on the way as you came out of
Egypt, 18how he attacked you on the way, when you were faint and weary,
and cut off at your rear all who lagged behind you; and he did not fear God.
19Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your
enemies round about, in the land which the LORD your God gives you for an
inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the remembrance of Am'alek from
under heaven; you shall not forget.
First Fruits and Tithes
26 “When you come into the land which the LORD your God gives you
for an inheritance, and have taken possession of it, and live in it, 2you shall
take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from
your land that the LORD your God gives you, and you shall put it in a
basket, and you shall go to the place which the LORD your God will choose,
to make his name to dwell there. 3And you shall go to the priest who is in
office at that time, and say to him, ‘I declare this day to the LORD your God
that I have come into the land which the LORD swore to our fathers to give
us.’ 4Then the priest shall take the basket from your hand, and set it down
before the altar of the LORD your God.
5 “And you shall make response before the LORD your God, ‘A wandering
Arame'an was my father; and he went down into Egypt and sojourned there,
few in number; and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and populous.
6And the Egyptians treated us harshly, and afflicted us, and laid upon us
hard bondage. 7Then we cried to the LORD the God of our fathers, and the
LORD heard our voice, and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression;
8and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an
outstretched arm, with great terror, with signs and wonders; 9and he brought
us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey.
10And behold, now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground, which you, O
LORD, have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the LORD your
God, and worship before the LORD your God; 11and you shall rejoice in all
the good which the LORD your God has given to you and to your house,
you, and the Levite, and the sojourner who is among you.
12 “When you have finished paying all the tithe of your produce in the
third year, which is the year of tithing, giving it to the Levite, the sojourner,
the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within your towns and be
filled, 13then you shall say before the LORD your God, ‘I have removed the
sacred portion out of my house, and moreover I have given it to the Levite,
the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all your
commandment which you have commanded me; I have not transgressed
any of your commandments, neither have I forgotten them; 14I have not
eaten of the tithe while I was mourning, or removed any of it while I was
unclean, or offered any of it to the dead; I have obeyed the voice of the
LORD my God, I have done according to all that you have commanded me.
15Look down from your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless your
people Israel and the ground which you have given us, as you swore to our
fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.’
Concluding Exhortation
16 “This day the LORD your God commands you to do these statutes and
ordinances; you shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and
with all your soul. 17You have declared this day concerning the LORD that
he is your God, and that you will walk in his ways, and keep his statutes
and his commandments and his ordinances, and will obey his voice; 18and
the LORD has declared this day concerning you that you are a people for his
own possession, as he has promised you, and that you are to keep all his
commandments, 19that he will set you high above all nations that he has
made, in praise and in fame and in honor, and that you shall be a people
holy to the LORD your God, as he has spoken.”
The Inscribed Stones and Altar on Mount Ebal
27 Now Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying,
“Keep all the commandment which I command you this day. 2And on the
day you pass over the Jordan to the land which the LORD your God gives
you, you shall set up large stones, and plaster them with plaster; 3and you
shall write upon them all the words of this law, when you pass over to enter
the land which the LORD your God gives you, a land flowing with milk and
honey, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you. 4And when
you have passed over the Jordan, you shall set up these stones, concerning
which I command you this day, on Mount E'bal, and you shall plaster them
with plaster. 5And there you shall build an altar to the LORD your God, an
altar of stones; you shall lift up no iron tool upon them. 6You shall build an
altar to the LORD your God of unhewn v stones; and you shall offer burnt
offerings on it to the LORD your God; 7and you shall sacrifice peace
offerings, and shall eat there; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your
God. 8And you shall write upon the stones all the words of this law very
plainly.”
9 And Moses and the Levitical priests said to all Israel, “Keep silence and
hear, O Israel: this day you have become the people of the LORD your God.
10You shall therefore obey the voice of the LORD your God, keeping his
commandments and his statutes, which I command you this day.”

Twelve Curses at Mount Ebal
11 And Moses charged the people the same day, saying, 12 “When you
have passed over the Jordan, these shall stand upon Mount Ger'izim to bless
the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Is'sachar, Joseph, and Benjamin. 13And
these shall stand upon Mount E'bal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher,
Zeb'ulun, Dan, and Naph'tali. 14And the Levites shall declare to all the men
of Israel with a loud voice:
15 “ ‘Cursed be the man who makes a graven or molten image, an
abomination to the LORD, a thing made by the hands of a craftsman, and

sets it up in secret.’ And all the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen.’
16 “ ‘Cursed be he who dishonors his father or his mother.’ And all the
people shall say, ‘Amen.’

17 “ ‘Cursed be he who removes his neighbor’s landmark.’ And all the

18 “ ‘Cursed be he who misleads a blind man on the road.’ And all the

19 “ ‘Cursed be he who perverts the justice due to the sojourner, the
fatherless, and the widow.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
20 “ ‘Cursed be he who lies with his father’s wife, because he has
uncovered her who is his father’s.’ w And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
21 “ ‘Cursed be he who lies with any kind of beast.’ And all the people
shall say, ‘Amen.’

22 “ ‘Cursed be he who lies with his sister, whether the daughter of his
father or the daughter of his mother.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
23 “ ‘Cursed be he who lies with his mother-in-law.’ And all the people
24 “ ‘Cursed be he who slays his neighbor in secret.’ And all the people

25 “ ‘Cursed be he who takes a bribe to slay an innocent person.’ And all
the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

26 “ ‘Cursed be he who does not confirm the words of this law by doing
them.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Blessing for Obedience
28 “And if you obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to
do all his commandments which I command you this day, the LORD your
God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. 2And all these
blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of
the LORD your God. 3Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you
be in the field. 4Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, and the fruit of your
ground, and the fruit of your beasts, the increase of your cattle, and the
young of your flock. 5Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading-
trough. 6Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be
when you go out.
7 “The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated
before you; they shall come out against you one way, and flee before you
seven ways. 8The LORD will command the blessing upon you in your barns,
and in all that you undertake; and he will bless you in the land which the
LORD your God gives you. 9The LORD will establish you as a people holy to
himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the
LORD your God, and walk in his ways. 10And all the peoples of the earth
shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be
afraid of you. 11And the LORD will make you abound in prosperity, in the
fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your cattle, and in the fruit of your
ground, within the land which the LORD swore to your fathers to give you.
12The LORD will open to you his good treasury the heavens, to give the rain
of your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands; and you
shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13And the LORD will
make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall tend upward only, and not
downward; if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I
command you this day, being careful to do them, 14and if you do not turn
aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right
hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
Warnings against Disobedience
15 “But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD your God or be careful
to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command you this day,
then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. 16Cursed shall
you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the field. 17Cursed shall be
your basket and your kneading-trough. 18Cursed shall be the fruit of your
body, and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your cattle, and the
young of your flock. 19Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed
shall you be when you go out.
20 “The LORD will send upon you curses, confusion, and frustration, in all
that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly, on
account of the evil of your doings, because you have forsaken me. 21The
LORD will make the pestilence cling to you until he has consumed you off
the land which you are entering to take possession of it. 22The LORD will
strike you with consumption, and with fever, inflammation, and fiery heat,
and with drought, x and with blasting, and with mildew; they shall pursue
you until you perish. 23And the heavens over your head shall be brass, and
the earth under you shall be iron. 24The LORD will make the rain of your
land powder and dust; from heaven it shall come down upon you until you
are destroyed.
25 “The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies; you shall
go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them; and you
shall be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 26And your dead body
shall be food for all birds of the air, and for the beasts of the earth; and there
shall be no one to frighten them away. 27The LORD will strike you with the
boils of Egypt, and with the ulcers and the scurvy and the itch, of which you
cannot be healed. 28The LORD will strike you with madness and blindness
and confusion of mind; 29and you shall grope at noonday, as the blind grope
in darkness, and you shall not prosper in your ways; and you shall be only
oppressed and robbed continually, and there shall be no one to help you.
30You shall betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her; you shall
build a house, and you shall not dwell in it; you shall plant a vineyard, and
you shall not use the fruit of it. 31Your ox shall be slain before your eyes,
and you shall not eat of it; your donkey shall be violently taken away before
your face, and shall not be restored to you; your sheep shall be given to
your enemies, and there shall be no one to help you. 32Your sons and your
daughters shall be given to another people, while your eyes look on and fail
with longing for them all the day; and it shall not be in the power of your
hand to prevent it. 33A nation which you have not known shall eat up the
fruit of your ground and of all your labors; and you shall be only oppressed
and crushed continually; 34so that you shall be driven mad by the sight
which your eyes shall see. 35The LORD will strike you on the knees and on
the legs with grievous boils of which you cannot be healed, from the sole of
your foot to the crown of your head.
36 “The LORD will bring you, and your king whom you set over you, to a
nation that neither you nor your fathers have known; and there you shall
serve other gods, of wood and stone. 37And you shall become a horror, a
proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples where the LORD will lead you
away. 38You shall carry much seed into the field, and shall gather little in;
for the locust shall consume it. 39You shall plant vineyards and dress them,
but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes; for the worm
shall eat them. 40You shall have olive trees throughout all your territory, but
you shall not anoint yourself with the oil; for your olives shall drop off.
41You shall beget sons and daughters, but they shall not be yours; for they
shall go into captivity. 42All your trees and the fruit of your ground the
locust shall possess. 43The sojourner who is among you shall mount above
you higher and higher; and you shall come down lower and lower. 44He
shall lend to you, and you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and
you shall be the tail. 45All these curses shall come upon you and pursue you
and overtake you, till you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice
of the LORD your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he
commanded you. 46They shall be upon you as a sign and a wonder, and
upon your descendants for ever.
47 “Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joyfulness and
gladness of heart, by reason of the abundance of all things, 48therefore you
shall serve your enemies whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger
and thirst, in nakedness, and in want of all things; and he will put a yoke of
iron upon your neck, until he has destroyed you. 49The LORD will bring a
nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle
flies, a nation whose language you do not understand, 50a nation of stern
countenance, who shall not regard the person of the old or show favor to the
young, 51and shall eat the offspring of your cattle and the fruit of your
ground, until you are destroyed; who also shall not leave you grain, wine, or
oil, the increase of your cattle or the young of your flock, until they have
caused you to perish. 52They shall besiege you in all your towns, until your
high and fortified walls, in which you trusted, come down throughout all
your land; and they shall besiege you in all your towns throughout all your
land, which the LORD your God has given you. 53And you shall eat the
offspring of your own body, the flesh of your sons and daughters, whom the
LORD your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which
your enemies shall distress you. 54The man who is the most tender and
delicately bred among you will grudge food to his brother, to the wife of his
bosom, and to the last of the children who remain to him; 55so that he will
not give to any of them any of the flesh of his children whom he is eating,
because he has nothing left him, in the siege and in the distress with which
your enemy shall distress you in all your towns. 56The most tender and
delicately bred woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of
her foot upon the ground because she is so delicate and tender, will grudge
to the husband of her bosom, to her son and to her daughter, 57her afterbirth
that comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears,
because she will eat them secretly, for want of all things, in the siege and in
the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in your towns.
58 “If you are not careful to do all the words of this law which are written
in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the LORD
your God, 59then the LORD will bring on you and your offspring
extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses
grievous and lasting. 60And he will bring upon you again all the diseases of
Egypt, which you were afraid of; and they shall cling to you. 61Every
sickness also, and every affliction which is not recorded in the book of this
law, the LORD will bring upon you, until you are destroyed. 62Whereas you
were as the stars of heaven for multitude, you shall be left few in number;
because you did not obey the voice of the LORD your God. 63And as the
LORD took delight in doing you good and multiplying you, so the LORD will
take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you; and you shall be
plucked off the land which you are entering to take possession of it. 64And
the LORD will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to
the other; and there you shall serve other gods, of wood and stone, which
neither you nor your fathers have known. 65And among these nations you
shall find no ease, and there shall be no rest for the sole of your foot; but the
LORD will give you there a trembling heart, and failing eyes, and a
languishing soul; 66your life shall hang in doubt before you; night and day
you shall be in dread, and have no assurance of your life. 67In the morning
you shall say, ‘Would it were evening!’ and at evening you shall say,
‘Would it were morning!’ because of the dread which your heart shall fear,
and the sights which your eyes shall see. 68And the LORD will bring you
back in ships to Egypt, a journey which I promised that you should never
make again; and there you shall offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as
male and female slaves, but no man will buy you.”
The Covenant Renewed in Moab
29 y These are the words of the covenant which the LORD commanded
Moses to make with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the
covenant which he had made with them at Horeb.
2 z And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: “You have seen all
that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to
all his servants and to all his land, 3the great trials which your eyes saw, the
signs, and those great wonders; 4but to this day the LORD has not given you
a mind to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear. 5I have led you forty
years in the wilderness; your clothes have not worn out upon you, and your
sandals have not worn off your feet; 6you have not eaten bread, and you
have not drunk wine or strong drink; that you may know that I am the LORD
your God. 7And when you came to this place, Si'hon the king of Heshbon
and Og the king of Bashan came out against us to battle, but we defeated
them; 8we took their land, and gave it for an inheritance to the Reubenites,
the Gadites, and the half-tribe of the Manas'sites. 9Therefore be careful to
do the words of this covenant, that you may prosper a in all that you do.
10 “You stand this day all of you before the LORD your God; the heads of
your tribes, b your elders, and your officers, all the men of Israel, 11your
little ones, your wives, and the sojourner who is in your camp, both he who
hews your wood and he who draws your water, 12that you may enter into
the sworn covenant of the LORD your God, which the LORD your God
makes with you this day; 13that he may establish you this day as his people,
and that he may be your God, as he promised you, and as he swore to your
fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. 14Nor is it with you only that I
make this sworn covenant, 15but with him who is not here with us this day
as well as with him who stands here with us this day before the LORD our
God.
16 “You know how we dwelt in the land of Egypt, and how we came
through the midst of the nations through which you passed; 17and you have
seen their detestable things, their idols of wood and stone, of silver and
gold, which were among them. 18Beware lest there be among you a man or
woman or family or tribe, whose heart turns away this day from the LORD
our God to go and serve the gods of those nations; lest there be among you
a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit, 19one who, when he hears the
words of this sworn covenant, blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall
be safe, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart.’ This would lead to
the sweeping away of moist and dry alike. 20The LORD would not pardon
him, but rather the anger of the LORD and his jealousy would smoke against
that man, and the curses written in this book would settle upon him, and the
LORD would blot out his name from under heaven. 21And the LORD would
single him out from all the tribes of Israel for calamity, in accordance with
all the curses of the covenant written in this book of the law. 22And the
generation to come, your children who rise up after you, and the foreigner
who comes from a far land, would say, when they see the afflictions of that
land and the sicknesses with which the LORD has made it sick—23the whole
land brimstone and salt, and a burnt-out waste, unsown, and growing
nothing, where no grass can sprout, an overthrow like that of Sodom and
Gomor'rah, Admah and Zeboi'im, which the LORD overthrew in his anger
and wrath—24yes, all the nations would say, ‘Why has the LORD done thus
to this land? What means the heat of this great anger?’ 25Then men would
say, ‘It is because they forsook the covenant of the LORD, the God of their
fathers, which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of
Egypt, 26and went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods whom
they had not known and whom he had not allotted to them; 27therefore the
anger of the LORD was kindled against this land, bringing upon it all the
curses written in this book; 28and the LORD uprooted them from their land in
anger and fury and great wrath, and cast them into another land, as at this
day.’
29 “The secret things belong to the LORD our God; but the things that are
revealed belong to us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the
words of this law.
God’s Fidelity Assured
30 “And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the
curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the
nations where the LORD your God has driven you, 2and return to the LORD
your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command
you this day, with all your heart and with all your soul; 3then the LORD your
God will restore your fortunes, and have compassion upon you, and he will
gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has
scattered you. 4If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from
there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there he will fetch you;
5and the LORD your God will bring you into the land which your fathers
possessed, that you may possess it; and he will make you more prosperous
and numerous than your fathers. 6And the LORD your God will circumcise
your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD
your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. 7And
the LORD your God will put all these curses upon your foes and enemies
who persecuted you. 8And you shall again obey the voice of the LORD, and
keep all his commandments which I command you this day. 9The LORD
your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your
hand, in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your cattle, and in the fruit
of your ground; for the LORD will again take delight in prospering you, as
he took delight in your fathers, 10if you obey the voice of the LORD your
God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this
book of the law, if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and
with all your soul.
Exhortation to Choose Life
11 “For this commandment which I command you this day is not too hard
for you, neither is it far off. 12It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who
will go up for us to heaven, and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do
it?’ 13Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over
the sea for us, and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 14But the
word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can
do it.
15 “See, I have set before you this day life and good, death and evil. 16If
you obey the commandments of the LORD your God c which I command
you this day, by loving the LORD your God, by walking in his ways, and by
keeping his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, then you
shall live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land
which you are entering to take possession of it. 17But if your heart turns
away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and
serve them, 18I declare to you this day, that you shall perish; you shall not
live long in the land which you are going over the Jordan to enter and
possess. 19I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have
set before you life and death, blessing and curse; therefore choose life, that
you and your descendants may live, 20loving the LORD your God, obeying
his voice, and clinging to him; for that means life to you and length of days,
that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to
Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
Joshua Becomes Moses’ Successor
31 So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel. 2And he said
to them, “I am a hundred and twenty years old this day; I am no longer able
to go out and come in. The LORD has said to me, ‘You shall not go over this
Jordan.’ 3The LORD your God himself will go over before you; he will
destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them; and
Joshua will go over at your head, as the LORD has spoken. 4And the LORD
will do to them as he did to Si'hon and Og, the kings of the Am'orites, and
to their land, when he destroyed them. 5And the LORD will give them over
to you, and you shall do to them according to all the commandment which I
have commanded you. 6Be strong and of good courage, do not fear or be in
dread of them: for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; he will not
fail you or forsake you.”
7 Then Moses summoned Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel,
“Be strong and of good courage; for you shall go with this people into the
land which the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them; and you shall
put them in possession of it. 8It is the LORD who goes before you; he will be
with you, he will not fail you or forsake you; do not fear or be dismayed.”
Rereading of the Law Commanded
9 And Moses wrote this law, and gave it to the priests the sons of Levi,
who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and to all the elders of
Israel. 10And Moses commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, at
the set time of the year of release, at the feast of booths, 11when all Israel
comes to appear before the LORD your God at the place which he will
choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 12Assemble
the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your
towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God, and be
careful to do all the words of this law, 13and that their children, who have
not known it, may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as you
live in the land which you are going over the Jordan to possess.”
Moses and Joshua Receive God’s Charge
14 And the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, the days approach when you
must die; call Joshua, and present yourselves in the tent of meeting, that I
may commission him.” And Moses and Joshua went and presented
themselves in the tent of meeting. 15And the LORD appeared in the tent in a
pillar of cloud; and the pillar of cloud stood by the door of the tent.
16 And the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, you are about to sleep with your
fathers; then this people will rise and play the harlot after the strange gods
of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will forsake me and
break my covenant which I have made with them. 17Then my anger will be
kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them and hide my face
from them, and they will be devoured; and many evils and troubles will
come upon them, so that they will say in that day, ‘Have not these evils
come upon us because our God is not among us?’ 18And I will surely hide
my face in that day on account of all the evil which they have done, because
they have turned to other gods. 19Now therefore write this song, and teach it
to the sons of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness
for me against the sons of Israel. 20For when I have brought them into the
land flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to give to their fathers,
and they have eaten and are full and grown fat, they will turn to other gods
and serve them, and despise me and break my covenant. 21And when many
evils and troubles have come upon them, this song shall confront them as a
witness (for it will live unforgotten in the mouths of their descendants); for
I know the purposes which they are already forming, before I have brought
them into the land that I swore to give.” 22So Moses wrote this song the
same day, and taught it to the sons of Israel.
23 And the LORD commissioned Joshua the son of Nun and said, “Be
strong and of good courage; for you shall bring the children of Israel into
the land which I swore to give them: I will be with you.”
24 When Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book, to the
very end, 25Moses commanded the Levites who carried the ark of the
covenant of the LORD, 26 “Take this book of the law, and put it by the side of
the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a
witness against you. 27For I know how rebellious and stubborn you are;
behold, while I am yet alive with you, today you have been rebellious
against the LORD; how much more after my death! 28Assemble to me all the
elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their
ears and call heaven and earth to witness against them. 29For I know that
after my death you will surely act corruptly, and turn aside from the way
which I have commanded you; and in the days to come evil will befall you,
because you will do what is evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking him to
anger through the work of your hands.”
The Song of Moses
OceanofPDF.com
30 Then Moses spoke the words of this song until they were finished, in
the ears of all the assembly of Israel:
32 “Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak;
and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
2May my teaching drop as the rain,
my speech distil as the dew,
as the gentle rain upon the tender grass,
and as the showers upon the herb.
3For I will proclaim the name of the LORD.
Ascribe greatness to our God!
4“The Rock, his work is perfect;

for all his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness and without iniquity,
just and right is he.
5They have dealt corruptly with him,
they are no longer his children because of their blemish;

they are a perverse and crooked generation.
6Do you thus repay the LORD,
you foolish and senseless people?
Is not he your father, who created you,
who made you and established you?
7Remember the days of old,
consider the years of many generations;

ask your father, and he will show you;
your elders, and they will tell you.
8When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
when he separated the sons of men,

he fixed the bounds of the peoples
according to the number of the sons of Israel. d
9For the LORD’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted heritage.

10“He found him in a desert land,
and in the howling waste of the wilderness;

he encircled him, he cared for him,
he kept him as the apple of his eye.
11Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
bearing them on its pinions,
12the LORD alone did lead him,
and there was no foreign god with him.

13He made him ride on the high places of the earth,
and he ate the produce of the field;

and he made him suck honey out of the rock,
and oil out of the flinty rock.
14Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
with fat of lambs and rams,

herds of Bashan and goats,
with the finest of the wheat—
and of the blood of the grape you drank wine.
15“But Jesh'urun waxed fat, and kicked;
you waxed fat, you grew thick, you became sleek;
then he forsook God who made him,
and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.
16They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
with abominable practices they provoked him to anger.
17They sacrificed to demons which were no gods,
to gods they had never known,
to new gods that had come in of late,
whom your fathers had never dreaded.
18You were unmindful of the Rock that begot e you,
and you forgot the God who gave you birth.
19“The LORD saw it, and spurned them,
because of the provocation of his sons and his daughters.
20And he said, ‘I will hide my face from them,
I will see what their end will be,
for they are a perverse generation,
children in whom is no faithfulness.
21They have stirred me to jealousy with what is no god;
they have provoked me with their idols.
So I will stir them to jealousy with those who are no people;
I will provoke them with a foolish nation.
22For a fire is kindled by my anger,
and it burns to the depths of Sheol,
devours the earth and its increase,
and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23“ ‘And I will heap evils upon them;
I will spend my arrows upon them;
24they shall be wasted with hunger,
and devoured with burning heat

and poisonous pestilence;
and I will send the teeth of beasts against them,
with venom of crawling things of the dust.
25In the open the sword shall bereave,
and in the chambers shall be terror,
destroying both young man and virgin,
the sucking child with the man of gray hairs.
26I would have said, “I will scatter them afar,
I will make the remembrance of them cease from among men,”
27had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
lest their adversaries should judge amiss,
lest they should say, “Our hand is triumphant,
the LORD has not wrought all this.” ’
28“For they are a nation void of counsel,
and there is no understanding in them.
29If they were wise, they would understand this,
they would discern their latter end!

30How should one chase a thousand,
and two put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock had sold them,
and the LORD had given them up?
31For their rock is not as our Rock,
even our enemies themselves being judges.
32For their vine comes from the vine of Sodom,
and from the fields of Gomor'rah;
their grapes are grapes of poison,
their clusters are bitter;
33their wine is the poison of serpents,
and the cruel venom of asps.
34“Is not this laid up in store with me,
sealed up in my treasuries?
35Vengeance is mine, and recompense,
for the time when their foot shall slip;
for the day of their calamity is at hand,
and their doom comes swiftly.
36For the LORD will vindicate his people
and have compassion on his servants,

when he sees that their power is gone,
and there is none remaining, bond or free.
37Then he will say, ‘Where are their gods,
the rock in which they took refuge,

38who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
and drank the wine of their drink offering?

Let them rise up and help you,
let them be your protection!
39“ ‘See now that I, even I, am he,
and there is no god beside me;
I kill and I make alive;
I wound and I heal;
and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
40For I lift up my hand to heaven,
and swear, As I live for ever,

41if I sharpen my glittering sword, f
and my hand takes hold on judgment,

I will take vengeance on my adversaries,
and will repay those who hate me.
42I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
and my sword shall devour flesh—
with the blood of the slain and the captives,
from the long-haired heads of the enemy.’
43“Praise his people, O you nations;
for he avenges the blood of his servants,
and takes vengeance on his adversaries,
and makes expiation for the land of his people.” g
44 Moses came and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the
people, he and Joshua h the son of Nun. 45And when Moses had finished
speaking all these words to all Israel, 46he said to them, “Lay to heart all the
words which I enjoin upon you this day, that you may command them to
your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. 47For
it is no trifle for you, but it is your life, and thereby you shall live long in
the land which you are going over the Jordan to possess.”
Moses’ Death Foretold
48 And the LORD said to Moses that very day, 49 “Ascend this mountain of
the Ab'arim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, opposite Jericho;
and view the land of Canaan, which I give to the sons of Israel for a
possession; 50and die on the mountain which you ascend, and be gathered to
your people, as Aaron your brother died in Mount Hor and was gathered to
his people; 51because you broke faith with me in the midst of the sons of
Israel at the waters of Mer'ibath-ka'desh, in the wilderness of Zin; because
you did not revere me as holy in the midst of the sons of Israel. 52For you
shall see the land before you; but you shall not go there, into the land which
I give to the sons of Israel.”
Moses’ Final Blessing
33 This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the
children of Israel before his death. 2He said,
“The LORD came from Sinai,
and dawned from Se'ir upon us; i
he shone forth from Mount Par'an,
he came from the ten thousands of holy ones,
with flaming fire j at his right hand.
3Yes, he loved his people; k
all those consecrated to him were in his x hand;
so they followed j in your steps,
receiving direction from you,
4when Moses commanded us a law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.

5Thus the LORD became king in Jesh'urun,
when the heads of the people were gathered,

all the tribes of Israel together.
6“Let Reuben live, and not die,
nor let his men be few.”
7And this he said of Judah:
“Hear, O LORD, the voice of Judah,
and bring him in to his people.
With your hands contend l for him,
and be a help against his adversaries.”
8And of Levi he said,
“Give to Levi m your Thummim,
and your U'rim to your godly one,
whom you tested at Massah,
with whom you strove at the waters of Mer'ibah;
9who said of his father and mother,
‘I regard them not’;

he disowned his brothers,
and ignored his children.
For they observed your word,
and kept your covenant.
10They shall teach Jacob your ordinances,
and Israel your law;

they shall put incense before you,
and whole burnt offering upon your altar.
11Bless, O LORD, his substance,
and accept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
of those that hate him, that they rise not again.”
12Of Benjamin he said,
“The beloved of the LORD,
he dwells in safety by him;
he encompasses him all the day long,
and makes his dwelling between his shoulders.”
13And of Joseph he said,
“Blessed by the LORD be his land,
with the choicest gifts of heaven above, n
and of the deep that lies beneath,
14with the choicest fruits of the sun,
and the rich yield of the months,

15with the finest produce of the ancient mountains,
and the abundance of the everlasting hills,

16with the best gifts of the earth and its fulness,
and the favor of him that dwelt in the bush.

Let these come upon the head of Joseph,
and upon the crown of the head of him that is prince among his
brothers.
17His firstling bull has majesty,
and his horns are the horns of a wild ox;

with them he shall push the peoples,
all of them, to the ends of the earth;
such are the ten thousands of E'phraim,
and such are the thousands of Manas'seh.”
18And of Zeb'ulun he said,
“Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out;
and Is'sachar, in your tents.
19They shall call peoples to their mountain;
there they offer right sacrifices;

for they suck the affluence of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.”
20And of Gad he said,
“Blessed be he who enlarges Gad!
Gad lurks like a lion,
he tears the arm, and the crown of the head.
21Hechose the best of the land for himself,
for there a commander’s portion was reserved;
and he came to the heads of the people,
with Israel he executed the commands
and just decrees of the LORD.”
22And of Dan he said,
“Dan is a lion’s whelp,
that leaps forth from Bashan.”
23Andof Naph'tali he said,
“O Naphtali, satisfied with favor,
and full of the blessing of the LORD,
possess the lake and the south.”
24And of Asher he said,
“Blessed above sons be Asher;
let him be the favorite of his brothers,
and let him dip his foot in oil.
25Your bars shall be iron and bronze;
and as your days, so shall your strength be.

26“There is none like God, O Jesh'urun,
who rides through the heavens to your help,
and in his majesty through the skies.
27The eternal God is your dwelling place,
and underneath are the everlasting arms.

And he thrust out the enemy before you,
and said, Destroy.
28So Israel dwelt in safety,
the fountain of Jacob alone,

in a land of grain and wine;
yes, his heavens drop down dew.
29Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you,
a people saved by the LORD,

the shield of your help,
and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you;
and you shall tread upon their high places.”
The Death of Moses
34 And Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the
top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho. And the LORD showed him all the
land, Gilead as far as Dan, 2all Naph'tali, the land of E'phraim and
Manas'seh, all the land of Judah as far as the western sea, 3the Neg'eb, and
the Plain, that is, the valley of Jericho the city of palm trees, as far as Zoar.
4And the LORD said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham,
to Isaac, and to Jacob, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see
it with your eyes, but you shall not go over there.” 5So Moses the servant of
the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD,
6and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-pe'or;
but no man knows the place of his burial to this day. 7Moses was a hundred
and twenty years old when he died; his eye was not dim, nor his natural
force abated. 8And the sons of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab
thirty days; then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.
9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses
had laid his hands upon him; so the sons of Israel obeyed him, and did as
the LORD had commanded Moses. 10And there has not arisen a prophet
since in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, 11none like
him for all the signs and the wonders which the LORD sent him to do in the
land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, 12and
for all the mighty power and all the great and terrible deeds which Moses
wrought in the sight of all Israel.
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Joshua
Chapters
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THE BOOK OF JOSHUA
God Commissions Joshua
1* After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to
Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, 2 “Moses my servant is dead; now
therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land
which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. 3Every place that the sole
of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, as I promised to Moses.
4From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river
Euphrates, all the land of th Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down
of the sun shall be your territory. 5No man shall be able to stand before you
all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will
not fail you or forsake you. 6Be strong and of good courage; for you shall
cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give
them. 7Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according
to all the law which Moses my servant commanded you; turn not from it to
the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you
go. 8This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall
meditate on it day and night, that you may be careful to do according to all
that is written in it; for then you shall make your way prosperous, and then
you shall have good success. 9Have I not commanded you? Be strong and
of good courage; be not frightened, neither be dismayed; for the LORD your
God is with you wherever you go.”
Preparations for Taking Over the Land
10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the
camp, and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions; for within three
days you are to pass over this Jordan, to go in to take possession of the land
which the LORD your God gives you to possess.’ ”
12 And to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manas'seh
Joshua said, 13 “Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD
commanded you, saying, ‘The LORD your God is providing you a place of
rest, and will give you this land.’ 14Your wives, your little ones, and your
cattle shall remain in the land which Moses gave you beyond the Jordan;
but all the men of valor among you shall pass over armed before your
brethren and shall help them, 15until the LORD gives rest to your brethren as
well as to you, and they also take possession of the land which the LORD
your God is giving them; then you shall return to the land of your
possession, and shall possess it, the land which Moses the servant of the
LORD gave you beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise.” 16And they
answered Joshua, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and
wherever you send us we will go. 17Just as we obeyed Moses in all things,
so we will obey you; only may the LORD your God be with you, as he was
with Moses! 18Whoever rebels against your commandment and disobeys
your words, whatever you command him, shall be put to death. Only be
strong and of good courage.”
Spies Sent to Jericho
2 And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as
spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went, and
came into the house of a harlot whose name was Ra'hab, and lodged there.
2And it was told the king of Jericho, “Behold, certain men of Israel have
come here tonight to search out the land.” 3Then the king of Jericho sent to
Ra'hab, saying, “Bring forth the men that have come to you, who entered
your house; for they have come to search out all the land.” 4But the woman
had taken the two men and hidden them; and she said, “True, men came to
me, but I did not know where they came from; 5and when the gate was to be
closed, at dark, the men went out; where the men went I do not know;
pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” 6But she had brought
them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax which she had laid
in order on the roof. 7So the men pursued after them on the way to the
Jordan as far as the fords; and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate
was shut.
8 Before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof, 9and said to the
men, “I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the fear of you
has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before
you. 10For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea
before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings
of the Am'orites that were beyond the Jordan, to Si'hon and Og, whom you
utterly destroyed. 11And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there
was no courage left in any man, because of you; for the LORD your God is
he who is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. 12Now then, swear to
me by the LORD that as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal
kindly with my father’s house, and give me a sure sign, 13and save alive my
father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and
deliver our lives from death.” 14And the men said to her, “Our life for
yours! If you do not tell this business of ours, then we will deal kindly and
faithfully with you when the LORD gives us the land.”
15 Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house
was built into the city wall, so that she dwelt in the wall. 16And she said to
them, “Go into the hills, lest the pursuers meet you; and hide yourselves
there three days, until the pursuers have returned; then afterward you may
go your way.” 17The men said to her, “We will be guiltless with respect to
this oath of yours which you have made us swear. 18Behold, when we come
into the land, you shall bind this scarlet cord in the window through which
you let us down; and you shall gather into your house your father and
mother, your brothers, and all your father’s household. 19If any one goes out
of the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head,
and we shall be guiltless; but if a hand is laid upon any one who is with you
in the house, his blood shall be on our head. 20But if you tell this business
of ours, then we shall be guiltless with respect to your oath which you have
made us swear.” 21And she said, “According to your words, so be it.” Then
she sent them away, and they departed; and she bound the scarlet cord in the
window.
22 They departed, and went into the hills, and remained there three days,
until the pursuers returned; for the pursuers had made search all along the
way and found nothing. 23Then the two men came down again from the
hills, and passed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun; and they told him
all that had befallen them. 24And they said to Joshua, “Truly the LORD has
given all the land into our hands; and moreover all the inhabitants of the
land are fainthearted because of us.”
Israel Passes over the Jordan
3 Early in the morning Joshua rose and set out from Shittim, with all the
sons of Israel; and they came to the Jordan, and lodged there before they
passed over. 2At the end of three days the officers went through the camp
3and commanded the people, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the
LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out
from your place and follow it, 4that you may know the way you shall go, for
you have not passed this way before. Yet there shall be a space between you
and it, a distance of about two thousand cubits; do not come near it.” 5And
Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves; for tomorrow the LORD will
do wonders among you.” 6And Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark
of the covenant, and pass on before the people.” And they took up the ark of
the covenant, and went before the people.
7 And the LORD said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the
sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be
with you. 8And you shall command the priests who bear the ark of the
covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you
shall stand still in the Jordan.’ ” 9And Joshua said to the sons of Israel,
“Come here, and hear the words of the LORD your God.” 10And Joshua said,
“Hereby you shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will
without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the
Hi'vites, the Per'izzites, the Gir'gashites, the Am'orites, and the Jeb'usites.
11Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is to pass over
before you into the Jordan. 12Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes
of Israel, from each tribe a man. 13And when the soles of the feet of the
priests who bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in
the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be stopped from
flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”
14 So, when the people set out from their tents, to pass over the Jordan
with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, 15and
when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the
priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (the Jordan
overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), 16the waters coming
down from above stood and rose up in a heap far off, at Adam, the city that
is beside Zar'ethan, and those flowing down toward the sea of the Ar'abah,
the Salt Sea, were wholly cut off; and the people passed over opposite
Jericho. 17And while all Israel were passing over on dry ground, the priests
who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood on dry ground in the
midst of the Jordan, until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan. *
Twelve Stones Set Up at Gilgal
4 When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the LORD
said to Joshua, 2 “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man,
3and command them, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the
Jordan, from the very place where the priests’ feet stood, and carry them
over with you, and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight.’ ”
4Then Joshua called the twelve men from the sons of Israel, whom he had
appointed, a man from each tribe; 5and Joshua said to them, “Pass on before
the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each
of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of
the sons of Israel, 6that this may be a sign among you, when your children
ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ 7Then you shall
tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the
covenant of the LORD; when it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the
Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the sons of Israel a memorial
for ever.”
8 And the men of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve
stones out of the midst of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes
of the sons of Israel, as the LORD told Joshua; and they carried them over
with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 9And
Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where
the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the covenant had stood; and they
are there to this day. 10For the priests who bore the ark stood in the midst of
the Jordan, until everything was finished that the LORD commanded Joshua
to tell the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua.
The people passed over in haste; 11and when all the people had finished
passing over, the ark of the LORD and the priests passed over before the
people. 12The sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of
Manas'seh passed over armed before the sons of Israel, as Moses had
bidden them; 13about forty thousand ready armed for war passed over
before the LORD for battle, to the plains of Jericho. 14On that day the LORD
exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him, as
they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.
15 And the LORD said to Joshua, 16 “Command the priests who bear the ark
of the covenant to come up out of the Jordan.” 17Joshua therefore

commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.” 18And when the
priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up from the midst
of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up on dry ground,
the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks,
as before.
19 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first
month, and they encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. 20And
those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in
Gilgal. 21And he said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their
fathers in time to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22then you shall let
your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ 23For
the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you
passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up
for us until we passed over, 24so that all the peoples of the earth may know
that the hand of the LORD is mighty; that you may fear the LORD your God
for ever.”
The Sons of Israel Are Circumcised
5 When all the kings of the Am'orites that were beyond the Jordan to the
west, and all the kings of the Canaanites that were by the sea, heard that the
LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the sons of Israel until they
had crossed over, their heart melted, and there was no longer any spirit in
them, because of the sons of Israel.
2 At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise
the sons of Israel again the second time.” 3So Joshua made flint knives, and
circumcised the sons of Israel at Gib'eath-haar'aloth. a 4And this is the
reason why Joshua circumcised them: all the males of the people who came
out of Egypt, all the men of war, had died on the way in the wilderness after
they had come out of Egypt. 5Though all the people who came out had been
circumcised, yet all the people that were born on the way in the wilderness
after they had come out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6For the sons of
Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the nation, the men of
war that came forth out of Egypt, perished, because they did not listen to
the voice of the LORD; to them the LORD swore that he would not let them
see the land which the LORD had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land
flowing with milk and honey. 7So it was their children, whom he raised up
in their stead, that Joshua circumcised; for they were uncircumcised,
because they had not been circumcised on the way.
8 When the circumcising of all the nation was done, they remained in their
places in the camp till they were healed. 9And the LORD said to Joshua,
“This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” And so the
name of that place is called Gilgal b to this day.
The Passover at Gilgal
10 While the sons of Israel were encamped in Gilgal they kept the
Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of

Jericho. 11And on the next day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate
of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12And the
manna ceased on the next day, when they ate of the produce of the land; and
the sons of Israel had manna no more, but ate of the fruit of the land of
Canaan that year.
Joshua’s Vision
13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and
behold, a man stood before him with his drawn sword in his hand; and
Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our
adversaries?” 14And he said, “No; but as commander of the army of the
LORD I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and
worshiped, and said to him, “What does my lord bid his servant?” 15And
the commander of the LORD’s army said to Joshua, “Put off your shoes
from your feet; for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.
Jericho Taken and Destroyed
6* Now Jericho was shut up from within and from without because of
the sons of Israel; none went out, and none came in. 2And the LORD said to
Joshua, “See, I have given into your hand Jericho, with its king and mighty
men of valor. 3You shall march around the city, all the men of war going
around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4And seven priests
shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark; and on the seventh
day you shall march around the city seven times, the priests blowing the
trumpets. 5And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, as soon as
you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a
great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall
go up every man straight before him.” 6So Joshua the son of Nun called the
priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven
priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD.”
7And he said to the people, “Go forward; march around the city, and let the
armed men pass on before the ark of the LORD.”
8 And as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the
seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the LORD went forward, blowing the
trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD following them. 9And
the armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear
guard came after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually. 10But Joshua
commanded the people, “You shall not shout or let your voice be heard,
neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout;
then you shall shout.” 11So he caused the ark of the LORD to compass the
city, going about it once; and they came into the camp, and spent the night
in the camp.
12 Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark
of the LORD. 13And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’
horns before the ark of the LORD passed on, blowing the trumpets
continually; and the armed men went before them, and the rear guard came
after the ark of the LORD, while the trumpets blew continually. 14And the
second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp.
So they did for six days.
15 On the seventh day they rose early at the dawn of day, and marched
around the city in the same manner seven times: it was only on that day that
they marched around the city seven times. 16And at the seventh time, when
the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout; for
the LORD has given you the city. 17And the city and all that is within it shall
be devoted to the LORD for destruction; * only Ra'hab the harlot and all who
are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers that we
sent. 18But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest
when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make
the camp of Israel a thing for destruction, and bring trouble upon it. 19But
all silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are sacred to the LORD;
they shall go into the treasury of the LORD.” 20So the people shouted, and
the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the
trumpet, the people raised a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that
the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they
took the city. 21Then they utterly destroyed all in the city, both men and
women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the
sword.
22 And Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into
the harlot’s house, and bring out from it the woman, and all who belong to
her, as you swore to her.” 23So the young men who had been spies went in,
and brought out Ra'hab, and her father and mother and brothers and all who
belonged to her; and they brought all her kindred, and set them outside the
camp of Israel. 24And they burned the city with fire, and all within it; only
the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they put into the
treasury of the house of the LORD. 25But Ra'hab the harlot, and her father’s
household, and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive; and she dwelt
in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to
spy out Jericho.
26 Joshua laid an oath upon them at that time, saying, “Cursed before the
LORD be the man that rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho.
At the cost of his first-born shall he lay its foundation,
and at the cost of his youngest son shall he set up its gates.”
27 So the LORD was with Joshua; and his fame was in all the land.
The Sin of Achan and Its Punishment

7 But the sons of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things; for
A'chan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Ze'rah, of the tribe of Judah,
took some of the devoted things; and the anger of the LORD burned against
the sons of Israel.
2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-a'ven, east of
Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” And the men went
up and spied out Ai. 3And they returned to Joshua, and said to him, “Let not
all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and
attack Ai; do not make the whole people toil up there, for they are but few.”
4So about three thousand went up there from the people; and they fled
before the men of Ai, 5and the men of Ai killed about thirty-six men of
them, and chased them before the gate as far as Sheb'arim, and slew them at
the descent. And the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before
the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they
put dust upon their heads. 7And Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord GOD, why have
you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to give us into the hands of
the Am'orites, to destroy us? Would that we had been content to dwell
beyond the Jordan! 8O Lord, what can I say, when Israel has turned their
backs before their enemies! 9For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of
the land will hear of it, and will surround us, and cut off our name from the
earth; and what will you do for your great name?”
10 The LORD said to Joshua, “Arise, why have you thus fallen upon your
face? 11Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant which I

commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have
stolen, and lied, and put them among their own stuff. 12Therefore the sons
of Israel cannot stand before their enemies; they turn their backs before
their enemies, because they have become a thing for destruction. I will be
with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you.
13Up, sanctify the people, and say, ‘Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow; for
thus says the LORD, God of Israel, “There are devoted things in the midst of
you, O Israel; you cannot stand before your enemies, until you take away
the devoted things from among you.” 14In the morning therefore you shall
be brought near by your tribes; and the tribe which the LORD takes shall
come near by families; and the family which the LORD takes shall come
near by households; and the household which the LORD takes shall come
near man by man. 15And he who is taken with the devoted things shall be
burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the
covenant of the LORD, and because he has done a shameful thing in
Israel.’ ”
16 So Joshua rose early in the morning, and brought Israel near tribe by
tribe, and the tribe of Judah was taken; 17and he brought near the families of
Judah, and the family of the Ze'rahites was taken; and he brought near the
family of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was taken; 18and he brought
near his household man by man, and A'chan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi,
son of Ze'rah of the tribe of Judah, was taken. 19Then Joshua said to A'chan,
“My son, give glory to the LORD God of Israel, and render praise to him;
and tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.” 20And
A'chan answered Joshua, “Of a truth I have sinned against the LORD God of
Israel, and this is what I did: 21when I saw among the spoil a beautiful
mantle from Shi'nar, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a bar of gold
weighing fifty shekels, then I coveted them, and took them; and behold,
they are hidden in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”
22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was
hidden in his tent with the silver underneath. 23And they took them out of
the tent and brought them to Joshua and all the sons of Israel; and they laid
them down before the LORD. 24And Joshua and all Israel with him took
A'chan the son of Ze'rah, and the silver and the mantle and the bar of gold,
and his sons and daughters, and his oxen and donkeys and sheep, and his
tent, and all that he had; and they brought them up to the Valley of A'chor.
25And Joshua said, “Why did you bring trouble on us? The LORD brings
trouble on you today.” And all Israel stoned him with stones; they burned
them with fire, and stoned them with stones. 26And they raised over him a
great heap of stones that remains to this day; then the LORD turned from his
burning anger. Therefore to this day the name of that place is called the
Valley of A'chor.c
Capture and Destruction of Ai
8 And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear or be dismayed; take all the
fighting men with you, and arise, go up to Ai; see, I have given into your
hand the king of Ai, and his people, his city, and his land; 2and you shall do
to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king; only its spoil and its
cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves; lay an ambush against the city,
behind it.”
3 So Joshua arose, and all the fighting men, to go up to Ai; and Joshua
chose thirty thousand mighty men of valor, and sent them forth by night.
4And he commanded them, “Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the
city, behind it; do not go very far from the city, but hold yourselves all in
readiness; 5and I, and all the people who are with me, will approach the
city. And when they come out against us, as before, we shall flee before
them; 6and they will come out after us, till we have drawn them away from
the city; for they will say, ‘They are fleeing from us, as before.’ So we will
flee from them; 7then you shall rise up from the ambush, and seize the city;
for the LORD your God will give it into your hand. 8And when you have
taken the city, you shall set the city on fire, doing as the LORD has bidden;
see, I have commanded you.” 9So Joshua sent them forth; and they went to
the place of ambush, and lay between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai; but
Joshua spent that night among the people.
10 And Joshua arose early in the morning and mustered the people, and
went up, with the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai. 11And all the
fighting men who were with him went up, and drew near before the city,
and encamped on the north side of Ai, with a ravine between them and Ai.
12And he took about five thousand men, and set them in ambush between
Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. 13So they stationed the forces, the
main encampment which was north of the city and its rear guard west of the
city. But Joshua spent that night in the valley. 14And when the king of Ai
saw this he and all his people, the men of the city, made haste and went out
early to the descent d toward the Arabah to meet Israel in battle; but he did
not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. 15And
Joshua and all Israel made a pretense of being beaten before them, and fled
in the direction of the wilderness. 16So all the people who were in the city
were called together to pursue them, and as they pursued Joshua they were
drawn away from the city. 17There was not a man left in Ai or Bethel, who
did not go out after Israel; they left the city open, and pursued Israel.
18 Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Stretch out the javelin that is in your
hand toward Ai; for I will give it into your hand.” And Joshua stretched out
the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. 19And the ambush rose
quickly out of their place, and as soon as he had stretched out his hand, they
ran and entered the city and took it; and they made haste to set the city on
fire. 20So when the men of Ai looked back, behold, the smoke of the city
went up to heaven; and they had no power to flee this way or that, for the
people that fled to the wilderness turned back upon the pursuers. 21And
when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city, and that
the smoke of the city went up, then they turned back and struck the men of
Ai. 22And the others came forth from the city against them; so they were in
the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side; and Israel
struck them, until there was left none that survived or escaped. 23But the
king of Ai they took alive, and brought him to Joshua.
24 When Israel had finished slaughtering all the inhabitants of Ai in the
open wilderness where they pursued them, and all of them to the very last
had fallen by the edge of the sword, all Israel returned to Ai, and struck it
with the edge of the sword. 25And all who fell that day, both men and
women, were twelve thousand, all the people of Ai. 26For Joshua did not
draw back his hand, with which he stretched out the javelin, until he had
utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai. 27Only the cattle and the spoil of
that city Israel took as their booty, according to the word of the LORD which
he commanded Joshua. 28So Joshua burned Ai, and made it for ever a heap
of ruins, as it is to this day. 29And he hanged the king of Ai on a tree until
evening; and at the going down of the sun Joshua commanded, and they
took his body down from the tree, and cast it at the entrance of the gate of
the city, and raised over it a great heap of stones, which stands there to this
day.
Joshua Sacrifices and Reads the Law at Mount Ebal
30 Then Joshua built an altar on Mount E'bal to the LORD, the God of
Israel, 31as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded the sons of
Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, “an altar of unhewn
stones, upon which no man has lifted an iron tool”; and they offered on it
burnt offerings to the LORD, and sacrificed peace offerings. 32And there, in
the presence of the sons of Israel, he wrote upon the stones a copy of the
law of Moses, which he had written. 33And all Israel, sojourner as well as
homeborn, with their elders and officers and their judges, stood on opposite
sides of the ark before the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the
covenant of the LORD, half of them in front of Mount Ger'izim and half of
them in front of Mount E'bal, as Moses the servant of the LORD had
commanded at the first, that they should bless the sons of Israel. 34And
afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse,
according to all that is written in the book of the law. 35There was not a
word of all that Moses commanded which Joshua did not read before all the
assembly of Israel, and the women, and the little ones, and the sojourners
who lived among them.
The Gibeonites’ Stratagem
9 When all the kings who were beyond the Jordan in the hill country
and in the lowland all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon, the
Hittites, the Am'orites, the Canaanites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the
Jeb'usites, heard of this, 2they gathered together with one accord to fight
Joshua and Israel.
3 But when the inhabitants of Gib'eon heard what Joshua had done to
Jericho and to Ai, 4they on their part acted with cunning, and went and
made ready provisions, and took worn-out sacks upon their donkeys, and
wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, 5with worn-out, patched sandals
on their feet, and worn-out clothes; and all their provisions were dry and
moldy. 6And they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and
to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country; so now make a
covenant with us.” 7But the men of Israel said to the Hi'vites, “Perhaps you
live among us; then how can we make a covenant with you?” 8They said to
Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you?
And where do you come from?” 9They said to him, “From a very far
country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your
God; for we have heard a report of him, and all that he did in Egypt, 10and
all that he did to the two kings of the Am'orites who were beyond the
Jordan, Si'hon the king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who dwelt in
Ash'taroth. 11And our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to
us, ‘Take provisions in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and
say to them, “We are your servants; come now, make a covenant with us.” ’
12Here is our bread; it was still warm when we took it from our houses as
our food for the journey, on the day we set forth to come to you, but now,
behold, it is dry and moldy; 13these wineskins were new when we filled
them, and behold, they are burst; and these garments and shoes of ours are
worn out from the very long journey.” 14So the men partook of their
provisions, and did not ask direction from the LORD. 15And Joshua made
peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live; and the
leaders of the congregation swore to them.
16 At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they
heard that they were their neighbors, and that they dwelt among them.
17And the sons of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day.
Now their cities were Gib'eon, Chephi'rah, Be-er'oth, and Kir'iath-je'arim.

18But the sons of Israel did not kill them, because the leaders of the
congregation had sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. Then all
the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19But all the leaders said to
all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of
Israel, and now we may not touch them. 20This we will do to them, and let
them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we swore to
them.” 21And the leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became
hewers of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, as the
leaders had said of them.
22 Joshua summoned them, and he said to them, “Why did you deceive us,
saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ when you dwell among us? 23Now
therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall always be slaves, hewers of
wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.” 24They answered
Joshua, “Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the LORD
your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to
destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you; so we feared greatly
for our lives because of you, and did this thing. 25And now, behold, we are
in your hand: do as it seems good and right in your sight to do to us.” 26So
he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the sons of Israel; and
they did not kill them. 27But Joshua made them that day hewers of wood
and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, to
continue to this day, in the place which he should choose.
The Sun Stands Still
10 When Ado'ni-ze'dek king of Jerusalem heard how Joshua had taken
Ai, and had utterly destroyed it, doing to Ai and its king as he had done to
Jericho and its king, and how the inhabitants of Gib'eon had made peace
with Israel and were among them, 2he x feared greatly, because Gib'eon was
a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai,
and all its men were mighty. 3So Ado'ni-ze'dek king of Jerusalem sent to
Hoham king of He'bron, to Piram king of Jarmuth, to Japhi'a king of
La'chish, and to De'bir king of Eg'lon, saying, 4 “Come up to me, and help
me, and let us strike Gib'eon; for it has made peace with Joshua and with
the sons of Israel.” 5Then the five kings of the Am'orites, the king of
Jerusalem, the king of He'bron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of La'chish,
and the king of Eg'lon, gathered their forces, and went up with all their
armies and encamped against Gib'eon, and made war against it.
6 And the men of Gib'eon sent to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, saying,
“Do not relax your hand from your servants; come up to us quickly, and
save us, and help us; for all the kings of the Am'orites that dwell in the hill
country are gathered against us.” 7So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and
all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. 8And the
LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have given them into your
hands; there shall not a man of them stand before you.” 9So Joshua came
upon them suddenly, having marched up all night from Gilgal. 10And the
LORD threw them into a panic before Israel, who slew them with a great
slaughter at Gib'eon, and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-
ho'ron, and struck them as far as Aze'kah and Makke'dah. 11And as they
fled before Israel, while they were going down the ascent of Beth-ho'ron,
the LORD threw down great stones from heaven upon them as far as
Aze'kah, and they died; there were more who died because of the hailstones
than the men of Israel killed with the sword.
12 Then spoke Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD gave the
Am'orites over to the men of Israel; and he said in the sight of Israel,
“Sun, stand still at Gib'eon,
and you Moon in the valley of Ai'jalon.”
13And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed,
until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.

Is this not written in the Book of Jash'ar? The sun stayed in the midst of
heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. 14There has
been no day like it before or since, when the LORD listened to the voice of a
man; for the LORD fought for Israel. *
15 Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.
Five Kings Defeated
16 These five kings fled, and hid themselves in the cave at Makke'dah.
17And it was told Joshua, “The five kings have been found, hidden in the
cave at Makke'dah.” 18And Joshua said, “Roll great stones against the
mouth of the cave, and set men by it to guard them; 19but do not stay there
yourselves, pursue your enemies, fall upon their rear, do not let them enter
their cities; for the LORD your God has given them into your hand.” 20When
Joshua and the men of Israel had finished slaying them with a very great
slaughter, until they were wiped out, and when the remnant which remained
of them had entered into the fortified cities, 21all the people returned safe to
Joshua in the camp at Makke'dah; not a man moved his tongue against any
of the sons of Israel.
22 Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave, and bring those five
kings out to me from the cave.” 23And they did so, and brought those five
kings out to him from the cave, the king of Jerusalem, the king of He'bron,
the king of Jarmuth, the king of La'chish, and the king of Eg'lon. 24And
when they brought those kings out to Joshua, Joshua summoned all the men
of Israel, and said to the chiefs of the men of war who had gone with him,
“Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings.” Then they came
near, and put their feet on their necks. 25And Joshua said to them, “Do not
be afraid or dismayed; be strong and of good courage; for thus the LORD
will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.” 26And afterward
Joshua struck them and put them to death, and he hung them on five trees.
And they hung upon the trees until evening; 27but at the time of the going
down of the sun, Joshua commanded, and they took them down from the
trees, and threw them into the cave where they had hidden themselves, and
they set great stones against the mouth of the cave, which remain to this
very day.
28 And Joshua took Makke'dah on that day, and struck it and its king with
the edge of the sword; he utterly destroyed every person in it, he left none
remaining; and he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king
of Jericho.
29 Then Joshua passed on from Makke'dah, and all Israel with him, to
Libnah, and fought against Libnah; 30and the LORD gave it also and its king
into the hand of Israel; and he struck it with the edge of the sword, and
every person in it; he left none remaining in it; and he did to its king as he
had done to the king of Jericho.
31 And Joshua passed on from Libnah, and all Israel with him, to La'chish,
and laid siege to it, and assaulted it: 32and the LORD gave La'chish into the
hand of Israel, and he took it on the second day, and struck it with the edge
of the sword, and every person in it, as he had done to Libnah.
33 Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help La'chish; and Joshua struck
him and his people, until he left none remaining.

34 And Joshua passed on with all Israel from La'chish to Eg'lon; and they
laid siege to it, and assaulted it; 35and they took it on that day, and struck it
with the edge of the sword; and every person in it he utterly destroyed that
day, as he had done to La'chish.
36 Then Joshua went up with all Israel from Eg'lon to He'bron; and they
assaulted it, 37and took it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and its
king and its towns, and every person in it; he left none remaining, as he had
done to Eg'lon, and utterly destroyed it with every person in it.
38 Then Joshua, with all Israel, turned back to De'bir and assaulted it,
39and he took it with its king and all its towns; and they struck them with
the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed every person in it; he left none
remaining; as he had done to Heb'ron and to Libnah and its king, so he did
to De'bir and to its king.
40 So Joshua defeated the whole land, the hill country and the Neg'eb and
the lowland and the slopes, and all their kings; he left none remaining, but
utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the LORD God of Israel commanded.
41And Joshua defeated them from Ka'desh-bar'nea to Gaza, and all the
country of Go'shen, as far as Gib'eon. 42And Joshua took all these kings and
their land at one time, because the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel.
43Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.
The United Kings of Northern Canaan Defeated

11 When Jabin king of Ha'zor heard of this, he sent to Jo'bab king of
Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Ach'shaph, 2and to
the kings who were in the northern hill country, and in the Ar'abah south of
Chin'neroth, and in the lowland, and in Na'photh-dor on the west, 3to the
Canaanites in the east and the west, the Am'orites, the Hittites, the
Per'izzites, and the Jeb'usites in the hill country, and the Hi'vites under
Hermon in the land of Mizpah. 4And they came out, with all their troops, a
great host, in number like the sand that is upon the seashore, with very
many horses and chariots. 5And all these kings joined their forces, and came
and encamped together at the waters of Me'rom, to fight with Israel.
6 And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for tomorrow at
this time I will give over all of them, slain, to Israel; you shall hamstring
their horses, and burn their chariots with fire.” 7So Joshua came suddenly
upon them with all his people of war, by the waters of Me'rom, and fell
upon them. 8And the LORD gave them into the hand of Israel, who struck
them and chased them as far as Great Sidon and Mis'rephoth-ma'im, and
eastward as far as the valley of Mizpeh; and they struck them, until they left
none remaining. 9And Joshua did to them as the LORD bade him; he
hamstrung their horses, and burned their chariots with fire.
10 And Joshua turned back at that time, and took Ha'zor, and struck its
king with the sword; for Hazor formerly was the head of all those
kingdoms. 11And they put to the sword all who were in it, utterly destroying
them; there was none left that breathed, and he burned Ha'zor with fire.
12And all the cities of those kings, and all their kings, Joshua took, and
struck them with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them, as Moses
the servant of the LORD had commanded. 13But none of the cities that stood
on mounds did Israel burn, except Ha'zor only; that Joshua burned. 14And
all the spoil of these cities and the cattle, the sons of Israel took for their
booty; but every man they struck with the edge of the sword, until they had
destroyed them, and they did not leave any that breathed. 15As the LORD
had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so
Joshua did; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD had commanded
Moses.
Summary of Joshua’s Conquests
16 So Joshua took all that land, the hill country and all the Neg'eb and all
the land of Go'shen and the lowland and the Ar'abah and the hill country of
Israel and its lowland 17from Mount Ha'lak, that rises toward Se'ir, as far as
Ba'al-gad in the valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon. And he took all
their kings, and struck them, and put them to death. 18Joshua made war a
long time with all those kings. 19There was not a city that made peace with
the sons of Israel, except the Hi'vites, the inhabitants of Gib'eon; they took
all in battle. 20For it was the LORD’s doing to harden their hearts that they
should come against Israel in battle, in order that they should be utterly
destroyed, and should receive no mercy but be exterminated, as the LORD
commanded Moses.
21 And Joshua came at that time, and wiped out the An'akim from the hill
country, from Heb'ron, from De'bir, from A'nab, and from all the hill
country of Judah, and from all the hill country of Israel; Joshua utterly
destroyed them with their cities. 22There was none of the An'akim left in the
land of the sons of Israel; only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, did some
remain. 23So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD had
spoken to Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according
to their tribal allotments. And the land had rest from war.
The Kings Conquered by Moses
12 Now these are the kings of the land, whom the sons of Israel
defeated, and took possession of their land beyond the Jordan toward the
sunrising, from the valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon, with all the
Ar'abah eastward: 2Si'hon king of the Am'orites who dwelt at Heshbon, and
ruled from Aro'er, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and from
the middle of the valley as far as the river Jabbok, the boundary of the
Am'monites, that is, half of Gilead, 3and the Ar'abah to the Sea of
Chin'neroth eastward, and in the direction of Beth-jesh'imoth, to the sea of
the Arabah, the Salt Sea, southward to the foot of the slopes of Pisgah; 4and
Og e king of Bashan, one of the remnant of the Reph'aim, who dwelt at
Ash'taroth and at Ed're-i 5and ruled over Mount Hermon and Sal'ecah and
all Bashan to the boundary of the Gesh'urites and the Ma-ac'athites, and
over half of Gilead to the boundary of Si'hon king of Heshbon. 6Moses, the
servant of the LORD, and the sons of Israel defeated them; and Moses the
servant of the LORD gave their land for a possession to the Reubenites and
the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manas'seh.
The Kings Conquered by Joshua
7 And these are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the sons of Israel
defeated on the west side of the Jordan, from Ba'al-gad in the valley of
Lebanon to Mount Ha'lak, that rises toward Se'ir (and Joshua gave their
land to the tribes of Israel as a possession according to their allotments, 8in
the hill country, in the lowland, in the Ar'abah, in the slopes, in the
wilderness, and in the Neg'eb, the land of the Hittites, the Am'orites, the
Canaanites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites): 9the king of
Jericho, one; the king of Ai, which is beside Bethel, one; 10the king of
Jerusalem, one; the king of He'bron, one; 11the king of Jarmuth, one; the
king of La'chish, one; 12the king of Eg'lon, one; the king of Gezer, one;
13the king of De'bir, one; the king of Geder, one; 14the king of Hormah, one;
the king of Ar'ad, one; 15the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adul'lam, one;
16the king of Makke'dah, one; the king of Bethel, one; 17the king of Tap'pu-
ah, one; the king of He'pher, one; 18the king of A'phek, one; the king of
Lashar'on, one; 19the king of Madon, one; the king of Ha'zor, one; 20the
king of Shim'ron-me'ron, one; the king of Ach'shaph, one; 21the king of
Ta'anach, one; the king of Megid'do, one; 22the king of Ke'desh, one; the
king of Jok'ne-am in Carmel, one; 23the king of Dor in Na'phath-dor, one;
the king of Goi'im in Galilee, f one; 24the king of Tirzah, one: in all, thirty-
one kings.
Still Unconquered Parts of Canaan
13 * Now Joshua was old and advanced in years; and the LORD said to
him, “You are old and advanced in years, and there remains yet very much
land to be possessed. 2This is the land that yet remains: all the regions of the
Philis'tines, and all those of the Gesh'urites 3(from the Shi'hor, which is east
of Egypt, northward to the boundary of Ek'ron, it is reckoned as Canaanite;
there are five rulers of the Philis'tines, those of Gaza, Ash'dod, Ash'kelon,
Gath, and Ek'ron), and those of the Avvim, 4in the south, all the land of the
Canaanites, and Me-ar'ah which belongs to the Sido'nians, to A'phek, to the
boundary of the Am'orites, 5and the land of the Geb'alites, and all Lebanon,
toward the sunrising, from Ba'al-gad below Mount Hermon to the entrance
of Ha'math, 6all the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to
Mis'rephoth-ma'im, even all the Sido'nians. I will myself drive them out
from before the sons of Israel; only allot the land to Israel for an
inheritance, as I have commanded you. 7Now therefore divide this land for
an inheritance to the nine tribes and half the tribe of Manas'seh.”
8 With the other half of the tribe of Manas'seh g the Reubenites and the
Gadites received their inheritance, which Moses gave them, beyond the
Jordan eastward, as Moses the servant of the LORD gave them: 9from Aro'er,
which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and the city that is in the
middle of the valley, and all the tableland of Med'eba as far as Di'bon; 10and
all the cities of Si'hon king of the Am'orites, who reigned in Heshbon, as far
as the boundary of the Am'monites; 11and Gilead, and the region of the
Gesh'urites and Ma-ac'athites, and all Mount Hermon, and all Bashan to
Sal'ecah; 12all the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned in Ash'taroth and
in Ed're-i (he alone was left of the remnant of the Reph'aim); these Moses
had defeated and driven out. 13Yet the sons of Israel did not drive out the
Gesh'urites or the Ma-ac'athites; but Ge'shur and Ma'acath dwell in the
midst of Israel to this day.
14 To the tribe of Levi alone Moses gave no inheritance; the offerings by
fire to the LORD God of Israel are their inheritance, as he said to him.
The Territory of Reuben
15 And Moses gave an inheritance to the tribe of the Reubenites according
to their families. 16So their territory was from Aro'er, which is on the edge
of the valley of the Arnon, and the city that is in the middle of the valley,
and all the tableland by Med'eba; 17with Heshbon, and all its cities that are
in the tableland; Di'bon, and Ba'moth-ba'al, and Beth-ba'al-me'on, 18and
Ja'haz, and Ked'emoth, and Meph'a-ath, 19and Kir''iatha'im, and Sibmah,
and Ze'reth-sha'har on the hill of the valley, 20and Beth-pe'or, and the slopes
of Pisgah, and Beth-jesh'imoth, 21that is, all the cities of the tableland, and
all the kingdom of Si'hon king of the Am'orites, who reigned in Heshbon,
whom Moses defeated with the leaders of Mid'ian, E'vi and Re'kem and Zur
and Hur and Reba, the princes of Si'hon, who dwelt in the land. 22Balaam
also, the son of Beor, the soothsayer, the sons of Israel killed with the sword
among the rest of their slain. 23And the border of the people of Reuben was
the Jordan as a boundary. This was the inheritance of the Reubenites,
according to their families with their cities and villages.
The Territory of Gad
24 And Moses gave an inheritance also to the tribe of the Gadites,
according to their families. 25Their territory was Ja'zer, and all the cities of
Gilead, and half the land of the Am'monites, to Aro'er, which is east of
Rabbah, 26and from Heshbon to Ra'math-miz'peh and Bet'onim, and from
Ma''hana'im to the territory of De'bir, h 27and in the valley Beth-ha'ram,
Beth-nim'rah, Succoth, and Za'phon, the rest of the kingdom of Si'hon king
of Heshbon, having the Jordan as a boundary, to the lower end of the Sea of
Chin'nereth, eastward beyond the Jordan. 28This is the inheritance of the
Gadites according to their families, with their cities and villages.
The Territory of the Half-tribe of Manasseh (East)
29 And Moses gave an inheritance to the half-tribe of Manas'seh; it was
allotted to the half-tribe of the Manas'sites according to their families.

30Their region extended from Ma''hana'im, through all Bashan, the whole
kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the towns of Ja'ir, which are in
Bashan, sixty cities, 31and half Gilead, and Ash'taroth, and Ed're-i, the cities
of the kingdom of Og in Bashan; these were allotted to the people of
Ma'chir the son of Manas'seh for the half of the Ma'chirites according to
their families.
32 These are the inheritances which Moses distributed in the plains of
Moab, beyond the Jordan east of Jericho. 33But to the tribe of Levi Moses
gave no inheritance; the LORD God of Israel is their inheritance, as he said
to them.
The Distribution of Territory West of the Jordan
14 And these are the inheritances which the sons of Israel received in
the land of Canaan, which Elea'zar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun,
and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the sons of Israel
distributed to them. 2Their inheritance was by lot, as the LORD had
commanded Moses for the nine and one-half tribes. 3For Moses had given
an inheritance to the two and one-half tribes beyond the Jordan; but to the
Levites he gave no inheritance among them. 4For the people of Joseph were
two tribes, Manas'seh and E'phraim; and no portion was given to the
Levites in the land, but only cities to dwell in, with their pasture lands for
their cattle and their substance. 5The sons of Israel did as the LORD
commanded Moses; they allotted the land.
Hebron Allotted to Caleb
6 Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal; and Caleb the son of
Jephun'neh the Ken'izzite said to him, “You know what the LORD said to
Moses the man of God in Ka'desh-bar'nea concerning you and me. 7I was
forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Ka'desh-
bar'nea to spy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in my
heart. 8But my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people
melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God. 9And Moses swore on that
day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an
inheritance for you and your children for ever, because you have wholly
followed the LORD my God.’ 10And now, behold, the LORD has kept me
alive, as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke
this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness; and now, behold,
I am this day eighty-five years old. 11I am still as strong to this day as I was
in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then,
for war, and for going and coming. 12So now give me this hill country of
which the LORD spoke on that day; for you heard on that day how the
An'akim were there, with great fortified cities: it may be that the LORD will
be with me, and I shall drive them out as the LORD said.”
13 Then Joshua blessed him; and he gave He'bron to Caleb the son of
Jephun'neh for an inheritance. 14So He'bron became the inheritance of
Caleb the son of Jephun'neh the Ken'izzite to this day, because he wholly
followed the LORD, the God of Israel. 15Now the name of He'bron formerly
was Kir'iath-ar'ba;i this Arba was the greatest man among the An'akim. And
the land had rest from war.
The Territory of Judah
15 The lot for the tribe of the people of Judah according to their
families reached southward to the boundary of E'dom, to the wilderness of
Zin at the farthest south. 2And their south boundary ran from the end of the
Salt Sea, from the bay that faces southward; 3it goes out southward of the
ascent of Akrab'bim, passes along to Zin, and goes up south of Ka'desh-
bar'nea, along by Hezron, up to Addar, turns about to Karka, 4passes along
to Azmon, goes out by the Brook of Egypt, and comes to its end at the sea.
This shall be your south boundary. 5And the east boundary is the Salt Sea,
to the mouth of the Jordan. And the boundary on the north side runs from
the bay of the sea at the mouth of the Jordan; 6and the boundary goes up to
Beth-hog'lah, and passes along north of Beth-ar'abah; and the boundary
goes up to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben; 7and the boundary goes
up to De'bir from the Valley of A'chor, and so northward, turning toward
Gilgal, which is opposite the ascent of Adum'mim, which is on the south
side of the valley; and the boundary passes along to the waters of En-
she'mesh, and ends at En-ro'gel; 8then the boundary goes up by the valley of
the son of Hinnom at the southern shoulder of the Jeb'usite (that is,
Jerusalem); and the boundary goes up to the top of the mountain that lies
over against the valley of Hinnom, on the west, at the northern end of the
valley of Reph'aim; 9then the boundary extends from the top of the
mountain to the spring of the Waters of Nephto'ah, and from there to the
cities of Mount E'phron; then the boundary bends round to Ba'alah (that is,
Kir'iath-je'arim); 10and the boundary circles west of Ba'alah to Mount Se'ir,
passes along to the northern shoulder of Mount Je'arim (that is, Ches'alon),
and goes down to Beth-she'mesh, and passes along by Timnah; 11the
boundary goes out to the shoulder of the hill north of Ek'ron, then the
boundary bends round to Shik'keron, and passes along to Mount Ba'alah,
and goes out to Jab'neel; then the boundary comes to an end at the sea.
12And the west boundary was the Great Sea with its coast-line. This is the
boundary round about the people of Judah according to their families.
Caleb Occupies His Portion
13 According to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, he gave to
Caleb the son of Jephun'neh a portion among the people of Judah, Kir'iath-
ar'ba, that is, He'bron (Arba was the father of A'nak). 14And Caleb drove
out from there the three sons of A'nak, She'shai and Ahi'man and Talmai,
the descendants of Anak. 15And he went up from there against the
inhabitants of De'bir; now the name of Debir formerly was Kir'iath-se'pher.
16And Caleb said, “Whoever strikes Kir'iath-se'pher, and takes it, to him
will I give Ach'sah my daughter as wife.” 17And Oth'ni-el the son of Ke'naz,
the brother of Caleb, took it; and he gave him Ach'sah his daughter as wife.
18When she came to him, she urged him to ask her father for a field; and she
alighted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you wish?”
19She said to him, “Give me a present; since you have set me in the land of
the Neg'eb, give me also springs of water.” And Caleb gave her the upper
springs and the lower springs.
The Towns of Judah
20 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the people of Judah according to
their families. 21The cities belonging to the tribe of the people of Judah in
the extreme South, toward the boundary of E'dom, were Kab'zeel, E'der,
Jagur, 22Kinah, Dimo'nah, Ada'dah, 23Ke'desh, Ha'zor, Ithnan, 24Ziph,
Telem, Be-a'loth, 25Ha'zor-hadat'tah, Ker'i-oth-hez'ron (that is, Ha'zor),
26A'mam, Shema, Mo'ladah, 27Ha'zar-gad'dah, Heshmon, Beth-pel'et,
28Ha'zar-shu'al, Be'er-she'ba, Biziothi'ah, 29Ba'alah, I'im, E'zem, 30Elto'lad,
Che'sil, Hormah, 31Zik'lag, Madman'nah, Sansan'nah, 32Leba'oth, Shilhim,

A'in, and Rimmon: in all, twenty-nine cities, with their villages.
33 And in the lowland, Esh'ta-ol, Zorah, Ashnah, 34Zano'ah, En-gan'nim,
Tap'pu-ah, E'nam, 35Jarmuth, Adul'lam, Socoh, Aze'kah, 36Sha''ara'im,

Aditha'im, Gede'rah, Gede'rotha''im: fourteen cities with their villages.
37 Ze'nan, Hadash'ah, Mig'dal-gad, 38Di'lean, Mizpeh, Jok'the-el,
39La'chish, Bozkath, Eg'lon, 40Cabbon, Lahmam, Chitlish, 41Gede'roth,
Beth-da'gon, Na'amah, and Makke'dah: sixteen cities with their villages.
42 Libnah, E'ther, A'shan, 43Iphtah, Ash'nah, Nezib, 44Kei'lah, Ach'zib, and
Mare'shah: nine cities with their villages.

45 Ek'ron, with its towns and its villages; 46from Ek'ron to the sea, all that
were by the side of Ash'dod, with their villages.
47 Ash'dod, its towns and its villages; Gaza, its towns and its villages; to
the Brook of Egypt, and the Great Sea with its coast-line.
48 And in the hill country, Sha'mir, Jat'tir, Socoh, 49Dannah, Kir'iath-
san'nah (that is, De'bir), 50A'nab, Esh'temoh, A'nim, 51Goshen, Holon, and
Giloh: eleven cities with their villages.
52 A'rab, Du'mah, E'shan, 53Ja'nim, Beth-tap'pu-ah, Aphe'kah, 54Humtah,
Kir'iath-ar'ba (that is, He'bron), and Zior: nine cities with their villages.
55 Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah, 56Jezre'el, Jok'de-am, Zano'ah, 57Kain,
Gib'e-ah, and Timnah: ten cities with their villages.

58 Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor, 59Ma'arath, Beth-a'noth, and El'tekon: six
cities with their villages.

60 Kir'iath-ba'al (that is, Kir'iath-je'arim), and Rabbah: two cities with their
villages.
61 In the wilderness, Beth-ar'abah, Middin, Seca'cah, 62Nibshan, the City
of Salt, and En-ge'di: six cities with their villages.

63 But the Jeb'usites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the people of Judah
could not drive out; so the Jebusites dwell with the people of Judah at
Jerusalem to this day.
The Territory of Ephraim
16 The allotment of the descendants of Joseph went from the Jordan by
Jericho, east of the waters of Jericho, into the wilderness, going up from
Jericho into the hill country to Bethel; 2then going from Bethel to Luz, it
passes along to At'aroth, the territory of the Ar'chites; 3then it goes down
westward to the territory of the Japh'letites, as far as the territory of Lower
Beth-ho'ron, then to Gezer, and it ends at the sea.
4 The people of Joseph, Manas'seh and E'phraim, received their
inheritance.
5 The territory of the E'phraimites by their families was as follows: the
boundary of their inheritance on the east was At'aroth-ad'dar as far as Upper

Beth-ho'ron, 6and the boundary goes thence to the sea; on the north is
Michme'thath; then on the east the boundary turns round toward Ta'anath-
shi'loh, and passes along beyond it on the east to Jano'ah, 7then it goes
down from Jano'ah to At'aroth and to Na'arah, and touches Jericho, ending
at the Jordan. 8From Tap'pu-ah the boundary goes westward to the brook
Kanah, and ends at the sea. Such is the inheritance of the tribe of the
E'phraimites by their families, 9together with the towns which were set
apart for the E'phraimites within the inheritance of the Manas'sites, all those
towns with their villages. 10However they did not drive out the Canaanites
that dwelt in Gezer: so the Canaanites have dwelt in the midst of E'phraim
to this day but have become slaves to do forced labor.
The Territory of the Half-tribe of Manasseh (West)
17 Then allotment was made to the tribe of Manas'seh, for he was the
first-born of Joseph. To Ma'chir the first-born of Manasseh, the father of
Gilead, were allotted Gilead and Bashan, because he was a man of war.
2And allotments were made to the rest of the tribe of Manas'seh, by their
families, Abi-e'zer, He'lek, As'ri-el, She'chem, He'pher, and Shemi'da; these

were the male descendants of Manasseh the son of Joseph, by their families.
3 Now Zeloph'ehad the son of He'pher, son of Gilead, son of Ma'chir, son
of Manas'seh, had no sons, but only daughters; and these are the names of
his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 4They came
before Elea'zar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun and the leaders, and
said, “The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance along with
our brethren.” So according to the commandment of the LORD he gave them
an inheritance among the brethren of their father. 5Thus there fell to
Manas'seh ten portions, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which is on
the other side of the Jordan; 6because the daughters of Manas'seh received
an inheritance along with his sons. The land of Gilead was allotted to the
rest of the Manas'sites.
7 The territory of Manas'seh reached from Asher to Michme'thath, which
is east of She'chem; then the boundary goes along southward to the

inhabitants of En-tap'pu-ah. 8The land of Tap'pu-ah belonged to Manas'seh,
but the town of Tappu-ah on the boundary of Manasseh belonged to the
sons of E'phraim. 9Then the boundary went down to the brook Kanah. The
cities here, to the south of the brook, among the cities of Manas'seh, belong
to E'phraim. Then the boundary of Manasseh goes on the north side of the
brook and ends at the sea; 10the land to the south being E'phraim’s and that
to the north being Manas'seh’s, with the sea forming its boundary; on the
north Asher is reached, and on the east Is'sachar. 11Also in Is'sachar and in
Asher Manas'seh had Beth-she'an and its villages, and Ib'leam and its
villages, and the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, and the inhabitants of
En-dor and its villages, and the inhabitants of Ta'anach and its villages, and
the inhabitants of Megid'do and its villages; the third is Na'phath. j 12Yet the
sons of Manas'seh could not take possession of those cities; but the
Canaanites persisted in dwelling in that land. 13But when the sons of Israel
grew strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, and did not utterly
drive them out.
The Tribe of Joseph Protests
14 And the tribe of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given
me but one lot and one portion as an inheritance, although I am a numerous

people, since hitherto the LORD has blessed me?” 15And Joshua said to
them, “If you are a numerous people, go up to the forest, and there clear
ground for yourselves in the land of the Per'izzites and the Reph'aim, since
the hill country of E'phraim is too narrow for you.” 16The tribe of Joseph
said, “The hill country is not enough for us; yet all the Canaanites who
dwell in the plain have chariots of iron, both those in Beth-she'an and its
villages and those in the Valley of Jezre'el.” 17Then Joshua said to the house
of Joseph, to E'phraim and Manas'seh, “You are a numerous people, and
have great power; you shall not have one lot only, 18but the hill country
shall be yours, for though it is a forest, you shall clear it and possess it to its
farthest borders; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have
chariots of iron, and though they are strong.”
The Territories of the Remaining Tribes
18 Then the whole congregation of the sons of Israel assembled at
Shiloh, and set up the tent of meeting there; the land lay subdued before
them.
2 There remained among the sons of Israel seven tribes whose inheritance
had not yet been apportioned. 3So Joshua said to the sons of Israel, “How
long will you be slack to go in and take possession of the land, which the
LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you? 4Provide three men from
each tribe, and I will send them out that they may set out and go up and
down the land, writing a description of it with a view to their inheritances,
and then come to me. 5They shall divide it into seven portions, Judah
continuing in his territory on the south, and the house of Joseph in their
territory on the north. 6And you shall describe the land in seven divisions
and bring the description here to me; and I will cast lots for you here before
the LORD our God. 7The Levites have no portion among you, for the
priesthood of the LORD is their heritage; and Gad and Reuben and half the
tribe of Manas'seh have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan
eastward, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them.”
8 So the men started on their way; and Joshua charged those who went to
write the description of the land, saying, “Go up and down and write a
description of the land, and come again to me; and I will cast lots for you
here before the LORD in Shiloh.” 9So the men went and passed up and down
in the land and set down in a book a description of it by towns in seven
divisions; then they came to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh, 10and Joshua cast
lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD; and there Joshua apportioned the
land to the sons of Israel, to each his portion.
The Territory of Benjamin
11 The lot of the tribe of Benjamin according to its families came up, and
the territory allotted to it fell between the tribe of Judah and the tribe of
Joseph. 12On the north side their boundary began at the Jordan; then the
boundary goes up to the shoulder north of Jericho, then up through the hill
country westward; and it ends at the wilderness of Beth-a'ven. 13From there
the boundary passes along southward in the direction of Luz, to the
shoulder of Luz (the same is Bethel), then the boundary goes down to
At'aroth-ad'dar, upon the mountain that lies south of Lower Beth-ho'ron.
14Then the boundary goes in another direction, turning on the western side
southward from the mountain that lies to the south, opposite Beth-ho'ron,
and it ends at Kir'iath-ba'al (that is, Kir'iath-je'arim), a city belonging to the
tribe of Judah. This forms the western side. 15And the southern side begins
at the outskirts of Kir'iath-je'arim; and the boundary goes from there to
E'phron, k to the spring of the Waters of Nephto'ah; 16then the boundary
goes down to the border of the mountain that overlooks the valley of the
son of Hinnom, which is at the north end of the valley of Reph'aim; and it
then goes down the valley of Hinnom, south of the shoulder of the
Jeb'usites, and downward to En-ro'gel; 17then it bends in a northerly
direction going on to En-she'mesh, and thence goes to Geli'loth, which is
opposite the ascent of Adum'mim; then it goes down to the stone of Bohan
the son of Reuben; 18and passing on to the north of the shoulder of Beth-
ar'abah l it goes down to the Ar'abah; 19then the boundary passes on to the
north of the shoulder of Beth-hog'lah; and the boundary ends at the northern
bay of the Salt Sea, at the south end of the Jordan: this is the southern
border. 20The Jordan forms its boundary on the eastern side. This is the
inheritance of the tribe of Benjamin, according to its families, boundary by
boundary round about.
21 Now the cities of the tribe of Benjamin according to their families were
Jericho, Beth-hog'lah, E'mek-ke'ziz, 22Beth-ar'abah, Zemara'im, Bethel,

23Avvim, Par'ah, Oph'rah, 24Che'phar-am'moni, Ophni, Ge'ba—twelve cities
with their villages: 25Gib'eon, Ra'mah, Be-er'oth, 26Mizpeh, Chephi'rah,

Mozah, 27Re'kem, Ir'peel, Tar'alah, 28Ze'la, Ha-e'leph, Je'bus m (that is,
Jerusalem), Gib'e-ah n and Kir'iath-je'arim o —fourteen cities with their
villages. This is the inheritance of the tribe of Benjamin according to its
families.
The Territory of Simeon
19 The second lot came out for Simeon, for the tribe of Simeon,
according to its families; and its inheritance was in the midst of the
inheritance of the tribe of Judah. 2And it had for its inheritance Be'er-she'ba,
Sheba, Mo'ladah, 3Ha'zar-shu'al, Balah, E'zem, 4Elto'lad, Be'thul, Hormah,
5Zik'lag, Beth-mar'caboth, Ha'zar-su'sah, 6Beth-leba'oth, and Sharu'hen—
thirteen cities with their villages; 7En-rim'mon, E'ther, and A'shan—four

cities with their villages; 8together with all the villages round about these
cities as far as Ba'alath-be'er, Ra'mah of the Neg'eb. This was the
inheritance of the tribe of Simeon according to its families. 9The inheritance
of the tribe of Simeon formed part of the territory of Judah; because the
portion of the tribe of Judah was too large for them, the tribe of Simeon
obtained an inheritance in the midst of their inheritance.
The Territory of Zebulun
10 The third lot came up for the tribe of Zeb'ulun, according to its families.
And the territory of its inheritance reached as far as Sa'rid; 11then its
boundary goes up westward, and on to Mar'eal, and touches Dab'besheth,
then the brook which is east of Jok'ne-am; 12from Sa'rid it goes in the other
direction eastward toward the sunrise to the boundary of Chis'loth-ta'bor;
thence it goes to Dab'erath, then up to Japhi'a; 13from there it passes along
on the east toward the sunrise to Gath-he'pher, to Eth-ka'zin, and going on
to Rimmon it bends toward Ne'ah; 14then on the north the boundary turns
about to Hanna'thon, and it ends at the valley of Iph'tahel; 15and Kattath,
Nahal'al, Shimron, I'dalah, and Bethlehem—twelve cities with their
villages. 16This is the inheritance of the tribe of Zeb'ulun, according to its
families—these cities with their villages.
The Territory of Issachar
17 The fourth lot came out for Is'sachar, for the tribe of Issachar, according
to its families. 18Its territory included Jezre'el, Chesul'loth, Shunem,

19Haph'ara-im, Shi'on, Ana'harath, 20Rabbith, Kish'ion, E'bez, 21Re'meth,
En-gan'nim, En-had'dah, Beth-paz'zez; 22the boundary also touches Tabor,

Shahazu'mah, and Beth-she'mesh, and its boundary ends at the Jordan—
sixteen cities with their villages. 23This is the inheritance of the tribe of
Is'sachar, according to its families—the cities with their villages.
The Territory of Asher
24 The fifth lot came out for the tribe of Asher according to its families.
25Its territory included Helkath, Ha'li, Be'ten, Ach'shaph, 26Allam'melech,
A'mad, and Mi'shal; on the west it touches Carmel and Shihorlib'nath,

27then it turns eastward, it goes to Beth-da'gon, and touches Zeb'ulun and
the valley of Iph'tahel northward to Beth-e'mek and Nei'el; then it continues

in the north to Ca'bul, 28E'bron, Re'hob, Hammon, Kanah, as far as Sidon
the Great; 29then the boundary turns to Ra'mah, reaching to the fortified city
of Tyre; then the boundary turns to Ho'sah, and it ends at the sea;
Maha'lab, p Ach'zib, 30Ummah, A'phek and Re'hob—twenty-two cities with
their villages. 31This is the inheritance of the tribe of Asher according to its
families—these cities with their villages.
The Territory of Naphtali
32 The sixth lot came out for the tribe of Naph'tali, for the tribe of
Naphtali, according to its families. 33And its boundary ran from He'leph,
from the oak in Za-anan'nim, and Ad'ami-nek'eb, and Jab'neel, as far as
Lakkum; and it ended at the Jordan; 34then the boundary turns westward to
Az'noth-ta'bor, and goes from there to Hukkok, touching Zeb'ulun at the
south, and Asher on the west, and Judah on the east at the Jordan. 35The
fortified cities are Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Chin'nereth,
36Ad'amah, Ra'mah, Ha'zor, 37Ke'desh, Ed're-i, En-ha'zor, 38Yi'ron, Mig'dal-
el, Horem, Beth-a'nath, and Beth-she'mesh—nineteen cities with their

villages. 39This is the inheritance of the tribe of Naph'tali according to its
families—the cities with their villages.
The Territory of Dan
40 The seventh lot came out for the tribe of Dan, according to its families.
41And the territory of its inheritance included Zorah, Esh'ta-ol, Irshe'mesh,
42Sha-alab'bin, Ai'jalon, Ithlah, 43E'lon, Timnah, Ek'ron, 44El'tekeh,
Gib'bethon, Ba'alath, 45Je'hud, Ben'e-be'rak, Gath-rim'mon, 46and Me-

jar'kon and Rakkon with the territory over against Joppa. 47When the
territory of the Da'nites was lost to them, the Danites went up and fought
against Le'shem, and after capturing it and putting it to the sword they took
possession of it and settled in it, calling Leshem, Dan, after the name of
Dan their ancestor. 48This is the inheritance of the tribe of Dan, according to
their families—these cities with their villages.
The Inheritance of Joshua
49 When they had finished distributing the several territories of the land as
inheritances, the sons of Israel gave an inheritance among them to Joshua

the son of Nun. 50By command of the LORD they gave him the city which
he asked, Tim'nath-se'rah in the hill country of E'phraim; and he rebuilt the
city, and settled in it.
51 These are the inheritances which Elea'zar the priest and Joshua the son
of Nun and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the sons of Israel
distributed by lot at Shiloh before the LORD, at the door of the tent of
meeting. So they finished dividing the land.
The City of Refuge
20 Then the LORD said to Joshua, 2 “Say to the sons of Israel, ‘Appoint
the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, 3that the
manslayer who kills any person without intent or unwittingly may flee
there; they shall be for you a refuge from the avenger of blood. 4He shall
flee to one of these cities and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the
city, and explain his case to the elders of that city; then they shall take him
into the city, and give him a place, and he shall remain with them. 5And if
the avenger of blood pursues him, they shall not give up the slayer into his
hand; because he killed his neighbor unwittingly, having had no enmity
against him in times past. 6And he shall remain in that city until he has
stood before the congregation for judgment, until the death of him who is
high priest at the time: then the slayer may go again to his own town and his
own home, to the town from which he fled.’ ”
7 So they set apart Ke'desh in Galilee in the hill country of Naph'tali, and
She'chem in the hill country of E'phraim, and Kir'iath-ar'ba (that is,

He'bron) in the hill country of Judah. 8And beyond the Jordan east of
Jericho, they appointed Be'zer in the wilderness on the tableland, from the
tribe of Reuben, and Ra'moth in Gilead, from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in
Bashan, from the tribe of Manas'seh. 9These were the cities designated for
all the sons of Israel, and for the stranger sojourning among them, that any
one who killed a person without intent could flee there, so that he might not
die by the hand of the avenger of blood, till he stood before the
congregation.
Cities of the Levites
21 Then the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites came to Elea'zar
the priest and to Joshua the son of Nun and to the heads of the fathers’
houses of the tribes of the sons of Israel; 2and they said to them at Shiloh in
the land of Canaan, “The LORD commanded through Moses that we be
given cities to dwell in, along with their pasture lands for our cattle.” 3So by
command of the LORD the sons of Israel gave to the Levites the following
cities and pasture lands out of their inheritance.
4 The lot came out for the families of the Ko'hathites. So those Levites
who were descendants of Aaron the priest received by lot from the tribes of
Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin, thirteen cities.
5 And the rest of the Ko'hathites received by lot from the families of the
tribe of E'phraim, from the tribe of Dan and the half-tribe of Manas'seh, ten
cities.
6 The Ger'shonites received by lot from the families of the tribe of
Is'sachar, from the tribe of Asher, from the tribe of Naph'tali, and from the
half-tribe of Manas'seh in Bashan, thirteen cities.
7 The Merar'ites according to their families received from the tribe of
Reuben, the tribe of Gad, and the tribe of Zeb'ulun, twelve cities.
8 These cities and their pasture lands the sons of Israel gave by lot to the
Levites, as the LORD had commanded through Moses.

9 Out of the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Simeon they gave the following
cities mentioned by name, 10which went to the descendants of Aaron, one

of the families of the Ko'hathites who belonged to the Levites; since the lot
fell to them first. 11They gave them Kir'iath-ar'ba (Arba being the father of
A'nak), that is He'bron, in the hill country of Judah, along with the pasture
lands round about it. 12But the fields of the city and its villages had been
given to Caleb the son of Jephun'neh as his possession.
13 And to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave He'bron, the city
of refuge for the slayer, with its pasture lands, Libnah with its pasture lands,
14Jat'tir with its pasture lands, Eshtemo'a with its pasture lands, 15Ho'lon
with its pasture lands, De'bir with its pasture lands, 16A'in with its pasture
lands, Juttah with its pasture lands, Beth-she'mesh with its pasture lands—
nine cities out of these two tribes; 17then out of the tribe of Benjamin,
Gib'eon with its pasture lands, Ge'ba with its pasture lands, 18An'athoth
with its pasture lands, and Al'mon with its pasture lands—four cities. 19The
cities of the descendants of Aaron, the priests, were in all thirteen cities
with their pasture lands.
20 As to the rest of the Ko'hathites belonging to the Kohathite families of
the Levites, the cities allotted to them were out of the tribe of E'phraim.
21To them were given She'chem, the city of refuge for the slayer, with its
pasture lands in the hill country of E'phraim, Gezer with its pasture lands,
22Kib'za-im with its pasture lands, Beth-ho'ron with its pasture lands—four
cities; 23and out of the tribe of Dan, El'teke with its pasture lands,
Gib'bethon with its pasture lands, 24Ai'jalon with its pasture lands, Gath-
rim'mon with its pasture lands—four cities; 25and out of the half-tribe of
Manas'seh, Ta'anach with its pasture lands, and Gath-rim'mon with its
pasture lands—two cities. 26The cities of the families of the rest of the
Ko'hathites were ten in all with their pasture lands.
27 And to the Ger'shonites, one of the families of the Levites, were given
out of the half-tribe of Manas'seh, Golan in Bashan with its pasture lands,
the city of refuge for the slayer, and Be-eshte'rah with its pasture lands—
two cities; 28and out of the tribe of Is'sachar, Kish'ion with its pasture lands,
Dab'erath with its pasture lands, 29Jarmuth with its pasture lands, En-
gan'nim with its pasture lands—four cities; 30and out of the tribe of Asher,
Mishal with its pasture lands, Abdon with its pasture lands, 31Helkath with
its pasture lands, and Re'hob with its pasture lands—four cities; 32and out of
the tribe of Naph'tali, Ke'desh in Galilee with its pasture lands, the city of
refuge for the slayer, Ham'moth-dor with its pasture lands, and Kartan with
its pasture lands—three cities. 33The cities of the several families of the
Ger'shonites were in all thirteen cities with their pasture lands.
34 And to the rest of the Levites, the Merar'ite families, were given out of
the tribe of Zeb'ulun, Jok'ne-am with its pasture lands, Kartah with its
pasture lands, 35Dimnah with its pasture lands, Nahal'al with its pasture
lands—four cities; 36and out of the tribe of Reuben, Be'zer with its pasture
lands, Ja'haz with its pasture lands, 37Ked'emoth with its pasture lands, and
Meph'a-ath with its pasture lands—four cities; 38and out of the tribe of Gad,
Ra'moth in Gilead with its pasture lands, the city of refuge for the slayer,
Ma''hana'im with its pasture lands, 39Heshbon with its pasture lands, Ja'zer
with its pasture lands—four cities in all. 40As for the cities of the several
Merar'ite families, that is, the remainder of the families of the Levites, those
allotted to them were in all twelve cities.
41 The cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the sons of
Israel were in all forty-eight cities with their pasture lands. 42These cities
had each its pasture lands round about it; so it was with all these cities.
43 Thus the LORD gave to Israel all the land which he swore to give to their
fathers; and having taken possession of it, they settled there. 44And the
LORD gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers; not
one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the LORD had given all
their enemies into their hands. 45Not one of all the good promises which the
LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.
The Eastern Tribes Return
22 Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the
half-tribe of Manas'seh, 2and said to them, “You have kept all that Moses
the servant of the LORD commanded you, and have obeyed my voice in all
that I have commanded you; 3you have not forsaken your brethren these
many days, down to this day, but have been careful to keep the charge of
the LORD your God. 4And now the LORD your God has given rest to your
brethren, as he promised them; therefore turn and go to your home in the
land where your possession lies, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave
you on the other side of the Jordan. 5Take good care to observe the
commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the LORD
commanded you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways,
and to keep his commandments, and to cling to him, and to serve him with
all your heart and with all your soul.” 6So Joshua blessed them, and sent
them away; and they went to their homes.
7 Now to the one half of the tribe of Manas'seh Moses had given a
possession in Bashan; but to the other half Joshua had given a possession
beside their brethren in the land west of the Jordan. And when Joshua sent
them away to their homes and blessed them, 8he said to them, “Go back to
your homes with much wealth, and with very many cattle, with silver, gold,
bronze, and iron, and with much clothing; divide the spoil of your enemies
with your brethren.” 9So the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe
of Manas'seh returned home, parting from the sons of Israel at Shiloh,
which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, their own land of
which they had possessed themselves by command of the LORD through
Moses.
An Altar of Witness by the Jordan
10 And when they came to the region about the Jordan, that lies in the land
of Canaan, the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manas'seh
built there an altar by the Jordan, an altar of great size. 11And the sons of
Israel heard say, “Behold, the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe
of Manas'seh have built an altar at the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the
region about the Jordan, on the side that belongs to the sons of Israel.”
12And when the sons of Israel heard of it, the whole assembly of the sons of
Israel gathered at Shiloh, to make war against them.

13 Then the sons of Israel sent to the Reubenites and the Gadites and the
half-tribe of Manas'seh, in the land of Gilead, Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar

the priest, 14and with him ten chiefs, one from each of the tribal families of
Israel, every one of them the head of a family among the clans of Israel.
15And they came to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of
Manas'seh, in the land of Gilead, and they said to them, 16“Thus says the
whole congregation of the LORD, ‘What is this treachery which you have
committed against the God of Israel in turning away this day from
following the LORD, by building yourselves an altar this day in rebellion
against the LORD? 17Have we not had enough of the sin at Peor from which
even yet we have not cleansed ourselves, and for which there came a plague
upon the congregation of the LORD, 18that you must turn away this day from
following the LORD? And if you rebel against the LORD today he will be
angry with the whole congregation of Israel tomorrow. 19But now, if your
land is unclean, pass over into the LORD’s land where the LORD’s
tabernacle stands, and take for yourselves a possession among us; only do
not rebel against the LORD, or make us as rebels by building yourselves an
altar other than the altar of the LORD our God. 20Did not A'chan the son of
Ze'rah break faith in the matter of the devoted things, and wrath fell upon
all the congregation of Israel? And he did not perish alone for his
iniquity.’ ”
21 Then the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manas'seh said
in answer to the heads of the families of Israel, 22 “The Mighty One, God,
the LORD! The Mighty One, God, the LORD! He knows; and let Israel itself
know! If it was in rebellion or in breach of faith toward the LORD, spare us
not today 23for building an altar to turn away from following the LORD; or if
we did so to offer burnt offerings or cereal offerings or peace offerings on
it, may the LORD himself take vengeance. 24No, but we did it from fear that
in time to come your children might say to our children, ‘What have you to
do with the LORD, the God of Israel? 25For the LORD has made the Jordan a
boundary between us and you, you Reubenites and Gadites; you have no
portion in the LORD.’ So your children might make our children cease to
worship the LORD. 26Therefore we said, ‘Let us now build an altar, not for
burnt offering, nor for sacrifice, 27but to be a witness between us and you,
and between the generations after us, that we do perform the service of the
LORD in his presence with our burnt offerings and sacrifices and peace
offerings; lest your children say to our children in time to come, “You have
no portion in the LORD.” ’ 28And we thought, If this should be said to us or
to our descendants in time to come, we should say, ‘Behold the copy of the
altar of the LORD, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for
sacrifice, but to be a witness between us and you.’ 29Far be it from us that
we should rebel against the LORD, and turn away this day from following
the LORD by building an altar for burnt offering, cereal offering, or sacrifice,
other than the altar of the LORD our God that stands before his tabernacle!”
30 When Phin'ehas the priest and the chiefs of the congregation, the heads
of the families of Israel who were with him, heard the words that the
Reubenites and the Gadites and the Manas'sites spoke, it pleased them well.
31And Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar the priest said to the Reubenites and the
Gadites and the Manas'sites, “Today we know that the LORD is in the midst
of us, because you have not committed this treachery against the LORD; now
you have saved the sons of Israel from the hand of the LORD.”
32 Then Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar the priest, and the chiefs, returned
from the Reubenites and the Gadites in the land of Gilead to the land of
Canaan, to the sons of Israel, and brought back word to them. 33And the
report pleased the sons of Israel; and the sons of Israel blessed God and
spoke no more of making war against them, to destroy the land where the
Reubenites and the Gadites were settled. 34The Reubenites and the Gadites
called the altar Witness; “For,” said they, “it is a witness between us that the
LORD is God.”
Joshua Exhorts the People
23 A long time afterward, when the LORD had given rest to Israel from
all their enemies round about, and Joshua was old and well advanced in
years, 2Joshua summoned all Israel, their elders and heads, their judges and
officers, and said to them, “I am now old and well advanced in years; 3and
you have seen all that the LORD your God has done to all these nations for
your sake, for it is the LORD your God who has fought for you. 4Behold, I
have allotted to you as an inheritance for your tribes those nations that
remain, along with all the nations that I have already cut off, from the
Jordan to the Great Sea in the west. 5The LORD your God will push them
back before you, and drive them out of your sight; and you shall possess
their land, as the LORD your God promised you. 6Therefore be very
steadfast to keep and do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses,
turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, 7that you may
not be mixed with these nations left here among you, or make mention of
the names of their gods, or swear by them, or serve them, or bow down
yourselves to them, 8but cling to the LORD your God as you have done to
this day. 9For the LORD has driven out before you great and strong nations;
and as for you, no man has been able to withstand you to this day. 10One
man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the LORD your God who
fights for you, as he promised you. 11Take good heed to yourselves,
therefore, to love the LORD your God. 12For if you turn back, and join the
remnant of these nations left here among you, and make marriages with
them, so that you marry their women and they yours, 13know assuredly that
the LORD your God will not continue to drive out these nations before you;
but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a scourge on your sides, and
thorns in your eyes, till you perish from off this good land which the LORD
your God has given you.
14 “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in
your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one thing has failed of all the good
things which the LORD your God promised concerning you; all have come
to pass for you, not one of them has failed. 15But just as all the good things
which the LORD your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for
you, so the LORD will bring upon you all the evil things, until he has
destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God has given
you, 16if you transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which he
commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then
the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and you shall perish
quickly from off the good land which he has given to you.”
The Tribes Renew the Covenant
24 * Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to She'chem, and
summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and
they presented themselves before God. 2And Joshua said to all the people,
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Your fathers lived of old beyond
the Euphrates, Te'rah, the father of Abraham and of Na'hor; and they served
other gods. 3Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and
led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. I gave
him Isaac; 4and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. And I gave Esau the hill
country of Se'ir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.
5And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the
midst of it; and afterwards I brought you out. 6Then I brought your fathers
out of Egypt, and you came to the sea; and the Egyptians pursued your
fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. 7And when they cried to
the LORD, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and made the sea
come upon them and cover them; and your eyes saw what I did to Egypt;
and you lived in the wilderness a long time. 8Then I brought you to the land
of the Am'orites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan; they fought with
you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land,
and I destroyed them before you. 9Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of
Moab, arose and fought against Israel; and he sent and invited Balaam the
son of Beor to curse you, 10but I would not listen to Balaam; therefore he
blessed you; so I delivered you out of his hand. 11And you went over the
Jordan and came to Jericho, and the men of Jericho fought against you, and
also the Am'orites, the Per'izzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the
Gir'gashites, the Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites; and I gave them into your hand.
12And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the
two kings of the Am'orites; it was not by your sword or by your bow. 13I
gave you a land on which you had not labored, and cities which you had not
built, and you dwell therein; you eat the fruit of vineyards and oliveyards
which you did not plant.’
14 “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in
faithfulness; put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River,
and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15And if you be unwilling to serve the
LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers
served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Am'orites in whose
land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”
16 Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the
LORD, to serve other gods; 17for it is the LORD our God who brought us and
our fathers up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, and who
did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we
went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; 18and the LORD
drove out before us all the peoples, the Am'orites who lived in the land;
therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God.”
19 But Joshua said to the people, “You cannot serve the LORD; for he is a
holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or

your sins. 20If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then he will
turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good.”
21And the people said to Joshua, “No; but we will serve the LORD.” 22Then
Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you
have chosen the LORD, to serve him.” And they said, “We are witnesses.”
23He said, “Then put away the foreign gods which are among you, and
incline your heart to the LORD, the God of Israel.” 24And the people said to
Joshua, “The LORD our God we will serve, and his voice we will obey.”
25So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes
and ordinances for them at She'chem. 26And Joshua wrote these words in
the book of the law of God; and he took a great stone, and set it up there
under the oak in the sanctuary of the LORD. 27And Joshua said to all the
people, “Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us; for it has heard all
the words of the LORD which he spoke to us; therefore it shall be a witness
against you, lest you deal falsely with your God.” 28So Joshua sent the
people away, every man to his inheritance.
The Death of Joshua and Eleazar
29 After these things Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died,
being a hundred and ten years old. 30And they buried him in his own
inheritance at Tim'nath-se'rah, which is in the hill country of E'phraim,
north of the mountain of Ga'ash.
31 And Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of
the elders who outlived Joshua and had known all the work which the LORD
did for Israel.
32 The bones of Joseph which the sons of Israel brought up from Egypt
were buried at She'chem, in the portion of ground which Jacob bought from
the sons of Ha'mor the father of She'chem for a hundred pieces of money;q
it became an inheritance of the descendants of Joseph.
33 And Elea'zar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him at Gib'e-ah, the
town of Phin'ehas his son, which had been given him in the hill country of
E'phraim.
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Judges
Chapters
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JUDGES
Israel’s Failure to Complete the Conquest
1 * After the death of Joshua the sons of Israel inquired of the LORD,
“Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?”
2The LORD said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his
hand.” 3And Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into the
territory allotted to me, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I
likewise will go with you into the territory allotted to you.” So Simeon went
with him. 4Then Judah went up and the LORD gave the Canaanites and the
Per'izzites into their hand; and they defeated ten thousand of them at
Be'zek. 5They came upon Ado'ni-be'zek at Be'zek, and fought against him,
and defeated the Canaanites and the Per'izzites. 6Ado'ni-be'zek fled; but
they pursued him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.
7And Ado'ni-be'zek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and their great
toes cut off used to pick up scraps under my table; as I have done, so God
has repaid me.” And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.
8 And the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and took it, and struck it
with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire. 9And afterward the men
of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who dwelt in the hill
country, in the Neg'eb, and in the lowland. 10And Judah went against the
Canaanites who dwelt in He'bron (now the name of Hebron was formerly
Kir'iath-ar'ba); and they defeated Sheshai and Ahi'man and Talmai.
11 From there they went against the inhabitants of De'bir. The name of
Debir was formerly Kir'iath-se'pher. 12And Caleb said, “He who attacks
Kir'iath-se'pher and takes it, I will give him Ach'sah my daughter as wife.”
13And Oth'ni-el the son of Ke'naz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it; and he
gave him Ach'sah his daughter as wife. 14When she came to him, she urged
him to ask her father for a field; and she alighted from her donkey, and
Caleb said to her, “What do you wish?” 15She said to him, “Give me a
present; since you have set me in the land of the Neg'eb, give me also
springs of water.” And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower
springs.
16 And the descendants of the Ken'ite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up with
the people of Judah from the city of palms into the wilderness of Judah,
which lies in the Negeb near Ar'ad; and they went and settled with the
people. 17And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they defeated the
Canaanites who inhabited Ze'phath, and utterly destroyed it. So the name of
the city was called Hormah. 18Judah also took Gaza with its territory, and
Ash'kelon with its territory, and Ek'ron with its territory. 19And the LORD
was with Judah, and he took possession of the hill country, but he could not
drive out the inhabitants of the plain, because they had chariots of iron.
20And He'bron was given to Caleb, as Moses had said; and he drove out
from it the three sons of A'nak. 21But the people of Benjamin did not drive
out the Jeb'usites who dwelt in Jerusalem; so the Jebusites have dwelt with
the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.
22 The house of Joseph also went up against Bethel; and the LORD was
with them. 23And the house of Joseph sent to spy out Bethel. (Now the
name of the city was formerly Luz.) 24And the spies saw a man coming out
of the city, and they said to him, “Please, show us the way into the city, and
we will deal kindly with you.” 25And he showed them the way into the city;
and they struck the city with the edge of the sword, but they let the man and
all his family go. 26And the man went to the land of the Hittites and built a
city, and called its name Luz; that is its name to this day.
27 Manas'seh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-she'an and its
villages, or Ta'anach and its villages, or the inhabitants of Dor and its
villages, or the inhabitants of Ib'leam and its villages, or the inhabitants of
Megid'do and its villages, but the Canaanites persisted in dwelling in that
land. 28When Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor,
but did not utterly drive them out.
29 And E'phraim did not drive out the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer; but
the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.
30 Zeb'ulun did not drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, or the inhabitants
of Nahal'ol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became subject to
forced labor.
31 Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Ac'co, or the inhabitants of
Si'don, or of Ahlab, or of Ach'zib, or of Helbah, or of A'phik, or of Re'hob;

32but the Ash'erites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land;
for they did not drive them out.
33 Naph'tali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-she'mesh, or the
inhabitants of Beth-a'nath, but dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants
of the land; nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath
became subject to forced labor for them.
34 The Am'orites pressed the Da'nites back into the hill country, for they
did not allow them to come down to the plain; 35the Am'orites persisted in
dwelling in Har-he'res, in Ai'jalon, and in Sha-al'bim, but the hand of the
house of Joseph rested heavily upon them, and they became subject to
forced labor. 36And the border of the Am'orites ran from the ascent of
Akrab'bim, from Se'la and upward.
Israel’s Disobedience
2 Now the angel of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he
said, “I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you into the land which I
swore to give to your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with
you, 2and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you
shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my command.
What is this you have done? 3So now I say, I will not drive them out before
you; but they shall become adversaries a to you, and their gods shall be a
snare to you.” 4When the angel of the LORD spoke these words to all the
sons of Israel, the people lifted up their voices and wept. 5And they called
the name of that place Bochim; b and they sacrificed there to the LORD.
Death of Joshua
6 When Joshua dismissed the people, the sons of Israel went each to his
inheritance to take possession of the land. 7And the people served the LORD
all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua,
who had seen all the great work which the LORD had done for Israel. 8And
Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of one
hundred and ten years. 9And they buried him within the bounds of his
inheritance in Tim'nath-he'res, in the hill country of E'phraim, north of the
mountain of Ga'ash. 10And all that generation also were gathered to their
fathers; and there arose another generation after them, who did not know
the LORD or the work which he had done for Israel.
Israel’s Unfaithfulness
11 And the sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and
served the Ba'als; 12and they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers,
who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; they went after other gods,
from among the gods of the peoples who were round about them, and
bowed down to them; and they provoked the LORD to anger. 13They forsook
the LORD, and served the Ba'als and the Ash'taroth. 14So the anger of the
LORD was kindled against Israel, and he gave them over to plunderers, who
plundered them; and he sold them into the power of their enemies round
about, so that they could no longer withstand their enemies. 15Whenever
they marched out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the
LORD had warned, and as the LORD had sworn to them; and they were in
great distress.
16 Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the power of
those who plundered them. 17And yet they did not listen to their judges; for
they played the harlot after other gods and bowed down to them; they soon
turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked, who had
obeyed the commandments of the LORD, and they did not do so.
18Whenever the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the
judge, and he saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the
judge; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning because of those
who afflicted and oppressed them. 19But whenever the judge died, they
turned back and behaved worse than their fathers, going after other gods,
serving them and bowing down to them; they did not drop any of their
practices or their stubborn ways.* 20So the anger of the LORD was kindled
against Israel; and he said, “Because this people have transgressed my
covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not obeyed my voice,
21from now on I will not drive out before them any of the nations that
Joshua left when he died, 22that by them I may test Israel, whether they will
take care to walk in the way of the LORD as their fathers did, or not.” 23So
the LORD left those nations, not driving them out at once, and he did not
give them into the power of Joshua.
Nations Remaining in the Land
3 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to test Israel by them,
that is, all in Israel who had no experience of any war in Canaan; 2it was
only that the generations of the sons of Israel might know war, that he
might teach war to such at least as had not known it before. 3These are the
nations: the five lords of the Philis'tines, and all the Canaanites, and the
Sido'nians, and the Hi'vites who dwelt on Mount Lebanon, from Mount
Ba'al-her'mon as far as the entrance of Ha'math. 4They were for the testing
of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the
LORD, which he commanded their fathers by Moses. 5So the sons of Israel
dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Am'orites, the Per'izzites, the
Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites; 6and they took their daughters to themselves for
wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons; and they served
their gods.
Othni-el
7 And the sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD,
forgetting the LORD their God, and serving the Ba'als and the Ashe'roth.
8Therefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he sold
them into the hand of Cu'shan-rishatha'im king of Mesopota'mia; and the

sons of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. 9But when the sons of
Israel cried to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for the sons of
Israel, who delivered them, Oth'ni-el the son of Ke'naz, Caleb’s younger
brother. 10The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel; he
went out to war, and the LORD gave Cu'shan-rishatha'im king of
Mesopota'mia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-
rishathaim. 11So the land had rest forty years. Then Oth'ni-el the son of
Ke'naz died.
Ehud
12 And the sons of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD;
and the LORD strengthened Eg'lon the king of Moab against Israel, because
they had done what was evil in the sight of the LORD. 13He gathered to
himself the Am'monites and the Amal'ekites, and went and defeated Israel;
and they took possession of the city of palms. 14And the sons of Israel
served Eg'lon the king of Moab eighteen years.
15 But when the sons of Israel cried to the LORD, the LORD raised up for
them a deliverer, E'hud, the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed

man. The sons of Israel sent tribute by him to Eg'lon the king of Moab.
16And E'hud made for himself a sword with two edges, a cubit in length;
and he girded it on his right thigh under his clothes. 17And he presented the
tribute to Eg'lon king of Moab. Now Eglon was a very fat man. 18And when
E'hud had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people that
carried the tribute. 19But he himself turned back at the sculptured stones
near Gilgal, and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” And he
commanded, “Silence.” And all his attendants went out from his presence.
20And E'hud came to him, as he was sitting alone in his cool roof chamber.
And Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” And he arose from
his seat. 21And E'hud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his
right thigh, and thrust it into his belly; 22and the hilt also went in after the
blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the sword out
of his belly; and the dirt came out. 23Then E'hud went out into the
vestibule, c and closed the doors of the roof chamber upon him, and locked
them.
24 When he had gone, the servants came; and when they saw that the doors
of the roof chamber were locked, they thought, “He is only relieving
himself in the closet of the cool chamber.” 25And they waited till they were
utterly at a loss; but when he still did not open the doors of the roof
chamber, they took the key and opened them; and there lay their lord dead
on the floor.
26 E'hud escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the sculptured
stones, and escaped to Se-i'rah. 27When he arrived, he sounded the trumpet

in the hill country of E'phraim; and the sons of Israel went down with him
from the hill country, having him at their head. 28And he said to them,
“Follow after me; for the LORD has given your enemies the Moabites into
your hand.” So they went down after him, and seized the fords of the Jordan
against the Moabites, and allowed no man to pass over. 29And they killed at
that time about ten thousand of the Moabites, all strong, able-bodied men;
not a man escaped. 30So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of
Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years.
Shamgar
31 After him was Shamgar the son of A'nath, who killed six hundred of the
Philis'tines with an oxgoad; and he too delivered Israel.

Deborah and Barak
4 And the sons of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD, after E'hud died. 2And the LORD sold them into the hand of Ja'bin
king of Canaan, who reigned in Ha'zor; the commander of his army was
Sis'era, who dwelt in Haro'sheth-ha-goi'im. 3Then the sons of Israel cried to
the LORD for help; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and oppressed
the sons of Israel cruelly for twenty years.
4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lap'pidoth, was judging Israel at
that time. 5She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ra'mah and
Bethel in the hill country of E'phraim; and the sons of Israel came up to her
for judgment. 6She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abin'o-am from
Ke'desh in Naph'tali, and said to him, “The LORD, the God of Israel,
commands you, ‘Go, gather your men at Mount Ta'bor, taking ten thousand
from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zeb'ulun. 7And I will draw out
Sis'era, the general of Ja'bin’s army, to meet you by the river Ki'shon with
his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.’ ” 8Barak
said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with
me, I will not go.” 9And she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless,
the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the LORD
will sell Sis'era into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose, and went
with Barak to Ke'desh. 10And Barak summoned Zeb'ulun and Naph'tali to
Ke'desh; and ten thousand men went up at his heels; and Deborah went up
with him.
11 Now He'ber the Kenite had separated from the Kenites, the descendants
of Ho'bab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away
as the oak in Za-anan'nim, which is near Ke'desh.
12 When Sis'era was told that Barak the son of Abin'o-am had gone up to
Mount Ta'bor, 13Sis'era called out all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of
iron, and all the men who were with him, from Haro'sheth-ha-goi'im to the
river Ki'shon. 14And Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in
which the LORD has given Sis'era into your hand. Does not the LORD go out
before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Ta'bor with ten thousand
men following him. 15And the LORD routed Sis'era and all his chariots and
all his army before Barak at the edge of the sword; and Sisera alighted from
his chariot and fled away on foot. 16And Barak pursued the chariots and the
army to Haro'sheth-ha-goi'im, and all the army of Sis'era fell by the edge of
the sword; not a man was left.
Jael Kills Sisera
17 But Sis'era fled away on foot to the tent of Ja'el, the wife of He'ber the
Kenite; for there was peace between Ja'bin the king of Ha'zor and the house
of Heber the Kenite. 18And Ja'el came out to meet Sis'era, and said to him,
“Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; have no fear.” So he turned aside to
her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. 19And he said to her,
“Please, give me a little water to drink; for I am thirsty.” So she opened a
skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. 20And he said to her,
“Stand at the door of the tent, and if any man comes and asks you, ‘Is any
one here?’ say, No.” 21But Ja'el the wife of He'ber took a tent peg, and took
a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his
temple, till it went down into the ground, as he was lying fast asleep from
weariness. So he died. 22And behold, as Barak pursued Sis'era, Ja'el went
out to meet him, and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man
whom you are seeking.” So he went in to her tent; and there lay Sisera dead,
with the tent peg in his temple.
23 So on that day God subdued Ja'bin the king of Canaan before the sons
of Israel. 24And the hand of the sons of Israel bore harder and harder on
Ja'bin the king of Canaan, until they destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.
The Song of Deborah
5 Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abin'o-am on that day: *
2“That the leaders took the lead in Israel,
that the people offered themselves willingly,

bless d the LORD!
3“Hear, O kings; give ear, O princes;
to the LORD I will sing,

I will make melody to the LORD, the God of Israel.
4“LORD, when you went forth from Se'ir,
when you marched from the region of E'dom,
the earth trembled,
and the heavens dropped,
yes, the clouds dropped water.
5The mountains quaked before the LORD,
the One of Sinai, before the LORD, the God of Israel.

6 “In the days of Shamgar, son of A'nath,
in the days of Ja'el, caravans ceased

and travelers kept to the byways.
7The peasantry ceased in Israel, they ceased
until you arose, Deborah,

arose as a mother in Israel.
8When new gods were chosen,
then war was in the gates.
Was shield or spear to be seen
among forty thousand in Israel?
9My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel
who offered themselves willingly among the people.

Bless the LORD.
10“Tell of it, you who ride on tawny donkeys,
you who sit on rich carpets e

and you who walk by the way.
11To the sound of musicians e at the watering places,
there they repeat the triumphs of the LORD,
the triumphs of his peasantry in Israel.
“Then down to the gates marched
the people of the LORD.
12“Awake, awake, Deborah!
Awake, awake, utter a song!

Arise, Barak, lead away your captives,
O son of Abin'o-am.
13Then down marched the remnant of the noble;
the people of the LORD marched down for him f against the mighty.
14From E'phraim they set out there x into the valley, g
following you, Benjamin, with your kinsmen;

from Ma'chir marched down the commanders,
and from Zeb'ulun those who bear the marshal’s staff;
15the princes of Is'sachar came with Deborah,
and Issachar faithful to Barak;

into the valley they rushed forth at his heels.
Among the clans of Reuben
there were great searchings of heart.
16Why did you tarry among the sheepfolds,
to hear the piping for the flocks?

Among the clans of Reuben
there were great searchings of heart.
17Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan;
and Dan, why did he abide with the ships?

Asher sat still at the coast of the sea,
settling down by his landings.
18Zeb'ulun is a people that jeoparded their lives to the death;
Naph'tali too, on the heights of the field.
19“The kings came, they fought;
then fought the kings of Canaan,

at Ta'anach, by the waters of Megid'do;
they got no spoils of silver.
20From heaven fought the stars,
from their courses they fought against Sis'era.

21The torrent Ki'shon swept them away,
the onrushing torrent, the torrent Kishon.

March on, my soul, with might!
22“Then loud beat the horses’ hoofs
with the galloping, galloping of his steeds.

23“Curse Me'roz, says the angel of the LORD,
curse bitterly its inhabitants,

because they came not to the help of the LORD,
to the help of the LORD against the mighty.
24“Most blessed of women be Ja'el,
the wife of He'ber the Kenite,

of tent-dwelling women most blessed.
25He asked for water and she gave him milk,
she brought him curds in a lordly bowl.

26She put her hand to the tent peg
and her right hand to the workmen’s mallet;

she struck Sis'era a blow,
she crushed his head,
she shattered and pierced his temple.
27He sank, he fell,
he lay still at her feet;

at her feet he sank, he fell;
where he sank, there he fell dead.
28“Out of the window she peered,
the mother of Sis'era gazed h through the lattice:

‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why do the hoofbeats of his chariots tarry?’
29Her wisest ladies make answer,
no, she gives answer to herself,
30‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil?—
A maiden or two for every man;

spoil of dyed stuffs for Sis'era,
spoil of dyed stuffs embroidered,
two pieces of dyed work embroidered for my neck as spoil?’
31“So perish all your enemies, O LORD!
But your friends be like the sun as he rises in his might.”

And the land had rest for forty years.
The Midianite Oppression
6 The sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD; and the
LORD gave them into the hand of Mid'ian seven years. 2And the hand of
Mid'ian prevailed over Israel; and because of Midian the sons of Israel
made for themselves the dens which are in the mountains, and the caves and
the strongholds. 3For whenever the Israelites put in seed the Mid'ianites and
the Amal'ekites and the people of the East would come up and attack them;
4they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the land, as
far as the neighborhood of Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel, and no
sheep or ox or donkey. 5For they would come up with their cattle and their
tents, coming like locusts for number; both they and their camels could not
be counted; so that they wasted the land as they came in. 6And Israel was
brought very low because of Mid'ian; and the sons of Israel cried for help to
the LORD.
7 When the sons of Israel cried to the LORD on account of the Mid'ianites,
8the LORD sent a prophet to the sons of Israel; and he said to them, “Thus
says the LORD, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt, and brought you
out of the house of bondage; 9and I delivered you from the hand of the
Egyptians, and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out
before you, and gave you their land; 10and I said to you, ‘I am the LORD
your God; you shall not pay reverence to the gods of the Am'orites, in
whose land you dwell.’ But you have not given heed to my voice.”
The Call of Gideon
11 Now the angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak at Oph'rah,
which belonged to Jo'ash the Abiez'rite, as his son Gideon was beating out
wheat in the wine press, to hide it from the Mid'ianites. 12And the angel of
the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, you
mighty man of valor.” 13And Gideon said to him, “Please, sir, if the LORD is
with us, why then has all this befallen us? And where are all his wonderful
deeds which our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us
up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has cast us off, and given us into the
hand of Mid'ian.” 14And the LORD turned to him and said, “Go in this might
of yours and deliver Israel from the hand of Mid'ian; do not I send you?”
15And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Behold, my
clan is the weakest in Manas'seh, and I am the least in my family.” 16And

the LORD said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the
Mid'ianites as one man.” 17And he said to him, “If now I have found favor
with you, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. 18Do not
depart from here, I beg you, until I come to you, and bring out my present,
and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.”
19 So Gideon went into his house and prepared a kid, and unleavened
cakes from an ephah of flour; the meat he put in a basket, and the broth he
put in a pot, and brought them to him under the oak and presented them.
20And the angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened
cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour the broth over them.” And he did
so. 21Then the angel of the LORD reached out the tip of the staff that was in
his hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes; and there sprang
up fire from the rock and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and
the angel of the LORD vanished from his sight. 22Then Gideon perceived
that he was the angel of the LORD; and Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord GOD!
For now I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face.” 23But the LORD
said to him, “Peace be to you; do not fear, you shall not die.” 24Then
Gideon built an altar there to the LORD, and called it, The LORD is peace. To
this day it still stands at Oph'rah, which belongs to the Abiez'rites.
25 That night the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s bull, the second
bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Ba'al which your father has,
and cut down the Ashe'rah that is beside it; 26and build an altar to the LORD
your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order;
then take the second bull, and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of
the Ashe'rah which you shall cut down.” 27So Gideon took ten men of his
servants, and did as the LORD had told him; but because he was too afraid of
his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night.
Gideon Destroys the Altar of Baal
28 When the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar
of Ba'al was broken down, and the Ashe'rah beside it was cut down, and the
second bull was offered upon the altar which had been built. 29And they
said to one another, “Who has done this thing?” And after they had made
search and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Jo'ash has done this
thing.” 30Then the men of the town said to Jo'ash, “Bring out your son, that
he may die, for he has pulled down the altar of Ba'al and cut down the
Ashe'rah beside it.” 31But Jo'ash said to all who were arrayed against him,
“Will you contend for Ba'al? Or will you defend his cause? Whoever
contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him
contend for himself, because his altar has been pulled down.” 32Therefore
on that day he was called Jerubba'al, that is to say, “Let Ba'al contend
against him,” because he pulled down his altar.
33 Then all the Mid'ianites and the Amal'ekites and the people of the East
came together, and crossing the Jordan they encamped in the Valley of
Jezre'el. 34But the Spirit of the LORD took possession of Gideon; and he
sounded the trumpet, and the Abiez'rites were called out to follow him.
35And he sent messengers throughout all Manas'seh; and they too were
called out to follow him. And he sent messengers to Asher, Zeb'ulun, and
Naph'tali; and they went up to meet them.
The Sign of the Fleece
36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you will deliver Israel by my hand, as you
have said, 37behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if

there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall
know that you will deliver Israel by my hand, as you have said.” 38And it
was so. When he rose early next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung
enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. 39Then Gideon said to
God, “Let not your anger burn against me, let me speak but this once;
please, let me make trial only this once with the fleece; please, let it be dry
only on the fleece, and on all the ground let there be dew.” 40And God did
so that night; for it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there
was dew.
Gideon’s Army Selected
7 Then Jerubba'al (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with
him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Harod; and the camp of
Mid'ian was north of them, by the hill of Mo'reh, in the valley.
2 The LORD said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to
give the Mid'ianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me,
saying, ‘My own hand has delivered me.’ 3Now therefore proclaim in the
ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return
home.’ ” And Gideon tested them; i twenty-two thousand returned, and ten
thousand remained.
4 And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; take them
down to the water and I will test them for you there; and he of whom I say
to you, ‘This man shall go with you,’ shall go with you; and any of whom I
say to you, ‘This man shall not go with you,’ shall not go.” 5So he brought
the people down to the water; and the LORD said to Gideon, “Every one that
laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself;
likewise every one that kneels down to drink.” 6And the number of those
that lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was three hundred men; but
all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water. 7And the LORD said to
Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will deliver you and
give the Mid'ianites into your hand; and let all the others go every man to
his home.” 8So he took the jars of the people from their hands,j and their
trumpets; and he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent, but retained
the three hundred men; and the camp of Mid'ian was below him in the
valley.
Gideon Routs the Midianites
9 That same night the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down against the
camp; for I have given it into your hand. 10But if you fear to go down, go
down to the camp with Pu'rah your servant; 11and you shall hear what they
say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the
camp.” Then he went down with Pu'rah his servant to the outposts of the
armed men that were in the camp. 12And the Mid'ianites and the
Amal'ekites and all the people of the East lay along the valley like locusts
for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is
upon the seashore for multitude. 13When Gideon came, behold, a man was
telling a dream to his comrade; and he said, “Behold, I dreamed a dream;
and a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Mid'ian, and came to
the tent, and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down, so that the
tent lay flat.” 14And his comrade answered, “This is no other than the sword
of Gideon the son of Jo'ash, a man of Israel; into his hand God has given
Mid'ian and all the host.”
15 When Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he
worshiped; and he returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise; for the
LORD has given the host of Mid'ian into your hand.” 16And he divided the
three hundred men into three companies, and put trumpets into the hands of
all of them and empty jars, with torches inside the jars. 17And he said to
them, “Look at me, and do likewise; when I come to the outskirts of the
camp, do as I do. 18When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me,
then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and shout, ‘For
the LORD and for Gideon.’ ”
19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the
outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, when they had
just set the watch; and they blew the trumpets and smashed the jars that
were in their hands. 20And the three companies blew the trumpets and broke
the jars, holding in their left hands the torches, and in their right hands the
trumpets to blow; and they cried, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!”
21They stood every man in his place round about the camp, and all the army
ran; they cried out and fled. 22When they blew the three hundred trumpets,
the LORD set every man’s sword against his fellow and against all the army;
and the army fled as far as Beth-shit'tah toward Zer'erah, k as far as the
border of Abel-meho'lah, by Tabbath. 23And the men of Israel were called
out from Naph'tali and from Asher and from all Manas'seh, and they
pursued after Mid'ian.
24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of
E'phraim, saying, “Come down against the Mid'ianites and seize the waters
against them, as far as Beth-bar'ah, and also the Jordan.” So all the men of
Ephraim were called out, and they seized the waters as far as Beth-barah,
and also the Jordan. 25And they took the two princes of Mid'ian, Or'eb and
Ze'eb; they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the wine
press of Zeeb, as they pursued Midian; and they brought the heads of Oreb
and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan.
Gideon’s Triumph
8 And the men of E'phraim said to him, “What is this that you have done
to us, not to call us when you went to fight with Mid'ian?” And they
upbraided him violently. 2And he said to them, “What have I done now in
comparison with you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of E'phraim better
than the vintage of Abie'zer? 3God has given into your hands the princes of
Mid'ian, Or'eb and Ze'eb; what have I been able to do in comparison with
you?” Then their anger against him was abated, when he had said this.
4 And Gideon came to the Jordan and passed over, he and the three
hundred men who were with him, faint yet pursuing. 5So he said to the men
of Succoth, “Please, give loaves of bread to the people who follow me; for
they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmun'na, the kings of
Mid'ian.” 6And the officials of Succoth said, “Are Zebah and Zalmun'na
already in your hand, that we should give bread to your army?” 7And
Gideon said, “Well then, when the LORD has given Zebah and Zalmun'na
into my hand, I will flail your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and
with briers.” 8And from there he went up to Penu'el, and spoke to them in
the same way; and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth
had answered. 9And he said to the men of Penu'el, “When I come again in
peace, I will break down this tower.”
10 Now Zebah and Zalmun'na were in Karkor with their army, about
fifteen thousand men, all who were left of all the army of the people of the
East; for there had fallen a hundred and twenty thousand men who drew the
sword. 11And Gideon went up by the caravan route east of No'bah and
Jog'behah, and attacked the army; for the army was off its guard. 12And
Zebah and Zalmun'na fled; and he pursued them and took the two kings of
Mid'ian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and he threw all the army into a panic.
13 Then Gideon the son of Jo'ash returned from the battle by the ascent of
He'res. 14And he caught a young man of Succoth, and questioned him; and
he wrote down for him the officials and elders of Succoth, seventy-seven
men. 15And he came to the men of Succoth, and said, “Behold Zebah and
Zalmun'na, about whom you taunted me, saying, ‘Are Zebah and Zalmunna
already in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are
faint?’ ” 16And he took the elders of the city and he took thorns of the
wilderness and briers and with them taught the men of Succoth. 17And he
broke down the tower of Penu'el, and slew the men of the city.
18 Then he said to Zebah and Zalmun'na, “Where are the men whom you
slew at Ta'bor?” They answered, “As you are, so were they, every one of
them; they resembled the sons of a king.” 19And he said, “They were my
brothers, the sons of my mother; as the LORD lives, if you had saved them
alive, I would not slay you.” 20And he said to Je'ther his first-born, “Rise,
and slay them.” But the youth did not draw his sword; for he was afraid,
because he was still a youth. 21Then Zebah and Zalmun'na said, “Rise
yourself, and fall upon us; for as the man is, so is his strength.” And Gideon
arose and slew Zebah and Zalmunna; and he took the crescents that were on
the necks of their camels.
Gideon’s Ephod Becomes a Snare
22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, you and your son
and your grandson also; for you have delivered us out of the hand of
Mid'ian.” 23Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will
not rule over you; the LORD will rule over you.” * 24And Gideon said to
them, “Let me make a request of you; give me every man of you the
earrings of his spoil.” (For they had golden earrings, because they were
Ish'maelites.) 25And they answered, “We will willingly give them.” And
they spread a garment, and every man cast in it the earrings of his spoil.
26And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was one thousand
seven hundred shekels of gold; besides the crescents and the pendants and
the purple garments worn by the kings of Mid'ian, and besides the collars
that were about the necks of their camels. 27And Gideon made an ephod of
it and put it in his city, in Oph'rah; and all Israel played the harlot after it
there, and it became a snare to Gideon and to his family. 28So Mid'ian was
subdued before the sons of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more.
And the land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.
The Death of Gideon
29 Jerubba'al the son of Jo'ash went and dwelt in his own house. 30Now
Gideon had seventy sons, his own offspring, for he had many wives. 31And
his concubine who was in She'chem also bore him a son, and he called his
name Abim'elech. 32And Gideon the son of Jo'ash died in a good old age,
and was buried in the tomb of Jo'ash his father, at Oph'rah of the
Abiez'rites.
33 As soon as Gideon died, the sons of Israel turned again and played the
harlot after the Ba'als, and made Ba'al-be'rith their god. 34And the sons of
Israel did not remember the LORD their God, who had rescued them from
the hand of all their enemies on every side; 35and they did not show
kindness to the family of Jerubba'al (that is, Gideon) in return for all the
good that he had done to Israel.
Abimelech Tries to Establish a Monarchy
9 Now Abim'elech the son of Jerubba'al went to She'chem to his
mother’s kinsmen and said to them and to the whole clan of his mother’s
family, 2 “Say in the ears of all the citizens of She'chem, ‘Which is better
for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubba'al rule over you, or that one
rule over you?’ Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.” 3And
his mother’s kinsmen spoke all these words on his behalf in the ears of all
the men of She'chem; and their hearts inclined to follow Abim'elech, for
they said, “He is our brother.” 4And they gave him seventy pieces of silver
out of the house of Ba'al-be'rith with which Abim'elech hired worthless and
reckless fellows, who followed him. 5And he went to his father’s house at
Oph'rah, and slew his brothers the sons of Jerubba'al, seventy men, upon
one stone; but Jo'tham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, for he hid
himself. 6And all the citizens of She'chem came together, and all Beth-
mil'lo, and they went and made Abim'elech king, by the oak of the pillar at
Shechem.
Jotham’s Parable of the Trees, Vine, and Bramble
7 When it was told to Jo'tham, he went and stood on the top of Mount
Ger'izim, and cried aloud and said to them, “Listen to me, you men of
She'chem, that God may listen to you. 8The trees once went forth to anoint
a king over them; and they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’ 9But the
olive tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my fatness, by which gods and men
are honored, and go to sway over the trees?’ 10And the trees said to the fig
tree, ‘Come you, and reign over us.’ 11But the fig tree said to them, ‘Shall I
leave my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to sway over the trees?’
12And the trees said to the vine, ‘Come you, and reign over us.’ 13But the
vine said to them, ‘Shall I leave my wine which cheers gods and men, and
go to sway over the trees?’ 14Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘Come
you, and reign over us.’ 15And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in good
faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my
shade; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of
Lebanon.’
16 “Now therefore, if you acted in good faith and honor when you made
Abim'elech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubba'al and his house,
and have done to him as his deeds deserved—17for my father fought for
you, and risked his life, and rescued you from the hand of Mid'ian; 18and
you have risen up against my father’s house this day, and have slain his
sons, seventy men on one stone, and have made Abim'elech, the son of his
maidservant, king over the citizens of She'chem, because he is your
kinsman—19if you then have acted in good faith and honor with Jerubba'al
and with his house this day, then rejoice in Abim'elech, and let him also
rejoice in you; 20but if not, let fire come out from Abim'elech, and devour
the citizens of She'chem, and Beth-mil'lo; and let fire come out from the
citizens of Shechem, and from Beth-millo, and devour Abimelech.” 21And
Jo'tham ran away and fled, and went to Be'er and dwelt there, for fear of
Abim'elech his brother.
The Downfall of Abimelech
22 Abim'elech ruled over Israel three years. 23And God sent an evil spirit
between Abim'elech and the men of She'chem; and the men of Shechem
dealt treacherously with Abimelech; 24that the violence done to the seventy
sons of Jerubba'al might come and their blood be laid upon Abim'elech their
brother, who slew them, and upon the men of She'chem, who strengthened
his hands to slay his brothers. 25And the men of She'chem put men in
ambush against him on the mountain tops, and they robbed all who passed
by them along that way; and it was told Abim'elech.
26 And Ga'al the son of E'bed moved into She'chem with his kinsmen; and
the men of Shechem put confidence in him. 27And they went out into the
field, and gathered the grapes from their vineyards and trod them, and held
festival, and went into the house of their god, and ate and drank and reviled
Abim'elech. 28And Ga'al the son of E'bed said, “Who is Abim'elech, and
who are we of She'chem, that we should serve him? Did not the son of
Jerubba'al and Ze'bul his officer serve the men of Ha'mor the father of
Shechem? Why then should we serve him? 29Would that this people were
under my hand! then I would remove Abim'elech. I would say l to
Abimelech, ‘Increase your army, and come out.’ ”
30 When Ze'bul the ruler of the city heard the words of Ga'al the son of
E'bed, his anger was kindled. 31And he sent messengers to Abim'elech at
Aru'mah, m saying, “Behold, Ga'al the son of E'bed and his kinsmen have
come to She'chem, and they are stirring up n the city against you. 32Now
therefore, go by night, you and the men that are with you, and lie in wait in
the fields. 33Then in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, rise early and
rush upon the city; and when he and the men that are with him come out
against you, you may do to them as occasion offers.”
34 And Abim'elech and all the men that were with him rose up by night,
and laid wait against She'chem in four companies. 35And Ga'al the son of
E'bed went out and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city; and
Abim'elech and the men that were with him rose from the ambush. 36And
when Ga'al saw the men, he said to Ze'bul, “Look, men are coming down
from the mountain tops!” And Zebul said to him, “You see the shadow of
the mountains as if they were men.” 37Ga'al spoke again and said, “Look,
men are coming down from the center of the land, and one company is
coming from the direction of the Diviners’ Oak.” 38Then Ze'bul said to him,
“Where is your mouth now, you who said, ‘Who is Abim'elech, that we
should serve him?’ Are not these the men whom you despised? Go out now
and fight with them.” 39And Ga'al went out at the head of the men of
She'chem, and fought with Abim'elech. 40And Abim'elech chased him, and
he fled before him; and many fell wounded, up to the entrance of the gate.
41And Abim'elech dwelt at Aru'mah; and Ze'bul drove out Ga'al and his
kinsmen, so that they could not live on at She'chem.

42 On the following day the men went out into the fields. And Abim'elech
was told. 43He took his men and divided them into three companies, and
laid wait in the fields; and he looked and saw the men coming out of the
city, and he rose against them and slew them. 44Abim'elech and the
company o that was with him rushed forward and stood at the entrance of
the gate of the city, while the two companies rushed upon all who were in
the fields and slew them. 45And Abim'elech fought against the city all that
day; he took the city, and killed the people that were in it; and he razed the
city and sowed it with salt.
46 When all the people of the Tower of She'chem heard of it, they entered
the stronghold of the house of El-be'rith. 47Abim'elech was told that all the
people of the Tower of She'chem were gathered together. 48And Abim'elech
went up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the men that were with him; and
Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bundle of brushwood,
and took it up and laid it on his shoulder. And he said to the men that were
with him, “What you have seen me do, make haste to do, as I have done.”
49So every one of the people cut down his bundle and following Abim'elech
put it against the stronghold, and they set the stronghold on fire over them,
so that all the people of the Tower of She'chem also died, about a thousand
men and women.
50 Then Abim'elech went to The'bez, and encamped against Thebez, and
took it. 51But there was a strong tower within the city, and all the people of
the city fled to it, all the men and women, and shut themselves in; and they
went to the roof of the tower. 52And Abim'elech came to the tower, and
fought against it, and drew near to the door of the tower to burn it with fire.
53And a certain woman threw an upper millstone upon Abim'elech’s head,
and crushed his skull. 54Then he called hastily to the young man his armor-
bearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, lest men say of me,
‘A woman killed him.’ ” And his young man thrust him through, and he
died. 55And when the men of Israel saw that Abim'elech was dead, they
departed every man to his home. 56Thus God repaid the crime of
Abim'elech, which he committed against his father in killing his seventy
brothers; 57and God also made all the wickedness of the men of She'chem
fall back upon their heads, and upon them came the curse of Jo'tham the son
of Jerubba'al.
Tola and Jair
10 After Abim'elech there arose to deliver Israel Tola the son of Puah,
son of Dodo, a man of Is'sachar; and he lived at Sha'mir in the hill country
of E'phraim. 2And he judged Israel twenty-three years. Then he died, and
was buried at Sha'mir.
3 After him arose Ja'ir the Gileadite, who judged Israel twenty-two years.
4And he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys; and they had thirty
cities, called Hav'voth-ja'ir to this day, which are in the land of Gilead.
5And Ja'ir died, and was buried in Kamon.
Oppression by the Philistines and Ammonites

6 And the sons of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD,
and served the Ba'als and the Ash'taroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of
Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Am'monites, and the gods of the
Philis'tines; and they forsook the LORD, and did not serve him. 7And the
anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the
hand of the Philis'tines and into the hand of the Am'monites, 8and they
crushed and oppressed the children of Israel that year. For eighteen years
they oppressed all the sons of Israel that were beyond the Jordan in the land
of the Am'orites, which is in Gilead. 9And the Am'monites crossed the
Jordan to fight also against Judah and against Benjamin and against the
house of E'phraim; so that Israel was sorely distressed.
10 And the sons of Israel cried to the LORD, saying, “We have sinned
against you, because we have forsaken our God and have served the
Ba'als.” 11And the LORD said to the sons of Israel, “Did I not deliver you
from the Egyptians and from the Am'orites, from the Am'monites and from
the Philis'tines? 12The Sido'nians also, and the Amal'ekites, and the
Ma'onites, oppressed you; and you cried to me, and I delivered you out of
their hand. 13Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods; therefore I
will deliver you no more. 14Go and cry to the gods whom you have chosen;
let them deliver you in the time of your distress.” 15And the sons of Israel
said to the LORD, “We have sinned; do to us whatever seems good to you;
only deliver us, we beg you, this day.” 16So they put away the foreign gods
from among them and served the LORD; and he became indignant over the
misery of Israel.
17 Then the Am'monites were called to arms, and they encamped in
Gilead; and the sons of Israel came together, and they encamped at Mizpah.
18And the people, the leaders of Gilead, said one to another, “Who is the
man that will begin to fight against the Am'monites? He shall be head over
all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
Jephthah
11 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but he was the son
of a harlot. Gilead was the father of Jephthah. 2And Gilead’s wife also bore
him sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they thrust Jephthah out, and
said to him, “You shall not inherit in our father’s house; for you are the son
of another woman.” 3Then Jephthah fled from his brothers, and dwelt in the
land of Tob; and worthless fellows collected round Jephthah, and went
raiding with him.
4 After a time the Am'monites made war against Israel. 5And when the
Am'monites made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring
Jephthah from the land of Tob; 6and they said to Jephthah, “Come and be
our leader, that we may fight with the Am'monites.” 7But Jephthah said to
the elders of Gilead, “Did you not hate me, and drive me out of my father’s
house? Why have you come to me now when you are in trouble?” 8And the
elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “That is why we have turned to you now,
that you may go with us and fight with the Am'monites, and be our head
over all the inhabitants of Gilead.” 9Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead,
“If you bring me home again to fight with the Am'monites, and the LORD
gives them over to me, I will be your head.” 10And the elders of Gilead said
to Jephthah, “The LORD will be witness between us; we will surely do as
you say.” 11So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people
made him head and leader over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words
before the LORD at Mizpah.
12 Then Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Am'monites and said,
“What have you against me, that you have come to me to fight against my
land?” 13And the king of the Am'monites answered the messengers of
Jephthah, “Because Israel on coming from Egypt took away my land, from
the Arnon to the Jabbok and to the Jordan; now therefore restore it
peaceably.” 14And Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the
Am'monites 15and said to him, “Thus says Jephthah: Israel did not take
away the land of Moab or the land of the Am'monites, 16but when they
came up from Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea and
came to Ka'desh. 17Israel then sent messengers to the king of E'dom, saying,
‘Let us pass, we beg, through your land’; but the king of Edom would not
listen. And they sent also to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So
Israel remained at Ka'desh. 18Then they journeyed through the wilderness,
and went around the land of E'dom and the land of Moab, and arrived on
the east side of the land of Moab, and camped on the other side of the
Arnon; but they did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was the
boundary of Moab. 19Israel then sent messengers to Si'hon king of the
Am'orites, king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, ‘Let us pass, we beg,
through your land to our country.’ 20But Si'hon did not trust Israel to pass
through his territory; so Sihon gathered all his people together, and
encamped at Ja'haz, and fought with Israel. 21And the LORD, the God of
Israel, gave Si'hon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they
defeated them; so Israel took possession of all the land of the Am'orites,
who inhabited that country. 22And they took possession of all the territory
of the Am'orites from the Arnon to the Jabbok and from the wilderness to
the Jordan. 23So then the LORD, the God of Israel, dispossessed the
Am'orites from before his people Israel; and are you to take possession of
them? 24Will you not possess what Che'mosh your god gives you to
possess? And all that the LORD our God has dispossessed before us, we will
possess. 25Now are you any better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of
Moab? Did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever go to war with them?
26While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aro'er and its
villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, three
hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time? 27I therefore
have not sinned against you, and you do me wrong by making war on me;
the LORD, the Judge, decide this day between the sons of Israel and the
people of Ammon.” 28But the king of the Am'monites did not heed the
message of Jephthah which he sent to him.
Jephthah’s Vow
29 Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed through
Gilead and Manas'seh, and passed on to Mizpah of Gilead, and from

Mizpah of Gilead he passed on to the Am'monites. 30And Jephthah made a
vow to the LORD, and said, “If you will give the Am'monites into my hand,
31then whoever comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I
return victorious from the Am'monites, shall be the LORD’s, and I will
offer him up for a burnt offering.” 32So Jephthah crossed over to the
Am'monites to fight against them; and the LORD gave them into his hand.
33And he struck them from Aro'er to the neighborhood of Minnith, twenty
cities, and as far as A'bel-ker'amim, with a very great slaughter. So the

Am'monites were subdued before the sons of Israel.
Jephthah’s Daughter
34 Then Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah; and behold, his daughter
came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances; she was his only
child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter. 35And when he saw her,
he tore his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! you have brought me very
low, and you have become the cause of great trouble to me; for I have
opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot take back my vow.” 36And she
said to him, “My father, if you have opened your mouth to the LORD, do to
me according to what has gone forth from your mouth, now that the LORD
has avenged you on your enemies, on the Am'monites.” 37And she said to
her father, “Let this thing be done for me; let me alone two months, that I
may go and wander p on the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my
companions.” 38And he said, “Go.” And he sent her away for two months;
and she departed, she and her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon
the mountains. 39And at the end of two months, she returned to her father,
who did with her according to his vow which he had made. * She had never
known a man. And it became a custom in Israel 40that the daughters of
Israel went year by year to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite
four days in the year.
Intertribal Fighting
12 The men of E'phraim were called to arms, and they crossed to
Za'phon and said to Jephthah, “Why did you cross over to fight against the
Am'monites, and did not call us to go with you? We will burn your house
over you with fire.” 2And Jephthah said to them, “I and my people had a
great feud with the Am'monites; and when I called you, you did not deliver
me from their hand. 3And when I saw that you would not deliver me, I took
my life in my hand, and crossed over against the Am'monites, and the LORD
gave them into my hand; why then have you come up to me this day, to
fight against me?” 4Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and
fought with E'phraim; and the men of Gilead struck Ephraim, because they
said, “You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim
and Manas'seh.” 5And the Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan against the
E'phraimites. And when any of the fugitives of E'phraim said, “Let me go
over,” the men of Gilead said to him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” When he
said, “No,” 6they said to him, “Then say Shib'boleth,” and he said,
“Sib'boleth,” for he could not pronounce it right; then they seized him and
slew him at the fords of the Jordan. And there fell at that time forty-two
thousand of the E'phraimites.
7 Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then Jephthah the Gileadite died, and
was buried in his city in Gilead.q

Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon
8 After him Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. 9He had thirty sons; and
thirty daughters he gave in marriage outside his clan, and thirty daughters
he brought in from outside for his sons. And he judged Israel seven years.
10Then Ibzan died, and was buried at Bethlehem.
11 After him E'lon the Zeb'ulunite judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten
years. 12Then E'lon the Zeb'ulunite died, and was buried at Ai'jalon in the
land of Zeb'ulun.
13 After him Abdon the son of Hillel the Pir'athonite judged Israel. 14He
had forty sons and thirty grandsons, who rode on seventy donkeys; and he
judged Israel eight years. 15Then Abdon the son of Hillel the Pir'athonite
died, and was buried at Pir'athon in the land of E'phraim, in the hill country
of the Amal'ekites.
The Birth of Samson
13 * And the sons of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD; and the LORD gave them into the hand of the Philis'tines for forty
years.
2 And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Da'nites, whose
name was Mano'ah; and his wife was barren and had no children. 3And the
angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are
barren and have no children; but you shall conceive and bear a son.
4Therefore beware, and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing
unclean, 5for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall
come upon his head, for the boy shall be a Naz'irite to God from birth; and
he shall begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philis'tines.” 6Then the
woman came and told her husband, “A man of God came to me, and his
countenance was like the countenance of the angel of God, very terrible; I
did not ask him where he was from, and he did not tell me his name; 7but he
said to me, ‘Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son; so then drink no
wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for the boy shall be a
Naz'irite to God from birth to the day of his death.’ ”
8 Then Mano'ah entreated the LORD, and said, “O, LORD, I beg you, let the
man of God whom you sent come again to us, and teach us what we are to
do with the boy that will be born.” 9And God listened to the voice of
Mano'ah, and the angel of God came again to the woman as she sat in the
field; but Manoah her husband was not with her. 10And the woman ran in
haste and told her husband, “Behold, the man who came to me the other day
has appeared to me.” 11And Mano'ah arose and went after his wife, and
came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man who spoke to this
woman?” And he said, “I am.” 12And Mano'ah said, “Now when your
words come true, what is to be the boy’s manner of life, and what is he to
do?” 13And the angel of the LORD said to Mano'ah, “Of all that I said to the
woman let her beware. 14She may not eat of anything that comes from the
vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, or eat any unclean thing; all
that I commanded her let her observe.”
15 Mano'ah said to the angel of the LORD, “Please, let us detain you, and
prepare a kid for you.” 16And the angel of the LORD said to Mano'ah, “If
you detain me, I will not eat of your food; but if you make ready a burnt
offering, then offer it to the LORD.” (For Manoah did not know that he was
the angel of the LORD.) 17And Mano'ah said to the angel of the LORD, “What
is your name, so that, when your words come true, we may honor you?”
18And the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing
it is wonderful?” 19So Mano'ah took the kid with the cereal offering, and
offered it upon the rock to the LORD, to him who works r wonders.s 20And
when the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the angel of the LORD
ascended in the flame of the altar while Mano'ah and his wife looked on;
and they fell on their faces to the ground.
21 The angel of the LORD appeared no more to Mano'ah and to his wife.
Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the LORD. 22And Mano'ah said
to his wife, “We shall surely die, for we have seen God.” 23But his wife said
to him, “If the LORD had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a
burnt offering and a cereal offering at our hands, or shown us all these
things, or now announced to us such things as these.” 24And the woman
bore a son, and called his name Samson; and the boy grew, and the LORD
blessed him. 25And the Spirit of the LORD began to stir him in Ma'haneh-
dan, between Zorah and Esh'ta-ol.
Samson’s Marriage at Timnah
14 Samson went down to Timnah, and at Timnah he saw one of the
daughters of the Philis'tines. 2Then he came up, and told his father and
mother, “I saw one of the daughters of the Philis'tines at Timnah; now get
her for me as my wife.” 3But his father and mother said to him, “Is there not
a woman among the daughters of your kinsmen, or among all our people,
that you must go to take a wife from the uncircumcised Philis'tines?” But
Samson said to his father, “Get her for me; for she pleases me well.”
4 His father and mother did not know that it was from the LORD; for he
was seeking an occasion against the Philis'tines. At that time the Philistines
had dominion over Israel.
5 Then Samson went down with his father and mother to Timnah, and he
came to the vineyards of Timnah. And behold, a young lion roared against
him; 6and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he tore the
lion asunder as one tears a kid; and he had nothing in his hand. But he did
not tell his father or his mother what he had done. 7Then he went down and
talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well. 8And after a while he
returned to take her; and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and
behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey. 9He
scraped it out into his hands, and went on, eating as he went; and he came
to his father and mother, and gave some to them, and they ate. But he did
not tell them that he had taken the honey from the carcass of the lion.
10 And his father went down to the woman, and Samson made a feast
there; for so the young men used to do. 11And when the people saw him,
they brought thirty companions to be with him. 12And Samson said to them,
“Let me now put a riddle to you; if you can tell me what it is, within the
seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen
garments and thirty festal garments; 13but if you cannot tell me what it is,
then you shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments.”
And they said to him, “Put your riddle, that we may hear it.” 14And he said
to them,
“Out of the eater came something to eat.
Out of the strong came something sweet.”
And they could not in three days tell what the riddle was.
15 On the fourth t day they said to Samson’s wife, “Entice your husband to
tell us what the riddle is, lest we burn you and your father’s house with fire.
Have you invited us here to impoverish us?” 16And Samson’s wife wept
before him, and said, “You only hate me, you do not love me; you have put
a riddle to my countrymen, and you have not told me what it is.” And he
said to her, “Behold, I have not told my father nor my mother, and shall I
tell you?” 17She wept before him the seven days that their feast lasted; and
on the seventh day he told her, because she pressed him hard. Then she told
the riddle to her countrymen. 18And the men of the city said to him on the
seventh day before the sun went down,
“What is sweeter than honey?
What is stronger than a lion?”
And he said to them,
“If you had not plowed with my heifer,
you would not have found out my riddle.”
19And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he went down
to Ash'kelon and killed thirty men of the town, and took their spoil and gave
the festal garments to those who had told the riddle. In hot anger he went
back to his father’s house. 20And Samson’s wife was given to his
companion, who had been his best man.
Samson Defeats the Philistines
15 After a while, at the time of wheat harvest, Samson went to visit his
wife with a kid; and he said, “I will go in to my wife in the chamber.” But
her father would not allow him to go in. 2And her father said, “I really
thought that you utterly hated her; so I gave her to your companion. Is not
her younger sister fairer than she? Please take her instead.” 3And Samson
said to them, “This time I shall be blameless in regard to the Philis'tines,
when I do them mischief.” 4So Samson went and caught three hundred
foxes, and took torches; and he turned them tail to tail, and put a torch
between each pair of tails. 5And when he had set fire to the torches, he let
the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philis'tines, and burned up the
shocks and the standing grain, as well as the olive orchards. 6Then the
Philis'tines said, “Who has done this?” And they said, “Samson, the son-in-
law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and given her to his
companion.” And the Philistines came up, and burned her and her father
with fire. 7And Samson said to them, “If this is what you do, I swear I will
be avenged upon you, and after that I will quit.” 8And he struck them hip
and thigh with great slaughter; and he went down and stayed in the cleft of
the rock of E'tam.
9 Then the Philis'tines came up and encamped in Judah, and made a raid
on Lehi. 10And the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against
us?” They said, “We have come up to bind Samson, to do to him as he did
to us.” 11Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the
rock of E'tam, and said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philis'tines
are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” And he said
to them, “As they did to me, so have I done to them.” 12And they said to
him, “We have come down to bind you, that we may give you into the
hands of the Philis'tines.” And Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you
will not fall upon me yourselves.” 13They said to him, “No; we will only
bind you and give you into their hands; we will not kill you.” So they bound
him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock.
14 When he came to Lehi, the Philis'tines came shouting to meet him; and
the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the ropes which were
on his arms became as flax that has caught fire, and his bonds melted off his
hands. 15And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and put out his hand
and seized it, and with it he slew a thousand men. 16And Samson said,
“With the jawbone of a donkey,
heaps upon heaps,
with the jawbone of a donkey
have I slain a thousand men.”
17When he had finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone out of his
hand; and that place was called Ra'math-le'hi.u

18 And he was very thirsty, and he called on the LORD and said, “You have
granted this great deliverance by the hand of your servant; and shall I now
die of thirst, and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” 19And God split
open the hollow place that is at Lehi, and there came water from it; and
when he drank, his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore the name of it
was called En-hakkor'e; v it is at Lehi to this day. 20And he judged Israel in
the days of the Philis'tines twenty years.
Samson and Delilah
16 Samson went to Gaza, and there he saw a harlot, and he went in to
her. 2The Gazites were told, “Samson has come here,” and they surrounded
the place and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. They kept
quiet all night, saying, “Let us wait till the light of the morning; then we
will kill him.” 3But Samson lay till midnight, and at midnight he arose and
took hold of the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, and pulled
them up, bar and all, and put them on his shoulders and carried them to the
top of the hill that is before He'bron.
4 After this he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was
Deli'lah. 5And the lords of the Philis'tines came to her and said to her,
“Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lies, and by what means we
may overpower him, that we may bind him to subdue him; and we will each
give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.” 6And Deli'lah said to Samson,
“Please tell me wherein your great strength lies, and how you might be
bound, that one could subdue you.” 7And Samson said to her, “If they bind
me with seven fresh bowstrings which have not been dried, then I shall
become weak, and be like any other man.” 8Then the lords of the
Philis'tines brought her seven fresh bowstrings which had not been dried,
and she bound him with them. 9Now she had men lying in wait in an inner
chamber. And she said to him, “The Philis'tines are upon you, Samson!”
But he snapped the bowstrings, as a tow line snaps when it touches the fire.
So the secret of his strength was not known.
10 And Deli'lah said to Samson, “Behold, you have mocked me, and told
me lies; please tell me how you might be bound.” 11And he said to her, “If
they bind me with new ropes that have not been used, then I shall become
weak, and be like any other man.” 12So Deli'lah took new ropes and bound
him with them, and said to him, “The Philis'tines are upon you, Samson!”
And the men lying in wait were in an inner chamber. But he snapped the
ropes off his arms like a thread.
13 And Deli'lah said to Samson, “Until now you have mocked me, and told
me lies; tell me how you might be bound.” And he said to her, “If you
weave the seven locks of my head with the web and make it tight with the
pin, then I shall become weak, and be like any other man.” 14So while he
slept, Deli'lah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the
web. w And she made them tight with the pin, and said to him, “The
Philis'tines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep, and
pulled away the pin, the loom, and the web.
15 And she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is
not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told
me wherein your great strength lies.” 16And when she pressed him hard
with her words day after day, and urged him, his soul was vexed to death.
17And he told her all his mind, and said to her, “A razor has never come
upon my head; for I have been a Naz'irite to God from my mother’s womb.
If I be shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak,
and be like any other man.”
18 When Deli'lah saw that he had told her all his mind, she sent and called
the lords of the Philis'tines, saying, “Come up this once, for he has told me
all his mind.” Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and brought
the money in their hands. 19She made him sleep upon her knees; and she
called a man, and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she
began to torment him, and his strength left him. 20And she said, “The
Philis'tines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep, and said,
“I will go out as at other times, and shake myself free.” And he did not
know that the LORD had left him. 21And the Philis'tines seized him and
gouged out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with
bronze fetters; and he ground at the mill in the prison. 22But the hair of his
head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
Samson’s Death
23 Now the lords of the Philis'tines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to
Da'gon their god, and to rejoice; for they said, “Our god has given Samson
our enemy into our hand.” 24And when the people saw him, they praised
their god; for they said, “Our god has given our enemy into our hand, the
ravager of our country, who has slain many of us.” 25And when their hearts
were merry, they said, “Call Samson, that he may make sport for us.” So
they called Samson out of the prison, and he made sport before them. They
made him stand between the pillars; 26and Samson said to the lad who held
him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, that I
may lean against them.” 27Now the house was full of men and women; all
the lords of the Philis'tines were there, and on the roof there were about
three thousand men and women, who looked on while Samson made sport.
28 Then Samson called to the LORD and said, “O Lord GOD, remember
me, I beg you, and strengthen me, I beg you, only this once, O God, that I
may be avenged upon the Philis'tines for one of my two eyes.” 29And
Samson grasped the two middle pillars upon which the house rested, and he
leaned his weight upon them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on
the other. 30And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philis'tines.” Then he
bowed with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the
people that were in it. So the dead whom he slew at his death were more
than those whom he had slain during his life. 31Then his brothers and all his
family came down and took him and brought him up and buried him
between Zorah and Esh'ta-ol in the tomb of Mano'ah his father. He had
judged Israel twenty years.
Micah and the Levite
17 * There was a man of the hill country of E'phraim, whose name was
Micah. 2And he said to his mother, “The eleven hundred pieces of silver
which were taken from you, about which you uttered a curse, and also
spoke it in my ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it.” And his mother
said, “Blessed be my son by the LORD.” 3And he restored the eleven
hundred pieces of silver to his mother; and his mother said, “I consecrate
the silver to the LORD from my hand for my son, to make a graven image
and a molten image; now therefore I will restore it to you.” 4So when he
restored the money to his mother, his mother took two hundred pieces of
silver, and gave it to the silversmith, who made it into a graven image and a
molten image; and it was in the house of Micah. 5And the man Micah had a
shrine, and he made an ephod and teraphim, and installed one of his sons,
who became his priest. 6In those days there was no king in Israel; every
man did what was right in his own eyes.
7 Now there was a young man of Bethlehem in Judah, of the family of
Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there. 8And the man departed
from the town of Bethlehem in Judah, to live where he could find a place;
and as he journeyed, he came to the hill country of E'phraim to the house of
Micah. 9And Micah said to him, “From where do you come?” And he said
to him, “I am a Levite of Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to sojourn
where I may find a place.” 10And Micah said to him, “Stay with me, and be
to me a father and a priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year,
and a suit of apparel, and your living.” w2 11And the Levite was content to
dwell with the man; and the young man became to him like one of his sons.
12And Micah installed the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and
was in the house of Micah. 13Then Micah said, “Now I know that the LORD
will prosper me, because I have a Levite as priest.”
Micah and the Migration of Dan
18 In those days there was no king in Israel. And in those days the tribe
of the Da'nites was seeking for itself an inheritance to dwell in; for until
then no inheritance among the tribes of Israel had fallen to them. 2So the
Da'nites sent five able men from the whole number of their tribe, from
Zorah and from Esh'ta-ol, to spy out the land and to explore it; and they said
to them, “Go and explore the land.” And they came to the hill country of
E'phraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there. 3When they were by the
house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite; and they
turned aside and said to him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing
in this place? What is your business here?” 4And he said to them, “Thus and
thus has Micah dealt with me: he has hired me, and I have become his
priest.” 5And they said to him, “Inquire of God, we beg you, that we may
know whether the journey on which we are setting out will succeed.” 6And
the priest said to them, “Go in peace. The journey on which you go is under
the eye of the LORD.”
7 Then the five men departed, and came to La'ish, and saw the people who
were there, how they dwelt in security, after the manner of the Sido'nians,
quiet and unsuspecting, lacking x nothing that is in the earth, and possessing
wealth, and how they were far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with
any one. 8And when they came to their brethren at Zorah and Esh'ta-ol,
their brethren said to them, “What do you report?” 9They said, “Arise, and
let us go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very
fertile. And will you do nothing? Do not be slow to go, and enter in and
possess the land. 10When you go, you will come to an unsuspecting people.
The land is broad; yes, God has given it into your hands, a place where
there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”
11 And six hundred men of the tribe of Dan, armed with weapons of war,
set forth from Zorah and Esh'ta-ol, 12and went up and encamped at Kir'iath-
je'arim in Judah. On this account that place is called Ma'haneh-dan y to this
day; behold, it is west of Kiriath-jearim. 13And they passed on from there to
the hill country of E'phraim, and came to the house of Micah.
14 Then the five men who had gone to spy out the country of La'ish said to
their brethren, “Do you know that in these houses there are an ephod,
teraphim, a graven image, and a molten image? Now therefore consider
what you will do.” 15And they turned aside there, and came to the house of
the young Levite, at the home of Micah, and asked him of his welfare.
16Now the six hundred men of the Da'nites, armed with their weapons of
war, stood by the entrance of the gate; 17and the five men who had gone to
spy out the land went up, and entered and took the graven image, the ephod,
the teraphim, and the molten image, while the priest stood by the entrance
of the gate with the six hundred men armed with weapons of war. 18And
when these went into Micah’s house and took the graven image, the ephod,
the teraphim, and the molten image, the priest said to them, “What are you
doing?” 19And they said to him, “Keep quiet, put your hand upon your
mouth, and come with us, and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for
you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and family
in Israel?” 20And the priest’s heart was glad; he took the ephod, and the
teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people.
21 So they turned and departed, putting the little ones and the cattle and
the goods in front of them. 22When they were a good way from the home of
Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house were called out,
and they overtook the Da'nites. 23And they shouted to the Da'nites, who
turned round and said to Micah, “What ails you that you come with such a
company?” 24And he said, “You take my gods which I made, and the priest,
and go away, and what have I left? How then do you ask me, ‘What ails
you?’ ” 25And the Da'nites said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard
among us, lest angry fellows fall upon you, and you lose your life with the
lives of your household.” 26Then the Da'nites went their way; and when
Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his
home.
The Danites Settle in Laish
27 And taking what Micah had made, and the priest who belonged to him,
the Da'nites came to La'ish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck
them with the edge of the sword, and burned the city with fire. 28And there
was no deliverer because it was far from Si'don, and they had no dealings
with any one. It was in the valley which belongs to Beth-re'hob. And they
rebuilt the city, and dwelt in it. 29And they named the city Dan, after the
name of Dan their ancestor, who was born to Israel; but the name of the city
was La'ish at the first. 30And the Da'nites set up the graven image for
themselves; and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, z and his sons
were priests to the tribe of the Da'nites until the day of the captivity of the
land. 31So they set up Micah’s graven image which he made, as long as the
house of God was at Shiloh.
The Levite’s Concubine
19 In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite was
sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of E'phraim, who took to
himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. 2And his concubine became
angry with a him, and she went away from him to her father’s house at
Bethlehem in Judah, and was there some four months. 3Then her husband
arose and went after her, to speak kindly to her and bring her back. He had
with him his servant and a couple of donkeys. And he came b to her father’s
house; and when the girl’s father saw him, he came with joy to meet him.
4And his father-in-law, the girl’s father, made him stay, and he remained
with him three days; so they ate and drank, and lodged there. 5And on the
fourth day they arose early in the morning, and he prepared to go; but the
girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “Strengthen your heart with a morsel of
bread, and after that you may go.” 6So the two men sat and ate and drank
together; and the girl’s father said to the man, “Be pleased to spend the
night, and let your heart be merry.” 7And when the man rose up to go, his
father-in-law urged him, till he lodged there again. 8And on the fifth day he
arose early in the morning to depart; and the girl’s father said, “Strengthen
your heart, and tarry until the day declines.” So they ate, both of them. 9And
when the man and his concubine and his servant rose up to depart, his
father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Behold, now the day has waned
toward evening; please tarry all night. Behold, the day draws to its close;
lodge here and let your heart be merry; and tomorrow you shall arise early
in the morning for your journey, and go home.”
10 But the man would not spend the night; he rose up and departed, and
arrived opposite Je'bus (that is, Jerusalem). He had with him a couple of
saddled donkeys, and his concubine was with him. 11When they were near
Je'bus, the day was far spent, and the servant said to his master, “Come
now, let us turn aside to this city of the Jeb'usites, and spend the night in it.”
12And his master said to him, “We will not turn aside into the city of
foreigners, who do not belong to the sons of Israel; but we will pass on to
Gib'e-ah.” 13And he said to his servant, “Come and let us draw near to one
of these places, and spend the night at Gib'e-ah or at Ra'mah.” 14So they
passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gib'e-
ah, which belongs to Benjamin, 15and they turned aside there, to go in and
spend the night at Gib'e-ah. And he went in and sat down in the open square
of the city; for no man took them into his house to spend the night.
16 And behold, an old man was coming from his work in the field at
evening; the man was from the hill country of E'phraim, and he was
sojourning in Gib'e-ah; the men of the place were Benjaminites. 17And he
lifted up his eyes, and saw the wayfarer in the open square of the city; and
the old man said, “Where are you going? and from where do you come?”
18And he said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the
remote parts of the hill country of E'phraim, from which I come. I went to
Bethlehem in Judah; and I am going to my home; c and nobody takes me
into his house. 19We have straw and food for our donkeys, with bread and
wine for me and your maidservant and the young man with your servants;
there is no lack of anything.” 20And the old man said, “Peace be to you; I
will care for all your wants; only, do not spend the night in the square.”
21So he brought him into his house, and fed the donkeys; and they washed
their feet, and ate and drank.

The Crime of the Benjaminites of Gibe-ah
22 As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city,
base fellows, surrounded the house, beating on the door; and they said to
the old man, the master of the house, “Bring out the man who came into
your house, that we may know him.” 23And the man, the master of the
house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my brethren, do not act so
wickedly; seeing that this man has come into my house, do not do this vile
thing. 24Behold, here are my virgin daughter and his concubine; let me
bring them out now. Ravish them and do with them what seems good to
you; but against this man do not do so vile a thing.” 25But the men would
not listen to him. So the man seized his concubine, and put her out to them;
and they knew her, and abused her all night until the morning. And as the
dawn began to break, they let her go. 26And as morning appeared, the
woman came and fell down at the door of the man’s house where her master
was, till it was light.
27 And her master rose up in the morning, and when he opened the doors
of the house and went out to go on his way, behold, there was his concubine
lying at the door of the house, with her hands on the threshold. 28He said to
her, “Get up, let us be going.” But there was no answer. Then he put her
upon the donkey; and the man rose up and went away to his home. 29And
when he entered his house, he took a knife, and laying hold of his
concubine he divided her, limb by limb, into twelve pieces, and sent her
throughout all the territory of Israel. 30And all who saw it said, “Such a
thing has never happened or been seen from the day that the sons of Israel
came up out of the land of Egypt until this day; consider it, take counsel,
and speak.”
The Tribes of Israel Attack the Benjaminites
20 Then all the sons of Israel came out, from Dan to Be'er-she'ba,
including the land of Gilead, and the congregation assembled as one man to
the LORD at Mizpah. 2And the chiefs of all the people, of all the tribes of
Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four
hundred thousand men on foot that drew the sword. 3(Now the
Benjaminites heard that the sons of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) And the
sons of Israel said, “Tell us, how was this wickedness brought to pass?”
4And the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered
and said, “I came to Gib'e-ah that belongs to Benjamin, I and my

concubine, to spend the night. 5And the men of Gib'e-ah rose against me,
and surrounded the house by night; they meant to kill me, and they ravished
my concubine, and she is dead. 6And I took my concubine and cut her in
pieces, and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel;
for they have committed abomination and wantonness in Israel. 7Behold,
you sons of Israel, all of you, give your advice and counsel here.”
8 And all the people arose as one man, saying, “None of us will go to his
tent, and none of us will return to his house. 9But now this is what we will
do to Gib'e-ah: we will go up against it by lot, 10and we will take ten men of
a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred of a thousand,
and a thousand of ten thousand, to bring provisions for the people, that
when they come they may repay Gib'e-ah of Benjamin, for all the wanton
crime which they have committed in Israel.” 11So all the men of Israel
gathered against the city, united as one man.
12 And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin,
saying, “What wickedness is this that has taken place among you? 13Now
therefore give up the men, the base fellows in Gib'e-ah, that we may put
them to death, and put away evil from Israel.” But the Benjaminites would
not listen to the voice of their brethren, the sons of Israel. 14And the
Benjaminites came together out of the cities to Gib'e-ah, to go out to battle
against the sons of Israel. 15And the Benjaminites mustered out of their
cities on that day twenty-six thousand men that drew the sword, besides the
inhabitants of Gib'e-ah, who mustered seven hundred picked men. 16Among
all these were seven hundred picked men who were left-handed; every one
could sling a stone at a hair, and not miss. 17And the men of Israel, apart
from Benjamin, mustered four hundred thousand men that drew sword; all
these were men of war.
18 The sons of Israel arose and went up to Bethel, and inquired of God,
“Which of us shall go up first to battle against the Benjaminites?” And the

LORD said, “Judah shall go up first.”
19 Then the sons of Israel rose in the morning, and encamped against
Gib'e-ah. 20And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin; and
the men of Israel drew up the battle line against them at Gib'e-ah. 21The
Benjaminites came out of Gib'e-ah, and struck down on that day twenty-two
thousand men of the Israelites. 22But the people, the men of Israel, took
courage, and again formed the battle line in the same place where they had
formed it on the first day. 23And the sons of Israel went up and wept before
the LORD until the evening; and they inquired of the LORD, “Shall we again
draw near to battle against our brethren the Benjaminites?” And the LORD
said, “Go up against them.”
24 So the sons of Israel came near against the Benjaminites the second day.
25And Benjamin went against them out of Gib'e-ah the second day, and
struck down eighteen thousand men of the sons of Israel; all these were men
who drew the sword. 26Then all the sons of Israel, the whole army, went up
and came to Bethel and wept; they sat there before the LORD, and fasted that
day until evening, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before
the LORD. 27And the sons of Israel inquired of the LORD (for the ark of the
covenant of God was there in those days, 28and Phin'ehas the son of
Elea'zar, son of Aaron, ministered before it in those days), saying, “Shall we
yet again go out to battle against our brethren the Benjaminites, or shall we
cease?” And the LORD said, “Go up; for tomorrow I will give them into
your hand.”
29 So Israel set men in ambush round about Gib'e-ah. 30And the sons of
Israel went up against the Benjaminites on the third day, and set themselves
in array against Gib'e-ah, as at other times. 31And the Benjaminites went out
against the people, and were drawn away from the city; and as at other
times they began to strike and kill some of the people, in the highways, one
of which goes up to Bethel and the other to Gib'e-ah, and in the open
country, about thirty men of Israel. 32And the Benjaminites said, “They are
routed before us, as at the first.” But the men of Israel said, “Let us flee, and
draw them away from the city to the highways.” 33And all the men of Israel
rose up out of their place, and set themselves in array at Ba'al-ta'mar; and
the men of Israel who were in ambush rushed out of their place west d of
Ge'ba. 34And there came against Gib'e-ah ten thousand picked men out of
all Israel, and the battle was hard; but the Benjaminites did not know that
disaster was close upon them. 35And the LORD defeated Benjamin before
Israel; and the men of Israel destroyed twenty-five thousand one hundred
men of Benjamin that day; all these were men who drew the sword. 36So
the Benjaminites saw that they were defeated.
The men of Israel gave ground to Benjamin, because they trusted to the
men in ambush whom they had set against Gib'e-ah. 37And the men in
ambush made haste and rushed upon Gib'e-ah; the men in ambush moved
out and struck the whole city with the edge of the sword. 38Now the
appointed signal between the men of Israel and the men in ambush was that
when they made a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city 39the men of
Israel should turn in battle. Now Benjamin had begun to strike and kill
about thirty men of Israel; they said, “Surely they are struck down before
us, as in the first battle.” 40But when the signal began to rise out of the city
in a column of smoke, the Benjaminites looked behind them; and behold,
the whole city went up in smoke to heaven. 41Then the men of Israel turned,
and the men of Benjamin were dismayed, for they saw that disaster was
close upon them. 42Therefore they turned their backs before the men of
Israel in the direction of the wilderness; but the battle overtook them, and
those who came out of the cities destroyed them in the midst of them.
43Cutting down e the Benjaminites, they pursued them and trod them down
from No'hah f as far as opposite Gib'e-ah on the east. 44Eighteen thousand

men of Benjamin fell, all of them men of valor. 45And they turned and fled
toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon; five thousand men of them
were cut down in the highways, and they were pursued hard to Gi'dom, and
two thousand men of them were slain. 46So all who fell that day of
Benjamin were twenty-five thousand men that drew the sword, all of them
men of valor. 47But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness
to the rock of Rimmon, and abode at the rock of Rimmon four months.
48And the men of Israel turned back against the Benjaminites, and struck
them with the edge of the sword, men and beasts and all that they found.
And all the towns which they found they set on fire.
The Benjaminites Saved from Extinction
21 Now the men of Israel had sworn at Mizpah, “No one of us shall give
his daughter in marriage to Benjamin.” 2And the people came to Bethel, and
sat there till evening before God, and they lifted up their voices and wept
bitterly. 3And they said, “O LORD, the God of Israel, why has this come to
pass in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?” 4And
the next day the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt
offerings and peace offerings. 5And the sons of Israel said, “Which of all
the tribes of Israel did not come up in the assembly to the LORD?” For they
had taken a great oath concerning him who did not come up to the LORD to
Mizpah, saying, “He shall be put to death.” 6And the sons of Israel had
compassion for Benjamin their brother, and said, “One tribe is cut off from
Israel this day. 7What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since we
have sworn by the LORD that we will not give them any of our daughters for
wives?”
8 And they said, “What one is there of the tribes of Israel that did not come
up to the LORD to Mizpah?” And behold, no one had come to the camp from
Ja'besh-gil'ead, to the assembly. 9For when the people were mustered,
behold, not one of the inhabitants of Ja'besh-gil'ead was there. 10So the
congregation sent twelve thousand of their bravest men there, and
commanded them, “Go and strike the inhabitants of Ja'besh-gil'ead with the
edge of the sword; also the women and the little ones. 11This is what you
shall do; every male and every woman that has lain with a male you shall
utterly destroy.” 12And they found among the inhabitants of Ja'besh-gil'ead
four hundred young virgins who had not known man by lying with him; and
they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.
13 Then the whole congregation sent word to the Benjaminites who were
at the rock of Rimmon, and proclaimed peace to them. 14And Benjamin

returned at that time; and they gave them the women whom they had saved
alive of the women of Ja'besh-gil'ead; but they did not suffice for them.
15And the people had compassion on Benjamin because the LORD had made
a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16 Then the elders of the congregation said, “What shall we do for wives
for those who are left, since the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?”
17And they said, “There must be an inheritance for the survivors of
Benjamin, that a tribe be not blotted out from Israel. 18Yet we cannot give
them wives of our daughters.” For the sons of Israel had sworn, “Cursed be
he who gives a wife to Benjamin.” 19So they said, “Behold, there is the
yearly feast of the LORD at Shiloh, which is north of Bethel, on the east of
the highway that goes up from Bethel to She'chem, and south of Lebo'nah.”
20And they commanded the Benjaminites, saying, “Go and lie in wait in the
vineyards, 21and watch; if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the
dances, then come out of the vineyards and seize each man his wife from
the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 22And when their
fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, we will say to them, ‘Grant
them graciously to us; because we did not take for each man of them his
wife in battle, neither did you give them to them, else you would now be
guilty.’ ” 23And the Benjaminites did so, and took their wives, according to
their number, from the dancers whom they carried off; then they went and
returned to their inheritance, and rebuilt the towns, and dwelt in them.
24And the sons of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his
tribe and family, and they went out from there every man to his inheritance.
25 In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right
in his own eyes.
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Ruth
Chapters
1234
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THE BOOK OF RUTH
Elimelech’s Family Goes to Moab
1* In the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and
a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of
Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2The name of the man was
Elim'elech and the name of his wife Na'omi, and the names of his two sons
were Mahlon and Chil'ion; they were Eph'rathites from Bethlehem in Judah.
They went into the country of Moab and remained there. 3But Elim'elech,
the husband of Na'omi, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4These
took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the
other Ruth. They lived there about ten years; 5and both Mahlon and Chil'ion
died, so that the woman was bereft of her two sons and her husband.
Naomi and Her Moabite Daughters-in-law
6 Then she started with her daughters-in-law to return from the country of
Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the LORD had visited
his people and given them food. 7So she set out from the place where she
was, with her two daughters-in-law, and they went on the way to return to
the land of Judah. 8But Na'omi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return
each of you to her mother’s house. May the LORD deal kindly with you, as
you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9The LORD grant that you may
find a home, each of you in the house of her husband!” Then she kissed
them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10And they said to her, “No,
we will return with you to your people.” 11But Na'omi said, “Turn back, my
daughters, why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they
may become your husbands? 12Turn back, my daughters, go your way, for I
am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, even if I should
have a husband this night and should bear sons, 13would you therefore wait
till they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my
daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of
the LORD has gone forth against me.” 14Then they lifted up their voices and
wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 And she said, “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and
to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16But Ruth said, “Entreat me
not to leave you or to return from following you; for where you go I will go,
and where you lodge I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your
God my God; 17where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the
LORD do so to me and more also if even death parts me from you.” 18And
when Na'omi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more.
19 So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. And when
they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them; and
the women said, “Is this Na'omi?” 20She said to them, “Do not call me
Na'omi, a call me Mara, b for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.
21I went away full, and the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me
Na'omi, when the LORD has afflicted c me and the Almighty has brought
calamity upon me?”
22 So Na'omi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess her daughter-in-law with
her, who returned from the country of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem
at the beginning of barley harvest.
Ruth Meets Boaz
2 Now Na'omi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a man of wealth, of the
family of Elim'elech, whose name was Boaz. 2And Ruth the Moabitess said
to Na'omi, “Let me go to the field, and glean among the ears of grain after
him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my
daughter.” 3So she set forth and went and gleaned in the field after the
reapers; and she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to
Boaz, who was of the family of Elim'elech. 4And behold, Boaz came from
Bethlehem; and he said to the reapers, “The LORD be with you!” And they
answered, “The LORD bless you.” 5Then Boaz said to his servant who was
in charge of the reapers, “Whose maiden is this?” 6And the servant who was
in charge of the reapers answered, “It is the Moabite maiden, who came
back with Na'omi from the country of Moab. 7She said, ‘Please, let me
glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.’ So she came, and she
has continued from early morning until now, without resting even for a
moment.” d
8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in
another field or leave this one, but keep close to my maidens. 9Let your
eyes be upon the field which they are reaping, and go after them. Have I not
charged the young men not to molest you? And when you are thirsty, go to
the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.” 10Then she fell on
her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in
your eyes, that you should take notice of me, when I am a foreigner?” 11But
Boaz answered her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since
the death of your husband has been fully told me, and how you left your
father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did
not know before. 12The LORD recompense you for what you have done, and
a full reward be given you by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose
wings you have come to take refuge!” 13Then she said, “You are most
gracious to me, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to
your maidservant, though I am not one of your maidservants.”
14 And at mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here, and eat some bread, and
dip your morsel in the wine.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to
her parched grain; and she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left
over. 15When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying,
“Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. 16And also
pull out some from the bundles for her, and leave it for her to glean, and do
not rebuke her.”
17 So she gleaned in the field until evening; then she beat out what she had
gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18And she took it up and went
into the city; she showed her mother-in-law what she had gleaned, and she
also brought out and gave her what food she had left over after being
satisfied. 19And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today?
And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you.”
So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, “The
name of the man with whom I worked today is Boaz.” 20And Na'omi said to
her daughter-in-law, “Blessed be he by the LORD, whose kindness has not
forsaken the living or the dead!” Na'omi also said to her, “The man is a
relative of ours, one of our nearest kin.” 21And Ruth the Moabitess said,
“Besides, he said to me, ‘You shall keep close by my servants, till they have
finished all my harvest.’ ” 22And Na'omi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law,
“It is well, my daughter, that you go out with his maidens, lest in another
field you be molested.” 23So she kept close to the maidens of Boaz,
gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests; and she lived with
her mother-in-law.
Ruth and Boaz at the Threshing Floor
3 Then Na'omi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I
not seek a home for you, that it may be well with you? 2Now is not Boaz
our kinsman, with whose maidens you were? See, he is winnowing barley
tonight at the threshing floor. 3Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put
on your best clothes and go down to the threshing floor; but do not make
yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. 4But
when he lies down, observe the place where he lies; then, go and uncover
his feet and lie down; and he will tell you what to do.” 5And she replied,
“All that you say I will do.”
6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-
law had told her. 7And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was
merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came
softly, and uncovered his feet, and lay down. 8At midnight the man was
startled, and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! 9He said,
“Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your maidservant; spread
your garment over your maidservant, for you are next of kin.” 10And he
said, “May you be blessed by the LORD, my daughter; you have made this
last kindness greater than the first, in that you have not gone after young
men, whether poor or rich. 11And now, my daughter, do not fear, I will do
for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a
woman of worth. 12And now it is true that I am a near kinsman, yet there is
a kinsman nearer than I. 13Remain this night, and in the morning, if he will
do the part of the next of kin for you, well; let him do it; but if he is not
willing to do the part of the next of kin for you, then, as the LORD lives, I
will do the part of the next of kin for you. Lie down until the morning.”
14 So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could
recognize another; and he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came
to the threshing floor.” 15And he said, “Bring the mantle you are wearing
and hold it out.” So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley,
and laid it upon her; then she went into the city. 16And when she came to
her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you fare, my daughter?” Then she
told her all that the man had done for her, 17saying, “These six measures of
barley he gave to me, for he said, ‘You must not go back empty-handed to
your mother-in-law.’ ” 18She replied, “Wait, my daughter, until you learn
how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest, but will settle the matter
today.”
The Marriage of Boaz and Ruth
4 And Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there; and behold, the next
of kin, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside,
friend; sit down here”; and he turned aside and sat down. 2And he took ten
men of the elders of the city, and said, “Sit down here”; so they sat down.
3Then he said to the next of kin, “Na'omi, who has come back from the
country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land which belonged to our
kinsman Elim'elech. 4So I thought I would tell you of it, and say, Buy it in
the presence of those sitting here, and in the presence of the elders of my
people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if you will not, tell me, that I
may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after
you.” And he said, “I will redeem it.” 5Then Boaz said, “The day you buy
the field from the hand of Na'omi, you are also buying Ruth e the
Moabitess, the widow of the dead, in order to restore the name of the dead
to his inheritance.” 6Then the next of kin said, “I cannot redeem it for
myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption
yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”
7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming
and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and
gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel. 8So when
the next of kin said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal.
9Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this
day that I have bought from the hand of Na'omi all that belonged to
Elim'elech and all that belonged to Chil'ion and to Mahlon. 10Also Ruth the
Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to
perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead
may not be cut off from among his brethren and from the gate of his native
place; you are witnesses this day.” 11Then all the people who were at the
gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the
woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together
built up the house of Israel. May you prosper in Eph'rathah and be
renowned in Bethlehem; 12and may your house be like the house of Per'ez,
whom Ta'mar bore to Judah, because of the children that the LORD will give
you by this young woman.”
The Genealogy of David
13 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and he went in to her, and
the LORD gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14Then the women said
to Na'omi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without next
of kin; and may his name be renowned in Israel! 15He shall be to you a
restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law
who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has borne him.” 16Then
Na'omi took the child and laid him in her bosom, and became his nurse.
17And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son
has been born to Na'omi.” They named him O'bed; he was the father of
Jesse, the father of David.
18 Now these are the descendants of Per'ez: Perez was the father of
Hezron, 19Hezron of Ram, Ram of Ammin'adab, 20Ammin'adab of

Nahshon, Nahshon of Salmon, 21Salmon of Boaz, Boaz of O'bed, 22O'bed
of Jesse, and Jesse of David.
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1 Samuel
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31
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THE FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL
Samuel’s Birth and Dedication
1* There was a certain man of Ramatha'im-zo'phim of the hill country
of E'phraim, whose name was Elka'nah the son of Jero'ham, son of Eli'hu,
son of To'hu, son of Zuph, an E'phraimite. 2He had two wives; the name of
the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Penin'nah. And Peninnah
had children, but Hannah had no children.
3 Now this man used to go up year by year from his city to worship and to
sacrifice to the LORD of hosts at Shiloh, * where the two sons of Eli,
Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas, were priests of the LORD. 4On the day when
Elka'nah sacrificed, he would give portions to Penin'nah his wife and to all
her sons and daughters; 5and, although a he loved Hannah, he would give
Hannah only one portion, because the LORD had closed her womb. 6And her
rival used to provoke her sorely, to irritate her, because the LORD had closed
her womb. 7So it went on year by year; as often as she went up to the house
of the LORD, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would
not eat. 8And Elka'nah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you
weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more
to you than ten sons?”
9 After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the
priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the LORD.
10She was deeply distressed and prayed to the LORD, and wept bitterly.
11And she vowed a vow and said, “O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look
on the affliction of your maidservant, and remember me, and not forget
your maidservant, but will give to your maidservant a son, then I will give
him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”
12 As she continued praying before the LORD, Eli observed her mouth.
13Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was
not heard; therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. 14And Eli said to
her, “How long will you be drunken? Put away your wine from you.” 15But
Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman sorely troubled; I have
drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul
before the LORD. 16Do not regard your maidservant as a base woman, for all
along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” 17Then
Eli answered, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which
you have made to him.” 18And she said, “Let your maidservant find favor in
your eyes.” Then the woman went her way and ate, and her countenance
was no longer sad.
19 They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the LORD; then
they went back to their house at Ra'mah. And Elka'nah knew Hannah his
wife, and the LORD remembered her; 20and in due time Hannah conceived
and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked
him of the LORD.”
21 And the man Elka'nah and all his house went up to offer to the LORD the
yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. 22But Hannah did not go up, for she
said to her husband, “As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that
he may appear in the presence of the LORD, and abide there for ever.”
23Elka'nah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best to you, wait until
you have weaned him; only, may the LORD establish his word.” So the
woman remained and nursed her son, until she weaned him. 24And when
she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old
bull, b an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine; and she brought him to the
house of the LORD at Shiloh; and the child was young. 25Then they slew the
bull, and they brought the child to Eli. 26And she said, “Oh, my lord! As
you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence,
praying to the LORD. 27For this child I prayed; and the LORD has granted me
my petition which I made to him. 28Therefore I have lent him to the LORD;
as long as he lives, he is lent to the LORD.”
And they x worshiped the LORD there.
Hannah’s Prayer
2 Hannah also prayed and said, *
“My heart exults in the LORD;
my strength is exalted in the LORD.
My mouth derides my enemies,
because I rejoice in your salvation.
2 “There is none holy like the LORD,
there is none besides you;
there is no rock like our God.
3Talk no more so very proudly,
let not arrogance come from your mouth;

for the LORD is a God of knowledge,
and by him actions are weighed.
4The bows of the mighty are broken,
but the feeble gird on strength.
5Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,
but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger.
The barren has borne seven,
but she who has many children is forlorn.
6The LORD kills and brings to life;
he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
7The LORD makes poor and makes rich;
he brings low, he also exalts.
8He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the dung heap,

to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s,
and on them he has set the world.
9 “He will guard the feet of his faithful ones;
but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness;
for not by might shall a man prevail.
10The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces;
against them he will thunder in heaven.

The LORD will judge the ends of the earth;
he will give strength to his king,
and exalt the power of his anointed.”
Eli’s Wicked Sons
11 Then Elka'nah went home to Ra'mah. And the boy ministered to the
LORD, in the presence of Eli the priest.

12 Now the sons of Eli were worthless men; they had no regard for the
LORD. 13The custom of the priests with the people was that when any man
offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come, while the meat was
boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand, 14and he would thrust it into
the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fork brought up the priest
would take for himself. c So they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came
there. 15Moreover, before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would
come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to
roast; for he will not accept boiled meat from you, but raw.” 16And if the
man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first, and then take as much as you
wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now; and if not, I will take it by
force.” 17Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the
LORD; for the men treated the offering of the LORD with contempt.
The Boy Samuel
18 Samuel was ministering before the LORD, a boy girded with a linen
ephod. * 19And his mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to
him each year, when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly
sacrifice. 20Then Eli would bless Elka'nah and his wife, and say, “The LORD
give you children by this woman for the loan which she lent to d the
LORD”; so then they would return to their home.
21 And the LORD visited Hannah, and she conceived and bore three sons
and two daughters. And the boy Samuel grew in the presence of the LORD.
Eli Tries to Correct His Sons
22 Now Eli was very old, and he heard all that his sons were doing to all
Israel, and how they lay with the women who served at the entrance to the
tent of meeting. 23And he said to them, “Why do you do such things? For I
hear of your evil dealings from all the people. 24No, my sons; it is no good
report that I hear the people of the LORD spreading abroad. 25If a man sins
against a man, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the
LORD, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of
their father; for it was the will of the LORD to slay them.
Samuel’s Virtues
26 Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor
with the LORD and with men.

A Prophecy against Eli’s Household
27 And there came a man of God to Eli, and said to him, “Thus the LORD
has said, ‘I revealed e myself to the house of your father when they were in
Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh. 28And I chose him out of all the
tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear
an ephod before me; and I gave to the house of your father all my offerings
by fire from the sons of Israel. 29Why then look with greedy eye at f my
sacrifices and my offerings which I commanded, and honor your sons above
me by fattening yourselves upon the choicest parts of every offering of my
people Israel?’ 30Therefore the LORD the God of Israel declares: ‘I promised
that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me
for ever’; but now the LORD declares: ‘Far be it from me; for those who
honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
31Behold, the days are coming, when I will cut off your strength and the
strength of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your
house. 32Then in distress you will look with envious eye on all the
prosperity which shall be bestowed upon Israel; and there shall not be an
old man in your house for ever. 33The man of you whom I shall not cut off
from my altar shall be spared to weep out his g eyes and grieve his g heart;
and all the increase of your house shall die by the sword of men. h 34And
this which shall befall your two sons, Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas, shall be the
sign to you: both of them shall die on the same day. 35And I will raise up for
myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in my heart and
in my mind; and I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out
before my anointed for ever. 36And every one who is left in your house
shall come to implore him for a piece of silver or a loaf of bread, and shall
say, “Put me, I beg you, in one of the priest’s places, that I may eat a morsel
of bread.” ’ ”
The Lord Calls Samuel
3 * Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD under Eli.
And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent
vision.
2 At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim, so that he could
not see, was lying down in his own place; 3the lamp of God had not yet
gone out, and Samuel was lying down within the temple of the LORD, where
the ark of God was. 4Then the LORD called, “Samuel! Samuel!” i and he
said, “Here I am!” 5and ran to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”
But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down.
6And the LORD called again, “Samuel!” And Samuel arose and went to Eli,
and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my
son; lie down again.” 7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the
word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. 8And the LORD called
Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I
am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the
boy. 9Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you
shall say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant hears.’ ” So Samuel went and lay
down in his place.
10 And the LORD came and stood forth, calling as at other times, “Samuel!
Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.” 11Then the
LORD said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel, at which
the two ears of every one that hears it will tingle. 12On that day I will fulfil
against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to
end. 13And I tell him that I am about to punish his house for ever, for the
iniquity which he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, j and he
did not restrain them. 14Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the
iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated by sacrifice or offering for
ever.”
15 Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the
LORD. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. 16But Eli called
Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” 17And Eli
said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so
to you and more also, if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.”
18So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said,
“It is the LORD; let him do what seems good to him.”

Samuel’s Prophecy and the Capture of the Ark of God
19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words
fall to the ground. 20And all Israel from Dan to Be'er-she'ba knew that
Samuel was established as a prophet of the LORD. 21And the LORD appeared
again at Shiloh, for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh
4 by the word of the LORD. 1And the word of Samuel came to all Israel.
* Now Israel went out to battle against the Philis'tines; they encamped at
Ebenezer, and the Philistines encamped at A'phek. 2The Philis'tines drew up
in line against Israel, and when the battle spread, Israel was defeated by the
Philistines, who slew about four thousand men on the field of battle. 3And
when the troops came to the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the
LORD put us to rout today before the Philis'tines? Let us bring the ark of the
covenant of the LORD here from Shiloh, that he may come among us and
save us from the power of our enemies.” 4So the people sent to Shiloh, and
brought from there the ark of the covenant of the LORD of hosts, who is
enthroned on the cherubim; and the two sons of Eli, Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas,
were there with the ark of the covenant of God.
5 When the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel
gave a mighty shout, so that the earth resounded. 6And when the Philis'tines
heard the noise of the shouting, they said, “What does this great shouting in
the camp of the Hebrews mean?” And when they learned that the ark of the
LORD had come to the camp, 7the Philis'tines were afraid; for they said, “A
god has come into the camp.” And they said, “Woe to us! For nothing like
this has happened before. 8Woe to us! Who can deliver us from the power
of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with
every sort of plague in the wilderness. 9Take courage, and acquit yourselves
like men, O Philis'tines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews as they have
been to you; acquit yourselves like men and fight.”
10 So the Philis'tines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled, every
man to his home; and there was a very great slaughter, for there fell of
Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. 11And the ark of God was captured; and
the two sons of Eli, Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas, were slain.
Death of Eli
12 A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line, and came to Shiloh the
same day, with his clothes torn and with earth upon his head. 13When he
arrived, Eli was sitting upon his seat by the road watching, for his heart
trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city and told
the news, all the city cried out. 14When Eli heard the sound of the outcry, he
said, “What is this uproar?” Then the man hastened and came and told Eli.
15Now Eli was ninety-eight years old and his eyes were set, so that he could
not see. 16And the man said to Eli, “I am he who has come from the battle; I
fled from the battle today.” And he said, “How did it go, my son?” 17He
who brought the tidings answered and said, “Israel has fled before the
Philis'tines, and there has also been a great slaughter among the people;
your two sons also, Hoph'ni and Phin'ehas, are dead, and the ark of God has
been captured.” 18When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell over
backward from his seat by the side of the gate; and his neck was broken and
he died, for he was an old man, and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years.
19 Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phin'ehas, was with child, about to
give birth. And when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was
captured, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed
and gave birth; for her pains came upon her. 20And about the time of her
death the women attending her said to her, “Fear not, for you have borne a
son.” But she did not answer or give heed. 21And she named the child
Ich'abod, * saying, “The glory has departed from Israel!” because the ark of
God had been captured and because of her father-in-law and her husband.
22And she said, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has
been captured.”
The Philistines and the Ark
5 When the Philis'tines captured the ark of God, they carried it from
Ebenezer to Ash'dod; 2then the Philis'tines took the ark of God and brought
it into the house of Da'gon and set it up beside Dagon. 3And when the
people of Ash'dod rose early the next day, behold, Da'gon had fallen face
downward on the ground before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon
and put him back in his place. 4But when they rose early on the next
morning, behold, Da'gon had fallen face downward on the ground before
the ark of the LORD, and the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying
cut off upon the threshold; only the trunk of Dagon was left to him. 5This is
why the priests of Da'gon and all who enter the house of Dagon do not tread
on the threshold of Dagon in Ash'dod to this day.
6 The hand of the LORD was heavy upon the people of Ash'dod, and he
terrified and afflicted them with tumors, both Ashdod and its territory. 7And
when the men of Ash'dod saw how things were, they said, “The ark of the
God of Israel must not remain with us; for his hand is heavy upon us and
upon Da'gon our god.” 8So they sent and gathered together all the lords of
the Philis'tines, and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the God of
Israel?” They answered, “Let the ark of the God of Israel be brought around
to Gath.” So they brought the ark of the God of Israel there. 9But after they
had brought it around, the hand of the LORD was against the city, causing a
very great panic, and he afflicted the men of the city, both young and old, so
that tumors broke out upon them. 10So they sent the ark of God to Ek'ron.
But when the ark of God came to Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out,
“They have brought around to us the ark of the God of Israel to slay us and
our people.” 11They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the
Philis'tines, and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it
return to its own place, that it may not slay us and our people.” For there
was a deathly panic throughout the whole city. The hand of God was very
heavy there; 12the men who did not die were stricken with tumors, and the
cry of the city went up to heaven.
The Ark Returned to Israel
6 The ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philis'tines seven
months. 2And the Philis'tines called for the priests and the diviners and said,
“What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us with what we shall
send it to its place.” 3They said, “If you send away the ark of the God of
Israel, do not send it empty, but by all means return him a guilt offering.
Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why his hand does not
turn away from you.” 4And they said, “What is the guilt offering that we
shall return to him?” They answered, “Five golden tumors and five golden
mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philis'tines; for the same
plague was upon all of you and upon your lords. 5So you must make images
of your tumors and images of your mice that ravage the land, and give glory
to the God of Israel; perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you and your
gods and your land. 6Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians
and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? After he had made sport of them, did
not they let the people go, and they departed? 7Now then, take and prepare a
new cart and two milch cows upon which there has never come a yoke, and
yoke the cows to the cart, but take their calves home, away from them.
8And take the ark of the LORD and place it on the cart, and put in a box at its
side the figures of gold, which you are returning to him as a guilt offering.
Then send it off, and let it go its way. 9And watch; if it goes up on the way
to its own land, to Beth-she'mesh, then it is he who has done us this great
harm; but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that struck us, it
happened to us by chance.”
10 The men did so, and took two milch cows and yoked them to the cart,
and shut up their calves at home. 11And they put the ark of the LORD on the
cart, and the box with the golden mice and the images of their tumors.
12And the cows went straight in the direction of Beth-she'mesh along one
highway, lowing as they went; they turned neither to the right nor to the
left, and the lords of the Philis'tines went after them as far as the border of
Beth-shemesh. 13Now the people of Beth-she'mesh were reaping their
wheat harvest in the valley; and when they lifted up their eyes and saw the
ark, they rejoiced to see it. 14The cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth-
she'mesh, and stopped there. A great stone was there; and they split up the
wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the LORD.
15And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD and the box that was
beside it, in which were the golden figures, and set them upon the great
stone; and the men of Beth-she'mesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed
sacrifices on that day to the LORD. 16And when the five lords of the
Philis'tines saw it, they returned that day to Ek'ron.
17 These are the golden tumors, which the Philis'tines returned as a guilt
offering to the LORD: one for Ash'dod, one for Gaza, one for Ash'kelon, one
for Gath, one for Ek'ron; 18also the golden mice, according to the number of
all the cities of the Philis'tines belonging to the five lords, both fortified
cities and unwalled villages. The great stone, beside which they set down
the ark of the LORD, is a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-
she'mesh.
The Ark at Kiriath-jearim
19 And he slew some of the men of Beth-she'mesh, because they looked
into the ark of the LORD; he slew seventy men of them, k and the people
mourned because the LORD had made a great slaughter among the people.
20Then the men of Beth-she'mesh said, “Who is able to stand before the
LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall he go up away from us?” 21So
they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kir'iath-je'arim, saying, “The
Philis'tines have returned the ark of the
7 LORD. Come down and take it up to you.” 1And the men of Kir'iath-
je'arim came and took up the ark of the LORD, and brought it to the house of
Abin'adab on the hill; and they consecrated his son, Elea'zar, to have charge
of the ark of the LORD. 2From the day that the ark was lodged at Kir'iath-
je'arim, a long time passed, some twenty years, and all the house of Israel
lamented after the LORD. *
Samuel as Judge of Israel
3 Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the
LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ash'taroth
from among you, and direct your heart to the LORD, and serve him only, and
he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philis'tines.” 4So Israel put away
the Ba'als and the Ash'taroth, and they served the LORD only.
5 Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel at Mizpah, and I will pray to the
Lord for you.” 6So they gathered at Mizpah, and drew water and poured it
out before the Lord, and fasted on that day, and said there, “We have sinned
against the Lord.” And Samuel judged the sons of Israel at Mizpah. 7Now
when the Philis'tines heard that the sons of Israel had gathered at Mizpah,
the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the sons of
Israel heard of it they were afraid of the Philistines. 8And the sons of Israel
said to Samuel, “Do not cease to cry to the Lord our God for us, that he may
save us from the hand of the Philis'tines.” 9So Samuel took a suckling lamb
and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord; and Samuel cried to the
Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him. 10As Samuel was offering up
the burnt offering, the Philis'tines drew near to attack Israel; but the Lord
thundered with a mighty voice that day against the Philistines and threw
them into confusion; and they were routed before Israel. 11And the men of
Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philis'tines, and struck them, as
far as below Beth-car.
12 Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Jesha'nah, l
and called its name Ebenezer; m for he said, “Hitherto the LORD has helped
us.” 13So the Philis'tines were subdued and did not again enter the territory
of Israel. And the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days
of Samuel. 14The cities which the Philis'tines had taken from Israel were
restored to Israel, from Ek'ron to Gath; and Israel rescued their territory
from the hand of the Philistines. There was peace also between Israel and
the Am'orites.
15 Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 16And he went on a circuit
year by year to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah; and he judged Israel in all these
places. 17Then he would come back to Ra'mah, for his home was there, and
there also he administered justice to Israel. And he built there an altar to the
LORD.
Israel Asks for a King
8 When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. 2The
name of his first-born son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abi'jah;
they were judges in Be'er-she'ba. 3Yet his sons did not walk in his ways, but
turned aside after gain; they took bribes and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at
Ra'mah, 5and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk
in your ways; now appoint for us a king to govern us like all the nations.”
6But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern
us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7And the LORD said to Samuel,
“Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have
not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.
8According to all the deeds which they have done to me, n from the day I
brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving
other gods, so they are also doing to you. 9Now then, listen to their voice;
only, you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king
who shall reign over them.”
10 So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were
asking a king from him. * 11He said, “These will be the ways of the king
who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his
chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; 12and he
will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of
fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his
implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. 13He will take your
daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14He will take the best of
your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants.
15He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to
his officers and to his servants. 16He will take your menservants and
maidservants, and the best of your cattle o and your donkeys, and put them
to his work. 17He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his
slaves. 18And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you
have chosen for yourselves; but the LORD will not answer you in that day.”
Israel’s Demand Granted
19 But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; and they said,
“No! but we will have a king over us, 20that we also may be like all the
nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our
battles.” 21And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he
repeated them in the ears of the LORD. 22And the LORD said to Samuel,
“Listen to their voice, and make them a king.” Samuel then said to the men
of Israel, “Go every man to his city.”
Saul Chosen to Be King
9 There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of
Abi'el, son of Ze'ror, son of Beco'rath, son of Aphi'ah, a Benjaminite, a man
of wealth; 2and he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young
man. There was not a man among the sons of Israel more handsome than
he; from his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
3 Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. So Kish said to Saul
his son, “Take one of the servants with you, and arise, go and look for the
donkeys.” 4And they p passed through the hill country of E'phraim and
passed through the land of Shal'ishah, but they did not find them. And they
passed through the land of Sha'alim, but they were not there. Then they
passed through the land of Benjamin, but did not find them.
5 When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant who was
with him, “Come, let us go back, lest my father cease to care about the
donkeys and become anxious about us.” 6But he said to him, “Behold, there
is a man of God in this city, and he is a man that is held in honor; all that he
says comes true. Let us go there; perhaps he can tell us about the journey on
which we have set out.” 7Then Saul said to his servant, “But if we go, what
can we bring the man? For the bread in our sacks is gone, and there is no
present to bring to the man of God. What have we?” 8The servant answered
Saul again, “Here, I have with me the fourth part of a shekel of silver, and I
will give it to the man of God, to tell us our way.” 9(Formerly in Israel,
when a man went to inquire of God, he said, “Come, let us go to the seer”;
for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer.) 10And Saul
said to his servant, “Well said; come, let us go.” So they went to the city
where the man of God was.
11 As they went up the hill to the city, they met young maidens coming out
to draw water, and said to them, “Is the seer here?” 12They answered, “He
is; behold, he is just ahead of you. Make haste; he has come just now to the
city, because the people have a sacrifice today on the high place. 13As soon
as you enter the city, you will find him, before he goes up to the high
place * to eat; for the people will not eat till he comes, since he must bless
the sacrifice; afterward those eat who are invited. Now go up, for you will
meet him immediately.” 14So they went up to the city. As they were
entering the city, they saw Samuel coming out toward them on his way up
to the high place.
15 Now the day before Saul came, the LORD had revealed to Samuel:
16“Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of
Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He
shall save my people from the hand of the Philis'tines; for I have seen the
affliction of q my people, because their cry has come to me.” 17When
Samuel saw Saul, the LORD told him, “Here is the man of whom I spoke to
you! He it is who shall rule over my people.” 18Then Saul approached
Samuel in the gate, and said, “Tell me where is the house of the seer?”
19Samuel answered Saul, “I am the seer; go up before me to the high place,
for today you shall eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and
will tell you all that is on your mind. 20As for your donkeys that were lost
three days ago, do not set your mind on them, for they have been found.
And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all
your father’s house?” 21Saul answered, “Am I not a Benjaminite, from the
least of the tribes of Israel? And is not my family the humblest of all the
families of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then have you spoken to me in this
way?”
22 Then Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the hall
and gave them a place at the head of those who had been invited, who were
about thirty persons. 23And Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the portion I
gave you, of which I said to you, ‘Put it aside.’ ” 24So the cook took up the
leg and the upper portion r and set them before Saul; and Samuel said, “See,
what was kept is set before you. Eat; because it was kept for you until the
hour appointed, that you might eat with the guests.” s
So Saul ate with Samuel that day. 25And when they came down from the
high place into the city, a bed was spread for Saul t upon the roof, and he lay
down to sleep. 26Then at the break of dawn u Samuel called to Saul upon the
roof, “Up, that I may send you on your way.” So Saul arose, and both he
and Samuel went out into the street.
Samuel Anoints Saul
27 As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to
Saul, “Tell the servant to pass on before us, and when he has passed on stop
here yourself for a while, that I may make known to you the word of God.”
10 Then Samuel took a vial of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed
him and said, “Has not the LORD anointed you to be prince over his people
Israel? And you shall reign over the people of the LORD and you will save
them from the hand of their enemies round about. And this shall be the sign
to you that the LORD has anointed you to be prince w over his heritage.
2When you depart from me today you will meet two men by Rachel’s tomb
in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, ‘The
donkeys which you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased
to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What shall I
do about my son?” ’ 3Then you shall go on from there further and come to
the oak of Ta'bor; three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there,
one carrying three kids, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another
carrying a skin of wine. 4And they will greet you and give you two loaves
of bread, which you shall accept from their hand. 5After that you shall come
to Gib'eath-elo'him, x where there is a garrison of the Philis'tines; and there,
as you come to the city, you will meet a band of prophets* coming down
from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them,
prophesying. 6Then the spirit of the LORD will come mightily upon you, and
you shall prophesy with them and be turned into another man. 7Now when
these signs meet you, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with
you. 8And you shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I am coming
to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. Seven days
you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do.”
Saul Prophesies
9 When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart;
and all these signs came to pass that day. 10When they came to Gib'e-ah, z
behold, a band of prophets met him; and the spirit of God came mightily
upon him, and he prophesied among them. 11And when all who knew him
before saw how he prophesied with the prophets, the people said to one
another, “What has come over the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the
prophets?” 12And a man of the place answered, “And who is their father?”
Therefore it became a proverb, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” 13When
he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place.
14 Saul’s uncle said to him and to his servant, “Where did you go?” And
he said, “To seek the donkeys; and when we saw they were not to be found,
we went to Samuel.” 15And Saul’s uncle said, “Please, tell me what Samuel
said to you.” 16And Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the
donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, of which
Samuel had spoken, he did not tell him anything.
Saul Proclaimed King
17 Now Samuel called the people together to the LORD at Mizpah; 18and he
said to the sons of Israel, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘I brought
up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians
and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ 19But you
have this day rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities
and your distresses; and you have said, ‘No! but set a king over us.’ Now
therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your
thousands.”
20 Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of
Benjamin was taken by lot. 21He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its
families, and the family of the Ma'trites was taken by lot; finally he brought
the family of the Matrites near man by man, a and Saul the son of Kish was
taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found. 22So they
inquired again of the LORD, “Did the man come here?” b and the LORD said,
“Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.” 23Then they ran and
fetched him from there; and when he stood among the people, he was taller
than any of the people from his shoulders upward. 24And Samuel said to all
the people, “Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none
like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the
king!”
25 Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship; and
he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent
all the people away, each one to his home. 26Saul also went to his home at
Gib'e-ah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched.
27But some worthless fellows said, “How can this man save us?” And they
despised him, and brought him no present. But he held his peace.
Saul Defeats the Ammonites
11 Then Na'hash the Am'monite went up and besieged Ja'besh-gil'ead;
and all the men of Ja'besh said to Nahash, “Make a treaty with us, and we
will serve you.” 2But Na'hash the Am'monite said to them, “On this
condition I will make a treaty with you, that I gouge out all your right eyes,
and thus put disgrace upon all Israel.” 3The elders of Ja'besh said to him,
“Give us seven days respite that we may send messengers through all the
territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves
up to you.” 4When the messengers came to Gib'e-ah of Saul, they reported
the matter in the hearing of the people; and all the people wept aloud.
5 Now Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen; and Saul said,
“What ails the people, that they are weeping?” So they told him the tidings
of the men of Ja'besh. 6And the spirit of God came mightily upon Saul
when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled. 7He took a
yoke of oxen, and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the
territory of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, “Whoever does not
come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!” Then the
dread of the LORD fell upon the people, and they came out as one man.
8When he mustered them at Be'zek, the men of Israel were three hundred
thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.* 9And they said to the
messengers who had come, “Thus shall you say to the men of Ja'besh-
gil'ead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have deliverance.’ ”
When the messengers came and told the men of Ja'besh, they were glad.
10Therefore the men of Ja'besh said, “Tomorrow we will give ourselves up
to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.” 11And the next
day Saul put the people in three companies; and they came into the midst of
the camp in the morning watch, and cut down the Am'monites until the heat
of the day; and those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them
were left together.
12 Then the people said to Samuel, “Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign
over us?’ Bring the men, that we may put them to death.” 13But Saul said,
“Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the LORD has wrought
deliverance in Israel.” 14Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go
to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom.” 15So all the people went to Gilgal,
and there they made Saul king before the LORD in Gilgal. There they
sacrificed peace offerings before the LORD, and there Saul and all the men
of Israel rejoiced greatly.
Samuel’s Farewell Address
12 And Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, I have listened to your voice
in all that you have said to me, and have made a king over you. 2And now,
behold, the king walks before you; and I am old and gray, and behold, my
sons are with you; and I have walked before you from my youth until this
day. 3Here I am; testify against me before the LORD and before his anointed.
Whose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I
defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I taken a
bribe to blind my eyes with it? Testify against me c and I will restore it to
you.” 4They said, “You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken
anything from any man’s hand.” 5And he said to them, “The LORD is
witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that you have not
found anything in my hand.” And they said, “He is witness.”
6 And Samuel said to the people, “The LORD is witness, d who appointed
Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.
7Now therefore stand still, that I may plead with you before the LORD
concerning all the saving deeds of the LORD which he performed for you
and for your fathers. 8When Jacob went into Egypt and the Egyptians
oppressed them, e then your fathers cried to the LORD and the LORD sent
Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made
them dwell in this place. 9But they forgot the LORD their God; and he sold
them into the hand of Sis'era, commander of the army of Ja'bin king of f
Ha'zor, and into the hand of the Philis'tines, and into the hand of the king of
Moab; and they fought against them. 10And they cried to the LORD, and
said, ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served
the Ba'als and the Ash'taroth; but now deliver us out of the hand of our
enemies, and we will serve you.’ 11And the LORD sent Jerubba'al * and
Barak, g and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of
your enemies on every side; and you dwelt in safety. 12And when you saw
that Na'hash the king of the Am'monites came against you, you said to me,
‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ when the LORD your God was your
king. 13And now behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you
have asked; behold, the LORD has set a king over you. 14If you will fear the
LORD and serve him and listen to his voice and not rebel against the
commandment of the LORD, and if both you and the king who reigns over
you will follow the LORD your God, it will be well; 15but if you will not
listen to the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the
LORD, then the hand of the LORD will be against you and your king. h 16Now
therefore stand still and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before
your eyes. 17Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call upon the LORD, that he
may send thunder and rain; and you shall know and see that your
wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the LORD, in
asking for yourselves a king.” 18So Samuel called upon the LORD, and the
LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the
LORD and Samuel.
19 And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the LORD
your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins this evil, to
ask for ourselves a king.” 20And Samuel said to the people, “Fear not; you
have done all this evil, yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but
serve the LORD with all your heart; 21and do not turn aside after i vain things
which cannot profit or save, for they are vain. 22For the LORD will not cast
away his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the LORD
to make you a people for himself. 23Moreover as for me, far be it from me
that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you; and I will
instruct you in the good and the right way. 24Only fear the LORD, and serve
him faithfully with all your heart; for consider what great things he has
done for you. 25But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both
you and your king.” *
Saul’s Unlawful Sacrifice
13 Saul was . . . j years old when he began to reign; and he
reigned . . . and two k * years over Israel.
2 Saul chose three thousand men of Israel; two thousand were with Saul in
Mich'mash and the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with
Jonathan in Gib'e-ah of Benjamin; the rest of the people he sent home,
every man to his tent. 3Jonathan defeated the garrison of the Philis'tines
which was at Ge'ba; and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the
trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear.” 4And all
Israel heard it said that Saul had defeated the garrison of the Philis'tines,
and also that Israel had become odious to the Philistines. And the people
were called out to join Saul at Gilgal.
5 And the Philis'tines mustered to fight with Israel, thirty thousand
chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and troops like the sand on the
seashore in multitude; they came up and encamped in Mich'mash, to the
east of Beth-a'ven. 6When the men of Israel saw that they were in straits
(for the people were hard pressed), the people hid themselves in caves and
in holes and in rocks and in tombs and in cisterns, 7or crossed the fords of
the Jordan l to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal, and all
the people followed him trembling.
8 He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel; but Samuel did not
come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from him. 9So Saul said,
“Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the peace offerings.” And he
offered the burnt offering. 10As soon as he had finished offering the burnt
offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him and salute
him. 11Samuel said, “What have you done?” And Saul said, “When I saw
that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come within
the days appointed, and that the Philis'tines had mustered at Mich'mash, 12I
said, ‘Now the Philis'tines will come down upon me at Gilgal and I have
not entreated the favor of the LORD’; so I forced myself, and offered the
burnt offering.” 13And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly; you
have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which he
commanded you; for now the LORD would have established your kingdom
over Israel for ever. 14But now your kingdom shall not continue; the LORD
has sought out a man after his own heart; and the LORD has appointed him
to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the LORD
commanded you.” 15And Samuel arose, and went up from Gilgal to Gib'e-
ah of Benjamin.
And Saul numbered the people who were present with him, about six
hundred men. 16And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people who were
present with them, stayed in Ge'ba of Benjamin; but the Philis'tines
encamped in Mich'mash. 17And raiders came out of the camp of the
Philis'tines in three companies; one company turned toward Oph'rah, to the
land of Shual, 18another company turned toward Beth-ho'ron, and another
company turned toward the border that looks down upon the valley of
Zebo'im toward the wilderness.
Preparations for Battle
19 Now there was no smith to be found throughout all the land of Israel;
for the Philis'tines said, “Lest the Hebrews make themselves swords or
spears”; 20but every one of the Israelites went down to the Philis'tines to
sharpen his plowshare, his mattock, his axe, or his sickle; m 21and the charge
was a pim for the plowshares and for the mattocks, and a third of a shekel
for sharpening the axes and for setting the goads. n 22So on the day of the
battle there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the
people with Saul and Jonathan; but Saul and Jonathan his son had them.
23And the garrison of the Philis'tines went out to the pass of Mich'mash.
Jonathan Surprises the Philistines

14 One day Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man who bore
his armor, “Come, let us go over to the Philis'tine garrison on yonder side.”
But he did not tell his father. 2Saul was staying in the outskirts of Gib'e-ah
under the pomegranate tree which is at Migron; the people who were with
him were about six hundred men, 3and Ahi'jah the son of Ahi'tub,
Ich'abod’s brother, son of Phin'ehas, son of Eli, the priest of the LORD in
Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people did not know that Jonathan had
gone. 4In the pass, o by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philis'tine
garrison, there was a rocky crag on the one side and a rocky crag on the
other side; the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other
Se'neh. 5The one crag rose on the north in front of Mich'mash, and the other
on the south in front of Ge'ba.
6 And Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, “Come, let us
go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the LORD will
work for us; for nothing can hinder the LORD from saving by many or by
few.” 7And his armor-bearer said to him, “Do all that your mind inclines
to; p behold, I am with you, as is your mind so is mine.” q 8Then said
Jonathan, “Behold, we will cross over to the men, and we will show
ourselves to them. 9If they say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we
will stand still in our place, and we will not go up to them. 10But if they say,
‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up; for the LORD has given them into our
hand. And this shall be the sign to us.” 11So both of them showed
themselves to the garrison of the Philis'tines; and the Philistines said,
“Look, Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hid
themselves.” 12And the men of the garrison hailed Jonathan and his armor-
bearer, and said, “Come up to us, and we will show you a thing.” And
Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, “Come up after me; for the LORD has
given them into the hand of Israel.” 13Then Jonathan climbed up on his
hands and feet, and his armor-bearer after him. And they fell before
Jonathan, and his armor-bearer killed them after him; 14and that first
slaughter, which Jonathan and his armor-bearer made, was of about twenty
men within as it were half a furrow’s length in an acre r of land. 15And there
was a panic in the camp, in the field, and among all the people; the garrison
and even the raiders trembled; the earth quaked; and it became a very great
panic.
16 And the watchmen of Saul in Gib'e-ah of Benjamin looked; and behold,
the multitude was surging here and there. s 17Then Saul said to the people
who were with him, “Number and see who has gone from us.” And when
they had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armor-bearer were not there.
18And Saul said to Ahi'jah, “Bring the ark of God here.” For the ark of God
went at that time with the sons of Israel. 19And while Saul was talking to
the priest, the tumult in the camp of the Philis'tines increased more and
more; and Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.” 20Then Saul and
all the people who were with him rallied and went into the battle; and
behold, every man’s sword was against his fellow, and there was very great
confusion. 21Now the Hebrews who had been with the Philis'tines before
that time and who had gone up with them into the camp, even they also
turned to be with t the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22Likewise, when all the men of Israel who had hid themselves in the hill
country of E'phraim heard that the Philis'tines were fleeing, they too
followed hard after them in the battle. 23So the LORD delivered Israel that
day; and the battle passed beyond Beth-a'ven.
Saul’s Rash Oath
24 And the men of Israel were distressed that day; for Saul laid an oath on
the people, saying, “Cursed be the man who eats food until it is evening and
I am avenged on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food. 25And all
the people u came into the forest; and there was honey on the ground. 26And
when the people entered the forest, behold, the honey was dropping, but no
man put his hand to his mouth; for the people feared the oath. 27But
Jonathan had not heard his father charge the people with the oath; so he put
forth the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and dipped it in the
honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes became bright.
28Then one of the people said, “Your father strictly charged the people with
an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food this day.’ ” And the
people were faint. 29Then Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land;
see how my eyes have become bright, because I tasted a little of this honey.
30How much better if the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their
enemies which they found; for now the slaughter among the Philis'tines has
not been great.”
31 They struck down the Philis'tines that day from Mich'mash to Ai'jalon.
And the people were very faint; 32the people flew upon the spoil, and took
sheep and oxen and calves, and slew them on the ground; and the people ate
them with the blood. 33Then they told Saul, “Behold, the people are sinning
against the LORD, by eating with the blood.” And he said, “You have dealt
treacherously; roll a great stone to me here.” v 34And Saul said, “Disperse
yourselves among the people, and say to them, ‘Let every man bring his ox
or his sheep, and slay them here, and eat; and do not sin against the LORD
by eating with the blood.’ ” So every one of the people brought his ox with
him that night, and slew them there. 35And Saul built an altar to the LORD; it
was the first altar that he built to the LORD.
The People Ransom Jonathan
36 Then Saul said, “Let us go down after the Philis'tines by night and
despoil them until the morning light; let us not leave a man of them.” And
they said, “Do whatever seems good to you.” But the priest said, “Let us
draw near here to God.” 37And Saul inquired of God, “Shall I go down after
the Philis'tines? Will you give them into the hand of Israel?” But he did not
answer him that day. 38And Saul said, “Come here, all you leaders of the
people; and know and see how this sin has arisen today. 39For as the LORD
lives who saves Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die.”
But there was not a man among all the people that answered him. 40Then he
said to all Israel, “You shall be on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will
be on the other side.” And the people said to Saul, “Do what seems good to
you.” 41Therefore Saul said, “O LORD God of Israel, why have you not
answered your servant this day? If this guilt is in me or in Jonathan my son,
O LORD, God of Israel, give U'rim; but if this guilt is in your people Israel, w
give Thummim.” And Jonathan and Saul were taken, but the people
escaped. 42Then Saul said, “Cast the lot between me and my son Jonathan.”
And Jonathan was taken. *
43 Then Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” And
Jonathan told him, “I tasted a little honey with the tip of the staff that was in
my hand; here I am, I will die.” 44And Saul said, “God do so to me and
more also; you shall surely die, Jonathan.” 45Then the people said to Saul,
“Shall Jonathan die, who has wrought this great victory in Israel? Far from
it! As the LORD lives, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground;
for he has wrought with God this day.” So the people ransomed Jonathan,
that he did not die. 46Then Saul went up from pursuing the Philis'tines; and
the Philistines went to their own place.
Saul’s Continuing Wars
47 When Saul had taken the kingship over Israel, he fought against all his
enemies on every side, against Moab, against the Am'monites, against

E'dom, against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philis'tines; wherever he
turned he put them to the worse. 48And he did valiantly, and struck the
Amal'ekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who plundered
them.
49 Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Mal''chishu'a; and the
names of his two daughters were these: the name of the first-born was
Merab, and the name of the younger Michal; 50and the name of Saul’s wife
was Ahin'o-am the daughter of Ahim'a-az. And the name of the commander
of his army was Abner the son of Ner, Saul’s uncle; 51Kish was the father of
Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abi'el.
52 There was hard fighting against the Philis'tines all the days of Saul; and
when Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he attached him to
himself.
Saul Defeats the Amalekites but Disobeys
15 And Samuel said to Saul, “The LORD sent me to anoint you king
over his people Israel; now therefore listen to the words of the LORD. 2Thus
says the LORD of hosts, ‘I will punish what Am'alek did to Israel in
opposing them on the way, when they came up out of Egypt. 3Now go and
strike Am'alek, and utterly destroy all that they have; do not spare them, but
kill both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and
donkey.’ ”
4 So Saul summoned the people, and numbered them in Tela'im, two
hundred thousand men on foot, and ten thousand men of Judah. 5And Saul
came to the city of Am'alek, and lay in wait in the valley. 6And Saul said to
the Kenites, “Go, depart, go down from among the Amal'ekites, lest I
destroy you with them; for you showed kindness to all the people of Israel
when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the
Amalekites. 7And Saul defeated the Amal'ekites, from Hav'ilah as far as
Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8And he took A'gag the king of the
Amal'ekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the
sword. 9But Saul and the people spared A'gag, and the best of the sheep and
of the oxen and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and
would not utterly destroy them; all that was despised and worthless they
utterly destroyed.
The Lord Rejects Saul for His Disobedience
10 The word of the LORD came to Samuel: 11 “I repent that I have made
Saul king; for he has turned back from following me, and has not performed
my commandments.” And Samuel was angry; and he cried to the LORD all
night. 12And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning; and it was told
Samuel, “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for
himself and turned, and passed on, and went down to Gilgal.” 13And
Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed be you to the LORD; I
have performed the commandment of the LORD.” 14And Samuel said,
“What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the
oxen which I hear?” 15Saul said, “They have brought them from the
Amal'ekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to
sacrifice to the LORD your God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.”
16Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop! I will tell you what the LORD said to me
this night.” And he said to him, “Say on.”

17 And Samuel said, “Though you are little in your own eyes, are you not
the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel.
18And the LORD sent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, utterly destroy the
sinners, the Amal'ekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’
19Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop
on the spoil, and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD?” 20And Saul
said to Samuel, “I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, I have gone on the
mission on which the LORD sent me, I have brought A'gag the king of
Am'alek, and I have utterly destroyed the Amal'ekites. 21But the people
took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to
destruction, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.” 22And Samuel
said,
“Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to listen than the fat of rams.
23For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.

Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
he has also rejected you from being king.” *
24 And Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned; for I have transgressed the
commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and
obeyed their voice. 25Now therefore, I beg, pardon my sin, and return with
me, that I may worship the LORD.” 26And Samuel said to Saul, “I will not
return with you; for you have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD
has rejected you from being king over Israel.” 27As Samuel turned to go
away, Saul laid hold upon the skirt of his robe, and it tore. 28And Samuel
said to him, “The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day,
and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you. 29And also
the Glory of Israel will not lie or repent; for he is not a man, that he should
repent.” 30Then he said, “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders
of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the
LORD your God.” 31So Samuel turned back after Saul; and Saul worshiped
the LORD.
32 Then Samuel said, “Bring here to me A'gag the king of the
Amal'ekites.” And Agag came to him cheerfully. Agag said, “Surely the
bitterness of death is past.” 33And Samuel said, “As your sword has made
women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And
Samuel hewed A'gag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
34 Then Samuel went to Ra'mah; and Saul went up to his house in Gib'e-ah
of Saul. 35And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but
Samuel grieved over Saul. And the LORD repented that he had made Saul
king over Israel.
David Anointed as King
16 The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul,
seeing I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with
oil, and go; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided
for myself a king among his sons.” 2And Samuel said, “How can I go? If
Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the LORD said, “Take a heifer with you,
and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ 3And invite Jesse to the
sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for
me him whom I name to you.” 4Samuel did what the LORD commanded,
and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling,
and said, “Do you come peaceably?” 5And he said, “Peaceably; I have
come to sacrifice to the LORD; consecrate yourselves, and come with me to
the sacrifice.” And he consecrated Jesse and his sons, and invited them to
the sacrifice.
6 When they came, he looked on Eli'ab and thought, “Surely the LORD’s
anointed is before him.” 7But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his
appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for
the LORD sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but
the LORD looks on the heart.” 8Then Jesse called Abin'adab, and made him
pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.”
9Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the LORD
chosen this one.” 10And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel.
And Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these.” 11And Samuel
said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the
youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse,
“Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down till he comes here.” 12And he
sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and
was handsome. And the LORD said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is he.”
13Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his
brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that
day forward. And Samuel rose up, and went to Ra'mah.
David Plays the Lyre for Saul
14 Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from
the LORD tormented him. 15And Saul’s servants said to him, “Behold now,
an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16Let our lord now command
your servants, who are before you, to seek out a man who is skilful in
playing the lyre; and when the evil spirit from God is upon you, he will play
it, and you will be well.” 17So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me a
man who can play well, and bring him to me.” 18One of the young men
answered, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is
skilful in playing, a man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a
man of good presence; and the LORD is with him.” 19Therefore Saul sent
messengers to Jesse, and said, “Send me David your son, who is with the
sheep.” 20And Jesse took a donkey laden with bread, and a skin of wine and
a kid, and sent them by David his son to Saul. 21And David came to Saul,
and entered his service. And Saul loved him greatly, and he became his
armor-bearer. 22And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Let David remain in my
service, for he has found favor in my sight.” 23And whenever the evil spirit
from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand;
so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.
David and Goliath
17 Now the Philis'tines gathered their armies for battle; and they were
gathered at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh
and Aze'kah, in E'phes-dam'mim. 2And Saul and the men of Israel were
gathered, and encamped in the valley of E'lah, and drew up in line of battle
against the Philis'tines. 3And the Philis'tines stood on the mountain on the
one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with a valley
between them. 4And there came out from the camp of the Philis'tines a
champion named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
5He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of
mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6And
he had greaves of bronze upon his legs, and a javelin of bronze slung
between his shoulders. 7And the shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s
beam, and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron; and his
shield-bearer went before him. 8He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel,
“Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philis'tine, and
are you not servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him
come down to me. 9If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will
be your servants; but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be
our servants and serve us.” 10And the Philis'tine said, “I defy the ranks of
Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11When Saul
and all Israel heard these words of the Philis'tine, they were dismayed and
greatly afraid.
12 Now David was the son of an Eph'rathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named
Jesse, who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and
advanced in years. x 13The three eldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to
the battle; and the names of his three sons who went to the battle were
Eli'ab the first-born, and next to him Abin'adab, and the third Shammah.
14David was the youngest; the three eldest followed Saul, 15but David went
back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. 16For
forty days the Philis'tine came forward and took his stand, morning and
evening.
17 And Jesse said to David his son, “Take for your brothers an ephah of
this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp
to your brothers; 18also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their
thousand. See how your brothers fare, and bring some token from them.”
19 Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the valley of
E'lah, fighting with the Philis'tines. 20And David rose early in the morning,
and left the sheep with a keeper, and took the provisions, and went, as Jesse
had commanded him; and he came to the encampment as the host was
going forth to the battle line, shouting the war cry. 21And Israel and the
Philis'tines drew up for battle, army against army. 22And David left the
things in charge of the keeper of the baggage, and ran to the ranks, and went
and greeted his brothers. 23As he talked with them, behold, the champion,
the Philis'tine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the
Philistines, and spoke the same words as before. And David heard him.
24 All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were
much afraid. 25And the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who
has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel; and the man who kills
him, the king will enrich with great riches, and will give him his daughter,
and make his father’s house free in Israel.” 26And David said to the men
who stood by him, “What shall be done for the man who kills this
Philis'tine, and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this
uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”
27And the people answered him in the same way, “So shall it be done to the
man who kills him.”

28 Now Eli'ab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and
Eliab’s anger was kindled against David, and he said, “Why have you come
down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I
know your presumption, and the evil of your heart; for you have come
down to see the battle.” 29And David said, “What have I done now? Was it
not but a word?” 30And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke
in the same way; and the people answered him again as before.
31 When the words which David spoke were heard, they repeated them
before Saul; and he sent for him. 32And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s
heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this
Philis'tine.” 33And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this
Philis'tine to fight with him; for you are but a youth, and he has been a man
of war from his youth.” 34But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to
keep sheep for his father; and when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a
lamb from the flock, 35I went after him and struck him and delivered it out
of his mouth; and if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and
struck him and killed him. 36Your servant has killed both lions and bears;
and this uncircumcised Philis'tine shall be like one of them, seeing he has
defied the armies of the living God.” 37And David said, “The LORD who
delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will
deliver me from the hand of this Philis'tine.” And Saul said to David, “Go,
and the LORD be with you!” 38Then Saul clothed David with his armor; he
put a helmet of bronze on his head, and clothed him with a coat of mail.
39And David belted on his sword over his armor, and he tried in vain to go,
for he was not used to them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with
these; for I am not used to them.” And David put them off. 40Then he took
his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the brook, and put
them in his shepherd’s bag or wallet; his sling was in his hand, and he drew
near to the Philis'tine.
41 And the Philis'tine came on and drew near to David, with his shield-
bearer in front of him. 42And when the Philis'tine looked, and saw David, he
disdained him; for he was but a youth, ruddy and comely in appearance.
43And the Philis'tine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with
sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44The Philis'tine said
to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and
to the beasts of the field.” 45Then David said to the Philis'tine, “You come
to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin; but I come to you in
the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you
have defied. 46This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will
strike you down, and cut off your head; and I will give the dead bodies of
the host of the Philis'tines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild
beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
47and that all this assembly may know that the LORD saves not with sword
and spear; for the battle is the LORD’s and he will give you into our hand.”
48 When the Philis'tine arose and came and drew near to meet David,
David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. 49And David
put his hand in his bag and took out a stone, and slung it, and struck the
Philis'tine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on
his face to the ground.
50 So David prevailed over the Philis'tine with a sling and with a stone,
and struck the Philistine, and killed him; there was no sword in the hand of
David. 51Then David ran and stood over the Philis'tine, and took his sword
and drew it out of its sheath, and killed him, and cut off his head with it.
When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. 52And the
men of Israel and Judah rose with a shout and pursued the Philis'tines as far
as Gath y and the gates of Ek'ron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the
way from Sha-ara'im as far as Gath and Ekron. 53And the Israelites came
back from chasing the Philis'tines, and they plundered their camp. 54And
David took the head of the Philis'tine and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put
his armor in his tent.
55 When Saul saw David go forth against the Philis'tine, he said to Abner,
the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this youth?” And Abner
said, “As your soul lives, O king, I cannot tell.” 56And the king said,
“Inquire whose son the stripling is.” 57And as David returned from the
slaughter of the Philis'tine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul
with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58And Saul said to him, “Whose
son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your
servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”
Jonathan’s Covenant with David
18 When he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was
knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. 2And
Saul took him that day, and would not let him return to his father’s house.
3Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his
own soul. 4And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him,
and gave it to David, and his armor, and even his sword and his bow and his
belt. 5And David went out and was successful wherever Saul sent him; so
that Saul set him over the men of war. And this was good in the sight of all
the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants.
6 As they were coming home, when David returned from slaying the
Philis'tine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and
dancing, to meet King Saul, with timbrels, with songs of joy, and with
instruments z of music. 7And the women sang to one another as they made
merry,
“Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his ten thousands.”
8And Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him; he said, “They
have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed

thousands; and what more can he have but the kingdom?” 9And Saul eyed
David from that day on.
Saul Tries to Kill David
10 And the next day an evil spirit from God rushed upon Saul, and he
raved within his house, while David was playing the lyre, as he did day by
day. Saul had his spear in his hand; 11and Saul cast the spear, for he thought,
“I will pin David to the wall.” But David evaded him twice.
12 Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him but had
departed from Saul. 13So Saul removed him from his presence, and made
him a commander of a thousand; and he went out and came in before the
people. 14And David had success in all his undertakings; for the LORD was
with him. 15And when Saul saw that he had great success, he stood in awe
of him. 16But all Israel and Judah loved David; for he went out and came in
before them.
David Marries Michal
17 Then Saul said to David, “Here is my elder daughter Merab; I will give
her to you for a wife; only be valiant for me and fight the LORD’s battles.”
For Saul thought, “Let not my hand be upon him, but let the hand of the
Philis'tines be upon him.” 18And David said to Saul, “Who am I, and who
are my kinsfolk, my father’s family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to
the king?” 19But at the time when Merab, Saul’s daughter, should have been
given to David, she was given to A'dri-el the Meho'lathite for a wife.
20 Now Saul’s daughter Michal loved David; and they told Saul, and the
thing pleased him. 21Saul thought, “Let me give her to him, that she may be
a snare for him, and that the hand of the Philis'tines may be against him.”
Therefore Saul said to David a second time, a “You shall now be my son-in-
law.” 22And Saul commanded his servants, “Speak to David in private and
say, ‘Behold, the king has delight in you, and all his servants love you; now
then become the king’s son-in-law.’ ” 23And Saul’s servants spoke those
words in the ears of David. And David said, “Does it seem to you a little
thing to become the king’s son-in-law, seeing that I am a poor man and of
no repute?” 24And the servants of Saul told him, “Thus and so did David
speak.” 25Then Saul said, “Thus shall you say to David, ‘The king desires
no marriage present * except a hundred foreskins of the Philis'tines, that he
may be avenged of the king’s enemies.’ ” Now Saul thought to make David
fall by the hand of the Philistines. 26And when his servants told David these
words, it pleased David well to be the king’s son-in-law. Before the time
had expired, 27David arose and went, along with his men, and killed two
hundred of the Philis'tines; and David brought their foreskins, which were
given in full number to the king, that he might become the king’s son-in-
law. And Saul gave him his daughter Michal for a wife. 28But when Saul
saw and knew that the LORD was with David, and that all Israel b loved him,
29Saul was still more afraid of David. So Saul was David’s enemy
continually.
30 Then the princes of the Philis'tines came out to battle, and as often as
they came out David had more success than all the servants of Saul; so that
his name was highly esteemed.
Jonathan Intercedes for David
19 And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they
should kill David. But Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted much in David. 2And
Jonathan told David, “Saul my father seeks to kill you; therefore take heed
to yourself in the morning, stay in a secret place and hide yourself; 3and I
will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will
speak to my father about you; and if I learn anything I will tell you.” 4And
Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father, and said to him, “Let not
the king sin against his servant David; because he has not sinned against
you, and because his deeds have been of good service to you; 5for he took
his life in his hand and he slew the Philis'tine, and the LORD wrought a great
victory for all Israel. You saw it, and rejoiced; why then will you sin against
innocent blood by killing David without cause?” 6And Saul listened to the
voice of Jonathan; Saul swore, “As the LORD lives, he shall not be put to
death.” 7And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all these
things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence as
before.
Michal Helps David Escape from Saul
8 And there was war again; and David went out and fought with the
Philis'tines, and made a great slaughter among them, so that they fled before
him. 9Then an evil spirit from the LORD came upon Saul, as he sat in his
house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing the lyre. 10And
Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear; but he eluded Saul, so
that he struck the spear into the wall. And David fled, and escaped.
11 That night Saul x sent messengers to David’s house to watch him, that
he might kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, told him, “If
you do not save your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed.” 12So
Michal let David down through the window; and he fled away and escaped.
13Michal took an image c and laid it on the bed and put a pillow d of goats’
hair at its head, and covered it with the clothes. 14And when Saul sent
messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.” 15Then Saul sent the
messengers to see David, saying, “Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may
kill him.” 16And when the messengers came in, behold, the image c was in
the bed, with the pillow d of goats’ hair at its head. 17Saul said to Michal,
“Why have you deceived me thus, and let my enemy go, so that he has
escaped?” And Michal answered Saul, “He said to me, ‘Let me go; why
should I kill you? ’ ”
David Joins Samuel in Ramah
18 Now David fled and escaped, and he came to Samuel at Ra'mah, and
told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt
at Naioth. 19And it was told Saul, “Behold, David is at Naioth in Ra'mah.”
20Then Saul sent messengers to take David; and when they saw the
company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over

them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also
prophesied. 21When it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they
also prophesied. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they
also prophesied. 22Then he himself went to Ra'mah, and came to the great
well that is in Secu; and he asked, “Where are Samuel and David?” And
one said, “Behold, they are at Naioth in Ra'mah.” 23And he went from f
there to Naioth in Ra'mah; and the Spirit of God came upon him also, and
as he went he prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah. 24And he too
stripped off his clothes, and he too prophesied before Samuel, and lay naked
all that day and all that night. Hence it is said, “Is Saul also among the
prophets?” *
The Friendship of David and Jonathan
20 Then David fled from Naioth in Ra'mah, and came and said before
Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my guilt? And what is my sin before
your father, that he seeks my life?” 2And he said to him, “Far from it! You
shall not die. Behold, my father does nothing either great or small without
disclosing it to me; and why should my father hide this from me? It is not
so.” 3But David replied, g “Your father knows well that I have found favor
in your eyes; and he thinks, ‘Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved.’
But truly, as the LORD lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step
between me and death.” 4Then said Jonathan to David, “Whatever you say,
I will do for you.” 5David said to Jonathan, “Behold, tomorrow is the new
moon, and I should not fail to sit at table with the king; but let me go, that I
may hide myself in the field till the third day at evening. 6If your father
misses me at all, then say, ‘David earnestly asked leave of me to run to
Bethlehem his city; for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.’ 7If
he says, ‘Good!’ it will be well with your servant; but if he is angry, then
know that evil is determined by him. 8Therefore deal kindly with your
servant, for you have brought your servant into a sacred covenant h with
you. But if there is guilt in me, slay me yourself; for why should you bring
me to your father?” 9And Jonathan said, “Far be it from you! If I knew that
it was determined by my father that evil should come upon you, would I not
tell you?” 10Then said David to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father
answers you roughly?” 11And Jonathan said to David, “Come, let us go out
into the field.” So they both went out into the field.
12 And Jonathan said to David, “The LORD, the God of Israel, be witness! i
When I have sounded my father, about this time tomorrow, or the third day,
behold, if he is well disposed toward David, shall I not then send and
disclose it to you? 13But should it please my father to do you harm, the
LORD do so to Jonathan, and more also, if I do not disclose it to you, and
send you away, that you may go in safety. May the LORD be with you, as he
has been with my father. 14If I am still alive, show me the loyal love of the
LORD, that I may not die; j 15and do not cut off your loyalty from my house
for ever. When the LORD cuts off every one of the enemies of David from
the face of the earth, 16let not the name of Jonathan be cut off from the
house of David. k And may the LORD take vengeance on David’s enemies.”
17And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him; for he loved
him as he loved his own soul.

18 Then Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon; and you will
be missed, because your seat will be empty. 19And on the third day you will
be greatly missed; l then go to the place where you hid yourself when the
matter was in hand, and remain beside yonder stone heap. m 20And I will
shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I shot at a mark. 21And
behold, I will send the lad, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I say to the lad,
‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you, take them,’ then you are to come,
for, as the LORD lives, it is safe for you and there is no danger. 22But if I say
to the youth, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go; for the LORD has
sent you away. 23And as for the matter of which you and I have spoken,
behold, the LORD is between you and me for ever.”
24 So David hid himself in the field; and when the new moon came, the
king sat down to eat food. 25The king sat upon his seat, as at other times,
upon the seat by the wall; Jonathan sat opposite, n and Abner sat by Saul’s
side, but David’s place was empty.
26 Yet Saul did not say anything that day; for he thought, “Something has
befallen him; he is not clean, surely he is not clean.” 27But on the second
day, the next day after the new moon, David’s place was empty. And Saul
said to Jonathan his son, “Why has not the son of Jesse come to the meal,
either yesterday or today?” 28Jonathan answered Saul, “David earnestly
asked leave of me to go to Bethlehem; 29he said, ‘Let me go; for our family
holds a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to be there.
So now, if I have found favor in your eyes, let me get away, and see my
brothers.’ For this reason he has not come to the king’s table.”
30 Then Saul’s anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him,
“You son of a perverse, rebellious woman, do I not know that you have
chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your
mother’s nakedness? 31For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon the earth,
neither you nor your kingdom shall be established. Therefore send and fetch
him to me, for he shall surely die.” 32Then Jonathan answered Saul his
father, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?” 33But Saul cast
his spear at him to strike him; so Jonathan knew that his father was
determined to put David to death. 34And Jonathan rose from the table in
fierce anger and ate no food the second day of the month, for he was
grieved for David, because his father had disgraced him.
35 In the morning Jonathan went out into the field to the appointment with
David, and with him a little lad. 36And he said to his lad, “Run and find the
arrows which I shoot.” As the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. 37And
when the lad came to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot,
Jonathan called after the lad and said, “Is not the arrow beyond you?”
38And Jonathan called after the lad, “Hurry, make haste, stay not.” So
Jonathan’s lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master. 39But the lad
knew nothing; only Jonathan and David knew the matter. 40And Jonathan
gave his weapons to his lad, and said to him, “Go and carry them to the
city.” 41And as soon as the lad had gone, David rose from beside the stone
heap o and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times; and they
kissed one another, and wept with one another, until David recovered
himself. p 42Then Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, forasmuch as we
have sworn both of us in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘The LORD shall be
between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants,
for ever.’ ” And he rose and departed; and Jonathan went into the city. q
David and the Holy Bread
21 r Then came David to Nob to Ahim'elech the priest; and Ahimelech
came to meet David trembling, and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no
one with you?” 2And David said to Ahim'elech the priest, “The king has
charged me with a matter, and said to me, ‘Let no one know anything of the
matter about which I send you, and with which I have charged you.’ I have
made an appointment with the young men for such and such a place. 3Now
then, what have you at hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever is
here.” 4And the priest answered David, “I have no common bread at hand,
but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from
women.” 5And David answered the priest, “Of a truth women have been
kept from us as always when I go on an expedition; the vessels of the young
men are holy, even when it is a common journey; how much more today
will their vessels be holy?” 6So the priest gave him the holy bread; for there
was no bread there but the bread of the Presence, which is removed from
before the LORD, to be replaced by hot bread on the day it is taken away.
7 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained
before the LORD; his name was Do'eg the E'domite, the chief of Saul’s
herdsmen.
8 And David said to Ahim'elech, “And have you not here a spear or a
sword at hand? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with
me, because the king’s business required haste.” 9And the priest said, “The
sword of Goliath the Philis'tine, whom you killed in the valley of E'lah,
behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod; if you will take that,
take it, for there is none but that here.” And David said, “There is none like
that; give it to me.”
David Flees to Gath
10 And David rose and fled that day from Saul, and went to A'chish the
king of Gath. 11And the servants of A'chish said to him, “Is not this David
the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another of him in dances,
‘Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his ten thousands’?”
12And David took these words to heart, and was much afraid of A'chish
the king of Gath. 13So he changed his behavior before them, and feigned
himself mad in their hands, and made marks on the doors of the gate, and
let his spittle run down his beard. 14Then said A'chish to his servants,
“Behold, you see the man is mad; why then have you brought him to me?
15Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman
in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?”

David and His Followers at Adullam
22 David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adul'lam; and
when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there
to him. 2And every one who was in distress, and every one who was in debt,
and every one who was discontented, gathered to him; and he became
captain over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.
3 And David went from there to Mizpeh of Moab; and he said to the king
of Moab, “Please let my father and my mother stay s with you, till I know
what God will do for me.” 4And he left them with the king of Moab, and
they stayed with him all the time that David was in the stronghold. 5Then
the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not remain in the stronghold; depart,
and go into the land of Judah.” So David departed, and went into the forest
of He'reth.
Saul Slaughters the Priests at Nob
6 Now Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men who were with
him. Saul was sitting at Gib'e-ah, under the tamarisk tree on the height, with
his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. 7And
Saul said to his servants who stood about him, “Hear now, you
Benjaminites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and
vineyards, will he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders
of hundreds, 8that all of you have conspired against me? No one discloses to
me when my son makes a league with the son of Jesse, none of you is sorry
for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me,
to lie in wait, as at this day.” 9Then answered Do'eg the E'domite, who
stood by the servants of Saul, “I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to
Ahim'elech the son of Ahi'tub, 10and he inquired of the LORD for him, and
gave him provisions, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philis'tine.”
11 Then the king sent to summon Ahim'elech the priest, the son of Ahi'tub,
and all his father’s house, the priests who were at Nob; and all of them
came to the king. 12And Saul said, “Hear now, son of Ahi'tub.” And he
answered, “Here I am, my lord.” 13And Saul said to him, “Why have you
conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him
bread and a sword, and have inquired of God for him, so that he has risen
against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?” 14Then Ahim'elech answered the
king, “And who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the
king’s son-in-law, and captain over t your bodyguard, and honored in your
house? 15Is today the first time that I have inquired of God for him? No! Let
not the king impute anything to his servant or to all the house of my father;
for your servant has known nothing of all this, much or little.” 16And the
king said, “You shall surely die, Ahim'elech, you and all your father’s
house.” 17And the king said to the guard who stood about him, “Turn and
kill the priests of the LORD; because their hand also is with David, and they
knew that he fled, and did not disclose it to me.” But the servants of the
king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD.
18Then the king said to Do'eg, “You turn and fall upon the priests.” And
Doeg the E'domite turned and fell upon the priests, and he killed on that day
eighty-five persons who wore the linen ephod. 19And Nob, the city of the
priests, he put to the sword; both men and women, children and sucklings,
oxen, donkeys and sheep, he put to the sword.
20 But one of the sons of Ahim'elech the son of Ahi'tub, named Abi'athar,
escaped and fled after David. 21And Abi'athar told David that Saul had
killed the priests of the LORD. 22And David said to Abi'athar, “I knew on
that day, when Do'eg the E'domite was there, that he would surely tell Saul.
I have occasioned the death of all the persons of your father’s house. 23Stay
with me, fear not; for he that seeks my life seeks your life; with me you
shall be in safekeeping.”
David Saves the City of Keilah
23 Now they told David, “Behold, the Philis'tines are fighting against
Kei'lah, and are robbing the threshing floors.” 2Therefore David inquired of
the LORD, “Shall I go and attack these Philis'tines?” And the LORD said to
David, “Go and attack the Philistines and save Kei'lah.” 3But David’s men
said to him, “Behold, we are afraid here in Judah; how much more then if
we go to Kei'lah against the armies of the Philis'tines?” 4Then David
inquired of the LORD again. And the LORD answered him, “Arise, go down
to Kei'lah; for I will give the Philis'tines into your hand.” 5And David and
his men went to Kei'lah, and fought with the Philis'tines, and brought away
their cattle, and made a great slaughter among them. So David delivered the
inhabitants of Keilah.
6 When Abi'athar the son of Ahim'elech fled to David to Kei'lah, he came
down with an ephod in his hand. 7Now it was told Saul that David had
come to Kei'lah. And Saul said, “God has given him into my hand; for he
has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars.” 8And Saul
summoned all the people to war, to go down to Kei'lah, to besiege David
and his men. 9David knew that Saul was plotting evil against him; and he
said to Abi'athar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.” 10Then said David, “O
LORD, the God of Israel, your servant has surely heard that Saul seeks to
come to Kei'lah, to destroy the city on my account. 11Will the men of
Kei'lah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as your servant
has heard? O LORD, the God of Israel, I beg you, tell your servant.” And the
LORD said, “He will come down.” 12Then said David, “Will the men of
Kei'lah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?” And the LORD
said, “They will surrender you.” 13Then David and his men, who were
about six hundred, arose and departed from Kei'lah, and they went wherever
they could go. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he
gave up the expedition. 14And David remained in the strongholds in the
wilderness, in the hill country of the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought
him every day, but God did not give him into his hand.
David Eludes Saul in the Wilderness
15 And David was afraid because u Saul had come out to seek his life.
David was in the wilderness of Ziph at Horesh. 16And Jonathan, Saul’s son,
rose, and went to David at Horesh, and strengthened his hand in God. 17And
he said to him, “Fear not; for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you;
you shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you; Saul my father also
knows this.” 18And the two of them made a covenant before the LORD;
David remained at Horesh, and Jonathan went home.
19 Then the Ziphites went up to Saul at Gib'e-ah, saying, “Does not David
hide among us in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hachi'lah, which

is south of Jeshi'mon? 20Now come down, O king, according to all your
heart’s desire to come down; and our part shall be to surrender him into the
king’s hand.” 21And Saul said, “May you be blessed by the LORD; for you
have had compassion on me. 22Go, make yet more sure; know and see the
place where his haunt is, and who has seen him there; for it is told me that
he is very cunning. 23See therefore, and take note of all the lurking places
where he hides, and come back to me with sure information. Then I will go
with you; and if he is in the land, I will search him out among all the
thousands of Judah.” 24And they arose, and went to Ziph ahead of Saul.
Now David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon, in the Ar'abah to
the south of Jeshi'mon. 25And Saul and his men went to seek him. And
David was told; therefore he went down to the rock which is v in the
wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in
the wilderness of Maon. 26Saul went on one side of the mountain, and
David and his men on the other side of the mountain; and David was
making haste to get away from Saul, as Saul and his men were closing in
upon David and his men to capture them, 27when a messenger came to Saul,
saying, “Make haste and come; for the Philis'tines have made a raid upon
the land.” 28So Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went against
the Philis'tines; therefore that place was called the Rock of Escape. 29w And
David went up from there, and dwelt in the strongholds of En-ge'di.
David Spares Saul’s Life
24 When Saul returned from following the Philis'tines, he was told,
“Behold, David is in the wilderness of En-ge'di.” 2Then Saul took three
thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men
in front of the Wildgoats’ Rocks. 3And he came to the sheepfolds by the
way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now
David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. 4And the
men of David said to him, “Here is the day of which the LORD said to you,
‘Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as
it shall seem good to you.’ ” Then David arose and stealthily cut off the
skirt of Saul’s robe. 5And afterward David’s heart struck him, because he
had cut off Saul’s skirt. 6He said to his men, “The LORD forbid that I should
do this thing to my lord, the LORD’s anointed, to put forth my hand against
him, seeing he is the LORD’s anointed.” 7So David persuaded his men with
these words, and did not permit them to attack Saul. And Saul rose up and
left the cave, and went upon his way.
8 Afterward David also arose, and went out of the cave, and called after
Saul, “My lord the king!” And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed
with his face to the earth, and did obeisance. 9And David said to Saul,
“Why do you listen to the words of men who say, ‘Behold, David seeks
your hurt’? 10Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the LORD gave you
today into my hand in the cave; and some bade me kill you, but I x spared
you. I said, ‘I will not put forth my hand against my lord; for he is the
LORD’s anointed.’ 11See, my father, see the skirt of your robe in my hand;
for by the fact that I cut off the skirt of your robe, and did not kill you, you
may know and see that there is no wrong or treason in my hands. I have not
sinned against you, though you hunt my life to take it. 12May the LORD
judge between me and you, may the LORD avenge me upon you; but my
hand shall not be against you. 13As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Out of
the wicked comes forth wickedness’; but my hand shall not be against you.
14After whom has the king of Israel come out? After whom do you pursue?
After a dead dog! After a flea! 15May the LORD therefore be judge, and give
sentence between me and you, and see to it, and plead my cause, and
deliver me from your hand.”
16 When David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, “Is
this your voice, my son David?” And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.
17He said to David, “You are more righteous than I; for you have repaid me
good, whereas I have repaid you evil. 18And you have declared this day
how you have dealt well with me, in that you did not kill me when the LORD
put me into your hands. 19For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go
away safe? So may the LORD reward you with good for what you have done
to me this day. 20And now, behold, I know that you shall surely be king, and
that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand. 21Swear to me
therefore by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants after me,
and that you will not destroy my name out of my father’s house.” 22And
David swore this to Saul. Then Saul went home; but David and his men
went up to the stronghold.
Death of Samuel
25 Now Samuel died; and all Israel assembled and mourned for him,
and they buried him in his house at Ra'mah.
David and Abigail
Then David rose and went down to the wilderness of Par'an. 2And there
was a man in Maon, whose business was in Carmel. The man was very rich;
he had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. He was shearing his
sheep in Carmel. 3Now the name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his
wife Ab'igail. The woman was of good understanding and beautiful, but the
man was churlish and ill-behaved; he was a Ca'lebite. 4David heard in the
wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. 5So David sent ten young
men; and David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, and go to Nabal,
and greet him in my name. 6And thus you shall salute him: ‘Peace be to
you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have. 7I hear
that you have shearers; now your shepherds have been with us, and we did
them no harm, and they missed nothing, all the time they were in Carmel.
8Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men
find favor in your eyes; for we come on a feast day. Please, give whatever
you have at hand to your servants and to your son David.’ ”
9 When David’s young men came, they said all this to Nabal in the name
of David; and then they waited. 10And Nabal answered David’s servants,
“Who is David? Who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants
nowadays who are breaking away from their masters. 11Shall I take my
bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and
give it to men who come from I do not know where?” 12So David’s young
men turned away, and came back and told him all this. 13And David said to
his men, “Every man belt on his sword!” And every man of them belted on
his sword; David also belted on his sword; and about four hundred men
went up after David, while two hundred remained with the baggage.
14 But one of the young men told Ab'igail, Nabal’s wife, “Behold, David
sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed at
them. 15Yet the men were very good to us, and we suffered no harm, and we
did not miss anything when we were in the fields, as long as we went with
them; 16they were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we
were with them keeping the sheep. 17Now therefore know this and consider
what you should do; for evil is determined against our master and against
all his house, and he is so ill-natured that one cannot speak to him.”
18 Then Ab'igail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two skins
of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched grain,
and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid
them on donkeys. 19And she said to her young men, “Go on before me;
behold, I come after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal. 20And as
she rode on the donkey, and came down under cover of the mountain,
behold, David and his men came down toward her; and she met them.
21Now David had said, “Surely in vain have I guarded all that this fellow
has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to
him; and he has returned me evil for good. 22God do so to David y and more
also, if by morning I leave so much as one male of all who belong to him.”
23 When Ab'igail saw David, she made haste, and alighted from the
donkey, and fell before David on her face, and bowed to the ground. 24She
fell at his feet and said, “Upon me alone, my lord, be the guilt; please let
your handmaid speak in your hearing, and hear the words of your
handmaid. 25Let not my lord regard this ill-natured fellow, Nabal; for as his
name is, so is he; Nabal z is his name, and folly is with him; but I your
handmaid did not see the young men of my lord, whom you sent. 26Now
then, my lord, as the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, seeing the LORD has
restrained you from bloodguilt, and from taking vengeance with your own
hand, now then let your enemies and those who seek to do evil to my lord
be as Nabal. 27And now let this present which your servant has brought to
my lord be given to the young men who follow my lord. 28Please forgive
the trespass of your handmaid; for the LORD will certainly make my lord a
sure house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the LORD; and evil
shall not be found in you so long as you live. 29If men rise up to pursue you
and to seek your life, the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the
living in the care of the LORD your God; and the lives of your enemies he
shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling. 30And when the LORD has done
to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you, and
has appointed you prince over Israel, 31my lord shall have no cause of grief,
or pangs of conscience, for having shed blood without cause or for my lord
taking vengeance himself. And when the LORD has dealt well with my lord,
then remember your handmaid.”
32 And David said to Ab'igail, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
who sent you this day to meet me! 33Blessed be your discretion, and blessed
be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from avenging
myself with my own hand! 34For as surely as the LORD the God of Israel
lives, who has restrained me from hurting you, unless you had made haste
and come to meet me, truly by morning there had not been left to Nabal so
much as one male.” 35Then David received from her hand what she had
brought him; and he said to her, “Go up in peace to your house; see, I have
listened to your voice, and I have granted your petition.”
36 And Ab'igail came to Nabal; and behold, he was holding a feast in his
house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for
he was very drunk; so she told him nothing at all until the morning light.
37And in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, his wife told
him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.
38And about ten days later the LORD struck Nabal; and he died.
39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “Blessed be the LORD
who has avenged the insult I received at the hand of Nabal, and has kept
back his servant from evil; the LORD has returned the evil-doing of Nabal
upon his own head.” Then David sent and wooed Ab'igail, to make her his
wife. 40And when the servants of David came to Ab'igail at Carmel, they
said to her, “David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife.” 41And
she rose and bowed with her face to the ground, and said, “Behold, your
handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.” 42And
Ab'igail made haste and rose and mounted on a donkey, and her five
maidens attended her; she went after the messengers of David, and became
his wife.
Ahino-am of Jezreel
43 David also took Ahin'o-am of Jezre'el; and both of them became his
wives. 44Saul had given Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to Palti the son
of La'ish, who was of Gallim.
David Again Spares Saul’s Life
26 Then the Ziphites came to Saul at Gib'eah, saying, “Is not David
hiding himself on the hill of Hachi'lah, which is on the east of Jeshi'mon?”
2So Saul arose and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, with three
thousand chosen men of Israel, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph.

3And Saul encamped on the hill of Hachi'lah, which is beside the road on
the east of Jeshi'mon. But David remained in the wilderness; and when he
saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness, 4David sent out spies, and
learned of a certainty that Saul had come. 5Then David rose and came to the
place where Saul had encamped; and David saw the place where Saul lay,
with Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army; Saul was lying
within the encampment, while the army was encamped around him.
6 Then David said to Ahim'elech the Hittite, and to Jo'ab’s brother Abi'shai
the son of Zeru'iah, “Who will go down with me into the camp to Saul?”
And Abishai said, “I will go down with you.” 7So David and Abi'shai went
to the army by night; and there lay Saul sleeping within the encampment,
with his spear stuck in the ground at his head; and Abner and the army lay
around him. 8Then said Abi'shai to David, “God has given your enemy into
your hand this day; now therefore let me pin him to the earth with one
stroke of the spear, and I will not strike him twice.” 9But David said to
Abi'shai, “Do not destroy him; for who can put forth his hand against the
LORD’s anointed, and be guiltless?” 10And David said, “As the LORD lives,
the LORD will strike him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall go down
into battle and perish. 11The LORD forbid that I should put forth my hand
against the LORD’s anointed; but take now the spear that is at his head, and
the jar of water, and let us go.” 12So David took the spear and the jar of
water from Saul’s head; and they went away. No man saw it, or knew it, nor
did any awake; for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the
LORD had fallen upon them.
13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood afar off on the top of
the mountain, with a great space between them; 14and David called to the
army, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not answer, Abner?”
Then Abner answered, “Who are you that calls to the king?” 15And David
said to Abner, “Are you not a man? Who is like you in Israel? Why then
have you not kept watch over your lord the king? For one of the people
came in to destroy the king your lord. 16This thing that you have done is not
good. As the LORD lives, you deserve to die, because you have not kept
watch over your lord, the LORD’s anointed. And now see where the king’s
spear is, and the jar of water that was at his head.”
17 Saul recognized David’s voice, and said, “Is this your voice, my son
David?” And David said, “It is my voice, my lord, O king.” 18And he said,
“Why does my lord pursue after his servant? For what have I done? What
guilt is on my hands? 19Now therefore let my lord the king hear the words
of his servant. If it is the LORD who has stirred you up against me, may he
accept an offering; but if it is men, may they be cursed before the LORD, for
they have driven me out this day that I should have no share in the heritage
of the LORD, saying, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ * 20Now therefore, let not my
blood fall to the earth away from the presence of the LORD; for the king of
Israel has come out to seek my life, a like one who hunts a partridge in the
mountains.”
21 Then Saul said, “I have done wrong; return, my son David, for I will no
more do you harm, because my life was precious in your eyes this day;
behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly.” 22And David
made answer, “Here is the spear, O king! Let one of the young men come
over and fetch it. 23The LORD rewards every man for his righteousness and
his faithfulness; for the LORD gave you into my hand today, and I would not
put forth my hand against the LORD’s anointed. 24Behold, as your life was
precious this day in my sight, so may my life be precious in the sight of the
LORD, and may he deliver me out of all tribulation.” 25Then Saul said to
David, “Blessed be you, my son David! You will do many things and will
succeed in them.” So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place.
David Goes to King Achish in Gath
27 And David said in his heart, “I shall now perish one day by the hand
of Saul; there is nothing better for me than that I should escape to the land
of the Philis'tines; then Saul will despair of seeking me any longer within
the borders of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand.” 2So David arose
and went over, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to A'chish
the son of Ma'och, king of Gath. 3And David dwelt with A'chish at Gath, he
and his men, every man with his household, and David with his two wives,
Ahin'o-am of Jezre'el, and Ab'igail of Carmel, Nabal’s widow. 4And when it
was told Saul that David had fled to Gath, he sought for him no more.
5 Then David said to A'chish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let a
place be given me in one of the country towns, that I may dwell there; for
why should your servant dwell in the royal city with you?” 6So that day
A'chish gave him Zik'lag; therefore Zik'lag has belonged to the kings of
Judah to this day. 7And the number of the days that David dwelt in the
country of the Philis'tines was a year and four months.
8 Now David and his men went up, and made raids upon the Gesh'urites,
the Girzites, and the Amal'ekites; for these were the inhabitants of the land
from of old, as far as Shur, to the land of Egypt. 9And David struck the
land, and left neither man nor woman alive, but took away the sheep, the
oxen, the donkeys, the camels, and the garments, and came back to A'chish.
10When A'chish asked, “Against whom b have you made a raid today?”
David would say, “Against the Neg'eb of Judah,” or “Against the Negeb of
the Jerah'meelites,” or, “Against the Negeb of the Kenites.” 11And David
saved neither man nor woman alive, to bring tidings to Gath, thinking,
“Lest they should tell about us, and say, ‘So David has done.’ ” Such was
his custom all the while he dwelt in the country of the Philis'tines. 12And
A'chish trusted David, thinking, “He has made himself utterly abhorred by
his people Israel; therefore he shall be my servant always.”
28 In those days the Philis'tines gathered their forces for war, to fight
against Israel. And A'chish said to David, “Understand that you and your
men are to go out with me in the army.” 2David said to A'chish, “Very well,
you shall know what your servant can do.” And Achish said to David,
“Very well, I will make you my bodyguard for life.”
Saul Consults a Medium at En-dor
3 Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried
him in Ra'mah, his own city. And Saul had put the mediums and the
wizards out of the land. 4The Philis'tines assembled, and came and
encamped at Shu'nem; and Saul gathered all Israel, and they encamped at
Gilbo'a. 5When Saul saw the army of the Philis'tines, he was afraid, and his
heart trembled greatly. 6And when Saul inquired of the LORD, the LORD did
not answer him, either by dreams, or by U'rim, or by prophets. 7Then Saul
said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may
go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is
a medium at En-dor.”
8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other garments, and went, he and
two men with him; and they came to the woman by night. And he said,
“Divine for me by a spirit, and bring up for me whomever I shall name to
you.” 9The woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how
he has cut off the mediums and the wizards from the land. Why then are
you laying a snare for my life to bring about my death?” 10But Saul swore
to her by the LORD, “As the LORD lives, no punishment shall come upon
you for this thing.” 11Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for
you?” He said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” 12When the woman saw Samuel,
she cried out with a loud voice; and the woman said to Saul, “Why have
you deceived me? You are Saul.” 13The king said to her, “Have no fear;
what do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a god coming up out
of the earth.” 14He said to her, “What is his appearance?” And she said, “An
old man is coming up; and he is wrapped in a robe.” And Saul knew that it
was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground, and did obeisance.
15 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me
up?” Saul answered, “I am in great distress; for the Philis'tines are warring
against me, and God has turned away from me and answers me no more,
either by prophets or by dreams; therefore I have summoned you to tell me
what I shall do.” 16And Samuel said, “Why then do you ask me, since the
LORD has turned from you and become your enemy? 17The LORD has done
to you as he spoke by me; for the LORD has torn the kingdom out of your
hand, and given it to your neighbor, David. 18Because you did not obey the
voice of the LORD, and did not carry out his fierce wrath against Am'alek,
therefore the LORD has done this thing to you this day. 19Moreover the LORD
will give Israel also with you into the hand of the Philis'tines; and tomorrow
you and your sons shall be with me; the LORD will give the army of Israel
also into the hand of the Philistines.”
20 Then Saul fell at once full length upon the ground, filled with fear
because of the words of Samuel; and there was no strength in him, for he
had eaten nothing all day and all night. 21And the woman came to Saul, and
when she saw that he was terrified, she said to him, “Behold, your
handmaid has listened to you; I have taken my life in my hand, and have
listened to what you have said to me. 22Now therefore, you also listen to
your handmaid; let me set a morsel of bread before you; and eat, that you
may have strength when you go on your way.” 23He refused, and said, “I
will not eat.” But his servants, together with the woman, urged him; and he
listened to their words. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed.
24Now the woman had a fatted calf in the house, and she quickly killed it,
and she took flour, and kneaded it and baked unleavened bread of it, 25and
she put it before Saul and his servants; and they ate. Then they rose and
went away that night.
The Philistines Reject David
29 Now the Philis'tines gathered all their forces at A'phek; and the
Israelites were encamped by the fountain which is in Jezre'el. 2As the lords
of the Philis'tines were passing on by hundreds and by thousands, and
David and his men were passing on in the rear with A'chish, 3the
commanders of the Philis'tines said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?”
And A'chish said to the commanders of the Philistines, “Is not this David,
the servant of Saul, king of Israel, who has been with me now for days and
years, and since he deserted to me I have found no fault in him to this day.”
4But the commanders of the Philis'tines were angry with him; and the
commanders of the Philistines said to him, “Send the man back, that he may
return to the place to which you have assigned him; he shall not go down
with us to battle, lest in the battle he become an adversary to us. For how
could this fellow reconcile himself to his lord? Would it not be with the
heads of the men here? 5Is not this David, of whom they sing to one another
in dances,
‘Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his ten thousands’?”
6 Then A'chish called David and said to him, “As the LORD lives, you have
been honest, and to me it seems right that you should march out and in with
me in the campaign; for I have found nothing wrong in you from the day of
your coming to me to this day. Nevertheless the lords do not approve of
you. 7So go back now; and go peaceably, that you may not displease the
lords of the Philis'tines.” 8And David said to A'chish, “But what have I
done? What have you found in your servant from the day I entered your
service until now, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my
lord the king?” 9And A'chish made answer to David, “I know that you are
as blameless in my sight as an angel of God; nevertheless the commanders
of the Philis'tines have said, ‘He shall not go up with us to the battle.’
10Now then rise early in the morning with the servants of your lord who
came with you; and start early in the morning, and depart as soon as you
have light.” 11So David set out with his men early in the morning, to return
to the land of the Philis'tines. But the Philistines went up to Jezre'el.
David Avenges the Destruction of Ziklag
30 Now when David and his men came to Zik'lag on the third day, the
Amal'ekites had made a raid upon the Neg'eb and upon Ziklag. They had
overcome Ziklag, and burned it with fire, 2and taken captive the women and
all c who were in it, both small and great; they killed no one, but carried
them off, and went their way. 3And when David and his men came to the
city, they found it burned with fire, and their wives and sons and daughters
taken captive. 4Then David and the people who were with him raised their
voices and wept, until they had no more strength to weep. 5David’s two
wives also had been taken captive, Ahin'o-am of Jezre'el, and Ab'igail the
widow of Nabal of Carmel. 6And David was greatly distressed; for the
people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each
for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his
God.
7 And David said to Abi'athar the priest, the son of Ahim'elech, “Bring me
the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8And David inquired
of the LORD, “Shall I pursue after this band? Shall I overtake them?” He
answered him, “Pursue; for you shall surely overtake and shall surely
rescue.” 9So David set out, and the six hundred men who were with him,
and they came to the brook Be'sor, where those stayed who were left
behind. 10But David went on with the pursuit, he and four hundred men;
two hundred stayed behind, who were too exhausted to cross the brook
Be'sor.
11 They found an Egyptian in the open country, and brought him to David;
and they gave him bread and he ate, they gave him water to drink, 12and
they gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. And
when he had eaten, his spirit revived; for he had not eaten bread or drunk
water for three days and three nights. 13And David said to him, “To whom
do you belong? And where are you from?” He said, “I am a young man of
Egypt, servant to an Amal'ekite; and my master left me behind because I
fell sick three days ago. 14We had made a raid upon the Neg'eb of the
Cher'ethites and upon that which belongs to Judah and upon the Negeb of
Caleb; and we burned Zik'lag with fire.” 15And David said to him, “Will
you take me down to this band?” And he said, “Swear to me by God, that
you will not kill me, or deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will
take you down to this band.”
16 And when he had taken him down, behold, they were spread abroad
over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great
spoil they had taken from the land of the Philis'tines and from the land of
Judah. 17And David struck them from twilight until the evening of the next
day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who
mounted camels and fled. 18David recovered all that the Amal'ekites had
taken; and David rescued his two wives. 19Nothing was missing, whether
small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that had been taken;
David brought back all. 20David also captured all the flocks and herds; and
the people drove those cattle before him, d and said, “This is David’s spoil.”
21 Then David came to the two hundred men, who had been too exhausted
to follow David, and who had been left at the brook Be'sor; and they went
out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him; and when
David drew near to the people he saluted them. 22Then all the wicked and
base fellows among the men who had gone with David said, “Because they
did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil which we have
recovered, except that each man may lead away his wife and children, and
depart.” 23But David said, “You shall not do so, my brothers, with what the
LORD has given us; he has preserved us and given into our hand the band
that came against us. 24Who would listen to you in this matter? For as his
share is who goes down into the battle, so shall his share be who stays by
the baggage; they shall share alike.” 25And from that day forward he made
it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.
26 When David came to Zik'lag, he sent part of the spoil to his friends, the
elders of Judah, saying, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the
enemies of the LORD”; 27it was for those in Bethel, in Ra'moth of the
Neg'eb, in Jat'tir, 28in Aro'er, in Siphmoth, in Eshtemo'a, 29in Racal, in the
cities of the Jerah'meelites, in the cities of the Kenites, 30in Hormah, in
Borash'an, in A'thach, 31in He'bron, for all the places where David and his
men had roamed.
The Death of Saul and His Sons
31 Now the Philis'tines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled
before the Philistines, and fell slain on Mount Gilbo'a. 2And the Philis'tines
overtook Saul and his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan and Abin'adab
and Mal''chishu'a, the sons of Saul. 3The battle pressed hard upon Saul, and
the archers found him; and he was badly wounded by the archers. 4Then
Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through
with it, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and make
sport of me.” But his armor-bearer would not; for he feared greatly.
Therefore Saul took his own sword, and fell upon it. 5And when his armor-
bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword, and died with
him. 6Thus Saul died, and his three sons, and his armor-bearer, and all his
men, on the same day together. 7And when the men of Israel who were on
the other side of the valley and those beyond the Jordan saw that the men of
Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook their
cities and fled; and the Philis'tines came and dwelt in them.
8 On the next day, when the Philis'tines came to strip the slain, they found
Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilbo'a. 9And they cut off his head,
and stripped off his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the
Philis'tines, to carry the good news to their idols e and to the people. 10They
put his armor in the temple of Ash'taroth; and they fastened his body to the
wall of Beth-shan. 11But when the inhabitants of Ja'besh-gil'ead heard what
the Philis'tines had done to Saul, 12all the valiant men arose, and went all
night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of
Beth-shan; and they came to Ja'besh and burnt them there. 13And they took
their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Ja'besh, and fasted
seven days.
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2 Samuel
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
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THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMUEL
David Mourns Saul and Jonathan
1 After the death of Saul, when David had returned from the slaughter
of the Amal'ekites, David remained two days in Zik'lag; 2and on the third
day, behold, a man came from Saul’s camp, with his clothes torn and earth
upon his head. And when he came to David, he fell to the ground and did
obeisance. 3David said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to
him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” 4And David said to him,
“How did it go? Tell me.” And he answered, “The people have fled from
the battle, and many of the people also have fallen and are dead; and Saul
and his son Jonathan are also dead.” 5Then David said to the young man
who told him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?”
6And the young man who told him said, “By chance I happened to be on
Mount Gilbo'a; and there was Saul leaning upon his spear; and behold, the
chariots and the horsemen were close upon him. 7And when he looked
behind him, he saw me, and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’
8And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ I answered him, ‘I am an Amal'ekite.’
9And he said to me, ‘Stand beside me and slay me; for anguish has seized
me, and yet my life still lingers.’ 10So I stood beside him, and slew him,
because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen; and I took the
crown which was on his head and the armlet which was on his arm, and I
have brought them here to my lord.”
11 Then David took hold of his clothes, and tore them; and so did all the
men who were with him; 12and they mourned and wept and fasted until
evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son and for the people of the LORD
and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. 13And
David said to the young man who told him, “Where do you come from?”
And he answered, “I am the son of a sojourner, an Amal'ekite.” 14David
said to him, “How is it you were not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy
the LORD’s anointed?” 15Then David called one of the young men and
said, “Go, fall upon him.” And he struck him so that he died. 16And David
said to him, “Your blood be upon your head; for your own mouth has
testified against you, saying, ‘I have slain the LORD’s anointed.’ ”
David’s Lamentation
17 And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and Jonathan his
son, 18and he said it a should be taught to the people of Judah; behold, it is
written in the Book of Jashar. b He said:
19 “Your glory, O Israel, is slain upon your high places!
How are the mighty fallen!

20Tell it not in Gath,
publish it not in the streets of Ash'kelon;

lest the daughters of the Philis'tines rejoice,
lest the daughters of the uncircumcised exult.
21“You mountains of Gilbo'a,
let there be no dew or rain upon you,

nor upsurging of the deep! c
For there the shield of the mighty was defiled,
the shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.
22“From the blood of the slain,
from the fat of the mighty,

the bow of Jonathan turned not back,
and the sword of Saul returned not empty.
23“Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;

they were swifter than eagles,
they were stronger than lions.
24“You daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
who clothed you daintily in scarlet,
who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel.
25“How are the mighty fallen
in the midst of the battle!

“Jonathan lies slain upon your high places.
26 I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;
very pleasant have you been to me;

your love to me was wonderful,
passing the love of women. *
27“How are the mighty fallen,
and the weapons of war perished!”

David Anointed King of Judah
2 After this David inquired of the LORD, “Shall I go up into any of the
cities of Judah?” And the LORD said to him, “Go up.” David said, “To
which shall I go up?” And he said, “To He'bron.” 2So David went up there,
and his two wives also, Ahin'o-am of Jezre'el, and Ab'igail the widow of
Nabal of Carmel. 3And David brought up his men who were with him,
every one with his household; and they dwelt in the towns of He'bron. 4And
the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house
of Judah.
When they told David, “It was the men of Ja'besh-gil'ead who buried
Saul,” 5David sent messengers to the men of Ja'besh-gil'ead, and said to
them, “May you be blessed by the LORD, because you showed this loyalty
to Saul your lord, and buried him! 6Now may the LORD show mercy and
faithfulness to you! And I will do good to you because you have done this
thing. 7Now therefore let your hands be strong, and be valiant; for Saul your
lord is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”
Ish-bosheth Made King of Israel
8 Now Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, had taken Ish-
bo'sheth * the son of Saul, and brought him over to Ma''hana'im; 9and he
made him king over Gilead and the Ash'urites and Jezre'el and E'phraim and
Benjamin and all Israel. 10Ish-bo'sheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when
he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. But the house of
Judah followed David. 11And the time that David was king in He'bron over
the house of Judah was seven years and six months.
The Battle of Gibeon
12 Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ish-bo'sheth the son of Saul,
went out from Ma''hana'im to Gib'eon. 13And Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah, and
the servants of David, went out and met them at the pool of Gib'eon; and
they sat down, the one on the one side of the pool, and the other on the
other side of the pool. 14And Abner said to Jo'ab, “Let the young men arise
and play * before us.” And Joab said, “Let them arise.” 15Then they arose
and passed over by number, twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bo'sheth the son
of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David. 16And each caught his
opponent by the head, and thrust his sword in his opponent’s side; so they
fell down together. Therefore that place was called Hel'kath-hazzu'rim, d
which is at Gib'eon. 17And the battle was very fierce that day; and Abner
and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.
18 And the three sons of Zeru'iah were there, Jo'ab, Abi'shai, and As'ahel.
Now Asahel was as swift of foot as a wild gazelle; 19and As'ahel pursued
Abner, and as he went he turned neither to the right hand nor to the left
from following Abner. 20Then Abner looked behind him and said, “Is it
you, As'ahel?” And he answered, “It is I.” 21Abner said to him, “Turn aside
to your right hand or to your left, and seize one of the young men, and take
his spoil.” But As'ahel would not turn aside from following him. 22And
Abner said again to As'ahel, “Turn aside from following me; why should I
strike you to the ground? How then could I lift up my face to your brother
Jo'ab?” 23But he refused to turn aside; therefore Abner struck him in the
belly with the butt of his spear, so that the spear came out at his back; and
he fell there, and died where he was. And all who came to the place where
As'ahel had fallen and died, stood still.
24 But Jo'ab and Abi'shai pursued Abner; and as the sun was going down
they came to the hill of Ammah, which lies before Giah on the way to the
wilderness of Gib'eon. 25And the Benjaminites gathered themselves
together behind Abner, and became one band, and took their stand on the
top of a hill. 26Then Abner called to Jo'ab, “Shall the sword devour for
ever? Do you not know that the end will be bitter? How long will it be
before you bid your people turn from the pursuit of their brethren?” 27And
Jo'ab said, “As God lives, if you had not spoken, surely the men would have
given up the pursuit of their brethren in the morning.” 28So Jo'ab blew the
trumpet; and all the men stopped, and pursued Israel no more, nor did they
fight any more.
29 And Abner and his men went all that night through the Ar'abah; they
crossed the Jordan, and marching the whole forenoon they came to
Ma''hana'im. 30Jo'ab returned from the pursuit of Abner; and when he had
gathered all the people together, there were missing of David’s servants
nineteen men besides As'ahel. 31But the servants of David had slain of
Benjamin three hundred and sixty of Abner’s men. 32And they took up
As'ahel, and buried him in the tomb of his father, which was at Bethlehem.
And Jo'ab and his men marched all night, and the day broke upon them at
He'bron.
Abner Defects to David
3 There was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of
David; and David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul
became weaker and weaker.
2 And sons were born to David at He'bron: his first-born was Amnon, of
Ahin'o-am of Jezre'el; 3and his second, Chil'e-ab, of Ab'igail the widow of

Nabal of Carmel; and the third, Ab'salom the son of Ma'acah the daughter
of Talmai king of Ge'shur; 4and the fourth, Adoni'jah the son of Haggith;
and the fifth, Shephati'ah the son of Abi'tal; 5and the sixth, Ith're-am of
Eglah, David’s wife. These were born to David in He'bron.
6 While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David,
Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul. 7Now Saul had a
concubine, whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Ai'ah; and Ish-bo'sheth
said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?” 8Then
Abner was very angry over the words of Ish-bo'sheth, and said, “Am I a
dog’s head of Judah? This day I keep showing loyalty to the house of Saul
your father, to his brothers, and to his friends, and have not given you into
the hand of David; and yet you charge me today with a fault concerning a
woman. 9God do so to Abner and more also, if I do not accomplish for
David what the LORD has sworn to him, 10to transfer the kingdom from the
house of Saul, and set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah,
from Dan to Be'er-she'ba.” 11And Ish-bo'sheth could not answer Abner
another word, because he feared him.
12 And Abner sent messengers to David at He'bron, e saying, “To whom
does the land belong? Make your covenant with me, and behold, my hand
shall be with you to bring over all Israel to you.” 13And he said, “Good; I
will make a covenant with you; but one thing I require of you; that is, you
shall not see my face, unless you first bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when
you come to see my face.” 14Then David sent messengers to Ish-bo'sheth
Saul’s son, saying, “Give me my wife Michal, whom I betrothed at the price
of a hundred foreskins of the Philis'tines.” 15And Ish-bo'sheth sent, and took
her from her husband Pal'ti-el the son of La'ish. 16But her husband went
with her, weeping after her all the way to Bahu'rim. Then Abner said to
him, “Go, return”; and he returned.
17 And Abner conferred with the elders of Israel, saying, “For some time
past you have been seeking David as king over you. 18Now then bring it
about; for the LORD has promised David, saying, ‘By the hand of my
servant David I will save my people Israel from the hand of the Philis'tines,
and from the hand of all their enemies.’ ” 19Abner also spoke to Benjamin;
and then Abner went to tell David at He'bron all that Israel and the whole
house of Benjamin thought good to do.
20 When Abner came with twenty men to David at He'bron, David made a
feast for Abner and the men who were with him. 21And Abner said to
David, “I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel to my lord the king,
that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all
that your heart desires.” So David sent Abner away; and he went in peace.
Abner Is Killed by Joab
22 Just then the servants of David arrived with Jo'ab from a raid, bringing
much spoil with them. But Abner was not with David at He'bron, for he had
sent him away, and he had gone in peace. 23When Jo'ab and all the army
that was with him came, it was told Joab, “Abner the son of Ner came to the
king, and he has let him go, and he has gone in peace.” 24Then Jo'ab went to
the king and said, “What have you done? Behold, Abner came to you; why
is it that you have sent him away, so that he is gone? 25You know that
Abner the son of Ner came to deceive you, and to know your going out and
your coming in, and to know all that you are doing.”
26 When Jo'ab came out from David’s presence, he sent messengers after
Abner, and they brought him back from the cistern of Sirah; but David did
not know about it. 27And when Abner returned to He'bron, Jo'ab took him
aside into the midst of the gate to speak with him privately, and there he
struck him in the belly, so that he died, for the blood of As'ahel his brother.
28Afterward, when David heard of it, he said, “I and my kingdom are for
ever guiltless before the LORD for the blood of Abner the son of Ner. 29May
it fall upon the head of Jo'ab, and upon all his father’s house; and may the
house of Joab never be without one who has a discharge, or who is leprous,
or who holds a spindle, or who is slain by the sword, or who lacks bread!”
30So Jo'ab and Abi'shai his brother slew Abner, because he had killed their
brother As'ahel in the battle at Gib'eon.

31 Then David said to Jo'ab and to all the people who were with him,
“Tear your clothes, and put on sackcloth, and mourn before Abner.” And
King David followed the bier. 32They buried Abner at He'bron; and the king
lifted up his voice and wept at the grave of Abner; and all the people wept.
33And the king lamented for Abner, saying,
“Should Abner die as a fool dies?

34Your hands were not bound,
your feet were not fettered;

as one falls before the wicked
you have fallen.”
And all the people wept again over him. 35Then all the people came to
persuade David to eat bread while it was yet day; but David swore, saying,
“God do so to me and more also, if I taste bread or anything else till the sun
goes down!” 36And all the people took notice of it, and it pleased them; as
everything that the king did pleased all the people. 37So all the people and
all Israel understood that day that it had not been the king’s will to slay
Abner the son of Ner. 38And the king said to his servants, “Do you not
know that a prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel? 39And I am
this day weak, though anointed king; these men the sons of Zeru'iah are too
hard for me. The LORD repay the evildoer according to his wickedness!”
Ish-bosheth Is Assassinated
4 When Ish-bo'sheth, Saul’s son, heard that Abner had died at He'bron,
his courage failed, and all Israel was dismayed. 2Now Saul’s son had two
men who were captains of raiding bands; the name of the one was Ba'anah,
and the name of the other Re'chab, sons of Rimmon a man of Benjamin
from Be-er'oth (for Be-eroth also is reckoned to Benjamin; 3the Be-
er'othites fled to Gitta'im, and have been sojourners there to this day).
4 Jonathan, the son of Saul, had a son who was crippled in his feet. He was
five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezre'el;
and his nurse took him up, and fled; and, as she fled in her haste, he fell,
and became lame. And his name was Mephib'osheth.
5 Now the sons of Rimmon the Be-er'othite, Re'chab and Ba'anah, set out,
and about the heat of the day they came to the house of Ish-bo'sheth, as he
was taking his noonday rest. 6And behold, the doorkeeper of the house had
been cleaning wheat, but she grew drowsy and slept; so Re'chab and
Ba'anah his brother slipped in. f 7When they came into the house, as he lay
on his bed in his bedchamber, they struck him, and slew him, and beheaded
him. They took his head, and went by the way of the Ar'abah all night, 8and
brought the head of Ish-bo'sheth to David at He'bron. And they said to the
king, “Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul, your enemy, who
sought your life; the LORD has avenged my lord the king this day on Saul
and on his offspring.” 9But David answered Re'chab and Ba'anah his
brother, the sons of Rimmon the Be-er'othite, “As the LORD lives, who has
redeemed my life out of every adversity, 10when one told me, ‘Behold, Saul
is dead,’ and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and slew
him at Zik'lag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. 11How much
more, when wicked men have slain a righteous man in his own house upon
his bed, shall I not now require his blood at your hand, and destroy you
from the earth?” 12And David commanded his young men, and they killed
them, and cut off their hands and feet, and hanged them beside the pool at
He'bron. But they took the head of Ish-bo'sheth, and buried it in the tomb of
Abner at Hebron.
David Anointed King of All Israel
5 * Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at He'bron, and said,
“Behold, we are your bone and flesh. 2In times past, when Saul was king
over us, it was you that led out and brought in Israel; and the LORD said to
you, ‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince
over Israel.’ ” 3So all the elders of Israel came to the king at He'bron; and
King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD, and
they anointed David king over Israel. 4David was thirty years old when he
began to reign, and he reigned forty years. 5At He'bron he reigned over
Judah seven years and six months; and at Jerusalem he reigned over all
Israel and Judah thirty-three years.
Jerusalem Is Made Capital of the Kingdom
6 And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jeb'usites, the
inhabitants of the land, who said to David, “You will not come in here, but
the blind and the lame * will ward you off”—thinking, “David cannot come
in here.” 7Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city
of David. 8And David said on that day, “Whoever would strike the
Jeb'usites, let him get up the water shaft to attack the lame and the blind,
who are hated by David’s soul.” Therefore it is said, “The blind and the
lame shall not come into the house.” 9And David dwelt in the stronghold,
and called it the city of David. And David built the city round about from
the Millo inward. 10And David became greater and greater, for the LORD,
the God of hosts, was with him.
11 And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, also
carpenters and masons who built David a house. 12And David perceived
that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted
his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.
13 And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he
came from He'bron; and more sons and daughters were born to David.
14And these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem:
Sham'mu-a, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 15Ib'har, Eli'shu-a, Ne'pheg, Japhi'a,

16Elish'ama, Eli'ada, and Eliph'elet.
Philistine Attack Repulsed
17 When the Philis'tines heard that David had been anointed king over
Israel, all the Philistines went up in search of David; but David heard of it
and went down to the stronghold. 18Now the Philis'tines had come and
spread out in the valley of Reph'aim. 19And David inquired of the LORD,
“Shall I go up against the Philis'tines? Will you give them into my hand?”
And the LORD said to David, “Go up; for I will certainly give the Philistines
into your hand.” 20And David came to Ba'al-pera'zim, and David defeated
them there; and he said, “The LORD has broken through g my enemies
before me, like a bursting flood.” Therefore the name of that place is called
Ba'al-pera'zim. h 21And the Philis'tines left their idols there, and David and
his men carried them away.
22 And the Philis'tines came up yet again, and spread out in the valley of
Reph'aim. 23And when David inquired of the LORD, he said, “You shall not
go up; go around to their rear, and come upon them opposite the balsam
trees. 24And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam
trees, then bestir yourself; for then the LORD has gone out before you to
strike the army of the Philis'tines.” 25And David did as the LORD
commanded him, and struck the Philis'tines from Ge'ba to Gezer.
David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem
6 David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand.
2And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from
Ba'ale-ju'dah, to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the
name of the LORD of hosts who sits enthroned on the cherubim. 3And they
carried the ark of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house of
Abin'adab which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahi'o, i the sons of
Abinadab, were driving the new cart j 4with the ark of God; and Ahi'o i went
before the ark. 5And David and all the house of Israel were making merry
before the LORD with all their might, with songs k and lyres and harps and
tambourines and castanets and cymbals.
6 And when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put out his
hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. 7And the
anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah; and God struck him there
because he put forth his hand to the ark; l and he died there beside the ark of
God. 8And David was angry because the LORD had broken forth upon
Uzzah; and that place is called Per'ez-uz'zah, m to this day. 9And David was
afraid of the LORD that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the LORD
come to me?” 10So David was not willing to take the ark of the LORD into
the city of David; but David took it aside to the house of O'bed-e'dom the
Gittite. 11And the ark of the LORD remained in the house of O'bed-e'dom the
Gittite three months; and the LORD blessed Obed-edom and all his
household.
12 And it was told King David, “The LORD has blessed the household of
O'bed-e'dom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” So
David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to
the city of David with rejoicing; 13and when those who bore the ark of the
LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. 14And David
danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was belted with a
linen ephod. 15So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the
LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the horn.
16 As the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal the daughter
of Saul looked out of the window, and saw King David leaping and dancing
before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. 17And they brought in
the ark of the LORD, and set it in its place, inside the tent which David had
pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before
the LORD. 18And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and
the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts,
19and distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both
men and women, to each a cake of bread, a portion of meat, n and a cake of
raisins. Then all the people departed, each to his house.
20 And David returned to bless his household. But Michal the daughter of
Saul came out to meet David, and said, “How the king of Israel honored
himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants’
maids, as one of the vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!” 21And
David said to Michal, “It was before the LORD, who chose me above your
father, and above all his house, to appoint me as prince over Israel, the
people of the LORD—and I will make merry before the LORD. 22I will
make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your o
eyes; but by the maids of whom you have spoken, by them I shall be held in
honor.” 23And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her
death.
God’s Promise to David
7 Now when the king dwelt in his house, and the LORD had given him
rest from all his enemies round about, 2the king said to Nathan the prophet,
“See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.”
3And Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart; for the LORD
is with you.”
4 But that same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan, 5“Go and tell
my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD: Would you build me a house to
dwell in? 6I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the sons of
Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my
dwelling. 7In all places where I have moved with all the sons of Israel, did I
speak a word with any of the judges p of Israel, whom I commanded to
shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of
cedar?” ’ 8Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus
says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the
sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel; 9and I have been
with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before
you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones
of the earth. 10And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will
plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be disturbed no
more; and violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, 11from the
time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest
from all your enemies. Moreover the LORD declares to you that the LORD
will make you a house. 12When your days are fulfilled and you lie down
with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come
forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13He shall build a
house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
14I will be his father, and he shall be my son. When he commits iniquity, I
will chasten him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men;
15but I will not take q my merciful love from him, as I took it from Saul,
whom I put away from before you. 16And your house and your kingdom
shall be made sure for ever before me; your throne shall be established for
ever.’ ” 17In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this
vision, Nathan spoke to David.
David’s Prayer
18 Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and said, “Who am
I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?
19And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord GOD; you have
spoken also of your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have
shown me future generations, r O Lord GOD! 20And what more can David
say to you? For you know your servant, O Lord GOD! 21Because of your
promise, and according to your own heart, you have wrought all this
greatness, to make your servant know it. 22Therefore you are great, O LORD
God; for there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according
to all that we have heard with our ears. 23What other s nation on earth is like
your people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be his people, making
himself a name, and doing for them t great and terrible things, by driving
out u before his people a nation and its gods? v 24And you established for
yourself your people Israel to be your people for ever; and you, O LORD,
became their God. 25And now, O LORD God, confirm for ever the word
which you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house,
and do as you have spoken; 26and your name will be magnified for ever,
saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is God over Israel,’ and the house of your
servant David will be established before you. 27For you, O LORD of hosts,
the God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, saying, ‘I will
build you a house’; therefore your servant has found courage to pray this
prayer to you. 28And now, O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are
true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant; 29now
therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, that it may
continue for ever before you; for you, O Lord GOD, have spoken, and with
your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed for ever.” *
David’s Wars
8 After this David defeated the Philis'tines and subdued them, and David
took Meth'eg-am'mah out of the hand of the Philistines.
2 And he defeated Moab, and measured them with a line, making them lie
down on the ground; two lines he measured to be put to death, and one full
line to be spared. And the Moabites became servants to David and brought
tribute.
3 David also defeated Hadade'zer the son of Re'hob, king of Zobah, as he
went to restore his power at the river Euphrates. 4And David took from him
a thousand and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers;
and David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but left enough for a hundred
chariots. 5And when the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadade'zer king
of Zobah, David slew twenty-two thousand men of the Syrians. 6Then
David put garrisons in Ar'am of Damascus; and the Syrians became
servants to David and brought tribute. And the LORD gave victory to David
wherever he went. 7And David took the shields of gold which were carried
by the servants of Hadade'zer, and brought them to Jerusalem. 8And from
Betah and from Bero'thai, cities of Hadade'zer, King David took very much
bronze.
9 When To'i king of Ha'math heard that David had defeated the whole
army of Hadade'zer, 10To'i sent his son Jo'ram to King David, to greet him,
and to congratulate him because he had fought against Hadade'zer and
defeated him; for Hadadezer had often been at war with Toi. And Joram
brought with him articles of silver, of gold, and of bronze; 11these also King
David dedicated to the LORD, together with the silver and gold which he
dedicated from all the nations he subdued, 12from E'dom, Moab, the
Am'monites, the Philis'tines, Am'alek, and from the spoil of Hadade'zer the
son of Re'hob, king of Zobah.
13 And David won a name for himself. When he returned, he slew eighteen
thousand E'domites w in the Valley of Salt. 14And he put garrisons in E'dom;

throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the E'domites became David’s
servants. And the LORD gave victory to David wherever he went.
David’s Officers
15 So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered justice and
equity to all his people. 16And Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah was over the army;
and Jehosh'aphat the son of Ahi'lud was recorder; 17and Zad'ok the son of
Ahi'tub and Ahim'elech the son of Abi'athar were priests; and Serai'ah was
secretary; 18and Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada was over x the Cher'ethites
and the Pel'ethites; and David’s sons were priests.
David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth
9 * And David said, “Is there still any one left of the house of Saul, that
I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2Now there was a servant
of the house of Saul whose name was Zi'ba, and they called him to David;
and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “Your servant is
he.” 3And the king said, “Is there not still some one of the house of Saul,
that I may show the kindness of God to him?” Zi'ba said to the king, “There
is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” 4The king said to him,
“Where is he?” And Zi'ba said to the king, “He is in the house of Ma'chir
the son of Am'miel, at Lo-de'bar.” 5Then King David sent and brought him
from the house of Ma'chir the son of Am'miel, at Lo-de'bar. 6And
Mephib'osheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David, and fell on
his face and did obeisance. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he
answered, “Behold, your servant.” 7And David said to him, “Do not fear;
for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will
restore to you all the land of Saul your father; and you shall eat at my table
always.” 8And he did obeisance, and said, “What is your servant, that you
should look upon a dead dog such as I?”
9 Then the king called Zi'ba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that
belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s son.
10And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him, and
shall bring in the produce, that your master’s son may have bread to eat; but
Mephib'osheth your master’s son shall always eat at my table.” Now Zi'ba
had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11Then Zi'ba said to the king,
“According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so will your
servant do.” So Mephib'osheth ate at David’s y table, like one of the king’s
sons. 12And Mephib'osheth had a young son, whose name was Mica. And
all who dwelt in Zi'ba’s house became Mephib'osheth’s servants. 13So
Mephib'osheth dwelt in Jerusalem; for he ate always at the king’s table.
Now he was lame in both his feet.
The Ammonites and Syrians Are Defeated
10 After this the king of the Am'monites died, and Ha'nun his son
reigned in his stead. 2And David said, “I will deal loyally with Ha'nun the
son of Na'hash, as his father dealt loyally with me.” So David sent by his
servants to console him concerning his father. And David’s servants came
into the land of the Am'monites. 3But the princes of the Am'monites said to
Ha'nun their lord, “Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you,
that he is honoring your father? Has not David sent his servants to you to
search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it?” 4So Ha'nun took
David’s servants, and shaved off half the beard of each, and cut off their
garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away. 5When it was told
David, he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the
king said, “Remain at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then
return.”
6 When the Am'monites saw that they had become odious to David, the
Ammonites sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-re'hob, and the Syrians of
Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, and the king of Ma'acah with a
thousand men, and the men of Tob, twelve thousand men. 7And when
David heard of it, he sent Jo'ab and all the host of the mighty men. 8And the
Am'monites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the
gate; and the Syrians of Zobah and of Re'hob, and the men of Tob and
Ma'acah, were by themselves in the open country.
9 When Jo'ab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in
the rear, he chose some of the picked men of Israel, and arrayed them
against the Syrians; 10the rest of his men he put in the charge of Abi'shai his
brother, and he arrayed them against the Am'monites. 11And he said, “If the
Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the Am'monites
are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. 12Be of good courage,
and let us play the man for our people, and for the cities of our God; and
may the LORD do what seems good to him.” 13So Jo'ab and the people who
were with him drew near to battle against the Syrians; and they fled before
him. 14And when the Am'monites saw that the Syrians fled, they likewise
fled before Abi'shai, and entered the city. Then Jo'ab returned from fighting
against the Ammonites, and came to Jerusalem.
15 But when the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they
gathered themselves together. 16And Hadade'zer sent, and brought out the
Syrians who were beyond the Euphra'tes; z and they came to He'lam, with
Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer at their head. 17And
when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together, and crossed the
Jordan, and came to He'lam. And the Syrians arrayed themselves against
David, and fought with him. 18And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David
slew of the Syrians the men of seven hundred chariots, and forty thousand
horsemen, and wounded Shobach the commander of their army, so that he
died there. 19And when all the kings who were servants of Hadade'zer saw
that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel, and
became subject to them. So the Syrians feared to help the Am'monites any
more.
David Commits Adultery with Bathsheba
11 * In the spring of the year, the time when kings go forth to battle,
David sent Jo'ab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they ravaged
the Am'monites, and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.
2 It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and
was walking upon the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a
woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. 3And David sent and
inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathshe'ba, the
daughter of Eli'am, the wife of Uri'ah the Hittite?” 4So David sent
messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now
she was purifying herself from her uncleanness.) Then she returned to her
house. 5And the woman conceived; and she sent and told David, “I am with
child.”
6 So David sent word to Jo'ab, “Send me Uri'ah the Hittite.” And Joab sent
Uriah to David. 7When Uri'ah came to him, David asked how Jo'ab was
doing, and how the people fared, and how the war prospered. 8Then David
said to Uri'ah, “Go down to your house, and wash your feet.” And Uriah
went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the
king. 9But Uri'ah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants
of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10When they told David,
“Uri'ah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Have you not
come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?” 11Uri'ah
said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths; and my lord
Jo'ab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field; shall I then
go to my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? * As you live,
and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.” 12Then David said to Uri'ah,
“Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.” So Uriah
remained in Jerusalem that day, and the next. 13And David invited him, and
he ate in his presence and drank, so that he made him drunk; and in the
evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he
did not go down to his house.
David Has Uriah Killed
14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Jo'ab, and sent it by the hand of
Uri'ah. 15In the letter he wrote, “Set Uri'ah in the forefront of the hardest
fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and
die.” 16And as Jo'ab was besieging the city, he assigned Uri'ah to the place
where he knew there were valiant men. 17And the men of the city came out
and fought with Jo'ab; and some of the servants of David among the people
fell. Uri'ah the Hittite was slain also. 18Then Jo'ab sent and told David all
the news about the fighting; 19and he instructed the messenger, “When you
have finished telling all the news about the fighting to the king, 20then, if
the king’s anger rises, and if he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near the
city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? 21Who
killed Abim'elech the son of Jerub'besheth? Did not a woman cast an upper
millstone upon him from the wall, so that he died at The'bez? Why did you
go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uri'ah the Hittite is
dead also.’ ”
22 So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Jo'ab had sent
him to tell. 23The messenger said to David, “The men gained an advantage
over us, and came out against us in the field; but we drove them back to the
entrance of the gate. 24Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall;
some of the king’s servants are dead; and your servant Uri'ah the Hittite is
dead also.” 25David said to the messenger, “Thus shall you say to Jo'ab, ‘Do
not let this matter trouble you, for the sword devours now one and now
another; strengthen your attack upon the city, and overthrow it.’ And
encourage him.”
26 When the wife of Uri'ah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she
made lamentation for her husband. 27And when the mourning was over,
David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife, and bore
him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.
Nathan Condemns David, and God Punishes Him
12 And the LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to
him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor.
2The rich man had very many flocks and herds; 3but the poor man had
nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up,
and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his morsel,
and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to
him. 4Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to
take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come
to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared it for the man who
had come to him.” 5Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the
man; and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this
deserves to die; 6and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this
thing, and because he had no pity.”
7 Nathan said to David, “You are the man. Thus says the LORD, the God of
Israel, ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand
of Saul; 8and I gave you your master’s house, and your master’s wives into
your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if this were
too little, I would add to you as much more. 9Why have you despised the
word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down
Uri'ah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife,
and have slain him with the sword of the Am'monites. 10Now therefore the
sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me,
and have taken the wife of Uri'ah the Hittite to be your wife.’ 11Thus says
the LORD, ‘Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house;
and I will take your wives before your eyes, and give them to your
neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. 12For you
did it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.’ ”
13David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” And Nathan said
to David, “The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die.
14Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the LORD, a
the child that is born to you shall die.” 15Then Nathan went to his house.
And the LORD struck the child that Uri'ah’s wife bore to David, and it
became sick. 16David therefore besought God for the child; and David
fasted, and went in and lay all night upon the ground. 17And the elders of
his house stood beside him, to raise him from the ground; but he would not,
nor did he eat food with them. 18On the seventh day the child died. And the
servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead; for they said,
“Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spoke to him, and he did not
listen to us; how then can we say to him the child is dead? He may do
himself some harm.” 19But when David saw that his servants were
whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; and David
said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” They said, “He is dead.” 20Then
David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed
his clothes; and he went into the house of the LORD, and worshiped; he then
went to his own house; and when he asked, they set food before him, and he
ate. 21Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done?
You fasted and wept for the child while it was alive; but when the child
died, you arose and ate food.” 22He said, “While the child was still alive, I
fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows whether the LORD will be gracious
to me, that the child may live?’ 23But now he is dead; why should I fast?
Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.”
Solomon Is Born
24 Then David comforted his wife, Bathshe'ba, and went in to her, and lay
with her; and she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon. And the
LORD loved him, 25and sent a message by Nathan the prophet; so he called
his name Jedidi'ah, b because of the LORD.
The Ammonites Crushed
26 Now Jo'ab fought against Rabbah of the Am'monites, and took the royal
city. 27And Jo'ab sent messengers to David, and said, “I have fought against
Rabbah; moreover, I have taken the city of waters. 28Now, then, gather the
rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and take it; lest I
take the city, and it be called by my name.” 29So David gathered all the
people together and went to Rabbah, and fought against it and took it.
30And he took the crown of their king c from his head; the weight of it was a
talent of gold, and in it was a precious stone; and it was placed on David’s
head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city, a very great amount. 31And
he brought forth the people who were in it, and set them to labor with saws
and iron picks and iron axes, and made them toil at d the brick-kilns; and
thus he did to all the cities of the Am'monites. Then David and all the
people returned to Jerusalem.
Amnon Defiles Tamar
13 * Now Ab'salom, David’s son, had a beautiful sister, whose name
was Ta'mar; and after a time Amnon, David’s son, loved her. 2And Amnon
was so tormented that he made himself ill because of his sister Ta'mar; for
she was a virgin, and it seemed impossible to Amnon to do anything to her.
3But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jon'adab, the son of Shim'e-ah,
David’s brother; and Jonadab was a very crafty man. 4And he said to him,
“O son of the king, why are you so haggard morning after morning? Will
you not tell me?” Amnon said to him, “I love Ta'mar, my brother
Ab'salom’s sister.” 5Jon'adab said to him, “Lie down on your bed, and
pretend to be ill; and when your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘Let
my sister Ta'mar come and give me bread to eat, and prepare the food in my
sight, that I may see it, and eat it from her hand.’ ” 6So Amnon lay down,
and pretended to be ill; and when the king came to see him, Amnon said to
the king, “Please let my sister Ta'mar come and make a couple of cakes in
my sight, that I may eat from her hand.”
7 Then David sent home to Ta'mar, saying, “Go to your brother Amnon’s
house, and prepare food for him.” 8So Ta'mar went to her brother Amnon’s
house, where he was lying down. And she took dough, and kneaded it, and
made cakes in his sight, and baked the cakes. 9And she took the pan and
emptied it out before him, but he refused to eat. And Amnon said, “Send
out every one from me.” So every one went out from him. 10Then Amnon
said to Ta'mar, “Bring the food into the chamber, that I may eat from your
hand.” And Tamar took the cakes she had made, and brought them into the
chamber to Amnon her brother. 11But when she brought them near him to
eat, he took hold of her, and said to her, “Come, lie with me, my sister.”
12She answered him, “No, my brother, do not force me; for such a thing is
not done in Israel; do not do this wanton folly. 13As for me, where could I
carry my shame? And as for you, you would be as one of the wanton fools
in Israel. Now therefore, I beg you, speak to the king; for he will not
withhold me from you.” 14But he would not listen to her; and being stronger
than she, he forced her, and lay with her.
15 Then Amnon hated her with very great hatred; so that the hatred with
which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her.
And Amnon said to her, “Arise, be gone.” 16But she said to him, “No, my
brother; for this wrong in sending me away is greater than the other which
you did to me.” e But he would not listen to her. 17He called the young man
who served him and said, “Put this woman out of my presence, and bolt the
door after her.” 18Now she was wearing a long robe with sleeves; for thus
were the virgin daughters of the king clad of old. f So his servant put her
out, and bolted the door after her. 19And Ta'mar put ashes on her head, and
tore the long robe which she wore; and she laid her hand on her head, and
went away, crying aloud as she went.
20 And her brother Ab'salom said to her, “Has Amnon your brother been
with you? Now hold your peace, my sister; he is your brother; do not take
this to heart.” So Ta'mar dwelt, a desolate woman, in her brother Absalom’s
house. 21When King David heard of all these things, he was very angry.
22But Ab'salom spoke to Amnon neither good nor bad; for Absalom hated
Amnon, because he had forced his sister Ta'mar.
Absalom Avenges His Sister
23 After two full years Ab'salom had sheepshearers at Ba'al-ha'zor, which
is near E'phraim, and Absalom invited all the king’s sons. 24And Ab'salom
came to the king, and said, “Behold, your servant has sheepshearers; please
let the king and his servants go with your servant.” 25But the king said to
Ab'salom, “No, my son, let us not all go, lest we be burdensome to you.”
He pressed him, but he would not go but gave him his blessing. 26Then
Ab'salom said, “If not, please let my brother Amnon go with us.” And the
king said to him, “Why should he go with you?” 27But Ab'salom pressed
him until he let Amnon and all the king’s sons go with him. 28Then
Ab'salom commanded his servants, “Mark when Amnon’s heart is merry
with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon,’ then kill him. Fear not;
have I not commanded you? Be courageous and be valiant.” 29So the
servants of Ab'salom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all
the king’s sons arose, and each mounted his mule and fled.
30 While they were on the way, tidings came to David, “Ab'salom has slain
all the king’s sons, and not one of them is left.” 31Then the king arose, and
tore his garments, and lay on the earth; and all his servants who were
standing by tore their garments. 32But Jon'adab the son of Shim'e-ah,
David’s brother, said, “Let not my lord suppose that they have killed all the
young men the king’s sons, for Amnon alone is dead, for by the command
of Ab'salom this has been determined from the day he forced his sister
Ta'mar. 33Now therefore let not my lord the king so take it to heart as to
suppose that all the king’s sons are dead; for Amnon alone is dead.”
34 But Ab'salom fled. And the young man who kept the watch lifted up his
eyes, and looked, and behold, many people were coming from the
Horona'im road g by the side of the mountain. 35And Jon'adab said to the
king, “Behold, the king’s sons have come; as your servant said, so it has
come about.” 36And as soon as he had finished speaking, behold, the king’s
sons came, and lifted up their voice and wept; and the king also and all his
servants wept very bitterly.
Absalom Flees
37 But Ab'salom fled, and went to Talmai the son of Ammi'hud, king of
Ge'shur. And David mourned for his son day after day. 38So Ab'salom fled,
and went to Ge'shur, and was there three years. 39And the spirit h of the king
longed to go forth to Ab'salom; for he was comforted about Amnon, seeing
he was dead.
David Is Persuaded to Bring Absalom Back
14 Now Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah perceived that the king’s heart went
out to Ab'salom. 2And Jo'ab sent to Teko'a, and fetched from there a wise
woman, and said to her, “Pretend to be a mourner, and put on mourning
garments; do not anoint yourself with oil, but behave like a woman who has
been mourning many days for the dead; 3and go to the king, and speak thus
to him.” So Jo'ab put the words in her mouth.
4 When the woman of Teko'a came to the king, she fell on her face to the
ground, and did obeisance, and said, “Help, O king.” 5And the king said to
her, “What is your trouble?” She answered, “Alas, I am a widow; my
husband is dead. 6And your handmaid had two sons, and they quarreled
with one another in the field; there was no one to part them, and one struck
the other and killed him. 7And now the whole family has risen against your
handmaid, and they say, ‘Give up the man who struck his brother, that we
may kill him for the life of his brother whom he slew’; and so they would
destroy the heir also. Thus they would quench my coal which is left, and
leave to my husband neither name nor remnant upon the face of the earth.”
8 Then the king said to the woman, “Go to your house, and I will give
orders concerning you.” 9And the woman of Teko'a said to the king, “On
me be the guilt, my lord the king, and on my father’s house; let the king and
his throne be guiltless.” 10The king said, “If any one says anything to you,
bring him to me, and he shall never touch you again.” 11Then she said,
“Please let the king invoke the LORD your God, that the avenger of blood
slay no more, and my son be not destroyed.” He said, “As the LORD lives,
not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground.”
12 Then the woman said, “Please let your handmaid speak a word to my
lord the king.” He said, “Speak.” 13And the woman said, “Why then have
you planned such a thing against the people of God? For in giving this
decision the king convicts himself, inasmuch as the king does not bring his
banished one home again. 14We must all die, we are like water spilt on the
ground, which cannot be gathered up again; but God will not take away the
life of him who devises i means not to keep his banished one an outcast.
15Now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have
made me afraid; and your handmaid thought, ‘I will speak to the king; it
may be that the king will perform the request of his servant. 16For the king
will hear, and deliver his servant from the hand of the man who would
destroy me and my son together from the heritage of God.’ 17And your
handmaid thought, ‘The word of my lord the king will set me at rest’; for
my lord the king is like the angel of God to discern good and evil. The
LORD your God be with you!”
18 Then the king answered the woman, “Do not hide from me anything I
ask you.” And the woman said, “Let my lord the king speak.” 19The king
said, “Is the hand of Jo'ab with you in all this?” The woman answered and
said, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, one cannot turn to the right
hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has said. It was your
servant Joab who bade me; it was he who put all these words in the mouth
of your handmaid. 20In order to change the course of affairs your servant
Jo'ab did this. But my lord has wisdom like the wisdom of the angel of God
to know all things that are on the earth.”
21 Then the king said to Jo'ab, “Behold now, I grant this; go, bring back
the young man Ab'salom.” 22And Jo'ab fell on his face to the ground, and
did obeisance, and blessed the king; and Joab said, “Today your servant
knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord the king, in that the
king has granted the request of his servant.” 23So Jo'ab arose and went to
Ge'shur, and brought Ab'salom to Jerusalem. 24And the king said, “Let him
dwell apart in his own house; he is not to come into my presence.” So
Ab'salom dwelt apart in his own house, and did not come into the king’s
presence.
25 Now in all Israel there was no one so much to be praised for his beauty
as Ab'salom; from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no
blemish in him. 26And when he cut the hair of his head (for at the end of
every year he used to cut it; when it was heavy on him, he cut it), he
weighed the hair of his head, two hundred shekels by the king’s weight.
27There were born to Ab'salom three sons, and one daughter whose name
was Ta'mar; she was a beautiful woman.

David Forgives Absalom
28 So Ab'salom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, without coming into the
king’s presence. 29Then Ab'salom sent for Jo'ab, to send him to the king;
but Joab would not come to him. And he sent a second time, but Joab would
not come. 30Then he said to his servants, “See, Jo'ab’s field is next to mine,
and he has barley there; go and set it on fire.” So Ab'salom’s servants set
the field on fire. 31Then Jo'ab arose and went to Ab'salom at his house, and
said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?” 32Ab'salom
answered Jo'ab, “Behold, I sent word to you, ‘Come here, that I may send
you to the king, to ask, “Why have I come from Ge'shur? It would be better
for me to be there still.” Now therefore let me go into the presence of the
king; and if there is guilt in me, let him kill me.’ ” 33Then Jo'ab went to the
king, and told him; and he summoned Ab'salom. So he came to the king,
and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king; and the king
kissed Absalom.
Absalom Usurps the Throne
15 After this Ab'salom got himself a chariot and horses, and fifty men
to run before him. 2And Ab'salom used to rise early and stand beside the
way of the gate; and when any man had a suit to come before the king for
judgment, Absalom would call to him, and say, “From what city are you?”
And when he said, “Your servant is of such and such a tribe in Israel,”
3Ab'salom would say to him, “See, your claims are good and right; but there
is no man deputed by the king to hear you.” 4Ab'salom said moreover, “Oh
that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a suit or cause might
come to me, and I would give him justice.” 5And whenever a man came
near to do obeisance to him, he would put out his hand, and take hold of
him, and kiss him. 6Thus Ab'salom did to all of Israel who came to the king
for judgment; so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.
7 And at the end of four j years Ab'salom said to the king, “Please let me
go and pay my vow, which I have vowed to the LORD, in He'bron. 8For your
servant vowed a vow while I dwelt at Ge'shur in Ar'am, saying, ‘If the
LORD will indeed bring me back to Jerusalem, then I will offer worship to
the LORD.’ ” 9The king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he arose, and went to
He'bron. 10But Ab'salom sent secret messengers throughout all the tribes of
Israel, saying, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then say,
‘Ab'salom is king at He'bron!’ ” 11With Ab'salom went two hundred men
from Jerusalem who were invited guests, and they went in their simplicity,
and knew nothing. 12And while Ab'salom was offering the sacrifices, he
sent for k Ahith'ophel the Gi'lonite, David’s counselor, from his city Gi'loh.
And the conspiracy grew strong, and the people with Absalom kept
increasing.
David Flees from Jerusalem
13 And a messenger came to David, saying, “The hearts of the men of
Israel have gone after Ab'salom.” 14Then David said to all his servants who
were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise, and let us flee; or else there will be no
escape for us from Ab'salom; go in haste, lest he overtake us quickly, and
bring down evil upon us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
15And the king’s servants said to the king, “Behold, your servants are ready
to do whatever my lord the king decides.” 16So the king went forth, and all
his household after him. And the king left ten concubines to keep the house.
17And the king went forth, and all the people after him; and they halted at
the last house. 18And all his servants passed by him; and all the Cher'ethites,
and all the Pel'ethites, and all the six hundred Gittites who had followed
him from Gath, passed on before the king.
19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why do you also go with us? Go
back, and stay with the king; for you are a foreigner, and also an exile from l
your home. 20You came only yesterday, and shall I today make you wander
about with us, seeing I go I know not where? Go back, and take your
brethren with you; and may the LORD show m mercy and faithfulness to
you.” 21But Ittai answered the king, “As the LORD lives, and as my lord the
king lives, wherever my lord the king shall be, whether for death or for life,
there also will your servant be.” 22And David said to Ittai, “Go then, pass
on.” So Ittai the Gittite passed on, with all his men and all the little ones
who were with him. 23And all the country wept aloud as all the people
passed by, and the king crossed the brook Kidron, and all the people passed
on toward the wilderness.
24 And Abi'athar came up, and behold, Za'dok came also, with all the
Levites, bearing the ark of the covenant of God; and they set down the ark
of God, until the people had all passed out of the city. 25Then the king said
to Za'dok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the
eyes of the LORD, he will bring me back and let me see both it and his
habitation; 26but if he says, ‘I have no pleasure in you,’ behold, here I am,
let him do to me what seems good to him.” 27The king also said to Za'dok
the priest, “Look, n go back to the city in peace, you and Abi'athar, o with
your two sons, Ahim'a-az your son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar.
28See, I will wait at the fords of the wilderness, until word comes from you
to inform me.” 29So Za'dok and Abi'athar carried the ark of God back to
Jerusalem; and they remained there.
30 But David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, weeping as he
went, barefoot and with his head covered; and all the people who were with
him covered their heads, and they went up, weeping as they went. 31And it
was told David, “Ahith'ophel is among the conspirators with Ab'salom.”
And David said, “O LORD, I pray you, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into
foolishness.”
Hushai Becomes David’s Spy
32 When David came to the summit, where God was worshiped, behold,
Hu'shai the Ar'chite came to meet him with his coat torn and earth upon his
head. 33David said to him, “If you go on with me, you will be a burden to
me. 34But if you return to the city, and say to Ab'salom, ‘I will be your
servant, O king; as I have been your father’s servant in time past, so now I
will be your servant,’ then you will defeat for me the counsel of
Ahith'ophel. 35Are not Za'dok and Abi'athar the priests with you there? So
whatever you hear from the king’s house, tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the
priests. 36Behold, their two sons are with them there, Ahim'a-az, Za'dok’s
son, and Jonathan, Abi'athar’s son; and by them you shall send to me
everything you hear.” 37So Hu'shai, David’s friend, came into the city, just
as Ab'salom was entering Jerusalem.
David Meets Ziba
16 When David had passed a little beyond the summit, Zi'ba the servant
of Mephib'osheth met him, with a couple of donkeys saddled, bearing two
hundred loaves of bread, a hundred bunches of raisins, a hundred of
summer fruits, and a skin of wine. 2And the king said to Zi'ba, “Why have
you brought these?” Ziba answered, “The donkeys are for the king’s
household to ride on, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat,
and the wine for those who faint in the wilderness to drink.” 3And the king
said, “And where is your master’s son?” Zi'ba said to the king, “Behold, he
remains in Jerusalem; for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will give me
back the kingdom of my father.’ ” 4Then the king said to Zi'ba, “Behold, all
that belonged to Mephib'osheth is now yours.” And Ziba said, “I do
obeisance; let me ever find favor in your sight, my lord the king.”
Shime-i Curses David
5 When King David came to Bahu'rim, there came out a man of the family
of the house of Saul, whose name was Shim'e-i, the son of Gera; and as he
came he cursed continually. 6And he threw stones at David, and at all the
servants of King David; and all the people and all the mighty men were on
his right hand and on his left. 7And Shim'e-i said as he cursed, “Begone,
begone, you man of blood, you worthless fellow! 8The LORD has avenged
upon you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have
reigned; and the LORD has given the kingdom into the hand of your son
Ab'salom. See, your ruin is on you; for you are a man of blood.”
9 Then Abi'shai the son of Zeru'iah said to the king, “Why should this
dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.”
10But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeru'iah? If
he is cursing because the LORD has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who then
shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’ ” 11And David said to Abi'shai and to
all his servants, “Behold, my own son seeks my life; how much more now
may this Benjaminite! Let him alone, and let him curse; for the LORD has
bidden him. 12It may be that the LORD will look upon my affliction, p and
that the LORD will repay me with good for this cursing of me today.” 13So
David and his men went on the road, while Shim'e-i went along on the
hillside opposite him and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him and
flung dust. 14And the king, and all the people who were with him, arrived
weary at the Jordan; q and there he refreshed himself.
The Counsel of Ahithophel
15 Now Ab'salom and all the people, the men of Israel, came to Jerusalem,
and Ahith'ophel with him. 16And when Hu'shai the Ar'chite, David’s friend,
came to Ab'salom, Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live
the king!” 17And Ab'salom said to Hu'shai, “Is this your loyalty to your
friend? Why did you not go with your friend?” 18And Hu'shai said to
Ab'salom, “No; for whom the LORD and this people and all the men of
Israel have chosen, his I will be, and with him I will remain. 19And again,
whom should I serve? Should it not be his son? As I have served your
father, so I will serve you.”
20 Then Ab'salom said to Ahith'ophel, “Give your counsel; what shall we
do?” 21Ahith'ophel said to Ab'salom, “Go in to your father’s concubines,

whom he has left to keep the house; and all Israel will hear that you have
made yourself odious to your father, and the hands of all who are with you
will be strengthened.” 22So they pitched a tent for Ab'salom upon the roof;
and Absalom went in to his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel. *
23Now in those days the counsel which Ahith'ophel gave was as if one
consulted the oracle r of God; so was all the counsel of Ahithophel

esteemed, both by David and by Ab'salom.
17 Moreover Ahith'ophel said to Ab'salom, “Let me choose twelve

thousand men, and I will set out and pursue David tonight. 2I will come
upon him while he is weary and discouraged, and throw him into a panic;
and all the people who are with him will flee. I will strike down the king
only, 3and I will bring all the people back to you as a bride comes home to
her husband. You seek the life of only one man, s and all the people will be
at peace.” 4And the advice pleased Ab'salom and all the elders of Israel.
The Counsel of Hushai
5 Then Ab'salom said, “Call Hu'shai the Ar'chite also, and let us hear what
he has to say.” 6And when Hu'shai came to Ab'salom, Absalom said to him,
“Thus has Ahith'ophel spoken; shall we do as he advises? If not, you
speak.” 7Then Hu'shai said to Ab'salom, “This time the counsel which
Ahith'ophel has given is not good.” 8Hu'shai said moreover, “You know that
your father and his men are mighty men, and that they are enraged, like a
bear robbed of her cubs in the field. Besides, your father is expert in war; he
will not spend the night with the people. 9Behold, even now he has hidden
himself in one of the pits, or in some other place. And when some of the
people fall t at the first attack, whoever hears it will say, ‘There has been a
slaughter among the people who follow Ab'salom.’ 10Then even the valiant
man, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will utterly melt with fear; for
all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and that those who are
with him are valiant men. 11But my counsel is that all Israel be gathered to
you, from Dan to Be'er-she'ba, as the sand by the sea for multitude, and that
you go to battle in person. 12So we shall come upon him in some place
where he is to be found, and we shall light upon him as the dew falls on the
ground; and of him and all the men with him not one will be left. 13If he
withdraws into a city, then all Israel will bring ropes to that city, and we
shall drag it into the valley, until not even a pebble is to be found there.”
14And Ab'salom and all the men of Israel said, “The counsel of Hu'shai the
Ar'chite is better than the counsel of Ahith'ophel.” For the LORD had
ordained to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, so that the LORD might
bring evil upon Ab'salom.
Hushai Warns David to Escape
15 Then Hu'shai said to Za'dok and Abi'athar the priests, “Thus and so did
Ahith'ophel counsel Ab'salom and the elders of Israel; and thus and so have
I counseled. 16Now therefore send quickly and tell David, ‘Do not lodge
tonight at the fords of the wilderness, but by all means pass over; lest the
king and all the people who are with him be swallowed up.’ ” 17Now
Jonathan and Ahim'a-az were waiting at En-ro'gel; a maidservant used to go
and tell them, and they would go and tell King David; for they must not be
seen entering the city. 18But a lad saw them, and told Ab'salom; so both of
them went away quickly, and came to the house of a man at Bahu'rim, who
had a well in his courtyard; and they went down into it. 19And the woman
took and spread a covering over the well’s mouth, and scattered grain upon
it; and nothing was known of it. 20When Ab'salom’s servants came to the
woman at the house, they said, “Where are Ahim'a-az and Jonathan?” And
the woman said to them, “They have gone over the brook u of water.” And
when they had sought and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.
21 After they had gone, the men came up out of the well, and went and told
King David. They said to David, “Arise, and go quickly over the water; for
thus and so has Ahith'ophel counseled against you.” 22Then David arose,
and all the people who were with him, and they crossed the Jordan; by
daybreak not one was left who had not crossed the Jordan.
23 When Ahith'ophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his
donkey, and went off home to his own city. And he set his house in order,
and hanged himself; and he died, and was buried in the tomb of his father.
24 Then David came to Ma''hana'im. And Ab'salom crossed the Jordan
with all the men of Israel. 25Now Ab'salom had set Ama'sa over the army
instead of Jo'ab. Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra the Ish'maelite, v
who had married Ab'igail the daughter of Na'hash, sister of Zeru'iah, Jo'ab’s
mother. 26And Israel and Ab'salom encamped in the land of Gilead.
27 When David came to Ma''hana'im, Shobi the son of Na'hash from
Rabbah of the Am'monites, and Ma'chir the son of Am'mi-el from Lo-
de'bar, and Barzil'lai the Gileadite from Ro'gelim, 28brought beds, basins,
and earthen vessels, wheat, barley, meal, parched grain, beans and lentils, w
29honey and curds and sheep and cheese from the herd, for David and the
people with him to eat; for they said, “The people are hungry and weary and
thirsty in the wilderness.”
The Defeat and Death of Absalom
18 Then David mustered the men who were with him, and set over
them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. 2And David
sent forth the army, one third under the command of Jo'ab, one third under
the command of Abi'shai the son of Zeru'iah, Joab’s brother, and one third
under the command of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the men, “I
myself will also go out with you.” 3But the men said, “You shall not go out.
For if we flee, they will not care about us. If half of us die, they will not
care about us. But you are worth ten thousand of us; x therefore it is better
that you send us help from the city.” 4The king said to them, “Whatever
seems best to you I will do.” So the king stood at the side of the gate, while
all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. 5And the king
ordered Jo'ab and Abi'shai and Ittai, “Deal gently for my sake with the
young man Ab'salom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders
to all the commanders about Absalom.
6 So the army went out into the field against Israel; and the battle was
fought in the forest of E'phraim. 7And the men of Israel were defeated there
by the servants of David, and the slaughter there was great on that day,
twenty thousand men. 8The battle spread over the face of all the country;
and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword.
9 And Ab'salom chanced to meet the servants of David. Absalom was
riding upon his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great
oak, and his head caught fast in the oak, and he was left hanging y between
heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on. 10And a
certain man saw it, and told Jo'ab, “Behold, I saw Ab'salom hanging in an
oak.” 11Jo'ab said to the man who told him, “What, you saw him! Why then
did you not strike him there to the ground? I would have been glad to give
you ten pieces of silver and a belt.” 12But the man said to Jo'ab, “Even if I
felt in my hand the weight of a thousand pieces of silver, I would not put
forth my hand against the king’s son; for in our hearing the king
commanded you and Abi'shai and Ittai, ‘For my sake protect the young man
Ab'salom.’ 13On the other hand, if I had dealt treacherously against his life z
(and there is nothing hidden from the king), then you yourself would have
stood aloof.” 14Jo'ab said, “I will not waste time like this with you.” And he
took three darts in his hand, and thrust them into the heart of Ab'salom,
while he was still alive in the oak. 15And ten young men, Jo'ab’s armor-
bearers, surrounded Ab'salom and struck him, and killed him.
16 Then Jo'ab blew the trumpet, and the troops came back from pursuing
Israel; for Joab restrained them. 17And they took Ab'salom, and threw him
into a great pit in the forest, and raised over him a very great heap of stones;
and all Israel fled every one to his own home. 18Now Ab'salom in his
lifetime had taken and set up for himself the pillar which is in the King’s
Valley, for he said, “I have no son to keep my name in remembrance”; he
called the pillar after his own name, and it is called Absalom’s monument to
this day.
David Hears Tidings
19 Then said Ahim'a-az the son of Za'dok, “Let me run, and carry tidings
to the king that the LORD has delivered him from the power of his enemies.”
20And Jo'ab said to him, “You are not to carry tidings today; you may carry
tidings another day, but today you shall carry no tidings, because the king’s
son is dead.” 21Then Jo'ab said to the Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you
have seen.” The Cushite bowed before Jo'ab, and ran. 22Then Ahim'a-az the
son of Za'dok said again to Jo'ab, “Come what may, let me also run after the
Cushite.” And Jo'ab said, “Why will you run, my son, seeing that you will
have no reward for the tidings?” 23“Come what may,” he said, “I will run.”
So he said to him, “Run.” Then Ahim'a-az ran by the way of the plain, and
outran the Cushite.
24 Now David was sitting between the two gates; and the watchman went
up to the roof of the gate by the wall, and when he lifted up his eyes and
looked, he saw a man running alone. 25And the watchman called out and
told the king. And the king said, “If he is alone, there are tidings in his
mouth.” And he came apace, and drew near. 26And the watchman saw
another man running; and the watchman called to the gate and said, “See,
another man running alone!” The king said, “He also brings tidings.” 27And
the watchman said, “I think the running of the foremost is like the running
of Ahim'a-az the son of Za'dok.” And the king said, “He is a good man, and
comes with good tidings.”
28 Then Ahim'a-az cried out to the king, “All is well.” And he bowed
before the king with his face to the earth, and said, “Blessed be the LORD
your God, who has delivered up the men who raised their hand against my
lord the king.” 29And the king said, “Is it well with the young man
Ab'salom?” Ahim'a-az answered, “When Jo'ab sent your servant, b I saw a
great tumult, but I do not know what it was.” 30And the king said, “Turn
aside, and stand here.” So he turned aside, and stood still.
31 And behold, the Cushite came; and the Cushite said, “Good tidings for
my lord the king! For the LORD has delivered you this day from the power
of all who rose up against you.” 32The king said to the Cushite, “Is it well
with the young man Ab'salom?” And the Cushite answered, “May the
enemies of my lord the king, and all who rise up against you for evil, be
like that young man.” 33 c And the king was deeply moved, and went up to
the chamber over the gate, and wept; and as he went, he said, “O my son
Ab'salom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O
Absalom, my son, my son!”
David Mourns for Absalom
19 It was told Jo'ab, “Behold, the king is weeping and mourning for
Ab'salom.” 2So the victory that day was turned into mourning for all the
people; for the people heard that day, “The king is grieving for his son.”
3And the people stole into the city that day as people steal in who are
ashamed when they flee in battle. 4The king covered his face, and the king
cried with a loud voice, “O my son Ab'salom, O Absalom, my son, my
son!” 5Then Jo'ab came into the house to the king, and said, “You have
today covered with shame the faces of all your servants, who have this day
saved your life, and the lives of your sons and your daughters, and the lives
of your wives and your concubines, 6because you love those who hate you
and hate those who love you. For you have made it clear today that
commanders and servants are nothing to you; for today I perceive that if
Ab'salom were alive and all of us were dead today, then you would be
pleased. 7Now therefore arise, go out and speak kindly to your servants; for
I swear by the LORD, if you do not go, not a man will stay with you this
night; and this will be worse for you than all the evil that has come upon
you from your youth until now.” 8Then the king arose, and took his seat in
the gate. And the people were all told, “Behold, the king is sitting in the
gate”; and all the people came before the king.
Now Israel had fled every man to his own home. 9And all the people were
at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “The king delivered us
from the hand of our enemies, and saved us from the hand of the
Philis'tines; and now he has fled out of the land from Ab'salom. 10But
Ab'salom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now therefore why
do you say nothing about bringing the king back?”
David Is Recalled
11 And King David sent this message to Za'dok and Abi'athar the priests,
“Say to the elders of Judah, ‘Why should you be the last to bring the king
back to his house, when the word of all Israel has come to the king? d 12You
are my kinsmen, you are my bone and my flesh; why then should you be
the last to bring back the king? ’ 13And say to Ama'sa, ‘Are you not my
bone and my flesh? God do so to me, and more also, if you are not
commander of my army henceforth in place of Jo'ab.’ ” 14And he swayed
the heart of all the men of Judah as one man; so that they sent word to the
king, “Return, both you and all your servants.” 15So the king came back to
the Jordan; and Judah came to Gilgal to meet the king and to bring the king
over the Jordan.
Shime-i Meets David and Is Forgiven
16 And Shim'e-i the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, from Bahu'rim, made
haste to come down with the men of Judah to meet King David; 17and with
him were a thousand men from Benjamin. And Zi'ba the servant of the
house of Saul, with his fifteen sons and his twenty servants, rushed down to
the Jordan before the king, 18and they crossed the ford e to bring over the
king’s household, and to do his pleasure. And Shim'e-i the son of Gera fell
down before the king, as he was about to cross the Jordan, 19and said to the
king, “Let not my lord hold me guilty or remember how your servant did
wrong on the day my lord the king left Jerusalem; let not the king bear it in
mind. 20For your servant knows that I have sinned; therefore, behold, I have
come this day, the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my
lord the king.” 21Abi'shai the son of Zeru'iah answered, “Shall not Shim'e-i
be put to death for this, because he cursed the LORD’s anointed?” 22But
David said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeru'iah, that you
should this day be as an adversary to me? Shall any one be put to death in
Israel this day? For do I not know that I am this day king over Israel?”
23And the king said to Shim'e-i, “You shall not die.” And the king gave him
his oath.
David and Mephibosheth Meet
24 And Mephib'osheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; he had
neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes,
from the day the king departed until the day he came back in safety. 25And
when he came from f Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him,
“Why did you not go with me, Mephib'osheth?” 26He answered, “My lord,
O king, my servant deceived me; for your servant said to him, ‘Saddle a
donkey for me, g that I may ride upon it and go with the king.’ For your
servant is lame. 27He has slandered your servant to my lord the king. But
my lord the king is like the angel of God; do therefore what seems good to
you. 28For all my father’s house were but men doomed to death before my
lord the king; but you set your servant among those who eat at your table.
What further right have I, then, to cry to the king?” 29And the king said to
him, “Why speak any more of your affairs? I have decided: you and Zi'ba
shall divide the land.” 30And Mephib'osheth said to the king, “Oh, let him
take it all, since my lord the king has come safely home.”
David Blesses Barzillai
31 Now Barzil'lai the Gileadite had come down from Ro'gelim; and he
went on with the king to the Jordan, to escort him over the Jordan.
32Barzil'lai was a very aged man, eighty years old; and he had provided the
king with food while he stayed at Ma''hana'im; for he was a very wealthy
man. 33And the king said to Barzil'lai, “Come over with me, and I will
provide for you with me in Jerusalem.” 34But Barzil'lai said to the king,
“How many years have I still to live, that I should go up with the king to
Jerusalem? 35I am this day eighty years old; can I discern what is pleasant
and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or what he drinks? Can
I still listen to the voice of singing men and singing women? Why then
should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king? 36Your servant
will go a little way over the Jordan with the king. Why should the king
recompense me with such a reward? 37Please let your servant return, that I
may die in my own city, near the grave of my father and my mother. But
here is your servant Chimham; let him go over with my lord the king; and
do for him whatever seems good to you.” 38And the king answered,
“Chimham shall go over with me, and I will do for him whatever seems
good to you; and all that you desire of me I will do for you.” 39Then all the
people went over the Jordan, and the king went over; and the king kissed
Barzil'lai and blessed him, and he returned to his own home. 40The king
went on to Gilgal, and Chimham went on with him; all the people of Judah,
and also half the sons of Israel, brought the king on his way.
Dissension between Israel and Judah
41 Then all the men of Israel came to the king, and said to the king, “Why
have our brethren the men of Judah stolen you away, and brought the king
and his household over the Jordan, and all David’s men with him?” 42All
the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, “Because the king is near of
kin to us. Why then are you angry over this matter? Have we eaten at all at
the king’s expense? Or has he given us any gift?” 43And the men of Israel
answered the men of Judah, “We have ten shares in the king, and in David
also we have more than you. Why then did you despise us? Were we not the
first to speak of bringing back our king?” But the words of the men of
Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.
The Rebellion of Sheba
20 Now there happened to be there a worthless fellow, whose name was
Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjaminite; and he blew the trumpet, and said,
“We have no portion in David,
and we have no inheritance in the son of Jesse;
every man to his tents, O Israel!”
2So all the men of Israel withdrew from David, and followed Sheba the
son of Bichri; but the men of Judah followed their king steadfastly from the
Jordan to Jerusalem.
3 And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten
concubines whom he had left to care for the house, and put them in a house
under guard, and provided for them, but did not go in to them. So they were
shut up until the day of their death, living as if in widowhood.
4 Then the king said to Ama'sa, “Call the men of Judah together to me
within three days, and be here yourself.” 5So Ama'sa went to summon
Judah; but he delayed beyond the set time which had been appointed him.
6And David said to Abi'shai, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more
harm than Ab'salom; take your lord’s servants and pursue him, lest he get
himself fortified cities, and cause us trouble.” h 7And there went out after
Abi'shai, Jo'ab i and the Cher'ethites and the Pel'ethites, and all the mighty
men; they went out from Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.
8When they were at the great stone which is in Gib'eon, Ama'sa came to
meet them. Now Jo'ab was wearing a soldier’s garment, and over it was a
belt with a sword in its sheath fastened upon his loins, and as he went
forward it fell out. 9And Jo'ab said to Ama'sa, “Is it well with you, my
brother?” And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss
him. 10But Ama'sa did not observe the sword which was in Jo'ab’s hand; so
Joab struck him with it in the body, and shed his bowels to the ground,
without striking a second blow; and he died.*
Then Joab and Abi'shai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri. 11And
one of Jo'ab’s men took his stand by Ama'sa, and said, “Whoever favors
Joab, and whoever is for David, let him follow Joab.” 12And Ama'sa lay
wallowing in his blood in the highway. And any one who came by, seeing
him, stopped; j and when the man saw that all the people stopped, he carried
Amasa out of the highway into the field, and threw a garment over him.
13When he was taken out of the highway, all the people went on after Jo'ab
to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.

14 And Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-
ma'acah; k and all the Bichrites l assembled, and followed him in. 15And all
the men who were with Jo'ab came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-
ma'acah; they cast up a mound against the city, and it stood against the
rampart; and they were battering the wall, to throw it down. 16Then a wise
woman called from the city, “Hear! Hear! Tell Jo'ab, ‘Come here, that I may
speak to you.’ ” 17And he came near her; and the woman said, “Are you
Jo'ab?” He answered, “I am.” Then she said to him, “Listen to the words of
your maidservant.” And he answered, “I am listening.” 18Then she said,
“They were wont to say in old time, ‘Let them but ask counsel at Abel’; and
so they settled a matter. 19I am one of those who are peaceable and faithful
in Israel; you seek to destroy a city which is a mother in Israel; why will
you swallow up the heritage of the LORD?” 20Jo'ab answered, “Far be it
from me, far be it, that I should swallow up or destroy! 21That is not true.
But a man of the hill country of E'phraim, called Sheba the son of Bichri,
has lifted up his hand against King David; give up him alone, and I will
withdraw from the city.” And the woman said to Jo'ab, “Behold, his head
shall be thrown to you over the wall.” 22Then the woman went to all the
people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri,
and threw it out to Jo'ab. So he blew the trumpet, and they dispersed from
the city, every man to his home. And Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king.
23 Now Jo'ab was in command of all the army of Israel; and Bena'iah the
son of Jehoi'ada was in command of the Cher'ethites and the Pel'ethites;

24and Ador'am was in charge of the forced labor; and Jehosh'aphat the son
of Ahi'lud was the recorder; 25and Sheva was secretary; and Za'dok and
Abi'athar were priests; 26and Ira the Ja'irite was also David’s priest.
David Avenges the Gibeonites
21 Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year
after year; and David sought the face of the LORD. And the LORD said,
“There is bloodguilt on Saul and on his house, because he put the
Gib'eonites to death.” 2So the king called the Gib'eonites. m Now the
Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the
Am'orites; although the sons of Israel had sworn to spare them, Saul had
sought to slay them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah. 3And David
said to the Gib'eonites, “What shall I do for you? And how shall I make
expiation, that you may bless the heritage of the LORD?” 4The Gib'eonites
said to him, “It is not a matter of silver or gold between us and Saul or his
house; neither is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.” And he said,
“What do you say that I shall do for you?” 5They said to the king, “The man
who consumed us and planned to destroy us, so that we should have no
place in all the territory of Israel, 6let seven of his sons be given to us, so
that we may hang them up before the LORD at Gib'eon on the mountain of
the LORD.” n And the king said, “I will give them.”
7 But the king spared Mephib'osheth, the son of Saul’s son Jonathan,
because of the oath of the LORD which was between them, between David
and Jonathan the son of Saul. 8The king took the two sons of Rizpah the
daughter of Ai'ah, whom she bore to Saul, Armo'ni and Mephib'osheth; and
the five sons of Merab o the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to A'dri-el the
son of Barzil'lai the Meho'lathite; 9and he gave them into the hands of the
Gib'eonites, and they hanged them on the mountain before the LORD, and
the seven of them perished together. They were put to death in the first days
of harvest, at the beginning of barley harvest.
10 Then Rizpah the daughter of Ai'ah took sackcloth, and spread it for
herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until rain fell upon them
from the heavens; and she did not allow the birds of the air to come upon
them by day, or the beasts of the field by night. 11When David was told
what Rizpah the daughter of Ai'ah, the concubine of Saul, had done,
12David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan
from the men of Ja'besh-gil'ead, who had stolen them from the public
square of Beth-shan, where the Philis'tines had hanged them, on the day the
Philistines killed Saul on Gilbo'a; 13and he brought up from there the bones
of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan; and they gathered the bones of
those who were hanged. 14And they buried the bones of Saul and his son
Jonathan in the land of Benjamin in Ze'la, in the tomb of Kish his father;
and they did all that the king commanded. And after that God heeded
supplications for the land.
Wars with the Philistines
15 The Philis'tines had war again with Israel, and David went down
together with his servants, and they fought against the Philistines; and
David grew weary. 16And Ish'bi-be'nob, one of the descendants of the
giants, whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of bronze, and who was
armed with a new sword, thought to kill David. 17But Abi'shai the son of
Zeru'iah came to his aid, and attacked the Philis'tine and killed him. Then
David’s men adjured him, “You shall no more go out with us to battle, lest
you quench the lamp of Israel.”
18 After this there was again war with the Philis'tines at Gob; then
Sib'becai the Hu'shathite slew Saph, who was one of the descendants of the
giants. 19And there was again war with the Philis'tines at Gob; and Elha'nan
the son of Ja'are-or'egim, the Bethlehemite, slew Goliath the Gittite, the
shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. 20And there was again war
at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each
hand, and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also was
descended from the giants. 21And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son
of Shim'e-i, David’s brother, slew him. 22These four were descended from
the giants in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his
servants.
David’s Song of Thanksgiving
22 And David spoke to the LORD the words of this song on the day
when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from
the hand of Saul. 2He said,*
“The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer,
3 my p God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation,

my stronghold and my refuge,
my savior; you save me from violence.
4I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.

5 “For the waves of death encompassed me,
the torrents of perdition assailed me;

6the cords of Sheol entangled me,
the snares of death confronted me.
7 “In my distress I called upon the LORD;
to my God I called.
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry came to his ears.
8 “Then the earth reeled and rocked;
the foundations of the heavens trembled

and quaked, because he was angry.
9Smoke went up from his nostrils,
and devouring fire from his mouth;

glowing coals flamed forth from him.
10He bowed the heavens, and came down;
thick darkness was under his feet.

11He rode on a cherub, and flew;
he was seen upon the wings of the wind.

12He made darkness around him
his canopy, thick clouds, a gathering of water.

13Out of the brightness before him
coals of fire flamed forth.

14The LORD thundered from heaven,
and the Most High uttered his voice.

15And he sent out arrows, and scattered them;
lightning, and routed them.

16Then the channels of the sea were seen,
the foundations of the world were laid bare,

at the rebuke of the LORD,
at the blast of the breath of his nostrils.
17 “He reached from on high, he took me,
he drew me out of many waters.

18He delivered me from my strong enemy,
from those who hated me;

for they were too mighty for me.
19They came upon me in the day of my calamity;
but the LORD was my stay.

20He brought me forth into a broad place;
he delivered me, because he delighted in me.
21“The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he recompensed me.
22For I have kept the ways of the LORD,
and have not wickedly departed from my God.

23For all his ordinances were before me,
and from his statutes I did not turn aside.

24I was blameless before him,
and I kept myself from guilt.

25Therefore the LORD has recompensed me according to my
righteousness,
according to my cleanness in his sight.
26 “With the loyal you show yourself loyal;
with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;

27with the pure you show yourself pure,
and with the crooked you show yourself perverse.

28You deliver a humble people,
but your eyes are upon the haughty to bring them down.
29Yes, you are my lamp, O LORD,
and my God lightens my darkness.

30Yes, by you I can crush a troop,
and by my God I can leap over a wall.

31This God—his way is perfect;
the promise of the LORD proves true;

he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
32 “For who is God, but the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God?

33This God is my strong refuge,
and has made r my s way safe.

34He made my s feet like deer’s feet,
and set me secure on the heights.

35He trains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

36You have given me the shield of your salvation,
and your help t made me great.

37You gave a wide place for my steps under me,
and my feet u did not slip;
38I pursued my enemies and destroyed them,
and did not turn back until they were consumed.

39I consumed them; I thrust them through, so that they did not rise;
they fell under my feet.

40For you girded me with strength for the battle;
you made my assailants sink under me.

41You made my enemies turn their backs to me,
those who hated me, and I destroyed them.

42They looked, but there was none to save;
they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.

43I beat them fine as the dust of the earth,
I crushed them and stamped them down like the mire of the streets.
44 “You delivered me from strife with the peoples; v
you kept me as the head of the nations;

people whom I had not known served me.
45Foreigners came cringing to me;
as soon as they heard of me, they obeyed me.

46Foreigners lost heart,
and came trembling w out of their fastnesses.

47 “The LORD lives; and blessed be my rock,
and exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation,

48the God who gave me vengeance
and brought down peoples under me,

49who brought me out from my enemies;
you exalted me above my adversaries,

you delivered me from men of violence.
50 “For this I will extol you, O LORD, among the nations,
and sing praises to your name.

51Great triumphs he gives x to his king,
and shows mercy to his anointed,

to David, and his descendants for ever.”
Last Words of David
23 Now these are the last words of David:
The oracle of David, the son of Jesse,
the oracle of the man who was raised on high,
the anointed of the God of Jacob,
the sweet psalmist of Israel: y
2“The Spirit of the LORD speaks by me,
his word is upon my tongue.

3The God of Israel has spoken,
the Rock of Israel has said to me:

When one rules justly over men,
ruling in the fear of God,
4he dawns on them like the morning light,
like the sun shining forth upon a cloudless morning,

like rain z that makes grass to sprout from the earth.
5Yes, does not my house stand so with God?
For he has made with me an everlasting covenant,

ordered in all things and secure.
For will he not cause to prosper
all my help and my desire?
6But godless men a are all like thorns that are thrown away;
for they cannot be taken with the hand;

7but the man who touches them
arms himself with iron and the shaft of a spear,

and they are utterly consumed with fire.” b
David’s Mighty Men
8 These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Jo'sheb-
basshe'beth a Tah-che'monite; he was chief of the three; c he wielded his

spear d against eight hundred whom he slew at one time.
9 And next to him among the three mighty men was Elea'zar the son of
Dodo, son of Aho'hi. He was with David when they defied the Philis'tines
who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel withdrew. 10He
rose and struck down the Philis'tines until his hand was weary, and his hand
clung to the sword; and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the
men returned after him only to strip the slain.
11 And next to him was Shammah, the son of Agee the Har'arite. The
Philis'tines gathered together at Lehi, where there was a plot of ground full
of lentils; and the men fled from the Philistines. 12But he took his stand in
the midst of the plot, and defended it, and slew the Philis'tines; and the
LORD wrought a great victory.
13 And three of the thirty chief men went down, and came about harvest
time to David at the cave of Adul'lam, when a band of Philis'tines was

encamped in the valley of Reph'aim. 14David was then in the stronghold;
and the garrison of the Philis'tines was then at Bethlehem. 15And David said
longingly, “O that some one would give me water to drink from the well of
Bethlehem which is by the gate!” 16Then the three mighty men broke
through the camp of the Philis'tines, and drew water out of the well of
Bethlehem which was by the gate, and took and brought it to David. But he
would not drink of it; he poured it out to the LORD, 17and said, “Far be it
from me, O LORD, that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of the men
who went at the risk of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These
things did the three mighty men.
18 Now Abi'shai, the brother of Jo'ab, the son of Zeru'iah, was chief of the
thirty. e And he wielded his spear against three hundred men and slew them,
and won a name beside the three. 19He was the most renowned of the
thirty, f and became their commander; but he did not attain to the three.
20 And Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada was a valiant man g of Kab'zeel, a
doer of great deeds; he struck two Ariels h of Moab. He also went down and
slew a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. 21And he slew an
Egyptian, a handsome man. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but
Bena'iah went down to him with a staff, and snatched the spear out of the
Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with his own spear. 22These things did
Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada, and won a name beside the three mighty men.
23He was renowned among the thirty, but he did not attain to the three. And
David set him over his bodyguard.

24 As'ahel the brother of Jo'ab was one of the thirty; Elha'nan the son of
Dodo of Bethlehem, 25Shammah of Harod, Eli'ka of Harod, 26He'lez the

Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh of Teko'a, 27Abie'zer, of An'athoth, Mebun'nai
the Hu'shathite, 28Zalmon the Aho'hite, Ma'harai of Netoph'ah, 29He'leb the
son of Ba'anah of Netoph'ah, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gib'e-ah of the
Benjaminites, 30Bena'iah of Pir'athon, Hiddai of the brooks of Ga'ash,
31A'bi-al'bon the Ar'bathite, Az'maveth of Bahu'rim, 32Eli'ahba of Sha-
al'bon, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan, 33Shammah the Har'arite, Ahi'am the
son of Sharar the Hararite, 34Eliph'elet the son of Ahas'bai of Ma'acah,
Eli'am the son of Ahith'ophel of Gilo, 35Hezro i of Carmel, Pa'arai the
Arbite, 36I'gal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Ba'ni the Gadite, 37Zelek the
Am'monite, Na'harai of Be-er'oth, the armor-bearer of Jo'ab the son of
Zeru'iah, 38Ira the Ithrite, Ga'reb the Ithrite, 39Uri'ah the Hittite: thirty-seven
in all.
David Takes a Census
24 Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he
incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” * 2So
the king said to Jo'ab and the commanders of the army, j who were with
him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Be'er-she'ba, and
number the people, that I may know the number of the people.” 3But Jo'ab
said to the king, “May the LORD your God add to the people a hundred
times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it; but
why does my lord the king delight in this thing?” 4But the king’s word
prevailed against Jo'ab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the
commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to number
the people of Israel. 5They crossed the Jordan, and began from Aro'er, k and
from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Ja'zer.
6Then they came to Gilead, and to Ka'desh in the land of the Hittites; l and
they came to Dan, and from Dan m they went around to Si'don, 7and came
to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hi'vites and Canaanites;
and they went out to the Neg'eb of Judah at Be'er-she'ba. 8So when they had
gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months
and twenty days. 9And Jo'ab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to
the king: in Israel there were eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew
the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand.
Judgment on David’s Sin
10 But David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And
David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But
now, O LORD, I pray you, take away the iniquity of your servant; for I have
done very foolishly.” 11And when David arose in the morning, the word of
the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, 12“Go and say to
David, ‘Thus says the LORD, Three things I offer n you; choose one of them,
that I may do it to you.’ ” 13So Gad came to David and told him, and said to
him, “Shall three o years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you
flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be
three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer
I shall return to him who sent me.” 14Then David said to Gad, “I am in great
distress; let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is great; but let
me not fall into the hand of man.”
15 So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning until the
appointed time; and there died of the people from Dan to Be'er-she'ba
seventy thousand men. 16And when the angel stretched forth his hand
toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented of the evil, and said to the
angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now
stay your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of
Arau'nah the Jeb'usite. 17Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the
angel who was striking down the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned,
and I have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let your
hand, I pray you, be against me and against my father’s house.”
David’s Altar on the Threshing Floor
18 And Gad came that day to David, and said to him, “Go up, rear an altar
to the LORD on the threshing floor of Arau'nah the Jeb'usite.” 19So David
went up at Gad’s word, as the LORD commanded. 20And when Arau'nah
looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him; and
Araunah went forth, and did obeisance to the king with his face to the
ground. 21And Arau'nah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his
servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor of you, in order to build
an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be averted from the people.”
22Then Arau'nah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up
what seems good to him; here are the oxen for the burnt offering, and the
threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. 23All this, O king,
Arau'nah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “The LORD your
God accept you.” 24But the king said to Arau'nah, “No, but I will buy it of
you for a price; I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God which
cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty
shekels of silver. 25And David built there an altar to the LORD, and offered
burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD heeded supplications for
the land, and the plague was averted from Israel.
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1 Kings
Chapters
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1 KINGS
The Struggle for Succession to the Throne
1 * Now King David was old and advanced in years; and although they
covered him with clothes, he could not get warm. 2Therefore his servants
said to him, “Let a young maiden be sought for my lord the king, and let her
wait upon the king, and be his nurse; let her lie in your bosom, that my lord
the king may be warm.” 3So they sought for a beautiful maiden throughout
all the territory of Israel, and found Ab'ishag the Shu'nammite, and brought
her to the king. 4The maiden was very beautiful; and she became the king’s
nurse and ministered to him; but the king knew her not.
5 Now Adoni'jah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be
king”; * and he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men
to run before him. 6His father had never at any time displeased him by
asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome
man; and he was born next after Ab'salom. 7He conferred with Jo'ab the son
of Zeru'iah and with Abi'athar the priest; and they followed Adoni'jah and
helped him. 8But Za'dok the priest, and Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada, and
Nathan the prophet, and Shim'e-i, and Re'i, and David’s mighty men were
not with Adoni'jah.
9 Adoni'jah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fatlings by the Serpent’s Stone,
which is beside En-ro'gel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons,
and all the royal officials of Judah, 10but he did not invite Nathan the
prophet or Bena'iah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother.
11 Then Nathan said to Bathshe'ba the mother of Solomon, “Have you not
heard that Adoni'jah the son of Haggith has become king and David our
lord does not know it? 12Now therefore come, let me give you counsel, that
you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon. 13Go in at
once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear
to your maidservant, saying, “Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he
shall sit upon my throne” ? Why then is Adoni'jah king?’ 14Then while you
are still speaking with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm
your words.”
15 So Bathshe'ba went to the king into his chamber (now the king was very
old, and Ab'ishag the Shu'nammite was ministering to the king).
16Bathshe'ba bowed and did obeisance to the king, and the king said, “What
do you desire?” 17She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your
maidservant by the LORD your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign
after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.’ 18And now, behold, Adoni'jah is
king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it. 19He has sacrificed
oxen, fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the
king, Abi'athar the priest, and Jo'ab the commander of the army; but
Solomon your servant he has not invited. 20And now, my lord the king, the
eyes of all Israel are upon you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of
my lord the king after him. 21Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord
the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted
offenders.”
22 While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
23And they told the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet.” And when he came
in before the king, he bowed before the king, with his face to the ground.
24And Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adoni'jah shall reign
after me, and he shall sit upon my throne’? 25For he has gone down this
day, and has sacrificed oxen, fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has
invited all the king’s sons, Jo'ab the commander a of the army, and Abi'athar
the priest; and behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying,
‘Long live King Adoni'jah!’ 26But me, your servant, and Za'dok the priest,
and Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada, and your servant Solomon, he has not
invited. 27Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you
have not told your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king
after him?”
Solomon Is Made King
28 Then King David answered, “Call Bathshe'ba to me.” So she came into
the king’s presence, and stood before the king. 29And the king swore,
saying, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every
adversity, 30as I swore to you by the LORD, the God of Israel, saying,
‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in
my stead’; even so will I do this day.” 31Then Bathshe'ba bowed with her
face to the ground, and did obeisance to the king, and said, “May my lord
King David live for ever!”
32 King David said, “Call to me Za'dok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and
Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada.” So they came before the king. 33And the
king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause
Solomon my son to ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gi'hon;
34and let Za'dok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king
over Israel; then blow the trumpet, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’
35You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit upon my
throne; for he shall be king in my stead; and I have appointed him to be
ruler over Israel and over Judah.” 36And Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada
answered the king, “Amen! May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, say
so. 37As the LORD has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with
Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King
David.”
38 So Za'dok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Bena'iah the son of
Jehoi'ada, and the Cher'ethites and the Pel'ethites, went down and caused
Solomon to ride on King David’s mule, and brought him to Gi'hon. 39There
Za'dok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent, and anointed Solomon.
Then they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, “Long live King
Solomon!” 40And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and
rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise.
41 Adoni'jah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished
feasting. And when Jo'ab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What
does this uproar in the city mean?” 42While he was still speaking, behold,
Jonathan the son of Abi'athar the priest came; and Adoni'jah said, “Come
in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.” 43Jonathan answered
Adoni'jah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king; 44and the
king has sent with him Za'dok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Bena'iah
the son of Jehoi'ada, and the Cher'ethites and the Pel'ethites; and they have
caused him to ride on the king’s mule; 45and Za'dok the priest and Nathan
the prophet have anointed him king at Gi'hon; and they have gone up from
there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you
have heard. 46Solomon sits upon the royal throne. 47Moreover the king’s
servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘Your God make
the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater
than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself upon the bed. 48And the
king also said, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who has granted
one of my offspring b to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’ ”
49 Then all the guests of Adoni'jah trembled, and rose, and each went his
own way. 50And Adoni'jah feared Solomon; and he arose, and went, and
caught hold of the horns of the altar. 51And it was told Solomon, “Behold,
Adoni'jah fears King Solomon; for behold, he has laid hold of the horns of
the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not slay
his servant with the sword.’ ” 52And Solomon said, “If he prove to be a
worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth; but if wickedness is
found in him, he shall die.” 53So King Solomon sent, and they brought him
down from the altar. And he came and did obeisance to King Solomon; and
Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”
David’s Instructions to Solomon
2 When David’s time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son,
saying, 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show
yourself a man, 3and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his
ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his
testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all
that you do and wherever you turn; 4that the LORD may establish his word
which he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons take heed to their way,
to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul,
there shall not fail you a man on the throne of Israel.’
5 “Moreover you know also what Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah did to me, how
he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner the son of
Ner, and Ama'sa the son of Je'ther, whom he murdered, avenging c in time
of peace blood which had been shed in war, and putting innocent blood d
upon the belt about my e loins, and upon the sandals on my e feet. 6Act
therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to
Sheol in peace. 7But deal loyally with the sons of Barzil'lai the Gileadite,
and let them be among those who eat at your table; for with such loyalty
they met me when I fled from Ab'salom your brother. 8And there is also
with you Shim'e-i the son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahu'rim, who
cursed me with a grievous curse on the day when I went to Ma''hana'im; but
when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the LORD,
saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9Now therefore hold
him not guiltless, for you are a wise man; you will know what you ought to
do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol.”
Death and Burial of David
10 Then David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.
11And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned
seven years in He'bron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12So Solomon

sat upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was firmly
established.
Adonijah’s Intrigue
13 Then Adoni'jah the son of Haggith came to Bathshe'ba the mother of
Solomon. And she said, “Do you come peaceably?” He said, “Peaceably.”
14Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” She said, “Say on.” 15He
said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel fully
expected me to reign; however the kingdom has turned about and become
my brother’s, for it was his from the LORD. 16And now I have one request to
make of you; do not refuse me.” She said to him, “Say on.” 17And he said,
“Please ask King Solomon—he will not refuse you—to give me Ab'ishag
the Shu'nammite as my wife.” 18Bathshe'ba said, “Very well; I will speak
for you to the king.”
19 So Bathshe'ba went to King Solomon, to speak to him on behalf of
Adoni'jah. And the king rose to meet her, and bowed down to her; then he
sat on his throne, and had a seat brought for the king’s mother; and she sat
on his right. 20Then she said, “I have one small request to make of you; do
not refuse me.” And the king said to her, “Make your request, my mother;
for I will not refuse you.” 21She said, “Let Ab'ishag the Shu'nammite be
given to Adoni'jah your brother as his wife.” 22King Solomon answered his
mother, “And why do you ask Ab'ishag the Shu'nammite for Adoni'jah?
Ask for him the kingdom also; for he is my elder brother, and on his side
are Abi'athar f the priest and Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah.” 23Then King
Solomon swore by the LORD, saying, “God do so to me and more also if this
word does not cost Adoni'jah his life! 24Now therefore as the LORD lives,
who has established me, and placed me on the throne of David my father,
and who has made me a house, as he promised, Adoni'jah shall be put to
death this day.” 25So King Solomon sent Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada; and
he struck him down, and he died.
Solomon Consolidates His Reign
26 And to Abi'athar the priest the king said, “Go to An'athoth, to your
estate; for you deserve death. But I will not at this time put you to death,
because you bore the ark of the Lord GOD before David my father, and
because you shared in all the affliction of my father.” 27So Solomon
expelled Abi'athar from being priest to the LORD, thus fulfilling the word of
the LORD which he had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shi'loh.
28 When the news came to Jo'ab—for Joab had supported Adoni'jah
although he had not supported Ab'salom—Joab fled to the tent of the LORD
and caught hold of the horns of the altar. 29And when it was told King
Solomon, “Jo'ab has fled to the tent of the LORD, and behold, he is beside
the altar,” Solomon sent Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada, saying, “Go, strike
him down.” 30So Bena'iah came to the tent of the LORD, and said to him,
“The king commands, ‘Come forth.’ ” But he said, “No, I will die here.”
Then Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus said Jo'ab, and
thus he answered me.” 31The king replied to him, “Do as he has said, strike
him down and bury him; and thus take away from me and from my father’s
house the guilt for the blood which Jo'ab shed without cause. 32The LORD
will bring back his bloody deeds upon his own head, because, without the
knowledge of my father David, he attacked and slew with the sword two
men more righteous and better than himself, Abner the son of Ner,
commander of the army of Israel, and Ama'sa the son of Je'ther, commander
of the army of Judah. 33So shall their blood come back upon the head of
Jo'ab and upon the head of his descendants for ever; but to David, and to his
descendants, and to his house, and to his throne, there shall be peace from
the LORD for evermore.” 34Then Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada went up, and
struck him down and killed him; and he was buried in his own house in the
wilderness. 35The king put Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada over the army in
place of Jo'ab, and the king put Za'dok the priest in the place of Abi'athar.
36 Then the king sent and summoned Shim'e-i, and said to him, “Build
yourself a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and do not go forth from
there to any place whatever. 37For on the day you go forth, and cross the
brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall die; your blood shall be upon
your own head.” 38And Shim'e-i said to the king, “What you say is good; as
my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” So Shime-i dwelt in
Jerusalem many days.
39 But it happened at the end of three years that two of Shim'e-i’s slaves
ran away to A'chish, son of Ma'acah, king of Gath. And when it was told
Shime-i, “Behold, your slaves are in Gath,” 40Shim'e-i arose and saddled a
donkey, and went to Gath to A'chish, to seek his slaves; Shime-i went and
brought his slaves from Gath. 41And when Solomon was told that Shim'e-i
had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and returned, 42the king sent and
summoned Shim'e-i, and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the
LORD, and solemnly admonish you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the
day you go forth and go to any place whatever, you shall die’? And you said
to me, ‘What you say is good; I obey.’ 43Why then have you not kept your
oath to the LORD and the commandment with which I charged you?” 44The
king also said to Shim'e-i, “You know in your own heart all the evil that you
did to David my father; so the LORD will bring back your evil upon your
own head. 45But King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David
shall be established before the LORD for ever.” 46Then the king commanded
Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada; and he went out and struck him down, and he
died.
So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
Solomon Prays for Wisdom
3 * Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt; he
took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he
had finished building his own house and the house of the LORD and the wall
around Jerusalem. 2The people were sacrificing at the high places, however,
because no house had yet been built for the name of the LORD.
3 Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father;
only, he sacrificed and burnt incense at the high places. 4And the king went
to Gib'eon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place; Solomon
used to offer a thousand burnt offerings upon that altar. 5At Gib'eon the
LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream * by night; and God said, “Ask what
I shall give you.” 6And Solomon said, “You have shown great and merciful
love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in
faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and
you have kept for him this great and merciful love, and have given him a
son to sit on his throne this day. 7And now, O LORD my God, you have
made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a
little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8And your servant is in
the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, that cannot
be numbered or counted for multitude. 9Give your servant therefore an
understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between
good and evil; for who is able to govern this great people of yours?”
10 It pleased the LORD that Solomon had asked this. 11And God said to
him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long
life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself
understanding to discern what is right, 12behold, I now do according to your
word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you
has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. 13I give you
also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king
shall compare with you, all your days. 14And if you will walk in my ways,
keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked,
then I will lengthen your days.”
15 And Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. Then he came to
Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and
offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings, and made a feast for all his
servants.
Solomon’s Wisdom in Judgment
16 Then two harlots came to the king, and stood before him. 17The one
woman said, “Oh, my lord, this woman and I dwell in the same house; and I
gave birth to a child while she was in the house. 18Then on the third day
after I was delivered, this woman also gave birth; and we were alone; there
was no one else with us in the house, only we two were in the house. 19And
this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on it. 20And she arose at
midnight, and took my son from beside me, while your maidservant slept,
and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead son in my bosom. 21When I rose
in the morning to nurse my child, behold, it was dead; but when I looked at
it closely in the morning, behold, it was not the child that I had borne.”
22But the other woman said, “No, the living child is mine, and the dead
child is yours.” The first said, “No, the dead child is yours, and the living
child is mine.” Thus they spoke before the king.
23 Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and
your son is dead’; and the other says, ‘No; but your son is dead, and my son
is the living one.’ ” 24And the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So a sword
was brought before the king. 25And the king said, “Divide the living child
in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.” 26Then the woman
whose son was alive said to the king, because her heart yearned for her son,
“Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means slay it.” But the
other said, “It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.” 27Then the king
answered and said, “Give the living child to the first woman, and by no
means slay it; she is its mother.” 28And all Israel heard of the judgment
which the king had rendered; and they stood in awe of the king, because
they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him, to render justice.
Solomon’s High Officials
4 King Solomon was king over all Israel, 2and these were his high
officials: Azari'ah the son of Za'dok was the priest; 3Elihor'eph and Ahi'jah
the sons of Shi'sha were secretaries; Jehosh'aphat the son of Ahi'lud was
recorder; 4Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada was in command of the army;
Za'dok and Abi'athar were priests; 5Azari'ah the son of Nathan was over the
officers; Zabud the son of Nathan was priest and king’s friend; 6Ahi'shar
was in charge of the palace; and Adoni'ram the son of Abda was in charge
of the forced labor.
7 Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided food for the
king and his household; each man had to make provision for one month in
the year. 8These were their names: Ben-hur, in the hill country of E'phraim;
9Ben-de'ker, in Makaz, Sha-al'bim, Beth-she'mesh, and E'lonbeth-ha'nan;
10Ben-he'sed, in Arub'both (to him belonged Socoh and all the land of
He'pher); 11Ben-abin'adab, in all Na'phath-dor (he had Ta'phath the daughter

of Solomon as his wife); 12Ba'ana the son of Ahi'lud, in Ta'anach, Megid'do,
and all Beth-she'an which is beside Zar'ethan below Jezre'el, and from Beth-
shean to A'bel-meho'lah, as far as the other side of Jok'meam; 13Ben-ge'ber,
in Ra'moth-gil'ead (he had the villages of Ja'ir the son of Manas'seh, which
are in Gilead, and he had the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty
great cities with walls and bronze bars); 14Ahin'adab the son of Iddo, in
Ma''hana'im; 15Ahi'ma-az, in Naph'tali (he had taken Bas'emath the
daughter of Solomon as his wife); 16Ba'ana the son of Hu'shai, in Asher and
Bea'loth; 17Jehosh'aphat the son of Paru'ah, in Is'sachar; 18Shim'e-i the son
of E'la, in Benjamin; 19Geber the son of U'ri, in the land of Gilead, the
country of Si'hon king of the Am'orites and of Og king of Bashan. And
there was one officer in the land of Judah.
20 Judah and Israel were as many as the sand by the sea; they ate and
drank and were happy. 21 g Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the
Euphrates to the land of the Philis'tines and to the border of Egypt; they
brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.
22 Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty cors of fine flour, and sixty
cors of meal, 23ten fat oxen, and twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep,
besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fatted fowl. 24For he had dominion
over all the region west of the Euphra'tes from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the
kings west of the Euphrates; and he had peace on all sides round about him.
25And Judah and Israel dwelt in safety, from Dan even to Be'er-she'ba,
every man under his vine and under his fig tree, all the days of Solomon.
26Solomon also had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and
twelve thousand horsemen. 27And those officers supplied provisions for

King Solomon, and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each one in
his month; they let nothing be lacking. 28Barley also and straw for the
horses and swift steeds they brought to the place where it was required,
each according to his charge.
Fame of Solomon’s Wisdom
29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure,
and largeness of mind like the sand on the seashore, 30so that Solomon’s
wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east, and all the
wisdom of Egypt. 31For he was wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan
the Ez'rahite, and He'man, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his
fame was in all the nations round about. 32He also uttered three thousand
proverbs; * and his songs were a thousand and five. 33He spoke of trees,
from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall;
he spoke also of beasts, and of birds, and of reptiles, and of fish. 34And men
came from all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the
kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.
Preparations and Materials for the Temple
5 h Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, when he
heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father; for Hiram
always loved David. 2And Solomon sent word to Hiram, 3“You know that
David my father could not build a house for the name of the LORD his God
because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until the
LORD put them under the soles of his feet. 4But now the LORD my God has
given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor misfortune. 5And
so I purpose to build a house for the name of the LORD my God, as the
LORD said to David my father, ‘Your son, whom I will set upon your throne
in your place, shall build the house for my name.’ 6Now therefore command
that cedars of Lebanon be cut for me; and my servants will join your
servants, and I will pay you for your servants such wages as you set; for
you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut timber like
the Sido'nians.”
7 When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly, and said,
“Blessed be the LORD this day, who has given to David a wise son to be
over this great people.” 8And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have heard
the message which you have sent to me; I am ready to do all you desire in
the matter of cedar and cypress timber. 9My servants shall bring it down to
the sea from Lebanon; and I will make it into rafts to go by sea to the place
you direct, and I will have them broken up there, and you shall receive it;
and you shall meet my wishes by providing food for my household.” 10So
Hiram supplied Solomon with all the timber of cedar and cypress that he
desired, 11while Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat as
food for his household, and twenty thousand i cors of beaten oil. Solomon
gave this to Hiram year by year. 12And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as
he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and
the two of them made a treaty.
13 King Solomon raised a levy of forced labor out of all Israel; and the
levy numbered thirty thousand men. 14And he sent them to Lebanon, ten
thousand a month in relays; they would be a month in Lebanon and two
months at home; Adoni'ram was in charge of the levy. 15Solomon also had
seventy thousand burden-bearers and eighty thousand hewers of stone in the
hill country, 16besides Solomon’s three thousand three hundred chief
officers who were over the work, who had charge of the people who carried
on the work. 17At the king’s command, they quarried out great, costly
stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones. 18So
Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the men of Ge'bal did the
hewing and prepared the timber and the stone to build the house.
Solomon Builds the Temple
6 In the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel came out
of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in
the month of Ziv, which is the second month, he began to build the house of
the LORD. * 2The house which King Solomon built for the LORD was sixty
cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high. 3The vestibule in
front of the nave of the house was twenty cubits long, equal to the width of
the house, and ten cubits deep in front of the house. 4And he made for the
house windows with recessed frames. 5He also built a structure against the
wall of the house, running round the walls of the house, both the nave and
the inner sanctuary; and he made side chambers all around. 6The lowest
story j was five cubits broad, the middle one was six cubits broad, and the
third was seven cubits broad; for around the outside of the house he made
offsets on the wall in order that the supporting beams should not be inserted
into the walls of the house.
7 When the house was built, it was with stone prepared at the quarry; so
that neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron was heard in the temple,
while it was being built.
8 The entrance for the lowest k story was on the south side of the house;
and one went up by stairs to the middle story, and from the middle story to
the third. 9So he built the house, and finished it; and he made the ceiling of
the house of beams and planks of cedar. 10He built the structure against the
whole house, each story l five cubits high, and it was joined to the house
with timbers of cedar.
11 Now the word of the LORD came to Solomon, 12“Concerning this house
which you are building, if you will walk in my statutes and obey my
ordinances and keep all my commandments and walk in them, then I will
establish my word with you, which I spoke to David your father. 13And I
will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people
Israel.”
14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it. 15He lined the walls of the
house on the inside with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house to the
rafters m of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he
covered the floor of the house with boards of cypress. 16He built twenty
cubits of the rear of the house with boards of cedar from the floor to the
rafters, m and he built this within as an inner sanctuary, as the most holy
place. 17The house, that is, the nave in front of the inner sanctuary, was
forty cubits long. 18The cedar within the house was carved in the form of
gourds and open flowers; all was cedar, no stone was seen. 19The inner
sanctuary he prepared in the innermost part of the house, to set there the ark
of the covenant of the LORD. 20The inner sanctuary n was twenty cubits
long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high; and he overlaid it with
pure gold. He also made o an altar of cedar. 21And Solomon overlaid the
inside of the house with pure gold, and he drew chains of gold across, in
front of the inner sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold. 22And he overlaid the
whole house with gold, until all the house was finished. Also the whole
altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.
Furnishings of the Temple
23 In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olivewood, each ten
cubits high. 24Five cubits was the length of one wing of the cherub, and five
cubits the length of the other wing of the cherub; it was ten cubits from the
tip of one wing to the tip of the other. 25The other cherub also measured ten
cubits; both cherubim had the same measure and the same form. 26The
height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub.
27He put the cherubim in the innermost part of the house; and the wings of
the cherubim were spread out so that a wing of one touched the one wall,
and a wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; their other wings
touched each other in the middle of the house. 28And he overlaid the
cherubim with gold.
29 He carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of
cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms.
30The floor of the house he overlaid with gold in the inner and outer rooms.
31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors of olivewood; the
lintel and the doorposts formed a pentagon. p 32He covered the two doors of
olivewood with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; he
overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubim and upon the
palm trees.
33 So also he made for the entrance to the nave doorposts of olivewood, in
the form of a square, 34and two doors of cypress wood; the two leaves of
the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were
folding. 35On them he carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers;
and he overlaid them with gold evenly applied upon the carved work. 36He
built the inner court with three courses of hewn stone and one course of
cedar beams.
37 In the fourth year the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid, in
the month of Ziv. 38And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, which is
the eighth month, the house was finished in all its parts, and according to all
its specifications. He was seven years in building it.
Solomon’s House and Other Buildings
7 Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished
his entire house.
2 He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon; its length was a hundred
cubits, and its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits, and it was
built upon three q rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
3And it was covered with cedar above the chambers that were upon the
forty-five pillars, fifteen in each row. 4There were window frames in three
rows, and window opposite window in three tiers. 5All the doorways and
windows r had square frames, and window was opposite window in three
tiers.
6 And he made the Hall of Pillars; its length was fifty cubits, and its
breadth thirty cubits; there was a porch in front with pillars, and a canopy
before them.
7 And he made the Hall of the Throne where he was to pronounce
judgment, even the Hall of Judgment; it was finished with cedar from floor
to rafters. s
8 His own house where he was to dwell, in the other court back of the hall,
was of like workmanship. Solomon also made a house like this hall for
Pharaoh’s daughter whom he had taken in marriage.
9 All these were made of costly stones, hewn according to measure, sawed
with saws, back and front, even from the foundation to the coping, and from
the court of the house of the LORD t to the great court. 10The foundation was
of costly stones, huge stones, stones of eight and ten cubits. 11And above
were costly stones, hewn according to measurement, and cedar. 12The great
court had three courses of hewn stone round about, and a course of cedar
beams; so had the inner court of the house of the LORD, and the vestibule of
the house.
Works of Hiram the Bronzeworker
13 And King Solomon sent and brought Hiram from Tyre. 14He was the
son of a widow of the tribe of Naph'tali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a
worker in bronze; and he was full of wisdom, understanding, and skill, for
making any work in bronze. He came to King Solomon, and did all his
work.
15 He cast two pillars of bronze. Eighteen cubits was the height of one
pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured its circumference; it was hollow,
and its thickness was four fingers; the second pillar was the same. u 16He
also made two capitals of molten bronze, to set upon the tops of the pillars;
the height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other
capital was five cubits. 17Then he made twov nets of checker work with
wreaths of chain work for the capitals upon the tops of the pillars; a net w
for the one capital, and a net w for the other capital. 18Likewise he made
pomegranates; x in two rows round about upon the one network, to cover
the capital that was upon the top of the pillar; and he did the same with the
other capital. 19Now the capitals that were upon the tops of the pillars in the
vestibule were of lily-work, four cubits. 20The capitals were upon the two
pillars and also above the rounded projection which was beside the
network; there were two hundred pomegranates, in two rows round about;
and so with the other capital. 21He set up the pillars at the vestibule of the
temple; he set up the pillar on the south and called its name Ja'chin; and he
set up the pillar on the north and called its name Boaz. 22And upon the tops
of the pillars was lily-work. Thus the work of the pillars was finished.
23 Then he made the molten sea; it was round, ten cubits from brim to
brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its
circumference. 24Under its brim were gourds, for thirty y cubits, compassing
the sea round about; the gourds were in two rows, cast with it when it was
cast. 25It stood upon twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west,
three facing south, and three facing east; the sea was set upon them, and all
their posterior parts were inward. 26Its thickness was a handbreadth; and its
brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily; it held two
thousand baths.
27 He also made the ten stands of bronze; each stand was four cubits long,
four cubits wide, and three cubits high. 28This was the construction of the
stands: they had panels, and the panels were set in the frames 29and on the
panels that were set in the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. Upon the
frames, both above and below the lions and oxen, there were wreaths of
beveled work. 30Moreover each stand had four bronze wheels and axles of
bronze; and at the four corners were supports for a laver. The supports were
cast, with wreaths at the side of each. 31Its opening was within a crown
which projected upward one cubit; its opening was round, as a pedestal is
made, a cubit and a half deep. At its opening there were carvings; and its
panels were square, not round. 32And the four wheels were underneath the
panels; the axles of the wheels were of one piece with the stands; and the
height of a wheel was a cubit and a half. 33The wheels were made like a
chariot wheel; their axles, their rims, their spokes, and their hubs, were all
cast. 34There were four supports at the four corners of each stand; the
supports were of one piece with the stands. 35And on the top of the stand
there was a round band half a cubit high; and on the top of the stand its
stays and its panels were of one piece with it. 36And on the surfaces of its
stays and on its panels, he carved cherubim, lions, and palm trees,
according to the space of each, with wreaths round about. 37After this
manner he made the ten stands; all of them were cast alike, of the same
measure and the same form.
38 And he made ten lavers of bronze; each laver held forty baths, each
laver measured four cubits, and there was a laver for each of the ten stands.
39And he set the stands, five on the south side of the house, and five on the
north side of the house; and he set the sea at the southeast corner of the
house.
40 Hiram also made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram
finished all the work that he did for King Solomon on the house of the
LORD: 41the two pillars, the two bowls of the capitals that were on the tops
of the pillars, and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals
that were on the tops of the pillars; 42and the four hundred pomegranates for
the two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the
two bowls of the capitals that were upon the pillars; 43the ten stands, and
the ten lavers upon the stands; 44and the one sea, and the twelve oxen
underneath the sea.
45 Now the pots, the shovels, and the basins, all these vessels in the house
of the LORD, which Hiram made for King Solomon, were of burnished
bronze. 46In the plain of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground
between Succoth and Zar'ethan. 47And Solomon left all the vessels
unweighed, because there were so many of them; the weight of the bronze
was not found out.
48 So Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of the LORD: the
golden altar, the golden table for the bread of the Presence, 49the lampstands
of pure gold, five on the south side and five on the north, before the inner
sanctuary; the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; 50the cups,
snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and firepans, of pure gold; and the
sockets of gold, for the doors of the innermost part of the house, the most
holy place, and for the doors of the nave of the temple.
51 Thus all the work that King Solomon did on the house of the LORD was
finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had
dedicated, the silver, the gold, and the vessels, and stored them in the
treasuries of the house of the LORD.
Dedication of the Temple
8 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the
tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the sons of Israel, before King
Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out
of the city of David, which is Zion. 2And all the men of Israel assembled to
King Solomon at the feast in the month Eth'anim, which is the seventh
month. 3And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.
4And they brought up the ark of the LORD, the tent of meeting, and all the
holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the Levites brought them
up. 5And King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who had
assembled before him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing so many
sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered. 6Then the
priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, in the inner
sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the
cherubim. 7For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the
ark, so that the cherubim made a covering above the ark and its poles. 8And
the poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the holy
place before the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside;
and they are there to this day. 9There was nothing in the ark except the two
tables of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, where the LORD made a
covenant with the sons of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
10And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud * filled the
house of the LORD, 11so that the priests could not stand to minister because
of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.
Solomon’s Speech
12 Then Solomon said,
“The LORD has set the sun in the heavens,
but z has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.
13I have built you an exalted house,
a place for you to dwell in for ever.”

14Then the king faced about, and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while
all the assembly of Israel stood. 15And he said, “Blessed be the LORD, the
God of Israel, who with his hand has fulfilled what he promised with his
mouth to David my father, saying, 16 ‘Since the day that I brought my
people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city in all the tribes of Israel in which
to build a house, that my name might be there; but I chose David to be over
my people Israel.’ 17Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a
house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 18But the LORD said to
David my father, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for my
name, you did well that it was in your heart; 19nevertheless you shall not
build the house, but your son who shall be born to you shall build the house
for my name.’ 20Now the LORD has fulfilled his promise which he made; for
I have risen in the place of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel,
as the LORD promised, and I have built the house for the name of the LORD,
the God of Israel. 21And there I have provided a place for the ark, in which
is the covenant of the LORD which he made with our fathers, when he
brought them out of the land of Egypt.”
Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication
22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all
the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven; 23and
said, * “O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above or
on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing mercy to your servants
who walk before you with all their heart; 24who have kept with your servant
David my father what you declared to him; yes, you spoke with your
mouth, and with your hand have fulfilled it this day. 25Now therefore, O
LORD, God of Israel, keep with your servant David my father what you have
promised him, saying, ‘There shall never fail you a man before me to sit
upon the throne of Israel, if only your sons take heed to their way, to walk
before me as you have walked before me.’ 26Now therefore, O God of
Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you have spoken to your servant
David my father.
27 “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the
highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house which I have
built! * 28Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his
supplication, O LORD my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer which
your servant prays before you this day; 29that your eyes may be open night
and day toward this house, the place of which you have said, ‘My name
shall be there,’ that you may listen to the prayer which your servant offers
toward this place. 30And hear the supplication of your servant and of your
people Israel, when they pray toward this place; yes, hear in heaven your
dwelling place; and when you hear, forgive.
31 “If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and
comes and swears his oath before your altar in this house, 32then hear in
heaven, and act, and judge your servants, condemning the guilty by
bringing his conduct upon his own head, and vindicating the righteous by
rewarding him according to his righteousness.
33 “When your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they
have sinned against you, if they turn again to you, and acknowledge your
name, and pray and make supplication to you in this house; 34then hear in
heaven, and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them again to
the land which you gave to their fathers.
35 “When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned
against you, if they pray toward this place, and acknowledge your name,
and turn from their sin, when you afflict them, 36then hear in heaven, and
forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, when you teach them
the good way in which they should walk; and grant rain upon your land,
which you have given to your people as an inheritance.
37 “If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence or blight or mildew
or locust or caterpillar; if their enemy besieges them in any a of their cities;

whatever plague, whatever sickness there is; 38whatever prayer, whatever
supplication is made by any man or by all your people Israel, each knowing
the affliction of his own heart and stretching out his hands toward this
house; 39then hear in heaven your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and
render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways (for you,
you only, know the hearts of all the children of men); 40that they may fear
you all the days that they live in the land which you gave to our fathers.
41 “Likewise when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes
from a far country for your name’s sake 42(for they shall hear of your great
name, and your mighty hand, and of your outstretched arm), when he comes
and prays toward this house, 43hear in heaven your dwelling place, and do
according to all for which the foreigner calls to you; in order that all the
peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people
Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called
by your name.
44 “If your people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatever way
you shall send them, and they pray to the LORD toward the city which you
have chosen and the house which I have built for your name, 45then hear in
heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.
46 “If they sin against you—for there is no man who does not sin—and
you are angry with them, and give them to an enemy, so that they are
carried away captive to the land of the enemy, far off or near; 47yet if they
lay it to heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and
repent, and make supplication to you in the land of their captors, saying,
‘We have sinned, and have acted perversely and wickedly’; 48if they repent
with all their mind and with all their heart in the land of their enemies, who
carried them captive, and pray to you toward their land, which you gave to
their fathers, the city which you have chosen, and the house which I have
built for your name; 49then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer
and their supplication, and maintain their cause 50and forgive your people
who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions which they have
committed against you; and grant them compassion in the sight of those
who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them 51(for
they are your people, and your heritage, which you brought out of Egypt,
from the midst of the iron furnace). 52Let your eyes be open to the
supplication of your servant, and to the supplication of your people Israel,
giving ear to them whenever they call to you. 53For you separated them
from among all the peoples of the earth, to be your heritage, as you declared
through Moses, your servant, when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, O
Lord GOD.”
Solomon Blesses the Assembly
54 Now as Solomon finished offering all this prayer and supplication to the
LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, where he had knelt with
hands outstretched toward heaven; 55and he stood, and blessed all the
assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, 56“Blessed be the LORD who
has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he promised; not one
word has failed of all his good promise, which he uttered by Moses his
servant. 57The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers; may he
not leave us or forsake us; 58that he may incline our hearts to him, to walk
in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, his statutes, and his
ordinances, which he commanded our fathers. 59Let these words of mine,
wherewith I have made supplication before the LORD, be near to the LORD
our God day and night, and may he maintain the cause of his servant, and
the cause of his people Israel, as each day requires; 60that all the peoples of
the earth may know that the LORD is God; there is no other. 61Let your heart
therefore be wholly true to the LORD our God, walking in his statutes and
keeping his commandments, as at this day.”
Solomon Offers Sacrifices
62 Then the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the
LORD. 63Solomon offered as peace offerings to the LORD twenty-two

thousand oxen and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and
all the sons of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD. 64The same day the
king consecrated the middle of the court that was before the house of the
LORD; for there he offered the burnt offering and the cereal offering and the
fat pieces of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that was before
the LORD was too small to receive the burnt offering and the cereal offering
and the fat pieces of the peace offerings.
65 So Solomon held the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great
assembly, from the entrance of Ha'math to the Brook of Egypt, before the
LORD our God, seven days. b 66On the eighth day he sent the people away;
and they blessed the king, and went to their homes joyful and glad of heart
for all the goodness that the LORD had shown to David his servant and to
Israel his people.
The Lord’s Second Appearance to Solomon
9 When Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the
king’s house and all that Solomon desired to build, 2the LORD appeared to
Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gib'eon. 3And the
LORD said to him, * “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, which
you have made before me; I have consecrated this house which you have
built, and put my name there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there
for all time. 4And as for you, if you will walk before me, as David your
father walked, with integrity of heart and uprightness, doing according to all
that I have commanded you, and keeping my statutes and my ordinances,
5then I will establish your royal throne over Israel for ever, as I promised
David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a man upon the throne
of Israel.’ 6But if you turn aside from following me, you or your children,
and do not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before
you, but go and serve other gods and worship them, 7then I will cut off
Israel from the land which I have given them; and the house which I have
consecrated for my name I will cast out of my sight; and Israel will become
a proverb and a byword among all peoples. 8And this house will become a
heap of ruins; c every one passing by it will be astonished, and will hiss; and
they will say, ‘Why has the LORD done thus to this land and to this house?’
9Then they will say, ‘Because they forsook the LORD their God who brought
their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and
worshiped them and served them; therefore the LORD has brought all this
evil upon them.’ ”
10 At the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses,
the house of the LORD and the king’s house, 11and Hiram king of Tyre had
supplied Solomon with cedar and cypress timber and gold, as much as he
desired, King Solomon gave to Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.
12But when Hiram came from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had
given him, they did not please him. 13Therefore he said, “What kind of
cities are these which you have given me, my brother?” So they are called
the land of Ca'bul to this day. 14Hiram had sent to the king one hundred and
twenty talents of gold.
Other Works of Solomon
15 And this is the account of the forced labor which King Solomon levied
to build the house of the LORD and his own house and the Millo and the
wall of Jerusalem and Ha'zor and Megid'do and Gezer 16(Pharaoh king of
Egypt had gone up and captured Gezer and burnt it with fire, and had slain
the Canaanites who dwelt in the city, and had given it as dowry to his
daughter, Solomon’s wife; 17so Solomon rebuilt Gezer) and Lower Beth-
ho'ron 18and Ba'alath and Ta'mar in the wilderness, in the land of Judah, d
19and all the store-cities that Solomon had, and the cities for his chariots,
and the cities for his horsemen, and whatever Solomon desired to build in
Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 20All the people
who were left of the Am'orites, the Hittites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and
the Jeb'usites, who were not of the sons of Israel—21their descendants who
were left after them in the land, whom the sons of Israel were unable to
destroy utterly—these Solomon made a forced levy of slaves, and so they
are to this day. 22But of the sons of Israel Solomon made no slaves; they
were the soldiers, they were his officials, his commanders, his captains, his
chariot commanders and his horsemen.
23 These were the chief officers who were over Solomon’s work: five
hundred and fifty, who had charge of the people who carried on the work.
24 But Pharaoh’s daughter went up from the city of David to her own
house which Solomon had built for her; then he built the Millo.
25 Three times a year Solomon used to offer up burnt offerings and peace
offerings upon the altar which he built to the LORD, burning incense e before
the LORD. So he finished the house.
Solomon’s Fleet
26 King Solomon built a fleet of ships at E'zion-ge'ber, which is near E'loth
on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of E'dom. 27And Hiram sent with
the fleet his servants, seamen who were familiar with the sea, together with
the servants of Solomon; 28and they went to O'phir, and brought from there
gold, to the amount of four hundred and twenty talents; and they brought it
to King Solomon.
Visit of the Queen of Sheba
10 Now when the queen of Sheba * heard of the fame of Solomon
concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions.
2She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels bearing
spices, and very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to
Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. 3And Solomon answered
all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king which he could
not explain to her. 4And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom
of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5the food of his table, the seating of
his officials, and the attendance of his servants, their clothing, his
cupbearers, and his burnt offerings which he offered at the house of the
LORD, there was no more spirit in her.
6 And she said to the king, “The report was true which I heard in my own
land of your affairs and of your wisdom, 7but I did not believe the reports
until I came and my own eyes had seen it; and behold, the half was not told
me; your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report which I heard. 8Happy
are your wives! f Happy are these your servants, who continually stand
before you and hear your wisdom! 9Blessed be the LORD your God, who has
delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD
loved Israel for ever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice
and righteousness.” 10Then she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents
of gold, and a very great quantity of spices, and precious stones; never
again came such an abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba
gave to King Solomon.
11 Moreover the fleet of Hiram, which brought gold from O'phir, brought
from Ophir a very great amount of almug wood and precious stones. 12And
the king made of the almug wood supports for the house of the LORD, and
for the king’s house, lyres also and harps for the singers; no such almug
wood has come or been seen, to this day.
13 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired,
whatever she asked besides what was given her by the bounty of King
Solomon. So she turned and went back to her own land, with her servants.
14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six
hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 15besides that which came from the
traders and from the traffic of the merchants, and from all the kings of
Arabia and from the governors of the land. 16King Solomon made two
hundred large shields of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into
each shield. 17And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three
minas of gold went into each shield; and the king put them in the House of
the Forest of Lebanon. 18The king also made a great ivory throne, and
overlaid it with the finest gold. 19The throne had six steps, and at the back
of the throne was a calf’s head, and on each side of the seat were arm rests
and two lions standing beside the arm rests, 20while twelve lions stood
there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. The like of it was never
made in any kingdom. 21All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold,
and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold;
none were of silver, it was not considered as anything in the days of
Solomon. 22For the king had a fleet of ships of Tar'shish at sea with the fleet
of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish* used to
come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. g
23 Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in
wisdom. 24And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his
wisdom, which God had put into his mind. 25Every one of them brought his
present, articles of silver and gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses, and
mules, so much year by year.
26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen; he had fourteen
hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he stationed in the

chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 27And the king made silver as
common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as the
sycamore of the Shephe'lah. 28And Solomon’s import of horses was from
Egypt and Ku'e, and the king’s traders received them from Kue at a price.
29A chariot could be imported from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver,
and a horse for a hundred and fifty; and so through the king’s traders they
were exported to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.
Solomon’s Errors
11 * Now King Solomon loved many foreign women: the daughter of
Pharaoh, and Moabite, Am'monite, E'domite, Sido'nian, and Hittite women,
2from the nations concerning which the LORD had said to the sons of Israel,
“You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you,
for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods”; Solomon clung
to these in love. 3He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three
hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4For when
Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his
heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David
his father. 5For Solomon went after Ash'toreth the goddess of the
Sido'nians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Am'monites. 6So
Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not wholly
follow the LORD, as David his father had done. 7Then Solomon built a high
place for Che'mosh the abomination of Moab, and for Mo'lech the
abomination of the Am'monites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. 8And so
he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their
gods.
9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned
away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,
10and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after
other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD commanded. 11Therefore the
LORD said to Solomon, “Since this has been your mind and you have not
kept my covenant and my statutes which I have commanded you, I will
surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant. 12Yet for
the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days, but I will tear it
out of the hand of your son. 13However I will not tear away all the
kingdom; but I will give one tribe to your son, for the sake of David my
servant and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.”
Adversaries of Solomon
14 * And the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon, Ha'dad the
E'domite; he was of the royal house in E'dom. 15For when David was in
E'dom, and Jo'ab the commander of the army went up to bury the slain, he
slew every male in Edom 16(for Jo'ab and all Israel remained there six
months, until he had cut off every male in E'dom); 17but Ha'dad fled to
Egypt, together with certain E'domites of his father’s servants, Hadad being
yet a little child. 18They set out from Mid'ian and came to Par'an, and took
men with them from Paran and came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt,
who gave him a house, and assigned him an allowance of food, and gave
him land. 19And Ha'dad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he
gave him in marriage the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tah'penes the
queen. 20And the sister of Tah'penes bore him Genu'bath his son, whom
Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s
house among the sons of Pharaoh. 21But when Ha'dad heard in Egypt that
David slept with his fathers and that Jo'ab the commander of the army was
dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me depart, that I may go to my own
country.” 22But Pharaoh said to him, “What have you lacked with me that
you are now seeking to go to your own country?” And he said to him,
“Only let me go.”
23 God also raised up as an adversary to him, Re'zon the son of Eli'ada,
who had fled from his master Ha'dad-e'zer king of Zobah. 24And he
gathered men about him and became leader of a marauding band, after the
slaughter by David; and they went to Damascus, and dwelt there, and made
him king in Damascus. 25He was an adversary of Israel all the days of
Solomon, doing mischief as Ha'dad did; and he abhorred Israel, and reigned
over Syria.
Jeroboam’s Rebellion
26 Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, an E'phraimite of Zer'edah, a servant of
Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeru'ah, a widow, also lifted up his
hand against the king. 27And this was the reason why he lifted up his hand
against the king. Solomon built the Millo, and closed up the breach of the
city of David his father. 28The man Jerobo'am was very able, and when
Solomon saw that the young man was industrious he gave him charge over
all the forced labor of the house of Joseph. 29And at that time, when
Jerobo'am went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahi'jah the Shi'lonite found
him on the road. Now Ahijah had clad himself with a new garment; and the
two of them were alone in the open country. 30Then Ahi'jah laid hold of the
new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces. 31And he said
to Jerobo'am, “Take for yourself ten pieces; for thus says the LORD, the God
of Israel, ‘Behold, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of
Solomon, and will give you ten tribes 32(but he shall have one tribe, for the
sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I
have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), 33because he has h forsaken me,
and worshiped Ash'toreth the goddess of the Sido'nians, Che'mosh the god
of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Am'monites, and has h not walked in
my ways, doing what is right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my
ordinances, as David his father did. 34Nevertheless I will not take the whole
kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him ruler all the days of his life,
for the sake of David my servant whom I chose, who kept my
commandments and my statutes; 35but I will take the kingdom out of his
son’s hand, and will give it to you, ten tribes. 36Yet to his son I will give one
tribe, that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in
Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen to put my name. 37And I will take
you, and you shall reign over all that your soul desires, and you shall be
king over Israel. 38And if you will listen to all that I command you, and will
walk in my ways, and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes
and my commandments, as David my servant did, I will be with you, and
will build you a sure house, as I built for David, and I will give Israel to
you. 39And I will for this afflict the descendants of David, but not for
ever.’ ” 40Solomon sought therefore to kill Jerobo'am; but Jeroboam arose,
and fled into Egypt, to Shi'shak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the
death of Solomon.
Death of Solomon
41 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his
wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? 42And the
time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
43And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David
his father; and Rehobo'am his son reigned in his stead.

The Northern Tribes Secede
12 Rehobo'am went to She'chem, * for all Israel had come to Shechem
to make him king. 2And when Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat heard of it (for
he was still in Egypt, whither he had fled from King Solomon), then
Jeroboam returned from i Egypt. 3And they sent and called him; and
Jerobo'am and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehobo'am,
4 “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service
of your father and his heavy yoke upon us, and we will serve you.” 5He said
to them, “Depart for three days, then come again to me.” So the people
went away.
6 Then King Rehobo'am took counsel with the old men, who had stood
before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you
advise me to answer this people?” 7And they said to him, “If you will be a
servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them
when you answer them, then they will be your servants for ever.” 8But he
forsook the counsel which the old men gave him, and took counsel with the
young men who had grown up with him and stood before him. 9And he said
to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to
me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put upon us’?” 10And the young men
who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus shall you speak to this
people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but please
lighten it for us’; thus shall you say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than
my father’s loins. 11And now, whereas my father laid upon you a heavy
yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I
will chastise you with scorpions.’ ”
12 So Jerobo'am and all the people came to Rehobo'am the third day, as the
king said, “Come to me again the third day.” 13And the king answered the
people harshly, and forsaking the counsel which the old men had given him,
14he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My
father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father
chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” 15So the
king did not listen to the people; for it was a turn of affairs brought about by
the LORD that he might fulfil his word, which the LORD spoke by Ahi'jah the
Shi'lonite to Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat.
Jeroboam Reigns over Israel
16 And when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people
answered the king,

00“What portion have we in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.

To your tents, O Israel!
Look now to your own house, David.”
So Israel departed to their tents. 17But Rehobo'am reigned over the sons
of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah. 18Then King Rehobo'am sent
Ador'am, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned
him to death with stones. And King Rehoboam made haste to mount his
chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has been in rebellion against the
house of David to this day. 20And when all Israel heard that Jerobo'am had
returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over
all Israel. There was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of
Judah only.
21 When Rehobo'am came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of
Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen
warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to restore the kingdom to
Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came to Shemai'ah
the man of God: 23 “Say to Rehobo'am the son of Solomon, king of Judah,
and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people,
24‘Thus says the LORD, You shall not go up or fight against your kinsmen
the sons of Israel. Return every man to his home, for this thing is from
me.’ ” So they listened to the word of the LORD, and went home again,
according to the word of the LORD.
Jeroboam’s Golden Calves
25 Then Jerobo'am built She'chem in the hill country of E'phraim, and
dwelt there; and he went out from there and built Penu'el. 26And Jerobo'am
said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David;
27if this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the LORD at
Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, to
Rehobo'am king of Judah, and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam
king of Judah.” 28So the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold.
And he said to the people, “You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough.
Behold your gods, * O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of
Egypt.” 29And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 30And this
thing became a sin, for the people went to the one at Bethel and to the other
as far as Dan. j 31He also made houses on high places, and appointed priests
from among all the people, who were not of the Levites. 32And Jerobo'am
appointed a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month like the feast that
was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices upon the altar; so he did in Bethel,
sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And he placed in Bethel the
priests of the high places that he had made. 33He went up to the altar which
he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the
month which he had devised of his own heart; and he ordained a feast for
the sons of Israel, and went up to the altar to burn incense.
A Man of God from Judah
13 And behold, a man of God came out of Judah by the word of the
LORD to Bethel. Jerobo'am was standing by the altar to burn incense. 2And
the man cried against the altar by the word of the LORD, and said, “O altar,
altar, thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, a son shall be born to the house of
David, Josi'ah by name; and he shall sacrifice upon you the priests of the
high places who burn incense upon you, and men’s bones shall be burned
upon you.’ ” 3And he gave a sign the same day, saying, “This is the sign
that the LORD has spoken: ‘Behold, the altar shall be torn down, and the
ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.’ ” 4And when the king heard the
saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel,
Jerobo'am stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, “Lay hold of him.”
And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could
not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was torn down, and the ashes
poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had
given by the word of the LORD. 6And the king said to the man of God,
“Entreat now the favor of the LORD your God, and pray for me, that my
hand may be restored to me.” And the man of God entreated the LORD; and
the king’s hand was restored to him, and became as it was before. 7And the
king said to the man of God, “Come home with me, and refresh yourself,
and I will give you a reward.” 8And the man of God said to the king, “If
you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat
bread or drink water in this place; 9for so was it commanded me by the
word of the LORD, saying, ‘You shall neither eat bread, nor drink water, nor
return by the way that you came.’ ” 10So he went another way, and did not
return by the way that he came to Bethel.
11 Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel. And his sons k came and told
him all that the man of God had done that day in Bethel; the words also
which he had spoken to the king, they told to their father. 12And their father
said to them, “Which way did he go?” And his sons showed him the way
which the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13And he said to his
sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him and
he mounted it. 14And he went after the man of God, and found him sitting
under an oak; and he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from
Judah?” And he said, “I am.” 15Then he said to him, “Come home with me
and eat bread.” 16And he said, “I may not return with you, or go in with
you; neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place; 17for it
was said to me by the word of the LORD, ‘You shall neither eat bread nor
drink water there, nor return by the way that you came.’ ” 18And he said to
him, “I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word
of the LORD, saying, ‘Bring him back with you into your house that he may
eat bread and drink water.’ ” But he lied to him. 19So he went back with
him, and ate bread in his house, and drank water.
20 And as they sat at the table, the word of the LORD came to the prophet
who had brought him back; 21and he cried to the man of God who came
from Judah, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have disobeyed the word
of the LORD, and have not kept the commandment which the LORD your
God commanded you, 22but have come back, and have eaten bread and
drunk water in the place of which he said to you, “Eat no bread, and drink
no water”; your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.’ ” 23And
after he had eaten bread and drunk, he saddled the donkey for the prophet
whom he had brought back. 24And as he went away a lion met him on the
road and killed him. And his body was thrown in the road, and the donkey
stood beside it; the lion also stood beside the body. 25And behold, men
passed by, and saw the body thrown in the road, and the lion standing by the
body. And they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
26 And when the prophet who had brought him back from the way heard
of it, he said, “It is the man of God, who disobeyed the word of the LORD;
therefore the LORD has given him to the lion, which has torn him and slain
him, according to the word which the LORD spoke to him.” 27And he said to
his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And they saddled it. 28And he went
and found his body thrown in the road, and the donkey and the lion standing
beside the body. The lion had not eaten the body or torn the donkey. 29And
the prophet took up the body of the man of God and laid it upon the donkey,
and brought it back to the city, l to mourn and to bury him. 30And he laid the
body in his own grave; and they mourned over him, saying, “Alas, my
brother!” 31And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, “When I die,
bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones
beside his bones. 32For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD
against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places
which are in the cities of Samar'ia, shall surely come to pass.”
33 After this incident Jerobo'am did not turn from his evil way, but made
priests for the high places again from among all the people; any who would,
he consecrated to be priests of the high places. 34And this thing became sin
to the house of Jerobo'am, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face
of the earth.
Judgment on the House of Jeroboam
14 At that time Abi'jah the son of Jerobo'am fell sick. 2And Jerobo'am
said to his wife, “Arise, and disguise yourself, that it be not known that you
are the wife of Jeroboam, and go to Shiloh; behold, Ahi'jah the prophet is
there, who said of me that I should be king over this people. 3Take with you
ten loaves, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him; he will tell you
what shall happen to the child.”
4 Jerobo'am’s wife did so; she arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the
house of Ahi'jah. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were dim because
of his age. 5And the LORD said to Ahi'jah, “Behold, the wife of Jerobo'am is
coming to inquire of you concerning her son; for he is sick. Thus and thus
shall you say to her.”
When she came, she pretended to be another woman. 6But when Ahi'jah
heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, he said, “Come in,
wife of Jerobo'am; why do you pretend to be another? For I am charged
with heavy tidings for you. 7Go, tell Jerobo'am, ‘Thus says the LORD, the
God of Israel: “Because I exalted you from among the people, and made
you leader over my people Israel, 8and tore the kingdom away from the
house of David and gave it to you; and yet you have not been like my
servant David, who kept my commandments, and followed me with all his
heart, doing only that which was right in my eyes, 9but you have done evil
above all that were before you and have gone and made for yourself other
gods, and molten images, provoking me to anger, and have cast me behind
your back; 10therefore behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jerobo'am,
and will cut off from Jeroboam every male, both bond and free in Israel,
and will utterly consume the house of Jeroboam, as a man burns up dung
until it is all gone. 11Any one belonging to Jerobo'am who dies in the city
the dogs shall eat; and any one who dies in the open country the birds of the
air shall eat; for the LORD has spoken it.” ’ 12Arise therefore, go to your
house. When your feet enter the city, the child shall die. 13And all Israel
shall mourn for him, and bury him; for he only of Jerobo'am shall come to
the grave, because in him there is found something pleasing to the LORD,
the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam. 14Moreover the LORD will raise
up for himself a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jerobo'am
today. And henceforth m 15the LORD will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in
the water, and root up Israel out of this good land which he gave to their
fathers, and scatter them beyond the Euphrates, because they have made
their Ashe'rim, provoking the LORD to anger. 16And he will give Israel up
because of the sins of Jerobo'am, which he sinned and which he made Israel
to sin.”
Death of Jeroboam
17 Then Jerobo'am’s wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah. And as
she came to the threshold of the house, the child died. 18And all Israel
buried him and mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which
he spoke by his servant Ahi'jah the prophet. 19Now the rest of the acts of
Jerobo'am, how he warred and how he reigned, behold, they are written in
the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 20And the time that
Jerobo'am reigned was twenty-two years; and he slept with his fathers, and
Na'dab his son reigned in his stead.
Rehoboam Reigns over Judah
21 Now Rehobo'am the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was
forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years
in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of
Israel, to put his name there. His mother’s name was Na'amah the
Am'monitess. 22And Judah did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and
they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they committed, more
than all that their fathers had done. 23For they also built for themselves high
places, and pillars, and Ashe'rim on every high hill and under every green
tree; 24and there were also male cult prostitutes in the land. They did
according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD drove out
before the sons of Israel.
25 In the fifth year of King Rehobo'am, Shi'shak king of Egypt came up
against Jerusalem; 26he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD
and the treasures of the king’s house; he took away everything. He also took
away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made; 27and King
Rehobo'am made in their stead shields of bronze, and committed them to
the hands of the officers of the guard, who kept the door of the king’s
house. 28And as often as the king went into the house of the LORD, the
guard bore them and brought them back to the guardroom.
29 Now the rest of the acts of Rehobo'am, and all that he did, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 30And there
was war between Rehobo'am and Jerobo'am continually. 31And Rehobo'am
slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David.
His mother’s name was Na'amah the Am'monitess. And Abi'jam his son
reigned in his stead.
Abijam Reigns over Judah
15 Now in the eighteenth year of King Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat,
Abi'jam began to reign over Judah. 2He reigned for three years in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Ma'acah the daughter of Abish'alom.
3And he walked in all the sins which his father did before him; and his heart
was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father.
4Nevertheless for David’s sake the LORD his God gave him a lamp in
Jerusalem, setting up his son after him, and establishing Jerusalem;
5because David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, and did not turn
aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except
in the matter of Uri'ah the Hittite. 6Now there was war between Rehobo'am
and Jerobo'am all the days of his life. 7The rest of the acts of Abi'jam, and
all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the
Kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jerobo'am. 8And
Abi'jam slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city of David. And
Asa his son reigned in his stead.
Asa Reigns over Judah
9 In the twentieth year of Jerobo'am king of Israel Asa began to reign over
Judah, 10and he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name

was Ma'acah the daughter of Abish'alom. 11And Asa did what was right in
the eyes of the LORD, as David his father had done. 12He put away the male
cult prostitutes out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had
made. 13He also removed Ma'acah his mother from being queen mother
because she had an abominable image made for Ashe'rah; and Asa cut
down her image and burned it at the brook Kidron. 14But the high places
were not taken away. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was wholly true to the
LORD all his days. 15And he brought into the house of the LORD the votive
gifts of his father and his own votive gifts, silver, and gold, and vessels.
War between Asa and Baasha
16 And there was war between Asa and Ba'asha king of Israel all their
days. 17Ba'asha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ra'mah, that
he might permit no one to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 18Then
Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the
house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house, and gave them into
the hands of his servants; and King Asa sent them to Ben-ha'dad the son of
Tabrim'mon, the son of He'zi-on, king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus,
saying, 19 “Let there be a league between me and you, as between my father
and your father: behold, I am sending to you a present of silver and gold;
go, break your league with Ba'asha king of Israel, that he may withdraw
from me.” 20And Ben-ha'dad listened to King Asa, and sent the
commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, and conquered I'jon,
Dan, A'bel-beth-ma'acah, and all Chin'neroth, with all the land of Naph'tali.
21And when Ba'asha heard of it, he stopped building Ra'mah, and he dwelt
in Tirzah. 22Then King Asa made a proclamation to all Judah, none was
exempt, and they carried away the stones of Ra'mah and its timber, with
which Ba'asha had been building; and with them King Asa built Ge'ba of
Benjamin and Mizpah. 23Now the rest of all the acts of Asa, all his might,
and all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the
Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? But in his old age he was
diseased in his feet. 24And Asa slept with his fathers, and was buried with
his fathers in the city of David his father; and Jehosh'aphat his son reigned
in his stead.
Nadab Reigns over Israel
25 Nadab the son of Jerobo'am began to reign over Israel in the second
year of Asa king of Judah; and he reigned over Israel two years. 26He did
what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father,
and in his sin which he made Israel to sin.
27 Ba'asha the son of Ahi'jah, of the house of Is'sachar, conspired against
him; and Baasha struck him down at Gib'bethon, which belonged to the
Philis'tines; for Na'dab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon. 28So
Ba'asha killed him in the third year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his
stead. 29And as soon as he was king, he killed all the house of Jerobo'am; he
left to the house of Jeroboam not one that breathed, until he had destroyed
it, according to the word of the LORD which he spoke by his servant Ahi'jah
the Shi'lonite; 30it was for the sins of Jerobo'am which he sinned and which
he made Israel to sin, and because of the anger to which he provoked the
LORD, the God of Israel.
31 Now the rest of the acts of Na'dab, and all that he did, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 32And there
was war between Asa and Ba'asha king of Israel all their days.
Baasha Reigns over Israel
33 In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Ba'asha the son of Ahi'jah began
to reign over all Israel at Tirzah, and reigned twenty-four years. 34He did
what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of Jerobo'am
and in his sin which he made Israel to sin.
16 And the word of the LORD came to Je'hu the son of Hana'ni against
Ba'asha, saying, 2“Since I exalted you out of the dust and made you leader
over my people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jerobo'am, and
have made my people Israel to sin, provoking me to anger with their sins,
3behold, I will utterly sweep away Ba'asha and his house, and I will make
your house like the house of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat. 4Any one
belonging to Ba'asha who dies in the city the dogs shall eat; and any one of
his who dies in the field the birds of the air shall eat.”
5 Now the rest of the acts of Ba'asha, and what he did, and his might, are
they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 6And
Ba'asha slept with his fathers, and was buried at Tirzah; and E'lah his son
reigned in his stead. 7Moreover the word of the LORD came by the prophet
Je'hu the son of Hana'ni against Ba'asha and his house, both because of all
the evil that he did in the sight of the LORD, provoking him to anger with
the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jerobo'am, and also
because he destroyed it.
Elah Reigns over Israel
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, E'lah the son of Ba'asha
began to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned two years. 9But his
servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him. When
he was at Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was
over the household in Tirzah, 10Zimri came in and struck him down and
killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in
his stead.
11 When he began to reign, as soon as he had seated himself on his throne,
he killed all the house of Ba'asha; he did not leave him a single male of his
kinsmen or his friends. 12Thus Zimri destroyed all the house of Ba'asha,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke against Baasha by Je'hu
the prophet, 13for all the sins of Ba'asha and the sins of E'lah his son which
they sinned, and which they made Israel to sin, provoking the LORD God of
Israel to anger with their idols. 14Now the rest of the acts of E'lah, and all
that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings
of Israel?
The Conspiracy and Death of Zimri
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven
days in Tirzah. Now the troops were encamped against Gib'bethon, which
belonged to the Philis'tines, 16and the troops who were encamped heard it
said, “Zimri has conspired, and he has killed the king”; therefore all Israel
made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the
camp. 17So Omri went up from Gib'bethon, and all Israel with him, and they
besieged Tirzah. 18And when Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went
into the citadel of the king’s house, and burned the king’s house over him
with fire, and died, 19because of his sins which he committed, doing evil in
the sight of the LORD, walking in the way of Jerobo'am, and for his sin
which he committed, making Israel to sin. 20Now the rest of the acts of
Zimri, and the conspiracy which he made, are they not written in the Book
of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
Omri Reigns over Israel and Builds Samaria
21 Then the sons of Israel were divided into two parts; half of the people
followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed
Omri. 22But the people who followed Omri overcame the people who
followed Tibni the son of Ginath; so Tibni died, and Omri became king.
23In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri began to reign over
Israel, and reigned for twelve years; six years he reigned in Tirzah. 24He
bought the hill of Samar'ia* from She'mer for two talents of silver; and he
fortified the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria,
after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill.
25 Omri did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did more evil than
all who were before him. 26For he walked in all the way of Jerobo'am the
son of Ne'bat, and in the sins which he made Israel to sin, provoking the
LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their idols. 27Now the rest of the acts of
Omri which he did, and the might that he showed, are they not written in
the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 28And Omri slept with
his fathers, and was buried in Samar'ia; and A'hab his son reigned in his
stead.
Ahab Reigns over Israel and Does Evil
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, A'hab the son of Omri
began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in
Samar'ia twenty-two years. 30And A'hab the son of Omri did evil in the
sight of the LORD more than all that were before him. 31And as if it had
been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat,
he took for his wife Jez'ebel the daughter of Ethba'al king of the Sido'nians,
and went and served Ba'al, and worshiped him. 32He erected an altar for
Ba'al in the house of Baal, which he built in Samar'ia. 33And A'hab made an
Ashe'rah. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger
than all the kings of Israel who were before him. 34In his days Hiel of
Bethel built Jericho; he laid its foundation at the cost of Abi'ram his first-
born, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to
the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.
Elijah’s Prophecy of a Drought
17 Now Eli'jah the Tishbite, of Tishbe n in Gilead, said to A'hab, “As
the LORD the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither
dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” * 2And the word of the LORD
came to him, 3“Depart from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by
the brook Cherith, that is east of the Jordan. 4You shall drink from the
brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” 5So he went
and did according to the word of the LORD; he went and dwelt by the brook
Cherith that is east of the Jordan. 6And the ravens brought him bread and
meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from
the brook. 7And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain
in the land.
The Widow of Zarephath
8 Then the word of the LORD came to him. 9 “Arise, go to Zar'ephath,
which belongs to Si'don, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a

widow there to feed you.” 10So he arose and went to Zar'ephath; and when
he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks;
and he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may
drink.” 11And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring
me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12And she said, “As the LORD your
God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little
oil in a pitcher; and now, I am gathering a couple of sticks, that I may go in
and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” 13And
Eli'jah said to her, “Fear not; go and do as you have said; but first make me
a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make for yourself and
your son. 14For thus says the LORD the God of Israel, ‘The jar of meal shall
not be spent, and the pitcher of oil shall not fail, until the day that the LORD
sends rain upon the earth.’ ” 15And she went and did as Eli'jah said; and she,
and he, and her household ate for many days. 16The jar of meal was not
spent, neither did the pitcher of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD
which he spoke by Eli'jah.
Elijah Revives the Widow’s Son
17 After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill;
and his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18And she
said to Eli'jah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come
to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!”
19And he said to her, “Give me your son.” And he took him from her
bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber, where he lodged, and
laid him upon his own bed. 20And he cried to the LORD, “O LORD my God,
have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by
slaying her son?” 21Then he stretched himself upon the child three times,
and cried to the LORD, “O LORD my God, let this child’s soul come into him
again.” 22And the LORD listened to the voice of Eli'jah; and the soul of the
child came into him again, and he revived. 23And Eli'jah took the child, and
brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and delivered
him to his mother; and Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” 24And the woman
said to Eli'jah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word
of the LORD in your mouth is truth.”
Elijah’s Message to Ahab
18 After many days the word of the LORD came to Eli'jah, in the third
year, saying, “Go, show yourself to A'hab; and I will send rain upon the
earth.” 2So Eli'jah went to show himself to A'hab. Now the famine was
severe in Samar'ia. 3And A'hab called Obadi'ah, who was over the
household. (Now Obadiah revered the LORD greatly; 4and when Jez'ebel cut
off the prophets of the LORD, Obadi'ah took a hundred prophets and hid
them by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.) 5And A'hab
said to Obadi'ah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all
the valleys; perhaps we may find grass and save the horses and mules alive,
and not lose some of the animals.” 6So they divided the land between them
to pass through it; A'hab went in one direction by himself, and Obadi'ah
went in another direction by himself.
7 And as Obadi'ah was on the way, behold, Eli'jah met him; and Obadiah
recognized him, and fell on his face, and said, “Is it you, my lord Elijah?”
8And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your lord, ‘Behold, Eli'jah is here.’ ”
9And he said, “Wherein have I sinned, that you would give your servant
into the hand of A'hab, to kill me? 10As the LORD your God lives, there is
no nation or kingdom whither my lord has not sent to seek you; and when
they would say, ‘He is not here,’ he would take an oath of the kingdom or
nation, that they had not found you. 11And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord,
“Behold, Eli'jah is here.” ’ 12And as soon as I have gone from you, the
Spirit of the LORD will carry you I know not where; and so, when I come
and tell A'hab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your
servant have revered the LORD from my youth. 13Has it not been told my
lord what I did when Jez'ebel killed the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a
hundred men of the LORD’s prophets by fifties in a cave, and fed them with
bread and water? 14And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Behold, Eli'jah is
here” ’; and he will kill me.” 15And Eli'jah said, “As the LORD of hosts
lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.” 16So
Obadi'ah went to meet A'hab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Eli'jah.
17 When A'hab saw Eli'jah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of
Israel?” 18And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel; but you have, and
your father’s house, because you have forsaken the commandments of the
LORD and followed the Ba'als. 19Now therefore send and gather all Israel to
me at Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Ba'al * and
the four hundred prophets of Ashe'rah, who eat at Jez'ebel’s table.”
Elijah Triumphs over the Prophets of Baal
20 So A'hab sent to all the sons of Israel, and gathered the prophets
together at Mount Carmel. 21And Eli'jah came near to all the people, and
said, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the
LORD is God, follow him; but if Ba'al, then follow him.” And the people did
not answer him a word. 22Then Eli'jah said to the people, “I, even I only, am
left a prophet of the LORD; but Ba'al’s prophets are four hundred and fifty
men. 23Let two bulls be given to us; and let them choose one bull for
themselves, and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it;
and I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood, and put no fire to it.
24And you call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the
LORD; and the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people
answered, “It is well spoken.” 25Then Eli'jah said to the prophets of Ba'al,
“Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many; and
call on the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” 26And they took the bull
which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Ba'al
from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no
voice, and no one answered. And they limped about the altar which they
had made. 27And at noon Eli'jah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is
a god; either he is musing, or he has gone aside, or he is on a journey, or
perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” 28And they cried aloud, and
cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood
gushed out upon them. 29And as midday passed, they raved on until the
time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice; no one
answered, no one heeded.
30 Then Eli'jah said to all the people, “Come near to me”; and all the
people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that had
been thrown down; 31Eli'jah took twelve stones, according to the number of
the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying,
“Israel shall be your name”; 32and with the stones he built an altar in the
name of the LORD. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would
contain two measures of seed. 33And he put the wood in order, and cut the
bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with
water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood.” 34And he said,
“Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a
third time”; and they did it a third time. 35And the water ran round about the
altar, and filled the trench also with water.
36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Eli'jah the prophet came
near and said, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known
this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I
have done all these things at your word. 37Answer me, O LORD, answer me,
that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have
turned their hearts back.” Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the
burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the
water that was in the trench. 39And when all the people saw it, they fell on
their faces; and they said, “The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God.”
40And Eli'jah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Ba'al; let not one of them
escape.” And they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook
Ki'shon, and killed them there.
The Drought Ends
41 And Eli'jah said to A'hab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of
the rushing of rain.” 42So A'hab went up to eat and to drink. And Eli'jah
went up to the top of Carmel; and he bowed himself down upon the earth,
and put his face between his knees. 43And he said to his servant, “Go up
now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked, and said, “There is
nothing.” And he said, “Go again seven times.” 44And at the seventh time
he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising out of the sea.”
And he said, “Go up, say to A'hab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest
the rain stop you.’ ” 45And in a little while the heavens grew black with
clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And A'hab rode and went to
Jezre'el. 46And the hand of the LORD was on Eli'jah; and he girded up his
loins and ran before A'hab to the entrance of Jezre'el.
Elijah Flees from Jezebel
19 A'hab told Jez'ebel all that Eli'jah had done, and how he had slain all
the prophets with the sword. 2Then Jez'ebel sent a messenger to Eli'jah,
saying, “So may the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your
life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” 3Then he was afraid,
and he arose and went for his life, and came to Be'er-she'ba, which belongs
to Judah, and left his servant there.
4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and
sat down under a broom tree; and he asked that he might die, saying, “It is
enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am no better than my
fathers.” 5And he lay down and slept under a broom tree; and behold, an
angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6And he looked, and
behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water.
And he ate and drank, and lay down again. 7And the angel of the LORD
came again a second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, else
the journey will be too great for you.” 8And he arose, and ate and drank,
and walked in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to
Horeb * the mount of God.
Elijah Meets God at Mount Horeb
9 And there he came to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of
the LORD came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here,
Eli'jah?” 10He said, “I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of
hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your
altars, and slain your prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left;
and they seek my life, to take it away.” 11And he said, “Go forth, and stand
upon the mount before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, and a
great and strong wind tore the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks
before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an
earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; 12and after the
earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still
small voice. 13And when Eli'jah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle
and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came
a voice to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Eli'jah?” 14He said, “I
have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel
have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and slain your
prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life,
to take it away.” 15And the LORD said to him, “Go, return on your way to
the wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, you shall anoint Haz'ael
to be king over Syria; 16and Je'hu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be
king over Israel; and Eli'sha the son of Sha'phat of A'bel-meho'lah you shall
anoint to be prophet in your place. 17And him who escapes from the sword
of Haz'ael shall Je'hu slay; and him who escapes from the sword of Jehu
shall Eli'sha slay. 18Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees
that have not bowed to Ba'al, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
Elisha Becomes Elijah’s Disciple
19 So he departed from there, and found Eli'sha the son of Sha'phat, who
was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the
twelfth. Eli'jah passed by him and cast his mantle upon him. 20And he left
the oxen, and ran after Eli'jah, and said, “Let me kiss my father and my
mother, and then I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go back again;
for what have I done to you?” 21And he returned from following him, and
took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the yokes
of the oxen, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and went
after Eli'jah, and ministered to him.
Ahab’s Wars with the Syrians
20 Ben-ha'dad the king of Syria gathered all his army together; thirty-
two kings were with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and
besieged Samar'ia, and fought against it. 2And he sent messengers into the
city to A'hab king of Israel, and said to him, “Thus says Ben-ha'dad: 3 ‘Your
silver and your gold are mine; your fairest wives and children also are
mine.’ ” 4And the king of Israel answered, “As you say, my lord, O king, I
am yours, and all that I have.” 5The messengers came again, and said,
“Thus says Ben-ha'dad: ‘I sent to you, saying, “Deliver to me your silver
and your gold, your wives and your children”; 6nevertheless I will send my
servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house
and the houses of your servants, and lay hands on whatever pleases them, o
and take it away.’ ”
7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, “Mark,
now, and see how this man is seeking trouble; for he sent to me for my
wives and my children, and for my silver and my gold, and I did not refuse
him.” 8And all the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not heed or
consent.” 9So he said to the messengers of Ben-ha'dad, “Tell my lord the
king, ‘All that you first demanded of your servant I will do; but this thing I
cannot do.’ ” And the messengers departed and brought him word again.
10Ben-ha'dad sent to him and said, “The gods do so to me, and more also, if
the dust of Samar'ia shall suffice for handfuls for all the people who follow
me.” 11And the king of Israel answered, “Tell him, ‘Let not him that belts
on his armor boast himself as he that puts it off.’ ” 12When Ben-ha'dad
heard this message as he was drinking with the kings in the booths, he said
to his men, “Take your positions.” And they took their positions against the
city.
A Prophet Speaks to Ahab
13 And behold, a prophet came near to A'hab king of Israel and said, “Thus
says the LORD, Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will give it
into your hand this day; and you shall know that I am the LORD.” 14And
A'hab said, “By whom?” He said, “Thus says the LORD, By the servants of
the governors of the districts.” Then he said, “Who shall begin the battle?”
He answered, “You.” 15Then he mustered the servants of the governors of
the districts, and they were two hundred and thirty-two; and after them he
mustered all the sons of Israel, seven thousand.
The Syrians Are Defeated
16 And they went out at noon, while Ben-ha'dad was drinking himself
drunk in the booths, he and the thirty-two kings who helped him. 17The
servants of the governors of the districts went out first. And Ben-ha'dad sent
out scouts, and they reported to him, “Men are coming out from Samar'ia.”
18He said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have
come out for war, take them alive.”

19 So these went out of the city, the servants of the governors of the
districts, and the army which followed them. 20And each killed his man; the
Syrians fled and Israel pursued them, but Ben-ha'dad king of Syria escaped
on a horse with horsemen. 21And the king of Israel went out, and captured p
the horses and chariots, and killed the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22 Then the prophet came near to the king of Israel, and said to him,
“Come, strengthen yourself, and consider well what you have to do; for in
the spring the king of Syria will come up against you.”
23 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, “Their gods are gods
of the hills, and so they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them
in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. 24And do this:
remove the kings, each from his post, and put commanders in their places;
25and muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse, and
chariot for chariot; then we will fight against them in the plain, and surely
we shall be stronger than they.” And he listened to their voice, and did so.
26 In the spring Ben-ha'dad mustered the Syrians, and went up to A'phek,
to fight against Israel. 27And the sons of Israel were mustered, and were
provisioned, and went against them; the sons of Israel encamped before
them like two little flocks of goats, but the Syrians filled the country. 28And
a man of God came near and said to the king of Israel, “Thus says the LORD,
‘Because the Syrians have said, “The LORD is a god of the hills but he is not
a god of the valleys,” therefore I will give all this great multitude into your
hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’ ” 29And they encamped
opposite one another seven days. Then on the seventh day the battle was
joined; and the sons of Israel struck a hundred thousand Syrian foot soldiers
in one day. 30And the rest fled into the city of A'phek; and the wall fell upon
twenty-seven thousand men that were left.
Ben-ha'dad also fled, and entered an inner chamber in the city. 31And his
servants said to him, “Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the
house of Israel are merciful kings; let us put sackcloth on our loins and
ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he will spare
your life.” 32So they belted sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their
heads, and went to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-ha'dad
says, ‘Please, let me live.’ ” And he said, “Does he still live? He is my
brother.” 33Now the men were watching for an omen, and they quickly took
it up from him and said, “Yes, your brother Ben-ha'dad.” Then he said, “Go
and bring him.” Then Ben-hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to
come up into the chariot. 34And Ben-ha'dad said to him, “The cities which
my father took from your father I will restore; and you may establish
bazaars for yourself in Damascus, as my father did in Samar'ia.” And A'hab
said, “I will let you go on these terms.” So he made a covenant with him
and let him go.
A Prophet Condemns Ahab
35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his fellow at the
command of the LORD, “Strike me, I beg you.” But the man refused to
strike him. 36Then he said to him, “Because you have not obeyed the voice
of the LORD, behold, as soon as you have gone from me, a lion shall kill
you.” And as soon as he had departed from him, a lion met him and killed
him. 37Then he found another man, and said, “Strike me, I beg you.” And
the man struck him, hitting and wounding him. 38So the prophet departed,
and waited for the king by the way, disguising himself with a bandage over
his eyes. 39And as the king passed, he cried to the king and said, “Your
servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a soldier turned
and brought a man to me, and said, ‘Keep this man; if by any means he be
missing, your life shall be for his life, or else you shall pay a talent of
silver.’ 40And as your servant was busy here and there, he was gone.” The
king of Israel said to him, “So shall your judgment be; you yourself have
decided it.” 41Then he made haste to take the bandage away from his eyes;
and the king of Israel recognized him as one of the prophets. 42And he said
to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have let go out of your hand the
man whom I had devoted to destruction, therefore your life shall go for his
life, and your people for his people.’ ” 43And the king of Israel went to his
house resentful and sullen, and came to Samar'ia.
Naboth’s Vineyard
21 Now Naboth the Jezre'elite had a vineyard in Jezre'el, beside the
palace of A'hab king of Samar'ia. 2And after this A'hab said to Naboth,
“Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because
it is near my house; and I will give you a better vineyard for it; or, if it
seems good to you, I will give you its value in money.” 3But Naboth said to
A'hab, “The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my
fathers.” 4And A'hab went into his house vexed and sullen because of what
Naboth the Jezre'elite had said to him; for he had said, “I will not give you
the inheritance of my fathers.” And he lay down on his bed, and turned
away his face, and would eat no food.
5 But Jez'ebel his wife came to him, and said to him, “Why is your spirit
so vexed that you eat no food?” 6And he said to her, “Because I spoke to
Naboth the Jezre'elite, and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money;
or else, if it please you, I will give you another vineyard for it’; and he
answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’ ” 7And Jez'ebel his wife said
to him, “Do you now govern Israel? Arise, and eat bread, and let your heart
be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezre'elite.”
8 So she wrote letters in A'hab’s name and sealed them with his seal, and
she sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who dwelt with Naboth in
his city. 9And she wrote in the letters, “Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on
high among the people; 10and set two * base fellows opposite him, and let
them bring a charge against him, saying, ‘You have cursed God and the
king.’ Then take him out, and stone him to death.” 11And the men of his
city, the elders and the nobles who dwelt in his city, did as Jez'ebel had sent
word to them. As it was written in the letters which she had sent to them,
12they proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people. 13And
the two base fellows came in and sat opposite him; and the base fellows
brought a charge against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying,
“Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they took him outside the city, and
stoned him to death with stones. 14Then they sent to Jez'ebel, saying,
“Naboth has been stoned; he is dead.”
15 As soon as Jez'ebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead,
Jezebel said to A'hab, “Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the
Jezre'elite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive,
but dead.” 16And as soon as A'hab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab arose
to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezre'elite, to take possession of
it.
Elijah Pronounces God’s Sentence
17 Then the word of the LORD came to Eli'jah the Tishbite, saying,
18“Arise, go down to meet A'hab king of Israel, who is in Samar'ia; behold,
he is in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession.
19And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Have you killed, and
also taken possession?” ’ And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD:
“In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick your
own blood.” ’ ”
20 A'hab said to Eli'jah, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” He
answered, “I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do what is
evil in the sight of the LORD. 21Behold, I will bring evil upon you; I will
utterly sweep you away, and will cut off from A'hab every male, bond or
free, in Israel; 22and I will make your house like the house of Jerobo'am the
son of Ne'bat, and like the house of Ba'asha the son of Ahi'jah, for the anger
to which you have provoked me, and because you have made Israel to sin.
23And of Jez'ebel the LORD also said, ‘The dogs shall eat Jezebel within the
bounds of Jezre'el.’ 24Any one belonging to A'hab who dies in the city the
dogs shall eat; and any one of his who dies in the open country the birds of
the air shall eat.”
25 (There was none who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of
the LORD like A'hab, whom Jez'ebel his wife incited. 26He did very
abominably in going after idols, as the Am'orites had done, whom the LORD
cast out before the sons of Israel.)
27 And when A'hab heard those words, he tore his clothes, and put
sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about
dejectedly. 28And the word of the LORD came to Eli'jah the Tishbite, saying,
29 “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he
has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but in
his son’s days I will bring the evil upon his house.” *
Judah and Israel Join to Fight the Syrians
22 For three years Syria and Israel continued without war. 2But in the
third year Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel.
3And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ra'moth-
gil'ead belongs to us, and we keep quiet and do not take it out of the hand of
the king of Syria?” 4And he said to Jehosh'aphat, “Will you go with me to
battle at Ra'moth-gil'ead?” And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am
as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
5 And Jehosh'aphat said to the king of Israel, “Inquire first for the word of
the LORD.” 6Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about
four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go to battle against Ra'moth-
gil'ead, or shall I forbear?” And they said, “Go up; for the Lord will give it
into the hand of the king.” 7But Jehosh'aphat said, “Is there not here another
prophet of the LORD of whom we may inquire?” 8And the king of Israel said
to Jehosh'aphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the
LORD, Micai'ah the son of Imlah; but I hate him, for he never prophesies
good concerning me, but evil.” And Jehosh'aphat said, “Let not the king say
so.” 9Then the king of Israel summoned an officer and said, “Bring quickly
Micai'ah the son of Imlah.” 10Now the king of Israel and Jehosh'aphat the
king of Judah were sitting on their thrones, wearing their robes, at the
threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samar'ia; and all the prophets
were prophesying before them. 11And Zedeki'ah the son of Chena'anah
made for himself horns of iron, and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘With these
you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.’ ” 12And all the prophets
prophesied so, and said, “Go up to Ra'moth-gil'ead and triumph; the LORD
will give it into the hand of the king.”
Micaiah’s Prophecy
13 And the messenger who went to summon Micai'ah said to him,
“Behold, the words of the prophets with one accord are favorable to the
king; let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.”
14But Micai'ah said, “As the LORD lives, what the LORD says to me, that I
will speak.” 15And when he had come to the king, the king said to him,
“Micai'ah, shall we go to Ra'moth-gil'ead to battle, or shall we forbear?”
And he answered him, “Go up and triumph; the LORD will give it into the
hand of the king.” 16But the king said to him, “How many times shall I
adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the
LORD?” 17And he said, “I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as
sheep that have no shepherd; and the LORD said, ‘These have no master; let
each return to his home in peace.’ ” 18And the king of Israel said to
Jehosh'aphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good
concerning me, but evil?” 19And Micai'ah said, “Therefore hear the word of
the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven
standing beside him on his right hand and on his left; 20and the LORD said,
‘Who will entice A'hab, that he may go up and fall at Ra'moth-gil'ead?’ And
one said one thing, and another said another. 21Then a spirit came forward
and stood before the LORD, saying, ‘I will entice him.’ 22And the LORD said
to him, ‘By what means?’ And he said, ‘I will go forth, and will be a lying
spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him,
and you shall succeed; go forth and do so.’ 23Now therefore behold, the
LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the LORD
has spoken evil concerning you.”
24 Then Zedeki'ah the son of Chena'anah came near and struck Micai'ah on
the cheek, and said, “How did the Spirit of the LORD go from me to speak to
you?” 25And Micai'ah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day when you go
into an inner chamber to hide yourself.” 26And the king of Israel said,
“Seize Micai'ah, and take him back to A'mon the governor of the city and to
Jo'ash the king’s son; 27and say, ‘Thus says the king, “Put this fellow in
prison, and feed him with scant fare of bread and water, until I come in
peace.” ’ ” 28And Micai'ah said, “If you return in peace, the LORD has not
spoken by me.” And he said, “Hear, all you peoples!”
Defeat and Death of Ahab
29 So the king of Israel and Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah went up to
Ra'moth-gil'ead. 30And the king of Israel said to Jehosh'aphat, “I will

disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes.” And the king
of Israel disguised himself and went into battle. 31Now the king of Syria
had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, “Fight with neither
small nor great, but only with the king of Israel.” 32And when the captains
of the chariots saw Jehosh'aphat, they said, “It is surely the king of Israel.”
So they turned to fight against him; and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33And when
the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned
back from pursuing him. 34But a certain man drew his bow by chance, and
struck the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate;
therefore he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn about, and carry me out
of the battle, for I am wounded.” 35And the battle grew hot that day, and the
king was propped up in his chariot facing the Syrians, until at evening he
died; and the blood of the wound flowed into the bottom of the chariot.
36And about sunset a cry went through the army, “Every man to his city,
and every man to his country!”

37 So the king died, and was brought to Samar'ia; and they buried the king
in Samaria. 38And they washed the chariot by the pool of Samar'ia, and the
dogs licked up his blood, and the harlots washed themselves in it, according
to the word of the LORD which he had spoken. 39Now the rest of the acts of
A'hab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he built, and all the
cities that he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the
Kings of Israel? 40So A'hab slept with his fathers; and Ahazi'ah his son
Jehoshaphat Reigns over Judah
41 Jehosh'aphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year
of A'hab king of Israel. 42Jehosh'aphat was thirty-five years old when he

began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s
name was Azu'bah the daughter of Shilhi. 43He walked in all the way of
Asa his father; he did not turn aside from it, doing what was right in the
sight of the LORD; yet the high places were not taken away, and the people
still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 44Jehosh'aphat also
made peace with the king of Israel.
45 Now the rest of the acts of Jehosh'aphat, and his might that he showed,
and how he warred, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of
the Kings of Judah? 46And the remnant of the male cult prostitutes who
remained in the days of his father Asa, he exterminated from the land.
47 There was no king in E'dom; a deputy was king. 48Jehosh'aphat made
ships of Tar'shish to go to O'phir for gold; but they did not go, for the ships
were wrecked at E'zion-ge'ber. 49Then Ahazi'ah the son of A'hab said to
Jehosh'aphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships,” but
Jehoshaphat was not willing. 50And Jehosh'aphat slept with his fathers, and
was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Jeho'ram his
son reigned in his stead.
Ahaziah Reigns over Israel
51 Ahazi'ah the son of A'hab began to reign over Israel in Samar'ia in the
seventeenth year of Jehosh'aphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years

over Israel. 52He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in
the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of
Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, who made Israel to sin. 53He served Ba'al and
worshiped him, and provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger in every
way that his father had done.
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2 Kings
Chapters
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SECOND BOOK OF KINGS
Elijah Denounces Ahaziah
1 After the death of A'hab, Moab rebelled against Israel.
2 Now Ahazi'ah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samar'ia,
and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Ba'al-
ze'bub, the god of Ek'ron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.” 3But
the angel of the LORD said to Eli'jah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the
messengers of the king of Samar'ia, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is
no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god of
Ek'ron?’ 4Now therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You shall not come down
from the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.’ ” So Eli'jah
went.
5 The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, “Why have
you returned?” 6And they said to him, “There came a man to meet us, and
said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the
LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire
of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god of Ek'ron? Therefore you shall not come down
from the bed to which you have gone, but shall surely die.’ ” 7He said to
them, “What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these
things?” 8They answered him, “He wore a garment of haircloth, with a belt
of leather about his loins.” And he said, “It is Eli'jah the Tishbite.”
9 Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went
up to Eli'jah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man
of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ” 10But Eli'jah answered the captain of
fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume
you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven, and consumed him
and his fifty.
11 Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty.
And he went up a and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order,
‘Come down quickly!’ ” 12But Eli'jah answered them, “If I am a man of
God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.”
Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his
fifty.
13 Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the
third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Eli'jah,
and entreated him, “O man of God, I beg you, let my life, and the life of
these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. 14Behold, fire came
down from heaven, and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with
their fifties; but now let my life be precious in your sight.” 15Then the angel
of the LORD said to Eli'jah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.”
So he arose and went down with him to the king, 16and said to him, “Thus
says the LORD, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Ba'al-
ze'bub, the god of Ek'ron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire
of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which
you have gone, but you shall surely die.’ ”
Death of Ahaziah
17 So he died according to the word of the LORD which Eli'jah had spoken.
Jeho'ram, his brother,b became king in his stead in the second year of
Jehoram the son of Jehosh'aphat, king of Judah, because Ahazi'ah had no
son. 18Now the rest of the acts of Ahazi'ah which he did, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
Elijah Is Taken Up to Heaven
2 Now when the LORD was about to take Eli'jah up to heaven by a
whirlwind, Elijah and Eli'sha were on their way from Gilgal. 2And Eli'jah
said to Eli'sha, “Tarry here, I beg you; for the LORD has sent me as far as
Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will
not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. 3And the sons of the prophets
who were in Bethel came out to Eli'sha, and said to him, “Do you know that
today the LORD will take away your master from over you?” And he said,
“Yes, I know it; hold your peace.”
4 Eli'jah said to him, “Eli'sha, tarry here, I beg you; for the LORD has sent
me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I
will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. 5The sons of the prophets who
were at Jericho drew near to Eli'sha, and said to him, “Do you know that
today the LORD will take away your master from over you?” And he
answered, “Yes, I know it; hold your peace.”
6 Then Eli'jah said to him, “Tarry here, I beg you; for the LORD has sent
me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live,
I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. 7Fifty men of the sons of
the prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both
were standing by the Jordan. 8Then Eli'jah took his coat, and rolled it up,
and struck the water, and the water was parted to the one side and to the
other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground.
Elisha Succeeds Elijah
9 When they had crossed, Eli'jah said to Eli'sha, “Ask what I shall do for
you, before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “I beg you, let me
inherit a double share * of your spirit.” 10And he said, “You have asked a
hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so
for you; but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” 11And as they still
went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the
two of them. And Eli'jah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12And Eli'sha
saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! the chariots of Israel and its
horsemen!” And he saw him no more.
Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. 13And
he took up the coat of Eli'jah that had fallen from him, and went back and
stood on the bank of the Jordan. 14Then he took the coat of Eli'jah that had
fallen from him, and struck the water, saying, “Where is the LORD, the God
of Elijah?” And when he had struck the water, the water was parted to the
one side and to the other; and Eli'sha went over.
15 Now when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho saw him over
against them, they said, “The spirit of Eli'jah rests on Eli'sha.” And they
came to meet him, and bowed to the ground before him. 16And they said to
him, “Behold now, there are with your servants fifty strong men; please, let
them go, and seek your master; it may be that the Spirit of the LORD has
caught him up and cast him upon some mountain or into some valley.” And
he said, “You shall not send.” 17But when they urged him till he was
ashamed, he said, “Send.” They sent therefore fifty men; and for three days
they sought him but did not find him. 18And they came back to him, while
he tarried at Jericho, and he said to them, “Did I not say to you, Do not go?”
Elisha Performs Miracles
19 Now the men of the city said to Eli'sha, “Behold, the situation of this
city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad, and the land is
unfruitful.” 20He said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they
brought it to him. 21Then he went to the spring of water and threw salt in it,
and said, “Thus says the LORD, I have made this water wholesome;
henceforth neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it.” 22So the water
has been wholesome to this day, according to the word which Eli'sha spoke.
23 He went up from there to Bethel; and while he was going up on the
way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go
up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” 24And he turned around, and
when he saw them, he cursed them in the name of the LORD. And two she-
bears came out of the woods and tore forty-two of the boys. 25From there he
went on to Mount Carmel, and thence he returned to Samar'ia.
Jehoram Reigns over Israel
3 In the eighteenth year of Jehosh'aphat king of Judah, Jeho'ram the son
of A'hab became king over Israel in Samar'ia, and he reigned twelve years.
2He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, though not like his father
and mother, for he put away the pillar of Ba'al which his father had made.
3Nevertheless he clung to the sin of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he
made Israel to sin; he did not depart from it.
War with Moab
4 * Now Me'sha king of Moab was a sheep breeder; and he had to deliver
annually c to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs, and the wool of a
hundred thousand rams. 5But when A'hab died, the king of Moab rebelled
against the king of Israel. 6So King Jeho'ram marched out of Samar'ia at
that time and mustered all Israel. 7And he went and sent word to
Jehosh'aphat king of Judah, “The king of Moab has rebelled against me;
will you go with me to battle against Moab?” And he said, “I will go; I am
as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.” 8Then he
said, “By which way shall we march?” Jeho'ram answered, “By the way of
the wilderness of E'dom.”
9 So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of E'dom.
And when they had made a circuitous march of seven days, there was no
water for the army or for the beasts which followed them. 10Then the king
of Israel said, “Alas! The LORD has called these three kings to give them
into the hand of Moab.” 11And Jehosh'aphat said, “Is there no prophet of the
LORD here, through whom we may inquire of the LORD?” Then one of the
king of Israel’s servants answered, “Eli'sha the son of Sha'phat is here, who
poured water on the hands of Eli'jah.” 12And Jehosh'aphat said, “The word
of the LORD is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the
king of E'dom went down to him.
13 And Eli'sha said to the king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go
to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother.” But the
king of Israel said to him, “No; it is the LORD who has called these three
kings to give them into the hand of Moab.” 14And Eli'sha said, “As the
LORD of hosts lives, whom I serve, were it not that I have regard for
Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah, I would neither look at you, nor see you.
15But now bring me a minstrel.” And when the minstrel played, the power
of the LORD came upon him. 16And he said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘I will
make this dry stream-bed full of pools.’ 17For thus says the LORD, ‘You
shall not see wind or rain, but that stream-bed shall be filled with water, so
that you shall drink, you, your cattle, and your beasts.’ 18This is a light
thing in the sight of the LORD; he will also give the Moabites into your
hand, 19and you shall conquer every fortified city, and every choice city,
and shall fell every good tree, and stop up all springs of water, and ruin
every good piece of land with stones.” 20The next morning, about the time
of offering the sacrifice, behold, water came from the direction of E'dom,
till the country was filled with water.
21 When all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against
them, all who were able to put on armor, from the youngest to the oldest,
were called out, and were drawn up at the frontier. 22And when they rose
early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, the Moabites saw
the water opposite them as red as blood. 23And they said, “This is blood; the
kings have surely fought together, and slain one another. Now then, Moab,
to the spoil!” 24But when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose
and attacked the Moabites, till they fled before them; and they went
forward, slaughtering the Moabites as they went.d 25And they overthrew the
cities, and on every good piece of land every man threw a stone, until it was
covered; they stopped every spring of water, and felled all the good trees;
till only its stones were left in Kir-har'-eseth, and the slingers surrounded
and conquered it. 26When the king of Moab saw that the battle was going
against him, he took with him seven hundred swordsmen to break through,
opposite the king of E'dom; but they could not. 27Then he took his eldest
son who was to reign in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering upon
the wall. And there came great wrath upon Israel; and they withdrew from
him and returned to their own land.
Elisha and the Widow’s Jar of Oil
4 Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Eli'sha, “Your
servant my husband is dead; and you know that your servant feared the
LORD, but the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.”
2And Eli'sha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you
in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house,
except a jar of oil.” 3Then he said, “Go outside, borrow vessels of all your
neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. 4Then go in, and shut the door
upon yourself and your sons, and pour into all these vessels; and when one
is full, set it aside.” 5So she went from him and shut the door upon herself
and her sons; and as she poured they brought the vessels to her. 6When the
vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he
said to her, “There is not another.” Then the oil stopped flowing. 7She came
and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts,
and you and your sons can live on the rest.”
Elisha and the Shunammite Couple
8 One day Eli'sha went on to Shu'nem, where a wealthy woman lived, who
urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn
in there to eat food. 9And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I perceive
that this is a holy man of God, who is continually passing our way. 10Let us
make a small roof chamber with walls, and put there for him a bed, a table,
a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.”
11 One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there.
12And he said to Geha'zi his servant, “Call this Shu'nammite.” When he had
called her, she stood before him. 13And he said to him, “Say now to her,
See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you?
Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the
commander of the army?” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”
14And he said, “What then is to be done for her?” Geha'zi answered, “Well,
she has no son, and her husband is old.” 15He said, “Call her.” And when he
had called her, she stood in the doorway. 16And he said, “At this season,
when the time comes round, you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No,
my lord, O man of God; do not lie to your maidservant.” 17But the woman
conceived, and she bore a son about that time the following spring, as
Eli'sha had said to her.
Elisha Restores the Shunammite’s Son
18 When the child had grown, he went out one day to his father among the
reapers. 19And he said to his father, “Oh, my head, my head!” The father
said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” 20And when he had lifted
him, and brought him to his mother, the child sat on her lap till noon, and
then he died. 21And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God,
and shut the door upon him, and went out. 22Then she called to her
husband, and said, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys,
that I may quickly go to the man of God, and come back again.” 23And he
said, “Why will you go to him today? It is neither new moon nor sabbath.”
She said, “It will be well.” 24Then she saddled the donkey, and she said to
her servant, “Urge the beast on; do not slacken the pace for me unless I tell
you.” 25So she set out, and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel.
When the man of God saw her coming, he said to Geha'zi his servant,
“Look, yonder is the Shu'nammite; 26run at once to meet her, and say to her,
Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child?”
And she answered, “It is well.” 27And when she came to the mountain to
the man of God, she caught hold of his feet. And Geha'zi came to thrust her
away. But the man of God said, “Let her alone, for she is in bitter distress;
and the LORD has hidden it from me, and has not told me.” 28Then she said,
“Did I ask my lord for a son? Did I not say, Do not deceive me?” 29He said
to Geha'zi, “Gird up your loins, and take my staff in your hand, and go. If
you meet any one, do not salute him; and if any one salutes you, do not
reply; and lay my staff upon the face of the child.” 30Then the mother of the
child said, “As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave
you.” So he arose and followed her. 31Geha'zi went on ahead and laid the
staff upon the face of the child, but there was no sound or sign of life.
Therefore he returned to meet him, and told him, “The child has not
awaked.”
32 When Eli'sha came into the house, he saw the child lying dead on his
bed. 33So he went in and shut the door upon the two of them, and prayed to
the LORD. 34Then he went up and lay upon the child, putting his mouth
upon his mouth, his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands; and
as he stretched himself upon him, the flesh of the child became warm.
35Then he got up again, and walked once back and forth in the house, and
went up, and stretched himself upon him; the child sneezed seven times,
and the child opened his eyes. 36Then he summoned Geha'zi and said, “Call
this Shu'nammite.” So he called her. And when she came to him, he said,
“Take up your son.” 37She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground;
then she took up her son and went out.
Elisha Purifies the Pot of Pottage
38 And Eli'sha came again to Gilgal when there was a famine in the land.
And as the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his
servant, “Put on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.”
39One of them went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine
and gathered from it his lap full of wild gourds, and came and cut them up
into the pot of pottage, not knowing what they were. 40And they poured out
for the men to eat. But while they were eating of the pottage, they cried out,
“O man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it. 41He
said, “Then bring meal.” And he threw it into the pot, and said, “Pour out
for the men, that they may eat.” And there was no harm in the pot.
Elisha Feeds a Hundred Men
42 A man came from Ba'al-shal'ishah, bringing the man of God bread of
the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and fresh ears of grain in his sack.
And Eli'sha said, “Give to the men, that they may eat.” 43But his servant
said, “How am I to set this before a hundred men?” So he repeated, “Give
them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the LORD, ‘They shall eat
and have some left.’ ” 44So he set it before them. And they ate, and had
some left, according to the word of the LORD.
Naaman Is Cured of Leprosy
5 Na'aman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great
man with his master and in high favor, because by him the LORD had given
victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper. 2Now
the Syrians on one of their raids had carried off a little maid from the land
of Israel, and she waited on Na'aman’s wife. 3She said to her mistress,
“Would that my lord were with the prophet who is in Samar'ia! He would
cure him of his leprosy.” 4So Na'aman went in and told his lord, “Thus and
so spoke the maiden from the land of Israel.” 5And the king of Syria said,
“Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”
So he went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of
gold, and ten festal garments. 6And he brought the letter to the king of
Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to
you Na'aman my servant, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” 7And when
the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to
kill and to make alive, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his
leprosy? Only consider, and see how he is seeking a quarrel with me.”
8 But when Eli'sha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn
his clothes, he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes?
Let him come now to me, that he may know that there is a prophet in
Israel.” 9So Na'aman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the
door of Eli'sha’s house. 10And Eli'sha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go
and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and
you shall be clean.” 11But Na'aman was angry, and went away, saying,
“Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me, and stand, and call
on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and
cure the leper. 12Are not Aba'na e and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus,
better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be
clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. 13But his servants came near
and said to him, “My father, if the prophet had commanded you to do some
great thing, would you not have done it? How much rather, then, when he
says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14So he went down and dipped himself
seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; and his
flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
15 Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and he
came and stood before him; and he said, “Behold, I know that there is no
God in all the earth but in Israel; * so accept now a present from your
servant.” 16But he said, “As the LORD lives, whom I serve, I will receive
none.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused. 17Then Na'aman said,
“If not, I beg you, let there be given to your servant two mules’ burden of
earth; for henceforth your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to
any god but the LORD. 18In this matter may the LORD pardon your servant:
when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, leaning
on my arm, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself
in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon your servant in this matter.” 19He
said to him, “Go in peace.”
But when Na'aman had gone from him a short distance, 20Geha'zi, the
servant of Eli'sha the man of God, said, “See, my master has spared this
Na'aman the Syrian, in not accepting from his hand what he brought. As the
LORD lives, I will run after him, and get something from him.” 21So Geha'zi
followed Na'aman. And when Naaman saw some one running after him, he
alighted from the chariot to meet him, and said, “Is all well?” 22And he
said, “All is well. My master has sent me to say, ‘There have just now come
to me from the hill country of E'phraim two young men of the sons of the
prophets; please, give them a talent of silver and two festal garments.’ ”
23And Na'aman said, “Be pleased to accept two talents.” And he urged him,
and tied up two talents of silver in two bags, with two festal garments, and
laid them upon two of his servants; and they carried them before Geha'zi.
24And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand, and put them
in the house; and he sent the men away, and they departed. 25He went in,
and stood before his master, and Eli'sha said to him, “Where have you been,
Geha'zi?” And he said, “Your servant went nowhere.” 26But he said to him,
“Did I not go with you in spirit when the man turned from his chariot to
meet you? Was it a time to accept money and garments, olive orchards and
vineyards, sheep and oxen, menservants and maidservants? 27Therefore the
leprosy of Na'aman shall cling to you, and to your descendants for ever.” So
he went out from his presence a leper, as white as snow.
The Miracle of the Axe Head
6 Now the sons of the prophets said to Eli'sha, “See, the place where we
dwell under your charge is too small for us. 2Let us go to the Jordan and
each of us get there a log, and let us make a place for us to dwell there.”
And he answered, “Go.” 3Then one of them said, “Be pleased to go with
your servants.” And he answered, “I will go.” 4So he went with them. And
when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees. 5But as one was felling
a log, his axe head fell into the water; and he cried out, “Alas, my master! It
was borrowed.” 6Then the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” When he
showed him the place, he cut off a stick, and threw it in there, and made the
iron float. 7And he said, “Take it up.” So he reached out his hand and took
it.
A Syrian Attack Is Thwarted
8 Once when the king of Syria was warring against Israel, he took counsel
with his servants, saying, “At such and such a place shall be my camp.”
9But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel, “Beware that you do
not pass this place, for the Syrians are going down there.” 10And the king of
Israel sent to the place of which the man of God told him. Thus he used to
warn him, so that he saved himself there more than once or twice.
11 And the mind of the king of Syria was greatly troubled because of this
incident; and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show
me who of us is for the king of Israel?” 12And one of his servants said,
“None, my lord, O king; but Eli'sha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the
king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedchamber.” 13And he said,
“Go and see where he is, that I may send and seize him.” It was told him,
“Behold, he is in Do'than.” 14So he sent there horses and chariots and a
great army; and they came by night, and surrounded the city.
15 When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went
out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was round about the city. And
the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16He said, “Fear
not, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
17Then Eli'sha prayed, and said, “O LORD, I beg you, open his eyes that he
may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw; and
behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about
Eli'sha. 18And when the Syrians came down against him, Eli'sha prayed to
the LORD, and said, “Strike this people, I pray you, with blindness.” So he
struck them with blindness in accordance with the prayer of Elisha. 19And
Eli'sha said to them, “This is not the way, and this is not the city; follow me,
and I will bring you to the man whom you seek.” And he led them to
Samar'ia.
20 As soon as they entered Samar'ia, Eli'sha said, “O LORD, open the eyes
of these men, that they may see.” So the LORD opened their eyes, and they
saw; and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 21When the king of
Israel saw them he said to Eli'sha, “My father, shall I slay them? Shall I slay
them?” 22He answered, “You shall not slay them. Would you slay those
whom you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? Set
bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their
master.” 23So he prepared for them a great feast; and when they had eaten
and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the
Syrians came no more on raids into the land of Israel.
Ben-hadad’s Siege of Samaria
24 Afterward Ben-ha'dad king of Syria mustered his entire army, and went
up, and besieged Samar'ia. 25And there was a great famine in Samar'ia, as
they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver,
and the fourth part of a kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver. 26Now
as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, a woman cried out to
him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!” 27And he said, “If the LORD will not
help you, how shall I help you? From the threshing floor, or from the wine
press?” 28And the king asked her, “What is your trouble?” She answered,
“This woman said to me, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him today, and
we will eat my son tomorrow.’ 29So we boiled my son, and ate him. And on
the next day I said to her, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him’; but she has
hidden her son.” 30When the king heard the words of the woman he tore his
clothes—now he was passing by upon the wall—and the people looked, and
behold, he had sackcloth beneath upon his body—31and he said, “May God
do so to me, and more also, if the head of Eli'sha the son of Sha'phat
remains on his shoulders today.”
32 Eli'sha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him.
Now the king had dispatched a man from his presence; but before the
messenger arrived Elisha said to the elders, “Do you see how this murderer
has sent to take off my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the
door, and hold the door fast against him. Is not the sound of his master’s
feet behind him?” 33And while he was still speaking with them, the king f
came down to him and said, “This trouble is from the LORD! Why should I
wait for the LORD
7 any longer?” 1But Eli'sha said, “Hear the word of the LORD: thus says
the LORD, Tomorrow about this time a measure of fine meal shall be sold
for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, at the gate of
Samar'ia.” 2Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned said to the man
of God, “If the LORD himself should make windows in heaven, could this
thing be?” But he said, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall
not eat of it.”
The Syrians Flee
3 Now there were four men who were lepers at the entrance to the gate;
and they said to one another, “Why do we sit here till we die? 4If we say,
‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; and if
we sit here, we die also. So now come, let us go over to the camp of the
Syrians; if they spare our lives we shall live, and if they kill us we shall but
die.” 5So they arose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians; but when
they came to the edge of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no one
there. 6For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians hear the sound of
chariots, and of horses, the sound of a great army, so that they said to one
another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the
Hittites and the kings of Egypt to come upon us.” 7So they fled away in the
twilight and forsook their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, leaving the
camp as it was, and fled for their lives. 8And when these lepers came to the
edge of the camp, they went into a tent, and ate and drank, and they carried
off silver and gold and clothing, and went and hid them; then they came
back, and entered another tent, and carried off things from it, and went and
hid them.
9 Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day
of good news; if we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment
will overtake us; now therefore come, let us go and tell the king’s
household.” 10So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city, and
told them, “We came to the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no
one to be seen or heard there, nothing but the horses tied, and the donkeys
tied, and the tents as they were.” 11Then the gatekeepers called out, and it
was told within the king’s household. 12And the king rose in the night, and
said to his servants, “I will tell you what the Syrians have prepared against
us. They know that we are hungry; therefore they have gone out of the
camp to hide themselves in the open country, thinking, ‘When they come
out of the city, we shall take them alive and get into the city.’ ” 13And one of
his servants said, “Let some men take five of the remaining horses, seeing
that those who are left here will fare like the whole multitude of Israel that
have already perished; let us send and see.” 14So they took two mounted
men, and the king sent them after the army of the Syrians, saying, “Go and
see.” 15So they went after them as far as the Jordan; and, behold, all the way
was littered with garments and equipment which the Syrians had thrown
away in their haste. And the messengers returned, and told the king.
16 Then the people went out, and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a
measure of fine meal was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for
a shekel, according to the word of the LORD. 17Now the king had appointed
the captain on whose hand he leaned to have charge of the gate; and the
people trod upon him in the gate, so that he died, as the man of God had
said when the king came down to him. 18For when the man of God had said
to the king, “Two measures of barley shall be sold for a shekel, and a
measure of fine meal for a shekel, about this time tomorrow in the gate of
Samar'ia,” 19the captain had answered the man of God, “If the LORD himself
should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be?” And he had said,
“You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.” 20And so it
happened to him, for the people trod upon him in the gate and he died.
The Shunammite Woman’s Land Restored
8 Now Eli'sha had said to the woman whose son he had restored to life,
“Arise, and depart with your household, and sojourn wherever you can; for
the LORD has called for a famine, and it will come upon the land for seven
years.” 2So the woman arose, and did according to the word of the man of
God; she went with her household and sojourned in the land of the
Philis'tines seven years. 3And at the end of the seven years, when the
woman returned from the land of the Philis'tines, she went forth to appeal to
the king for her house and her land. 4Now the king was talking with Geha'zi
the servant of the man of God, saying, “Tell me all the great things that
Eli'sha has done.” 5And while he was telling the king how Eli'sha had
restored the dead to life, behold, the woman whose son he had restored to
life appealed to the king for her house and her land. And Geha'zi said, “My
lord, O king, here is the woman, and here is her son whom Elisha restored
to life.” 6And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king
appointed an official for her, saying, “Restore all that was hers, together
with all the produce of the fields from the day that she left the land until
now.”
The Death of Ben-hadad
7 Now Eli'sha came to Damascus. Ben-ha'dad the king of Syria was sick;
and when it was told him, “The man of God has come here,” 8the king said
to Haz'ael, “Take a present with you and go to meet the man of God, and
inquire of the LORD through him, saying, ‘Shall I recover from this
sickness?’ ” 9So Haz'ael went to meet him, and took a present with him, all
kinds of goods of Damascus, forty camel loads. When he came and stood
before him, he said, “Your son Ben-ha'dad king of Syria has sent me to you,
saying, ‘Shall I recover from this sickness?’ ” 10And Eli'sha said to him,
“Go, say to him, ‘You shall certainly recover’; but the LORD has shown me
that he shall certainly die.” 11And he fixed his gaze and stared at him, until
he was ashamed. And the man of God wept. 12And Haz'ael said, “Why does
my lord weep?” He answered, “Because I know the evil that you will do to
the sons of Israel; you will set on fire their fortresses, and you will slay their
young men with the sword, and dash in pieces their little ones, and rip up
their women with child.” 13And Haz'ael said, “What is your servant, who is
but a dog, that he should do this great thing?” Eli'sha answered, “The LORD
has shown me that you are to be king over Syria.” 14Then he departed from
Eli'sha, and came to his master, who said to him, “What did Elisha say to
you?” And he answered, “He told me that you would certainly recover.”
15But the next day he took the coverlet and dipped it in water and spread it
over his face, till he died. And Haz'ael became king in his stead.
Jehoram Reigns over Judah
16 In the fifth year of Jo'ram the son of A'hab, king of Israel,g Jeho'ram the
son of Jehosh'aphat, king of Judah, began to reign. 17He was thirty-two

years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
18And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of A'hab had
done, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife. And he did what was evil in
the sight of the LORD. 19Yet the LORD would not destroy Judah, for the sake
of David his servant, since he promised to give a lamp to him and to his
sons for ever.
20 In his days E'dom revolted from the rule of Judah, and set up a king of
their own. 21Then Jo'ram passed over to Za'ir with all his chariots, and rose
by night, and he and his chariot commanders struck the E'domites who had
surrounded him; but his army fled home. 22So E'dom revolted from the rule
of Judah to this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time. 23Now the rest
of the acts of Jo'ram, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of
the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 24So Jo'ram slept with his fathers,
and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Ahazi'ah his son
Ahaziah Reigns over Judah
25 In the twelfth year of Jo'ram the son of A'hab, king of Israel, Ahazi'ah
the son of Jeho'ram, king of Judah, began to reign. 26Ahazi'ah was twenty-
two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athali'ah; she was a granddaughter of
Omri king of Israel. 27He also walked in the way of the house of A'hab, and
did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, as the house of Ahab had done,
for he was son-in-law to the house of Ahab.
28 He went with Jo'ram the son of A'hab to make war against Haz'ael king
of Syria at Ra'moth-gil'ead, where the Syrians wounded Joram. 29And King

Jo'ram returned to be healed in Jezre'el of the wounds which the Syrians
had given him at Ra'mah, when he fought against Haz'ael king of Syria.
And Ahazi'ah the son of Jeho'ram king of Judah went down to see Joram
the son of A'hab in Jezre'el, because he was sick.
Anointing of Jehu
9 Then Eli'sha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets and
said to him, “Gird up your loins, and take this flask of oil in your hand, and
go to Ra'moth-gil'ead. 2And when you arrive, look there for Je'hu the son of
Jehosh'aphat, son of Nimshi; and go in and bid him rise from among his
fellows, and lead him to an inner chamber. 3Then take the flask of oil, and
pour it on his head, and say, ‘Thus says the LORD, I anoint you king over
Israel.’ Then open the door and flee; do not tarry.”
4 So the young man, the prophet,h went to Ra'moth-gil'ead. 5And when he
came, behold, the commanders of the army were in council; and he said, “I
have an errand to you, O commander.” And Je'hu said, “To which of us
all?” And he said, “To you, O commander.” 6So he arose, and went into the
house; and the young man poured the oil on his head, saying to him, “Thus
says the LORD the God of Israel, I anoint you king over the people of the
LORD, over Israel. 7And you shall strike down the house of A'hab your
master, that I may avenge on Jez'ebel the blood of my servants the prophets,
and the blood of all the servants of the LORD. 8For the whole house of A'hab
shall perish; and I will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel.
9And I will make the house of A'hab like the house of Jerobo'am the son of
Ne'bat, and like the house of Ba'asha the son of Ahi'jah. 10And the dogs
shall eat Jez'ebel in the territory of Jezre'el, and none shall bury her.” Then
he opened the door, and fled.
11 When Je'hu came out to the servants of his master, they said to him, “Is
all well? Why did this mad fellow come to you?” And he said to them,
“You know the fellow and his talk.” 12And they said, “That is not true; tell
us now.” And he said, “Thus and so he spoke to me, saying, ‘Thus says the
LORD, I anoint you king over Israel.’ ” 13Then in haste every man of them
took his garment, and put it under him on the bare i steps, and they blew the
trumpet, and proclaimed, “Je'hu is king.”
Joram of Israel Killed
14 Thus Je'hu the son of Jehosh'aphat the son of Nimshi conspired against
Jo'ram. (Now Joram with all Israel had been on guard at Ra'moth-gil'ead
against Haz'ael king of Syria; 15but King Jo'ram had returned to be healed
in Jezre'el of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought
with Haz'ael king of Syria.) So Je'hu said, “If this is your mind, then let no
one slip out of the city to go and tell the news in Jezreel.” 16Then Je'hu
mounted his chariot, and went to Jezre'el, for Jo'ram lay there. And
Ahazi'ah king of Judah had come down to visit Joram.
17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezre'el, and he spied
the company of Je'hu as he came, and said, “I see a company.” And Jo'ram
said, “Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, ‘Is it
peace?’ ” 18So a man on horseback went to meet him, and said, “Thus says
the king, ‘Is it peace?’ ” And Je'hu said, “What have you to do with peace?
Turn round and ride behind me.” And the watchman reported, saying, “The
messenger reached them, but he is not coming back.” 19Then he sent out a
second horseman, who came to them, and said, “Thus the king has said, ‘Is
it peace?’ ” And Je'hu answered, “What have you to do with peace? Turn
round and ride behind me.” 20Again the watchman reported, “He reached
them, but he is not coming back. And the driving is like the driving of Je'hu
the son of Nimshi; for he drives furiously.”
21 Jo'ram said, “Make ready.” And they made ready his chariot. Then
Joram king of Israel and Ahazi'ah king of Judah set out, each in his chariot,
and went to meet Je'hu, and met him at the property of Naboth the
Jezre'elite. 22And when Jo'ram saw Je'hu, he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” He
answered, “What peace can there be, so long as the harlotries and the
sorceries of your mother Jez'ebel are so many?” 23Then Jo'ram reined about
and fled, saying to Ahazi'ah, “Treachery, O Ahaziah!” 24And Je'hu drew his
bow with his full strength, and shot Jo'ram between the shoulders, so that
the arrow pierced his heart, and he sank in his chariot. * 25Je'hu said to
Bidkar his aide, “Take him up, and cast him on the plot of ground belonging
to Naboth the Jezre'elite; for remember, when you and I rode side by side
behind A'hab his father, how the LORD uttered this oracle against him: 26‘As
surely as I saw yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons—
says the LORD—I will repay you on this plot of ground.’ Now therefore
take him up and cast him on the plot of ground, in accordance with the
word of the LORD.”
Ahaziah of Judah Killed
27 When Ahazi'ah the king of Judah saw this, he fled in the direction of
Beth-hag'gan. And Je'hu pursued him, and said, “Shoot him also”; and they
shot him j in the chariot at the ascent of Gur, which is by Ib'leam. And he
fled to Megid'do, and died there. 28His servants carried him in a chariot to
Jerusalem, and buried him in his tomb with his fathers in the city of David.
29 In the eleventh year of Jo'ram the son of A'hab, Ahazi'ah began to reign
over Judah.
Jezebel’s Violent Death
30 When Je'hu came to Jezre'el, Jez'ebel heard of it; and she painted her
eyes, and adorned her head, and looked out of the window. 31And as Je'hu
entered the gate, she said, “Is it peace, you Zimri, murderer of your
master?” 32And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, “Who is on
my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked out at him. 33He said,
“Throw her down.” So they threw her down; and some of her blood
spattered on the wall and on the horses, and they trampled on her. 34Then he
went in and ate and drank; and he said, “See now to this cursed woman, and
bury her; for she is a king’s daughter.” 35But when they went to bury her,
they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her
hands. 36When they came back and told him, he said, “This is the word of
the LORD, which he spoke by his servant Eli'jah the Tishbite, ‘In the
territory of Jezre'el the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jez'ebel; 37and the corpse
of Jez'ebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the territory of
Jezre'el, so that no one can say, This is Jezebel.’ ”
Massacre of Ahab’s Descendants
10 Now A'hab had seventy sons in Samar'ia. So Je'hu wrote letters, and
sent them to Samar'ia, to the rulers of the city,k to the elders, and to the
guardians of the sons of Ahab, saying, 2“Now then, as soon as this letter
comes to you, seeing your master’s sons are with you, and there are with
you chariots and horses, fortified cities also, and weapons, 3select the best
and fittest of your master’s sons and set him on his father’s throne, and fight
for your master’s house.” 4But they were exceedingly afraid, and said,
“Behold, the two kings could not stand before him; how then can we
stand?” 5So he who was over the palace, and he who was over the city,
together with the elders and the guardians, sent to Je'hu, saying, “We are
your servants, and we will do all that you bid us. We will not make any one
king; do whatever is good in your eyes.” 6Then he wrote to them a second
letter, saying, “If you are on my side, and if you are ready to obey me, take
the heads of your master’s sons, and come to me at Jezre'el tomorrow at this
time.” Now the king’s sons, seventy persons, were with the great men of the
city, who were bringing them up. 7And when the letter came to them, they
took the king’s sons, and slew them, seventy persons, and put their heads in
baskets, and sent them to him at Jezre'el. 8When the messenger came and
told him, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons,” he said, “Lay
them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until the morning.” 9Then in
the morning, when he went out, he stood, and said to all the people, “You
are innocent. It was I who conspired against my master, and slew him; but
who struck down all these? 10Know then that there shall fall to the earth
nothing of the word of the LORD, which the LORD spoke concerning the
house of A'hab; for the LORD has done what he said by his servant Eli'jah.”
11So Je'hu slew all that remained of the house of A'hab in Jezre'el, all his
great men, and his familiar friends, and his priests, until he left him none
remaining.
12 Then he set out and went to Samar'ia. On the way, when he was at Beth-
ek'ed of the Shepherds, 13Je'hu met the kinsmen of Ahazi'ah king of Judah,
and he said, “Who are you?” And they answered, “We are the kinsmen of
Ahazi'ah, and we came down to visit the royal princes and the sons of the
queen mother.” 14He said, “Take them alive.” And they took them alive, and
slew them at the pit of Beth-ek'ed, forty-two persons, and he spared none of
them.
15 And when he departed from there, he met Jehon'adab the son of Re'chab
coming to meet him; and he greeted him, and said to him, “Is your heart
true to my heart as mine is to yours?” l And Jehonadab answered, “It is.”
Je'hu said,m “If it is, give me your hand.” So he gave him his hand. And
Jehu took him up with him into the chariot. 16And he said, “Come with me,
and see my zeal for the LORD.” So he n had him ride in his chariot. 17And
when he came to Samar'ia, he slew all that remained to A'hab in Samaria,
till he had wiped them out, according to the word of the LORD which he
spoke to Eli'jah.
Jehu Slaughters the Worshipers of Baal
18 Then Je'hu assembled all the people, and said to them, “A'hab served
Ba'al a little; but Jehu will serve him much. 19Now therefore call to me all
the prophets of Ba'al, all his worshipers and all his priests; let none be
missing, for I have a great sacrifice to offer to Baal; whoever is missing
shall not live.” But Je'hu did it with cunning in order to destroy the
worshipers of Ba'al. 20And Je'hu ordered, “Sanctify a solemn assembly for
Ba'al.” So they proclaimed it. 21And Je'hu sent throughout all Israel; and all
the worshipers of Ba'al came, so that there was not a man left who did not
come. And they entered the house of Baal, and the house of Baal was filled
from one end to the other. 22He said to him who was in charge of the
wardrobe, “Bring out the vestments for all the worshipers of Ba'al.” So he
brought out the vestments for them. 23Then Je'hu went into the house of
Ba'al with Jehon'adab the son of Re'chab; and he said to the worshipers of
Baal, “Search, and see that there is no servant of the LORD here among you,
but only the worshipers of Baal.” 24Then he o went in to offer sacrifices and
burnt offerings.
Now Je'hu had stationed eighty men outside, and said, “The man who
allows any of those whom I give into your hands to escape shall forfeit his
life.” 25So as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering,
Je'hu said to the guard and to the officers, “Go in and slay them; let not a
man escape.” So when they put them to the sword, the guard and the
officers cast them out and went into the inner room p of the house of Ba'al
26and they brought out the pillar that was in the house of Ba'al, and burned
it. 27And they demolished the pillar of Ba'al, and demolished the house of
Baal, and made it a latrine to this day.
28 Thus Je'hu wiped out Ba'al from Israel. 29But Je'hu did not turn aside
from the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made Israel to sin,
the golden calves that were in Bethel, and in Dan. 30And the LORD said to
Je'hu, “Because you have done well in carrying out what is right in my
eyes, and have done to the house of A'hab according to all that was in my
heart, your sons of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.”
31But Je'hu was not careful to walk in the law of the LORD the God of Israel
with all his heart; he did not turn from the sins of Jerobo'am, which he made
Israel to sin.
Death of Jehu
32 In those days the LORD began to cut off parts of Israel. Haz'ael defeated
them throughout the territory of Israel: 33from the Jordan eastward, all the
land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manas'sites, from
Aro'er, which is by the valley of the Arnon, that is, Gilead and Bashan.
34Now the rest of the acts of Je'hu, and all that he did, and all his might, are
they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 35So
Je'hu slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samar'ia. And Jeho'ahaz
his son reigned in his stead. 36The time that Je'hu reigned over Israel in
Samar'ia was twenty-eight years.
Athaliah Reigns over Judah
11 Now when Athali'ah the mother of Ahazi'ah saw that her son was
dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family. 2But Jehosh'eba, the
daughter of King Jo'ram, sister of Ahazi'ah, took Jo'ash the son of Ahaziah,
and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were about to be slain,
and she put q him and his nurse in a bedchamber. Thus she r hid him from
Athali'ah, so that he was not slain; 3and he remained with her six years, hid
in the house of the LORD, while Athali'ah reigned over the land.
Jehoiada Anoints the Child Joash
4 But in the seventh year Jehoi'ada sent and brought the captains of the
Cari'tes and of the guards, and had them come to him in the house of the
LORD; and he made a covenant with them and put them under oath in the
house of the LORD, and he showed them the king’s son. 5And he
commanded them, “This is the thing that you shall do: one third of you,
those who come off duty on the sabbath and guard the king’s house
6(another third being at the gate Sur and a third at the gate behind the
guards), shall guard the palace; 7and the two divisions of you, which come
on duty in force on the sabbath and guard the house of the LORD,s 8shall
surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand; and whoever
approaches the ranks is to be slain. Be with the king when he goes out and
when he comes in.”
9 The captains did according to all that Jehoi'ada the priest commanded,
and each brought his men who were to go off duty on the sabbath, with
those who were to come on duty on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the
priest. 10And the priest delivered to the captains the spears and shields that
had been King David’s, which were in the house of the LORD; 11and the
guards stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, from the south side
of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the house.t
12Then he brought out the king’s son, and put the crown upon him, and gave
him the covenant; and they proclaimed him king, and anointed him; and
they clapped their hands, and said, “Long live the king!”
Death of Athaliah
13 When Athali'ah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she went
into the house of the LORD to the people; 14and when she looked, there was
the king standing by the pillar, according to the custom, and the captains
and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing
and blowing trumpets. And Athali'ah tore her clothes, and cried, “Treason!
Treason!” 15Then Jehoi'ada the priest commanded the captains who were
set over the army, “Bring her out between the ranks; and slay with the
sword any one who follows her.” For the priest said, “Let her not be slain in
the house of the LORD.” 16So they laid hands on her; and she went through
the horses’ entrance to the king’s house, and there she was slain.
17 And Jehoi'ada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and
people, that they should be the LORD’s people; and also between the king
and the people. 18Then all the people of the land went to the house of Ba'al,
and tore it down; his altars and his images they broke in pieces, and they
slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest posted
watchmen over the house of the LORD. 19And he took the captains, the
Cari'tes, the guards, and all the people of the land; and they brought the
king down from the house of the LORD, marching through the gate of the
guards to the king's house. And he took his seat on the throne of the kings.
20So all the people of the land rejoiced; and the city was quiet after
Athali'ah had been slain with the sword at the king’s house.
Reign of Jehoash and the Repair of the Temple
21 u Jeho'ash was seven years old when he began to reign.
12 In the seventh year of Je'hu Jeho'ash began to reign, and he reigned
forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zib'iah of Be'er-she'ba.
2And Jeho'ash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all his days,
because Jehoi'ada the priest instructed him. 3Nevertheless the high places
were not taken away; the people continued to sacrifice and burn incense on
the high places.
4 Jeho'ash said to the priests, “All the money of the holy things which is
brought into the house of the LORD, the money for which each man is
assessed—the money from the assessment of persons—and the money
which a man’s heart prompts him to bring into the house of the LORD, 5let
the priests take, each from his acquaintance; and let them repair the house
wherever any need of repairs is discovered.” 6But by the twenty-third year
of King Jeho'ash the priests had made no repairs on the house. 7Therefore
King Jeho'ash summoned Jehoi'ada the priest and the other priests and said
to them, “Why are you not repairing the house? Now therefore take no
more money from your acquaintances, but hand it over for the repair of the
house.” 8So the priests agreed that they should take no more money from
the people, and that they should not repair the house.
9 Then Jehoi'ada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it,
and set it beside the altar on the right side as one entered the house of the
LORD; and the priests who guarded the threshold put in it all the money that
was brought into the house of the LORD. 10And whenever they saw that
there was much money in the chest, the king’s secretary and the high priest
came up and they counted and tied up in bags the money that was found in
the house of the LORD. 11Then they would give the money that was weighed
out into the hands of the workmen who had the oversight of the house of the
LORD; and they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders who worked
upon the house of the LORD, 12and to the masons and the stonecutters, as
well as to buy timber and quarried stone for making repairs on the house of
the LORD, and for any outlay upon the repairs of the house. 13But there were
not made for the house of the LORD basins of silver, snuffers, bowls,
trumpets, or any vessels of gold, or of silver, from the money that was
brought into the house of the LORD, 14for that was given to the workmen
who were repairing the house of the LORD with it. 15And they did not ask an
accounting from the men into whose hand they delivered the money to pay
out to the workmen, for they dealt honestly. 16The money from the guilt
offerings and the money from the sin offerings was not brought into the
house of the LORD; it belonged to the priests.
Hazael of Syria Threatens Jerusalem
17 At that time Haz'ael king of Syria went up and fought against Gath, and
took it. But when Hazael set his face to go up against Jerusalem, 18Jeho'ash
king of Judah took all the votive gifts that Jehosh'aphat and Jeho'ram and
Ahazi'ah, his fathers, the kings of Judah, had dedicated, and his own votive
gifts, and all the gold that was found in the treasuries of the house of the
LORD and of the king’s house, and sent these to Haz'ael king of Syria. Then
Hazael went away from Jerusalem.
Death of Joash
19 Now the rest of the acts of Jo'ash, and all that he did, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 20His servants
arose and made a conspiracy, and slew Jo'ash in the house of Millo, on the
way that goes down to Silla. 21It was Jo'zacar the son of Shim'eath and
Jeho'zabad the son of Shomer, his servants, who struck him down, so that
he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David, and
Amazi'ah his son reigned in his stead.
Jehoahaz Reigns over Israel
13 In the twenty-third year of Jo'ash the son of Ahazi'ah, king of Judah,
Jeho'ahaz the son of Je'hu began to reign over Israel in Samar'ia, and he
reigned seventeen years. 2He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and
followed the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made Israel to
sin; he did not depart from them. 3And the anger of the LORD was kindled
against Israel, and he gave them continually into the hand of Haz'ael king of
Syria and into the hand of Ben-ha'dad the son of Hazael. 4Then Jeho'ahaz
besought the LORD, and the LORD listened to him; for he saw the oppression
of Israel, how the king of Syria oppressed them. 5(Therefore the LORD gave
Israel a savior, so that they escaped from the hand of the Syrians; and the
sons of Israel dwelt in their homes as formerly. 6Nevertheless they did not
depart from the sins of the house of Jerobo'am, which he made Israel to sin,
but walked v in them; and the Ashe'rah also remained in Samar'ia.) 7For
there was not left to Jeho'ahaz an army of more than fifty horsemen and ten
chariots and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria had destroyed them
and made them like the dust at threshing. 8Now the rest of the acts of
Jeho'ahaz and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the Book
of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 9So Jeho'ahaz slept with his
fathers, and they buried him in Samar'ia; and Jo'ash his son reigned in his
stead.
Jehoash Reigns over Israel
10 In the thirty-seventh year of Jo'ash king of Judah Jeho'ash the son of
Jeho'ahaz began to reign over Israel in Samar'ia, and he reigned sixteen

years. 11He also did what was evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not
depart from all the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made
Israel to sin, but he walked in them. 12Now the rest of the acts of Jo'ash, and
all that he did, and the might with which he fought against Amazi'ah king of
Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of
Israel? 13So Jo'ash slept with his fathers, and Jerobo'am sat upon his throne;
and Joash was buried in Samar'ia with the kings of Israel.
Death of Elisha
14 Now when Eli'sha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to
die, Jo'ash king of Israel went down to him, and wept before him, crying,
“My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” 15And
Eli'sha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows”; so he took a bow and arrows.
16Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow”; and he drew it. And
Eli'sha laid his hands upon the king’s hands. 17And he said, “Open the
window eastward”; and he opened it. Then Eli'sha said, “Shoot”; and he
shot. And he said, “The LORD’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over
Syria! For you shall fight the Syrians in A'phek until you have made an end
of them.” 18And he said, “Take the arrows”; and he took them. And he said
to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them”; and he struck three
times, and stopped. 19Then the man of God was angry with him, and said,
“You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck
down Syria until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down
Syria only three times.”
20 So Eli'sha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to
invade the land in the spring of the year. 21And as a man was being buried,
behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was cast into the grave of
Eli'sha; and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and
stood on his feet.
Israel Recaptures Its Cities from Syria
22 Now Haz'ael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jeho'ahaz.
23But the LORD was gracious to them and had compassion on them, and he
turned toward them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, and would not destroy them; nor has he cast them from his presence
until now.
24 When Haz'ael king of Syria died, Ben-ha'dad his son became king in his
stead. 25Then Jeho'ash the son of Jeho'ahaz took again from Ben-ha'dad the
son of Haz'ael the cities which he had taken from Jehoahaz his father in
war. Three times Jo'ash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.
Amaziah Reigns over Judah
14 In the second year of Jo'ash the son of Jo'ahaz, king of Israel,
Amazi'ah the son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign. 2He was twenty-
five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Je'ho-ad'din of Jerusalem. 3And he did
what was right in the eyes of the LORD, yet not like David his father; he did
in all things as Jo'ash his father had done. 4But the high places were not
removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
5And as soon as the royal power was firmly in his hand he killed his
servants who had slain the king his father. 6But he did not put to death the
children of the murderers; according to what is written in the book of the
law of Moses, where the LORD commanded, “The fathers shall not be put to
death for the children, or the children be put to death for the fathers; but
every man shall die for his own sin.”
7 He killed ten thousand E'domites in the Valley of Salt and took Se'la by
storm, and called it Jok'the-el, which is its name to this day.

8 Then Amazi'ah sent messengers to Jeho'ash the son of Jeho'ahaz, son of
Je'hu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us look one another in the face.”
9And Jeho'ash king of Israel sent word to Amazi'ah king of Judah, “A
thistle in Lebanon sent to a cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter

to my son for a wife’; and a wild beast of Lebanon passed by and trampled
down the thistle. 10You have indeed struck down E'dom, and your heart has
lifted you up. Be content with your glory, and stay at home; for why should
you provoke trouble so that you fall, you and Judah with you?”
11 But Amazi'ah would not listen. So Jeho'ash king of Israel went up, and
he and Amaziah king of Judah faced one another in battle at Beth-she'mesh,
which belongs to Judah. 12And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man
fled to his home. 13And Jeho'ash king of Israel captured Amazi'ah king of
Judah, the son of Jehoash, son of Ahazi'ah, at Beth-she'mesh, and came to
Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits,
from the E'phraim Gate to the Corner Gate. 14And he seized all the gold and
silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the LORD and in
the treasuries of the king’s house, also hostages, and he returned to
Samar'ia.
15 Now the rest of the acts of Jeho'ash which he did, and his might, and
how he fought with Amazi'ah king of Judah, are they not written in the
Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 16And Jeho'ash slept with his
fathers, and was buried in Samar'ia with the kings of Israel; and Jerobo'am
his son reigned in his stead.
17 Amazi'ah the son of Jo'ash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the
death of Jeho'ash son of Jeho'ahaz, king of Israel. 18Now the rest of the
deeds of Amazi'ah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the
Kings of Judah? 19And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem,
and he fled to La'chish. But they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him
there. 20And they brought him upon horses; and he was buried in Jerusalem
with his fathers in the city of David. 21And all the people of Judah took
Azari'ah, * who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his
father Amazi'ah. 22He built E'lath and restored it to Judah, after the king
slept with his fathers.
Jeroboam II Reigns over Israel
23 In the fifteenth year of Amazi'ah the son of Jo'ash, king of Judah,
Jerobo'am the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samar'ia, and
he reigned forty-one years. 24And he did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD; he did not depart from all the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat,
which he made Israel to sin. 25He restored the border of Israel from the
entrance of Ha'math as far as the Sea of the Ar'abah, according to the word
of the LORD, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son
of Amit'tai, the prophet, who was from Gath-he'pher. 26For the LORD saw
that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, for there was none left, bond or
free, and there was none to help Israel. 27But the LORD had not said that he
would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, so he saved them by
the hand of Jerobo'am the son of Jo'ash.
28 Now the rest of the acts of Jerobo'am, and all that he did, and his might,
how he fought, and how he recovered for Israel Damascus and Ha'math,
which had belonged to Judah, are they not written in the Book of the
Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 29And Jerobo'am slept with his fathers,
the kings of Israel, and Zechari'ah his son reigned in his stead.
Azariah Reigns over Judah
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Jerobo'am king of Israel Azari'ah the
son of Amazi'ah, king of Judah, began to reign. 2He was sixteen years old
when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His
mother’s name was Jecoli'ah of Jerusalem. 3And he did what was right in
the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amazi'ah had done.
4Nevertheless the high places were not taken away; the people still
sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 5And the LORD struck the
king, so that he was a leper to the day of his death, and he dwelt in a
separate house. And Jo'tham the king’s son was over the household,
governing the people of the land. 6Now the rest of the acts of Azari'ah, and
all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the
Kings of Judah? 7And Azari'ah slept with his fathers, and they buried him
with his fathers in the city of David, and Jo'tham his son reigned in his
stead.
Zechariah Reigns over Israel
8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azari'ah king of Judah Zechari'ah the son of
Jerobo'am reigned over Israel in Samar'ia six months. 9And he did what was
evil in the sight of the LORD, as his fathers had done. He did not depart from
the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made Israel to sin.
10Shallum the son of Ja'besh conspired against him, and struck him down at
Ib'leam,w and killed him, and reigned in his stead. 11Now the rest of the
deeds of Zechari'ah, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles
of the Kings of Israel. 12(This was the promise of the LORD which he gave
to Je'hu, “Your sons shall sit upon the throne of Israel to the fourth
generation.” And so it came to pass.)
Shallum Reigns over Israel
13 Shallum the son of Ja'besh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of
Uzzi'ah king of Judah, and he reigned one month in Samar'ia. 14Then
Men'ahem the son of Gadi came up from Tirzah and came to Samar'ia, and
he struck down Shallum the son of Ja'besh in Samaria and slew him, and
reigned in his stead. 15Now the rest of the deeds of Shallum, and the
conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the Book of the
Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 16At that time Men'ahem sacked Tap'pu-
ah x and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah on; because they did
not open it to him, therefore he sacked it, and he ripped up all the women in
it who were with child.
Menahem Reigns over Israel
17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azari'ah king of Judah Men'ahem the son of
Gadi began to reign over Israel, and he reigned ten years in Samar'ia. 18And
he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart all his days
from all the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made Israel to
sin. 19Pul the king of Assyria came against the land; and Men'ahem gave
Pul * a thousand talents of silver, that he might help him to confirm his hold
of the royal power. 20Men'ahem exacted the money from Israel, that is, from
all the wealthy men, fifty shekels of silver from every man, to give to the
king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and did not stay there
in the land. 21Now the rest of the deeds of Men'ahem, and all that he did,
are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
22And Men'ahem slept with his fathers, and Pekahi'ah his son reigned in his
stead.
Pekahiah Reigns over Israel
23 In the fiftieth year of Azari'ah king of Judah Pekahi'ah the son of
Men'ahem began to reign over Israel in Samar'ia, and he reigned two years.
24And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not turn away
from the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made Israel to sin.
25And Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah, his captain, conspired against him with
fifty men of the Gileadites, and slew him in Samar'ia, in the citadel of the
king’s house; y he slew him, and reigned in his stead. 26Now the rest of the
deeds of Pekahi'ah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book
of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
Pekah Reigns over Israel
27 In the fifty-second year of Azari'ah king of Judah Pe'kah the son of
Remali'ah began to reign over Israel in Samar'ia, and he reigned twenty
years. 28And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart
from the sins of Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, which he made Israel to sin.
29 In the days of Pe'kah king of Israel Tig'lath-pile'ser king of Assyria
came and captured I'jon, A'bel-beth-ma'acah, Jano'ah, Ke'desh, Ha'zor,

Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naph'tali; and he carried the people
captive to Assyria. 30Then Hoshe'a the son of E'lah made a conspiracy
against Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah, and struck him down, and slew him,
and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jo'tham the son of Uzzi'ah.
31Now the rest of the acts of Pe'kah, and all that he did, behold, they are
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

Jotham Reigns over Judah
32 In the second year of Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah, king of Israel,
Jo'tham the son of Uzzi'ah, king of Judah, began to reign. 33He was twenty-
five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jeru'sha the daughter of Za'dok. 34And
he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his
father Uzzi'ah had done. 35Nevertheless the high places were not removed;
the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. He built
the upper gate of the house of the LORD. 36Now the rest of the acts of
Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the
Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 37In those days the LORD began to send
Re'zin the king of Syria and Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah against Judah.
38Jo'tham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city
of David his father; and A'haz his son reigned in his stead.
Ahaz Reigns over Judah
16 In the seventeenth year of Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah, A'haz the son
of Jo'tham, king of Judah, began to reign. 2Ahaz was twenty years old when
he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not
do what was right in the eyes of the LORD his God, as his father David had
done, 3but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even burned his
son as an offering,z according to the abominable practices of the nations
whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel. * 4And he sacrificed
and burned incense on the high places, and on the hills, and under every
green tree.
5 Then Re'zin king of Syria and Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah, king of
Israel, came up to wage war on Jerusalem, and they besieged A'haz but
could not conquer him. 6At that time a the king of E'dom b recovered E'lath
for Edom,b and drove the men of Judah from Elath; and the E'domites came
to Elath, where they dwell to this day. 7So A'haz sent messengers to
Tig'lath-pile'ser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son.
Come up, and rescue me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the
hand of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.” 8A'haz also took the
silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD and in the treasures
of the king’s house, and sent a present to the king of Assyria. 9And the king
of Assyria listened to him; the king of Assyria marched up against
Damascus, and took it, carrying its people captive to Kir, and he killed
Re'zin.
10 When King A'haz went to Damascus to meet Tig'lath-pile'ser king of
Assyria, he saw the altar that was at Damascus. And King Ahaz sent to
Uri'ah the priest a model of the altar, and its pattern, exact in all its details.
11And Uri'ah the priest built the altar; in accordance with all that King A'haz
had sent from Damascus, so Uriah the priest made it, before King Ahaz
arrived from Damascus. 12And when the king came from Damascus, the
king viewed the altar. Then the king drew near to the altar, and went up on
it, 13and burned his burnt offering and his cereal offering, and poured his
drink offering, and threw the blood of his peace offerings upon the altar.
14And the bronze altar which was before the LORD he removed from the
front of the house, from the place between his altar and the house of the
LORD, and put it on the north side of his altar. 15And King A'haz
commanded Uri'ah the priest, saying, “Upon the great altar burn the
morning burnt offering, and the evening cereal offering, and the king’s
burnt offering, and his cereal offering, with the burnt offering of all the
people of the land, and their cereal offering, and their drink offering; and
throw upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the
sacrifice; but the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by.” 16Uri'ah the
priest did all this, as King A'haz commanded.
17 And King A'haz cut off the frames of the stands, and removed the laver
from them, and he took down the sea from off the bronze oxen that were
under it, and put it upon a pediment of stone. 18And the covered way for the
sabbath which had been built inside the palace, and the outer entrance for
the king he removed fromc the house of the LORD, because of the king of
Assyria. 19Now the rest of the acts of A'haz which he did, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 20And A'haz
slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David;
and Hezeki'ah his son reigned in his stead.
Hoshea Reigns over Israel
17 In the twelfth year of A'haz king of Judah Hoshe'a the son of E'lah
began to reign in Samar'ia over Israel, and he reigned nine years. 2And he
did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, yet not as the kings of Israel who
were before him. 3Against him came up Shalmane'ser king of Assyria; and
Hoshe'a became his vassal, and paid him tribute. 4But the king of Assyria
found treachery in Hoshe'a; for he had sent messengers to So, king of
Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by
year; therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison.
5Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samar'ia, and
for three years he besieged it. 6In the ninth year of Hoshe'a the king of
Assyria captured Samar'ia, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria,
and placed them in Ha'lah, and on the Ha'bor, the river of Gozan, and in the
cities of the Medes.
Sins of Israel Lead to Deportation
7 And this was so, because the sons of Israel had sinned against the LORD
their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under
the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods 8and walked
in the customs of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the sons of
Israel, and in the customs which the kings of Israel had introduced.d 9And
the sons of Israel did secretly against the LORD their God things that were
not right. They built for themselves high places at all their towns, from
watchtower to fortified city; 10they set up for themselves pillars and
Ashe'rim on every high hill and under every green tree; 11and there they
burned incense on all the high places, as the nations did whom the LORD
carried away before them. And they did wicked things, provoking the LORD
to anger, 12and they served idols, of which the LORD had said to them, “You
shall not do this.” 13Yet the LORD warned Israel and Judah by every prophet
and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my
commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the law which I
commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the
prophets.” 14But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers
had been, who did not believe in the LORD their God. 15They despised his
statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and the warnings
which he gave them. They went after false idols, and became false, and they
followed the nations that were round about them, concerning whom the
LORD had commanded them that they should not do like them. 16And they
forsook all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made for
themselves molten images of two calves; and they made an Ashe'rah, and
worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Ba'al. 17And they burned their
sons and their daughters as offerings,e and used divination and sorcery, and
sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking him to anger.
18Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of
his sight; none was left but the tribe of Judah only. *
19 Judah also did not keep the commandments of the LORD their God, but
walked in the customs which Israel had introduced. 20And the LORD
rejected all the descendants of Israel, and afflicted them, and gave them into
the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.
21 When he had torn Israel from the house of David they made Jerobo'am
the son of Ne'bat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the LORD
and made them commit great sin. 22The sons of Israel walked in all the sins
which Jerobo'am did; they did not depart from them, 23until the LORD
removed Israel out of his sight, as he had spoken by all his servants the
prophets. So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.
Assyria Resettles Samaria
24 *And the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cu'thah, Avva,
Ha'math, and Sepharva'im, and placed them in the cities of Samar'ia instead
of the sons of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria, and dwelt in its
cities. 25And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not fear the
LORD; therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which killed some of
them. 26So the king of Assyria was told, “The nations which you have
carried away and placed in the cities of Samar'ia do not know the law of the
god of the land; therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they
are killing them, because they do not know the law of the god of the land.”
27Then the king of Assyria commanded, “Send there one of the priests
whom you carried away from there; and let him f go and dwell there, and
teach them the law of the god of the land.” 28So one of the priests whom
they had carried away from Samar'ia came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught
them how they should fear the LORD.
29 But every nation still made gods of its own, and put them in the shrines
of the high places which the Samar'itans had made, every nation in the
cities in which they dwelt; 30the men of Babylon made Suc'coth-be'noth, the
men of Cuth made Ner'gal, the men of Ha'math made Ashi'ma, 31and the
Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sephar'vites burned their children
in the fire to Adram'melech and Anam'melech, the gods of Sepharva'im.
32They also feared the LORD, and appointed from among themselves all
sorts of people as priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the
shrines of the high places. 33So they feared the LORD but also served their
own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been
carried away. 34To this day they do according to the former manner.
They do not fear the LORD, and they do not follow the statutes or the
ordinances or the law or the commandment which the LORD commanded
the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel. 35The LORD made a covenant
with them, and commanded them, “You shall not fear other gods or bow
yourselves to them or serve them or sacrifice to them; 36but you shall fear
the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power and
with an outstretched arm; you shall bow yourselves to him, and to him you
shall sacrifice. 37And the statutes and the ordinances and the law and the
commandment which he wrote for you, you shall always be careful to do.
You shall not fear other gods, 38and you shall not forget the covenant that I
have made with you. You shall not fear other gods, 39but you shall fear the
LORD your God, and he will deliver you out of the hand of all your
enemies.” 40However they would not listen, but they did according to their
former manner.
41 So these nations feared the LORD, and also served their graven images;
their children likewise, and their children’s children—as their fathers did, so
they do to this day.
Hezekiah Reigns over Judah
18 In the third year of Hoshe'a son of E'lah, king of Israel, Hezeki'ah
the son of A'haz, king of Judah, began to reign. 2He was twenty-five years
old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem.
His mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechari'ah. 3And he did what
was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that David his father had
done. 4He removed the high places, and broke the pillars, and cut down the
Ashe'rah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made,
for until those days the sons of Israel had burned incense to it; it was called
Nehush'tan. 5He trusted in the LORD the God of Israel; so that there was
none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who
were before him. 6For he held fast to the LORD; he did not depart from
following him, but kept the commandments which the LORD commanded
Moses. 7And the LORD was with him; wherever he went forth, he prospered.
He rebelled against the king of Assyria, and would not serve him. 8He
struck the Philis'tines as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to
fortified city.
9 In the fourth year of King Hezeki'ah, which was the seventh year of
Hoshe'a son of E'lah, king of Israel, Shalmane'ser king of Assyria came up
against Samar'ia and besieged it 10and at the end of three years he took it. In
the sixth year of Hezeki'ah, which was the ninth year of Hoshe'a king of
Israel, Samar'ia was taken. 11The king of Assyria carried the Israelites away
to Assyria, and put them in Ha'lah, and on the Ha'bor, the river of Gozan,
and in the cities of the Medes, 12because they did not obey the voice of the
LORD their God but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the
servant of the LORD commanded; they neither listened nor obeyed.
Sennacherib Invades Judah
13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezeki'ah Sennach'erib king of Assyria
came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. 14And
Hezeki'ah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at La'chish, saying, “I
have done wrong; withdraw from me; whatever you impose on me I will
bear.” And the king of Assyria required of Hezekiah king of Judah three
hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. 15And Hezeki'ah gave
him all the silver that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the
treasuries of the king’s house. 16At that time Hezeki'ah stripped the gold
from the doors of the temple of the LORD, and from the doorposts which
Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.
17And the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rab'saris, and the Rab'shakeh
with a great army from La'chish to King Hezeki'ah at Jerusalem. And they
went up and came to Jerusalem. When they arrived, they came and stood by
the conduit of the upper pool, which is on the highway to the Fuller’s Field.
18And when they called for the king, there came out to them Eli'akim the
son of Hilki'ah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the secretary,
and Jo'ah the son of A'saph, the recorder.
19 And the Rab'shakeh said to them, “Say to Hezeki'ah, ‘Thus says the
great king, the king of Assyria: On what do you rest this confidence of
yours? 20Do you think that mere words are strategy and power for war? On
whom do you now rely, that you have rebelled against me? 21Behold, you
are relying now on Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the
hand of any man who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who
rely on him. 22But if you say to me, “We rely on the LORD our God,” is it
not he whose high places and altars Hezeki'ah has removed, saying to Judah
and to Jerusalem, “You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem”?
23Come now, make a wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give
you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders upon
them. 24How then can you repulse a single captain among the least of my
master’s servants, when you rely on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?
25Moreover, is it without the LORD that I have come up against this place to
destroy it? The LORD said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”
26 Then Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah, and Shebnah, and Jo'ah, said to the
Rab'shakeh, “Please, speak to your servants in the Arama'ic language, for

we understand it; do not speak to us in the language of Judah within the
hearing of the people who are on the wall.” 27But the Rab'shakeh said to
them, “Has my master sent me to speak these words to your master and to
you, and not to the men sitting on the wall, who are doomed with you to eat
their own dung and to drink their own urine?”
28 Then the Rab'shakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in the
language of Judah: “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria!
29Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezeki'ah deceive you, for he will not be
able to deliver you out of my hand. 30Do not let Hezeki'ah make you to rely
on the LORD by saying, The LORD will surely deliver us, and this city will
not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’ 31Do not listen to
Hezeki'ah; for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make your peace with me and
come out to me; then every one of you will eat of his own vine, and every
one of his own fig tree, and every one of you will drink the water of his
own cistern; 32until I come and take you away to a land like your own land,
a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees
and honey, that you may live, and not die. And do not listen to Hezeki'ah
when he misleads you by saying, The LORD will deliver us. 33Has any of the
gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of
Assyria? 34Where are the gods of Ha'math and Arpad? Where are the gods
of Sepharva'im, He'na, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samar'ia out of my
hand? 35Who among all the gods of the countries have delivered their
countries out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my
hand?’ ”
36 But the people were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s
command was, “Do not answer him.” 37Then Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah,
who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and Jo'ah the son of
A'saph, the recorder, came to Hezeki'ah with their clothes torn, and told him
the words of the Rab'shakeh.
Hezekiah Consults Isaiah
19 When King Hezeki'ah heard it, he tore his clothes, and covered
himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. 2And he sent
Eli'akim, who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and the
senior priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isai'ah the son of
A'moz. 3They said to him, “Thus says Hezeki'ah, This day is a day of
distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to the birth, and
there is no strength to bring them forth. 4It may be that the LORD your God
heard all the words of the Rab'shakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria
has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words which the LORD
your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is
left.” 5When the servants of King Hezeki'ah came to Isai'ah, 6Isai'ah said to
them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the LORD: Do not be afraid because
of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of
Assyria have reviled me. 7Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall
hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the
sword in his own land.’ ”
Sennacherib’s Mockery
8 The Rab'shakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against
Libnah; for he heard that the king had left La'chish. 9And when the king
heard concerning Tirha'kah king of Ethiopia, “Behold, he has set out to
fight against you,” he sent messengers again to Hezeki'ah, saying, 10“Thus
shall you speak to Hezeki'ah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God on whom
you rely deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the
hand of the king of Assyria. 11Behold, you have heard what the kings of
Assyria have done to all lands, destroying them utterly. And shall you be
delivered? 12Have the gods of the nations delivered them, the nations which
my fathers destroyed, Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden who
were in Tel-as'sar? 13Where is the king of Ha'math, the king of Arpad, the
king of the city of Sepharva'im, the king of He'na, or the king of Ivvah?’ ”
Hezekiah’s Prayer
14 Hezeki'ah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read
it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the LORD, and spread it before the
LORD. 15And Hezeki'ah prayed before the LORD, and said: “O LORD the God
of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you
alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth.
16Incline your ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes, O LORD, and see; and
hear the words of Sennach'erib, which he has sent to mock the living God.
17Of a truth, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and
their lands, 18and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods,
but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone; therefore they were
destroyed. 19So now, O LORD our God, save us, I beg you, from his hand,
that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O LORD, are God
alone.”
20 Then Isai'ah the son of A'moz sent to Hezeki'ah, saying, “Thus says the
LORD, the God of Israel: Your prayer to me about Sennach'erib king of

Assyria I have heard. 21This is the word that the LORD has spoken
concerning him:
22“She despises you, she scorns you—
the virgin daughter of Zion;

22she wags her head behind you—
the daughter of Jerusalem.

22“Whom have you mocked and reviled?
Against whom have you raised your voice
22and haughtily lifted your eyes?
Against the Holy One of Israel!

23By your messengers you have mocked the LORD,
and you have said, ‘With my many chariots

22I have gone up the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of Lebanon;

22I felled its tallest cedars,
its choicest cypresses;

22I entered its farthest retreat,
its densest forest.

24I dug wells
and drank foreign waters,

22and I dried up with the sole of my foot
all the streams of Egypt.’

25“Have you not heard
that I determined it long ago?

22I planned from days of old
what now I bring to pass,

22that you should turn fortified cities
into heaps of ruins,

26while their inhabitants, shorn of strength,
are dismayed and confounded,

22and have become like plants of the field,
and like tender grass,

22like grass on the housetops;
blighted before it is grown?

27“But I know your sitting down
and your going out and coming in,

and your raging against me.
28Because you have raged against me
and your arrogance has come into my ears,

22I will put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth,

22and I will turn you back on the way
by which you came.
29 “And this shall be the sign for you: this year you shall eat what grows
of itself, and in the second year what springs of the same; then in the third
year sow, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 30And the
surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward,
and bear fruit upward; 31for out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and
out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD will do this.
32 “Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall
not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a
shield or cast up a siege mound against it. 33By the way that he came, by the
same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, says the LORD.
34For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of
my servant David.”
Sennacherib’s Defeat and Death
35 And that night the angel of the LORD went forth, and slew a hundred
and eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians; * and when men
arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. 36Then
Sennach'erib king of Assyria departed, and went home, and dwelt at
Nin'eveh. 37And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god,
Adram'melech and Share'zer, his sons, slew him with the sword, and
escaped into the land of Ar'arat. And Esarhad'don his son reigned in his
stead.
Hezekiah’s Illness
20 In those days Hezeki'ah became sick and was at the point of death.
And Isai'ah the prophet the son of A'moz came to him, and said to him,
“Thus says the LORD, ‘Set your house in order; for you shall die, you shall
not recover.’ ” 2Then Hezeki'ah turned his face to the wall, and prayed to
the LORD, saying, 3“Remember now, O LORD, I beg you, how I have walked
before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is
good in your sight.” And Hezeki'ah wept bitterly. 4And before Isai'ah had
gone out of the middle court, the word of the LORD came to him: 5“Turn
back, and say to Hezeki'ah the prince of my people, Thus says the LORD, the
God of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears;
behold, I will heal you; on the third day you shall go up to the house of the
LORD. 6And I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this
city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my
own sake and for my servant David’s sake.” 7And Isai'ah said, “Bring a
cake of figs. And let them take and lay it on the boil, that he may recover.”
8 And Hezeki'ah said to Isai'ah, “What shall be the sign that the LORD will
heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the LORD on the third day?”
9And Isai'ah said, “This is the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will
do the thing that he has promised: shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or
go back ten steps?” 10And Hezeki'ah answered, “It is an easy thing for the
shadow to lengthen ten steps; rather let the shadow go back ten steps.”
11And Isai'ah the prophet cried to the LORD; and he brought the shadow
back ten steps, by which the sun g had declined on the dial of A'haz.
Envoys from Babylon
12 At that time Mer'odach-bal'adan the son of Bal'adan, king of Babylon,
sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezeki'ah; for he heard that
Hezekiah had been sick. 13And Hezeki'ah welcomed them, and he showed
them all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil,
his armory, all that was found in his storehouses; there was nothing in his
house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. 14Then Isai'ah
the prophet came to King Hezeki'ah, and said to him, “What did these men
say? And from where did they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They
have come from a far country, from Babylon.” 15He said, “What have they
seen in your house?” And Hezeki'ah answered, “They have seen all that is
in my house; there is nothing in my storehouses that I did not show them.”
16 Then Isai'ah said to Hezeki'ah, “Hear the word of the LORD: 17Behold,
the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your
fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall
be left, says the LORD. 18And some of your own sons, who are born to you,
shall be taken away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of
Babylon.” 19Then said Hezeki'ah to Isai'ah, “The word of the LORD which
you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “Why not, if there will be peace
and security in my days?”
Death of Hezekiah
20 The rest of the deeds of Hezeki'ah, and all his might, and how he made
the pool and the conduit and brought water into the city, are they not written
in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 21And Hezeki'ah slept
with his fathers; and Manas'seh his son reigned in his stead.
Manasseh Reigns over Judah
21 Manas'seh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Heph'zibah.
2And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to the
abominable practices of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the
people of Israel. 3For he rebuilt the high places which Hezeki'ah his father
had destroyed; and he erected altars for Ba'al, and made an Ashe'rah, as
A'hab king of Israel had done, and worshiped all the host of heaven, and
served them. 4And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the
LORD had said, “In Jerusalem will I put my name.” 5And he built altars for
all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD. 6And he
burned his son as an offering, and practiced soothsaying and augury, and
dealt with mediums and with wizards. He did much evil in the sight of the
LORD, provoking him to anger. 7And the graven image of Ashe'rah that he
had made he set in the house of which the LORD said to David and to
Solomon his son, “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out
of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name for ever; 8and I will not cause
the feet of Israel to wander any more out of the land which I gave to their
fathers, if only they will be careful to do according to all that I have
commanded them, and according to all the law that my servant Moses
commanded them.” 9But they did not listen, and Manas'seh seduced them to
do more evil than the nations had done whom the LORD destroyed before
the sons of Israel.
10 And the LORD said by his servants the prophets, 11“Because Manas'seh
king of Judah has committed these abominations, and has done things more
wicked than all that the Am'orites did, who were before him, and has made
Judah also to sin with his idols; 12therefore thus says the LORD, the God of
Israel, Behold, I am bringing upon Jerusalem and Judah such evil that the
ears of every one who hears of it will tingle. 13And I will stretch over
Jerusalem the measuring line of Samar'ia, and the plummet of the house of
A'hab; and I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning
it upside down. 14And I will cast off the remnant of my heritage, and give
them into the hand of their enemies, and they shall become a prey and a
spoil to all their enemies, 15because they have done what is evil in my sight
and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came out of
Egypt, even to this day.”
16 Moreover Manas'seh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled
Jerusalem from one end to another, besides the sin which he made Judah to
sin so that they did what was evil in the sight of the LORD.
17 Now the rest of the acts of Manas'seh, and all that he did, and the sin
that he committed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the
Kings of Judah? 18And Manas'seh slept with his fathers, and was buried in
the garden of his house, in the garden of Uzza; and A'mon his son reigned
in his stead.
Amon Reigns over Judah
19 A'mon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Meshul'lemeth the
daughter of Haruz of Jotbah. 20And he did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD, as Manas'seh his father had done. 21He walked in all the way in
which his father walked, and served the idols that his father served, and
worshiped them; 22he forsook the LORD, the God of his fathers, and did not
walk in the way of the LORD. 23And the servants of A'mon conspired
against him, and killed the king in his house. 24But the people of the land
slew all those who had conspired against King A'mon, and the people of the
land made Josi'ah his son king in his stead. 25Now the rest of the acts of
A'mon which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of
the Kings of Judah? 26And he was buried in his tomb in the garden of Uzza;
and Josi'ah his son reigned in his stead.
Josiah Reigns over Judah
22 Josi'ah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jedi'dah the daughter
of Adai'ah of Bozkath. 2And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD,
and walked in all the way of David his father, and he did not turn aside to
the right hand or to the left.
Hilkiah Finds the Book of the Law
3 In the eighteenth year of King Josi'ah, the king sent Sha'phan the son of
Azali'ah, son of Meshul'lam, the secretary, to the house of the LORD, saying,
4“Go up to Hilki'ah the high priest, that he may reckon the amount of the
money which has been brought into the house of the LORD, which the
keepers of the threshold have collected from the people; 5and let it be given
into the hand of the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the
LORD; and let them give it to the workmen who are at the house of the
LORD, repairing the house, 6that is, to the carpenters, and to the builders,
and to the masons, as well as for buying timber and quarried stone to repair
the house. 7But no accounting shall be asked from them for the money
which is delivered into their hand, for they deal honestly.”
8 And Hilki'ah the high priest said to Sha'phan the secretary, “I have found
the book of the law * in the house of the LORD.” And Hilkiah gave the book
to Shaphan, and he read it. 9And Sha'phan the secretary came to the king,
and reported to the king, “Your servants have emptied out the money that
was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of the workmen
who have the oversight of the house of the LORD.” 10Then Sha'phan the
secretary told the king, “Hilki'ah the priest has given me a book.” And
Shaphan read it before the king.
Josiah Hears the Law and Is Penitent
11 And when the king heard the words of the book of the law, he tore his
clothes. 12And the king commanded Hilki'ah the priest, and Ahi'kam the son
of Sha'phan, and Achbor the son of Micai'ah, and Shaphan the secretary,
and Asai'ah the king’s servant, saying, 13“Go, inquire of the LORD for me,
and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that
has been found; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us,
because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according
to all that is written concerning us.”
14 So Hilki'ah the priest, and Ahi'kam, and Achbor, and Sha'phan, and
Asai'ah went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of
Tikvah, son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe (now she dwelt in Jerusalem
in the Second Quarter); and they talked with her. 15And she said to them,
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: ‘Tell the man who sent you to me,
16Thus says the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place and upon its
inhabitants, all the words of the book which the king of Judah has read.
17Because they have forsaken me and have burned incense to other gods,
that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands,
therefore my wrath will be kindled against this place, and it will not be
quenched. 18But as to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the
LORD, thus shall you say to him, Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel:
Regarding the words which you have heard, 19because your heart was
penitent, and you humbled yourself before the LORD, when you heard how I
spoke against this place, and against its inhabitants, that they should
become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept
before me, I also have heard you, says the LORD. 20Therefore, behold, I will
gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace,
and your eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place.’ ”
And they brought back word to the king.
Josiah’s Reforms
23 Then the king sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were
gathered to him. 2And the king went up to the house of the LORD, and with
him all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the
priests and the prophets, all the people, both small and great; and he read in
their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant which had been
found in the house of the LORD. 3And the king stood by the pillar and made
a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD and to keep his
commandments and his covenants and his statutes, with all his heart and all
his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this
book; and all the people joined in the covenant.
4 And the king commanded Hilki'ah, the high priest, and the priests of the
second order, and the keepers of the threshold, to bring out of the temple of
the LORD all the vessels made for Ba'al, for Ashe'rah, and for all the host of
heaven; he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron, and
carried their ashes to Bethel. 5And he deposed the idolatrous priests whom
the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places at the
cities of Judah and round about Jerusalem; those also who burned incense
to Ba'al, to the sun, and the moon, and the constellations, and all the host of
the heavens. 6And he brought out the Ashe'rah from the house of the LORD,
outside Jerusalem, to the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron,
and beat it to dust and cast the dust of it upon the graves of the common
people. 7And he broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes which
were in the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the
Ashe'rah. 8And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and
defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Ge'ba to
Be'er-she'ba; and he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the
entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on one’s
left at the gate of the city. 9However, the priests of the high places did not
come up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened
bread among their brethren. 10And he defiled To'pheth, which is in the
valley of the sons of Hin'nom, that no one might burn his son or his
daughter as an offering to Mo'lech. 11And he removed the horses that the
kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun, at the entrance to the house of the
LORD, by the chamber of Na'than-me'lech the chamberlain, which was in
the precincts; h and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire. 12And the
altars on the roof of the upper chamber of A'haz, which the kings of Judah
had made, and the altars which Manas'seh had made in the two courts of the
house of the LORD, he pulled down and broke in pieces,i and cast the dust of
them into the brook Kidron. 13And the king defiled the high places that
were east of Jerusalem, to the south of the mount of corruption, which
Solomon the king of Israel had built for Ash'toreth the abomination of the
Sido'nians, and for Che'mosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the
abomination of the Am'monites. 14And he broke in pieces the pillars, and
cut down the Ashe'rim, and filled their places with the bones of men.
15 Moreover the altar at Bethel, the high place erected by Jerobo'am the
son of Ne'bat, who made Israel to sin, that altar with the high place he
pulled down and he broke in pieces its stones, j crushing them to dust; also
he burned the Ashe'rah. 16And as Josi'ah turned, he saw the tombs there on
the mount; and he sent and took the bones out of the tombs, and burned
them upon the altar, and defiled it, according to the word of the LORD which
the man of God proclaimed, who had predicted these things. 17Then he said,
“What is yonder monument that I see?” And the men of the city told him,
“It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and predicted these
things which you have done against the altar at Bethel.” 18And he said, “Let
him be; let no man move his bones.” So they let his bones alone, with the
bones of the prophet who came out of Samar'ia. 19And all the shrines also
of the high places that were in the cities of Samar'ia, which kings of Israel
had made, provoking the LORD to anger, Josi'ah removed; he did to them
according to all that he had done at Bethel. 20And he slew all the priests of
the high places who were there, upon the altars, and burned the bones of
men upon them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
The Passover Is Celebrated
21 And the king commanded all the people, “Keep the Passover to the
LORD your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant.” 22For no such
Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or
during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah; 23but in
the eighteenth year of King Josi'ah this Passover was kept to the LORD in
Jerusalem.
24 Moreover Josi'ah put away the mediums and the wizards and the
teraphim and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of
Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might establish the words of the law which
were written in the book that Hilki'ah the priest found in the house of the
LORD. 25Before him there was no king like him, who turned to the LORD
with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to
all the law of Moses; nor did any like him arise after him.
26 Still the LORD did not turn from the fierceness of his great wrath, by
which his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations
with which Manas'seh had provoked him. 27And the LORD said, “I will
remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and I will cast
off this city which I have chosen, Jerusalem, and the house of which I said,
My name shall be there.”
Josiah Dies in Battle
28 Now the rest of the acts of Josi'ah, and all that he did, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 29In his days
Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt went up to the king of Assyria to the river
Euphra'tes. King Josi'ah went to meet him; and Pharaoh Neco slew him at
Megid'do, when he saw him. 1And his servants carried him dead in a chariot
from Megid'do, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own
tomb. And the people of the land took Jeho'ahaz the son of Josi'ah, and
anointed him, and made him king in his father’s stead.
31 Jeho'ahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamu'tal the
daughter of Jeremi'ah of Libnah. 32And he did what was evil in the sight of
the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done. 33And Pharaoh Neco
put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Ha'math, that he might not reign in
Jerusalem, and laid upon the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and
a talent of gold. 34And Pharaoh Ne'co made Eli'akim the son of Josi'ah king
in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoi'akim. But he
took Jeho'ahaz away; and he came to Egypt, and died there. 35And
Jehoi'akim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to
give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the
silver and the gold of the people of the land, from every one according to
his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco.
Jehoiakim Reigns over Judah
36 Jehoi'akim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebi'dah the
daughter of Pedai'ah of Ru'mah. 37And he did what was evil in the sight of
the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.
Judah Overrun by Enemies
24 In his days Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon came up, and
Jehoi'akim became his servant three years; then he turned and rebelled
against him. 2And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chalde'ans, and
bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the
Am'monites, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the
word of the LORD which he spoke by his servants the prophets. 3Surely this
came upon Judah at the command of the LORD, to remove them out of his
sight, for the sins of Manas'seh, according to all that he had done, 4and also
for the innocent blood that he had shed; for he filled Jerusalem with
innocent blood, and the LORD would not pardon. 5Now the rest of the deeds
of Jehoi'akim, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the
Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 6So Jehoi'akim slept with his fathers, and
Jehoi'achin his son reigned in his stead. 7And the king of Egypt did not
come again out of his land, for the king of Babylon had taken all that
belonged to the king of Egypt from the Brook of Egypt to the river
Euphrates.
Reign and Captivity of Jehoiachin
8 Jehoi'achin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned
three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Nehush'ta the daughter
of Elna'than of Jerusalem. 9And he did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD, according to all that his father had done.
Babylon Conquers Jerusalem
10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon came up
to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. 11And Nebuchadnez'zar king of

Babylon came to the city, while his servants were besieging it; 12and
Jehoi'achin the king of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon,
himself, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his palace
officials. The king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his
reign, 13and carried off all the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the
treasures of the king’s house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold in the
temple of the LORD, which Solomon king of Israel had made, as the LORD
had foretold. 14He carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all
the mighty men of valor, ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and
the smiths; none remained, except the poorest people of the land. 15And he
carried away Jehoi'achin to Babylon; the king’s mother, the king’s wives,
his officials, and the chief men of the land, he took into captivity from
Jerusalem to Babylon. 16And the king of Babylon brought captive to
Babylon all the men of valor, seven thousand, and the craftsmen and the
smiths, one thousand, all of them strong and fit for war. 17And the king of
Babylon made Mattani'ah, Jehoi'achin’s uncle, king in his stead, and
changed his name to Zedeki'ah.
Zedekiah Reigns over Judah
18 Zedeki'ah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he
reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamu'tal the
the LORD, according to all that Jehoi'akim had done. 20For because of the
anger of the LORD it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that he cast
them out from his presence.
And Zedeki'ah rebelled against the king of
25 Babylon. 1And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on
the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon came with all
his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it; and they built siegeworks
against it round about. 2So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of
King Zedeki'ah. 3On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so
severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 4Then a
breach was made in the city; the king with all the men of war fled k by night
by the way of the gate between the two walls, by the king’s garden, though
the Chalde'ans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the
Ar'abah. 5But the army of the Chalde'ans pursued the king, and overtook
him in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. 6Then
they captured the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon at
Rib'lah, who passed sentence upon him. 7They slew the sons of Zedeki'ah
before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters,
and took him to Babylon.
The Babylonian Exile
8 In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month—which was the
nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnez'zar, king of Babylon—

Nebu''zarad'an, the captain of the bodyguard, a servant of the king of
Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9And he burned the house of the LORD, and
the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he
burned down. 10And all the army of the Chalde'ans, who were with the
captain of the guard, broke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11And the rest
of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to
the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, Nebu''zarad'an
the captain of the guard carried into exile. 12But the captain of the guard left
some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.
13 And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the
stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the LORD, the Chalde'ans
broke in pieces, and carried the bronze to Babylon. 14And they took away
the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the dishes for incense and all
the vessels of bronze used in the temple service, 15the firepans also, and the
bowls. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and
what was of silver, as silver. 16As for the two pillars, the one sea, and the
stands, which Solomon had made for the house of the LORD, the bronze of
all these vessels was beyond weight. 17The height of the one pillar was
eighteen cubits, and upon it was a capital of bronze; the height of the capital
was three cubits; a network and pomegranates, all of bronze, were upon the
capital round about. And the second pillar had the like, with the network.
18 And the captain of the guard took Serai'ah the chief priest, and
Zephani'ah the second priest, and the three keepers of the threshold; 19and
from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of
war, and five men of the king’s council who were found in the city; and the
secretary of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the
land; and sixty men of the people of the land who were found in the city.
20And Nebu''zarad'an the captain of the guard took them, and brought them
to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21And the king of Babylon struck them,
and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Ha'math. So Judah was taken
into exile out of its land.
Gedaliah Made Governor of Judah
22 And over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom
Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon had left, he appointed Gedali'ah the son

of Ahi'kam, son of Sha'phan, governor. 23Now when all the captains of the
forces in the open country l and their men heard that the king of Babylon
had appointed Gedali'ah governor, they came with their men to Gedaliah at
Mizpah, namely, Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah, and Joha'nan the son of
Kare'ah, and Serai'ah the son of Tan'humeth the Netoph'athite, and Ja-
azani'ah the son of the Ma-ac'athite. 24And Gedali'ah swore to them and
their men, saying, “Do not be afraid because of the Chalde'an officials;
dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with
you.” 25But in the seventh month, Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah, son of
Elish'ama, of the royal family, came with ten men, and attacked and killed
Gedali'ah and the Jews and the Chalde'ans who were with him at Mizpah.
26Then all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the forces
arose, and went to Egypt; for they were afraid of the Chalde'ans.
Jehoiachin Is Freed by Evil-merodach
27 And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoi'achin king of Judah,
in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, E'vil-

mer'odach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously
freed Jehoi'achin king of Judah from prison; 28and he spoke kindly to him,
and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in
Babylon. 29So Jehoi'achin put off his prison garments. And every day of his
life he dined regularly at the king’s table; 30and for his allowance, a regular
allowance was given him by the king, every day a portion, as long as he
lived.
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1 Chronicles
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29
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FIRST BOOK OF CHRONICLES
From Adam to Abraham
1 *Adam, Seth, E'nosh; 2Ke'nan, Ma-hal'alel, Jar'ed; 3E'noch,
Methu'selah, La'mech; 4Noah, Shem, Ham, and Ja'pheth.
5 The sons of Ja'pheth: Gomer, Ma'gog, Ma'dai, Ja'van, Tu'bal, Me'shech,
and Ti'ras. 6The sons of Gomer: Ash'kenaz, Di'phath, and Togar'mah. 7The
sons of Ja'van: Eli'shah, Tar'shish, Kittim, and Ro'danim.
8 The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. 9The sons of Cush:
Seba, Hav'ilah, Sabta, Ra'ama, and Sab'teca. The sons of Ra'amah: Sheba
and De'dan. 10Cush was the father of Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one
in the earth.
11 Egypt was the father of Lu'dim, An'amim, Leha'bim, Naph'tuhim,
12Pathru'sim, Caslu'him (from whom came the Philis'tines), and Caph'torim.
13 Canaan was the father of Si'don his first-born, and Heth, 14and the
Jeb'usites, the Am'orites, the Gir'gashites, 15the Hi'vites, the Arkites, the
Si'nites, 16the Ar'vadites, the Zem'arites, and the Ha'mathites.
17 The sons of Shem: E'lam, Asshur, Arpach'shad, Lud, Ar'am, Uz, Hul,
Ge'ther, and Me'shech. 18Arpach'shad was the father of She'lah; and Shelah
was the father of E'ber. 19To E'ber were born two sons: the name of the one
was Pe'leg (for in his days the earth was divided), and the name of his
brother Joktan. 20Joktan was the father of Almo'dad, She'leph,
Ha''zarma'veth, Je'rah, 21Hador'am, U'zal, Diklah, 22E'bal, Abim'a-el, Sheba,
23O'phir, Hav'ilah, and Jo'bab; all these were the sons of Joktan.
24 Shem, Arpach'shad, She'lah; 25E'ber, Pe'leg, Re'u; 26Se'rug, Na'hor,
Te'rah; 27Abram, that is, Abraham.

Descendants of Abraham
28 The sons of Abraham: Isaac and Ish'mael. 29These are their genealogies:
the first-born of Ish'mael, Neba'ioth; and Ke'dar, Ad'beel, Mibsam,
30Mishma, Du'mah, Massa, Ha'dad, Te'ma, 31Je'tur, Naphish, and Ked'emah.
These are the sons of Ish'mael. 32The sons of Ketu'rah, Abraham’s

concubine: she bore Zimran, Jok'shan, Me'dan, Mid'ian, Ishbak, and Shuah.
The sons of Jokshan: Sheba and De'dan. 33The sons of Mid'ian: E'phah,
E'pher, Ha'noch, Abi'da, and Elda'ah. All these were the descendants of
Ketu'rah.
34 Abraham was the father of Isaac. The sons of Isaac: Esau and Israel.
35The sons of Esau: Eli'phaz, Reu'el, Je'ush, Ja'lam, and Ko'rah. 36The sons
of Eli'phaz: Te'man, Omar, Zephi, Ga'tam, Ke'naz, Timna, and Am'alek.

37The sons of Reu'el: Na'hath, Ze'rah, Shammah, and Mizzah.
38 The sons of Se'ir: Lo'tan, Sho'bal, Zib'eon, An'ah, Di'shon, E'zer, and
Di'shan. 39The sons of Lo'tan: Ho'ri and Homam; and Lotan’s sister was
Timna. 40The sons of Sho'bal: Al'ian, Man'ahath, E'bal, She'phi, and O'nam.
The sons of Zib'eon: Ai'ah and An'ah. 41The sons of An'ah: Di'shon. The
sons of Dishon: Hamran, Eshban, Ithran, and Che'ran. 42The sons of E'zer:
Bilhan, Za'avan, and Ja'akan. The sons of Di'shan: Uz and A'ran.
43 These are the kings who reigned in the land of E'dom before any king
reigned over the Israelites: Be'la the son of Beor, the name of whose city
was Din'habah. 44When Be'la died, Jobab the son of Ze'rah of Bozrah
reigned in his stead. 45When Jobab died, Hu'sham of the land of the
Te'manites reigned in his stead. 46When Hu'sham died, Ha'dad the son of
Be'dad, who defeated Mid'ian in the country of Moab, reigned in his stead;
and the name of his city was A'vith. 47When Ha'dad died, Samlah of
Masre'kah reigned in his stead. 48When Samlah died, Sha'ul of Reho'both
on the Euphra'tes reigned in his stead. 49When Sha'ul died, Ba'al-ha'nan, the
son of Achbor, reigned in his stead. 50When Ba'al-ha'nan died, Ha'dad
reigned in his stead; and the name of his city was Pa'i, and his wife’s name
Mehet'abel the daughter of Ma'tred, the daughter of Me'zahab. 51And
Ha'dad died.
The chiefs of E'dom were: chiefs Timna, Al'iah, Je'theth, 52Oholiba'mah,
E'lah, Pi'non, 53Ke'naz, Te'man, Mibzar, 54Mag'di-el, and I'ram; these are
the chiefs of E'dom.
Sons of Israel and Descendants of Judah
2 These are the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Is'sachar,
Zeb'ulun, 2Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naph'tali, Gad, and Ash'er. 3The sons of
Judah: Er, O'nan, and She'lah; these three Bath-shu'a the Canaanitess bore
to him. Now Er, Judah’s first-born, was wicked in the sight of the LORD,
and he slew him. 4His daughter-in-law Ta'mar also bore him Per'ez and
Ze'rah. Judah had five sons in all.
5 The sons of Per'ez: Hezron and Ha'mul. 6The sons of Ze'rah: Zimri,
Ethan, He'man, Calcol, and Dara, five in all. 7The sons of Carmi: A'char,
the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the matter of the devoted thing;
8and Ethan’s son was Azari'ah.
9 The sons of Hezron, that were born to him: Jerah'meel, Ram, and
Chelu'bai. 10Ram was the father of Ammin'adab, and Amminadab was the
father of Nahshon, prince of the sons of Judah. 11Nahshon was the father of
Salma, Salma of Boaz, 12Boaz of O'bed, Obed of Jesse. 13Jesse was the
father of Eli'ab his first-born, Abin'adab the second, Shim'e-a the third,
14Nethan'el the fourth, Raddai the fifth, 15Ozem the sixth, David the
seventh; 16and their sisters were Zeru'iah and Ab'igail. The sons of Zeruiah:
Abi'shai, Jo'ab, and As'ahel, three. 17Ab'igail bore Ama'sa, and the father of
Amasa was Je'ther the Ish'maelite.
18 Caleb the son of Hezron had children by his wife Azu'bah, and by
Jer'ioth; and these were her sons: Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon. 19When
Azu'bah died, Caleb married Eph'rath, who bore him Hur. 20Hur was the
father of U'ri, and Uri was the father of Bez'alel.
21 Afterward Hezron went in to the daughter of Ma'chir the father of
Gilead, whom he married when he was sixty years old; and she bore him
Segub; 22and Segub was the father of Ja'ir, who had twenty-three cities in
the land of Gilead. 23But Ge'shur and Ar'am took from them Hav'voth-ja'ir,
Ke'nath and its villages, sixty towns. All these were descendants of Ma'chir,
the father of Gilead. 24After the death of Hezron, Caleb went in to
Eph'rathah, a the wife of Hezron his father, and she bore him Ash'hur, the
father of Teko'a.
25 The sons of Jerah'meel, the first-born of Hezron: Ram, his first-born,
Bunah, Oren, Ozem, and Ahi'jah. 26Jerah'meel also had another wife, whose
name was At'arah; she was the mother of O'nam. 27The sons of Ram, the
first-born of Jerah'meel: Ma'az, Ja'min, and E'ker. 28The sons of O'nam:
Shammai and Jada. The sons of Shammai: Na'dab and Abi'shur. 29The name
of Abi'shur’s wife was Ab'ihail, and she bore him Ahban and Molid. 30The
sons of Na'dab: Se'led and Ap'pa-im; and Seled died childless. 31The sons
of Ap'pa-im: Ishi. The sons of Ishi: Sheshan. The sons of Sheshan: Ahlai.
32The sons of Jada, Shammai’s brother: Je'ther and Jonathan; and Jether
died childless. 33The sons of Jonathan: Pe'leth and Zaza. These were the
descendants of Jerah'meel. 34Now Sheshan had no sons, only daughters; but
Sheshan had an Egyptian slave, whose name was Jarha. 35So Sheshan gave
his daughter in marriage to Jarha his slave; and she bore him Attai. 36Attai
was the father of Nathan, and Nathan of Zabad. 37Zabad was the father of
Ephlal, and Ephlal of O'bed. 38O'bed was the father of Je'hu, and Jehu of
Azari'ah. 39Azari'ah was the father of He'lez, and Helez of E'le-a'sah. 40Ele-
a'sah was the father of Sismai, and Sismai of Shallum. 41Shallum was the
father of Jekami'ah, and Jekamiah of Elish'ama.
42 The sons of Caleb the brother of Jerah'meel: Mare'shah b his first-born,
who was the father of Ziph. The sons of Mareshah: He'bron. c 43The sons of
He'bron: Ko'rah, Tap'pu-ah, Re'kem, and Shema. 44Shema was the father of
Raham, the father of Jor'ke-am; and Re'kem was the father of Shammai.
45The son of Shammai: Maon; and Maon was the father of Beth-zur.
46E'phah also, Caleb’s concubine, bore Haran, Moza, and Gazez; and Haran
was the father of Gazez. 47The sons of Jahdai: Re'gem, Jo'tham, Geshan,
Pe'let, E'phah, and Sha'aph. 48Ma'acah, Caleb’s concubine, bore Sheber and
Tir'hanah. 49She also bore Sha'aph the father of Madman'nah, Sheva the
father of Machbe'nah and the father of Gib'e-a; and the daughter of Caleb
was Achsah. 50These were the descendants of Caleb.
The sons d of Hur the first-born of Eph'rathah: Sho'bal the father of
Kir'iath-je'arim, 51Salma, the father of Bethlehem, and Hareph the father of
Beth-ga'der. 52Sho'bal the father of Kir'iath-je'arim had other sons: Haro'eh,
half of the Menu'hoth. 53And the families of Kir'iath-je'arim: the Ithrites, the
Puthites, the Shu'mathites, and the Mish'raites; from these came the
Zorathites and the Esh'taolites. 54The sons of Salma: Bethlehem, the
Netoph'athites, At'roth-beth-jo'ab, and half of the Man''aha'thites, the
Zorites. 55The families also of the scribes that dwelt at Ja'bez: the
Ti'rathites, the Shim'e-athites, and the Su'cathites. These are the Kenites
who came from Hammath, the father of the house of Re'chab.
Descendants of David and Solomon
3 These are the sons of David that were born to him in He'bron: the
first-born Amnon, by Ahin'o-am the Jezre'elitess; the second Daniel, by
Ab'igail the Car'melitess, 2the third Ab'salom, whose mother was Ma'acah,
the daughter of Talmai, king of Ge'shur; the fourth Adoni'jah, whose mother
was Haggith; 3the fifth Shephati'ah, by Abi'tal; the sixth Ith're-am, by his
wife Eglah; 4six were born to him in He'bron, where he reigned for seven
years and six months. And he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
5These were born to him in Jerusalem: Shim'e-a, Sho'bab, Nathan, and
Solomon, four by Bath-shu'a, the daughter of Am'mi-el; 6then Ibhar,
Elish'ama, Eliph'elet, 7No'gah, Ne'pheg, Japhi'a, 8Elish'ama, Eli'ada, and
Eliph'elet, nine. 9All these were David’s sons, besides the sons of the
concubines; and Ta'mar was their sister.
10 The descendants of Solomon: Rehobo'am, Abi'jah his son, Asa his son,
Jehosh'aphat his son, 11Jo'ram his son, Ahazi'ah his son, Jo'ash his son,
12Amazi'ah his son, Azari'ah his son, Jo'tham his son, 13A'haz his son,
Hezeki'ah his son, Manas'seh his son, 14A'mon his son, Josi'ah his son.
15The sons of Josi'ah: Joha'nan the first-born, the second Jehoi'akim, the
third Zedeki'ah, the fourth Shallum. 16The descendants of Jehoi'akim:

Jeconi'ah his son, Zedeki'ah his son; 17and the sons of Jeconi'ah, the
captive: She-al'ti-el his son, 18Malchi'ram, Pedai'ah, Shenaz'zar, Jekami'ah,
Hosh'ama, and Nedabi'ah; 19and the sons of Pedai'ah: Zerub'babel and
Shim'e-i; and the sons of Zerubbabel: Meshul'lam and Hanani'ah, and
Shelo'mith was their sister; 20and Hashu'bah, O'hel, Berechi'ah, Hasadi'ah,
and Ju'shab-he'sed, five. 21The sons of Hanani'ah: Pelati'ah and Jesha'iah,
his son e Rephai'ah, his son e Arnan, his son e Obadi'ah, his son e Shecani'ah.
22The sons of Shecani'ah: Shemai'ah. And the sons of Shemaiah: Hattush,
I'gal, Bari'ah, Neari'ah, and Sha'phat, six. 23The sons of Neari'ah: El'i-o-
e'nai, Hizki'aj, and Azri'kam, three. 24The sons of El'i-o-e'nai: Hod''avi'ah,
Eli'ashib, Pelai'ah, Akkub, Joha'nan, Delai'ah, and Ana'ni, seven.
Descendants of Judah
4 The sons of Judah: Per'ez, Hezron, Carmi, Hur, and Sho'bal. 2Re-ai'ah
the son of Sho'bal was the father of Jahath, and Jahath was the father of
Ahu'mai and Lahad. These were the families of the Zo'rathites. 3These were
the sons f of E'tam: Jezre'el, Ishma, and Idbash; and the name of their sister
was Hazzelelpo'ni, 4and Penu'el was the father of Gedor, and E'zer the
father of Hu'shah. These were the sons of Hur, the first-born of Eph'rathah,
the father of Bethlehem. 5Ash'hur, the father of Teko'a, had two wives,
He'lah and Na'arah; 6Na'arah bore him Ahuz'zam, He'pher, Te'meni, and
Ha-a-hash'tari. These were the sons of Naarah. 7The sons of He'lah: Ze'reth,
Izhar, and Ethnan. 8Koz was the father of A'nub, Zobe'bah, and the families
of Ahar'hel the son of Harum. 9Ja'bez was more honorable than his brothers;
and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.”
10Ja'bez called on the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me
and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you
would keep me from harm so that it might not hurt me!” And God granted
what he asked. 11Che'lub, the brother of Shu'hah, was the father of Me'hir,
who was the father of Eshton. 12Eshton was the father of Bethra'pha,
Pase'ah, and Tehin'nah the father of Irna'hash. These are the men of Re'cah.
13The sons of Ke'naz: Oth'ni-el and Serai'ah; and the sons of Othni-el:
Ha'thath and Meo'nothai.g 14Meo'nothai was the father of Oph'rah; and

Serai'ah was the father of Jo'ab the father of Ge-har'ashim, h so-called
because they were craftsmen. 15The sons of Caleb the son of Jephun'neh:
Iru, E'lah, and Na'am; and the sons of Elah: Ke'naz. 16The sons of
Jehal'lelel: Ziph, Ziphah, Tir'i-a, and As'arel. 17The sons of Ezrah: Je'ther,
Me'red, E'pher, and Ja'lon. These are the sons of Bith'i-ah, the daughter of
Pharaoh, whom Mered married; i and she conceived and bore j Miriam,
Sham'mai, and Ish'bah, the father of Eshtemo'a. 18And his Jewish wife bore
Je'red the father of Gedor, He'ber the father of Soco, and Jeku'thiel the
father of Zano'ah. 19The sons of the wife of Hodi'ah, the sister of Na'ham,
were the fathers of Kei'lah the Garmite and Eshtemo'a the Ma-ac'athite.
20The sons of Shimon: Amnon, Rinnah, Ben-ha'nan, and Ti'lon. The sons of
Ishi: Zoheth and Ben-zo'heth. 21The sons of She'lah the son of Judah: Er the
father of Lecah, La'adah the father of Mare'shah, and the families of the
house of linen workers at Beth-ashbe'a; 22and Jokim, and the men of
Coze'ba, and Jo'ash, and Saraph, who ruled in Moab and returned to
Lehem k (now the records l are ancient). 23These were the potters and
inhabitants of Neta'im and Gede'rah; they dwelt there with the king for his
work.
Descendants of Simeon
24 The sons of Simeon: Nem'u-el, Ja'min, Ja'rib, Ze'rah, Sha'ul; 25Shallum
was his son, Mib'sam his son, Mishma his son. 26The sons of Mishma:
Ham'mu-el his son, Zaccur his son, Shim'e-i his son. 27Shim'e-i had sixteen
sons and six daughters; but his brothers had not many children, nor did all
their family multiply like the men of Judah. 28They dwelt in Be'er-she'ba,
Mo'ladah, Ha'zar-shu'al, 29Bilhah, E'zem, To'lad, 30Bethu'el, Hormah,
Zik'lag, 31Beth-mar'caboth, Ha'zar-su'sim, Beth-bir'i, and Sha-ara'im. These
were their cities until David reigned. 32And their villages were E'tam, A'in,
Rimmon, Tochen, and A'shan, five cities, 33along with all their villages
which were round about these cities as far as Ba'al. These were their
settlements, and they kept a genealogical record.
34 Mesho'bab, Jamlech, Joshah the son of Amazi'ah, 35Joel, Je'hu the son
of Joshibi'ah, son of Serai'ah, son of As'i-el, 36Eli-o-e'nai, Ja''ako'bah,

Jeshohai'ah, Asai'ah, Ad'i-el, Jesim'i-el, Bena'iah, 37Ziza the son of Shi'phi,
son of Allon, son of Jedai'ah, son of Shimri, son of Shemai'ah— 38these
mentioned by name were princes in their families, and their fathers’ houses
increased greatly. 39They journeyed to the entrance of Gedor, to the east
side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks, 40where they found rich,
good pasture, and the land was very broad, quiet, and peaceful; for the
former inhabitants there belonged to Ham. 41These, registered by name,
came in the days of Hezeki'ah, king of Judah, and destroyed their tents and
the Me-u'nim who were found there, and exterminated them to this day, and
settled in their place, because there was pasture there for their flocks. 42And
some of them, five hundred men of the Simeonites, went to Mount Se'ir,
having as their leaders Pelati'ah, Ne-ari'ah, Rephai'ah, and Uz'ziel, the sons
of Ishi; 43and they destroyed the remnant of the Amal'ekites that had
escaped, and they have dwelt there to this day.
Descendants of Reuben
5 The sons of Reuben the first-born of Israel (for he was the first-born;
but because he polluted his father’s couch, his birthright was given to the
sons of Joseph the son of Israel, so that he is not enrolled in the genealogy
according to the birthright; 2though Judah became strong among his
brothers and a prince was from him, yet the birthright belonged to Joseph),
3the sons of Reuben, the first-born of Israel: Ha'noch, Pallu, Hezron, and
Carmi. 4The sons of Joel: Shemai'ah his son, Gog his son, Shim'e-i his son,
5Micah his son, Re-ai'ah his son, Ba'al his son, 6Beer'ah his son, whom
Til'gath-pilne'ser king of Assyria carried away into exile; he was a chieftain
of the Reubenites. 7And his kinsmen by their families, when the genealogy
of their generations was reckoned: the chief, Je-i'el, and Zechari'ah, 8and
Be'la the son of A'zaz, son of She'ma, son of Joel, who dwelt in Aro'er, as
far as Nebo and Ba'al-me'on. 9He also dwelt to the east as far as the
entrance of the desert this side of the Euphrates, because their cattle had
multiplied in the land of Gilead. 10And in the days of Saul they made war
on the Hag'rites, who fell by their hand; and they dwelt in their tents
throughout all the region east of Gilead.
Descendants of Gad
11 The sons of Gad dwelt over against them in the land of Bashan as far as
Sal'ecah: 12Joel the chief, Sha'pham the second, Ja'nai, and Sha'phat in
Bashan. 13And their kinsmen according to their fathers’ houses: Michael,
Meshul'lam, Sheba, Jo'rai, Ja'can, Zia, and E'ber, seven. 14These were the
sons of Ab'ihail the son of Huri, son of Jaro'ah, son of Gilead, son of
Michael, son of Jeshish'ai, son of Jahdo, son of Buz; 15A'hi the son of
Ab'di-el, son of Gu'ni, was chief in their fathers’ houses; 16and they dwelt in
Gilead, in Bashan and in its towns, and in all the pasture lands of Sharon to
their limits. 17All of these were enrolled by genealogies in the days of
Jo'tham king of Judah, and in the days of Jerobo'am king of Israel.
18 The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manas'seh had valiant
men, who carried shield and sword, and drew the bow, expert in war, forty-
four thousand seven hundred and sixty, ready for service. 19They made war
upon the Hag'rites, Je'tur, Na'phish, and No'dab; 20and when they received
help against them, the Hag'rites and all who were with them were given into
their hands, for they cried to God in the battle, and he granted their entreaty
because they trusted in him. 21They carried off their livestock: fifty
thousand of their camels, two hundred and fifty thousand sheep, two
thousand donkeys, and a hundred thousand men alive. 22For many fell slain,
because the war was of God. And they dwelt in their place until the exile.
The Half-tribe of Manasseh
23 The members of the half-tribe of Manas'seh dwelt in the land; they were
very numerous from Ba'shan to Ba'al-her'mon, Se'nir, and Mount Hermon.

24These were the heads of their fathers’ houses: E'pher, m Ishi, Eli'el, Az'ri-
el, Jeremi'ah, Hod''avi'ah, and Jah'di-el, mighty warriors, famous men,

heads of their fathers’ houses. 25But they transgressed against the God of
their fathers, and played the harlot after the gods of the peoples of the land,
whom God had destroyed before them. 26So the God of Israel stirred up the
spirit of Pul king of Assyria, the spirit of Til'gath-pilne'ser king of Assyria,
and he carried them away, namely, the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the
half-tribe of Manas'seh, and brought them to Ha'lah, Ha'bor, Hara, and the
river Gozan, to this day.
Descendants of Levi
6 n The sons of Levi: Gershom, Ko'hath, and Merar'i. 2The sons of
Ko'hath: Amram, Izhar, Heb'ron, and Uz'ziel. 3The children of Amram:
Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. The sons of Aaron: Na'dab, Abi'hu, Elea'zar,
and Ith'amar. 4Elea'zar was the father of Phin'ehas, Phinehas of Abishu'a,
5Abishu'a of Bukki, Bukki of Uzzi, 6Uzzi of Zerahi'ah, Zerahiah of
Mera'ioth, 7Mera'ioth of Amari'ah, Amariah of Ahi'tub, 8Ahi'tub of Za'dok,

Zadok of Ahim'a-az, 9Ahim'a-az of Azari'ah, Azariah of Joha'nan, 10and
Joha'nan of Azari'ah (it was he who served as priest in the house that
Solomon built in Jerusalem). 11Azari'ah was the father of Amari'ah,
Amariah of Ahi'tub, 12Ahi'tub of Za'dok, Zadok of Shallum, 13Shallum of
Hilki'ah, Hilkiah of Azari'ah, 14Azariah of Serai'ah, Seraiah of Jehoz'adak;
15and Jehoz'adak went into exile when the LORD sent Judah and Jerusalem
into exile by the hand of Nebuchadnez'zar.
16 o The sons of Levi: Gershom, Ko'hath, and Merar'i. 17And these are the
names of the sons of Gershom: Libni and Shim'e-i. 18The sons of Ko'hath:
Amram, Izhar, He'bron, and Uz'ziel. 19The sons of Merar'i: Mah'li and
Mu'shi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers. 20Of
Gershom: Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, 21Jo'ah his son,
Iddo his son, Ze'rah his son, Je-ath'erai his son. 22The sons of Ko'hath:
Ammin'adab his son, Ko'rah his son, Assir his son, 23Elka'nah his son,
Ebi'asaph his son, Assir his son, 24Ta'hath his son, Uri'el his son, Uzzi'ah his
son, and Sha'ul his son. 25The sons of Elka'nah: Ama'sai and Ahi'moth,
26Elka'nah his son, Zo'phai his son, Na'hath his son, 27Eli'ab his son,
Jero'ham his son, Elka'nah his son. 28The sons of Samuel: Joel p his first-
born, the second Abi'jah. q 29The sons of Merar'i: Mah'li, Libni his son,
Shim'e-i his son, Uzzah his son, 30Shim'e-a his son, Haggi'ah his son, and
Asai'ah his son.
Musicians Appointed by David
31 These are the men whom David put in charge of the service of song in
the house of the LORD, after the ark rested there. 32They ministered with
song before the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, until Solomon had built
the house of the LORD in Jerusalem; and they performed their service in due
order. 33These are the men who served and their sons. Of the sons of the
Ko'hathites: He'man the singer the son of Joel, son of Samuel, 34son of
Elka'nah, son of Jero'ham, son of Eli'el, son of To'ah, 35son of Zuph, son of
Elka'nah, son of Mahath, son of Ama'sai, 36son of Elka'nah, son of Joel, son
of Azari'ah, son of Zephani'ah, 37son of Ta'hath, son of Assir, son of
Ebi'asaph, son of Ko'rah, 38son of Izhar, son of Ko'hath, son of Levi, son of
Israel; 39and his brother A'saph, who stood on his right hand, namely,
Asaph the son of Berechi'ah, son of Shim'e-a, 40son of Michael, son of Ba-
ase'iah, son of Malchi'jah, 41son of Ethni, son of Ze'rah, son of Adai'ah,
42son of Ethan, son of Zimmah, son of Shim'e-i, 43son of Jahath, son of
Gershom, son of Levi. 44On the left hand were their brethren the sons of
Merar'i: Ethan the son of Kishi, son of Abdi, son of Mal'luch, 45son of
Hashabi'ah, son of Amazi'ah, son of Hilki'ah, 46son of Amzi, son of Ba'ni,
son of She'mer, 47son of Mah'li, son of Mu'shi, son of Merar'i, son of Levi;
48and their brethren the Levites were appointed for all the service of the
tabernacle of the house of God.
49 But Aaron and his sons made offerings upon the altar of burnt offering
and upon the altar of incense for all the work of the most holy place, and to
make atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God
had commanded. 50These are the sons of Aaron: Elea'zar his son, Phin'ehas
his son, Abishu'a his son, 51Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahi'ah his son,
52Mera'ioth his son, Amari'ah his son, Ahi'tub his son, 53Za'dok his son,
Ahim'a-az his son.

Settlements of the Levites
54 These are their dwelling places according to their settlements within
their borders: to the sons of Aaron of the families of Ko'hathites, for theirs
was the lot, 55to them they gave He'bron in the land of Judah and its
surrounding pasture lands, 56but the fields of the city and its villages they
gave to Caleb the son of Jephun'neh. 57To the sons of Aaron they gave the
cities of refuge: He'bron, Libnah with its pasture lands, Jat'tir, Eshtemo'a
with its pasture lands, 58Hilen with its pasture lands, De'bir with its pasture
lands, 59A'shan with its pasture lands, and Beth-she'mesh with its pasture
lands; 60and from the tribe of Benjamin, Ge'ba with its pasture lands,
Al'emeth with its pasture lands, and An'athoth with its pasture lands. All
their cities throughout their families were thirteen.
61 To the rest of the Ko'hathites were given by lot out of the family of the
tribe, out of the half-tribe, the half of Manas'seh, ten cities. 62To the
Ger'shomites according to their families were allotted thirteen cities out of
the tribes of Is'sachar, Asher, Naph'tali, and Manas'seh in Bashan. 63To the
Merar'ites according to their families were allotted twelve cities out of the
tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zeb'ulun. 64So the sons of Israel gave the
Levites the cities with their pasture lands. 65They also gave them by lot out
of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin these cities which are
mentioned by name.
66 And some of the families of the sons of Ko'hath had cities of their
territory out of the tribe of E'phraim. 67They were given the cities of refuge:
She'chem with its pasture lands in the hill country of E'phraim, Gezer with
its pasture lands, 68Jok'me-am with its pasture lands, Beth-ho'ron with its
pasture lands, 69Ai'jalon with its pasture lands, Gath-rim'mon with its
pasture lands, 70and out of the half-tribe of Manas'seh, A'ner with its
pasture lands, and Bil'e-am with its pasture lands, for the rest of the families
of the Ko'hathites.
71 To the Ger'shomites were given out of the half-tribe of Manas'seh:
Golan in Bashan with its pasture lands and Ash'taroth with its pasture lands;
72and out of the tribe of Is'sachar: Ke'desh with its pasture lands, Dab'erath
with its pasture lands, 73Ra'moth with its pasture lands, and A'nem with its
pasture lands; 74out of the tribe of Asher: Mashal with its pasture lands,
Abdon with its pasture lands, 75Hukok with its pasture lands, and Re'hob
with its pasture lands; 76and out of the tribe of Naph'tali: Ke'desh in Galilee
with its pasture lands, Ham'mon with its pasture lands, and Kir''iatha'im
with its pasture lands. 77To the rest of the Merar'ites were allotted out of the
tribe of Zeb'ulun: Rim'mono with its pasture lands, Ta'bor with its pasture
lands, 78and beyond the Jordan at Jericho, on the east side of the Jordan, out
of the tribe of Reuben: Bezer in the steppe with its pasture lands, Jah'zah
with its pasture lands, 79Ked'emoth with its pasture lands, and Meph'a-ath
with its pasture lands; 80and out of the tribe of Gad: Ra'moth in Gilead with
its pasture lands, Ma''hana'im with its pasture lands, 81Hesh'bon with its
pasture lands, and Ja'zer with its pasture lands.
Descendants of Issachar
7 The sons r of Is'sachar: To'la, Puah, Jash'ub, and Shim'ron, four. 2The
sons of To'la: Uzzi, Rephai'ah, Je'ri-el, Jahmai, Ibsam, and Shemu'el, heads
of their fathers’ houses, namely of Tola, mighty warriors of their
generations, their number in the days of David being twenty-two thousand
six hundred. 3The sons of Uzzi: Izrahi'ah. And the sons of Izrahiah:
Michael, Obadi'ah, Joel, and Isshi'ah, five, all of them chief men; 4and
along with them, by their generations, according to their fathers’ houses,
were units of the army for war, thirty-six thousand, for they had many wives
and sons. 5Their kinsmen belonging to all the families of Is'sachar were in
all eighty-seven thousand mighty warriors, enrolled by genealogy.
Descendants of Benjamin
6 The sons of Benjamin: Be'la, Be'cher, and Jedi'a-el, three. 7The sons of
Be'la: Ezbon, Uzzi, Uz'ziel, Jer'imoth, and Iri, five, heads of fathers’ houses,
mighty warriors; and their enrollment by genealogies was twenty-two
thousand and thirty-four. 8The sons of Be'cher: Zemi'rah, Jo'ash, Elie'zer,
El'i-o-e'nai, Omri, Jer'emoth, Abi'jah, An'athoth, and Al'emeth. All these
were the sons of Becher; 9and their enrollment by genealogies, according to
their generations, as heads of their fathers’ houses, mighty warriors, was
twenty thousand two hundred. 10The sons of Jedi'a-el: Bilhan. And the sons
of Bilhan: Je'ush, Benjamin, E'hud, Chena'anah, Zethan, Tar'shish, and
Ahish'ahar. 11All these were the sons of Jedi'a-el according to the heads of
their fathers’ houses, mighty warriors, seventeen thousand and two
hundred, ready for service in war. 12And Shuppim and Huppim were the
sons of Ir, Hu'shim the sons of A'her.
Descendants of Naphtali
13 The sons of Naph'tali: Jah'zi-el, Gu'ni, Je'zer, and Shallum, the offspring
of Bilhah.
Descendants of Manasseh
14 The sons of Manas'seh: As'ri-el, whom his Arame'an concubine bore;
she bore Ma'chir the father of Gilead. 15And Ma'chir took a wife for
Huppim and for Shuppim. The name of his sister was Ma'acah. And the
name of the second was Zeloph'ehad; and Zelophehad had daughters. 16And
Ma'acah the wife of Ma'chir bore a son, and she called his name Peresh; and
the name of his brother was Sheresh; and his sons were Ulam and Rakem.
17The sons of Ulam: Be'dan. These were the sons of Gilead the son of
Ma'chir, son of Manas'seh. 18And his sister Hammo'lecheth bore Ish'hod,
Abie'zer, and Mahlah. 19The sons of Shemi'da were Ahi'an, She'chem,
Likhi, and Ani'am.
Descendants of Ephraim
20 The sons of E'phraim: Shuthe'lah, and Be'red his son, Ta'hath his son,
Ele-a'dah his son, Tahath his son, 21Zabad his son, Shuthe'lah his son, and
E'zer and E'le-ad, whom the men of Gath who were born in the land slew,
because they came down to raid their cattle. 22And E'phraim their father
mourned many days, and his brothers came to comfort him. 23And E'phraim
went in to his wife, and she conceived and bore a son; and he called his
name Beri'ah, because evil had befallen his house. 24His daughter was
She'erah, who built both Lower and Upper Beth-ho'ron, and Uz'zen-
she'erah. 25Rephah was his son, Resheph his son, Te'lah his son, Ta'han his
son, 26Ladan his son, Ammi'hud his son, Elish'ama his son, 27Nun his son,
Joshua his son. 28Their possessions and settlements were Bethel and its
towns, and eastward Na'aran, and westward Gezer and its towns, She'chem
and its towns, and Ayyah and its towns; 29also along the borders of the
Manas'sites, Beth-she'an and its towns, Ta'anach and its towns, Megid'do
and its towns, Dor and its towns. In these dwelt the sons of Joseph the son
of Israel.
Descendants of Asher
30 The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beri'ah, and their sister Se'rah.
31The sons of Beri'ah: He'ber and Mal'chi-el, who was the father of
Bir'zaith. 32He'ber was the father of Japhlet, Shomer, Ho'tham, and their
sister Shua. 33The sons of Japhlet: Pasach, Bimhal, and Ashvath. These are
the sons of Japhlet. 34The sons of She'mer his brother: Rohgah, Jehub'bah,
and Ar'am. 35The sons of He'lem his brother: Zo'phah, Imna, Shelesh, and
A'mal. 36The sons of Zo'phah: Su'ah, Har'nepher, Shual, Beri, Imrah,
37Bezer, Hod, Shamma, Shilshah, Ithran, and Be-e'ra. 38The sons of Je'ther:
Jephun'neh, Pispa, and Ar'a. 39The sons of Ulla: A'rah, Han'niel, and Rizi'a.
40All of these were men of Asher, heads of fathers’ houses, approved,
mighty warriors, chief of the princes. Their number enrolled by

genealogies, for service in war, was twenty-six thousand men.
Descendants of Benjamin in Detail
8 Benjamin was the father of Be'la his first-born, Ash'bel the second,
A'harah the third, 2No'hah the fourth, and Ra'pha the fifth. 3And Be'la had
sons: Addar, Gera, Abi'hud, 4Abishu'a, Na'aman, Aho'ah, 5Gera,
Shephu'phan, and Hu'ram. 6These are the sons of E'hud (they were heads of
fathers’ houses of the inhabitants of Ge'ba, and they were carried into exile
to Mana'hath): 7Na'aman, s Ahi'jah, and Gera, that is, Heglam, t who was the
father of Uzza and Ahi'hud. 8And Sha''hara'im had sons in the country of
Moab after he had sent away Hu'shim and Ba'ara his wives. 9He had sons
by Hodesh his wife: Jo'bab, Zib'ia, Me'sha, Malcam, 10Je'uz, Sachi'a, and
Mirmah. These were his sons, heads of fathers’ houses. 11He also had sons
by Hu'shim: Abi'tub and Elpa'al. 12The sons of Elpa'al: E'ber, Misham, and
She'med, who built Ono and Lod with its towns, 13and Beri'ah and She'ma
(they were heads of fathers’ houses of the inhabitants of Ai'jalon, who put
to flight the inhabitants of Gath); 14and Ahi'o, Shashak, and Jer'emoth.
15Zebadi'ah, Ar'ad, E'der, 16Michael, Ishpah, and Joha were sons of Beri'ah.
17Zebadi'ah, Meshul'lam, Hizki, He'ber, 18Ish'merai, Izli'ah, and Jo'bab were
the sons of Elpa'al. 19Ja'kim, Zich'ri, Zabdi, 20E'li-e'nai, Zil'le-thai, Eli'el,

21Adai'ah, Bera'iah, and Shimrath were the sons of Shim'e-i. 22Ishpan, E'ber,
Eli'el, 23Abdon, Zich'ri, Ha'nan, 24Hanani'ah, E'lam, Anthothi'jah,

25Iphde'iah, and Penu'el were the sons of Shashak. 26Sham'sherai,
Shehari'ah, Athali'ah, 27Ja-areshi'ah, Eli'jah, and Zich'ri were the sons of

Jero'ham. 28These were the heads of fathers’ houses, according to their
generations, chief men. These dwelt in Jerusalem.
29 Je-i'el u the father of Gib'eon dwelt in Gibeon, and the name of his wife
was Ma'acah. 30His first-born son: Abdon, then Zur, Kish, Ba'al, Na'dab,
31Gedor, Ahi'o, Zecher, 32and Mikloth (he was the father of Shim'e-ah).
Now these also dwelt opposite their kinsmen in Jerusalem, with their
kinsmen. 33Ner was the father of Kish, Kish of Saul, Saul of Jonathan,
Mal''chishu'a, Abin'adab, and Eshba'al; 34and the son of Jonathan was
Mer'ib-ba'al; and Merib-baal was the father of Micah. 35The sons of Micah:
Pithon, Melech, Tare'a, and A'haz. 36A'haz was the father of Jeho'addah;
and Jehoaddah was the father of Al'emeth, Az'maveth, and Zimri; Zimri
was the father of Moza. 37Moza was the father of Bin'e-a; Ra'phah was his
son, El-e-a'sah his son, A'zel his son. 38A'zel had six sons, and these are
their names: Azri'kam, Bo'cheru, Ish'mael, Sheari'ah, Obadi'ah, and Ha'nan.
All these were the sons of Azel. 39The sons of E'shek his brother: Ulam his
first-born, Je'ush the second, and Eliph'elet the third. 40The sons of Ulam
were men who were mighty warriors, bowmen, having many sons and
grandsons, one hundred and fifty. All these were Benjaminites.
9 So all Israel was enrolled by genealogies; and these are written in the
Book of the Kings of Israel. And Judah was taken into exile in Babylon
because of their unfaithfulness. 2Now the first to dwell again in their
possessions in their cities were Israel, the priests, the Levites, and the
temple servants. 3And some of the people of Judah, Benjamin, E'phraim,
and Manas'seh dwelt in Jerusalem: 4Uthai the son of Ammi'hud, son of
Omri, son of Imri, son of Ba'ni, from the sons of Per'ez the son of Judah.
5And of the Shi'lonites: Asai'ah the first-born, and his sons. 6Of the sons of
Ze'rah: Jeu'el and their kinsmen, six hundred and ninety. 7Of the
Benjaminites: Sallu the son of Meshul'lam, son of Hod''avi'ah, son of
Hassenu'ah, 8Ibne'iah the son of Jero'ham, E'lah the son of Uzzi, son of
Michri, and Meshul'lam the son of Shephati'ah, son of Reu'el, son of
Ibni'jah; 9and their kinsmen according to their generations, nine hundred
and fifty-six. All these were heads of fathers’ houses according to their
fathers’ houses.
Priestly Families
10 Of the priests: Jedai'ah, Jehoi'arib, Ja'chin, 11and Azari'ah the son of
Hilki'ah, son of Meshul'lam, son of Za'dok, son of Mera'ioth, son of

Ahi'tub, the chief officer of the house of God; 12and Adai'ah the son of
Jero'ham, son of Pashhur, son of Malchi'jah, and Ma'asai the son of Ad'i-el,
son of Jah'zerah, son of Meshul'lam, son of Meshil'lemith, son of Immer;
13besides their kinsmen, heads of their fathers’ houses, one thousand seven
hundred and sixty, very able men for the work of the service of the house of
God.
Levitical Families
14 Of the Levites: Shemai'ah the son of Hasshub, son of Azri'kam, son of
Hashabi'ah, of the sons of Merar'i; 15and Bakbak'kar, He'resh, Ga'lal, and

Mattani'ah the son of Mica, son of Zich'ri, son of A'saph; 16and Obadi'ah
the son of Shemai'ah, son of Galal, son of Jedu'thun, and Berechi'ah the son
of Asa, son of Elka'nah, who dwelt in the villages of the Netoph'athites.
17 The gatekeepers were: Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, Ahi'man, and their
kinsmen (Shallum being the chief), 18stationed hitherto in the king’s gate on
the east side. These were the gatekeepers of the camp of the Levites.
19Shallum the son of Ko're, son of Ebi'asaph, son of Ko'rah, and his
kinsmen of his fathers’ house, the Ko'rahites, were in charge of the work of
the service, keepers of the thresholds of the tent, as their fathers had been in
charge of the camp of the LORD, keepers of the entrance. 20And Phin'ehas
the son of Elea'zar was the ruler over them in time past; the LORD was with
him. 21Zechari'ah the son of Meshelemi'ah was gatekeeper at the entrance
of the tent of meeting. 22All these, who were chosen as gatekeepers at the
thresholds, were two hundred and twelve. They were enrolled by
genealogies in their villages. David and Samuel the seer established them in
their office of trust. 23So they and their sons were in charge of the gates of
the house of the LORD, that is, the house of the tent, as guards. 24The
gatekeepers were on the four sides, east, west, north, and south; 25and their
kinsmen who were in their villages were obliged to come in every seven
days, from time to time, to be with these; 26for the four chief gatekeepers,
who were Levites, were in charge of the chambers and the treasures of the
house of God. 27And they lodged round about the house of God; for upon
them lay the duty of watching, and they had charge of opening it every
morning.
28 Some of them had charge of the utensils of service, for they were
required to count them when they were brought in and taken out. 29Others
of them were appointed over the furniture, and over all the holy utensils,
also over the fine flour, the wine, the oil, the incense, and the spices.
30Others, of the sons of the priests, prepared the mixing of the spices, 31and
Mattithi'ah, one of the Levites, the first-born of Shallum the Ko'rahite, was
in charge of making the flat cakes. 32Also some of their kinsmen of the
Ko'hathites had charge of the showbread, to prepare it every sabbath.
33 Now these are the singers, the heads of fathers’ houses of the Levites,
dwelling in the chambers of the temple free from other service, for they
were on duty day and night. 34These were heads of fathers’ houses of the
Levites, according to their generations, leaders, who lived in Jerusalem.
The Family of Saul
35 In Gib'eon dwelt the father of Gibeon, Je-i'el, and the name of his wife
was Ma'acah, 36and his first-born son Abdon, then Zur, Kish, Ba'al, Ner,
Na'dab, 37Gedor, Ahi'o, Zechari'ah, and Mikloth; 38and Mikloth was the
father of Shim'e-am; and these also dwelt opposite their kinsmen in
Jerusalem, with their kinsmen. 39Ner was the father of Kish, Kish of Saul,
Saul of Jonathan, Mal''chishu'a, Abin'adab, and Eshba'al; 40and the son of
Jonathan was Mer'ib-ba'al; and Merib-baal was the father of Micah. 41The
sons of Micah: Pithon, Melech, Tah're-a, and A'haz; v 42and A'haz was the
father of Jarah, and Jarah of Al'emeth, Az'maveth, and Zimri; and Zimri
was the father of Moza. 43Moza was the father of Bin'e-a; and Rephai'ah
was his son, Ele-a'sah his son, A'zel his son. 44A'zel had six sons and these
are their names: Azri'kam, Bo'cheru, Ish'mael, Sheari'ah, Obadi'ah, and
Ha'nan; these were the sons of Azel.
The Death of Saul and His Sons
10 Now the Philis'tines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled
before the Philis'tines, and fell slain on Mount Gilbo'a. 2And the Philis'tines
overtook Saul and his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan and Abin'adab
and Mal''chishu'a, the sons of Saul. 3The battle pressed hard upon Saul, and
the archers found him; and he was wounded by the archers. 4Then Saul said
to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest
these uncircumcised come and make sport of me.” But his armor-bearer
would not; for he feared greatly. Therefore Saul took his own sword, and
fell upon it. 5And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also
fell upon his sword, and died. 6Thus Saul died; he and his three sons and all
his house died together. 7And when all the men of Israel who were in the
valley saw that the army w had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead,
they forsook their cities and fled; and the Philis'tines came and dwelt in
them.
8 The next day, when the Philis'tines came to strip the slain, they found
Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilbo'a. 9And they stripped him and took
his head and his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the
Philis'tines, to carry the good news to their idols and to the people. 10And
they put his armor in the temple of their gods, and fastened his head in the
temple of Da'gon. 11But when all Ja'besh-gil'ead heard all that the
Philis'tines had done to Saul, 12all the valiant men arose, and took away the
body of Saul and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Ja'besh. And
they buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh, and fasted seven days.
13 So Saul died for his unfaithfulness; he was unfaithful to the LORD in
that he did not keep the command of the LORD, and also consulted a
medium, seeking guidance, 14and did not seek guidance from the LORD.
Therefore the LORD slew him, and turned the kingdom over to David the
son of Jesse.
David Anointed King of All Israel
11 Then all Israel gathered together to David at He'bron, and said,
“Behold, we are your bone and flesh. 2In times past, even when Saul was
king, it was you that led out and brought in Israel; and the LORD your God
said to you, ‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be
prince over my people Israel.’ ” 3So all the elders of Israel came to the king
at He'bron; and David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the
LORD, and they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of
the LORD by Samuel.
David’s Army Captures Jerusalem
4 And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, that is Je'bus, where the
Jeb'usites were, the inhabitants of the land. 5The inhabitants of Je'bus said
to David, “You will not come in here.” Nevertheless David took the
stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David. 6David said, “Whoever shall
strike the Jeb'usites first shall be chief and commander.” And Jo'ab the son
of Zeru'iah went up first, so he became chief. 7And David dwelt in the
stronghold; therefore it was called the city of David. 8And he built the city
round about from the Millo in complete circuit; and Jo'ab repaired the rest
of the city. 9And David became greater and greater, for the LORD of hosts
was with him.
David’s Mighty Men and Their Exploits
10 Now these are the chiefs of David’s mighty men, who gave him strong
support in his kingdom, together with all Israel, to make him king,
according to the word of the LORD concerning Israel. 11This is an account of
David’s mighty men: Jasho'be-am, a Hach'monite, was chief of the three;x
he wielded his spear against three hundred whom he slew at one time.
12 And next to him among the three mighty men was Elea'zar the son of
Dodo, the Aho'hite. 13He was with David at Pas-dam'mim when the
Philis'tines were gathered there for battle. There was a plot of ground full of
barley, and the men fled from the Philistines. 14But he y took his y stand in
the midst of the plot, and defended it, and slew the Philis'tines; and the
LORD saved them by a great victory.
15 Three of the thirty chief men went down to the rock to David at the
cave of Adul'lam, when the army of Philis'tines was encamped in the valley
of Reph'aim. 16David was then in the stronghold; and the garrison of the
Philis'tines was then at Bethlehem. 17And David said longingly, “O that
some one would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem which
is by the gate!” 18Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the
Philis'tines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem which was by the
gate, and took and brought it to David. But David would not drink of it; he
poured it out to the LORD, 19and said, “Far be it from me before my God
that I should do this. Shall I drink the lifeblood of these men? For at the risk
of their lives they brought it.” Therefore he would not drink it. These things
did the three mighty men.
20 Now Abi'shai, the brother of Jo'ab, was chief of the thirty. z And he
wielded his spear against three hundred men and slew them, and won a
name beside the three. 21He was the most renowned a of the thirty, z and
became their commander; but he did not attain to the three.
22 And Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada was a valiant man b of Kab'zeel, a
doer of great deeds; he struck two Ariels c of Moab. He also went down and
slew a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. 23And he slew an
Egyptian, a man of great stature, five cubits tall. The Egyptian had in his
hand a spear like a weaver’s beam; but Bena'iah went down to him with a
staff, and snatched the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with
his own spear. 24These things did Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada, and won a
name beside the three mighty men. 25He was renowned among the thirty,
but he did not attain to the three. And David set him over his bodyguard.
26 The mighty men of the armies were As'ahel the brother of Jo'ab,
Elha'nan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, 27Shammoth of Harod,d He'lez the

Pel'onite, 28Ira the son of Ikkesh of Teko'a, Abie'zer of An'athoth,
29Sib'becai the Hu'shathite, Ilai the Aho'hite, 30Ma'harai of Netoph'ah,
He'led the son of Ba'anah of Netophah, 31Ithai the son of Ri'bai of Gib'e-ah
of the Benjaminites, Bena'iah of Pir'athon, 32Hurai of the brooks of Ga'ash,
Abi'el the Ar'bathite, 33Az'maveth of Baha'rum, Eli'ahba of Sha-al'bon,
34Hasheme the Gi'zonite, Jonathan the son of Sha'gee the Har'arite,
35Ahi'am the son of Sachar the Har'arite, Eli'phal the son of Ur, 36He'pher
the Meche'rathite, Ahi'jah the Pel'onite, 37Hezro of Carmel, Na'arai the son
of Ezbai, 38Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of Hagri, 39Zelek the
Am'monite, Na'harai of Be-er'oth, the armor-bearer of Jo'ab the son of
Zeru'iah, 40Ira the Ithrite, Ga'reb the Ithrite, 41Uri'ah the Hittite, Zabad the
son of Ahlai, 42Ad'ina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a leader of the
Reubenites, and thirty with him, 43Ha'nan the son of Ma'acah, and
Josh'aphat the Mithnite, 44Uzzi'a the Ash'terathite, Shama and Je-i'el the
sons of Ho'tham the Aro'erite, 45Jedi'a-el the son of Shimri, and Joha his
brother, the Ti'zite, 46Eli'el the Ma'havite, and Jer'ibai, and Joshavi'ah, the
sons of El'na-am, and Ithmah the Moabite, 47Eli'el, and O'bed, and Ja-asi'el
the Mezo'baite.
David’s Followers in the Wilderness
12 Now these are the men who came to David at Zik'lag, while he could
not move about freely because of Saul the son of Kish; and they were
among the mighty men who helped him in war. 2They were bowmen, and
could shoot arrows and sling stones with either the right or the left hand;
they were Benjaminites, Saul’s kinsmen. 3The chief was Ahie'zer, then
Jo'ash, both sons of Shema'ah of Gib'e-ah; also Je'zi-el and Pe'let the sons of
Az'maveth; Ber'acah, Je'hu of An'athoth, 4Ishma'iah of Gib'eon, a mighty
man among the thirty and a leader over the thirty; Jeremi'ah, f Jaha'ziel,
Joha'nan, Joz'abad of Gede'rah, 5Elu'zai, g Jer'imoth, Beali'ah, Shemari'ah,
Shephati'ah the Har'uphite; 6Elka'nah, Isshi'ah, Az'arel, Jo-e'zer, and
Jasho'be-am, the Ko'rahites; 7and Jo-e'lah and Zebadi'ah, the sons of
Jero'ham of Gedor.
8 From the Gadites there went over to David at the stronghold in the
wilderness mighty and experienced warriors, expert with shield and spear,
whose faces were like the faces of lions, and who were swift as gazelles
upon the mountains: 9E'zer the chief, Obadi'ah second, Eli'ab third,
10Mishman'nah fourth, Jeremi'ah fifth, 11Attai sixth, Eli'el seventh,
12Joha'nan eighth, Elza'bad ninth, 13Jeremi'ah tenth, Mach'bannai eleventh.
14These Gadites were officers of the army, the lesser over a hundred and the
greater over a thousand. 15These are the men who crossed the Jordan in the
first month, when it was overflowing all its banks, and put to flight all those
in the valleys, to the east and to the west.
16 And some of the men of Benjamin and Judah came to the stronghold to
David. 17David went out to meet them and said to them, “If you have come
to me in friendship to help me, my heart will be knit to you; but if to betray
me to my adversaries, although there is no wrong in my hands, then may
the God of our fathers see and rebuke you.” 18Then the Spirit came upon
Ama'sai, chief of the thirty, and he said,
00“We are yours, O David;
and with you, O son of Jesse!

Peace, peace to you,
and peace to your helpers!
For your God helps you.”
Then David received them, and made them officers of his troops.
19 Some of the men of Manas'seh deserted to David when he came with
the Philis'tines for the battle against Saul. (Yet he did not help them, for the
rulers of the Philistines took counsel and sent him away, saying, “At peril to
our heads he will desert to his master Saul.”) 20As he went to Zik'lag these
men of Manas'seh deserted to him: Adnah, Joz'abad, Jedi'a-el, Michael,
Jozabad, Eli'hu, and Zil'lethai, chiefs of thousands in Manasseh. 21They
helped David against the band of raiders; h for they were all mighty men of
valor, and were commanders in the army. 22For from day to day men kept
coming to David to help him, until there was a great army, like an army of
God.
David’s Army at Hebron
23 These are the numbers of the divisions of the armed troops, who came
to David in He'bron, to turn the kingdom of Saul over to him, according to

the word of the LORD. 24The men of Judah bearing shield and spear were six
thousand eight hundred armed troops. 25Of the Simeonites, mighty men of
valor for war, seven thousand one hundred. 26Of the Levites four thousand
six hundred. 27The prince Jehoi'ada, of the house of Aaron, and with him
three thousand seven hundred. 28Za'dok, a young man mighty in valor, and
twenty-two commanders from his own father’s house. 29Of the
Benjaminites, the kinsmen of Saul, three thousand, of whom the majority
had hitherto kept their allegiance to the house of Saul. 30Of the E'phraimites
twenty thousand eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous men in their
fathers’ houses. 31Of the half-tribe of Manas'seh eighteen thousand, who
were expressly named to come and make David king. 32Of Is'sachar men
who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, two
hundred chiefs, and all their kinsmen under their command. 33Of Zeb'ulun
fifty thousand seasoned troops, equipped for battle with all the weapons of
war, to help David i with singleness of purpose. 34Of Naph'tali a thousand
commanders with whom were thirty-seven thousand men armed with shield
and spear. 35Of the Danites twenty-eight thousand six hundred men
equipped for battle. 36Of Asher forty thousand seasoned troops ready for
battle. 37Of the Reubenites and Gadites and the half-tribe of Manas'seh from
beyond the Jordan, one hundred and twenty thousand men armed with all
the weapons of war.
38 All these, men of war, arrayed in battle order, came to He'bron with full
intent to make David king over all Israel; likewise all the rest of Israel were
of a single mind to make David king. 39And they were there with David for
three days, eating and drinking, for their brethren had made preparation for
them. 40And also their neighbors, from as far as Is'sachar and Zeb'ulun and
Naph'tali, came bringing food on donkeys and on camels and on mules and
on oxen, abundant provisions of meal, cakes of figs, clusters of raisins, and
wine and oil, oxen and sheep, for there was joy in Israel.
The Ark Brought from Kiriath-jearim
13 David consulted with the commanders of thousands and of hundreds,
with every leader. 2And David said to all the assembly of Israel, “If it seems
good to you, and if it is the will of the LORD our God, let us send abroad to
our brethren who remain in all the land of Israel, and with them to the
priests and Levites in the cities that have pasture lands, that they may come
together to us. 3Then let us bring again the ark of our God to us; for we
neglected it in the days of Saul.” 4All the assembly agreed to do so, for the
thing was right in the eyes of all the people.
5 So David assembled all Israel from the Shihor of Egypt to the entrance
of Ha'math, to bring the ark of God from Kir'iath-je'arim. 6And David and
all Israel went up to Ba'alah, that is, to Kir'iath-je'arim which belongs to
Judah, to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of
the LORD who sits enthroned above the cherubim. 7And they carried the ark
of God upon a new cart, from the house of Abin'adab, and Uzzah and
Ahi'o j were driving the cart. 8And David and all Israel were making merry
before God with all their might, with song and lyres and harps and
tambourines and cymbals and trumpets.
9 And when they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah put out his
hand to hold the ark, for the oxen stumbled. 10And the anger of the LORD
was kindled against Uzzah; and he struck him because he put forth his hand
to the ark; and he died there before God. 11And David was angry because
the LORD had broken forth upon Uzzah; and that place is called Pe'rez-
uzza k to this day. 12And David was afraid of God that day; and he said,
“How can I bring the ark of God home to me?” 13So David did not take the
ark home into the city of David, but took it aside to the house of O'bed-
e'dom the Gittite. 14And the ark of God remained with the household of
O'bed-e'dom in his house three months; and the LORD blessed the household
of Obed-edom and all that he had.
David Established in Jerusalem
14 And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees,
also masons and carpenters to build a house for him. 2And David perceived
that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that his kingdom
was highly exalted for the sake of his people Israel.
3 And David took more wives in Jerusalem, and David begot more sons
and daughters. 4These are the names of the children whom he had in
Jerusalem: Sham'mu-a, Sho'bab, Nathan, Solomon, 5Ibhar, Eli'shu-a,
El'pelet, 6No'gah, Ne'pheg, Japhi'a, 7Elish'ama, Beeli'ada, and Eliph'elet.
Defeat of the Philistines
8 When the Philis'tines heard that David had been anointed king over all
Israel, all the Philistines went up in search of David; and David heard of it
and went out against them. 9Now the Philis'tines had come and made a raid
in the valley of Reph'aim. 10And David inquired of God, “Shall I go up
against the Philis'tines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the LORD
said to him, “Go up, and I will give them into your hand.” 11And he went up
to Ba'al-pera'zim, and David defeated them there; and David said, “God has
broken throughl my enemies by my hand, like a bursting flood.” Therefore
the name of that place is called Baal-perazim. m 12And they left their gods
there, and David gave command, and they were burned.
13 And the Philis'tines yet again made a raid in the valley. 14And when
David again inquired of God, God said to him, “You shall not go up after
them; go around and come upon them opposite the balsam trees. 15And
when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then
go out to battle; for God has gone out before you to strike the army of the
Philis'tines.” 16And David did as God commanded him, and they struck the
Philis'tine army from Gib'eon to Gezer. 17And the fame of David went out
into all lands, and the LORD brought the fear of him upon all nations.
The Ark Brought to Jerusalem
15 David built houses for himself in the city of David; and he prepared
a place for the ark of God, and pitched a tent for it. 2Then David said, “No
one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, for the LORD chose them to
carry the ark of the LORD and to minister to him for ever.” 3And David
assembled all Israel at Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the LORD to its
place, which he had prepared for it. 4And David gathered together the sons
of Aaron and the Levites: 5of the sons of Ko'hath, Uri'el the chief, with a
hundred and twenty of his brethren; 6of the sons of Merar'i, Asai'ah the
chief, with two hundred and twenty of his brethren; 7of the sons of
Gershom, Joel the chief, with a hundred and thirty of his brethren; 8of the
sons of Eliza'phan, Shemai'ah the chief, with two hundred of his brethren;
9of the sons of He'bron, Eli'el the chief, with eighty of his brethren; 10of the
sons of Uz'ziel, Ammin'adab the chief, with a hundred and twelve of his
brethren. 11Then David summoned the priests Za'dok and Abi'athar, and the
Levites Uri'el, Asai'ah, Joel, Shemai'ah, Eli'el, and Ammin'adab, 12and said
to them, “You are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites; sanctify
yourselves, you and your brethren, so that you may bring up the ark of the
LORD, the God of Israel, to the place that I have prepared for it. 13Because
you did not carry it the first time, n the LORD our God broke forth upon us,
because we did not care for it in the way that is ordained.” 14So the priests
and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the LORD, the
God of Israel. 15And the Levites carried the ark of God upon their shoulders
with the poles, as Moses had commanded according to the word of the
LORD.
16 David also commanded the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their
brethren as the singers who should play loudly on musical instruments, on
harps and lyres and cymbals, to raise sounds of joy. 17So the Levites
appointed He'man the son of Joel; and of his brethren A'saph the son of
Berechi'ah; and of the sons of Merar'i, their brethren, Ethan the son of
Kusha'iah; 18and with them their brethren of the second order, Zechari'ah,
Ja-a'ziel, Shemir'amoth, Jehi'el, Unni, Eli'ab, Bena'iah, Ma''asei'ah,
Mattithi'ah, Eliph'elehu, and Mikne'iah, and the gatekeepers O'bed-e'dom
and Je-i'el. 19The singers, He'man, A'saph, and Ethan, were to sound bronze
cymbals; 20Zechari'ah, A'zi-el, Shemir'amoth, Jehi'el, Unni, Eli'ab,
Ma''asei'ah, and Bena'iah were to play harps according to Al'amoth; 21but
Mattithi'ah, Eliph'elehu, Mikne'iah, O'bed-e'dom, Je-i'el, and Azazi'ah were
to lead with lyres according to the Shem'inith. 22Chenani'ah, leader of the
Levites in music, should direct the music, for he understood it. 23Berechi'ah
and Elka'nah were to be gatekeepers for the ark. 24Shebani'ah, Josh'aphat,
Nethan'el, Ama'sai, Zechari'ah, Bena'iah, and Elie'zer, the priests, should
blow the trumpets before the ark of God. O'bed-e'dom and Jehi'ah also were
to be gatekeepers for the ark.
25 So David and the elders of Israel, and the commanders of thousands,
went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the house of
O'bed-e'dom with rejoicing. 26And because God helped the Levites who
were carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD, they sacrificed seven
bulls and seven rams. 27David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, as also
were all the Levites who were carrying the ark, and the singers, and
Chenani'ah the leader of the music of the singers; and David wore a linen
ephod. 28So all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with
shouting, to the sound of the horn, trumpets, and cymbals, and made loud
music on harps and lyres.
29 And as the ark of the covenant of the LORD came to the city of David,
Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window, and saw King David
dancing and making merry; and she despised him in her heart.
The Ark Placed in a Tent
16 And they brought in the ark of God, and set it inside the tent which
David had pitched for it; and they offered burnt offerings and peace
offerings before God. 2And when David had finished offering the burnt
offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the
LORD, 3and distributed to all Israel, both men and women, to each a loaf of
bread, a portion of meat, o and a cake of raisins.
4 Moreover he appointed certain of the Levites as ministers before the ark
of the LORD, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel.
5A'saph was the chief, and second to him were Zechari'ah, Je-i'el,
Shemir'amoth, Jehi'el, Mattithi'ah, Eli'ab, Bena'iah, O'bed-e'dom, and Je-iel,

who were to play harps and lyres; Asaph was to sound the cymbals, 6and
Bena'iah and Jaha'ziel the priests were to blow trumpets continually, before
the ark of the covenant of God.
David’s Song of Thanksgiving
7 Then on that day David first appointed that thanksgiving be sung to the
LORD by A'saph and his brethren.

08O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name,
make known his deeds among the peoples!

09Sing to him, sing praises to him,
tell of all his wonderful works!

10Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!

11Seek the LORD and his strength,
seek his presence continually!

12Remember the wonderful works that he has done,
the wonders he wrought, the judgments he uttered,

13O offspring of Abraham his servant,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!

14He is the LORD our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.

15He is mindful of his covenant for ever,
of the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,

16the covenant which he made with Abraham,
his sworn promise to Isaac,

17which he confirmed as a statute to Jacob,
as an everlasting covenant to Israel,

18saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan,
as your portion for an inheritance.”

19When they were few in number,
and of little account, and sojourners in it,
20wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people,
21he allowed no one to oppress them;
he rebuked kings on their account,

22saying, “Touch not my anointed ones,
do my prophets no harm!”
23Sing to the LORD, all the earth!
Tell of his salvation from day to day.

24Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!

25For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised,
and he is to be held in awe above all gods.

26For all the gods of the peoples are idols;
but the LORD made the heavens.

27Honor and majesty are before him;
strength and joy are in his place.

28Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength!

29Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come before him!

00Worship the LORD in holy attire;
30 tremble before him, all the earth;
yes, the world stands firm, never to be moved.

31Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice,
and let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns!”
32Let the sea roar, and all that fills it,
let the field exult, and everything in it!

33Then shall the trees of the wood sing for joy
before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth.

34O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his mercy endures for ever!

35Say also:
00“Deliver us, O God of our salvation,
and gather and save us from among the nations,
00that we may give thanks to your holy name,
and glory in your praise.
36Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting!”

Then all the people said “Amen!” and praised the LORD.
Regular Worship Maintained
37 So David left A'saph and his brethren there before the ark of the
covenant of the LORD to minister continually before the ark as each day
required, 38and also O'bed-e'dom and his p sixty-eight brethren; while
Obed-edom, the son of Jedu'thun, and Hosah were to be gatekeepers. 39And
he left Za'dok the priest and his brethren the priests before the tabernacle of
the LORD in the high place that was at Gib'eon, 40to offer burnt offerings to
the LORD upon the altar of burnt offering continually morning and evening,
according to all that is written in the law of the LORD which he commanded
Israel. 41With them were He'man and Jedu'thun, and the rest of those chosen
and expressly named to give thanks to the LORD, for his mercy endures for
ever. 42He'man and Jedu'thun had trumpets and cymbals for the music and
instruments for sacred song. The sons of Jeduthun were appointed to the
gate.
43 Then all the people departed each to his house, and David went home to
bless his household.

God’s Covenant with David
17 Now when David dwelt in his house, David said to Nathan the
prophet, “Behold, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of
the LORD is under a tent.” 2And Nathan said to David, “Do all that is in your
heart, for God is with you.”
3 But that same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan, 4“Go and tell
my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD: You shall not build me a house to
dwell in. 5For I have not dwelt in a house since the day I led up Israel to this
day, but I have gone from tent to tent and from dwelling to dwelling. 6In all
places where I have moved with all Israel, did I speak a word with any of
the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people, saying,
“Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” ’ 7Now therefore thus shall
you say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from
the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my
people Israel; 8and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut
off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a name, like
the name of the great ones of the earth. 9And I will appoint a place for my
people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place,
and be disturbed no more; and violent men shall waste them no more, as
formerly, 10from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and
I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover I declare to you that the LORD will
build you a house. 11When your days are fulfilled to go to be with your
fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I
will establish his kingdom. 12He shall build a house for me, and I will
establish his throne for ever. 13I will be his father, and he shall be my son; I
will not take my merciful love from him, as I took it from him who was
before you, 14but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom for
ever and his throne shall be established for ever.’ ” 15In accordance with all
these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.
David’s Prayer
16 Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and said, “Who am
I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?
17And this was a small thing in your eyes, O God; you have also spoken of
your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have shown me future
generations, q O LORD God! 18And what more can David say to you for
honoring your servant? For you know your servant. 19For your servant’s
sake, O LORD, and according to your own heart, you have wrought all this
greatness, in making known all these great things. 20There is none like you,
O LORD, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have
heard with our ears. 21What otherr nation on earth is like your people Israel,
whom God went to redeem to be his people, making for yourself a name for
great and terrible things, in driving out nations before your people whom
you redeemed from Egypt? 22And you made your people Israel to be your
people for ever; and you, O LORD, became their God. 23And now, O LORD,
let the word which you have spoken concerning your servant and
concerning his house be established for ever, and do as you have spoken;
24and your name will be established and magnified for ever, saying, ‘The
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, is Israel’s God,’ and the house of your
servant David will be established before you. 25For you, my God, have
revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him; therefore your
servant has found courage to pray before you. 26And now, O LORD, you are
God, and you have promised this good thing to your servant; 27now
therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, that it may
continue for ever before you; for what you, O LORD, have blessed is blessed
for ever.”
David’s Kingdom Established and Extended
18 After this David defeated the Philis'tines and subdued them, and he
took Gath and its villages out of the hand of the Philistines.
2 And he defeated Moab, and the Moabites became servants to David and
brought tribute.
3 David also defeated Hadade'zer king of Zobah, toward Ha'math, as he
went to set up his monument s at the river Euphrates. 4And David took from
him a thousand chariots, seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand
foot soldiers; and David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but left enough
for a hundred chariots. 5And when the Syrians of Damascus came to help
Hadade'zer king of Zobah, David slew twenty-two thousand men of the
Syrians. 6Then David put garrisons t in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians
became servants to David, and brought tribute. And the LORD gave victory
to David wherever he went. 7And David took the shields of gold which
were carried by the servants of Hadade'zer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
8And from Tibhath and from Cun, cities of Hadade'zer, David took very
much bronze; with it Solomon made the bronze sea and the pillars and the
vessels of bronze.
9 When To'u king of Ha'math heard that David had defeated the whole
army of Hadade'zer, king of Zobah, 10he sent his son Hador'am to King
David, to greet him, and to congratulate him because he had fought against
Hadade'zer and defeated him; for Hadadezer had often been at war with
To'u. And he sent all sorts of articles of gold, of silver, and of bronze;
11these also King David dedicated to the LORD, together with the silver and
gold which he had carried off from all the nations, from E'dom, Moab, the
Am'monites, the Philis'tines, and Am'alek.
David’s Just Administration
12 And Abi'shai, the son of Zeru'iah, slew eighteen thousand E'domites in
the Valley of Salt. 13And he put garrisons in E'dom; and all the E'domites
became David’s servants. And the LORD gave victory to David wherever he
went.
14 So David reigned over all Israel; and he administered justice and equity
to all his people. 15And Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah was over the army; and
Jehosh'aphat the son of Ahi'lud was recorder; 16and Za'dok the son of
Ahi'tub and Ahim'elech the son of Abi'athar were priests; and Shavsha was
secretary; 17and Bena'iah the son of Jehoi'ada was over the Cher'ethites and
the Pel'ethites; and David’s sons were the chief officials in the service of the
king.
Defeat of the Ammonites and Syrians
19 Now after this Na'hash the king of the Am'monites died, and his son
reigned in his stead. 2And David said, “I will deal loyally with Ha'nun the
son of Na'hash, for his father dealt loyally with me.” So David sent
messengers to console him concerning his father. And David’s servants
came to Ha'nun in the land of the Am'monites, to console him. 3But the
princes of the Am'monites said to Ha'nun, “Do you think, because David
has sent comforters to you, that he is honoring your father? Have not his
servants come to you to search and to overthrow and to spy out the land?”
4So Ha'nun took David’s servants, and shaved them, and cut off their
garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away; 5and they
departed. When David was told concerning the men, he sent to meet them,
for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Remain at Jericho
until your beards have grown, and then return.”
6 When the Am'monites saw that they had made themselves odious to
David, Ha'nun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents of silver to hire
chariots and horsemen from Mesopota'mia, from Ar'am-ma'acah, and from
Zobah. 7They hired thirty-two thousand chariots and the king of Ma'acah
with his army, who came and encamped before Med'eba. And the
Am'monites were mustered from their cities and came to battle. 8When
David heard of it, he sent Jo'ab and all the army of the mighty men. 9And
the Am'monites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the
city, and the kings who had come were by themselves in the open country.
10 When Jo'ab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in
the rear, he chose some of the picked men of Israel, and arrayed them
against the Syrians; 11the rest of his men he put in the charge of Abi'shai his
brother, and they were arrayed against the Am'monites. 12And he said, “If
the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the
Am'monites are too strong for you, then I will help you. 13Be of good
courage, and let us play the man for our people, and for the cities of our
God; and may the LORD do what seems good to him.” 14So Jo'ab and the
people who were with him drew near before the Syrians for battle; and they
fled before him. 15And when the Am'monites saw that the Syrians fled, they
likewise fled before Abi'shai, Jo'ab’s brother, and entered the city. Then
Joab came to Jerusalem.
16 But when the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they
sent messengers and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the
Euphra'tes, with Shophach the commander of the army of Hadade'zer at
their head. 17And when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together,
and crossed the Jordan, and came to them, and drew up his forces against
them. And when David set the battle in array against the Syrians, they
fought with him. 18And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew of the
Syrians the men of seven thousand chariots, and forty thousand foot
soldiers, and killed also Shophach the commander of their army. 19And
when the servants of Hadade'zer saw that they had been defeated by Israel,
they made peace with David, and became subject to him. So the Syrians
were not willing to help the Am'monites any more.
The Siege and Capture of Rabbah
20 In the spring of the year, the time when kings go forth to battle, Jo'ab
led out the army, and ravaged the country of the Am'monites, and came and
besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. And Jo'ab struck
Rabbah, and overthrew it. 2And David took the crown of their king u from
his head; he found that it weighed a talent of gold, and in it was a precious
stone; and it was placed on David’s head. And he brought forth the spoil of
the city, a very great amount. 3And he brought forth the people who were in
it, and set them to labor v with saws and iron picks and axes; w and thus
David did to all the cities of the Am'monites. Then David and all the people
returned to Jerusalem.
War with the Philistines
4 And after this there arose war with the Philis'tines at Gezer; then
Sib'becai the Hu'shathite slew Sippai, who was one of the descendants of
the giants; and the Philistines were subdued. 5And there was again war with
the Philis'tines; and Elha'nan the son of Ja'ir slew Lahmi the brother of
Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
6And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature,
who had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in
number; and he also was descended from the giants. 7And when he taunted
Israel, Jonathan the son of Shim'e-a, David’s brother, slew him. 8These were
descended from the giants in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David and
by the hand of his servants.
The Census and the Pestilence
21 *Satan stood up against Israel, and incited David to number Israel.
2So David said to Jo'ab and the commanders of the army, “Go, number
Israel, from Be'er-she'ba to Dan, and bring me a report, that I may know
their number.” 3But Jo'ab said, “May the LORD add to his people a hundred
times as many as they are! Are they not, my lord the king, all of them my
lord’s servants? Why then should my lord require this? Why should he
bring guilt upon Israel?” 4But the king’s word prevailed against Jo'ab. So
Joab departed and went throughout all Israel, and came back to Jerusalem.
5And Jo'ab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to David. In all
Israel there were one million one hundred thousand men who drew the
sword, and in Judah four hundred and seventy thousand who drew the
sword. 6But he did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, for the
king’s command was abhorrent to Jo'ab.
7 But God was displeased with this thing, and he struck Israel. 8And David
said to God, “I have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing. But now, I
pray you, take away the iniquity of your servant; for I have done very
foolishly.” 9And the LORD spoke to Gad, David’s seer, saying, 10“Go and
say to David, ‘Thus says the LORD, Three things I offer you; choose one of
them, that I may do it to you.’ ” 11So Gad came to David and said to him,
“Thus says the LORD, ‘Take which you will: 12either three years of famine;
or three months of devastation by your foes, while the sword of your
enemies overtakes you; or else three days of the sword of the LORD,
pestilence upon the land, and the angel of the LORD destroying throughout
all the territory of Israel.’ Now decide what answer I shall return to him
who sent me.” 13Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress; let me fall
into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but let me not fall
into the hand of man.”
14 So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel; and there fell seventy
thousand men of Israel. 15And God sent the angel to Jerusalem to destroy it;
but when he was about to destroy it, the LORD saw, and he repented of the
evil; and he said to the destroying angel, “It is enough; now stay your
hand.” And the angel of the LORD was standing by the threshing floor of
Ornan the Jeb'usite. 16And David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the
LORD standing between earth and heaven, and in his hand a drawn sword
stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in
sackcloth, fell upon their faces. 17And David said to God, “Was it not I who
gave command to number the people? It is I who have sinned and done very
wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Let your hand, I pray you,
O LORD my God, be against me and against my father’s house; but let not
the plague be upon your people.”
David’s Altar and Sacrifice
18 Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David that David
should go up and raise an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Ornan
the Jeb'usite. 19So David went up at Gad’s word, which he had spoken in
the name of the LORD. 20Now Ornan was threshing wheat; he turned and
saw the angel, and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. 21As
David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David and went forth from the
threshing floor, and did obeisance to David with his face to the ground.
22And David said to Ornan, “Give me the site of the threshing floor that I
may build on it an altar to the LORD—give it to me at its full price—that

the plague may be averted from the people.” 23Then Ornan said to David,
“Take it; and let my lord the king do what seems good to him; see, I give
the oxen for burnt offerings, and the threshing sledges for the wood, and the
wheat for a cereal offering. I give it all.” 24But King David said to Ornan,
“No, but I will buy it for the full price; I will not take for the LORD what is
yours, nor offer burnt offerings which cost me nothing.” 25So David paid
Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the site. 26And David built
there an altar to the LORD and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings,
and called upon the LORD, and he answered him with fire from heaven upon
the altar of burnt offering. 27Then the LORD commanded the angel; and he
put his sword back into its sheath.
The Site for the Temple Chosen
28 At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him at the
threshing floor of Ornan the Jeb'usite, he made his sacrifices there. 29For the
tabernacle of the LORD, which Moses had made in the wilderness, and the
altar of burnt offering were at that time in the high place at Gib'eon; 30but
David could not go before it to inquire of God, for he was afraid of the
sword of
22 the angel of the LORD. 1Then David said, “Here shall be the house of
the LORD God and here the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”
David’s Preparations for the Temple
2 David commanded to gather together the aliens who were in the land of
Israel, and he set stonecutters to prepare dressed stones for building the
house of God. 3David also provided great stores of iron for nails for the
doors of the gates and for clamps, as well as bronze in quantities beyond
weighing, 4and cedar timbers without number; for the Sido'nians and
Ty'rians brought great quantities of cedar to David. 5For David said,
“Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house that is to be
built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent, of fame and glory
throughout all lands; I will therefore make preparation for it.” So David
provided materials in great quantity before his death.
David’s Charge to Solomon
and the Leaders of Israel
6 Then he called for Solomon his son, and charged him to build a house
for the LORD, the God of Israel. 7David said to Solomon, “My son, I had it
in my heart to build a house to the name of the LORD my God. 8But the
word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have
waged great wars; you shall not build a house to my name, because you
have shed so much blood before me upon the earth. 9Behold, a son shall be
born to you; he shall be a man of peace. I will give him peace from all his
enemies round about; for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace
and quiet to Israel in his days. 10He shall build a house for my name. He
shall be my son, and I will be his father, and I will establish his royal throne
in Israel for ever.’ 11Now, my son, the LORD be with you, so that you may
succeed in building the house of the LORD your God, as he has spoken
concerning you. 12Only, may the LORD grant you discretion and
understanding, that when he gives you charge over Israel you may keep the
law of the LORD your God. 13Then you will prosper if you are careful to
observe the statutes and the ordinances which the LORD commanded Moses
for Israel. Be strong, and of good courage. Fear not; be not dismayed.
14With great pains I have provided for the house of the LORD a hundred
thousand talents of gold, a million talents of silver, and bronze and iron
beyond weighing, for there is so much of it; timber and stone too I have
provided. To these you must add. 15You have an abundance of workmen:
stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and all kinds of craftsmen without
number, skilled in working 16gold, silver, bronze, and iron. Arise and be
doing! The LORD be with you!”
17 David also commanded all the leaders of Israel to help Solomon his
son, saying, 18“Is not the LORD your God with you? And has he not given
you peace on every side? For he has delivered the inhabitants of the land
into my hand; and the land is subdued before the LORD and his people.
19Now set your mind and heart to seek the LORD your God. Arise and build
the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that the ark of the covenant of the LORD
and the holy vessels of God may be brought into a house built for the name
of the LORD.”
Families of the Levites and Their Duties
23 When David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son
king over Israel.
2 David assembled all the leaders of Israel and the priests and the Levites.
3The Levites, thirty years old and upward, were numbered, and the total
was thirty-eight thousand men. 4“Twenty-four thousand of these,” David

said, “shall have charge of the work in the house of the LORD, six thousand
shall be officers and judges, 5four thousand gatekeepers, and four thousand
shall offer praises to the LORD with the instruments which I have made for
praise.” 6And David organized them in divisions corresponding to the sons
of Levi: Gershom, Ko'hath, and Merar'i.
7 The sons of Gershom x were Ladan and Shim'e-i. 8The sons of Ladan:
Jehi'el the chief, and Zetham, and Joel, three. 9The sons of Shim'e-i:
Shelo'moth, Ha'zi-el, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers’
houses of Ladan. 10And the sons of Shim'e-i: Jahath, Zina, and Je'ush, and
Beri'ah. These four were the sons of Shim'e-i. 11Jahath was the chief, and
Zizah the second; but Je'ush and Beri'ah had not many sons, therefore they
became a father’s house in one reckoning.
12 The sons of Ko'hath: Amram, Izhar, He'bron, and Uz'ziel, four. 13The
sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to consecrate the
most holy things, that he and his sons for ever should burn incense before
the LORD, and minister to him and pronounce blessings in his name for ever.
14But the sons of Moses the man of God were named among the tribe of
Levi. 15The sons of Moses: Gershom and Elie'zer. 16The sons of Gershom:
Shebu'el the chief. 17The sons of Elie'zer: Rehabi'ah the chief; Eliezer had
no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. 18The sons of
Izhar: Shelo'mith the chief. 19The sons of He'bron: Jeri'ah the chief,
Amari'ah the second, Jaha'ziel the third, and Jekame'am the fourth. 20The
sons of Uz'ziel: Micah the chief and Isshi'ah the second.
21 The sons of Merar'i: Mah'li and Mu'shi. The sons of Mahli: Elea'zar and
Kish. 22Elea'zar died having no sons, but only daughters; their kinsmen, the
sons of Kish, married them. 23The sons of Mu'shi: Mah'li, E'der, and
Jer'emoth, three.
24 These were the sons of Levi by their fathers’ houses, the heads of
fathers’ houses as they were registered according to the number of the

names of the individuals from twenty years old and upward who were to do
the work for the service of the house of the LORD. 25For David said, “The
LORD, the God of Israel, has given peace to his people; and he dwells in
Jerusalem for ever. 26And so the Levites no longer need to carry the
tabernacle or any of the things for its service”— 27for by the last words of
David these were the number of the Levites from twenty years old and
upward—28“but their duty shall be to assist the sons of Aaron for the
service of the house of the LORD, having the care of the courts and the
chambers, the cleansing of all that is holy, and any work for the service of
the house of God; 29to assist also with the showbread, the flour for the
cereal offering, the wafers of unleavened bread, the baked offering, the
offering mixed with oil, and all measures of quantity or size. 30And they
shall stand every morning, thanking and praising the LORD, and likewise at
evening, 31and whenever burnt offerings are offered to the LORD on
sabbaths, new moons, and feast days, according to the number required of
them, continually before the LORD. 32Thus they shall keep charge of the tent
of meeting and the sanctuary, and shall attend the sons of Aaron, their
brethren, for the service of the house of the LORD.”
The Divisions of the Sons of Aaron
24 The divisions of the sons of Aaron were these. The sons of Aaron:
Na'dab, Abi'hu, Elea'zar, and Ith'amar. 2But Na'dab and Abi'hu died before
their father, and had no children, so Elea'zar and Ith'amar became the
priests. 3With the help of Za'dok of the sons of Elea'zar, and Ahim'elech of
the sons of Ith'amar, * David organized them according to the appointed
duties in their service. 4Since more chief men were found among the sons of
Elea'zar than among the sons of Ith'amar, they organized them under sixteen
heads of fathers’ houses of the sons of Eleazar, and eight of the sons of
Ithamar. 5They organized them by lot, all alike, for there were officers of
the sanctuary and officers of God among both the sons of Elea'zar and the
sons of Ith'amar. 6And the scribe Shemai'ah the son of Nethan'el, a Levite,
recorded them in the presence of the king, and the princes, and Za'dok the
priest, and Ahim'elech the son of Abi'athar, and the heads of the fathers’
houses of the priests and of the Levites; one father’s house being chosen for
Elea'zar and one chosen for Ith'amar.
7 The first lot fell to Jehoi'arib, the second to Jedai'ah, 8the third to Harim,
the fourth to Se-o'rim, 9the fifth to Malchi'jah, the sixth to Mi'jamin, 10the
seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abi'jah, 11the ninth to Jesh'ua, the tenth to
Shecani'ah, 12the eleventh to Eli'ashib, the twelfth to Ja'kim, 13the thirteenth
to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jesheb'e-ab, 14the fifteenth to Bilgah, the
sixteenth to Immer, 15the seventeenth to He'zir, the eighteenth to
Hap'pizzez, 16the nineteenth to Pethahi'ah, the twentieth to Jehez'kel, 17the
twenty-first to Ja'chin, the twenty-second to Gamul, 18the twenty-third to
Delai'ah, the twenty-fourth to Ma-azi'ah. 19These had as their appointed
duty in their service to come into the house of the LORD according to the
procedure established for them by Aaron their father, as the LORD God of
Israel had commanded him.
Other Levites
20 And of the rest of the sons of Levi: of the sons of Amram, Shu'ba-el; of
the sons of Shuba-el, Jehde'iah. 21Of Rehabi'ah: of the sons of Rehabiah,

Isshi'ah the chief. 22Of the Iz'harites, Shelo'moth; of the sons of Shelomoth,
Jahath. 23The sons of He'bron: y Jeri'ah the chief, z Amari'ah the second,
Jahazi'el the third, Jekame'am the fourth. 24The sons of Uz'ziel, Micah; of
the sons of Micah, Sha'mir. 25The brother of Micah, Isshi'ah; of the sons of
Isshiah, Zechari'ah. 26The sons of Merar'i: Mah'li and Mu'shi. The sons of
Ja-azi'ah: Beno. 27The sons of Merar'i: of Ja-azi'ah, Beno, Shoham, Zaccur,
and Ibri. 28Of Mah'li: Elea'zar, who had no sons. 29Of Kish, the sons of
Kish: Jerah'meel. 30The sons of Mu'shi: Mah'li, E'der, and Jer'imoth. These
were the sons of the Levites according to their fathers’ houses. 31These also,
the head of each father’s house and his younger brother alike, cast lots, just
as their brethren the sons of Aaron, in the presence of King David, Za'dok,
Ahim'elech, and the heads of fathers’ houses of the priests and of the
Levites.
The Temple Musicians
25 David and the chiefs of the service also set apart for the service
certain of the sons of A'saph, and of He'man, and of Jedu'thun, who should
prophesy with lyres, with harps, and with cymbals. The list of those who
did the work and of their duties was: 2Of the sons of A'saph: Zaccur,
Joseph, Nethani'ah, and Ashare'lah, sons of Asaph, under the direction of
Asaph, who prophesied under the direction of the king. 3Of Jedu'thun, the
sons of Jeduthun: Gedali'ah, Zeri, Jeshai'ah, Shim'e-i, a Hashabi'ah, and
Mattithi'ah, six, under the direction of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied
with the lyre in thanksgiving and praise to the LORD. 4Of He'man, the sons
of Heman: Bukki'ah, Mattani'ah, Uz'ziel, Shebu'el, and Jer'imoth,
Hanani'ah, Hana'ni, Eli'athah, Giddal'ti, and Romam'ti-e'zer, Joshbekash'ah,
Mallo'thi, Hothir, Maha'zi-oth. 5All these were the sons of He'man the
king’s seer, according to the promise of God to exalt him; for God had
given Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. 6They were all under the
direction of their father in the music in the house of the LORD with cymbals,
harps, and lyres for the service of the house of God. A'saph, Jedu'thun, and
He'man were under the order of the king. 7The number of them along with
their brethren, who were trained in singing to the LORD, all who were
skilful, was two hundred and eighty-eight. 8And they cast lots for their
duties, small and great, teacher and pupil alike.
9 The first lot fell for A'saph to Joseph; the second to Gedali'ah, to him and
his brethren and his sons, twelve; 10the third to Zaccur, his sons and his
brethren, twelve; 11the fourth to Izri, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 12the
fifth to Nethani'ah, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 13the sixth to
Bukki'ah, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 14the seventh to Jeshare'lah, his
sons and his brethren, twelve; 15the eighth to Jesha'iah, his sons and his
brethren, twelve; 16the ninth to Mattani'ah, his sons and his brethren,
twelve; 17the tenth to Shim'e-i, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 18the
eleventh to Az'arel, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 19the twelfth to
Hashabi'ah, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 20to the thirteenth, Shu'ba-el,
his sons and his brethren, twelve; 21to the fourteenth, Mattithi'ah, his sons
and his brethren, twelve; 22to the fifteenth, to Jer'emoth, his sons and his
brethren, twelve; 23to the sixteenth, to Hanani'ah, his sons and his brethren,
twelve; 24to the seventeenth, to Joshbekash'ah, his sons and his brethren,
twelve; 25to the eighteenth, to Hana'ni, his sons and his brethren, twelve;
26to the nineteenth, to Mallo'thi, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 27to the
twentieth, to Eli'athah, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 28to the twenty-
first, to Hothir, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 29to the twenty-second, to
Giddal'ti, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 30to the twenty-third, to
Maha'zi-oth, his sons and his brethren, twelve; 31to the twenty-fourth, to
Romam'ti-e'zer, his sons and his brethren, twelve.
The Divisions of the Gatekeepers
26 As for the divisions of the gatekeepers: of the Ko'rahites,
Meshelemi'ah the son of Ko're, of the sons of A'saph. 2And Meshelemi'ah
had sons: Zechari'ah the first-born, Jedi'a-el the second, Zebadi'ah the third,
Jath'ni-el the fourth, 3E'lam the fifth, Je'ho-ha'nan the sixth, El'ie-ho-e'nai
the seventh. 4And O'bed-e'dom had sons: Shemai'ah the first-born,
Jeho'zabad the second, Jo'ah the third, Sachar the fourth, Nethan'el the fifth,
5Am'mi-el the sixth, Is'sachar the seventh, Pe-ul'lethai the eighth; for God
blessed him. 6Also to his son Shemai'ah were sons born who were rulers in
their fathers’ houses, for they were men of great ability. 7The sons of
Shemai'ah: Othni, Reph'a-el, O'bed, and Elza'bad, whose brethren were able
men, Eli'hu and Semachi'ah. 8All these were of the sons of O'bed-e'dom
with their sons and brethren, able men qualified for the service; sixty-two of
Obed-edom. 9And Meshelemi'ah had sons and brethren, able men, eighteen.
10And Ho'sah, of the sons of Merar'i, had sons: Shimri the chief (for though
he was not the first-born, his father made him chief), 11Hilki'ah the second,
Tebali'ah the third, Zechari'ah the fourth: all the sons and brethren of Ho'sah
were thirteen.
12 These divisions of the gatekeepers, corresponding to their chief men,
had duties, just as their brethren did, ministering in the house of the LORD;
13and they cast lots by fathers’ houses, small and great alike, for their gates.
14The lot for the east fell to Shelemi'ah. They cast lots also for his son
Zechari'ah, a shrewd counselor, and his lot came out for the north. 15O'bed-
e'dom’s came out for the south, and to his sons was allotted the storehouse.
16For Shuppim and Ho'sah it came out for the west, at the gate of
Shal'lecheth on the road that goes up. Watch corresponded to watch. 17On
the east there were six each day, b on the north four each day, on the south
four each day, as well as two and two at the storehouse; 18and for the
parbar c on the west there were four at the road and two at the parbar.
19These were the divisions of the gatekeepers among the Ko'rahites and the
sons of Merar'i.
The Treasurers, Officers, and Judges
20 And of the Levites, Ahi'jah had charge of the treasuries of the house of
God and the treasuries of the dedicated gifts. 21The sons of Ladan, the sons
of the Ger'shonites belonging to Ladan, the heads of the fathers’ houses
belonging to Ladan the Gershonite: Jehi'eli. d
22 The sons of Jehi'eli, Zetham and Joel his brother, were in charge of the
treasuries of the house of the LORD. 23Of the Am'ramites, the Iz'harites, the
He'bronites, and the Uz'zielites— 24and Shebu'el the son of Gershom, son
of Moses, was chief officer in charge of the treasuries. 25His brethren: from
Elie'zer were his son Rehabi'ah, and his son Jeshai'ah, and his son Jo'ram,
and his son Zich'ri, and his son Shelo'moth. 26This Shelo'moth and his
brethren were in charge of all the treasuries of the dedicated gifts which
David the king, and the heads of the fathers’ houses, and the officers of the
thousands and the hundreds, and the commanders of the army, had
dedicated. 27From spoil won in battles they dedicated gifts for the
maintenance of the house of the LORD. 28Also all that Samuel the seer, and
Saul the son of Kish, and Abner the son of Ner, and Jo'ab the son of
Zeru'iah had dedicated—all dedicated gifts were in the care of Shelo'moth e
and his brethren.
29 Of the Iz'harites, Chenani'ah and his sons were appointed to outside
duties for Israel, as officers and judges. 30Of the He'bronites, Hashabi'ah
and his brethren, one thousand seven hundred men of ability, had the
oversight of Israel westward of the Jordan for all the work of the LORD and
for the service of the king. 31Of the He'bronites, Jeri'jah was chief of the
Hebronites of whatever genealogy or fathers’ houses. (In the fortieth year of
David’s reign search was made and men of great ability among them were
found at Ja'zer in Gilead.) 32King David appointed him and his brethren,
two thousand seven hundred men of ability, heads of fathers’ houses, to
have the oversight of the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of the
Manas'sites for everything pertaining to God and for the affairs of the king.
The Military Divisions
27 This is the list of the people of Israel, the heads of fathers’ houses,
the commanders of thousands and hundreds, and their officers who served
the king in all matters concerning the divisions that came and went, month
after month throughout the year, each division numbering twenty-four
thousand:
2 Jasho'beam the son of Zab'diel was in charge of the first division in the
first month; in his division were twenty-four thousand. 3He was a

descendant of Per'ez, and was chief of all the commanders of the army for
the first month. 4Dodai the Aho'hite f was in charge of the division of the
second month; in his division were twenty-four thousand. 5The third
commander, for the third month, was Bena'iah, the son of Jehoi'ada the
priest, as chief; in his division were twenty-four thousand. 6This is the
Bena'iah who was a mighty man of the thirty and in command of the thirty;
Ammiz'abad his son was in charge of his division. g 7As'ahel the brother of
Jo'ab was fourth, for the fourth month, and his son Zebadi'ah after him; in
his division were twenty-four thousand. 8The fifth commander, for the fifth
month, was Shamhuth, the Iz'rahite; in his division were twenty-four
thousand. 9Sixth, for the sixth month, was Ira, the son of Ikkesh the
Teko'ite; in his division were twenty-four thousand. 10Seventh, for the
seventh month, was He'lez the Pel'onite, of the sons of E'phraim; in his
division were twenty-four thousand. 11Eighth, for the eighth month, was
Sib'becai the Hu'shathite, of the Ze'rahites; in his division were twenty-four
thousand. 12Ninth, for the ninth month, was Abie'zer of An'athoth, a
Benjaminite; in his division were twenty-four thousand. 13Tenth, for the
tenth month, was Ma'harai of Netoph'ah, of the Ze'rahites; in his division
were twenty-four thousand. 14Eleventh, for the eleventh month, was
Bena'iah of Pir'athon, of the sons of E'phraim; in his division were twenty-
four thousand. 15Twelfth, for the twelfth month, was Heldai the
Netoph'athite, of Oth'ni-el; in his division were twenty-four thousand.
Leaders of the Tribes
16 Over the tribes of Israel, for the Reubenites Elie'zer the son of Zich'ri
was chief officer; for the Simeonites, Shephati'ah the son of Ma'acah; 17for
Levi, Hashabi'ah the son of Kemu'el; for Aaron, Za'dok; 18for Judah, Eli'hu,
one of David’s brothers; for Is'sachar, Omri the son of Michael; 19for
Zeb'ulun, Ishma'iah the son of Obadi'ah; for Naph'tali, Jer'emoth the son of
Az'ri-el; 20for the E'phraimites, Hoshe'a the son of Azazi'ah; for the half-
tribe of Manas'seh, Joel the son of Pedai'ah; 21for the half-tribe of
Manas'seh in Gilead, Iddo the son of Zechari'ah; for Benjamin, Ja-asi'el the
son of Abner; 22for Dan, Az'arel the son of Jero'ham. These were the
leaders of the tribes of Israel. 23David did not number those below twenty
years of age, for the LORD had promised to make Israel as many as the stars
of heaven. 24Jo'ab the son of Zeru'iah began to number, but did not finish;
yet wrath came upon Israel for this, and the number was not entered in the
chronicles of King David.
Stewards and Counselors
25 Over the king’s treasuries was Az'maveth the son of Ad'i-el; and over
the treasuries in the country, in the cities, in the villages and in the towers,
was Jonathan the son of Uzzi'ah; 26and over those who did the work of the
field for tilling the soil was Ezri the son of Che'lub; 27and over the
vineyards was Shim'e-i the Ra'mathite; and over the produce of the
vineyards for the wine cellars was Zabdi the Shiphmite. 28Over the olive
and sycamore trees in the Shephe'lah was Ba'al-ha'nan the Gede'rite; and
over the stores of oil was Jo'ash. 29Over the herds that pastured in Sharon
was Shitrai the Sharonite; over the herds in the valleys was Sha'phat the son
of Ad'lai. 30Over the camels was Obil the Ish'maelite; and over the she-
donkeys was Jehde'iah the Meron'othite. Over the flocks was Jaziz the
Hag'rite. 31All these were stewards of King David’s property.
32 Jonathan, David’s uncle, was a counselor, being a man of understanding
and a scribe; he and Jehi'el the son of Hach'moni attended the king’s sons.
33Ahith'ophel was the king’s counselor, and Hu'shai the Ar'chite was the
king’s friend. 34Ahith'ophel was succeeded by Jehoi'ada the son of Bena'iah,

and Abi'athar. Jo'ab was commander of the king’s army.
Solomon Instructed to Build the Temple
28 David assembled at Jerusalem all the officials of Israel, the officials
of the tribes, the officers of the divisions that served the king, the
commanders of thousands, the commanders of hundreds, the stewards of all
the property and cattle of the king and his sons, together with the palace
officials, the mighty men, and all the seasoned warriors. 2Then King David
rose to his feet and said: “Hear me, my brethren and my people. I had it in
my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD,
and for the footstool of our God; and I made preparations for building. 3But
God said to me, ‘You may not build a house for my name, for you are a
warrior and have shed blood.’ 4Yet the LORD God of Israel chose me from
all my father’s house to be king over Israel for ever; for he chose Judah as
leader, and in the house of Judah my father’s house, and among my father’s
sons he took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel. 5And of all my
sons (for the LORD has given me many sons) he has chosen Solomon my
son to sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel. 6He said
to me, ‘It is Solomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for
I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. 7I will establish his
kingdom for ever if he continues resolute in keeping my commandments
and my ordinances, as he is today.’ 8Now therefore in the sight of all Israel,
the assembly of the LORD, and in the hearing of our God, observe and seek
out all the commandments of the LORD your God; that you may possess this
good land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children after you for ever.
9 “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him
with a whole heart and with a willing mind; for the LORD searches all
hearts, and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be
found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off for ever. 10Take
heed now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary;
be strong, and do it.”
11 Then David gave Solomon his son the plan of the vestibule of the
temple, and of its houses, its treasuries, its upper rooms, and its inner
chambers, and of the room for the mercy seat; 12and the plan of all that he
had in mind for the courts of the house of the LORD, all the surrounding
chambers, the treasuries of the house of God, and the treasuries for
dedicated gifts; 13for the divisions of the priests and of the Levites, and all
the work of the service in the house of the LORD; for all the vessels for the
service in the house of the LORD, 14the weight of gold for all golden vessels
for each service, the weight of silver vessels for each service, 15the weight
of the golden lampstands and their lamps, the weight of gold for each
lampstand and its lamps, the weight of silver for a lampstand and its lamps,
according to the use of each lampstand in the service, 16the weight of gold
for each table for the showbread, the silver for the silver tables, 17and pure
gold for the forks, the basins, and the cups; for the golden bowls and the
weight of each; for the silver bowls and the weight of each; 18for the altar of
incense made of refined gold, and its weight; also his plan for the golden
chariot of the cherubim that spread their wings and covered the ark of the
covenant of the LORD. 19All this he made clear by the writing from the hand
of the LORD concerning it, h all the work to be done according to the plan.
20 Then David said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and of good courage,
and do it. Fear not, be not dismayed; for the LORD God, even my God, is
with you. He will not fail you or forsake you, until all the work for the
service of the house of the LORD is finished. 21And behold the divisions of
the priests and the Levites for all the service of the house of God; and with
you in all the work will be every willing man who has skill for any kind of
service; also the officers and all the people will be wholly at your
command.”
Provisions for Building the Temple
29 And David the king said to all the assembly, “Solomon my son,
whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced, and the work is
great; for the palace will not be for man but for the LORD God. 2So I have
provided for the house of my God, so far as I was able, the gold for the
things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the
things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of
wood, besides great quantities of onyx and stones for setting, antimony,
colored stones, all sorts of precious stones, and marble. 3Moreover, in
addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of
my own of gold and silver, and because of my devotion to the house of my
God I give it to the house of my God: 4three thousand talents of gold, of the
gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, for overlaying
the walls of the house, 5and for all the work to be done by craftsmen, gold
for the things of gold and silver for the things of silver. Who then will offer
willingly, consecrating himself today to the LORD?”
6 Then the heads of fathers’ houses made their freewill offerings, as did
also the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of thousands and of

hundreds, and the officers over the king’s work. 7They gave for the service
of the house of God five thousand talents and ten thousand darics of gold,
ten thousand talents of silver, eighteen thousand talents of bronze, and a
hundred thousand talents of iron. 8And whoever had precious stones gave
them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, in the care of Jehi'el the
Ger'shonite. 9Then the people rejoiced because these had given willingly,
for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD; David the king
also rejoiced greatly.
David’s Prayer of Praise
10 Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly;
and David said: “Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, for
ever and ever. 11Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the
glory, and the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heavens and in
the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as
head above all. 12Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over
all. In your hand are power and might; and in your hand it is to make great
and to give strength to all. 13And now we thank you, our God, and praise
your glorious name.
14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to
offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we
given you. 15For we are strangers before you, and sojourners, as all our
fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no
abiding. i 16O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided for
building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all
your own. 17I know, my God, that you try the heart, and have pleasure in
uprightness; in the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these
things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering
freely and joyously to you. 18O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and
Israel, our fathers, keep for ever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of
your people, and direct their hearts toward you. 19Grant to Solomon my son
that with a whole heart he may keep your commandments, your covenants,
and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for
which I have made provision.”
The People Offer Sacrifice and Anoint Solomon
20 Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the LORD your God.” And
all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed their
heads, and worshiped the LORD, and did obeisance to the king. 21And they
performed sacrifices to the LORD, and on the next day offered burnt
offerings to the LORD, a thousand bulls, a thousand rams, and a thousand
lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel;
22and they ate and drank before the LORD on that day with great gladness.
And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and they
anointed him as prince for the LORD, and Za'dok as priest. 23Then Solomon
sat on the throne of the LORD as king instead of David his father; and he
prospered, and all Israel obeyed him. 24All the leaders and the mighty men,
and also all the sons of King David, pledged their allegiance to King
Solomon. 25And the LORD gave Solomon great repute in the sight of all
Israel, and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on any
king before him in Israel.
Summary of David’s Reign
26 Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. 27The time that he
reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in He'bron, and
thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 28Then he died in a good old age, full of
days, riches, and honor; and Solomon his son reigned in his stead. 29Now
the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the Chronicles of
Samuel the seer, and in the Chronicles of Nathan the prophet, and in the
Chronicles of Gad the seer, 30with accounts of all his rule and his might and
of the circumstances that came upon him and upon Israel, and upon all the
kingdoms of the countries.
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2 Chronicles
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
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SECOND BOOK OF CHRONICLES
Solomon Requests Wisdom
1 Solomon the son of David established himself in his kingdom, and the
LORD his God was with him and made him exceedingly great. *
2 Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the commanders of thousands and of
hundreds, to the judges, and to all the leaders in all Israel, the heads of
fathers’ houses. 3And Solomon, and all the assembly with him, went to the
high place that was at Gib'eon; for the tent of meeting of God, which Moses
the servant of the LORD had made in the wilderness, was there. 4(But David
had brought up the ark of God from Kir'iath-je'arim to the place that David
had prepared for it, for he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem.) 5Moreover
the bronze altar that Bez'alel the son of U'ri, son of Hur, had made, was
there before the tabernacle of the LORD. And Solomon and the assembly
sought the LORD. 6And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the
LORD, which was at the tent of meeting, and offered a thousand burnt
offerings upon it.
7 In that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, “Ask what I
shall give you.” 8And Solomon said to God, “You have shown great and
merciful love to David my father, and have made me king in his stead. 9O
LORD God, let your promise to David my father be now fulfilled, for you
have made me king over a people as many as the dust of the earth. 10Give
me now wisdom and knowledge to go out and come in before this people,
for who can rule this your people, that is so great?” 11God answered
Solomon, “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked
possessions, wealth, honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not
even asked long life, but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself
that you may rule my people over whom I have made you king, 12wisdom
and knowledge are granted to you. I will also give you riches, possessions,
and honor, such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none
after you shall have the like.” 13So Solomon came from a the high place at
Gib'eon, from before the tent of meeting, to Jerusalem. And he reigned over
Israel.
Solomon’s Acquisitions
14 Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen; he had fourteen
hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he stationed in the

chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 15And the king made silver
and gold as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful
as the sycamore of the Shephe'lah. 16And Solomon’s import of horses was
from Egypt and Ku'e, and the king’s traders received them from Kue for a
price. 17They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of
silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty; likewise through them these were
exported to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.
Preparations for Building the Temple
2 b Now Solomon purposed to build a temple for the name of the LORD,
and a royal palace for himself. 2c And Solomon assigned seventy thousand
men to bear burdens and eighty thousand to quarry in the hill country, and
three thousand six hundred to oversee them. 3And Solomon sent word to
Hu'ram the king of Tyre: “As you dealt with David my father and sent him
cedar to build himself a house to dwell in, so deal with me. 4Behold, I am
about to build a house for the name of the LORD my God and dedicate it to
him for the burning of incense of sweet spices before him, and for the
continual offering of the showbread, and for burnt offerings morning and
evening, on the sabbaths and the new moons and the appointed feasts of the
LORD our God, as ordained for ever for Israel. 5The house which I am to
build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods. 6But who is able to
build him a house, since heaven, even highest heaven, cannot contain him?
Who am I to build a house for him, except as a place to burn incense before
him? 7So now send me a man skilled to work in gold, silver, bronze, and
iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue fabrics, trained also in engraving, to
be with the skilled workers who are with me in Judah and Jerusalem, whom
David my father provided. 8Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum timber
from Lebanon, for I know that your servants know how to cut timber in
Lebanon. And my servants will be with your servants, 9to prepare timber
for me in abundance, for the house I am to build will be great and
wonderful. 10I will give for your servants, the hewers who cut timber,
twenty thousand cors of crushed wheat, twenty thousand cors of barley,
twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.”
Huram Agrees to Help Solomon
11 Then Hu'ram the king of Tyre answered in a letter which he sent to
Solomon, “Because the LORD loves his people he has made you king over
them.” 12Hu'ram also said, “Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who made
heaven and earth, who has given King David a wise son, endued with
discretion and understanding, who will build a temple for the LORD, and a
royal palace for himself.
13 “Now I have sent a skilled man, endued with understanding, Hu'ram-
a'bi, 14the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a
man of Tyre. He is trained to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and
wood, and in purple, blue, and crimson fabrics and fine linen, and to do all
sorts of engraving and execute any design that may be assigned him, with
your craftsmen, the craftsmen of my lord, David your father. 15Now
therefore the wheat and barley, oil and wine, of which my lord has spoken,
let him send to his servants; 16and we will cut whatever timber you need
from Lebanon, and bring it to you in rafts by sea to Joppa, so that you may
take it up to Jerusalem.”
Census of the Aliens
17 Then Solomon took a census of all the aliens who were in the land of
Israel, after the census of them which David his father had taken; and there
were found a hundred and fifty-three thousand six hundred. 18Seventy
thousand of them he assigned to bear burdens, eighty thousand to quarry in
the hill country, and three thousand six hundred as overseers to make the
people work.
Solomon Builds the Temple
3 Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on
Mount Mori'ah, where the LORD had appeared to David his father, at the
place that David had appointed, on the threshing floor of Ornan the
Jeb'usite. 2He began to build in the second month of the fourth year of his
reign. 3These are Solomon’s measurements d for building the house of God:
the length, in cubits of the old standard, was sixty cubits, and the breadth
twenty cubits. 4The vestibule in front of the nave of the house was twenty
cubits long, equal to the width of the house; e and its height was a hundred
and twenty cubits. He overlaid it on the inside with pure gold. 5The nave he
lined with cypress, and covered it with fine gold, and made palms and
chains on it. 6He adorned the house with settings of precious stones. The
gold was gold of Parva'im. 7So he lined the house with gold—its beams, its
thresholds, its walls, and its doors; and he carved cherubim on the walls.
8 And he made the most holy place; its length, corresponding to the
breadth of the house, was twenty cubits, and its breadth was twenty cubits;
he overlaid it with six hundred talents of fine gold. 9The weight of the nails
was one shekel f to fifty shekels of gold. And he overlaid the upper
chambers with gold.
10 In the most holy place he made two cherubim of wood g and overlaid h
them with gold. 11The wings of the cherubim together extended twenty
cubits: one wing of the one, of five cubits, touched the wall of the house,
and its other wing, of five cubits, touched the wing of the other cherub;
12and of this cherub, one wing, of five cubits, touched the wall of the house,
and the other wing, also of five cubits, was joined to the wing of the first
cherub. 13The wings of these cherubim extended twenty cubits; the
cherubim i stood on their feet, facing the nave. 14And he made the veil of
blue and purple and crimson fabrics and fine linen, and worked cherubim
on it.
15 In front of the house he made two pillars thirty-five cubits high, with a
capital of five cubits on the top of each. 16He made chains like a necklace j
and put them on the tops of the pillars; and he made a hundred
pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 17He set up the pillars in front of
the temple, one on the south, the other on the north; that on the south he
called Ja'chin, and that on the north Boaz.
Furnishings of the Temple
4 He made an altar of bronze, twenty cubits long, and twenty cubits
wide, and ten cubits high. 2Then he made the molten sea; it was round, ten
cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits
measured its circumference. 3Under it were figures of gourds, k for thirty l
cubits, compassing the sea round about; the gourds k were in two rows, cast
with it when it was cast. 4It stood upon twelve oxen, three facing north,
three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east; the sea was set
upon them, and all their posterior parts were inward. 5Its thickness was a
handbreadth; and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower
of a lily; it held over three thousand baths. 6He also made ten lavers in
which to wash, and set five on the south side, and five on the north side. In
these they were to rinse off what was used for the burnt offering, and the
sea was for the priests to wash in.
7 And he made ten golden lampstands as prescribed, and set them in the
temple, five on the south side and five on the north. 8He also made ten
tables, and placed them in the temple, five on the south side and five on the
north. And he made a hundred basins of gold. 9He made the court of the
priests, and the great court, and doors for the court, and overlaid their doors
with bronze; 10and he set the sea at the southeast corner of the house.
11 Hu'ram also made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Huram
finished the work that he did for King Solomon on the house of God: 12the
two pillars, the bowls, and the two capitals on the top of the pillars; and the
two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of
the pillars; 13and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two
rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the
capitals that were upon the pillars. 14He made the stands also, and the lavers
upon the stands, 15and the one sea, and the twelve oxen underneath it. 16The
pots, the shovels, the forks, and all the equipment for these Hu'ram-a'bi
made of burnished bronze for King Solomon for the house of the LORD. 17In
the plain of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between
Succoth and Zer'edah. 18Solomon made all these things in great quantities,
so that the weight of the bronze was not ascertained.
19 So Solomon made all the things that were in the house of God: the
golden altar, the tables for the bread of the Presence, 20the lampstands and
their lamps of pure gold to burn before the inner sanctuary, as prescribed;
21the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of purest gold; 22the snuffers,
basins, dishes for incense, and firepans, of pure gold; and the sockets m of
the temple, for the inner doors to the most holy place and for the doors of
the nave of the temple were of gold.
5 Thus all the work that Solomon did for the house of the LORD was
finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had
dedicated, and stored the silver, the gold, and all the vessels in the treasuries
of the house of God.
The Ark of the Covenant Brought into the Temple
2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the
tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the sons of Israel, in Jerusalem,
to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David,
which is Zion. 3And all the men of Israel assembled before the king at the
feast which is in the seventh month. 4And all the elders of Israel came, and
the Levites took up the ark. 5And they brought up the ark, the tent of
meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the
Levites brought them up. 6And King Solomon and all the congregation of
Israel, who had assembled before him, were before the ark, sacrificing so
many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered. 7So the
priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, in the inner
sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the
cherubim. 8For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the
ark, so that the cherubim made a covering above the ark and its poles. 9And
the poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the holy
place before the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside;
and they are there to this day. 10There was nothing in the ark except the two
tables which Moses put there at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant
with the sons of Israel, when they came out of Egypt. 11Now when the
priests came out of the holy place (for all the priests who were present had
sanctified themselves, without regard to their divisions; 12and all the
Levitical singers, A'saph, He'man, and Jedu'thun, their sons and kinsmen,
arrayed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps, and lyres, stood east of the altar
with a hundred and twenty priests who were trumpeters; 13and it was the
duty of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard in unison in
praise and thanksgiving to the LORD), and when the song was raised, with
trumpets and cymbals and other musical instruments, in praise to the LORD,
00“For he is good,
for his mercy endures for ever,”
the house, the house of the LORD, was filled with a cloud, 14so that the
priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the
LORD filled the house of God.
Dedication of the Temple
6 Then Solomon said,
“The LORD has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.
2I have built you an exalted house,
a place for you to dwell in for ever.”

3Then the king faced about, and blessed all the assembly of Israel, while
all the assembly of Israel stood. 4And he said, “Blessed be the LORD, the
God of Israel, who with his hand has fulfilled what he promised with his
mouth to David my father, saying, 5‘Since the day that I brought my people
out of the land of Egypt, I chose no city in all the tribes of Israel in which to
build a house, that my name might be there, and I chose no man as prince
over my people Israel; 6but I have chosen Jerusalem that my name may be
there and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.’ 7Now it was in
the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the LORD, the
God of Israel. 8But the LORD said to David my father, ‘Whereas it was in
your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your
heart; 9nevertheless you shall not build the house, but your son who shall be
born to you shall build the house for my name.’ 10Now the LORD has
fulfilled his promise which he made; for I have risen in the place of David
my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and I have
built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 11And there I
have set the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD which he made with
the sons of Israel.”
Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication
12 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all
the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his hands. 13Solomon had made a
bronze platform five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three cubits high,
and had set it in the court; and he stood upon it. Then he knelt upon his
knees in the presence of all the assembly of Israel, and spread forth his
hands toward heaven; 14and said, “O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God
like you, in heaven or on earth, keeping covenant and showing mercy to
your servants who walk before you with all their heart; 15who have kept
with your servant David my father what you declared to him; yes, you
spoke with your mouth, and with your hand have fulfilled it this day. 16Now
therefore, O LORD, God of Israel, keep with your servant David my father
what you have promised him, saying, ‘There shall never fail you a man
before me to sit upon the throne of Israel, if only your sons take heed to
their way, to walk in my law as you have walked before me.’ 17Now
therefore, O LORD, God of Israel, let your word be confirmed, which you
have spoken to your servant David.
18 “But will God dwell indeed with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and
the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house which I
have built! 19Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his
supplication, O LORD my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer which
your servant prays before you; 20that your eyes may be open day and night
toward this house, the place where you have promised to set your name,
that you may listen to the prayer which your servant offers toward this
place. 21And listen to the supplications of your servant and of your people
Israel, when they pray toward this place; yes, hear from heaven * your
dwelling place; and when you hear, forgive.
22 “If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and
comes and swears his oath before your altar in this house, 23then hear from
heaven, and act, and judge your servants, repaying the guilty by bringing
his conduct upon his own head, and vindicating the righteous by rewarding
him according to his righteousness.
24 “If your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have
sinned against you, when they turn again and acknowledge your name, and
pray and make supplication to you in this house, 25then hear from heaven,
and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them again to the land
which you gave to them and to their fathers.
26 “When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned
against you, if they pray toward this place, and acknowledge your name,
and turn from their sin, when you afflict them, 27then hear in heaven, and
forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, when you teach them
the good wayn in which they should walk; and grant rain upon your land,
which you have given to your people as an inheritance.
28 “If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence or blight or mildew
or locust or caterpillar; if their enemies besiege them in any of their cities;

whatever plague, whatever sickness there is; 29whatever prayer, whatever
supplication is made by any man or by all your people Israel, each knowing
his own affliction, and his own sorrow and stretching out his hands toward
this house; 30then hear from heaven your dwelling place, and forgive, and
render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways (for you,
you only, know the hearts of the children of men); 31that they may fear you
and walk in your ways all the days that they live in the land which you gave
to our fathers.
32 “Likewise when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes
from a far country for the sake of your great name, and your mighty hand,
and your outstretched arm, when he comes and prays toward this house,
33hear from heaven your dwelling place, and do according to all for which
the foreigner calls to you; in order that all the peoples of the earth may
know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may
know that this house which I have built is called by your name.
34 “If your people go out to battle against their enemies, by whatever way
you shall send them, and they pray to you toward this city which you have
chosen and the house which I have built for your name, 35then hear from
heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.
36 “If they sin against you—for there is no man who does not sin—and
you are angry with them, and give them to an enemy, so that they are
carried away captive to a land far or near; 37yet if they lay it to heart in the
land to which they have been carried captive, and repent, and make
supplication to you in the land of their captivity, saying, ‘We have sinned,
and have acted perversely and wickedly’; 38if they repent with all their
mind and with all their heart in the land of their captivity, to which they
were carried captive, and pray toward their land, which you gave to their
fathers, the city which you have chosen, and the house which I have built
for your name, 39then hear from heaven your dwelling place their prayer
and their supplications, and maintain their cause and forgive your people
who have sinned against you. 40Now, O my God, let your eyes be open and
your ears attentive to a prayer of this place.
41“And now arise, O LORD God, and go to your resting place,
you and the ark of your might.

00Let your priests, O LORD God, be clothed with salvation,
and let your saints rejoice in your goodness.

42O LORD God, do not turn away the face of your anointed one!
Remember your merciful love for David your servant.”

The Consecration of the Temple
7 When Solomon had ended his prayer, fire came down * from heaven
and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the
LORD filled the temple. 2And the priests could not enter the house of the
LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’s house. 3When all
the children of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD
upon the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the earth on the
pavement, and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying,
for his mercy endures for ever.”
4 Then the king and all the people offered sacrifice before the LORD. 5King
Solomon offered as a sacrifice twenty-two thousand oxen and a hundred

and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the people dedicated the
house of God. 6The priests stood at their posts; the Levites also, with the
instruments for music to the LORD which King David had made for giving
thanks to the LORD—for his mercy endures for ever—whenever David
offered praises by their ministry; opposite them the priests sounded
trumpets; and all Israel stood.
7 And Solomon consecrated the middle of the court that was before the
house of the LORD; for there he offered the burnt offering and the fat of the
peace offerings, because the bronze altar Solomon had made could not hold
the burnt offering and the cereal offering and the fat.
8 At that time Solomon held the feast for seven days, and all Israel with
him, a very great congregation, from the entrance of Ha'math to the Brook
of Egypt. 9And on the eighth day they held a solemn assembly; for they had
kept the dedication of the altar seven days and the feast seven days. 10On
the twenty-third day of the seventh month he sent the people away to their
homes, joyful and glad of heart for the goodness that the LORD had shown
to David and to Solomon and to Israel his people.
The Lord’s Second Appearance to Solomon
11 Thus Solomon finished the house of the LORD and the king’s house; all
that Solomon had planned to do in the house of the LORD and in his own
house he successfully accomplished. 12Then the LORD appeared to Solomon
in the night and said to him: “I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this
place for myself as a house of sacrifice. 13When I shut up the heavens so
that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send
pestilence among my people, 14if my people who are called by my name
humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked
ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their
land. 15Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is
made in this place. 16For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that
my name may be there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there for all
time. 17And as for you, if you walk before me, as David your father walked,
doing according to all that I have commanded you and keeping my statutes
and my ordinances, 18then I will establish your royal throne, as I
covenanted with David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a man
to rule Israel.’
19 “But if you o turn aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments
which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them,
20then I will pluck you p up from the land which I have given you; p and this
house, which I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight,
and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. 21And at this
house, which is exalted, every one passing by will be astonished, and say,
‘Why has the LORD done thus to this land and to this house?’ 22Then they
will say, ‘Because they forsook the LORD the God of their fathers who
brought them out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and
worshiped them and served them; therefore he has brought all this evil upon
them.’ ”
Solomon Builds Many Cities
8 At the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the house of
the LORD and his own house, 2Solomon rebuilt the cities which Hu'ram had
given to him, and settled the sons of Israel in them.
3 And Solomon went to Ha'math-zo'bah, and took it. 4He built Tadmor in
the wilderness and all the store-cities which he built in Ha'math. 5He also
built Upper Beth-ho'ron and Lower Beth-horon, fortified cities with walls,
gates, and bars, 6and Ba'alath, and all the store-cities that Solomon had, and
all the cities for his chariots, and the cities for his horsemen, and whatever
Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of
his dominion. 7All the people who were left of the Hittites, the Am'orites,
the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites, who were not of Israel, 8from
their descendants who were left after them in the land, whom the sons of
Israel had not destroyed—these Solomon made a forced levy and so they
are to this day. 9But of the sons of Israel Solomon made no slaves for his
work; they were soldiers, and his officers, the commanders of his chariots,
and his horsemen. 10And these were the chief officers of King Solomon,
two hundred and fifty, who exercised authority over the people.
11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter up from the city of David to the
house which he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not live in the
house of David king of Israel, for the places to which the ark of the LORD
has come are holy.”
12 Then Solomon offered up burnt offerings to the LORD upon the altar of
the LORD which he had built before the vestibule, 13as the duty of each day
required, offering according to the commandment of Moses for the
sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual feasts—the feast of
unleavened bread, the feast of weeks, and the feast of tabernacles.
14According to the ordinance of David his father, he appointed the divisions
of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their offices of praise and
ministry before the priests as the duty of each day required, and the
gatekeepers in their divisions for the several gates; for so David the man of
God had commanded. 15And they did not turn aside from what the king had
commanded the priests and Levites concerning any matter and concerning
the treasuries.
16 Thus was accomplished all the work of Solomon from q the day the
foundation of the house of the LORD was laid until it was finished. So the
house of the LORD was completed.
17 Then Solomon went to E'zion-ge'ber and E'loth on the shore of the sea,
in the land of E'dom. 18And Hu'ram sent him by his servants ships and
servants familiar with the sea, and they went to O'phir together with the
servants of Solomon, and fetched from there four hundred and fifty talents
of gold and brought it to King Solomon.
The Visit of the Queen of Sheba
9 Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon she
came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions, having a very great
retinue and camels bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones.
When she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. 2And
Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from
Solomon which he could not explain to her. 3And when the queen of Sheba
had seen the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 4the food of
his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, and
their clothing, his cupbearers, and their clothing, and his burnt offerings
which he offered at the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her.
5 And she said to the king, “The report was true which I heard in my own
land of your affairs and of your wisdom, 6but I did not believe the r reports
until I came and my own eyes had seen it; and behold, half the greatness of
your wisdom was not told me; you surpass the report which I heard. 7Happy
are your wives! s Happy are these your servants, who continually stand
before you and hear your wisdom! 8Blessed be the LORD your God, who has
delighted in you and set you on his throne as king for the LORD your God!
Because your God loved Israel and would establish them for ever, he has
made you king over them, that you may execute justice and righteousness.”
9Then she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and a very
great quantity of spices, and precious stones: there were no spices such as
those which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
10 Moreover the servants of Hu'ram and the servants of Solomon, who
brought gold from O'phir, brought algum wood and precious stones. 11And
the king made of the algum wood steps t for the house of the LORD and for
the king’s house, lyres also and harps for the singers; there never was seen
the like of them before in the land of Judah.
12 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired,
whatever she asked besides what she had brought to the king. So she turned
and went back to her own land, with her servants.
Solomon’s Wealth and Wisdom
13 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six
hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 14besides that which the traders and
merchants brought; and all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the
land brought gold and silver to Solomon. 15King Solomon made two
hundred large shields of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of beaten gold
went into each shield. 16And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold;
three hundred shekels of gold went into each shield; and the king put them
in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 17The king also made a great ivory
throne, and overlaid it with pure gold. 18The throne had six steps and a
footstool of gold, which were attached to the throne, and on each side of the
seat were arm rests and two lions standing beside the arm rests, 19while
twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. The like
of it was never made in any kingdom. 20All King Solomon’s drinking
vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of
Lebanon were of pure gold; silver was not considered as anything in the
days of Solomon. 21For the king’s ships went to Tar'shish with the servants
of Hu'ram; once every three years the ships of Tarshish used to come
bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. x
22 Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in
wisdom. 23And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to
hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. 24Every one of them
brought his present, articles of silver and of gold, garments, myrrh, spices,
horses, and mules, so much year by year. 25And Solomon had four thousand
stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he
stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 26And he ruled
over all the kings from the Euphrates to the land of the Philis'tines, and to
the border of Egypt. 27And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as
stone, and cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephe'lah. 28And
horses were imported for Solomon from Egypt and from all lands.
The Death of Solomon
29 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, from first to last, are they not
written in the history of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahi'jah
the Shi'lonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jerobo'am the
son of Ne'bat? 30Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.
31And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David
his father; and Rehobo'am his son reigned in his stead. *

The Revolt against Rehoboam
10 Rehobo'am went to She'chem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to
make him king. 2And when Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat heard of it (for he
was in Egypt, whither he had fled from King Solomon), then Jeroboam
returned from Egypt. 3And they sent and called him; and Jerobo'am and all
Israel came and said to Rehobo'am, 4“Your father made our yoke heavy.
Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke
upon us, and we will serve you.” 5He said to them, “Come to me again in
three days.” So the people went away.
6 Then King Rehobo'am took counsel with the old men, who had stood
before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you
advise me to answer this people?” 7And they said to him, “If you will be
kind to this people and please them, and speak good words to them, then
they will be your servants for ever.” 8But he forsook the counsel which the
old men gave him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up
with him and stood before him. 9And he said to them, “What do you advise
that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your
father put upon us’?” 10And the young men who had grown up with him
said to him, “Thus shall you speak to the people who said to you, ‘Your
father made our yoke heavy, but please lighten it for us’; thus shall you say
to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins. 11And now,
whereas my father laid upon you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My
father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.’ ”
12 So Jerobo'am and all the people came to Rehobo'am the third day, as the
king said, “Come to me again the third day.” 13And the king answered them
harshly, and forsaking the counsel of the old men, 14King Rehobo'am spoke
to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father
made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father chastised you with
whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” 15So the king did not listen
to the people; for it was a turn of affairs brought about by God that the
LORD might fulfil his word, which he spoke by Ahi'jah the Shi'lonite to
Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat.
16 And when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people
answered the king,

00“What portion have we in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.

00Each of you to your tents, O Israel!
Look now to your own house, David.”

So all Israel departed to their tents. 17But Rehobo'am reigned over the
sons of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah. 18Then King Rehobo'am sent
Hador'am, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and the sons of Israel
stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehoboam made haste to mount
his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has been in rebellion against the
house of David to this day.
Judah and Benjamin Fortified
11 When Rehobo'am came to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of
Judah, and Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen warriors, to
fight against Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam. 2But the word of
the LORD came to Shemai'ah the man of God: 3“Say to Rehobo'am the son
of Solomon king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, 4‘Thus
says the LORD, You shall not go up or fight against your brethren. Return
every man to his home, for this thing is from me.’ ” So they listened to the
word of the LORD, and returned and did not go against Jerobo'am.
5 Rehobo'am dwelt in Jerusalem, and he built cities for defense in Judah.
6He built Bethlehem, E'tam, Teko'a, 7Beth-zur, Soco, Adul'lam, 8Gath,
Mare'shah, Ziph, 9Adora'im, La'chish, Aze'kah, 10Zorah, Ai'jalon, and

He'bron, fortified cities which are in Judah and in Benjamin. 11He made the
fortresses strong, and put commanders in them, and stores of food, oil, and
wine. 12And he put shields and spears in all the cities, and made them very
strong. So he held Judah and Benjamin.
Priests and Levites Support Rehoboam
13 And the priests and the Levites that were in all Israel presented
themselves to him from all places where they lived. 14For the Levites left
their common lands and their holdings and came to Judah and Jerusalem,
because Jerobo'am and his sons cast them out from serving as priests of the
LORD, 15and he appointed his own priests for the high places, and for the
satyrs, and for the calves which he had made. 16And those who had set their
hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came after them from all the tribes of
Israel to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the LORD, the God of their fathers. 17They
strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they made
Rehobo'am the son of Solomon secure, for they walked for three years in
the way of David and Solomon.
The Wives of Rehoboam
18 Rehobo'am took as wife Ma'halath the daughter of Jer'imoth the son of
David, and of Ab'ihail the daughter of Eli'ab the son of Jesse; 19and she
bore him sons, Je'ush, Shemari'ah, and Zaham. 20After her he took Ma'acah
the daughter of Ab'salom, who bore him Abi'jah, Attai, Ziza, and
Shelo'mith. 21Rehobo'am loved Ma'acah the daughter of Ab'salom above all
his wives and concubines (he took eighteen wives and sixty concubines,
and had twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters); 22and Rehobo'am appointed
Abi'jah the son of Ma'acah as chief prince among his brothers, for he
intended to make him king. 23And he dealt wisely, and distributed some of
his sons through all the districts of Judah and Benjamin, in all the fortified
cities; and he gave them abundant provisions, and procured wives for
them. u
Egypt Attacks Judah
12 When the rule of Rehobo'am was established and was strong, he
forsook the law of the LORD, and all Israel with him. 2In the fifth year of
King Rehobo'am, because they had been unfaithful to the LORD, Shishak
king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem 3with twelve hundred chariots and
sixty thousand horsemen. And the people were without number who came
with him from Egypt—Libyans, Suk'kiim, and Ethiopians. 4And he took the
fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. 5Then Shemai'ah the
prophet came to Rehobo'am and to the princes of Judah, who had gathered
at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said to them, “Thus says the LORD,
‘You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak.’ ”
6Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The
LORD is righteous.” 7When the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the
word of the LORD came to Shemai'ah: “They have humbled themselves; I
will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath
shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.
8Nevertheless they shall be servants to him, that they may know my service
and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.”

9 So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem; he took away the
treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house; he
took away everything. He also took away the shields of gold which
Solomon had made; 10and King Rehobo'am made in their stead shields of
bronze, and committed them to the hands of the officers of the guard, who
kept the door of the king’s house. 11And as often as the king went into the
house of the LORD, the guard came and bore them, and brought them back
to the guardroom. 12And when he humbled himself the wrath of the LORD
turned from him, so as not to make a complete destruction; moreover,
conditions were good in Judah.
The Death of Rehoboam
13 So King Rehobo'am established himself in Jerusalem and reigned.
Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD had chosen out of all
the tribes of Israel to put his name there. His mother’s name was Na'amah
the Am'monitess. 14And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the
LORD.
15 Now the acts of Rehobo'am, from first to last, are they not written in the
chronicles of Shemai'ah the prophet and of Iddo the seer? v There were
continual wars between Rehobo'am and Jerobo'am. 16And Rehobo'am slept
with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David; and Abi'jah his son
Abijah’s Reign over Judah
13 In the eighteenth year of King Jerobo'am Abi'jah began to reign over
Judah. 2He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was
Micai'ah the daughter of U'riel of Gib'e-ah.
Now there was war between Abi'jah and Jerobo'am. 3Abi'jah went out to
battle having an army of valiant men of war, four hundred thousand picked
men; and Jerobo'am drew up his line of battle against him with eight
hundred thousand picked mighty warriors. 4Then Abi'jah stood up on
Mount Zemara'im which is in the hill country of E'phraim, and said, “Hear
me, O Jerobo'am and all Israel! 5Ought you not to know that the LORD God
of Israel gave the kingship over Israel for ever to David and his sons by a
covenant of salt? 6Yet Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, a servant of Solomon
the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord; 7and certain
worthless scoundrels gathered about him and defied Rehobo'am the son of
Solomon, when Rehoboam was young and irresolute and could not
withstand them.
8 “And now you think to withstand the kingdom of the LORD in the hand
of the sons of David, because you are a great multitude and have with you
the golden calves which Jerobo'am made you for gods. 9Have you not
driven out the priests of the LORD, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and
made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? Whoever comes
to consecrate himself with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of
what are no gods. 10But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not
forsaken him. We have priests ministering to the LORD who are sons of
Aaron, and Levites for their service. 11They offer to the LORD every
morning and every evening burnt offerings and incense of sweet spices, set
out the showbread on the table of pure gold, and care for the golden
lampstand that its lamps may burn every evening; for we keep the charge of
the LORD our God, but you have forsaken him. 12Behold, God is with us at
our head, and his priests with their battle trumpets to sound the call to battle
against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the LORD, the God of your
fathers; for you cannot succeed.”
13 Jerobo'am had sent an ambush around to come on them from behind;
thus his troops w were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them.
14And when Judah looked, behold, the battle was before and behind them;
and they cried to the LORD, and the priests blew the trumpets. 15Then the
men of Judah raised the battle shout. And when the men of Judah shouted,
God defeated Jerobo'am and all Israel before Abi'jah and Judah. 16The men
of Israel fled before Judah, and God gave them into their hand. 17Abi'jah
and his people slew them with a great slaughter; so there fell slain of Israel
five hundred thousand picked men. 18Thus the men of Israel were subdued
at that time, and the men of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the
LORD, the God of their fathers. 19And Abi'jah pursued Jerobo'am, and took
cities from him, Bethel with its villages and Jesha'nah with its villages and
E'phronx with its villages. 20Jerobo'am did not recover his power in the days
of Abi'jah; and the LORD struck him, and he died. 21But Abi'jah grew
mighty. And he took fourteen wives, and had twenty-two sons and sixteen
daughters. 22The rest of the acts of Abi'jah, his ways and his sayings, are
written in the story of the prophet Iddo.
Asa’s Good Reign over Judah
14 y So Abi'jah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of
David; and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land had rest for
ten years. 2 zAnd Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD
his God. 3He took away the foreign altars and the high places, and broke
down the pillars and hewed down the Ashe'rim, 4and commanded Judah to
seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, and to keep the law and the
commandment. 5He also took out of all the cities of Judah the high places
and the incense altars. And the kingdom had rest under him. 6He built
fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest. He had no war in those years,
for the LORD gave him peace. 7And he said to Judah, “Let us build these
cities, and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars; the land is
still ours, because we have sought the LORD our God; we have sought him,
and he has given us peace on every side.” So they built and prospered. 8And
Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah, armed with
bucklers and spears, and two hundred and eighty thousand men from
Benjamin, that carried shields and drew bows; all these were mighty men of
valor.
Judah Defeats the Ethiopians
9 Ze'rah the Ethiopian came out against them with an army of a million
men and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mare'shah. 10And Asa
went out to meet him, and they drew up their lines of battle in the valley of
Zeph'athah at Mare'shah. 11And Asa cried to the LORD his God, “O LORD,
there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O
LORD our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against
this multitude. O LORD, you are our God; let man not prevail against you.”
12So the LORD defeated the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the
Ethiopians fled. 13Asa and the people that were with him pursued them as
far as Ge'rar, and the Ethiopians fell until none remained alive; for they
were broken before the LORD and his army. The men of Judaha carried away
very much booty. 14And they struck all the cities round about Ge'rar, for the
fear of the LORD was upon them. They plundered all the cities, for there was
much plunder in them. 15And they struck the tents of those who had cattle,b
and carried away sheep in abundance and camels. Then they returned to
Jerusalem.
Azariah’s Prophecy
15 The Spirit of God came upon Azari'ah the son of O'ded, 2and he
went out to meet Asa, and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and
Benjamin: The LORD is with you, while you are with him. If you seek him,
he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. 3For a
long time Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest,
and without law; 4but when in their distress they turned to the LORD, the
God of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them. 5In those times there
was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for great
disturbances afflicted all the inhabitants of the lands. 6They were broken in
pieces, nation against nation and city against city, for God troubled them
with every sort of distress. 7But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be
weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”
Asa Has Idols Removed
8 When Asa heard these words, the prophecy of Azari'ah the son of
O'ded,c he took courage, and put away the abominable idols from all the
land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities which he had taken in the
hill country of E'phraim, and he repaired the altar of the LORD that was in
front of the vestibule of the house of the LORD.d 9And he gathered all Judah
and Benjamin, and those from E'phraim, Manas'seh, and Simeon who were
sojourning with them, for great numbers had deserted to him from Israel
when they saw that the LORD his God was with him. 10They were gathered
at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa.
11They sacrificed to the LORD on that day, from the spoil which they had
brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep. 12And they entered
into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their
heart and with all their soul; 13and that whoever would not seek the LORD,
the God of Israel, should be put to death, whether young or old, man or
woman. 14They took oath to the LORD with a loud voice, and with shouting,
and with trumpets, and with horns. 15And all Judah rejoiced over the oath;
for they had sworn with all their heart, and had sought him with their whole
desire, and he was found by them, and the LORD gave them rest round
about.
16 Even Ma'acah, his mother, King Asa removed from being queen mother
because she had made an abominable image for Ashe'rah. Asa cut down her
image, crushed it, and burned it at the brook Kidron. 17But the high places
were not taken out of Israel. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was blameless all
his days. 18And he brought into the house of God the votive gifts of his
father and his own votive gifts, silver, and gold, and vessels. 19And there
was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.
Alliance with Syria Condemned
16 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Ba'asha king of Israel
went up against Judah, and built Ra'mah, that he might permit no one to go
out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 2Then Asa took silver and gold from
the treasures of the house of the LORD and the king’s house, and sent them
to Ben-ha'dad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 3“Let there be
a league between me and you, as between my father and your father;
behold, I am sending to you silver and gold; go, break your league with
Ba'asha king of Israel, that he may withdraw from me.” 4And Ben-ha'dad
listened to King Asa, and sent the commanders of his armies against the
cities of Israel, and they conquered I'jon, Dan, A'bel-ma'im, and all the
store-cities of Naph'tali. 5And when Ba'asha heard of it, he stopped building
Ra'mah, and let his work cease. 6Then King Asa took all Judah, and they
carried away the stones of Ra'mah and its timber, with which Ba'asha had
been building, and with them he built Ge'ba and Mizpah.
7 At that time Hana'ni the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him,
“Because you relied on the king of Syria, and did not rely on the LORD your
God, the army of the king of Syria has escaped you. 8Were not the
Ethiopians and the Libyans a huge army with exceedingly many chariots
and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the LORD, he gave them into your
hand. 9For the eyes of the LORD move back and forth throughout the whole
earth, to show his might in behalf of those whose heart is blameless toward
him. You have done foolishly in this; for from now on you will have wars.”
10Then Asa was angry with the seer, and put him in the stocks, in prison, for
he was in a rage with him because of this. And Asa inflicted cruelties upon
some of the people at the same time.
Asa’s Disease and Death
11 The acts of Asa, from first to last, are written in the Book of the Kings
of Judah and Israel. 12In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased
in his feet, and his disease became severe; yet even in his disease he did not
seek the LORD, but sought help from physicians. 13And Asa slept with his
fathers, dying in the forty-first year of his reign. 14They buried him in the
tomb which he had hewn out for himself in the city of David. They laid him
on a bier which had been filled with various kinds of spices prepared by the
perfumer’s art; and they made a very great fire in his honor.
Jehoshaphat’s Reign
17 Jehosh'aphat his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself
against Israel. 2He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and set
garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of E'phraim which Asa his
father had taken. 3The LORD was with Jehosh'aphat, because he walked in
the earlier ways of his father; e he did not seek the Ba'als, 4but sought the
God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not according to
the ways of Israel. 5Therefore the LORD established the kingdom in his
hand; and all Judah brought tribute to Jehosh'aphat; and he had great riches
and honor. 6His heart was courageous in the ways of the LORD; and
furthermore he took the high places and the Ashe'rim out of Judah.
7 In the third year of his reign he sent his princes, Ben-ha'il, Obadi'ah,
Zechari'ah, Nethan'el, and Micai'ah, to teach in the cities of Judah; 8and
with them the Levites, Shemai'ah, Nethani'ah, Zebadi'ah, As'ahel,
Shemi'ramoth, Jehon'athan, Adoni'jah, Tobi'jah, and Tobadoni'jah; and with
these Levites, the priests Elish'ama and Jeho'ram. 9And they taught in
Judah, having the book of the law of the LORD with them; they went about
through all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.
10 And the fear of the LORD fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that
were round about Judah, and they made no war against Jehosh'aphat.
11Some of the Philis'tines brought Jehosh'aphat presents, and silver for
tribute; and the Arabs also brought him seven thousand seven hundred rams
and seven thousand seven hundred he-goats. 12And Jehosh'aphat grew
steadily greater. He built in Judah fortresses and store-cities, 13and he had
great stores in the cities of Judah. He had soldiers, mighty men of valor, in
Jerusalem. 14This was the muster of them by fathers’ houses: Of Judah, the
commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, with three hundred
thousand mighty men of valor, 15and next to him Je'ho-ha'nan the
commander, with two hundred and eighty thousand, 16and next to him
Amasi'ah the son of Zich'ri, a volunteer for the service of the LORD, with
two hundred thousand mighty men of valor. 17Of Benjamin: Eli'ada, a
mighty man of valor, with two hundred thousand men armed with bow and
shield, 18and next to him Jeho'zabad with a hundred and eighty thousand
armed for war. 19These were in the service of the king, besides those whom
the king had placed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.
Jehoshaphat’s Alliance with Ahab
18 Now Jehosh'aphat had great riches and honor; and he made a
marriage alliance with A'hab. 2After some years he went down to A'hab in
Samar'ia. And Ahab killed an abundance of sheep and oxen for him and for
the people who were with him, and induced him to go up against Ra'moth-
gil'ead. 3A'hab king of Israel said to Jehosh'aphat king of Judah, “Will you
go with me to Ra'moth-gil'ead?” He answered him, “I am as you are, my
people as your people. We will be with you in the war.”
4 And Jehosh'aphat said to the king of Israel, “Inquire first for the word of
the LORD.” 5Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, four
hundred men, and said to them, “Shall we go to battle against Ra'moth-
gil'ead, or shall I forbear?” And they said, “Go up; for God will give it into
the hand of the king.” 6But Jehosh'aphat said, “Is there not here another
prophet of the LORD of whom we may inquire?” 7And the king of Israel said
to Jehosh'aphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the
LORD, Micai'ah the son of Imlah; but I hate him, for he never prophesies
good concerning me, but always evil.” And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the
king say so.” 8Then the king of Israel summoned an officer and said, “Bring
quickly Micai'ah the son of Imlah.” 9Now the king of Israel and
Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah were sitting on their thrones, attired in their
robes; and they were sitting at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate
of Samar'ia; and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 10And
Zedeki'ah the son of Chena'anah made for himself horns of iron, and said,
“Thus says the LORD, ‘With these you shall push the Syrians until they are
destroyed.’ ” 11And all the prophets prophesied so, and said, “Go up to
Ra'moth-gil'ead and triumph; the LORD will give it into the hand of the
king.”
Micaiah’s Prophecy of Defeat
12 And the messenger who went to summon Micai'ah said to him,
“Behold, the words of the prophets * with one accord are favorable to the
king; let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.”
13But Micai'ah said, “As the LORD lives, what my God says, that I will
speak.” 14And when he had come to the king, the king said to him,
“Micai'ah, shall we go to Ra'moth-gil'ead to battle, or shall I forbear?” And
he answered, “Go up and triumph; they will be given into your hand.” 15But
the king said to him, “How many times shall I adjure you that you speak to
me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?” 16And he said, “I saw
all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd; and
the LORD said, ‘These have no master; let each return to his home in
peace.’ ” 17And the king of Israel said to Jehosh'aphat, “Did I not tell you
that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?” 18And Micai'ah
said, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his
throne, and all the host of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left;
19and the LORD said, ‘Who will entice A'hab the king of Israel, that he may
go up and fall at Ra'moth-gil'ead?’ And one said one thing, and another said
another. 20Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, saying, ‘I
will entice him.’ And the LORD said to him, ‘By what means?’ 21And he
said, ‘I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his
prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go
forth and do so.’ 22Now therefore behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in
the mouth of these your prophets; the LORD has spoken evil concerning
you.”
23 Then Zedeki'ah the son of Chena'anah came near and struck Micai'ah on
the cheek, and said, “Which way did the Spirit of the LORD go from me to
speak to you?” 24And Micai'ah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day
when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.” 25And the king of
Israel said, “Seize Micai'ah, and take him back to A'mon the governor of
the city and to Jo'ash the king’s son; 26and say, ‘Thus says the king, Put this
fellow in prison, and feed him with scant fare of bread and water, until I
return in peace.’ ” 27And Micai'ah said, “If you return in peace, the LORD
has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Hear, all you peoples!”
The Death of Ahab
28 So the king of Israel and Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah went up to
Ra'moth-gil'ead. 29And the king of Israel said to Jehosh'aphat, “I will

disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes.” And the king
of Israel disguised himself; and they went into battle. 30Now the king of
Syria had commanded the captains of his chariots, “Fight with neither small
nor great, but only with the king of Israel.” 31And when the captains of the
chariots saw Jehosh'aphat, they said, “It is the king of Israel.” So they
turned to fight against him; and Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped
him. God drew them away from him, 32for when the captains of the chariots
saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him.
33But a certain man drew his bow and unknowingly struck the king of Israel
between the scale armor and the breastplate; therefore he said to the driver
of his chariot, “Turn about, and carry me out of the battle, for I am
wounded.” 34And the battle grew hot that day, and the king of Israel
propped himself up in his chariot facing the Syrians until evening; then at
sunset he died.
The Reforms of Jehoshaphat
19 Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah returned in safety to his house in
Jerusalem. 2But Je'hu the son of Hana'ni the seer went out to meet him, and
said to King Jehosh'aphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who
hate the LORD? Because of this, wrath has gone out against you from the
LORD. 3Nevertheless some good is found in you, for you destroyed the
Ashe'rahs out of the land, and have set your heart to seek God.”
4 Jehosh'aphat dwelt at Jerusalem; and he went out again among the
people, from Be'er-she'ba to the hill country of E'phraim, and brought them
back to the LORD, the God of their fathers. 5He appointed judges in the land
in all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city, 6and said to the judges,
“Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the LORD; he is
with you in giving judgment. 7Now then, let the fear of the LORD be upon
you; take heed what you do, for there is no perversion of justice with the
LORD our God, or partiality, or taking bribes.”
8 Moreover in Jerusalem Jehosh'aphat appointed certain Levites and
priests and heads of families of Israel, to give judgment for the LORD and to
decide disputed cases. They had their seat at Jerusalem. 9And he charged
them: “Thus you shall do in the fear of the LORD, in faithfulness, and with
your whole heart: 10whenever a case comes to you from your brethren who
live in their cities, concerning bloodshed, law or commandment, statutes or
ordinances, then you shall instruct them, that they may not incur guilt
before the LORD and wrath may not come upon you and your brethren. Thus
you shall do, and you will not incur guilt. 11And behold, Amari'ah the chief
priest is over you in all matters of the LORD; and Zebadi'ah the son of
Ish'mael, the governor of the house of Judah, in all the king’s matters; and
the Levites will serve you as officers. Deal courageously, and may the LORD
be with the upright!”
Invasion from the East
20 After this the Moabites and Am'monites, and with them some of the
Me-u'nites, f came against Jehosh'aphat for battle. 2Some men came and
told Jehosh'aphat, “A great multitude is coming against you from E'dom, g
from beyond the sea; and, behold, they are in Haz'azon-ta'mar” (that is, En-
ge'di). 3Then Jehosh'aphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and
proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4And Judah assembled to seek help
from the LORD; from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the LORD.
Jehoshaphat’s Prayer and Victory
5 And Jehosh'aphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the
house of the LORD, before the new court, 6and said, “O LORD, God of our
fathers, are you not God in heaven? Do you not rule over all the kingdoms
of the nations? In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to
withstand you. 7Did you not, O our God, drive out the inhabitants of this
land before your people Israel, and give it for ever to the descendants of
Abraham your friend? 8And they have dwelt in it, and have built you in it a
sanctuary for your name, saying, 9‘If evil comes upon us, the sword,
judgment, h or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house, and
before you, for your name is in this house, and cry to you in our affliction,
and you will hear and save.’ 10And now behold, the men of Ammon and
Moab and Mount Se'ir, whom you would not let Israel invade when they
came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy—
11behold, they reward us by coming to drive us out of your possession,
which you have given us to inherit. 12O our God, will you not execute
judgment upon them? For we are powerless against this great multitude that
is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon
you.”
13 Meanwhile all the men of Judah stood before the LORD, with their little
ones, their wives, and their children. 14And the Spirit of the LORD came
upon Jahazi'el the son of Zechari'ah, son of Bena'iah, son of Je-i'el, son of
Mattani'ah, a Levite of the sons of A'saph, in the midst of the assembly.
15And he said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King
Jehosh'aphat: Thus says the LORD to you, ‘Fear not, and be not dismayed at
this great multitude; for the battle is not yours but God’s. 16Tomorrow go
down against them; behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz; you will
find them at the end of the valley, east of the wilderness of Jeru'el. 17You
will not need to fight in this battle; take your position, stand still, and see
the victory of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Fear not,
and be not dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, and the LORD will be
with you.”
18 Then Jehosh'aphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all
Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD,
worshiping the LORD. 19And the Levites, of the Ko'hathites and the
Ko'rahites, stood up to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud
voice.
20 And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of
Teko'a; and as they went out, Jehosh'aphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah
and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will
be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.” 21And when he
had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to
the LORD and praise him in holy splendor, as they went before the army, and
say,
00“Give thanks to the LORD,
for his mercy endures for ever.”

22And when they began to sing and praise, the LORD set an ambush
against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Se'ir, who had come against
Judah, so that they were routed. 23For the men of Ammon and Moab rose
against the inhabitants of Mount Se'ir, destroying them utterly, and when
they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they all helped to destroy
one another.
24 When Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked
toward the multitude; and behold, they were dead bodies lying on the
ground; none had escaped. 25When Jehosh'aphat and his people came to
take the spoil from them, they found cattle i in great numbers, goods,
clothing, and precious things, which they took for themselves until they
could carry no more. They were three days in taking the spoil, it was so
much. 26On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Bera'cah, j for
there they blessed the LORD; therefore the name of that place has been
called the Valley of Beracah to this day. 27Then they returned, every man of
Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehosh'aphat at their head, returning to Jerusalem
with joy, for the LORD had made them rejoice over their enemies. 28They
came to Jerusalem, with harps and lyres and trumpets, to the house of the
LORD. 29And the fear of God came on all the kingdoms of the countries
when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel.
30So the realm of Jehosh'aphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest round
about.
The End of Jehoshaphat’s Reign over Judah
31 Thus Jehosh'aphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old
when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His

mother’s name was Azu'bah the daughter of Shilhi. 32He walked in the way
of Asa his father and did not turn aside from it; he did what was right in the
sight of the LORD. 33The high places, however, were not taken away; the
people had not yet set their hearts upon the God of their fathers.
34 Now the rest of the acts of Jehosh'aphat, from first to last, are written in
the chronicles of Je'hu the son of Hana'ni, which are recorded in the Book
of the Kings of Israel.
35 After this Jehosh'aphat king of Judah joined with Ahazi'ah king of
Israel, who did wickedly. 36He joined him in building ships to go to

Tar'shish, and they built the ships in E'zion-ge'ber. 37Then Elie'zer the son
of Dodav'ahu of Mare'shah prophesied against Jehosh'aphat, saying,
“Because you have joined with Ahazi'ah, the LORD will destroy what you
have made.” And the ships were wrecked and were not able to go to
Tar'shish.
Jehoram’s Reign over Judah
21 Jehosh'aphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in
the city of David; and Jeho'ram his son reigned in his stead. 2He had
brothers, the sons of Jehosh'aphat: Azari'ah, Jehi'el, Zechari'ah, Azariah,
Michael, and Shephati'ah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of
Judah. 3Their father gave them great gifts, of silver, gold, and valuable
possessions, together with fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom
to Jeho'ram, because he was the first-born. 4When Jeho'ram had ascended
the throne of his father and was established, he slew all his brothers with the
sword, and also some of the princes of Israel. 5Jeho'ram was thirty-two
years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
6And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of A'hab had
done; for the daughter of Ahab was his wife. And he did what was evil in
the sight of the LORD. 7Yet the LORD would not destroy the house of David,
because of the covenant which he had made with David, and since he had
promised to give a lamp to him and to his sons for ever.
The Revolt of Edom
8 In his days E'dom revolted from the rule of Judah, and set up a king of
their own. 9Then Jeho'ram passed over with his commanders and all his
chariots, and he rose by night and struck the E'domites who had surrounded
him and his chariot commanders. 10So E'dom revolted from the rule of
Judah to this day. At that time Libnah also revolted from his rule, because
he had forsaken the LORD, the God of his fathers.
Elijah’s Letter of Warning
11 Moreover he made high places in the hill country of Judah, and led the
inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, and made Judah go astray.
12And a letter came to him from Eli'jah the prophet, saying, “Thus says the
LORD, the God of David your father, ‘Because you have not walked in the
ways of Jehosh'aphat your father, or in the ways of Asa king of Judah, 13but
have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have led Judah and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, as the house of A'hab led Israel
into unfaithfulness, and also you have killed your brothers, of your father’s
house, who were better than yourself; 14behold, the LORD will bring a great
plague on your people, your children, your wives, and all your possessions,
15and you yourself will have a severe sickness with a disease of your
bowels, until your bowels come out because of the disease, day by day.’ ”
16 And the LORD stirred up against Jeho'ram the anger of the Philis'tines
and of the Arabs who are near the Ethiopians; 17and they came up against
Judah, and invaded it, and carried away all the possessions they found that
belonged to the king’s house, and also his sons and his wives, so that no son
was left to him except Jeho'ahaz, his youngest son.
Disease and Death of Jehoram
18 And after all this the LORD struck him in his bowels with an incurable
disease. 19In course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out
because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire
in his honor, like the fires made for his fathers. 20He was thirty-two years
old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem; and he
departed with no one’s regret. They buried him in the city of David, but not
in the tombs of the kings.
Ahaziah’s Reign over Judah
22 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahazi'ah his youngest son
king in his stead; for the band of men that came with the Arabs to the camp
had slain all the older sons. So Ahaziah the son of Jeho'ram king of Judah
reigned. 2Ahazi'ah was forty-two years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athali'ah, the
granddaughter of Omri. 3He also walked in the ways of the house of A'hab,
for his mother was his counselor in doing wickedly. 4He did what was evil
in the sight of the LORD, as the house of A'hab had done; for after the death
of his father they were his counselors, to his undoing. 5He even followed
their counsel, and went with Jeho'ram the son of A'hab king of Israel to
make war against Haz'ael king of Syria at Ra'moth-gil'ead. And the Syrians
wounded Jo'ram, 6and he returned to be healed in Jezre'el of the wounds
which he had received at Ra'mah, when he fought against Haz'ael king of
Syria. And Ahazi'ah the son of Jeho'ram king of Judah went down to see
Jo'ram the son of A'hab in Jezreel, because he was sick.
The Downfall of Ahaziah
7 But it was ordained by God that the downfall of Ahazi'ah should come
about through his going to visit Jo'ram. For when he came there he went out
with Jeho'ram to meet Je'hu the son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had
anointed to destroy the house of A'hab. 8And when Je'hu was executing
judgment upon the house of A'hab, he met the princes of Judah and the sons
of Ahazi'ah’s brothers, who attended Ahaziah, and he killed them. 9He
searched for Ahazi'ah, and he was captured while hiding in Samar'ia, and he
was brought to Je'hu and put to death. They buried him, for they said, “He
is the grandson of Jehosh'aphat, who sought the LORD with all his heart.”
And the house of Ahaziah had no one able to rule the kingdom.
Athaliah Seizes the Throne
10 Now when Athali'ah the mother of Ahazi'ah saw that her son was dead,
she arose and destroyed all the royal family of the house of Judah. 11But
Je'ho-shab'e-ath, the daughter of the king, took Jo'ash the son of Ahazi'ah,
and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were about to be slain,
and she put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. Thus Jeho-shabe-ath, the
daughter of King Jeho'ram and wife of Jehoi'ada the priest, because she was
a sister of Ahaziah, hid him from Athali'ah, so that she did not slay him;
12and he remained with them six years, hid in the house of God, while
Athali'ah reigned over the land.

23 But in the seventh year Jehoi'ada took courage, and entered into a
compact with the commanders of hundreds, Azari'ah the son of Jero'ham,
Ish'mael the son of Je'ho-ha'nan, Azariah the son of O'bed, Ma-asei'ah the
son of Adai'ah, and Elisha'phat the son of Zich'ri. 2And they went about
through Judah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the
heads of fathers’ houses of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. 3And all the
assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And
Jehoi'ada l said to them, “Behold, the king’s son! Let him reign, as the LORD
spoke concerning the sons of David. 4This is the thing that you shall do: of
you priests and Levites who come off duty on the sabbath, one third shall be
gatekeepers, 5and one third shall be at the king’s house and one third at the
Gate of the Foundation; and all the people shall be in the courts of the house
of the LORD. 6Let no one enter the house of the LORD except the priests and
ministering Levites; they may enter, for they are holy, but all the people
shall keep the charge of the LORD. 7The Levites shall surround the king,
each with his weapons in his hand; and whoever enters the house shall be
slain. Be with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.”
Joash Crowned King of Judah
8 The Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoi'ada the priest
commanded. They each brought his men, who were to go off duty on the
sabbath, with those who were to come on duty on the sabbath; for Jehoiada
the priest did not dismiss the divisions. 9And Jehoi'ada the priest delivered
to the captains the spears and the large and small shields that had been King
David’s, which were in the house of God; 10and he set all the people as a
guard for the king, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the south
side of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the
house. 11Then he brought out the king’s son, and put the crown upon him,
and gave him the covenant; and they proclaimed him king, and Jehoi'ada
and his sons anointed him, and they said, “Long live the king.”
Athaliah Slain
12 When Athali'ah heard the noise of the people running and praising the
king, she went into the house of the LORD to the people; 13and when she
looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the
captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land
rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical
instruments leading in the celebration. And Athali'ah tore her clothes, and
cried, “Treason! Treason!” 14Then Jehoi'ada the priest brought out the
captains who were set over the army, saying to them, “Bring her out
between the ranks; any one who follows her is to be slain with the sword.”
For the priest said, “Do not slay her in the house of the LORD.” 15So they
laid hands on her; and she went into the entrance of the horse gate of the
king’s house, and they slew her there.
Jehoiada’s Covenant
16 And Jehoi'ada made a covenant between himself and all the people and
the king that they should be the LORD’s people. 17Then all the people went
to the house of Ba'al, and tore it down; his altars and his images they broke
in pieces, and they slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. 18And
Jehoi'ada posted watchmen for the house of the LORD under the direction of
the Levitical priests and the Levites whom David had organized to be in
charge of the house of the LORD, to offer burnt offerings to the LORD, as it is
written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, according to
the order of David. 19He stationed the gatekeepers at the gates of the house
of the LORD so that no one should enter who was in any way unclean. 20And
he took the captains, the nobles, the governors of the people, and all the
people of the land; and they brought the king down from the house of the
LORD, marching through the upper gate to the king’s house. And they set
the king upon the royal throne. 21So all the people of the land rejoiced; and
the city was quiet, after Athali'ah had been slain with the sword.
Joash Restores the Temple
24 Jo'ash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
forty years in Jerusalem; his mother’s name was Zib'iah of Be'er-she'ba.
2And Jo'ash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the days of
Jehoi'ada the priest. 3Jehoi'ada got for him two wives, and he had sons and
daughters.
4 After this Jo'ash decided to restore the house of the LORD. 5And he
gathered the priests and the Levites, and said to them, “Go out to the cities
of Judah, and gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God
from year to year; and see that you hasten the matter.” But the Levites did
not hasten it. 6So the king summoned Jehoi'ada the chief, and said to him,
“Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and
Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses, the servant of the LORD, on m the
congregation of Israel for the tent of covenant?” 7For the sons of Athali'ah,
that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God; and had also used
all the dedicated things of the house of the LORD for the Ba'als.
8 So the king commanded, and they made a chest, and set it outside the
gate of the house of the LORD. 9And proclamation was made throughout
Judah and Jerusalem, to bring in for the LORD the tax that Moses the servant
of God laid upon Israel in the wilderness. 10And all the princes and all the
people rejoiced and brought their tax and dropped it into the chest until they
had finished. 11And whenever the chest was brought to the king’s officers
by the Levites, when they saw that there was much money in it, the king’s
secretary and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest
and take it and return it to its place. Thus they did day after day, and
collected money in abundance. 12And the king and Jehoi'ada gave it to
those who had charge of the work of the house of the LORD, and they hired
masons and carpenters to restore the house of the LORD, and also workers in
iron and bronze to repair the house of the LORD. 13So those who were
engaged in the work labored, and the repairing went forward in their hands,
and they restored the house of God to its proper condition and strengthened
it. 14And when they had finished, they brought the rest of the money before
the king and Jehoi'ada, and with it were made utensils for the house of the
LORD, both for the service and for the burnt offerings, and dishes for
incense, and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt offerings in
the house of the LORD continually all the days of Jehoiada.
15 But Jehoi'ada grew old and full of days, and died; he was a hundred and
thirty years old at his death. 16And they buried him in the city of David
among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, and toward God and
his house.
Apostasy of Joash
17 Now after the death of Jehoi'ada the princes of Judah came and did
obeisance to the king; then the king listened to them. 18And they forsook
the house of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and served the Ashe'rim and
the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their guilt.
19Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the LORD; these
testified against them, but they would not give heed.

20 Then the Spirit of God took possession of n Zechari'ah the son of
Jehoi'ada the priest; and he stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus
says God, ‘Why do you transgress the commandments of the LORD, so that
you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken
you.’ ” 21But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they
stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the LORD. 22Thus Jo'ash
the king did not remember the kindness which Jehoi'ada, Zechari'ah’s
father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said,
“May the LORD see and avenge!”
Death of Joash
23 At the end of the year the army of the Syrians came up against Jo'ash.
They came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the
people from among the people, and sent all their spoil to the king of
Damascus. 24Though the army of the Syrians had come with few men, the
LORD delivered into their hand a very great army, because they had forsaken
the LORD, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Jo'ash.
25 When they had departed from him, leaving him severely wounded, his
servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son o of

Jehoi'ada the priest, and slew him on his bed. So he died; and they buried
him in the city of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the
kings. 26Those who conspired against him were Zabad the son of Shim'e-ath
the Am'monitess, and Jeho'zabad the son of Shimrith the Moabitess.
27Accounts of his sons, and of the many oracles against him, and of the
rebuilding p of the house of God are written in the Commentary on the

Book of the Kings. And Amazi'ah his son reigned in his stead.
Amaziah’s Reign over Judah
25 Amazi'ah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Je'ho-
ad'dan of Jerusalem. 2And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD,
yet not with a blameless heart. 3And as soon as the royal power was firmly
in his hand he killed his servants who had slain the king his father. 4But he
did not put their children to death, according to what is written in the law, in
the book of Moses, where the LORD commanded, “The fathers shall not be
put to death for the children, or the children be put to death for the fathers;
but every man shall die for his own sin.”
Slaughter of the Edomites
5 Then Amazi'ah assembled the men of Judah, and set them by fathers’
houses under commanders of thousands and of hundreds for all Judah and
Benjamin. He mustered those twenty years old and upward, and found that
they were three hundred thousand picked men, fit for war, able to handle
spear and shield. 6He hired also a hundred thousand mighty men of valor
from Israel for a hundred talents of silver. 7But a man of God came to him
and said, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the LORD is
not with Israel, with all these E'phraimites. 8But if you suppose that in this
way you will be strong for war, q God will cast you down before the enemy;
for God has power to help or to cast down.” 9And Amazi'ah said to the man
of God, “But what shall we do about the hundred talents which I have given
to the army of Israel?” The man of God answered, “The LORD is able to
give you much more than this.” 10Then Amazi'ah discharged the army that
had come to him from E'phraim, to go home again. And they became very
angry with Judah, and returned home in fierce anger. 11But Amazi'ah took
courage, and led out his people, and went to the Valley of Salt and struck
ten thousand men of Se'ir. 12The men of Judah captured another ten
thousand alive, and took them to the top of a rock and threw them down
from the top of the rock; and they were all dashed to pieces. 13But the men
of the army whom Amazi'ah sent back, not letting them go with him to
battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from Samar'ia to Beth-ho'ron, and killed
three thousand people in them, and took much spoil.
14 After Amazi'ah came from the slaughter of the E'domites, he brought
the gods of the men of Se'ir, and set them up as his gods, and worshiped
them, making offerings to them. 15Therefore the LORD was angry with
Amazi'ah and sent to him a prophet, who said to him, “Why have you
resorted to the gods of a people, which did not deliver their own people
from your hand?” 16But as he was speaking the king said to him, “Have we
made you a royal counselor? Stop! Why should you be put to death?” So
the prophet stopped, but said, “I know that God has determined to destroy
you, because you have done this and have not listened to my counsel.”
Israel Defeats Judah
17 Then Amazi'ah king of Judah took counsel and sent to Jo'ash the son of
Jeho'ahaz, son of Je'hu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us look one
another in the face.” 18And Jo'ash the king of Israel sent word to Amazi'ah
king of Judah, “A thistle on Lebanon sent to a cedar on Lebanon, saying,
‘Give your daughter to my son for a wife’; and a wild beast of Lebanon
passed by and trampled down the thistle. 19You say, ‘See, I have struck
Edom,’ and your heart has lifted you up in boastfulness. But now stay at
home; why should you provoke trouble so that you fall, you and Judah with
you?”
20 But Amazi'ah would not listen; for it was of God, in order that he might
give them into the hand of their enemies, because they had sought the gods
of E'dom. 21So Jo'ash king of Israel went up; and he and Amazi'ah king of
Judah faced one another in battle at Beth-she'mesh, which belongs to Judah.
22And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man fled to his home. 23And
Jo'ash king of Israel captured Amazi'ah king of Judah, the son of Joash, son
of Ahazi'ah, at Beth-she'mesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and broke
down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits, from the E'phraim Gate
to the Corner Gate. 24And he seized all the gold and silver, and all the
vessels that were found in the house of God, and O'bed-e'dom with them; he
seized also the treasuries of the king’s house, and hostages, and he returned
to Samar'ia.
Death of Amaziah
25 Amazi'ah the son of Jo'ash king of Judah lived fifteen years after the
death of Joash the son of Jeho'ahaz, king of Israel. 26Now the rest of the
deeds of Amazi'ah, from first to last, are they not written in the Book of the
Kings of Judah and Israel? 27From the time when he turned away from the
LORD they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to
La'chish. But they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there. 28And they
brought him upon horses; and he was buried with his fathers in the city of
David.
Uzziah’s Reign over Judah
26 And all the people of Judah took Uzzi'ah, who was sixteen years old,
and made him king instead of his father Amazi'ah. 2He built E'loth and
restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers. 3Uzzi'ah was
sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoli'ah of Jerusalem. 4And he did what
was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amazi'ah
had done. 5He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechari'ah, who
instructed him in the fear of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God
made him prosper.
6 He went out and made war against the Philis'tines, and broke down the
wall of Gath and the wall of Jabneh and the wall of Ash'dod; and he built
cities in the territory of Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines. 7God
helped him against the Philis'tines, and against the Arabs that dwelt in
Gurba'al, and against the Me-u'nites. 8The Am'monites paid tribute to
Uzzi'ah, and his fame spread even to the border of Egypt, for he became
very strong. 9Moreover Uzzi'ah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate
and at the Valley Gate and at the Angle, and fortified them. 10And he built
towers in the wilderness, and hewed out many cisterns, for he had large
herds, both in the Shephe'lah and in the plain, and he had farmers and
vinedressers in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil.
11Moreover Uzzi'ah had an army of soldiers, fit for war, in divisions
according to the numbers in the muster made by Je-i'el the secretary and
Ma-asei'ah the officer, under the direction of Hanani'ah, one of the king’s
commanders. 12The whole number of the heads of fathers’ houses of mighty
men of valor was two thousand six hundred. 13Under their command was an
army of three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, who could make
war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy. 14And Uzzi'ah
prepared for all the army shields, spears, helmets, coats of mail, bows, and
stones for slinging. 15In Jerusalem he made engines, invented by skilful
men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and great stones.
And his fame spread far, for he was marvelously helped, till he was strong.
Pride and Apostasy
16 But when he was strong he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was
false to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn
incense on the altar of incense. 17But Azari'ah the priest went in after him,
with eighty priests of the LORD who were men of valor; 18and they
withstood King Uzzi'ah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn
incense to the LORD, but for the priests the sons of Aaron, who are
consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary; for you have done
wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the LORD God.” 19Then Uzzi'ah
was angry. Now he had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and when he
became angry with the priests leprosy broke out on his forehead, in the
presence of the priests in the house of the LORD, by the altar of incense.
20And Azari'ah the chief priest, and all the priests, looked at him, and
behold, he was leprous in his forehead! And they thrust him out quickly,
and he himself hastened to go out, because the LORD had struck him down.
21And King Uzzi'ah was a leper to the day of his death, and being a leper
dwelt in a separate house, for he was excluded from the house of the LORD.
And Jo'tham his son was over the king’s household, governing the people of
the land.
22 Now the rest of the acts of Uzzi'ah, from first to last, Isai'ah the prophet
the son of A'moz wrote. 23And Uzzi'ah slept with his fathers, and they
buried him with his fathers in the burial field which belonged to the kings,
for they said, “He is a leper.” And Jo'tham his son reigned in his stead.
Jotham’s Reign over Judah
27 Jo'tham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jeru'shah the
daughter of Za'dok. 2And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD
according to all that his father Uzzi'ah had done—only he did not invade the
temple of the LORD. But the people still followed corrupt practices. 3He
built the upper gate of the house of the LORD, and did much building on the
wall of O'phel. 4Moreover he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and
forts and towers on the wooded hills. 5He fought with the king of the
Am'monites and prevailed against them. And the Ammonites gave him that
year a hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand cors of wheat and ten
thousand of barley. The Ammonites paid him the same amount in the
second and the third years. 6So Jo'tham became mighty, because he ordered
his ways before the LORD his God. 7Now the rest of the acts of Jo'tham, and
all his wars, and his ways, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings
of Israel and Judah. 8He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. 9And Jo'tham slept with his
fathers, and they buried him in the city of David; and A'haz his son reigned
in his stead.
Ahaz’s Reign over Judah
28 A'haz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of
the LORD, like his father David, 2but walked in the ways of the kings of
Israel. He even made molten images for the Ba'als; 3and he burned incense
in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burned his sons as an offering,
according to the abominable practices of the nations whom the LORD drove
out before the sons of Israel. 4And he sacrificed and burned incense on the
high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree.
Syria and Israel Defeat Judah
5 Therefore the LORD his God gave him into the hand of the king of Syria,
who defeated him and took captive a great number of his people and
brought them to Damascus. He was also given into the hand of the king of
Israel, who defeated him with great slaughter. 6For Pe'kah the son of
Remali'ah slew a hundred and twenty thousand in Judah in one day, all of
them men of valor, because they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their
fathers. 7And Zich'ri, a mighty man of E'phraim, slew Ma-asei'ah the king’s
son and Azri'kam the commander of the palace and Elka'nah the next in
authority to the king.
The Prophet Oded Intercedes
8 The men of Israel took captive two hundred thousand of their kinsfolk,
women, sons, and daughters; they also took much spoil from them and
brought the spoil to Samar'ia. 9But a prophet of the LORD was there, whose
name was O'ded; and he went out to meet the army that came to Samar'ia,
and said to them, “Behold, because the LORD, the God of your fathers, was
angry with Judah, he gave them into your hand, but you have slain them in
a rage which has reached up to heaven. 10And now you intend to subjugate
the people of Judah and Jerusalem, male and female, as your slaves. Have
you not sins of your own against the LORD your God? 11Now hear me, and
send back the captives from your kinsfolk whom you have taken, for the
fierce wrath of the LORD is upon you.” 12Certain chiefs also of the men of
E'phraim, Azari'ah the son of Joha'nan, Berechi'ah the son of Meshil'lemoth,
Jehizki'ah the son of Shallum, and Ama'sa the son of Hadlai, stood up
against those who were coming from the war, 13and said to them, “You shall
not bring the captives in here, for you propose to bring upon us guilt against
the LORD in addition to our present sins and guilt. For our guilt is already
great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel.” 14So the armed men left the
captives and the spoil before the princes and all the assembly. 15And the
men who have been mentioned by name rose and took the captives, and
with the spoil they clothed all that were naked among them; they clothed
them, gave them sandals, provided them with food and drink, and anointed
them; and carrying all the feeble among them on donkeys, they brought
them to their kinsfolk at Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned
to Samar'ia.
16 At that time King A'haz sent to the king r of Assyria for help. 17For the
E'domites had again invaded and defeated Judah, and carried away captives.
18And the Philis'tines had made raids on the cities in the Shephe'lah and the
Neg'eb of Judah, and had taken Beth-she'mesh, Ai'jalon, Gede'roth, Soco

with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages; and
they settled there. 19For the LORD brought Judah low because of A'haz king
of Israel, for he had dealt wantonly in Judah and had been faithless to the
LORD. 20So Til'gath-pilne'ser king of Assyria came against him, and
afflicted him instead of strengthening him. 21For A'haz took from the house
of the LORD and the house of the king and of the princes, and gave tribute to
the king of Assyria; but it did not help him.
Apostasy and Death of Ahaz
22 In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the LORD—
this same King A'haz. 23For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which
had defeated him, and said, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped
them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the
ruin of him, and of all Israel. 24And A'haz gathered together the vessels of
the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and he
shut up the doors of the house of the LORD; and he made himself altars in
every corner of Jerusalem. 25In every city of Judah he made high places to
burn incense to other gods, provoking to anger the LORD, the God of his
fathers. 26Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, from first to last, behold,
they are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. 27And A'haz
slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem, for they
did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. And Hezeki'ah his
Hezekiah’s Reign over Judah
29 Hezeki'ah began to reign when he was twenty-five years old, and he
reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi'jah the
daughter of Zechari'ah. 2And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD,
according to all that David his father had done.
The Temple Is Cleansed
3 In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of
the house of the LORD, and repaired them. 4He brought in the priests and the
Levites, and assembled them in the square on the east, 5and said to them,
“Hear me, Levites! Now sanctify yourselves, and sanctify the house of the
LORD, the God of your fathers, and carry out the filth from the holy place.
6For our fathers have been unfaithful and have done what was evil in the
sight of the LORD our God; they have forsaken him, and have turned away
their faces from the habitation of the LORD, and turned their backs. 7They
also shut the doors of the vestibule and put out the lamps, and have not
burned incense or offered burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of
Israel. 8Therefore the wrath of the LORD came on Judah and Jerusalem, and
he has made them an object of horror, of astonishment, and of hissing, as
you see with your own eyes. 9For behold, our fathers have fallen by the
sword and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for
this. 10Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the LORD, the God of
Israel, that his fierce anger may turn away from us. 11My sons, do not now
be negligent, for the LORD has chosen you to stand in his presence, to
minister to him, and to be his ministers and burn incense to him.”
12 Then the Levites arose, Mahath the son of Ama'sai, and Joel the son of
Azari'ah, of the sons of the Ko'hathites; and of the sons of Merar'i, Kish the
son of Abdi, and Azariah the son of Jehal'lelel; and of the Ger'shonites,
Jo'ah the son of Zimmah, and Eden the son of Joah; 13and of the sons of
Eliza'phan, Shimri and Jeu'el; and of the sons of A'saph, Zechari'ah and
Mattani'ah; 14and of the sons of He'man, Jehu'el and Shim'e-i; and of the
sons of Jedu'thun, Shemai'ah and Uz'ziel. 15They gathered their brethren,
and sanctified themselves, and went in as the king had commanded, by the
words of the LORD, to cleanse the house of the LORD. 16The priests went
into the inner part of the house of the LORD to cleanse it, and they brought
out all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of the LORD into the
court of the house of the LORD; and the Levites took it and carried it out to
the brook Kidron. 17They began to sanctify on the first day of the first
month, and on the eighth day of the month they came to the vestibule of the
LORD; then for eight days they sanctified the house of the LORD, and on the
sixteenth day of the first month they finished. 18Then they went in to
Hezeki'ah the king and said, “We have cleansed all the house of the LORD,
the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the table for the
showbread and all its utensils. 19All the utensils which King A'haz
discarded in his reign when he was faithless, we have made ready and
sanctified; and behold, they are before the altar of the LORD.”
Hezekiah Restores Temple Worship
20 Then Hezeki'ah the king rose early and gathered the officials of the city,
and went up to the house of the LORD. 21And they brought seven bulls,
seven rams, seven lambs, and seven he-goats for a sin offering for the
kingdom and for the sanctuary and for Judah. And he commanded the
priests the sons of Aaron to offer them on the altar of the LORD. 22So they
killed the bulls, and the priests received the blood and threw it against the
altar; and they killed the rams and their blood was thrown against the altar;
and they killed the lambs and their blood was thrown against the altar.
23Then the he-goats for the sin offering were brought to the king and the
assembly, and they laid their hands upon them, 24and the priests killed them
and made a sin offering with their blood on the altar, to make atonement for
all Israel. For the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin
offering should be made for all Israel.
25 And he stationed the Levites in the house of the LORD with cymbals,
harps, and lyres, according to the commandment of David and of Gad the
king’s seer and of Nathan the prophet; for the commandment was from the
LORD through his prophets. 26The Levites stood with the instruments of
David, and the priests with the trumpets. 27Then Hezeki'ah commanded that
the burnt offering be offered on the altar. And when the burnt offering
began, the song to the LORD began also, and the trumpets, accompanied by
the instruments of David king of Israel. 28The whole assembly worshiped,
and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; all this continued until
the burnt offering was finished. 29When the offering was finished, the king
and all who were present with him bowed themselves and worshiped. 30And
Hezeki'ah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praises
to the LORD with the words of David and of A'saph the seer. And they sang
praises with gladness, and they bowed down and worshiped.
31 Then Hezeki'ah said, “You have now consecrated yourselves to the
LORD; come near, bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of the
LORD.” And the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings; and all
who were of a willing heart brought burnt offerings. 32The number of the
burnt offerings which the assembly brought was seventy bulls, a hundred
rams, and two hundred lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to the
LORD. 33And the consecrated offerings were six hundred bulls and three
thousand sheep. 34But the priests were too few and could not flay all the
burnt offerings, so until other priests had sanctified themselves their
brethren the Levites helped them, until the work was finished—for the
Levites were more upright in heart than the priests in sanctifying
themselves. 35Besides the great number of burnt offerings there was the fat
of the peace offerings, and there were the libations for the burnt offerings.
Thus the service of the house of the LORD was restored. 36And Hezeki'ah
and all the people rejoiced because of what God had done for the people;
for the thing came about suddenly.
Keeping the Feast of the Passover
30 Hezeki'ah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to
E'phraim and Manas'seh, that they should come to the house of the LORD at
Jerusalem, to keep the Passover * to the LORD the God of Israel. 2For the
king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel to
keep the Passover in the second month—3for they could not keep it in its
time because the priests had not sanctified themselves in sufficient number,
nor had the people assembled in Jerusalem—4and the plan seemed right to
the king and all the assembly. 5So they decreed to make a proclamation
throughout all Israel, from Be'er-she'ba to Dan, that the people should come
and keep the Passover to the LORD the God of Israel, at Jerusalem; for they
had not kept it in great numbers as prescribed. 6So couriers went throughout
all Israel and Judah with letters from the king and his princes, as the king
had commanded, saying, “O people of Israel, return to the LORD, the God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that he may turn again to the remnant of you
who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria. 7Do not be like
your fathers and your brethren, who were faithless to the LORD God of their
fathers, so that he made them a desolation, as you see. 8Do not now be stiff-
necked as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the LORD, and come to
his sanctuary, which he has sanctified for ever, and serve the LORD your
God, that his fierce anger may turn away from you. 9For if you return to the
LORD, your brethren and your children will find compassion with their
captors, and return to this land. For the LORD your God is gracious and
merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if you return to him.”
10 So the couriers went from city to city through the country of E'phraim
and Manas'seh, and as far as Zeb'ulun; but they laughed them to scorn, and
mocked them. 11Only a few men of Asher, of Manas'seh, and of Zeb'ulun
humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. 12The hand of God was also
upon Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes
commanded by the word of the LORD.
13 And many people came together in Jerusalem to keep the feast of
unleavened bread in the second month, a very great assembly. 14They set to
work and removed the altars that were in Jerusalem, and all the altars for
burning incense they took away and threw into the Kidron valley. 15And
they killed the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month.
And the priests and the Levites were put to shame, so that they sanctified
themselves, and brought burnt offerings into the house of the LORD. 16They
took their accustomed posts according to the law of Moses the man of God;
the priests sprinkled the blood which they received from the hand of the
Levites. 17For there were many in the assembly who had not sanctified
themselves; therefore the Levites had to kill the Passover lamb for every
one who was not clean, to make it holy to the LORD. 18For a multitude of
the people, many of them from E'phraim, Manas'seh, Is'sachar, and
Zeb'ulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise
than as prescribed. For Hezeki'ah had prayed for them, saying, “The good
LORD pardon every one 19who sets his heart to seek God, the LORD the God
of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary’s rules of
cleanness.” 20And the LORD heard Hezeki'ah, and healed the people. 21And
the sons of Israel that were present at Jerusalem kept the feast of
unleavened bread seven days with great gladness; and the Levites and the
priests praised the LORD day by day, singing with all their might s to the
LORD. 22And Hezeki'ah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites who showed
good skill in the service of the LORD. So the people ate the food of the
festival for seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the
LORD the God of their fathers.
23 Then the whole assembly agreed together to keep the feast for another
seven days; so they kept it for another seven days with gladness. 24For
Hezeki'ah king of Judah gave the assembly a thousand bulls and seven
thousand sheep for offerings, and the princes gave the assembly a thousand
bulls and ten thousand sheep. And the priests sanctified themselves in great
numbers. 25The whole assembly of Judah, and the priests and the Levites,
and the whole assembly that came out of Israel, and the sojourners who
came out of the land of Israel, and the sojourners who dwelt in Judah,
rejoiced. 26So there was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the time of
Solomon the son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in
Jerusalem. 27Then the priests and the Levites arose and blessed the people,
and their voice was heard, and their prayer came to his holy habitation in
heaven.
Pagan Shrines Destroyed
31 Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out
to the cities of Judah and broke in pieces the pillars and hewed down the
Ashe'rim and broke down the high places and the altars throughout all
Judah and Benjamin, and in E'phraim and Manas'seh, until they had
destroyed them all. Then all the sons of Israel returned to their cities, every
man to his possession.
2 And Hezeki'ah appointed the divisions of the priests and of the Levites,
division by division, each according to his service, the priests and the
Levites, for burnt offerings and peace offerings, to minister in the gates of
the camp of the LORD and to give thanks and praise. 3The contribution of
the king from his own possessions was for the burnt offerings: the burnt
offerings of morning and evening, and the burnt offerings for the sabbaths,
the new moons, and the appointed feasts, as it is written in the law of the
LORD. 4And he commanded the people who lived in Jerusalem to give the
portion due to the priests and the Levites, that they might give themselves
to the law of the LORD. 5As soon as the command was spread abroad, the
sons of Israel gave in abundance the first fruits of grain, wine, oil, honey,
and of all the produce of the field; and they brought in abundantly the tithe
of everything. 6And the sons of Israel and Judah who lived in the cities of
Judah also brought in the tithe of cattle and sheep, and the dedicated things t
which had been consecrated to the LORD their God, and laid them in heaps.
7In the third month they began to pile up the heaps, and finished them in the
seventh month. 8When Hezeki'ah and the princes came and saw the heaps,
they blessed the LORD and his people Israel. 9And Hezeki'ah questioned the
priests and the Levites about the heaps. 10Azari'ah the chief priest, who was
of the house of Za'dok, answered him, “Since they began to bring the
contributions into the house of the LORD we have eaten and had enough and
have plenty left; for the LORD has blessed his people, so that we have this
great store left.”
Reorganization of the Priests and Levites
11 Then Hezeki'ah commanded them to prepare chambers in the house of
the LORD; and they prepared them. 12And they faithfully brought in the
contributions, the tithes and the dedicated things. The chief officer in charge
of them was Conani'ah the Levite, with Shim'e-i his brother as second;
13while Jehi'el, Azazi'ah, Na'hath, As'ahel, Jer'imoth, Joz'abad, Eli'el,
Ismachi'ah, Mahath, and Bena'iah were overseers assisting Conani'ah and
Shim'e-i his brother, by the appointment of Hezeki'ah the king and Azari'ah
the chief officer of the house of God. 14And Ko're the son of Imnah the
Levite, keeper of the east gate, was over the freewill offerings to God, to
apportion the contribution reserved for the LORD and the most holy
offerings. 15Eden, Mini'amin, Jesh'ua, Shemai'ah, Amari'ah, and Shecani'ah
were faithfully assisting him in the cities of the priests, to distribute the
portions to their brethren, old and young alike, by divisions, 16except those
enrolled by genealogy, males from three years old and upwards, all who
entered the house of the LORD as the duty of each day required, for their
service according to their offices, by their divisions. 17The enrollment of the
priests was according to their fathers’ houses; that of the Levites from
twenty years old and upwards was according to their offices, by their
divisions. 18The priests were enrolled with all their little children, their
wives, their sons, and their daughters, the whole multitude; for they were
faithful in keeping themselves holy. 19And for the sons of Aaron, the
priests, who were in the fields of common land belonging to their cities,
there were men in the several cities who were designated by name to
distribute portions to every male among the priests and to every one among
the Levites who was enrolled.
20 Thus Hezeki'ah did throughout all Judah; and he did what was good and
right and faithful before the LORD his God. 21And every work that he
undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law
and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart, and
prospered.
Invasion of Sennacherib, King of Assyria
32 After these things and these acts of faithfulness Sennach'erib king of
Assyria came and invaded Judah and encamped against the fortified cities,
thinking to win them for himself. 2And when Hezeki'ah saw that
Sennach'erib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem, 3he planned
with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that
were outside the city; and they helped him. 4A great many people were
gathered, and they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through
the land, saying, “Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much
water?” 5He set to work resolutely and built up all the wall that was broken
down, and raised towers upon it, u and outside it he built another wall; and
he strengthened the Millo in the city of David. He also made weapons and
shields in abundance. 6And he set combat commanders over the people, and
gathered them together to him in the square at the gate of the city and spoke
encouragingly to them, saying, 7“Be strong and of good courage. Do not be
afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with
him; for there is one greater with us than with him. 8With him is an arm of
flesh; but with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles.”
And the people took confidence from the words of Hezeki'ah king of Judah.
9 After this Sennach'erib king of Assyria, who was besieging La'chish with
all his forces, sent his servants to Jerusalem to Hezeki'ah king of Judah and
to all the people of Judah that were in Jerusalem, saying, 10“Thus says
Sennach'erib king of Assyria, ‘On what are you relying, that you stand siege
in Jerusalem? 11Is not Hezeki'ah misleading you, that he may give you over
to die by famine and by thirst, when he tells you, “The LORD our God will
deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria”? 12Has not this same
Hezeki'ah taken away his high places and his altars and commanded Judah
and Jerusalem, “Before one altar you shall worship, and upon it you shall
burn your sacrifices”? 13Do you not know what I and my fathers have done
to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands
at all able to deliver their lands out of my hand? 14Who among all the gods
of those nations which my fathers utterly destroyed was able to deliver his
people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my
hand? 15Now therefore do not let Hezeki'ah deceive you or mislead you in
this fashion, and do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom
has been able to deliver his people from my hand or from the hand of my
fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand!’ ”
16 And his servants said still more against the Lord GOD and against his
servant Hezeki'ah. 17And he wrote letters to cast contempt on the LORD the
God of Israel and to speak against him, saying, “Like the gods of the
nations of the lands who have not delivered their people from my hands, so
the God of Hezeki'ah will not deliver his people from my hand.” 18And they
shouted it with a loud voice in the language of Judah to the people of
Jerusalem who were upon the wall, to frighten and terrify them, in order
that they might take the city. 19And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as
they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of
men’s hands.
20 Then Hezeki'ah the king and Isai'ah the prophet, the son of A'moz,
prayed because of this and cried to heaven. 21And the LORD sent an angel,
who cut off all the mighty warriors and commanders and officers in the
camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own
land. And when he came into the house of his god, some of his own sons
struck him down there with the sword. 22So the LORD saved Hezeki'ah and
the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennach'erib king of Assyria
and from the hand of all his enemies; and he gave them rest on every side.
23And many brought gifts to the LORD to Jerusalem and precious things to
Hezeki'ah king of Judah, so that he was exalted in the sight of all nations
from that time onward.
Hezekiah’s Sickness
24 In those days Hezeki'ah became sick and was at the point of death, and
he prayed to the LORD; and he answered him and gave him a sign. 25But
Hezeki'ah did not make return according to the benefit done to him, for his
heart was proud. Therefore wrath came upon him and Judah and Jerusalem.
26But Hezeki'ah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD did not come upon
them in the days of Hezekiah.
Hezekiah’s Prosperity and Good Deeds
27 And Hezeki'ah had very great riches and honor; and he made for
himself treasuries for silver, for gold, for precious stones, for spices, for
shields, and for all kinds of costly vessels; 28storehouses also for the yield
of grain, wine, and oil; and stalls for all kinds of cattle, and sheepfolds.
29He likewise provided cities for himself, and flocks and herds in
abundance; for God had given him very great possessions. 30This same
Hezeki'ah closed the upper outlet of the waters of Gi'hon and directed them
down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all
his works. 31And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon,
who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the
land, God left him to himself, in order to try him and to know all that was in
his heart.
32 Now the rest of the acts of Hezeki'ah, and his good deeds, behold, they
are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet the son of A'moz, in the Book
of the Kings of Judah and Israel. 33And Hezeki'ah slept with his fathers, and
they buried him in the ascent of the tombs of the sons of David; and all
Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honor at his death. And
Manas'seh his son reigned in his stead.
Manasseh’s Evil Reign over Judah
33 Manas'seh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. 2He did what was evil in the sight of
the LORD, according to the abominable practices of the nations whom the
LORD drove out before the sons of Israel. 3For he rebuilt the high places
which his father Hezeki'ah had broken down, and erected altars to the
Ba'als, and made Ashe'rahs, and worshiped all the host of heaven, and
served them. 4And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the
LORD had said, “In Jerusalem shall my name be for ever.” 5And he built
altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD.
6And he burned his sons as an offering in the valley of the son of Hinnom,
and practiced soothsaying and augury and sorcery, and dealt with mediums
and with wizards. He did much evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking him
to anger. 7And the image of the idol which he had made he set in the house
of God, of which God said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house,
and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will
put my name for ever; 8and I will no more remove the foot of Israel from
the land which I appointed for your fathers, if only they will be careful to
do all that I have commanded them, all the law, the statutes, and the
ordinances given through Moses.” 9Manas'seh seduced Judah and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that they did more evil than the nations whom
the LORD destroyed before the sons of Israel.
Manasseh Restored after Repentance
10 The LORD spoke to Manas'seh and to his people, but they gave no heed.
11Therefore the LORD brought upon them the commanders of the army of
the king of Assyria, who took Manas'seh with hooks and bound him with
fetters of bronze and brought him to Babylon. * 12And when he was in
distress he entreated the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself
greatly before the God of his fathers. 13He prayed to him, and God received
his entreaty and heard his supplication and brought him again to Jerusalem
into his kingdom. Then Manas'seh knew that the LORD was God.
14 Afterwards he built an outer wall for the city of David west of Gi'hon,
in the valley, and for the entrance into the Fish Gate, and carried it round
O'phel, and raised it to a very great height; he also put commanders of the
army in all the fortified cities in Judah. 15And he took away the foreign
gods and the idol from the house of the LORD, and all the altars that he had
built on the mountain of the house of the LORD and in Jerusalem, and he
threw them outside of the city. 16He also restored the altar of the LORD and
offered upon it sacrifices of peace offerings and of thanksgiving; and he
commanded Judah to serve the LORD the God of Israel. 17Nevertheless the
people still sacrificed at the high places, but only to the LORD their God.
Death of Manasseh
18 Now the rest of the acts of Manas'seh, and his prayer * to his God, and
the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of the LORD the God
of Israel, behold, they are in the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 19And his
prayer, and how God received his entreaty, and all his sin and his
faithlessness, and the sites on which he built high places and set up the
Ashe'rim and the images, before he humbled himself, behold, they are
written in the Chronicles of the Seers. v 20So Manas'seh slept with his
fathers, and they buried him in his house; and A'mon his son reigned in his
stead.
Amon’s Reign and Death
21 A'mon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned two years in Jerusalem. 22He did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD, as Manas'seh his father had done. A'mon sacrificed to all the images
that Manasseh his father had made, and served them. 23And he did not
humble himself before the LORD, as Manas'seh his father had humbled
himself, but this A'mon incurred guilt more and more. 24And his servants
conspired against him and killed him in his house. 25But the people of the
land slew all those who had conspired against King A'mon; and the people
of the land made Josi'ah his son king in his stead.
Josiah’s Reign over Judah
34 Josi'ah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
thirty-one years in Jerusalem. 2He did what was right in the eyes of the
LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father; and he did not turn aside
to the right or to the left. 3For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was
yet a boy, he began to seek the God of David his father; and in the twelfth
year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the
Ashe'rim, and the graven and the molten images. 4And they broke down the
altars of the Ba'als in his presence; and he hewed down the incense altars
which stood above them; and he broke in pieces the Ashe'rim and the
graven and the molten images, and he made dust of them and strewed it
over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 5He also burned the
bones of the priests on their altars, and purged Judah and Jerusalem. 6And
in the cities of Manas'seh, E'phraim, and Simeon, and as far as Naph'tali, in
their ruins w round about, 7he broke down the altars, and beat the Ashe'rim
and the images into powder, and hewed down all the incense altars
throughout all the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
The Book of the Law Is Found
8 Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land
and the house, he sent Sha'phan the son of Azali'ah, and Ma-asei'ah the
governor of the city, and Jo'ah the son of Jo'ahaz, the recorder, to repair the
house of the LORD his God. 9They came to Hilki'ah the high priest and
delivered the money that had been brought into the house of God, which the
Levites, the keepers of the threshold, had collected from Manas'seh and
E'phraim and from all the remnant of Israel and from all Judah and
Benjamin and from the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10They delivered it to the
workmen who had the oversight of the house of the LORD; and the workmen
who were working in the house of the LORD gave it for repairing and
restoring the house. 11They gave it to the carpenters and the builders to buy
quarried stone, and timber for binders and beams for the buildings which
the kings of Judah had let go to ruin. 12And the men did the work faithfully.
Over them were set Jahath and Obadi'ah the Levites, of the sons of Merar'i,
and Zechari'ah and Meshul'lam, of the sons of the Ko'hathites, to have
oversight. The Levites, all who were skilful with instruments of music,
13were over the burden-bearers and directed all who did work in every kind
of service; and some of the Levites were scribes, and officials, and
gatekeepers.
14 While they were bringing out the money that had been brought into the
house of the LORD, Hilki'ah the priest found the book of the law of the LORD
given through Moses. 15Then Hilki'ah said to Sha'phan the secretary, “I
have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD”; and Hilkiah
gave the book to Shaphan. 16Sha'phan brought the book to the king, and
further reported to the king, “All that was committed to your servants they
are doing. 17They have emptied out the money that was found in the house
of the LORD and have delivered it into the hand of the overseers and the
workmen.” 18Then Sha'phan the secretary told the king, “Hilki'ah the priest
has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it before the king.
19 When the king heard the words of the law he tore his clothes. 20And the
king commanded Hilki'ah, Ahi'kam the son of Sha'phan, Abdon the son of
Micah, Shaphan the secretary, and Asai'ah the king’s servant, saying, 21“Go,
inquire of the LORD for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah,
concerning the words of the book that has been found; for great is the wrath
of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the
word of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book.”
The Prophetess Huldah Consulted
22 So Hilki'ah and those whom the king had sent x went to Huldah the
prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, keeper
of the wardrobe (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter) and
spoke to her to that effect. 23And she said to them, “Thus says the LORD, the
God of Israel: ‘Tell the man who sent you to me, 24Thus says the LORD,
Behold, I will bring evil upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the
curses that are written in the book which was read before the king of Judah.
25Because they have forsaken me and have burned incense to other gods,
that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands,
therefore my wrath will be poured out upon this place and will not be
quenched. 26But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the LORD,
thus shall you say to him, Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Regarding
the words which you have heard, 27because your heart was penitent and you
humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place
and its inhabitants, and you have humbled yourself before me, and have
torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, says the LORD.
28Behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to
your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the evil which I will
bring upon this place and its inhabitants.’ ” And they brought back word to
the king.
The Covenant Renewed
29 Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and
Jerusalem. 30And the king went up to the house of the LORD, with all the
men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the
Levites, all the people both great and small; and he read in their hearing all
the words of the book of the covenant which had been found in the house of
the LORD. 31And the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the
LORD, to walk after the LORD and to keep his commandments and his
covenants and his statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the
words of the covenant that were written in this book. 32Then he made all
who were present in Jerusalem and in Benjamin stand to it. And the
inhabitants of Jerusalem did according to the covenant of God, the God of
their fathers. 33And Josi'ah took away all the abominations from all the
territory that belonged to the sons of Israel, and made all who were in Israel
serve the LORD their God. All his days they did not turn away from
following the LORD the God of their fathers.
Celebration of the Passover
35 Josi'ah kept a Passover to the LORD in Jerusalem; and they killed the
Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the first month. 2He appointed the
priests to their offices and encouraged them in the service of the house of
the LORD. 3And he said to the Levites who taught all Israel and who were
holy to the LORD, “Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of
David, king of Israel, built; you need no longer carry it upon your
shoulders. Now serve the LORD your God and his people Israel. 4Prepare
yourselves according to your fathers’ houses by your divisions, following
the directions of David king of Israel and the directions of Solomon his son.
5And stand in the holy place according to the groupings of the fathers’
houses of your brethren the lay people, and let there be for each a part of a
father’s house of the Levites. y 6And kill the Passover lamb, and sanctify
yourselves, and prepare for your brethren, to do according to the word of
the LORD by Moses.”
7 Then Josi'ah contributed to the lay people, as Passover offerings for all
that were present, lambs and kids from the flock to the number of thirty
thousand, and three thousand bulls; these were from the king’s possessions.
8And his princes contributed willingly to the people, to the priests, and to
the Levites. Hilki'ah, Zechari'ah, and Jehi'el, the chief officers of the house
of God, gave to the priests for the Passover offerings two thousand six
hundred lambs and kids and three hundred bulls. 9Conani'ah also, and
Shemai'ah and Nethan'el his brothers, and Hashabi'ah and Je-i'el and
Joz'abad, the chiefs of the Levites, gave to the Levites for the Passover
offerings five thousand lambs and kids and five hundred bulls.
10 When the service had been prepared for, the priests stood in their place,
and the Levites in their divisions according to the king’s command. 11And
they killed the Passover lamb, and the priests sprinkled the blood which
they received from them while the Levites flayed the victims. 12And they
set aside the burnt offerings that they might distribute them according to the
groupings of the fathers’ houses of the lay people, to offer to the LORD, as it
is written in the book of Moses. And so they did with the bulls. 13And they
roasted the Passover lamb with fire according to the ordinance; and they
boiled the holy offerings in pots, in caldrons, and in pans, and carried them
quickly to all the lay people. 14And afterward they prepared for themselves
and for the priests, because the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in
offering the burnt offerings and the fat parts until night; so the Levites
prepared for themselves and for the priests the sons of Aaron. 15The singers,
the sons of A'saph, were in their place according to the command of David,
and Asaph, and He'man, and Jedu'thun the king’s seer; and the gatekeepers
were at each gate; they did not need to depart from their service, for their
brethren the Levites prepared for them.
16 So all the service of the LORD was prepared that day, to keep the
Passover and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the LORD, according to
the command of King Josi'ah. 17And the sons of Israel who were present
kept the Passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.
18No Passover like it had been kept in Israel since the days of Samuel the
prophet; none of the kings of Israel had kept such a Passover as .was kept
by Josi'ah, and the priests and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel who
were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 19In the eighteenth year of
the reign of Josi'ah this Passover was kept.
Defeat by Pharaoh Neco and the Death of Josiah
20 After all this, when Josi'ah had prepared the temple, Neco king of Egypt
went up to fight at Car'chemish on the Euphrates and Josiah went out

against him. 21But he sent envoys to him, saying, “What have we to do with
each other, king of Judah? I am not coming against you this day, but against
the house with which I am at war; and God has commanded me to make
haste. Cease opposing God, who is with me, lest he destroy you.”
22Nevertheless Josi'ah would not turn away from him, but disguised himself
in order to fight with him. He did not listen to the words of Neco from the
mouth of God, but joined battle in the plain of Megid'do. 23And the archers
shot King Josi'ah; and the king said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am
badly wounded.” 24So his servants took him out of the chariot and carried
him in his second chariot and brought him to Jerusalem. And he died, and
was buried in the tombs of his fathers. All Judah and Jerusalem mourned
for Josi'ah. 25Jeremi'ah also uttered a lament for Josi'ah; and all the singing
men and singing women have spoken of Josiah in their laments to this day.
They made these an ordinance in Israel; behold, they are written in the
Laments. 26Now the rest of the acts of Josi'ah, and his good deeds according
to what is written in the law of the LORD, 27and his acts, first and last,
behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
Jehoahaz’s Reign over Judah
36 The people of the land took Jeho'ahaz the son of Josi'ah and made
him king in his father’s stead in Jerusalem. 2Jeho'ahaz was twenty-three
years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in
Jerusalem. 3Then the king of Egypt deposed him in Jerusalem and laid upon
the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 4And the
king of Egypt made Eli'akim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem,
and changed his name to Jehoi'akim; but Neco took Jeho'ahaz his brother
and carried him to Egypt.
The Reign and Captivity of Jehoiakim
5 Jehoi'akim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD his God. 6Against him came up Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon,
and bound him in fetters to take him to Babylon. 7Nebuchadnez'zar also
carried part of the vessels of the house of the LORD to Babylon and put them
in his palace in Babylon. 8Now the rest of the acts of Jehoi'akim, and the
abominations which he did, and what was found against him, behold, they
are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah; and Jehoi'achin his
The Reign and Captivity of Jehoiachin
9 Jehoi'achin was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of
the LORD. 10In the spring of the year King Nebuchadnez'zar sent and
brought him to Babylon, with the precious vessels of the house of the LORD,
and made his brother Zedeki'ah king over Judah and Jerusalem.
Zedekiah’s Reign over Judah
11 Zedeki'ah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. 12He did what was evil in the sight of the
LORD his God. He did not humble himself before Jeremi'ah the prophet,
who spoke from the mouth of the LORD. 13He also rebelled against King
Nebuchadnez'zar, who had made him swear by God; he stiffened his neck
and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel. 14All
the leading priests and the people likewise were exceedingly unfaithful,
following all the abominations of the nations; and they polluted the house
of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.
The Fall of Jerusalem
15 The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his
messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling

place; 16but they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words,
and scoffing at his prophets, till the wrath of the LORD rose against his
people, till there was no remedy.
17 Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chalde'ans, who
slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and
had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged; he gave them
all into his hand. 18And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small,
and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and
of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon. 19And they burned the house
of God, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its palaces
with fire, and destroyed all its precious vessels. 20He took into exile in
Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants
to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia, 21to
fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremi'ah, until the land had
enjoyed its sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept sabbath, to
fulfil seventy years.
Cyrus Proclaims Liberty for the Exiles
22 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD
by the mouth of Jeremi'ah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the
spirit of Cyrus king of Persia so that he made a proclamation throughout all
his kingdom and also put it in writing: 23“Thus says Cyrus king of Persia,
‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth,
and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
Whoever is among you of all his people, may the LORD his God be with
him. Let him go up.’ ”
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Ezra
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
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THE BOOK OF EZRA
The End of the Babylonian Captivity
1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by
the mouth of Jeremi'ah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the
spirit of Cyrus king of Persia so that he made a proclamation throughout all
his kingdom and also put it in writing:
2 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: * The LORD, the God of heaven, has
given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him
a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3Whoever is among you of all his
people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is
in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel—he is the
God who is in Jerusalem; 4and let each survivor, in whatever place he
sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with
goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God
which is in Jerusalem.”
5 Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin,
and the priests and the Levites, every one whose spirit God had stirred to go
up to rebuild the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem; 6and all who
were about them aided them with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods,
with beasts, and with costly wares, besides all that was freely offered.
7Cyrus the king also brought out the vessels of the house of the LORD which
Nebuchadnez'zar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house
of his gods. 8Cyrus king of Persia brought these out in charge of Mith'redath
the treasurer, who counted them out to Shesh-baz'zar the prince of Judah.
9And this was the number of them: a thousand a basins of gold, a thousand
basins of silver, twenty-nine censers, 10thirty bowls of gold, two thousand b

four hundred and ten bowls of silver, and a thousand other vessels; 11all the
vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand four hundred and sixty-
nine. c All these did Shesh-baz'zar bring up, when the exiles were brought
up from Babylonia to Jerusalem.
List of Returned Exiles
2 Now these were the people of the province who came up out of the
captivity of those exiles whom Nebuchadnez'zar the king of Babylon had
carried captive to Babylonia; they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to
his own town. 2They came with Zerub'babel, Jesh'ua, Nehemi'ah, Serai'ah,
Re-elai'ah, Mor'decai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Re'hum, and Ba'anah.
The number of the men of the sons of Israel: 3the sons of Parosh, two
thousand one hundred and seventy-two. 4The sons of Shephati'ah, three
hundred and seventy-two. 5The sons of A'rah, seven hundred and seventy-
five. 6The sons of Pa'hath-mo'ab, namely the sons of Jesh'ua and Jo'ab, two
thousand eight hundred and twelve. 7The sons of E'lam, one thousand two
hundred and fifty-four. 8The sons of Zattu, nine hundred and forty-five.
9The sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty. 10The sons of Ba'ni, six
hundred and forty-two. 11The sons of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-three.
12The sons of Azgad, one thousand two hundred and twenty-two. 13The
sons of Adoni'kam, six hundred and sixty-six. 14The sons of Bigvai, two
thousand and fifty- six. 15The sons of A'din, four hundred and fifty-four.
16The sons of A'ter, namely of Hezeki'ah, ninety-eight. 17The sons of Bezai,
three hundred and twenty-three. 18The sons of Jo'rah, one hundred and
twelve. 19The sons of Hashum, two hundred and twenty-three. 20The sons
of Gibbar, ninety-five. 21The sons of Bethlehem, one hundred and twenty-
three. 22The men of Netoph'ah, fifty-six. 23The men of An'athoth, one
hundred and twenty-eight. 24The sons of Az'maveth, forty-two. 25The sons
of Kir''iathar'im, Chephi'rah, and Be-er'oth, seven hundred and forty-three.
26The sons of Ra'mah and Ge'ba, six hundred and twenty-one. 27The men of
Michmas, one hundred and twenty-two. 28The men of Bethel and Ai, two
hundred and twenty-three. 29The sons of Nebo, fifty-two. 30The sons of
Magbish, one hundred and fifty-six. 31The sons of the other E'lam, one
thousand two hundred and fifty-four. 32The sons of Harim, three hundred
and twenty. 33The sons of Lod, Ha'did, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-
five. 34The sons of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five. 35The sons of
Sena'ah, three thousand six hundred and thirty.
36 The priests: the sons of Jedai'ah, of the house of Jesh'ua, nine hundred
and seventy-three. 37The sons of Immer, one thousand and fifty-two. 38The
sons of Pashhur, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven. 39The sons of
Harim, one thousand and seventeen.
40 The Levites: the sons of Jesh'ua and Kad'mi-el, of the sons of
Hod''avi'ah, seventy-four. 41The singers: the sons of A'saph, one hundred

and twenty-eight. 42The sons of the gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the
sons of A'ter, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hati'ta,
and the sons of Shobai, in all one hundred and thirty-nine.
43 The temple servants:d the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasu'pha, the sons
of Tabba'oth, 44the sons of Keros, the sons of Si'aha, the sons of Padon,
45the sons of Leba'nah, the sons of Hag'abah, the sons of Akkub, 46the sons
of Hagab, the sons of Shamlai, the sons of Ha'nan, 47the sons of Giddel, the
sons of Gahar, the sons of Re-ai'ah, 48the sons of Re'zin, the sons of
Neko'da, the sons of Gazzam, 49the sons of Uzza, the sons of Pase'ah, the
sons of Besai, 50the sons of Asnah, the sons of Me-u'nim, the sons of
Nephi'sim, 51the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Haku'pha, the sons of Harhur,
52the sons of Bazluth, the sons of Mehi'da, the sons of Harsha, 53the sons of
Barkos, the sons of Sis'era, the sons of Te'mah, 54the sons of Nezi'ah, and
the sons of Hati'pha.
55 The sons of Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of
Hasso'phereth, the sons of Peru'da, 56the sons of Ja'alah, the sons of Darkon,
the sons of Giddel, 57the sons of Shephati'ah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of
Po'chereth-hazzeba'im, and the sons of A'mi.
58 All the temple servants d and the sons of Solomon’s servants were three
hundred and ninety-two.

59 The following were those who came up from Tel-me'lah, Tel-har'sha,
Cherub, Addan, and Immer, though they could not prove their fathers’
houses or their descent, whether they belonged to Israel: 60the sons of
Delai'ah, the sons of Tobi'ah, and the sons of Neko'da, six hundred and
fifty-two. 61Also, of the sons of the priests: the sons of Habai'ah, the sons of
Hakkoz, and the sons of Barzil'lai (who had taken a wife from the daughters
of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called by their name). 62These sought
their registration among those enrolled in the genealogies, but they were not
found there, and so they were excluded from the priesthood as unclean;
63the governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy
food, until there should be a priest to consult U'rim and Thummim.
64 The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred and
sixty, 65besides their menservants and maidservants, of whom there were

seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred
male and female singers. 66Their horses were seven hundred and thirty-six,
their mules were two hundred and forty-five, 67their camels were four
hundred and thirty-five, and their donkeys were six thousand seven hundred
and twenty.
68 Some of the heads of families, when they came to the house of the
LORD which is in Jerusalem, made freewill offerings for the house of God,
to erect it on its site; 69according to their ability they gave to the treasury of
the work sixty-one thousand darics of gold, five thousand minas of silver,
and one hundred priests’ garments.
70 The priests, the Levites, and some of the people lived in Jerusalem and
its vicinity; e and the singers, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived
in their towns, and all Israel in their towns.
Worship Restored at Jerusalem
3 When the seventh month came, and the sons of Israel were in the
towns, the people gathered as one man to Jerusalem. 2Then arose Jesh'ua
the son of Jo'zadak, with his fellow priests, and Zerub'babel the son of She-
al'ti-el with his kinsmen, and they built the altar of the God of Israel, to
offer burnt offerings upon it, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of
God. 3They set the altar in its place, for fear was upon them because of the
peoples of the lands, and they offered burnt offerings upon it to the LORD,
burnt offerings morning and evening. 4And they kept the feast of booths, as
it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number according to
the ordinance, as each day required, 5and after that the continual burnt
offerings, the offerings at the new moon and at all the appointed feasts of
the LORD, and the offerings of every one who made a freewill offering to
the LORD. 6From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer
burnt offerings to the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD
was not yet laid. 7So they gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and
food, drink, and oil to the Sido'nians and the Tyr'ians to bring cedar trees
from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the grant which they had
from Cyrus king of Persia.
Foundation of the Temple Laid
8 Now in the second year of their coming to the house of God at
Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el and

Jesh'ua the son of Jo'zadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their
brethren, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem
from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and
upward, to have the oversight of the work of the house of the LORD. 9And
Jesh'ua with his sons and his kinsmen, and Kad'mi-el and his sons, the sons
of Judah, together took the oversight of the workmen in the house of God,
along with the sons of Hen'adad and the Levites, their sons and kinsmen.
10 And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD,
the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites,
the sons of A'saph, with cymbals, to praise the LORD, according to the
directions of David king of Israel; 11and they sang responsively, praising
and giving thanks to the LORD,
00for his mercy endures for ever toward Israel.”
And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the
LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. 12But
many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who
had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the
foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy;
13so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from
the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted with a great
shout, and the sound was heard afar.
Resistance to Rebuilding the Temple
4 Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the
returned exiles were building a temple to the LORD, the God of Israel, 2they
approached Zerub'babel and the heads of fathers’ houses and said to them,
“Let us build with you; for we worship your God as you do, and we have
been sacrificing to him ever since the days of E'sar-had'don king of Assyria
who brought us here.” 3But Zerub'babel, Jesh'ua, and the rest of the heads
of fathers’ houses in Israel said to them, “You have nothing to do with us in
building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the LORD, the God
of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.”
4 Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah, and made
them afraid to build,* 5and hired counselors against them to frustrate their
purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Dari'us
king of Persia.
Letters of Protest against Rebuilding
6 And in the reign of Ahas'u-e'rus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote
an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

7 And in the days of Ar-ta-xerx'es, Bishlam and Mith'redath and Ta'be-el
and the rest of their associates wrote to Ar-ta-xerxes king of Persia; the
letter was written in Arama'ic and translated. f 8Re'hum the commander and
Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Ar-ta-xerx'es the
king as follows—9then wrote Re'hum the commander, Shimshai the scribe,
and the rest of their associates, the judges, the governors, the officials, the
Persians, the men of E'rech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the
E'lamites, 10and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnap'par
deported and settled in the cities of Samar'ia and in the rest of the province
Beyond the River, and now 11this is a copy of the letter that they sent—“To
Ar-ta-xerx'es the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the
River, send greeting. And now 12be it known to the king that the Jews who
came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that
rebellious and wicked city; they are finishing the walls and repairing the
foundations. 13Now be it known to the king that, if this city is rebuilt and
the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal
revenue will be impaired. 14Now because we eat the salt of the palace and it
is not fitting for us to witness the king’s dishonor, therefore we send and
inform the king, 15in order that search may be made in the book of the
records of your fathers. You will find in the book of the records and learn
that this city is a rebellious city, hurtful to kings and provinces, and that
sedition was stirred up in it from of old. That was why this city was laid
waste. 16We make known to the king that, if this city is rebuilt and its walls
finished, you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the
River.”
Rebuilding of Jerusalem Forced to Halt
17 The king sent an answer: “To Re'hum the commander and Shimshai the
scribe and the rest of their associates who live in Samar'ia and in the rest of
the province Beyond the River, greeting. And now 18the letter which you
sent to us has been plainly read before me. 19And I made a decree, and
search has been made, and it has been found that this city from of old has
risen against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made in it.
20And mighty kings have been over Jerusalem, who ruled over the whole
province Beyond the River, to whom tribute, custom, and toll were paid.
21Therefore make a decree that these men be made to cease, and that this
city be not rebuilt, until a decree is made by me. 22And take care not to be
slack in this matter; why should damage grow to the hurt of the king?”
23 Then, when the copy of King Ar-ta-xerx'es’ letter was read before
Re'hum and Shimshai the scribe and their associates, they went in haste to
the Jews at Jerusalem and by force and power made them cease. 24Then the
work on the house of God which is in Jerusalem stopped; and it ceased until
the second year of the reign of Dari'us king of Persia.
Restoration of the Temple Resumed
5 * Now the prophets, Hag'gai and Zechari'ah the son of Iddo,
prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the
God of Israel who was over them. 2Then Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el
and Jesh'ua the son of Jo'zadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God
which is in Jerusalem; and with them were the prophets of God, helping
them.
3 At the same time Tat'tenai the governor of the province Beyond the
River and She'thar-boz'enai and their associates came to them and spoke to
them thus, “Who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish this
structure?” 4They g also asked them this, “What are the names of the men
who are building this building?” 5But the eye of their God was upon the
elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them till a report should reach
Dari'us and then answer be returned by letter concerning it.
6 The copy of the letter which Tat'tenai the governor of the province
Beyond the River and She'thar-boz'enai and his associates the governors
who were in the province Beyond the River sent to Dari'us the king; 7they
sent him a report, in which was written as follows: “To Dari'us the king, all
peace. 8Be it known to the king that we went to the province of Judah, to
the house of the great God. It is being built with huge stones, and timber is
laid in the walls; this work goes on diligently and prospers in their hands.
9Then we asked those elders and spoke to them thus, ‘Who gave you a
decree to build this house and to finish this structure?’ 10We also asked
them their names, for your information, that we might write down the
names of the men at their head. 11And this was their reply to us: ‘We are the
servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the house
that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and
finished. 12But because our fathers had angered the God of heaven, he gave
them into the hand of Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon, the Chalde'an,
who destroyed this house and carried away the people to Babylonia.
13However in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made
a decree that this house of God should be rebuilt. 14And the gold and silver
vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnez'zar had taken out of the
temple that was in Jerusalem and brought into the temple of Babylon, these
Cyrus the king took out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered
to one whose name was Shesh-baz'zar, whom he had made governor; 15and
he said to him, “Take these vessels, go and put them in the temple which is
in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site.” 16Then this
Shesh-baz'zar came and laid the foundations of the house of God which is
in Jerusalem; and from that time until now it has been in building, and it is
not yet finished.’ 17Therefore, if it seem good to the king, let search be
made in the royal archives there in Babylon, to see whether a decree was
issued by Cyrus the king for the rebuilding of this house of God in
Jerusalem. And let the king send us his pleasure in this matter.”
The Decree of Darius
6 Then Dari'us the king made a decree, and search was made in
Babylonia, in the house of the archives where the documents were stored.
2And in Ecbat'ana, the capital which is in the province of Med'ia, a scroll
was found on which this was written: “A record. 3In the first year of Cyrus
the king, Cyrus the king issued a decree: Concerning the house of God at
Jerusalem, let the house be rebuilt, the place where sacrifices are offered
and burnt offerings are brought; its height shall be sixty cubits and its
breadth sixty cubits, 4with three courses of great stones and one course of
timber; let the cost be paid from the royal treasury. 5And also let the gold
and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnez'zar took out of
the temple that is in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be restored and
brought back to the temple which is in Jerusalem, each to its place; you
shall put them in the house of God.
6 “Now therefore, Tat'tenai, governor of the province Beyond the River,
She'thar-boz'enai, and your associates the governors who are in the province
Beyond the River, keep away; 7let the work on this house of God alone; let
the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this house of
God on its site. 8Moreover I make a decree regarding what you shall do for
these elders of the Jews for the rebuilding of this house of God; the cost is
to be paid to these men in full and without delay from the royal revenue, the
tribute of the province from Beyond the River. 9And whatever is needed—
young bulls, rams, or sheep for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat,
salt, wine, or oil, as the priests at Jerusalem require—let that be given to
them day by day without fail, 10that they may offer pleasing sacrifices to the
God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king and his sons. 11Also I make
a decree that if any one alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of his
house, and he shall be impaled upon it, and his house shall be made a
dunghill. 12May the God who has caused his name to dwell there overthrow
any king or people that shall put forth a hand to alter this, or to destroy this
house of God which is in Jerusalem. I Dari'us make a decree; let it be done
with all diligence.”
Completion and Dedication of the Temple
13 Then, according to the word sent by Dari'us the king, Tat'tenai, the
governor of the province Beyond the River, She'thar-boz'enai, and their
associates did with all diligence what Darius the king had ordered. 14And
the elders of the Jews built and prospered, through the prophesying of
Hag'gai the prophet and Zechari'ah the son of Iddo. They finished their
building by command of the God of Israel and by decree of Cyrus and
Dari'us and Ar-ta-xerx'es king of Persia; 15and this house was finished on
the third day of the month of Adar', in the sixth year of the reign of Dari'us
the king.
16 And the sons of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the
returned exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy.
17They offered at the dedication of this house of God one hundred bulls,
two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel
twelve he-goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. 18And they
set the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their courses, for the
service of God at Jerusalem, as it is written in the book of Moses.
The Passover Is Celebrated
19 On the fourteenth day of the first month the returned exiles kept the
Passover. 20For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves together;
all of them were clean. So they killed the Passover lamb for all the returned
exiles, for their fellow priests, and for themselves; 21it was eaten by the
sons of Israel who had returned from exile, and also by every one who had
joined them and separated himself from the pollutions of the peoples of the
land to worship the LORD, the God of Israel. 22And they kept the feast of
unleavened bread seven days with joy; for the LORD had made them joyful,
and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria to them, so that he aided
them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.
The Arrival and Work of Ezra
7 * Now after this, in the reign of Ar-ta-xerx'es king of Persia, Ezra the
son of Serai'ah, son of Azari'ah, son of Hilki'ah, 2son of Shallum, son of
Za'dok, son of Ahi'tub, 3son of Amari'ah, son of Azari'ah, son of Mera'ioth,
4son of Zerahi'ah, son of Uzzi, son of Bukki, 5son of Abishu'a, son of
Phin'ehas, son of Elea'zar, son of Aaron the chief priest—6this Ezra went up
from Babylonia. He was a scribe skilled in the law of Moses which the
LORD the God of Israel had given; and the king granted him all that he
asked, for the hand of the LORD his God was upon him.
7 And there went up also to Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Ar-ta-xerx'es
the king, some of the sons of Israel, and some of the priests and Levites, the
singers and gatekeepers, and the temple servants. 8And he came to
Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king; 9for
on the first day of the first month he began h to go up from Babylonia, and
on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand
of his God was upon him. 10For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of
the LORD, and to do it, and to teach his statutes and ordinances in Israel.
The Letter of Ar-ta-xerxes to Ezra
11 This is a copy of the letter which King Ar-ta-xerx'es gave to Ezra the
priest, the scribe, learned in matters of the commandments of the LORD and
his statutes for Israel: 12 “Ar-ta-xerx'es, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the
scribe of the law of the God of heaven. x And now 13I make a decree that
any one of the sons of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom, who
freely offers to go to Jerusalem, may go with you. 14For you are sent by the
king and his seven counselors to make inquiries about Judah and Jerusalem
according to the law of your God, which is in your hand, 15and also to
convey the silver and gold which the king and his counselors have freely
offered to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem, 16with all the
silver and gold which you shall find in the whole province of Babylonia,
and with the freewill offerings of the people and the priests, vowed
willingly for the house of their God which is in Jerusalem. 17With this
money, then, you shall with all diligence buy bulls, rams, and lambs, with
their cereal offerings and their drink offerings, and you shall offer them
upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerusalem. 18Whatever
seems good to you and your brethren to do with the rest of the silver and
gold, you may do, according to the will of your God. 19The vessels that
have been given you for the service of the house of your God, you shall
deliver before the God of Jerusalem. 20And whatever else is required for the
house of your God, which you have occasion to provide, you may provide it
out of the king’s treasury.
21 “And I, Ar-ta-xerx'es the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the
province Beyond the River: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law
of the God of heaven, requires of you, be it done with all diligence, 22up to
a hundred talents of silver, a hundred cors of wheat, a hundred baths of
wine, a hundred baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much.
23Whatever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be done in full for
the house of the God of heaven, lest his wrath be against the realm of the
king and his sons. 24We also notify you that it shall not be lawful to impose
tribute, custom, or toll upon any one of the priests, the Levites, the singers,
the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or other servants of this house of God.
25 “And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God which is in your
hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the
province Beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God; and
those who do not know them, you shall teach. 26Whoever will not obey the
law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be strictly executed
upon him, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of his
goods or for imprisonment.”
27 Blessed be the LORD, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as
this into the heart of the king, to beautify the house of the LORD which is in
Jerusalem, 28and who extended to me his merciful love before the king and
his counselors, and before all the king’s mighty officers. I took courage, for
the hand of the LORD my God was upon me, and I gathered leading men
from Israel to go up with me.
Heads of Families Who Returned with Ezra
8 These are the heads of their fathers’ houses, and this is the genealogy
of those who went up with me from Babylonia, in the reign of Ar-ta-xerx'es
the king: 2Of the sons of Phin'ehas, Gershom. Of the sons of Ith'amar,
Daniel. Of the sons of David, Hattush, 3of the sons of Shecani'ah. Of the
sons of Pa'rosh, Zechari'ah, with whom were registered one hundred and
fifty men. 4Of the sons of Pa'hath-mo'ab, El'ie-ho-e'nai the son of Zerahi'ah,
and with him two hundred men. 5Of the sons of Zattu, i Shecani'ah the son
of Jaha'ziel, and with him three hundred men. 6Of the sons of A'din, E'bed
the son of Jonathan, and with him fifty men. 7Of the sons of E'lam,
Jeshai'ah the son of Athali'ah, and with him seventy men. 8Of the sons of
Shephati'ah, Zebadi'ah the son of Michael, and with him eighty men. 9Of
the sons of Jo'ab, Obadi'ah the son of Jehi'el, and with him two hundred and
eighteen men. 10Of the sons of Ba'ni, j Shelo'mith the son of Josiphi'ah, and
with him a hundred and sixty men. 11Of the sons of Bebai, Zechari'ah, the
son of Bebai, and with him twenty-eight men. 12Of the sons of Azgad,
Joha'nan the son of Hak'katan, and with him a hundred and ten men. 13Of
the sons of Adoni'kam, those who came later, their names being Eliph'elet,
Jeu'el, and Shemai'ah, and with them sixty men. 14Of the sons of Bigvai,
Uthai and Zaccur, and with them seventy men.
Ministers for the Temple
15 I gathered them to the river that runs to Aha'va, and there we encamped
three days. As I reviewed the people and the priests, I found there none of
the sons of Levi. 16Then I sent for Elie'zer, Ar'iel, Shemai'ah, Elna'than,
Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechari'ah, and Meshul'lam, leading men, and for
Joi'arib and Elnathan, who were men of insight, 17and sent them to Iddo, the
leading man at the place Casiphi'a, telling them what to say to Iddo and his
brethren the temple servants k at the place Casiphia, namely, to send us
ministers for the house of our God. 18And by the good hand of our God
upon us, they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of Mah'li the son
of Levi, son of Israel, namely, Sherebi'ah with his sons and kinsmen,
eighteen; 19also Hashabi'ah and with him Jeshai'ah of the sons of Merar'i,
with his kinsmen and their sons, twenty; 20besides two hundred and twenty
of the temple servants, whom David and his officials had set apart to attend
the Levites. These were all mentioned by name.
Fasting and Prayer for Protection
21 Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Aha'va, that we might
humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a straight way for
ourselves, our children, and all our goods. 22For I was ashamed to ask the
king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on
our way; since we had told the king, “The hand of our God is for good upon
all that seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all that forsake him.”
23So we fasted and besought our God for this, and he listened to our
entreaty.
Gifts for the Temple
24 Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests: Sherebi'ah, Hashabi'ah,
and ten of their kinsmen with them. 25And I weighed out to them the silver
and the gold and the vessels, the offering for the house of our God which
the king and his counselors and his lords and all Israel there present had
offered; 26I weighed out into their hand six hundred and fifty talents of
silver, and silver vessels worth a hundred talents, and a hundred talents of
gold, 27twenty bowls of gold worth a thousand darics, and two vessels of
fine bright bronze as precious as gold. 28And I said to them, “You are holy
to the LORD, and the vessels are holy; and the silver and the gold are a
freewill offering to the LORD, the God of your fathers. 29Guard them and
keep them until you weigh them before the chief priests and the Levites and
the heads of fathers’ houses in Israel at Jerusalem, within the chambers of
the house of the LORD.” 30So the priests and the Levites took over the
weight of the silver and the gold and the vessels, to bring them to
Jerusalem, to the house of our God.
The Return to Jerusalem
31 Then we departed from the river Aha'va on the twelfth day of the first
month, to go to Jerusalem; the hand of our God was upon us, and he
delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way.
32We came to Jerusalem, and there we remained three days. 33On the fourth
day, within the house of our God, the silver and the gold and the vessels
were weighed into the hands of Mer'emoth the priest, son of Uri'ah, and
with him was Elea'zar the son of Phin'ehas, and with them were the Levites,
Joz'abad the son of Jesh'ua and No-adi'ah the son of Bin'nui. 34The whole
was counted and weighed, and the weight of everything was recorded.
35 At that time those who had come from captivity, the returned exiles,
offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, twelve bulls for all Israel,
ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and as a sin offering twelve he-goats;
all this was a burnt offering to the LORD. 36They also delivered the king’s
commissions to the king’s satraps and to the governors of the province
Beyond the River; and they aided the people and the house of God.
Denunciation of Intermarriage; Ezra’s Prayer
9 *After these things had been done, the officials approached me and
said, “The sons of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated
themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations, from the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the Per'izzites, the Jeb'usites, the Am'monites, the
Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Am'orites. 2For they have taken some of
their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons; so that the
holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands. And in this
faithlessness the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost.”
3When I heard this, I tore my garments and my mantle, and pulled hair from
my head and beard, and sat appalled. 4Then all who trembled at the words
of the God of Israel, because of the faithlessness of the returned exiles,
gathered round me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice. 5And at
the evening sacrifice I rose from my fasting, with my garments and my
mantle torn, and fell upon my knees and spread out my hands to the LORD
my God, 6saying:
“O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for
our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted
up to the heavens. 7From the days of our fathers to this day we have been in
great guilt; and for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been
given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to
plundering, and to utter shame, as at this day. 8But now for a brief moment
favor has been shown by the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant, and to
give us a secure hold l within his holy place, that our God may brighten our
eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage. 9For we are bondmen; yet
our God has not forsaken us in our bondage, but has extended to us his
mercy before the kings of Persia, to grant us some reviving to set up the
house of our God, to repair its ruins, and to give us protection m in Judea
and Jerusalem.
10 “And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have
forsaken your commandments, 11which you commanded by your servants

the prophets, saying, ‘The land which you are entering, to take possession
of it, is a land unclean with the pollutions of the peoples of the lands, with
their abominations which have filled it from end to end with their
uncleanness. 12Therefore give not your daughters to their sons, neither take
their daughters for your sons, and never seek their peace or prosperity, that
you may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an
inheritance to your children for ever.’ 13And after all that has come upon us
for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, seeing that you, our God, have
punished us less than our iniquities deserved and have given us such a
remnant as this, 14shall we break your commandments again and intermarry
with the peoples who practice these abominations? Would you not be angry
with us till you would consume us, so that there should be no remnant, nor
any to escape? 15O LORD the God of Israel, you are just, for we are left a
remnant that has escaped, as at this day. Behold, we are before you in our
guilt, for none can stand before you because of this.”
The People’s Response
10 While Ezra prayed and made confession, weeping and casting
himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men,
women, and children, gathered to him out of Israel; for the people wept
bitterly. 2And Shecani'ah the son of Jehi'el, of the sons of E'lam, addressed
Ezra: “We have broken faith with our God and have married foreign women
from the peoples of the land, but even now there is hope for Israel in spite
of this. 3Therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all
these wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of
those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done
according to the law. 4Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be
strong and do it.” 5Then Ezra arose and made the leading priests and
Levites and all Israel take oath that they would do as had been said. So they
took the oath.
Separation from Foreign Wives
and Children
6 Then Ezra withdrew from before the house of God, and went to the
chamber of Je'ho-ha'nan the son of Eli'ashib, where he spent the night, n

neither eating bread nor drinking water; for he was mourning over the
faithlessness of the exiles. 7And a proclamation was made throughout Judah
and Jerusalem to all the returned exiles that they should assemble at
Jerusalem, 8and that if any one did not come within three days, by order of
the officials and the elders all his property should be forfeited, and he
himself banned from the congregation of the exiles.
9 Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled at Jerusalem within
the three days; it was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month.
And all the people sat in the open square before the house of God,
trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. 10And Ezra
the priest stood up and said to them, “You have trespassed and married
foreign women, and so increased the guilt of Israel. 11Now then make
confession to the LORD the God of your fathers, and do his will; separate
yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.”
12Then all the assembly answered with a loud voice, “It is so; we must do as
you have said. 13But the people are many, and it is a time of heavy rain; we
cannot stand in the open. Nor is this a work for one day or for two; for we
have greatly transgressed in this matter. 14Let our officials stand for the
whole assembly; let all in our cities who have taken foreign wives come at
appointed times, and with them the elders and judges of every city, till the
fierce wrath of our God over this matter be averted from us.” 15Only
Jonathan the son of As'ahel and Jahzei'ah the son of Tikvah opposed this,
and Meshul'lum and Shab'bethai the Levite supported them.
16 Then the returned exiles did so. Ezra the priest selected men, o heads of
fathers’ houses, according to their fathers’ houses, each of them designated

by name. On the first day of the tenth month they sat down to examine the
matter; 17and by the first day of the first month they had come to the end of
all the men who had married foreign women.
18 Of the sons of the priests who had married foreign women were found
Ma-asei'ah, Elie'zer, Ja'rib, and Gedali'ah, of the sons of Jesh'ua the son of
Jo'zadak and his brethren. 19They pledged themselves to put away their
wives, and their guilt offering was a ram of the flock for their guilt. 20Of the
sons of Immer: Hana'ni and Zebadi'ah. 21Of the sons of Harim: Ma-asei'ah,
Eli'jah, Shemai'ah, Jehi'el, and Uzzi'ah. 22Of the sons of Pashhur: El'i-o-
e'nai, Ma-asei'ah, Ish'mael, Nethan'el, Joz'abad, and Ela'sah.
23 Of the Levites: Joz'abad, Shim'e-i, Kelai'ah (that is, Keli'ta), Peth'a-
hi'ah, Judah, and Elie'zer. 24Of the singers: Eli'ashib. Of the gatekeepers:
Shallum, Telem, and U'ri.
25 And of Israel: of the sons of Pa'rosh: Rami'ah, Izzi'ah, Malchi'jah,
Mi'jamin, Elea'zar, Hashabi'ah, p and Bena'iah. 26Of the sons of E'lam:

Mattani'ah, Zechari'ah, Jehi'el, Abdi, Jer'emoth, and Eli'jah. 27Of the sons of
Zattu: El'i-o-e'nai, Eli'ashib, Mattani'ah, Jer'emoth, Zabad, and Azi'za. 28Of
the sons of Bebai were Je'ho-ha'nan, Hanani'ah, Zabbai, and Athlai. 29Of the
sons of Ba'ni were Meshul'lam, Malluch, Adai'ah, Jash'ub, She'al, and
Jer'emoth. 30Of the sons of Pa'hath-mo'ab: Adna, Chelal, Bena'iah, Ma-
asei'ah, Mattani'ah, Bez'alel, Bin'nui, and Manas'seh. 31Of the sons of
Harim: Elie'zer, Isshi'jah, Malchi'jah, Shemai'ah, Shim'e-on, 32Benjamin,
Malluch, and Shemari'ah. 33Of the sons of Hashum: Matte'nai, Mattat'tah,
Zabad, Eliph'elet, Jer'emai, Manas'seh, and Shim'e-i. 34Of the sons of Ba'ni:
Ma-ada'i, Amram, U'el, 35Bena'iah, Bedei'ah, Chel'uhi, 36Vani'ah,
Mer'emoth, Eli'ashib, 37Mattani'ah, Matte'nai, Jaa'su. 38Of the sons of
Bin'nui: q Shim'e-i, 39Shelemi'ah, Nathan, Adai'ah, 40Machnad'ebai,
Shashai, Sharai, 41Az'arel, Shelemi'ah, Shemari'ah, 42Shallum, Amari'ah,
and Joseph. 43Of the sons of Nebo: Je-i'el, Mattithi'ah, Zabad, Zebi'na,
Jaddai, Joel, and Bena'iah. 44All these had married foreign women, and they
put them away with their children. r
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Nehemiah
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
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THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH
Nehemiah’s Prayers
1 The words of Nehemi'ah the son of Hacali'ah. Now it happened in the
month of Chis'lev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the capital, 2that
Hana'ni, one of my brethren, came with certain men out of Judah; and I
asked them concerning the Jews that survived, who had escaped exile, and
concerning Jerusalem. 3And they said to me, “The survivors there in the
province who escaped exile are in great trouble and shame; the wall of
Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”
4 When I heard these words I sat down and wept, and mourned for days;
and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5And I said,
“O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God who keeps covenant
and merciful love with those who love him and keep his commandments;
6let your ear be attentive, and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your
servant which I now pray before you day and night for the sons of Israel
your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel, which we have
sinned against you. Yes, I and my father’s house have sinned. 7We have
acted very corruptly against you, and have not kept the commandments, the
statutes, and the ordinances which you commanded your servant Moses.
8Remember the word which you commanded your servant Moses, saying,
‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples; 9but if you
return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your
dispersed be under the farthest skies, I will gather them from there and
bring them to the place which I have chosen, to make my name dwell
there.’ 10They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed
by your great power and by your strong hand. 11O Lord, let your ear be
attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants
who delight to fear your name; and give success to your servant today, and
grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”
Now I was cupbearer to the king.
2 In the month of Ni'san, in the twentieth year of King Ar-ta-xerx'es,
when wine was before him, I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now
I had not been sad in his presence. 2And the king said to me, “Why is your
face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing else but sadness of the
heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3I said to the king, “Let the king live
for ever! Why should not my face be sad, when the city, the place of my
fathers’ sepulchres, lies waste, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
4Then the king said to me, “For what do you make request?” So I prayed to
the God of heaven. 5And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if
your servant has found favor in your sight, that you send me to Judah, to the
city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may rebuild it.” 6And the king said to
me (the queen sitting beside him), “How long will you be gone, and when
will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
7And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the
governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may let me pass
through until I come to Judah; 8and a letter to A'saph, the keeper of the
king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the
fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house which I
shall occupy.” And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of
my God was upon me.
Nehemiah Sent to Judah
9 Then I came to the governors of the province Beyond the River, and
gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the
army and horsemen. 10But when Sanbal'lat the Hor'onite and Tobi'ah the
servant, the Am'monite, heard this, it displeased them greatly that some one
had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.
Nehemiah’s Inspection of the Walls
11 So I came to Jerusalem and was there three days. 12Then I arose in the
night, I and a few men with me; and I told no one what my God had put into
my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no beast with me but the beast on
which I rode. 13I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Jackal’s Well
and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem which were
broken down and its gates which had been destroyed by fire. 14Then I went
on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool; but there was no place for
the beast that was under me to pass. 15Then I went up in the night by the
valley and inspected the wall; and I turned back and entered by the Valley
Gate, and so returned. 16And the officials did not know where I had gone or
what I was doing; and I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the
officials, and the rest that were to do the work.
Decision to Restore the Walls
17 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies
in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that
we may no longer suffer disgrace.” 18And I told them of the hand of my
God which had been upon me for good, and also of the words which the
king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they
strengthened their hands for the good work. 19But when Sanbal'lat the
Hor'onite and Tobi'ah the servant, the Am'monite, and Geshem the Arab
heard of it, they derided us and despised us and said, “What is this thing
that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” 20Then I replied to
them, “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will
arise and build; but you have no portion or right or memorial in Jerusalem.”
Organization of the Work
3 Then Eli'ashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests and
they built the Sheep Gate. They consecrated it and set its doors; they
consecrated it as far as the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Tower of
Hanan'el. 2And next to him the men of Jericho built. And next to them a
Zaccur the son of Imri built.
3 And the sons of Hassena'ah built the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and
set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. 4And next to them Mer'emoth the son of
Uri'ah, son of Hakkoz repaired. And next to them Meshul'lam the son of
Berechi'ah, son of Meshez'abel repaired. And next to them Za'dok the son
of Ba'ana repaired. 5And next to them the Teko'ites repaired; but their
nobles did not put their necks to the work of their Lord. b
6 And Joi'ada the son of Pase'ah and Meshul'lam the son of Besodei'ah
repaired the Old Gate; they laid its beams and set its doors, its bolts, and its
bars. 7And next to them repaired Melati'ah the Gib'eonite and Ja'don the
Meron'othite, the men of Gib'eon and of Mizpah, who were under the
jurisdiction of the governor of the province Beyond the River. 8Next to
them Uzziel the son of Harhai'ah, goldsmiths, repaired. Next to him
Hanani'ah, one of the perfumers, repaired; and they restored c Jerusalem as
far as the Broad Wall. 9Next to them Rephai'ah the son of Hur, ruler of half
the district of Jerusalem, repaired. 10Next to them Jedai'a the son of
Haru'maph repaired opposite his house; and next to him Hattush the son of
Hashabnei'ah repaired. 11Malchi'jah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son
of Pa'hath-mo'ab repaired another section and the Tower of the Ovens.
12Next to him Shallum the son of Hallo'hesh, ruler of half the district of d
Jerusalem, repaired, he and his daughters.
13 Ha'nun and the inhabitants of Zano'ah repaired the Valley Gate; they
rebuilt it and set its doors, its bolts, and its bars, and repaired a thousand
cubits of the wall, as far as the Dung Gate.
14 Malchi'jah the son of Re'chab, ruler of the district of d Beth-hacche'rem,
repaired the Dung Gate; he rebuilt it and set its doors, its bolts, and its bars.
15 And Shallum the son of Colho'zeh, ruler of the district of d Mizpah,
repaired the Fountain Gate; he rebuilt it and covered it and set its doors, its
bolts, and its bars; and he built the wall of the Pool of She'lah of the king’s
garden, as far as the stairs that go down from the City of David. 16After him
Nehemi'ah the son of Azbuk, ruler of half the district of d Beth-zur, repaired
to a point opposite the sepulchres of David, to the artificial pool, and to the
house of the mighty men. 17After him the Levites repaired: Re'hum the son
of Ba'ni; next to him Hashabi'ah, ruler of half the district of d Kei'lah,
repaired for his district. 18After him their brethren repaired: Bavvai the son
of Hen'adad, ruler of half the district of d Kei'lah; 19next to him E'zer the
son of Jeshu'a, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section opposite the ascent
to the armory at the Angle. 20After him Baruch the son of Zabbai repaired
another section from the Angle to the door of the house of Eli'ashib the high
priest. 21After him Mer'emoth the son of Uri'ah, son of Hakkoz repaired
another section from the door of the house of Eli'ashib to the end of the
house of Eliashib. 22After him the priests, the men of the Plain, repaired.
23After them Benjamin and Hasshub repaired opposite their house. After
them Azari'ah the son of Ma-asei'ah, son of Anani'ah repaired beside his
own house. 24After him Bin'nui the son of Hen'adad repaired another
section, from the house of Azari'ah to the Angle 25and to the corner. Pa'lal
the son of U'zai repaired opposite the Angle and the tower projecting from
the upper house of the king at the court of the guard. After him Pedai'ah the
son of Pa'rosh 26and the temple servants living e on O'phel repaired to a
point opposite the Water Gate on the east and the projecting tower. 27After
him the Teko'ites repaired another section opposite the great projecting
tower as far as the wall of O'phel.
28 Above the Horse Gate the priests repaired, each one opposite his own
house. 29After them Za'dok the son of Immer repaired opposite his own
house. After him Shemai'ah the son of Shecani'ah, the keeper of the East
Gate, repaired. 30After him Hanani'ah the son of Shelemi'ah and Ha'nun the
sixth son of Za'laph repaired another section. After him Meshul'lam the son
of Berechi'ah repaired opposite his chamber. 31After him Malchi'jah, one of
the goldsmiths, repaired as far as the house of the temple servants and of the
merchants, opposite the Muster Gate, f and to the upper chamber of the
corner. 32And between the upper chamber of the corner and the Sheep Gate
the goldsmiths and the merchants repaired.
Hostile Plots Frustrated
4 g Now when Sanbal'lat heard that we were building the wall, he was
angry and greatly enraged, and he ridiculed the Jews. 2And he said in the
presence of his brethren and of the army of Samar'ia, “What are these feeble
Jews doing? Will they restore things? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish
up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and
burned ones at that?” 3Tobi'ah the Am'monite was by him, and he said,
“Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down
their stone wall!” 4Hear, O our God, for we are despised; turn back their
taunt upon their own heads, and give them up to be plundered in a land
where they are captives. 5Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be
blotted out from your sight; for they have provoked you to anger before the
builders.
6 So we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together to half its
height. For the people had a mind to work.
7 h But when Sanbal'lat and Tobi'ah and the Arabs and the Am'monites and
the Ash'dodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going
forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very
angry; 8and they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem
and to cause confusion in it. 9And we prayed to our God, and set a guard as
a protection against them day and night.
10 But Judah said, “The strength of the burden-bearers is failing, and there
is much rubbish; we are not able to work on the wall.” 11And our enemies
said, “They will not know or see till we come into the midst of them and
kill them and stop the work.” 12When the Jews who lived by them came
they said to us ten times, “From all the places where they live i they will
come up against us.” j 13So in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall,
in open places, I stationed the people according to their families, with their
swords, their spears, and their bows. 14And I looked, and arose, and said to
the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be
afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and terrible, and fight for
your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”
15 When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had
frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. 16From
that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the
spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail; and the leaders stood behind all the
house of Judah, 17who were building on the wall. Those who carried
burdens were laden in such a way that each with one hand labored on the
work and with the other held his weapon. 18And each of the builders had his
sword belted at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet
was beside me. 19And I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest
of the people, “The work is great and widely spread, and we are separated
on the wall, far from one another. 20In the place where you hear the sound
of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.”
21 So we labored at the work, and half of them held the spears from the
break of dawn till the stars came out. 22I also said to the people at that time,
“Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they
may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day.” 23So neither I nor
my brethren nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me,
none of us took off our clothes; each kept his weapon in his hand. k
Nehemiah Deals with Oppression
5 Now there arose a great outcry of the people and of their wives against
their Jewish brethren. 2For there were those who said, “With our sons and
our daughters, we are many; let us get grain, that we may eat and keep
alive.” 3There were also those who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our
vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine.” 4And there
were those who said, “We have borrowed money for the king’s tax upon our
fields and our vineyards. 5Now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our
children are as their children; yet we are forcing our sons and our daughters
to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved; but it is
not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our
vineyards.”
6 I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. 7I took
counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the
officials. I said to them, “You are exacting interest, each from his brother.”
And I held a great assembly against them, 8and said to them, “We, as far as
we are able, have bought back our Jewish brethren who have been sold to
the nations; but you even sell your brethren that they may be sold to us!”
They were silent, and could not find a word to say. 9So I said, “The thing
that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God
to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies? 10Moreover I and my
brethren and my servants are lending them money and grain. Let us leave
off this interest. 11Return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards,
their olive orchards, and their houses, and the hundredth of money, grain,
wine, and oil which you have been exacting of them.” 12Then they said,
“We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as you
say.” And I called the priests, and took an oath of them to do as they had
promised. 13I also shook out my garment and said, “So may God shake out
every man from his house and from his labor who does not perform this
promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said
“Amen” and praised the LORD. And the people did as they had promised.
The Generosity of Nehemiah
14 Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the
land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of Ar-ta-
xerx'es the king, twelve years, neither I nor my brethren ate the food
allowance of the governor. 15The former governors who were before me
laid heavy burdens upon the people, and took from them food and wine,
besides forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people.
But I did not do so, because of the fear of God. 16I also held to the work on
this wall, and acquired no land; and all my servants were gathered there for
the work. 17Moreover there were at my table a hundred and fifty men, Jews
and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations which were
about us. 18Now that which was prepared for one day was one ox and six
choice sheep; fowls likewise were prepared for me, and every ten days
skins of wine in abundance; yet with all this I did not demand the food
allowance of the governor, because the servitude was heavy upon this
people. 19Remember for my good, O my God, all that I have done for this
people.
Enemy Plots Avoided
6 Now when it was reported to Sanbal'lat and Tobi'ah and to Geshem
the Arab and to the rest of our enemies that I had built the wall and that
there was no breach left in it (although up to that time I had not set up the
doors in the gates), 2Sanbal'lat and Geshem sent to me, saying, “Come and
let us meet together in one of the villages in the plain of Ono.” But they
intended to do me harm. 3And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am
doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop
while I leave it and come down to you?” 4And they sent to me four times in
this way and I answered them in the same manner. 5In the same way
Sanbal'lat for the fifth time sent his servant to me with an open letter in his
hand. 6In it was written, “It is reported among the nations, and Geshem l
also says it, that you and the Jews intend to rebel; that is why you are
building the wall; and you wish to become their king, according to this
report. 7And you have also set up prophets to proclaim concerning you in
Jerusalem, ‘There is a king in Judah.’ And now it will be reported to the
king according to these words. So now come, and let us take counsel
together.” 8Then I sent to him, saying, “No such things as you say have
been done, for you are inventing them out of your own mind.” 9For they all
wanted to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will drop from the work, and
it will not be done.” But now, O God, strengthen my hands.
10 Now when I went into the house of Shemai'ah the son of Delai'ah, son
of Mehet'abel, who was shut up, he said, “Let us meet together in the house
of God, within the temple, and let us close the doors of the temple; for they
are coming to kill you, at night they are coming to kill you.” 11But I said,
“Should such a man as I flee? And what man such as I could go into the
temple and live? m I will not go in.” 12And I understood, and saw that God
had not sent him, but he had pronounced the prophecy against me because
Tobi'ah and Sanbal'lat had hired him. 13For this purpose he was hired, that I
should be afraid and act in this way and sin, and so they could give me an
evil name, in order to taunt me. 14Remember Tobi'ah and Sanbal'lat, O my
God, according to these things that they did, and also the prophetess No-
adi'ah and the rest of the prophets who wanted to make me afraid.
The Wall Completed
15 So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month E'lul, in
fifty-two days. 16And when all our enemies heard of it, all the nations round
about us were afraid n and fell greatly in their own esteem; for they
perceived that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.
17Moreover in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobi'ah,
and Tobiah’s letters came to them. 18For many in Judah were bound by oath
to him, because he was the son-in-law of Shecani'ah the son of A'rah: and
his son Je'ho-ha'nan had taken the daughter of Meshul'lam the son of
Berechi'ah as his wife. 19Also they spoke of his good deeds in my presence,
and reported my words to him. And Tobi'ah sent letters to make me afraid.
7 Now when the wall had been built and I had set up the doors, and the
gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed, 2I gave my
brother Hana'ni and Hanani'ah the governor of the castle charge over
Jerusalem, for he was a more faithful and God-fearing man than many.
3And I said to them, “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun
is hot; and while they are still standing guard o let them shut and bar the
doors. Appoint guards from among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, each to his
station and each opposite his own house.” 4The city was wide and large, but
the people within it were few and no houses had been built.
Lists of Returned Exiles
5 Then God put it into my mind to assemble the nobles and the officials
and the people to be enrolled by genealogy. And I found the book of the
genealogy of those who came up at the first, and I found written in it:
6 These were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity
of those exiles whom Nebuchadnez'zar the king of Babylon had carried into
exile; they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his town. 7They came
with Zerub'babel, Jesh'ua, Nehemi'ah, Azari'ah, Raami'ah, Naham'ani,
Mor'decai, Bilshan, Mis'pereth, Bigvai, Nehum, Ba'anah.
The number of the men of the sons of Israel: 8the sons of Pa'rosh, two
thousand a hundred and seventy-two. 9The sons of Shephati'ah, three
hundred and seventy-two. 10The sons of A'rah, six hundred and fifty-two.
11The sons of Pa'hath-mo'ab, namely the sons of Jesh'ua and Jo'ab, two
thousand eight hundred and eighteen. 12The sons of E'lam, a thousand two
hundred and fifty- four. 13The sons of Zattu, eight hundred and forty-five.
14The sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty. 15The sons of Bin'nui, six
hundred and forty-eight. 16The sons of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-eight.
17The sons of Azgad, two thousand three hundred and twenty-two. 18The
sons of Adoni'kam, six hundred and sixty-seven. 19The sons of Bigvai, two
thousand and sixty-seven. 20The sons of A'din, six hundred and fifty-five.
21The sons of A'ter, namely of Hezeki'ah, ninety-eight. 22The sons of
Hashum, three hundred and twenty-eight. 23The sons of Bezai, three

hundred and twenty-four. 24The sons of Hariph, a hundred and twelve.
25The sons of Gib'eon, ninety-five. 26The men of Bethlehem and Netoph'ah,
a hundred and eighty-eight. 27The men of An'athoth, a hundred and twenty-

eight. 28The men of Beth-az'maveth, forty-two. 29The men of Kir'iath-
je'arim, Chephi'rah, and Be-er'oth, seven hundred and forty-three. 30The
men of Ra'mah and Ge'ba, six hundred and twenty-one. 31The men of
Michmas, a hundred and twenty-two. 32The men of Bethel and Ai, a
hundred and twenty-three. 33The men of the other Nebo, fifty-two. 34The
sons of the other E'lam, a thousand two hundred and fifty-four. 35The sons
of Harim, three hundred and twenty. 36The sons of Jericho, three hundred
and forty-five. 37The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and
twenty-one. 38The sons of Sena'ah, three thousand nine hundred and thirty.
39 The priests: the sons of Jedai'ah, namely the house of Jesh'ua, nine
hundred and seventy-three. 40The sons of Immer, a thousand and fifty-two.

41The sons of Pashhur, a thousand two hundred and forty-seven. 42The sons
of Harim, a thousand and seventeen.

43 The Levites: the sons of Jesh'ua, namely of Kad'mi-el of the sons of
Ho'devah, seventy-four. 44The singers: the sons of A'saph, a hundred and

forty-eight. 45The gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of A'ter, the
sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hati'ta, the sons of Shobai, a
hundred and thirty-eight.
46 The temple servants: p the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasu'pha, the sons
of Tabba'oth, 47the sons of Keros, the sons of Sia, the sons of Pa'don, 48the
sons of Leba'na, the sons of Hag'aba, the sons of Shalmai, 49the sons of
Ha'nan, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Ga'har, 50the sons of Re-ai'ah, the
sons of Re'zin, the sons of Neko'da, 51the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza,
the sons of Pase'ah, 52the sons of Besai, the sons of Me-u'nim, the sons of
Nephush'esim, 53the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Haku'pha, the sons of
Harhur, 54the sons of Bazlith, the sons of Mehi'da, the sons of Harsha, 55the
sons of Barkos, the sons of Sis'era, the sons of Te'mah, 56the sons of
Nezi'ah, the sons of Hati'pha.
57 The sons of Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of
So'phereth, the sons of Peri'da, 58the sons of Ja'ala, the sons of Darkon, the
sons of Giddel, 59the sons of Shephati'ah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of
Po'chereth-hazzeba'im, the sons of A'mon.
60 All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon’s servants were three
hundred and ninety-two.

61 The following were those who came up from Tel-me'lah, Tel-har'sha,
Cherub, Addon, and Immer, but they could not prove their fathers’ houses
nor their descent, whether they belonged to Israel: 62the sons of Delai'ah,
the sons of Tobi'ah, the sons of Neko'da, six hundred and forty-two. 63Also,
of the priests: the sons of Hobai'ah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of
Barzil'lai (who had taken a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite
and was called by their name). 64These sought their registration among
those enrolled in the genealogies, but it was not found there, so they were
excluded from the priesthood as unclean; 65the governor told them that they
were not to partake of the most holy food, until a priest with U'rim and
Thummim should arise.
66 The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred and
sixty, 67besides their menservants and maidservants, of whom there were

seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred
and forty-five singers, male and female. 68Their horses were seven hundred
and thirty-six, their mules two hundred and forty-five, q 69their camels four
hundred and thirty-five, and their donkeys six thousand seven hundred and
twenty.
70 Now some of the heads of fathers’ houses gave to the work. The
governor gave to the treasury a thousand darics of gold, fifty basins, five
hundred and thirty priests’ garments. 71And some of the heads of fathers’
houses gave into the treasury of the work twenty thousand darics of gold
and two thousand two hundred minas of silver. 72And what the rest of the
people gave was twenty thousand darics of gold, two thousand minas of
silver, and sixty-seven priests’ garments.
Ezra Opens the Book of the Law
73 So the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the
people, the temple servants, and all Israel, lived in their towns.
And when the seventh month had come, the
8 children of Israel were in their towns. * 1And all the people gathered
as one man into the square before the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the
scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the LORD had given to
Israel. 2And Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, both men
and women and all who could hear with understanding, on the first day of
the seventh month. 3And he read from it facing the square before the Water
Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the
women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were
attentive to the book of the law. 4And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden
pulpit which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood
Mattithi'ah, Shema, Anai'ah, Uri'ah, Hilki'ah, and Ma-asei'ah on his right
hand; and Pedai'ah, Mish'a-el, Malchi'jah, Hashum, Hash-bad'danah,
Zechari'ah, and Meshul'lam on his left hand. 5And Ezra opened the book in
the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people; and when he
opened it all the people stood. 6And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God;
and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands; and
they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the
ground. 7Also Jesh'ua, Ba'ni, Sherebi'ah, Ja'min, Akkub, Shab'bethai,
Hodi'ah, Ma-asei'ah, Keli'ta, Azari'ah, Jo'zabad, Ha'nan, Pelai'ah, the
Levites, r helped the people to understand the law, while the people
remained in their places. 8And they read from the book, from the law of
God, clearly; s and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the
reading.*
9 And Nehemi'ah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe,
and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is
holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept
when they heard the words of the law. 10Then he said to them, “Go your
way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to him for whom
nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved,
for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” 11So the Levites stilled all the
people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.” 12And all
the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make
great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared
to them.
The Feast of Booths Celebrated
13 On the second day the heads of fathers’ houses of all the people, with
the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to
study the words of the law. 14And they found it written in the law that the
LORD had commanded by Moses that the sons of Israel should dwell in
booths during the feast of the seventh month, 15and that they should publish
and proclaim in all their towns and in Jerusalem, “Go out to the hills and
bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees to
make booths, as it is written.” 16So the people went out and brought them
and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, and in their courts and in
the courts of the house of God, and in the square at the Water Gate and in
the square at the Gate of E'phraim. 17And all the assembly of those who had
returned from the captivity made booths and dwelt in the booths; for from
the days of Jesh'ua the son of Nun to that day the sons of Israel had not
done so. And there was very great rejoicing. 18And day by day, from the
first day to the last day, he read from the book of the law of God. They kept
the feast seven days; and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly,
according to the ordinance.
Public Confession and Worship
9 Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the sons of Israel were
assembled with fasting and in sackcloth, and with earth upon their heads.
2And the Israelites separated themselves from all foreigners, and stood and
confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. 3And they stood up in
their place and read from the book of the law of the LORD their God for a
fourth of the day; for another fourth of it they made confession and
worshiped the LORD their God. 4Upon the stairs of the Levites stood
Jesh'ua, Ba'ni, Kad'mi-el, Shebani'ah, Bunni, Sherebi'ah, Bani, and
Chena'ni; and they cried with a loud voice to the LORD their God. 5Then the
Levites, Jesh'ua, Kad'mi-el, Ba'ni, Hashabnei'ah, Sherebi'ah, Hodi'ah,
Shebani'ah, and Pethahi'ah, said, “Stand up and bless the LORD your God
from everlasting to everlasting. Blessed be your glorious name which is
exalted above all blessing and praise.”
Ezra’s Prayer to God
6 And Ezra said: t “You are the LORD, you alone; you have made heaven,
the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the
seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of
heaven worships you. 7You are the LORD, the God who chose Abram and
brought him forth out of Ur of the Chalde'ans and gave him the name
Abraham; 8and you found his heart faithful before you, and made with him
the covenant to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanite, the
Hittite, the Am'orite, the Per'izzite, the Jeb'usite, and the Gir'gashite; and
you have fulfilled your promise, for you are righteous.
9 “And you saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt and heard their cry at
the Red Sea, 10and performed signs and wonders against Pharaoh and all his
servants and all the people of his land, for you knew that they acted
insolently against our fathers; and you got yourself a name, as it is to this
day. 11And you divided the sea before them, so that they went through the
midst of the sea on dry land; and you cast their pursuers into the depths, as a
stone into mighty waters. 12By a pillar of cloud you led them in the day, and
by a pillar of fire in the night to light for them the way in which they should
go. 13You came down upon Mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven
and gave them right ordinances and true laws, good statutes and
commandments, 14and you made known to them your holy sabbath and
commanded them commandments and statutes and a law by Moses your
servant. 15You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger and brought
forth water for them from the rock for their thirst, and you told them to go
in to possess the land which you had sworn to give them.
16 “But they and our fathers acted presumptuously and stiffened their neck
and did not obey your commandments; 17they refused to obey, and were not
mindful of the wonders which you performed among them; but they
stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their bondage in
Egypt. But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to
anger and abounding in mercy, and did not forsake them. 18Even when they
had made for themselves a molten calf and said, ‘This is your God who
brought you up out of Egypt,’ and had committed great blasphemies, 19you
in your great mercies did not forsake them in the wilderness; the pillar of
cloud which led them in the way did not depart from them by day, nor the
pillar of fire by night which lighted for them the way by which they should
go. 20You gave your good Spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold your
manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst. 21Forty years
you sustained them in the wilderness, and they lacked nothing; their clothes
did not wear out and their feet did not swell. 22And you gave them
kingdoms and peoples, and allotted to them every corner; so they took
possession of the land of Si'hon king of Heshbon and the land of Og king of
Bashan. 23You multiplied their descendants as the stars of heaven, and you
brought them into the land which you had told their fathers to enter and
possess. 24So the descendants went in and possessed the land, and you
subdued before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gave
them into their hands, with their kings and the peoples of the land, that they
might do with them as they would. 25And they captured fortified cities and
a rich land, and took possession of houses full of all good things, cisterns
hewn out, vineyards, olive orchards and fruit trees in abundance; so they
ate, and were filled and became fat, and delighted themselves in your great
goodness.
26 “Nevertheless they were disobedient and rebelled against you and cast
your law behind their back and killed your prophets, who had warned them
in order to turn them back to you, and they committed great blasphemies.
27Therefore you gave them into the hand of their enemies, who made them
suffer; and in the time of their suffering they cried to you and you heard
them from heaven; and according to your great mercies you gave them
saviors who saved them from the hand of their enemies. 28But after they
had rest they did evil again before you, and you abandoned them to the
hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them; yet when they
turned and cried to you, you heard from heaven, and many times you
delivered them according to your mercies. 29And you warned them in order
to turn them back to your law. Yet they acted presumptuously and did not
obey your commandments, but sinned against your ordinances, by the
observance of which a man shall live, and turned a stubborn shoulder and
stiffened their neck and would not obey. 30Many years you bore with them,
and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets; yet they would not
give ear. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.
31Nevertheless in your great mercies you did not make an end of them or
forsake them; for you are a gracious and merciful God.

32 “Now therefore, our God, the great and mighty and awesome God, who
keep covenant and mercy, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has
come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our
fathers, and all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria until this
day. 33Yet you have been just in all that has come upon us, for you have
dealt faithfully and we have acted wickedly; 34our kings, our princes, our
priests, and our fathers have not kept your law or heeded your
commandments and your warnings which you gave them. 35They did not
serve you in their kingdom, and in your great goodness which you gave
them, and in the large and rich land which you set before them; and they did
not turn from their wicked works. 36Behold, we are slaves this day; in the
land that you gave to our fathers to enjoy its fruit and its good gifts, behold,
we are slaves. 37And its rich yield goes to the kings whom you have set
over us because of our sins; they have power also over our bodies and over
our cattle at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.”
The Signing of the Covenant
38 u Because of all this we make a firm covenant and write it, and our
princes, our Levites, and our priests set their seal to it.
10 v Those who set their seal are Nehemi'ah the governor, the son of
Hacali'ah, Zedeki'ah, 2Serai'ah, Azari'ah, Jeremi'ah, 3Pashhur, Amari'ah,
Malchi'jah, 4Hattush, Shebani'ah, Malluch, 5Harim, Mer'emoth, Obadi'ah,
6Daniel, Gin'nethon, Baruch, 7Meshul'lam, Abi'jah, Mi'jamin, 8Ma-azi'ah,
Bilgai, Shemai'ah; these are the priests. 9And the Levites: Jesh'ua the son of
Azani'ah, Bin'nui of the sons of Hen'adad, Kad'mi-el; 10and their brethren,
Shebani'ah, Hodi'ah, Keli'ta, Pelai'ah, Hanan, 11Mica, Re'hob, Hashabi'ah,
12Zaccur, Sherebi'ah, Shebani'ah, 13Hodi'ah, Ba'ni, Beni'nu. 14The chiefs of
the people: Pa'rosh, Pa'hath-mo'ab, E'lam, Zattu, Ba'ni, 15Bunni, Azgad,

Bebai, 16Adoni'jah, Bigvai, A'din, 17A'ter, Hezeki'ah, Azzur, 18Hodi'ah,
Hashum, Bezai, 19Hariph, An'athoth, Nebai, 20Mag'piash, Meshul'lam,
He'zir, 21Meshez'abel, Za'dok, Jad'du-a, 22Pelati'ah, Hanan, Anai'ah,
23Hoshe'a, Hanani'ah, Hasshub, 24Hallo'hesh, Pilha, Shobek, 25Re'hum,
Hashab'nah, Ma-asei'ah, 26Ahi'ah, Ha'nan, A'nan, 27Malluch, Harim,

Ba'anah.
Summary of the Covenant
28 The rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the
singers, the temple servants, and all who have separated themselves from
the peoples of the lands to the law of God, their wives, their sons, their
daughters, all who have knowledge and understanding, 29join with their
brethren, their nobles, and enter into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s
law which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do
all the commandments of the LORD our Lord and his ordinances and his
statutes. 30We will not give our daughters to the peoples of the land or take
their daughters for our sons; 31and if the peoples of the land bring in wares
or any grain on the sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the
sabbath or on a holy day; and we will forego the crops of the seventh year
and the exaction of every debt.
32 We also lay upon ourselves the obligation to charge ourselves yearly
with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: 33for
the showbread, the continual cereal offering, the continual burnt offering,
the sabbaths, the new moons, the appointed feasts, the holy things, and the
sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house
of our God. 34We have likewise cast lots, the priests, the Levites, and the
people, for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God,
according to our fathers’ houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn
upon the altar of the LORD our God, as it is written in the law. 35We obligate
ourselves to bring the first fruits of our ground and the first fruits of all fruit
of every tree, year by year, to the house of the LORD; 36also to bring to the
house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God, the
first-born of our sons and of our cattle, as it is written in the law, and the
firstlings of our herds and of our flocks; 37and to bring the first of our
coarse meal, and our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the wine and the
oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and to bring to
the Levites the tithes from our ground, for it is the Levites who collect the
tithes in all our rural towns. 38And the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with
the Levites when the Levites receive the tithes; and the Levites shall bring
up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers, to the
storehouse. 39For the sons of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the
contribution of grain, wine, and oil to the chambers, where are the vessels
of the sanctuary, and the priests that minister, and the gatekeepers and the
singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.
The Inhabitants of Jerusalem
11 Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem; and the rest of the
people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city,
while nine tenths remained in the other towns. 2And the people blessed all
the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.
3 These are the chiefs of the province who lived in Jerusalem; but in the
towns of Judah every one lived on his property in their towns: Israel, the
priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the descendants of Solomon’s
servants. 4And in Jerusalem lived certain of the sons of Judah and of the
sons of Benjamin. Of the sons of Judah: Athai'ah the son of Uzzi'ah, son of
Zechari'ah, son of Amari'ah, son of Shephati'ah, son of Ma-hal'alel, of the
sons of Per'ez; 5and Ma-asei'ah the son of Baruch, son of Col-ho'zeh, son of
Hazai'ah, son of Adai'ah, son of Joi'arib, son of Zechari'ah, son of the
Shilon'ite. 6All the sons of Per'ez who lived in Jerusalem were four hundred
and sixty-eight valiant men.
7 And these are the sons of Benjamin: Sallu the son of Meshul'lam, son of
Jo'ed, son of Pedai'ah, son of Kolai'ah, son of Ma-asei'ah, son of I'thi-el, son
of Jeshai'ah. 8And after him Gabba'i, Sallai, nine hundred and twenty-eight.
9Joel the son of Zich'ri was their overseer; and Judah the son of Hassenu'ah
was second over the city.

10 Of the priests: Jedai'ah the son of Joi'arib, Ja'chin, 11Serai'ah the son of
Hilki'ah, son of Meshul'lam, son of Za'dok, son of Mera'ioth, son of

Ahi'tub, ruler of the house of God, 12and their brethren who did the work of
the house, eight hundred and twenty-two; and Adai'ah the son of Jero'ham,
son of Pelali'ah, son of Amzi, son of Zechari'ah, son of Pashhur, son of
Malchi'jah, 13and his brethren, heads of fathers’ houses, two hundred and
forty-two; and Amash'sai, the son of Az'arel, son of Ahzai, son of
Meshil'lemoth, son of Immer, 14and their brethren, mighty men of valor, a
hundred and twenty-eight; their overseer was Zab'diel the son of
Haggedo'lim.
15 And of the Levites: Shemai'ah the son of Hasshub, son of Azri'kam, son
of Hashabi'ah, son of Bunni; 16and Shab'bethai and Jo'zabad, of the chiefs

of the Levites, who were over the outside work of the house of God; 17and
Mattani'ah the son of Mica, son of Zabdi, son of A'saph, who was the leader
to begin the thanksgiving in prayer, and Bakbuki'ah, the second among his
brethren; and Abda the son of Sham'mu-a, son of Galal, son of Jedu'thun.
18All the Levites in the holy city were two hundred and eighty-four.
19 The gatekeepers, Akkub, Talmon and their brethren, who kept watch at
the gates, were a hundred and seventy-two. 20And the rest of Israel, and of
the priests and the Levites, were in all the towns of Judah, every one in his
inheritance. 21But the temple servants lived on O'phel; and Ziha and Gishpa
were over the temple servants.
22 The overseer of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Ba'ni, son
of Hashabi'ah, son of Mattani'ah, son of Mica, of the sons of A'saph, the

singers, over the work of the house of God. 23For there was a command
from the king concerning them, and a settled provision for the singers, as
every day required. 24And Pethahi'ah the son of Meshez'abel, of the sons of
Ze'rah the son of Judah, was at the king’s hand in all matters concerning the
people.
Villages outside Jerusalem
25 And as for the villages, with their fields, some of the people of Judah
lived in Kir'iath-ar'ba and its villages, and in Di'bon and its villages, and in
Jekab'zeel and its villages, 26and in Jesh'ua and in Mo'ladah and Beth-pel'et,
27in Ha'zar-shu'al, in Be'er-she'ba and its villages, 28in Zik'lag, in Meco'nah
and its villages, 29in En-rim'mon, in Zo'rah, in Jarmuth, 30Zano'ah,

Adul'lam, and their villages, La'chish and its fields, and Aze'kah and its
villages. So they encamped from Be'er-she'ba to the valley of Hinnom.
31The people of Benjamin also lived from Ge'ba onward, at Michmash,
Aija, Bethel and its villages, 32An'athoth, Nob, Anani'ah, 33Ha'zor, Ra'mah,
Git'taim, 34Hadid, Zebo'im, Nebal'lat, 35Lod, and Ono, the valley of
craftsmen. 36And certain divisions of the Levites in Judah were joined to
Benjamin.
Lists of Priests and Levites
12 These are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerub'babel
the son of She-al'tiel, and Jesh'ua: Serai'ah, Jeremi'ah, Ezra, 2Amari'ah,
Malluch, Hattush, 3Shecani'ah, Re'hum, Mer'emoth, 4Iddo, Gin'nethoi,
Abi'jah, 5Mi'jamin, Ma-adi'ah, Bilgah, 6Shemai'ah, Joi'arib, Jedai'ah, 7Sallu,
A'mok, Hilki'ah, Jedai'ah. These were the chiefs of the priests and of their
brethren in the days of Jesh'ua.
8 And the Levites: Jesh'ua, Bin'nui, Kad'mi-el, Sherebi'ah, Judah, and
Mattani'ah, who with his brethren was in charge of the songs of

thanksgiving. 9And Bakbuki'ah and Unno their brethren stood opposite
them in the service. 10And Jesh'ua was the father of Joi'akim, Joiakim the
father of Eli'ashib, Eliashib the father of Joi'ada, 11Joi'ada the father of
Jonathan, and Jonathan the father of Jad'du-a.
12 And in the days of Joi'akim were priests, heads of fathers’ houses: of
Serai'ah, Merai'ah; of Jeremi'ah, Hanani'ah; 13of Ezra, Meshul'lam; of

Amari'ah, Jeho-ha'nan; 14of Mal'luchi, Jonathan; of Shebani'ah, Joseph; 15of
Harim, Adna; of Mera'ioth, Helkai; 16of Iddo, Zechari'ah; of Gin'nethon,
Meshul'lam; 17of Abi'jah, Zich'ri; of Mini'amin, of Moadi'ah, Piltai; 18of
Bilgah, Sham'mu-a; of Shemai'ah, Jehon'athan; 19of Joi'arib, Matte'nai; of
Jedai'ah, Uzzi; 20of Sallai, Kallai; of A'mok, E'ber; 21of Hilki'ah,
Hashabi'ah; of Jedai'ah, Nethan'el.
22 As for the Levites, in the days of Eli'ashib, Joi'ada, Joha'nan, and
Jad'du-a, there were recorded the heads of fathers’ houses; also the priests
until the reign of Dari'us the Persian. 23The sons of Levi, heads of fathers’
houses, were written in the Book of the Chronicles until the days of
Joha'nan the son of Eli'ashib. 24And the chiefs of the Levites: Hashabi'ah,
Sherebi'ah, and Jesh'ua the son of Kad'mi-el, with their brethren over
against them, to praise and to give thanks, according to the commandment
of David the man of God, watch corresponding to watch. 25Mattani'ah,
Bakbuki'ah, Obadi'ah, Meshul'lam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers
standing guard at the storehouses of the gates. 26These were in the days of
Joi'akim the son of Jesh'ua son of Jo'zadak, and in the days of Nehemi'ah
the governor and of Ezra the priest the scribe.
Dedication of the Wall of Jerusalem
27 And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites
in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication
with gladness, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps,
and lyres. 28And the sons of the singers gathered together from the circuit
round Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netoph'athites; 29also from
Beth-gil'gal and from the region of Ge'ba and Az'maveth; for the singers
had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem. 30And the priests and
the Levites purified themselves; and they purified the people and the gates
and the wall.
31 Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed
two great companies which gave thanks and went in procession. One went
to the right upon the wall to the Dung Gate; 32and after them went
Hoshai'ah and half of the princes of Judah, 33and Azari'ah, Ezra,
Meshul'lam, 34Judah, Benjamin, Shemai'ah, and Jeremi'ah, 35and certain of
the priests’ sons with trumpets: Zechari'ah the son of Jonathan, son of
Shemai'ah, son of Mattani'ah, son of Micai'ah, son of Zaccur, son of A'saph;
36and his kinsmen, Shemai'ah, Az'arel, Mil'alai, Gil'alai, Ma'ai, Nethan'el,
Judah, and Hana'ni, with the musical instruments of David the man of God;
and Ezra the scribe went before them. 37At the Fountain Gate they went up
straight before them by the stairs of the city of David, at the ascent of the
wall, above the house of David, to the Water Gate on the east.
38 The other company of those who gave thanks went to the left, and I
followed them with half of the people, upon the wall, above the Tower of
the Ovens, to the Broad Wall, 39and above the Gate of E'phraim, and by the
Old Gate, and by the Fish Gate and the Tower of Hanan'el and the Tower of
the Hundred, to the Sheep Gate; and they came to a halt at the Gate of the
Guard. 40So both companies of those who gave thanks stood in the house of
God, and I and half of the officials with me; 41and the priests Eli'akim, Ma-
asei'ah, Mini'amin, Micai'ah, El'i-o-e'nai, Zechari'ah, and Hanani'ah, with
trumpets; 42and Ma-asei'ah, Shemai'ah, Elea'zar, Uzzi, Je'ho-ha'nan,
Malchi'jah, E'lam, and E'zer. And the singers sang with Jezrahi'ah as their
leader. 43And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God
had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also
rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard afar off.
Appointments to Temple Responsibilities
44 On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the
contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions
required by the law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields
of the towns; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who
ministered. 45And they performed the service of their God and the service
of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the
command of David and his son Solomon. 46For in the days of David and
A'saph of old there was a chief of the singers, and there were songs of
praise and thanksgiving to God. 47And all Israel in the days of Zerub'babel
and in the days of Nehemi'ah gave the daily portions for the singers and the
gatekeepers; and they set apart that which was for the Levites; and the
Levites set apart that which was for the sons of Aaron.
Foreigners Separated from Israel
13 On that day they read from the book of Moses in the hearing of the
people; and in it was found written that no Am'monite or Moabite should
ever enter the assembly of God; 2for they did not meet the children of Israel
with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them—yet our
God turned the curse into a blessing. 3When the people heard the law, they
separated from Israel all those of foreign descent.
Reforms of Nehemiah
4 Now before this, Eli'ashib the priest, who was appointed over the
chambers of the house of our God, and who was connected with Tobi'ah,
5prepared for Tobi'ah a large chamber where they had previously put the
cereal offering, the frankincense, the vessels, and the tithes of grain, wine,
and oil, which were given by commandment to the Levites, singers, and
gatekeepers, and the contributions for the priests. 6While this was taking
place I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Ar-ta-xerx'es
king of Babylon I went to the king. And after some time I asked leave of the
king 7and came to Jerusalem, and I then discovered the evil that Eli'ashib
had done for Tobi'ah, preparing for him a chamber in the courts of the house
of God. 8And I was very angry, and I threw all the household furniture of
Tobi'ah out of the chamber. 9Then I gave orders and they cleansed the
chambers; and I brought back there the vessels of the house of God, with
the cereal offering and the frankincense.
10 I also found out that the portions of the Levites had not been given to
them; so that the Levites and the singers, who did the work, had fled each to
his field. 11So I remonstrated with the officials and said, “Why is the house
of God forsaken?” And I gathered them together and set them in their
stations. 12Then all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, wine, and oil into
the storehouses. 13And I appointed as treasurers over the storehouses
Shelemi'ah the priest, Za'dok the scribe, and Pedai'ah of the Levites, and as
their assistant Ha'nan the son of Zaccur, son of Mattani'ah, for they were
counted faithful; and their duty was to distribute to their brethren.
14Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good
deeds that I have done for the house of my God and for his service.
Sabbath Reforms Begun
15 In those days I saw in Judah men treading wine presses on the sabbath,
and bringing in heaps of grain and loading them on donkeys; and also wine,
grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on
the sabbath day; and I warned them on the day when they sold food. 16Men
of Tyre also, who lived in the city, brought in fish and all kinds of wares and
sold them on the sabbath to the people of Judah, and in Jerusalem. 17Then I
remonstrated with the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this evil
thing which you are doing, profaning the sabbath day? 18Did not your
fathers act in this way, and did not our God bring all this evil on us and on
this city? Yet you bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.”
19 When it began to be dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I
commanded that the doors should be shut and gave orders that they should
not be opened until after the sabbath. And I set some of my servants over
the gates, that no burden might be brought in on the sabbath day. 20Then the
merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares lodged outside Jerusalem once
or twice. 21But I warned them and said to them, “Why do you lodge before
the wall? If you do so again I will lay hands on you.” From that time on
they did not come on the sabbath. 22And I commanded the Levites that they
should purify themselves and come and guard the gates, to keep the sabbath
day holy. Remember this also in my favor, O my God, and spare me
according to the greatness of your mercy.
Intermarriage Condemned
23 In those days also I saw the Jews who had married women of Ash'dod,
Ammon, and Moab; 24and half of their children spoke the language of
Ash'dod, and they could not speak the language of Judah, but the language
of each people. 25And I contended with them and cursed them and beat
some of them and pulled out their hair; and I made them take oath in the
name of God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters to their sons, or
take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. 26Did not Solomon
king of Israel sin on account of such women? Among the many nations
there was no king like him, and he was beloved by his God, and God made
him king over all Israel; nevertheless foreign women made even him to sin.
27Shall we then listen to you and do all this great evil and act treacherously
against our God by marrying foreign women?”

28 And one of the sons of Jehoi'ada, the son of Eli'ashib the high priest,
was the son-in-law of Sanbal'lat the Hor'onite; therefore I chased him from
me. 29Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the
priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.
30 Thus I cleansed them from everything foreign, and I established the
duties of the priests and Levites, each in his work; 31and I provided for the
wood offering, at appointed times, and for the first fruits. Remember me, O
my God, for good.
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Tobit
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
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THE BOOK OF TOBIT
1* The book of the acts a of Tobit the son of Tobi'el, son of Anan'iel, son
of Adu'el, son of Gab'ael, of the descendants of As'i-el and the tribe of
Naph'tali, 2who in the days of Shalmane'ser, b king of the Assyrians, was
taken into captivity from Thisbe, which is to the south of Ke'desh Naph'tali
in Galilee above Asher.
Tobit’s Youth and Virtuous Life
3 I, Tobit, walked in the ways of truth and righteousness all the days of my
life, and I performed many acts of charity to my brethren and countrymen
who went with me into the land of the Assyrians, to Nin'eveh. 4Now when I
was in my own country, in the land of Israel, while I was still a young man,
the whole tribe of Naph'tali my forefather deserted the house of Jerusalem.
This was the place which had been chosen from among all the tribes of
Israel, where all the tribes should sacrifice and where the temple of the
dwelling of the Most High was consecrated and established for all
generations for ever.
5 All the tribes that joined in apostasy used to sacrifice to the calf c Ba'al,
and so did the house of Naph'tali my forefather. 6But I alone went often to
Jerusalem for the feasts, as it is ordained for all Israel by an everlasting
decree. Taking the first fruits and the tithes of my produce and the first
shearings, I would give these to the priests, the sons of Aaron, at the altar.
7Of all my produce I would give a tenth to the sons of Levi who ministered
at Jerusalem; a second tenth I would sell, and I would go and spend the
proceeds each year at Jerusalem; 8the third tenth I would give to those to
whom it was my duty, as Deborah my father’s mother had commanded me,
for I was left an orphan by my father. 9When I became a man I married
Anna, a member of our family, and by her I became the father of Tobi'as.
Tobit Taken Captive to Nineveh
10 Now when I was carried away captive to Nin'eveh, all my brethren and
my relatives ate the food of the Gentiles; 11but I kept myself from eating it,
12because I remembered God with all my heart. 13Then the Most High gave
me favor and good appearance in the sight of Shalmane'ser, b and I was his
buyer of provisions. 14So I used to go into Med'ia, and once at Ra'ges in
Med'ia I left ten talents of silver in trust with Gab'ael, the brother of
Ga'brias. 15But when Shalmane'ser b died, Sennach'erib his son reigned in
his place; and under him the highways were unsafe, so that I could no
longer go into Med'ia.
Courage in Burying the Dead
16 In the days of Shalmane'ser b I performed many acts of charity to my
brethren. 17I would give my bread to the hungry and my clothing to the
naked; and if I saw any one of my people dead and thrown out behind the
wall of Nin'eveh, I would bury him. 18And if Sennach'erib the king put to
death any who came fleeing from Judea, I buried them secretly. For in his
anger he put many to death. When the bodies were sought by the king, they
were not found. 19Then one of the men of Nin'eveh went and informed the
king about me, that I was burying them; so I hid myself. When I learned
that I was being searched for, to be put to death, I left home in fear. 20Then
all my property was confiscated and nothing was left to me except my wife
Anna and my son Tobi'as.
21 But not fifty d days passed before two of Sennach'erib’s e sons killed
him, and they fled to the mountains of Ar'arat. Then E'sar-had'don, f his son,
reigned in his place; and he appointed Ahi'kar, the son of my brother An'ael,
over all the accounts of his kingdom and over the entire administration.
22Ahi'kar interceded for me, and I returned to Nin'eveh. Now Ahikar was
cupbearer, keeper of the signet, and in charge of administration of the
accounts, for E'sar-had'don f had appointed him second to himself. g He was
my nephew.
2 When I arrived home and my wife Anna and my son Tobi'as were
restored to me, at the feast of Pentecost, which is the sacred festival of the
seven weeks, a good dinner was prepared for me and I sat down to eat.
2Upon seeing the abundance of food I said to my son, “Go and bring
whatever poor man of our brethren you may find among the exiles in
Nineveh, who is mindful of the Lord, and he shall eat together with me. I
will wait for you until you come back.” 3So Tobias went out to look for
some poor person of our people. When he came back, he said, “Father!”
And I replied, “Here I am, my child.” And he went on to say, “Look, Father,
one of our own people has been murdered and thrown into the market place,
and now he lies there strangled.” 4So before I tasted anything I sprang up
and removed the body h to a place of shelter until sunset when I might bury
it. 5And when I returned I washed myself and ate my food in sorrow. 6Then
I remembered the prophecy of Amos, how he said against Bethel,
00“Your feasts shall be turned into mourning,
and all your songs into lamentation.”
And I wept.
Tobit Becomes Blind
7 When the sun had set I went and dug a grave and buried the body. h
8And my neighbors laughed at me and said, “He is still not afraid; he has
already been hunted down to be put to death for doing this, and he ran
away, yet here he is burying the dead again!” 9On the same night after I,
Tobit, returned from burying the dead, I went into my courtyard and slept
by the wall of the courtyard, and my face was uncovered because of the
heat. 10I did not know that there were sparrows on the wall and their fresh
droppings fell into my open eyes and white films formed on my eyes. I
went to physicians to be healed, but the more they treated me with
ointments, the more my vision was obscured by the white films, until I
became completely blind. For four years I remained unable to see. All my
kindred were sorry for me, and Ahi'kar took care of me for two years until
he i went to El''yma'is.
Tobit’s Wife Earns Their Livelihood
11 Then my wife Anna earned money at women’s work. 12She used to send
the product to the owners, and they paid her wages. One day, the seventh of
Dystrus, when she cut off a piece she had woven and sent it to the owners,
they paid her full wages and they also gave her a kid. 13When she returned
to me it began to bleat. So I called her and said to her, “Where did you get
the kid? It is not stolen, is it? Return it to the owners; for it is not right to eat
what is stolen.” 14And she said, “It was given to me as a gift in addition to
my wages.” But I did not believe her, and told her to return it to the owners;
and I blushed for her. Then she replied to me, “Where are your charities and
your righteous deeds? You seem to know everything!”
Tobit’s Prayer
3 Then in my grief I wept, and I prayed in anguish, saying, 2 “Righteous
are you, O Lord; all your deeds are just and all your ways are mercy and
truth, and you render true and righteous judgment for ever. 3And now, O
Lord, remember me and look favorably upon me; do not punish me for my
sins and for my unwitting offenses and those which my fathers committed
before you. 4For we disobeyed your commandments, and you gave us over
to plunder, captivity, and death; you made us the talk, the byword, and an
object of reproach in all the nations among which you have dispersed us.
5And now your many judgments are true in exacting penalty from me for
my sins and those of my fathers, because we did not keep your
commandments. For we did not walk in truth before you. 6And now deal
with me according to your pleasure; command my spirit to be taken up, that
I may be released from the face of the earth and become dust. For it is better
for me to die than to live, because I have heard false reproaches, and great
is the sorrow within me. Command that I now be released from my distress;
release me to go to the eternal abode; and do not, O Lord, turn your face
away from me. For it is better for me to die than to see so much distress in
my life and listen to such insults.”
Sarah Falsely Accused
7 On the same day, at Ecbat'ana in Med'ia, it also happened that Sarah, the
daughter of Rag'uel, was reproached by her father’s maids, 8because she

had been given to seven husbands, and the evil demon As''mode'us had
slain each of them before he had been with her as his wife. So the maids j
said to her, “You are the one who kills your husbands! See, you already
have had seven and have had no benefit from k any of them. 9Why do you
beat us? Because your husbands are dead? Go with them! May we never see
a son or daughter of yours!”
Sarah’s Prayer for Death
10 On that day she was deeply grieved in spirit and wept. When she had
gone up to her father’s upper room, she intended to hang herself. But she
thought it over and said, “Never shall they reproach my father, saying to
him, ‘You only had one beloved daughter but she hanged herself because of
her distress.’ And I shall bring his old age down in sorrow to the grave. l It
is better for me not to hang myself, but to pray the Lord that I may die and
not listen to these reproaches any more.” 11At that same time, with hands
outstretched toward the window, she prayed and said, “Blessed are you, O
Lord, merciful God, and blessed is your holy and honored name for ever.
May all your works praise you for ever. 12And now, O Lord, I have turned
my eyes and my face toward you. 13Command that I be released from the
earth and that I hear reproach no more. 14You know, O Lord, that I am
innocent of any sin with man, 15and that I did not stain my name or the
name of my father in the land of my captivity. I am my father’s only child,
and he has no child to be his heir, no near kinsman or kinsman’s m son for
whom I should keep myself as wife. Already seven husbands of mine are
dead. Why should I live? But if it be not pleasing to you to take my life,
command that respect be shown to me and pity be taken upon me, and that I
hear reproach no more.”
An Answer to Prayer
16 At that very moment the prayer of both was heard in the presence of the
glory of the great God. 17And Ra'phael n was sent to heal the two of them:
to scale away the white films of Tobit’s eyes; to give Sarah the daughter of
Rag'uel in marriage to Tobi'as the son of Tobit, and to bind As''mode'us the
evil demon, because Tobias was entitled to possess her. At that very
moment Tobit returned and entered his house and Sarah the daughter of
Raguel came down from her upper room.
Tobit Gives Instructions to His Son
4 On that day Tobit remembered the money which he had left in trust
with Gab'ael at Ra'ges in Med'ia, and he said to himself: 2 “I have asked for
death. Why do I not call my son Tobi'as so that I may explain to him about
the money o before I die?” 3So he called him and said, “My son, when I die,
bury me, and do not neglect your mother. Honor her all the days of your
life; do what is pleasing to her, and do not grieve her. 4Remember, my son,
that she faced many dangers for you while you were yet unborn. When she
dies, bury her beside me in the same grave.
5 “Remember the Lord our God all your days, my son, and refuse to sin or
to transgress his commandments. Live uprightly all the days of your life,
and do not walk in the ways of wrongdoing. 6For if you do what is true,
your ways will prosper through your deeds. 7Give alms from your
possessions to all who live uprightly, and do not let your eye begrudge the
gift when you make it. Do not turn your face away from any poor man, and
the face of God will not be turned away from you. 8If you have many
possessions, make your gift from them in proportion; if few, do not be
afraid to give according to the little you have. 9So you will be laying up a
good treasure for yourself against the day of necessity. 10For charity*
delivers from death and keeps you from entering the darkness; 11and for all
who practice it charity is an excellent offering in the presence of the Most
High.
12 “Beware, my son, of all immorality. * First of all take a wife from
among the descendants of your fathers and do not marry a foreign woman,
who is not of your father’s tribe; for we are the sons of the prophets.
Remember, my son, that Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our fathers of
old, all took wives from among their brethren. They were blessed in their
children, and their posterity will inherit the land. 13So now, my son, love
your brethren, and in your heart do not disdain your brethren and the sons
and daughters of your people by refusing to take a wife for yourself from
among them. For in pride there is ruin and great confusion; and in
shiftlessness there is loss and great want, because shiftlessness is the mother
of famine. 14Do not hold over till the next day the wages of any man who
works for you, but pay him at once; and if you serve God you will receive
payment.
“Watch yourself, my son, in everything you do, and be disciplined in all
your conduct. 15And what you hate, do not do to any one. Do not drink
wine to excess or let drunkenness go with you on your way. 16Give of your
bread to the hungry, and of your clothing to the naked. Give all your surplus
to charity, and do not let your eye begrudge the gift when you make it.
17Place your bread * on the grave of the righteous, but give none to sinners.
18Seek advice from every wise man, and do not despise any useful counsel.
19Bless the Lord God on every occasion; ask him that your ways may be
made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. For none of the
nations has understanding; but the Lord himself gives all good things, and
according to his will he humbles whomever he wishes.
“So, my son, remember my commands, and do not let them be blotted out
of your mind. 20And now let me explain to you about the ten talents of
silver which I left in trust with Gab'ael the son of Ga'brias at Ra'ges in
Med'ia. 21Do not be afraid, my son, because we have become poor. You
have great wealth if you fear God and refrain from every sin and do what is
pleasing in his sight.”
The Angel Raphael
5 Then Tobi'as answered him, “Father, I will do everything that you
have commanded me; 2but how can I obtain the money when I do not know
the man?” 3Then Tobit gave him the receipt, and said to him, “Find a man
to go with you and I will pay him wages as long as I live; and go and get the
money.” 4So he went to look for a man; and he found Ra'phael, who was an
angel, 5but Tobi'as p did not know it. Tobias p said to him, “Can you go with
me to Ra'ges in Med'ia? Are you acquainted with that region?” 6The angel
replied, “I will go with you; I am familiar with the way, and I have stayed
with our brother Gab'ael.” 7Then Tobi'as said to him, “Wait for me, and I
shall tell my father.” 8And he said to him, “Go, and do not delay.” So he
went in and said to his father, “I have found some one to go with me.” He
said, “Call him to me, so that I may learn to what tribe he belongs, and
whether he is a reliable man to go with you.”
9 So Tobi'as p invited him in; he entered and they greeted each other.
10Then Tobit said to him, “My brother, to what tribe and family do you
belong? Tell me.” 11But he answered, “Are you looking for a tribe and a
family or for a man whom you will pay to go with your son?” And Tobit
said to him, “I should like to know, my brother, your people and your
name.” 12He replied, “I am Azari'as the son of the great Anani'as, one of
your relatives.” 13Then Tobit said to him, “You are welcome, my brother.
Do not be angry with me because I tried to learn your tribe and family. You
are a relative of mine, of a good and noble lineage. For I used to know
Anani'as and Ja'than, the sons of the great Shemai'ah, when we went
together to Jerusalem to worship and offered the first-born of our flocks and
the tithes of our produce. They did not go astray in the error of our brethren.
My brother, you come of good stock. 14But tell me, what wages am I to pay
you—a drachma a day, and expenses for yourself as for my son? 15And
besides, I will add to your wages if you both return safe and sound.” So
they agreed to these terms.
16 Then he said to Tobi'as, “Get ready for the journey, and good success to
you both.” So his son made the preparations for the journey. And his father
said to him, “Go with this man; God who dwells in heaven will prosper
your way, and may his angel attend you.” So they both went out and
departed, and the young man’s dog was with them.
17 But Anna, q his mother, began to weep, and said to Tobit, “Why have
you sent our child away? Is he not the staff of our hands as he goes in and
out before us? 18Do not add money to money, but consider it rubbish as
compared to our child. 19For the life that is given to us by the Lord is
enough for us.” 20And Tobit said to her, “Do not worry, my sister; he will
return safe and sound, and your eyes will see him. 21For a good angel will
go with him; his journey will be successful, and he will come back safe and
sound.” 22So she stopped weeping.
A Miraculous Fish
6 Now as they proceeded on their way they came at evening to the
Tigris river and camped there. 2Then the young man went down to wash
himself. A fish leaped up from the river and would have swallowed the
young man; 3and the angel said to him, “Catch the fish.” So the young man
seized the fish and threw it up on the land. 4Then the angel said to him,
“Cut open the fish and take the heart and liver and gall and put them away
safely.” 5So the young man did as the angel told him; and they roasted and
ate the fish.
And they both continued on their way until they came near to Ecbat'ana. r
6Then the young man said to the angel, “Brother Azari'as, of what use is the
liver and heart and gall of the fish?” 7He replied, “As for the heart and liver,
if a demon or evil spirit gives trouble to any one, you make a smoke from
these before the man or woman, and that person will never be troubled
again. 8And as for the gall, anoint with it a man who has white films in his
eyes, and he will be cured.”
Raphael’s Instructions
9 When he entered Med'ia and was already approaching Ecbat'ana,
10Ra'phael said to the young man, “Brother Tobi'as!” “Here I am,” he
answered. Then Raphael said to him, “We must stay this night in the home
of Ra'guel. He is your relative, and he has a daughter named Sarah. He has
no male heir and no daughter except Sarah only, and you, as next of kin to
her, have before all other men a hereditary claim on her. 11Also, it is right
for you to inherit her father’s possessions. 12Moreover, the girl is sensible,
brave, and very beautiful, and her father is a good man.”
13 Then the young man said to the angel, “Brother Azari'as, I have heard
that the girl has been given to seven husbands and that each died in the
bridal chamber. 14Now I am the only son my father has, and I am afraid that
if I go in I will die as those before me did, for a demon is in love with her,
and he harms no one except those who approach her. So now I fear that I
may die and bring the lives of my father and mother to the grave in sorrow
on my account. And they have no other son to bury them.”
15 But the angel said to him, “Do you not remember the words with which
your father commanded you to take a wife from among your own people?
Now listen to me, brother, for she will become your wife; and do not worry
about the demon, for this very night she will be given to you in marriage.
16When you enter the bridal chamber, you shall take live ashes of incense
and lay upon them some of the heart and liver of the fish so as to make a
smoke. 17Then the demon will smell it and flee away, and will never again
return. And when you approach her, rise up, both of you, and cry out to the
merciful God, and he will save you and have mercy on you. Do not be
afraid, for she was destined for you from eternity. You will save her, and she
will go with you, and I suppose that you will have children by her.” When
Tobi'as heard these things, he fell in love with her and yearned deeply for
her.
Arrival at Raguel’s Home; and a Marriage Contract
7 Now when they reached Ecbat'ana, Tobi'as said to him, “Brother
Azari'ah, take me straight to our brother Rag'uel.” So he took him to the
house of Raguel, and they found Raguel sitting beside the courtyard door.
They greeted him first, and he replied, “Joyous greetings, brothers;
welcome and good health!” Then he brought them into his house. 2Then
Rag'uel said to his wife Edna, “How much the young man resembles my
cousin Tobit!” 3And Rag'uel asked them, “Where are you from, brethren?”
They answered him, “We belong to the sons of Naph'tali, who are captives
in Nin'eveh.” 4So he said to them, “Do you know our brother Tobit?” And
they said, “Yes, we do.” And he asked them, “Is he in good health?” 5They
replied, “He is alive and in good health.” And Tobi'as said, “He is my
father.” 6Then Rag'uel sprang up and kissed him and wept. 7And he blessed
him and exclaimed, “Son of that good and noble man!” When he heard that
Tobit had lost his sight, he was stricken with grief and wept. 8And his wife
Edna and his daughter Sarah wept.
9 Then Rag'uel killed a ram from the flock and received them very
warmly. When they had bathed and washed themselves and had reclined to
dine, Tobi'as said to Ra'phael, “Brother Azari'as, ask Raguel to give me my
kinswoman Sarah.” 10But Rag'uel overheard it and said to Tobi'as, “Eat,
drink, and be merry; for no one except you, brother, has the right to marry
my daughter Sarah. Likewise, I am not at liberty to give her to any other
man than yourself, because you are my nearest relative. 11But let me explain
the true situation to you. I have given my daughter to seven men of our
kinsmen, and when each came to her he died in the night. But for the
present, my child, eat and drink, and the Lord will act on behalf of you
both.” But Tobi'as said, “I will eat nothing here unless you make a binding
agreement with me.” 12So Rag'uel said, “I will do so. She is given to you in
accordance with the decree in the book of Moses, and it has been decreed
from heaven that she be given to you. Take your kinswoman; from now on
you are her brother and she is your sister. She is given to you from today
and for ever. May the Lord of heaven, my child, guide and prosper you both
this night and grant you mercy and peace.” 13Then he called his daughter
Sarah, and taking her by the hand he gave her to Tobi'as to be his wife,
saying, “Here she is; take her to be your wife in accordance with the law
and the decree written in the book of Moses. Take her and bring her safely
to your father. And may the God of heaven prosper your journey with his
peace.” 14Then he called her mother and told her to bring writing material;
and he wrote out a copy of the marriage contract, to the effect that he gave
her to him as wife according to the law of Moses. 15Then they began to eat
and drink.
16 And Rag'uel called his wife Edna and said to her, “Sister, make up the
other room, and take her into it.” 17So she did as he said, and took her there;
and the girl s began to weep. But the mother s comforted her daughter in her
tears, and said to her, 18 “Be brave, my child; the Lord of heaven and earth
grant you joy t in place of this sorrow of yours. Be brave, my daughter.”
Tobias Routs the Demon and
Prays with Sarah
8 When they had finished eating and drinking, they wanted to retire; so
they took the young man and brought him into the bedroom. 2As he went he
remembered the words of Ra'phael, and he took the live ashes of incense
and put the heart and liver of the fish upon them and made a smoke. 3And
when the demon smelled the odor he fled to the remotest parts of Egypt,
and the angel bound him. 4When the door was shut and the two were alone,
Tobi'as got up from the bed and said, “Sister, get up, and let us pray and
implore our Lord that he grant us mercy and safety.” 5And they began to
say,
00“Blessed are you, O God of our fathers,
and blessed be your holy and glorious name for ever.
Let the heavens and all your creatures bless you.
06You made Adam and gave him Eve his wife
as a helper and support.

From them the race of mankind has sprung.
00You said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone;
let us make a helper for him like himself.’

7And now, O Lord, I am not taking this sister of mine because of lust, but
with sincerity. Grant that I may find mercy and may grow old together with
her.” 8And they both said, “Amen, amen.” 9Then they both went to sleep for
the night.
But Rag'uel arose and went and dug a grave, 10with the thought, “Perhaps
he too will die.” 11Then Rag'uel went into his house 12and said to his wife
Edna, “Send one of the maids to see whether he is alive; and if he is not, let
us bury him without any one knowing about it.” 13So the maid opened the
door and went in, and found them both asleep. 14And she came out and told
them that he was alive. 15Then Rag'uel blessed God and said,
00“Blessed are you, O God, with every pure and holy blessing.
Let your saints and all your creatures bless you;

let all your angels and your chosen people bless you for ever.
16Blessed are you, because you have made me glad.
It has not happened to me as I expected;

but you have treated us according to your great mercy.
17Blessed are you, because you have had compassion on two only
children.
Show them mercy, O Lord;
and bring their lives to fulfilment in health and happiness and mercy.”
18Then he ordered his servants to fill in the grave.
The Wedding Feast
19 After this he gave a wedding feast for them which lasted fourteen days.
20And before the days of the feast were over, Rag'uel declared by oath to
Tobi'as u that he should not leave until the fourteen days of the wedding
feast were ended, 21that then he should take half of Rag'uel’s v property and
return in safety to his father, and that the rest would be his “when my wife
and I die.”
The Money Recovered from Gabael
9 Then Tobi'as called Ra'phael and said to him, 2“Brother Azari'as, take
a servant and two camels with you and go to Gab'ael at Ra'ges in Med'ia
and get the money for me; and bring him to the wedding feast. 3For Rag'uel
has sworn that I should not leave; 4but my father is counting the days, and if
I delay long he will be greatly distressed.” 5So Ra'phael made the journey
and stayed overnight with Gab'ael. He gave him the receipt, and Gabael w
brought out the money bags with their seals intact and gave them to him.
6In the morning they both got up early and came to the wedding feast. And
Gab'ael blessed Tobi'as and his wife. x

Tobias and Sarah Journey Home to Tobit and Anna
10 Now his father Tobit was counting each day, and when the days for
the journey had expired and they did not arrive, 2he said, “Is it possible that
he has been detained? y Or is it possible that Gab'ael has died and there is
no one to give him the money?” 3And he was greatly distressed. 4And his
wife said to him, “The lad has perished; his long delay proves it.” Then she
began to mourn for him, and said, 5 “Am I not distressed, my child, that I let
you go, you who are the light of my eyes?” 6But Tobit said to her, “Be still
and stop worrying; he is well.” 7And she answered him, “Be still and stop
deceiving me; my child has perished.” And she went out every day to the
road by which they had left; she ate nothing in the daytime, and throughout
the nights she never stopped mourning for her son Tobi'as, until the fourteen
days of the wedding feast had expired which Rag'uel had sworn that he
should spend there.
At that time Tobias said to Raguel, “Send me back, for my father and
mother have given up hope of ever seeing me again.” 8But his father-in-law
said to him, “Stay with me, and I will send messengers to your father, and
they will inform him how things are with you.” 9Tobi'as replied, “No, send
me back to my father.” 10So Rag'uel arose and gave him his wife Sarah and
half of his property in slaves, cattle, and money. 11And when he had blessed
them he sent them away, saying, “The God of heaven will prosper you, my
children, before I die.” 12He said also to his daughter, “Honor your father-
in-law and your mother-in-law; they are now your parents. Let me hear a
good report of you.” And he kissed her. And Edna said to Tobi'as, “The
Lord of heaven bring you back safely, dear brother, and grant me to see
your children by my daughter Sarah, that I may rejoice before the Lord.
See, I am entrusting my daughter to you; do nothing to grieve her.”
The Return
11 After this Tobi'as went on his way, praising God because he had
made his journey a success. And he blessed Rag'uel and his wife Edna.
So he continued on his way until they came near to Nin'eveh. 2Then
Ra'phael said to Tobi'as, “Are you not aware, brother, of how you left your
father? 3Let us run ahead of your wife and prepare the house. 4And take the
gall of the fish with you.” So they went their way, and the dog went along
behind them.
5 Now Anna sat looking intently down the road for her son. 6And she
caught sight of him coming, and said to his father, “Behold, your son is
coming, and so is the man who went with him!”
Tobit’s Sight Restored
7 Ra'phael said to Tobi'as, before they approached his father, “I know that
his eyes will be opened. 8Smear the gall of the fish on his eyes, and the
medicine will cause the white films to fall away. And your father will
regain his sight and see the light.”
9 Then Anna ran to meet them, and embraced her son, and said to him, “I
have seen you, my child; now I am ready to die.” And she wept. 10Tobit got
up, and came stumbling out through the courtyard door. But his son ran to
him 11with the gall of the fish in his hand, and holding him firmly, he blew
into his eyes, saying, “Take courage, Father.” 12With this he applied the
medicine on his eyes. 13Next, with both his hands, he peeled off the white
films from the corners of his eyes. 14Then he saw his son and embraced
him, and he wept and said, “Here I see my son, the light of my eyes!” Then
he said, “Blessed be God, and blessed be his great name, and blessed be all
his holy angels. May his holy name be blessed throughout all the ages.
15Though he afflicted me, he has had mercy on me. Now I see my son
Tobi'as!”
16 And his son went in rejoicing, and he reported to his father the great
things that had happened to him in Med'ia. Then Tobit went out to meet his
daughter-in-law at the gate of Nin'eveh, rejoicing and praising God. Those
who saw him as he went were amazed because he could see. 17And Tobit
gave thanks before them that God had been merciful to him. When Tobit
came near to Sarah his daughter-in-law, he blessed her, saying, “Welcome,
daughter! Blessed is God who has brought you to us, and blessed are your
father and your mother.” So there was rejoicing among all his brethren in
Nin'eveh. 18Ahi'kar and his nephew Na'dab z came, 19and Tobi'as’ marriage
was celebrated for seven days with great festivity.
Raphael’s Wages
12 Tobit then called his son Tobi'as and said to him, “My son, see to the
wages of the man who went with you; and he must also be given more.”
2He replied, “Father, it would do me no harm to give him half of what I
have brought back. 3For he has led me back to you safely, he cured my
wife, he obtained the money for me, and he also healed you.” 4The old man
said, “He deserves it.” 5So he called the angel and said to him, “Take for
your wages half of all that you two have brought back, and farewell.”
Raphael’s Exhortation
6 Then the angel a called the two of them privately and said to them:
“Praise God and give thanks to him; exalt him and give thanks to him in the
presence of all the living for what he has done for you. It is good to praise
God and to exalt his name, worthily declaring the works of God, and with
fitting honor to acknowledge him. Do not be slow to give him thanks. 7It is
good to guard the secret of a king, but gloriously to reveal the works of
God, and with fitting honor to acknowledge him. Do good, and evil will not
overtake you. 8Prayer is good when accompanied by fasting, almsgiving,
and righteousness. A little with righteousness is better than much with
wrongdoing. It is better to give alms than to treasure up gold. 9For
almsgiving delivers from death, and it will purge away every sin. Those
who perform deeds of charity* and of righteousness will have fulness of
life; 10but those who commit sin are the enemies of their own lives.
Raphael Reveals His Identity
11 “I will now declare the whole truth to you and I will not conceal
anything from you. I have said, ‘It is good to guard the secret of a king, but
gloriously to reveal the works of God.’ 12And so, when you and your
daughter-in-law Sarah prayed, I brought a reminder of your prayer before
the Holy One; and when you buried the dead, I was likewise present with
you. 13When you did not hesitate to rise and leave your dinner in order to
go and lay out the dead, I was sent to test you. 14So now God sent me to
heal you and your daughter-in-law Sarah. 15I am Ra'phael, one of the seven
holy angels who present the prayers of the saints and enter into the presence
of the glory of the Lord.”
16 They were both alarmed; and they fell upon their faces, for they were
afraid. 17But he said to them, “Do not be afraid; you will be safe. But praise
God for ever. 18For I did not come as a favor on my part, but by the will of
our God. Therefore praise him for ever. 19All these days I merely appeared
to you and did not eat or drink, but you were seeing a vision. 20And now
bless the Lord upon the earth and give thanks to God, for I am ascending to
him who sent me. Write in a book everything that has happened to you.”
21Then they stood up; but they saw him no more. 22So they confessed the
great and wonderful works of God, and acknowledged that the angel of the
Lord had appeared to them.
Tobit’s Prayer of Thanksgiving
13 Then Tobit wrote a prayer of rejoicing, and said:
00“Blessed is God who lives for ever,
and blessed is his kingdom.

02For he afflicts, and he shows mercy;
he leads down to Hades, and brings up again,

and there is no one who can escape his hand.
03Acknowledge him before the nations, O sons of Israel;
for he has scattered us among them.

04Make his greatness known there,
and exalt him in the presence of all the living;

00because he is our Lord and God,
he is our Father for ever.

05He will afflict us for our iniquities;
and again he will show mercy,

00and will gather us from all the nations
among whom you b have been scattered.

06If you turn to him with all your heart and with all your soul,
to do what is true before him,

00then he will turn to you
and will not hide his face from you.

00But see what he will do with you;
give thanks to him with your full voice.
00Praise the Lord of righteousness,
and exalt the King of the ages.
00I give him thanks in the land of my captivity,
and I show his power and majesty to a nation of sinners.

00Turn back, you sinners, and do right before him;
who knows if he will accept you and have mercy on you?

07I exalt my God;
my soul exalts the King of heaven,

and will rejoice in his majesty.
08Bless the Lord, all you his chosen ones,
all of you, praise his glory.

00Celebrate days of joy, and give thanks to him.
09O Jerusalem, the holy city,
he will afflict you for the deeds of your sons,

but again he will show mercy to the sons of the righteous.
10Give thanks worthily to the Lord,
and praise the King of the ages,

that his tent may be raised for you again with joy.
00May he cheer those within you who are captives,
and love those within you who are distressed,

to all generations for ever.
11Many nations will come from afar to the name of the Lord God,
bearing gifts in their hands, gifts for the King of heaven.

00Generations of generations will give you joyful praise.
12Cursed are all who hate you;
blessed for ever will be all who love you.

13Rejoice and be glad for the sons of the righteous;
for they will be gathered together,

and will praise the Lord of the righteous.
14How blessed are those who love you!
They will rejoice in your peace.

00Blessed are those who grieved over all your afflictions;
for they will rejoice for you upon seeing all your glory,
and they will be made glad for ever.
15Let my soul praise God the great King.
16For Jerusalem will be built with sapphires and emeralds,
her c walls with precious stones,
and her towers and battlements with pure gold.
17The streets of Jerusalem will be paved d with beryl and ruby and stones
of O'phir;
18 all her lanes will cry ‘Hallelujah!’ and will give praise,
saying, ‘Blessed is God, who has exalted you for ever.’ ”

Tobit’s Final Counsel and Death
14 Here Tobit ended his words of praise. 2He was fifty-eight years old
when he lost his sight, and after eight years he regained it. He gave alms,
and he continued to fear the Lord God and to praise him. 3When he had
grown very old he called his son and grandsons, and said to him, “My son,
take your sons; behold, I have grown old and am about to depart this life.
4Go to Med'ia, my son, for I fully believe what Jonah the prophet said about
Nin'eveh, that it will be overthrown. But in Media there will be peace for a
time. Our brethren will be scattered over the earth from the good land, and
Jerusalem will be desolate. The house of God in it will be burned down and
will be in ruins for a time. 5But God will again have mercy on them, and
bring them back into their land; and they will rebuild the house of God, e
though it will not be like the former one until the times of the age are
completed. After this they will return from the places of their captivity, and
will rebuild Jerusalem in splendor. And the house of God will be rebuilt
there with a glorious building for all generations for ever, just as the
prophets said of it. 6Then all the Gentiles will turn to fear the Lord God in
truth, and will bury their idols. 7All the Gentiles will praise the Lord, and
his people will give thanks to God, and the Lord will exalt his people. And
all who love the Lord God in truth and righteousness will rejoice, showing
mercy to our brethren.
8 “So now, my son, leave Nin'eveh, because what the prophet Jonah said
will surely happen. 9But keep the law and the commandments, and be
merciful and just, so that it may be well with you. 10Bury me properly, and
your mother with me. And do not live in Nin'eveh any longer. See, my son,
what Na'dab f did to Ahi'kar who had reared him, how he brought him from
light into darkness, and with what he repaid him. But Ahikar was saved,
and the other received repayment as he himself went down into the
darkness. Ahikar g gave alms and escaped the deathtrap which Nadab h had
set for him; but Nadab f fell into the trap and perished. 11So now, my
children, consider what almsgiving accomplishes and how righteousness
delivers.” As he said this he died in his bed. He was a hundred and fifty-
eight years old; and Tobi'as h gave him a magnificent funeral. 12And when
Anna died he buried her with his father.
Then Tobi'as returned with his wife and his sons to Ecbat'ana, to Rag'uel
his father-in-law. 13He grew old with honor, and he gave his father-in-law
and mother-in-law magnificent funerals. He inherited their property and that
of his father Tobit. 14He died in Ecbat'ana of Med'ia at the age of a hundred
and twenty-seven years. 15But before he died he heard of the destruction of
Nin'eveh, which Nebuchadnez'zar and Ahas'u-erus had captured. Before his
death he rejoiced over Nineveh.
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Judith
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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THE BOOK OF JUDITH
Arphaxad Fortifies Ecbatana
1 In the twelfth year of the reign of Nebuchadnez'zar, who ruled over the
Assyrians in the great city of Nin'eveh, in the days of Arpha'xad, who ruled
over the Medes in Ecbat'ana—2he is the king who built walls about
Ecbat'ana with hewn stones three cubits thick and six cubits long; he made
the walls seventy cubits high and fifty cubits wide; 3at the gates he built
towers a hundred cubits high and sixty cubits wide at the foundations; 4and
he made its gates, which were seventy cubits high and forty cubits wide, so
that his armies could march out in force and his infantry form their ranks—
5it was in those days that King Nebuchadnez'zar made war against King
Arpha'xad in the great plain which is on the borders of Ragae. 6He was
joined by all the people of the hill country and all those who lived along the
Euphrates and the Tigris and the Hydas'pes and in the plain where Ar'ioch
ruled the El''ymae'ans. Many nations joined the forces of the Chalde'ans.
Nebuchadnezzar’s Orders Disregarded
7 Then Nebuchadnez'zar king of the Assyrians sent to all who lived in
Persia and to all who lived in the west, those who lived in Cili'cia and
Damascus and Lebanon and An''ti-leb'anon and all who lived along the
seacoast, 8and those among the nations of Carmel and Gilead, and Upper
Galilee and the great Plain of Esdrae'lon, 9and all who were in Samar'ia and
its surrounding towns, and beyond the Jordan as far as Jerusalem and
Beth'any and Chelous and Ka'desh and the river of Egypt, and Tah'panhes
and Ra-am'ses and the whole land of Go'shen, 10even beyond Tanis and
Memphis, and all who lived in Egypt as far as the borders of Ethiopia. 11But
all who lived in the whole region disregarded the orders of Nebuchadnez'zar
king of the Assyrians, and refused to join him in the war; for they were not
afraid of him, but looked upon him as only one man, a and they sent back
his messengers empty-handed and shamefaced.
Arphaxad Is Defeated
12 Then Nebuchadnez'zar was very angry with this whole region, and
swore by his throne and kingdom that he would surely take revenge on the
whole territory of Cili'cia and Damascus and Syria, that he would kill by the
sword all the inhabitants of the land of Moab, and the people of Ammon,
and all Jude'a, and every one in Egypt, as far as the coasts of the two seas.
13In the seventeenth year he led his forces against King Arpha'xad, and
defeated him in battle, and overthrew the whole army of Arphaxad, and all
his cavalry and all his chariots. 14Thus he took possession of his cities, and
came to Ecbat'ana, captured its towers, plundered its markets, and turned its
beauty into shame. 15He captured Arpha'xad in the mountains of Ragae and
struck him down with hunting spears; and he utterly destroyed him, to this
day. 16Then he returned with them to Nin'eveh, he and all his combined
forces, a vast body of troops; and there he and his forces rested and feasted
for one hundred and twenty days.
Revenge against the West
2 In the eighteenth year, on the twenty-second day of the first month,
there was talk in the palace of Nebuchadnez'zar king of the Assyrians about
carrying out his revenge on the whole region, just as he said. 2He called
together all his officers and all his nobles and set forth to them his secret
plan and recounted fully, with his own lips, all the wickedness of the
region; b 3and it was decided that every one who had not obeyed his
command should be destroyed. 4When he had finished setting forth his
plan, Nebuchadnez'zar king of the Assyrians called Hol''ofer'nes, the chief
general of his army, second only to himself, and said to him,
5 “Thus says the Great King, the lord of the whole earth: When you leave
my presence, take with you men confident in their strength, to the number
of one hundred and twenty thousand foot soldiers and twelve thousand
cavalry. 6Go and attack the whole west country, because they disobeyed my
orders. 7Tell them to prepare earth and water, for I am coming against them
in my anger, and will cover the whole face of the earth with the feet of my
armies, and will hand them over to be plundered by my troops, c 8till their
wounded shall fill their valleys, and every brook and river shall be filled
with their dead, and overflow; 9and I will lead them away captive to the
ends of the whole earth. 10You shall go and seize all their territory for me in
advance. They will yield themselves to you, and you shall hold them for me
till the day of their punishment. 11But if they refuse, your eye shall not
spare and you shall hand them over to slaughter and plunder throughout
your whole region. 12For as I live, and by the power of my kingdom, what I
have spoken my hand will execute. 13And you—take care not to transgress
any of your sovereign’s commands, but be sure to carry them out just as I
have ordered you; and do not delay about it.”
Campaign of Holofernes
14 So Hol''ofer'nes left the presence of his master, and called together all
the commanders, generals, and officers of the Assyrian army, 15and

mustered the picked troops by divisions as his lord had ordered him to do,
one hundred and twenty thousand of them, together with twelve thousand
archers on horseback, 16and he organized them as a great army is marshaled
for a campaign. 17He collected a vast number of camels and donkeys and
mules for transport, and innumerable sheep and oxen and goats for
provision; 18also plenty of food for every man, and a huge amount of gold
and silver from the royal palace. 19So he set out with his whole army, to go
ahead of King Nebuchadnez'zar and to cover the whole face of the earth to
the west with their chariots and horsemen and picked troops of infantry.
20Along with them went a mixed crowd like a swarm of locusts, like the
dust of the earth—a multitude that could not be counted.

21 They marched for three days from Nin'eveh to the plain of Bec'tileth,
and camped opposite Bectileth near the mountain which is to the north of
Upper Cili'cia. 22From there Hol''ofer'nes d took his whole army, his
infantry, cavalry, and chariots, and went up into the hill country 23and
ravaged Put and Lud, and plundered all the people of Rassis and the
Ish'maelites who lived along the desert, south of the country of the
Chel'leans. 24Then he followed e the Euphrates and passed through
Mesopota'mia and destroyed all the hilltop cities along the brook Abron, as
far as the sea. 25He also seized the territory of Cili'cia, and killed every one
who resisted him, and came to the southern borders of Ja'pheth, fronting
toward Arabia. 26He surrounded all the Mid'ianites, and burned their tents
and plundered their sheepfolds. 27Then he went down into the plain of
Damascus during the wheat harvest, and burned all their fields and
destroyed their flocks and herds and sacked their cities and ravaged their
lands and put to death all their young men with the edge of the sword.
28 So fear and terror of him fell upon all the people who lived along the
seacoast, at Si'don and Tyre, and those who lived in Sur and Oci'na and all
who lived in Jam'nia. Those who lived in Azo'tus and Asca'lon feared him
exceedingly.
Entreaties for Peace
3 So they sent messengers to sue for peace, and said, 2 “Behold, we the
servants of Nebuchadnez'zar, the Great King, lie prostrate before you. Do
with us whatever you will. 3Behold, our buildings, and all our land, and all
our wheat fields, and our flocks and herds, and all our sheepfolds with their
tents, lie before you; do with them whatever you please. 4Our cities also and
their inhabitants are your slaves; come and deal with them in any way that
seems good to you.”
5 The men came to Hol''ofer'nes and told him all this. 6Then he went down
to the seacoast with his army and stationed garrisons in the hilltop cities and
took picked men from them as his allies. 7And these people and all in the
country round about welcomed him with garlands and dances and
tambourines. 8And he demolished all their shrines f and cut down their
sacred groves; for it had been given to him to destroy all the gods of the
land, so that all nations should worship Nebuchadnez'zar only, and all their
tongues and tribes should call upon him as god.
9 Then he came to the edge of Esdrae'lon, near Do'than, fronting the great
ridge of Jude'a; 10here he camped between Ge'ba and Scythop'olis, and

remained for a whole month in order to assemble all the supplies for his
army.
Judea Prepares for Defense
4 By this time the people of Israel living in Judea heard of everything
that Hol''ofer'nes, the general of Nebuchadnez'zar the king of the Assyrians,
had done to the nations, and how he had plundered and destroyed all their
temples; 2they were therefore very greatly terrified at his approach, and
were alarmed both for Jerusalem and for the temple of the Lord their God.
3For they had only recently returned from the captivity, and all the people of
Jude'a were newly gathered together, and the sacred vessels and the altar
and the temple had been consecrated after their profanation. 4So they sent to
every district of Samar'ia, and to Kona and Beth-ho'ron and Bel'main and
Jericho and to Choba and Aeso'ra and the valley of Salem, 5and
immediately seized all the high hilltops and fortified the villages on them
and stored up food in preparation for war—since their fields had recently
been harvested. 6And Jo'akim, the high priest, who was in Jerusalem at that
time, wrote to the people of Beth''uli'a and Bet''omestha'im, which faces
Esdrae'lon opposite the plain near Do'than, 7ordering them to seize the
passes up into the hills, since by them Jude'a could be invaded, and it was
easy to stop any who tried to enter, for the approach was narrow, only wide
enough for two men at the most.
Israel’s Prayer and Penance
8 So the Israelites did as Jo'akim the high priest and the senate of the
whole people of Israel, in session at Jerusalem, had given order. 9And every
man of Israel cried out to God with great fervor, and they humbled
themselves with much fasting. 10They and their wives and their children
and their cattle and every resident alien and hired laborer and purchased
slave—they all clothed themselves with sackcloth. 11And all the men and
women of Israel, and their children, living at Jerusalem, prostrated
themselves before the temple and put ashes on their heads and spread out
their sackcloth before the Lord. 12They even surrounded the altar with
sackcloth and cried out in unison, praying earnestly to the God of Israel not
to give up their infants as prey and their wives as booty, and the cities they
had inherited to be destroyed, and the sanctuary to be profaned and
desecrated to the malicious joy of the Gentiles. 13So the Lord heard their
prayers and looked upon their affliction; for the people fasted many days
throughout Jude'a and in Jerusalem before the sanctuary of the Lord
Almighty. 14And Jo'akim the high priest and all the priests who stood before
the Lord and ministered to the Lord, with their loins clothed with sackcloth,
offered the continual burnt offerings and the vows and freewill offerings of
the people. 15With ashes upon their turbans, they cried out to the Lord with
all their might to look with favor upon the whole house of Israel.
Holofernes’ Council against the Israelites
5 When Hol''ofer'nes, the general of the Assyrian army, heard that the
people of Israel had prepared for war and had closed the passes in the hills
and had fortified all the high hilltops and set up barricades in the plains, 2he
was very angry. So he called together all the princes of Moab and the
commanders of Ammon and all the governors of the coastland, 3and said to
them, “Tell me, you Canaanites, what people is this that lives in the hill
country? What cities do they inhabit? How large is their army, and in what
does their power or strength consist? Who rules over them as king, leading
their army? 4And why have they alone, of all who live in the west, refused
to come out and meet me?”
Achior’s Report
5 Then A'chior, the leader of all the Am'monites, said to him, “Let my lord
now hear a word from the mouth of your servant, and I will tell you the
truth about this people that dwells in the nearby mountain district. No
falsehood shall come from your servant’s mouth. 6This people is descended
from the Chalde'ans. 7At one time they lived in Mesopota'mia, because they
would not follow the gods of their fathers who were in Chaldea. 8For they
had left the ways of their ancestors, and they worshiped the God of heaven,
the God they had come to know; hence they drove them out from the
presence of their gods; and they fled to Mesopota'mia, and lived there for a
long time. 9Then their God commanded them to leave the place where they
were living and go to the land of Canaan. There they settled, and prospered,
with much gold and silver and very many cattle. 10When a famine spread
over Canaan they went down to Egypt and lived there as long as they had
food; and there they became a great multitude—so great that they could not
be counted. 11So the king of Egypt became hostile to them; he took
advantage of them and set them to making bricks, and humbled them and
made slaves of them. 12Then they cried out to their God, and he afflicted the
whole land of Egypt with incurable plagues; and so the Egyptians drove
them out of their sight. 13Then God dried up the Red Sea before them, 14and
he led them by the way of Sinai and Ka'desh-bar'nea, and drove out all the
people of the wilderness. 15So they lived in the land of the Am'orites, and
by their might destroyed all the inhabitants of Heshbon; and crossing over
the Jordan they took possession of all the hill country. 16And they drove out
before them the Canaanites and the Per'izzites and the Jeb'usites and the
She'chemites and all the Ger'gesites, and lived there a long time. 17As long
as they did not sin against their God they prospered, for the God who hates
iniquity is with them. 18But when they departed from the way which he had
appointed for them, they were utterly defeated in many battles and were led
away captive to a foreign country; the temple of their God was razed to the
ground, and their cities were captured by their enemies. 19But now they
have returned to their God, and have come back from the places to which
they were scattered, and have occupied Jerusalem, where their sanctuary is,
and have settled in the hill country, because it was uninhabited. 20Now
therefore, my master and lord, if there is any unwitting error in this people
and they sin against their God and we find out their offense, then we will go
up and defeat them. 21But if there is no transgression in their nation, then let
my lord pass them by; for their Lord will defend them, and their God will
protect them, and we shall be put to shame before the whole world.”
22 When A'chior had finished saying this, all the men standing around the
tent began to complain; Hol''ofer'nes’ officers and all the men from the
seacoast and from Moab insisted that he must be put to death. 23 “For,” they
said, “we will not be afraid of the Israelites; they are a people with no
strength or power for making war. 24Therefore let us go up, Lord
Hol''ofer'nes, and they will be devoured by your vast army.”
Achior Handed over to the Israelites
6 When the disturbance made by the men outside the council died down,
Hol''ofer'nes, the commander of the Assyrian army, said to A'chior and all
the Moabites in the presence of all the foreign contingents:
2 “And who are you, A'chior, and you hirelings of E'phraim, to prophesy
among us as you have done today and tell us not to make war against the
people of Israel because their God will defend them? Who is God except
Nebuchadnez'zar? 3He will send his forces and will destroy them from the
face of the earth, and their God will not deliver them—we the king’s f
servants will destroy them as one man. They cannot resist the might of our
cavalry. 4We will burn them up, g and their mountains will be drunk with
their blood, and their fields will be full of their dead. They h cannot
withstand us, but will utterly perish. So says King Nebuchadnez'zar, the
lord of the whole earth. For he has spoken; none of his words shall be in
vain.
5 “But you, A'chior, you Am'monite hireling, who have said these words
on the day of your iniquity, you shall not see my face again from this day
until I take revenge on this race that came out of Egypt. 6Then the sword of
my army and the spear i of my servants shall pierce your sides, and you
shall fall among their wounded, when I return. 7Now my slaves are going to
take you back into the hill country and put you in one of the cities beside
the passes, 8and you will not die until you perish along with them. 9If you
really hope in your heart that they will not be taken, do not look downcast! I
have spoken and none of my words shall fail.”
10 Then Hol''ofer'nes ordered his slaves, who waited on him in his tent, to
seize A'chior and take him to Beth''uli'a and hand him over to the men of
Israel. 11So the slaves took him and led him out of the camp into the plain,
and from the plain they went up into the hill country and came to the
springs below Beth''uli'a. 12When the men of the city saw them, j they
caught up their weapons and ran out of the city to the top of the hill, and all
the slingers kept them from coming up by casting stones at them.
13However, they got under the shelter of the hill and they bound A'chior and
left him lying at the foot of the hill, and returned to their master.
14 Then the men of Israel came down from their city and found him; and
they untied him and brought him into Beth''uli'a and placed him before the
magistrates of their city, 15who in those days were Uzzi'ah the son of
Micah, of the tribe of Simeon, and Chabris the son of Gotho'niel, and
Charmis the son of Melchi'el. 16They called together all the elders of the
city, and all their young men and their women ran to the assembly; and they
set A'chior in the midst of all their people, and Uzzi'ah asked him what had
happened. 17He answered and told them what had taken place at the council
of Hol''ofer'nes, and all that he had said in the presence of the Assyrian
leaders, and all that Holofernes had said so boastfully against the house of
Israel. 18Then the people fell down and worshiped God, and cried out to
him, and said,
19 “O Lord God of heaven, behold their arrogance, and have pity on the
humiliation of our people, and look this day upon the faces of those who are
consecrated to you.”
20 Then they consoled A'chior, and praised him greatly. 21And Uzzi'ah
took him from the assembly to his own house and gave a banquet for the
elders; and all that night they called on the God of Israel for help.
The Campaign against Bethulia
7 The next day Hol''ofer'nes ordered his whole army, and all the allies
who had joined him, to break camp and move against Beth''uli'a, and to
seize the passes up into the hill country and make war on the Israelites. 2So
all their warriors moved their camp that day; their force of men of war was
one hundred and seventy thousand infantry and twelve thousand cavalry,
together with the baggage and the foot soldiers handling it, a very great
multitude. 3They encamped in the valley near Beth''uli'a, beside the spring,
and they spread out in breadth over Do'than as far as Balba'im and in length
from Bethulia to Cy'amon, which faces Esdrae'lon.
4 When the Israelites saw their vast numbers they were greatly terrified,
and every one said to his neighbor, “These men will now lick up the face of
the whole land; neither the high mountains nor the valleys nor the hills will
bear their weight.” 5Then each man took up his weapons, and when they
had kindled fires on their towers they remained on guard all that night.
6 On the second day Hol''ofer'nes led out all his cavalry in full view of the
Israelites in Beth''uli'a, 7and examined the approaches to the city, and

visited the springs that supplied their water, and seized them and set guards
of soldiers over them, and then returned to his army.
8 Then all the chieftains of the people of Esau and all the leaders of the
Moabites and the commanders of the coastland came to him and said, 9 “Let
our lord hear a word, lest his army be defeated. 10For these people, the
Israelites, do not rely on their spears but on the height of the mountains
where they live, for it is not easy to reach the tops of their mountains.
11Therefore, my lord, do not fight against them in battle array, and not a
man of your army will fall. 12Remain in your camp, and keep all the men in
your forces with you; only let your servants take possession of the spring of
water that flows from the foot of the mountain—13for this is where all the
people of Beth''uli'a get their water. So thirst will destroy them, and they
will give up their city. We and our people will go up to the tops of the
nearby mountains and camp there to keep watch that not a man gets out of
the city. 14They and their wives and children will waste away with famine,
and before the sword reaches them they will be strewn about in the streets
where they live. 15So you will pay them back with evil, because they
rebelled and did not receive you peaceably.”
16 These words pleased Hol''ofer'nes and all his servants, and he gave
orders to do as they had said. 17So the army of the Am'monites moved
forward, together with five thousand Assyrians, and they encamped in the
valley and seized the water supply and the springs of the Israelites. 18And
the sons of Esau and the sons of Ammon went up and encamped in the hill
country opposite Do'than; and they sent some of their men toward the south
and the east, toward Ac'raba, which is near Chu'si beside the brook
Moch'mur. The rest of the Assyrian army encamped in the plain, and
covered the whole face of the land, and their tents and supply trains spread
out in great number, and they formed a vast multitude.
The Distress of the Israelites
19 The people of Israel cried out to the Lord their God, for their courage
failed, because all their enemies had surrounded them and there was no way
of escape from them. 20The whole Assyrian army, their infantry, chariots,
and cavalry, surrounded them for thirty-four days, until all the vessels of
water belonging to every inhabitant of Beth''uli'a were empty; 21their
cisterns were going dry, and they did not have enough water to drink their
fill for a single day, because it was measured out to them to drink. 22Their
children lost heart, and the women and young men fainted from thirst and
fell down in the streets of the city and in the passages through the gates;
there was no strength left in them any longer.
23 Then all the people, the young men, the women, and the children,
gathered about Uzzi'ah and the rulers of the city and cried out with a loud
voice, and said before all the elders, 24“God be judge between you and us!
For you have done us a great injury in not making peace with the Assyrians.
25For now we have no one to help us; God has sold us into their hands, to
strew us on the ground before them with thirst and utter destruction. 26Now
call them in and surrender the whole city to the army of Hol''ofer'nes and to
all his forces, to be plundered. 27For it would be better for us to be captured
by them; k for we will be slaves, but our lives will be spared, and we shall
not witness the death of our infants before our eyes, or see our wives and
children draw their last breath. 28We call to witness against you heaven and
earth and our God, the Lord of our fathers, who punishes us according to
our sins and the sins of our fathers. Let him not do this day the things which
we have described!”
29 Then great and general lamentation arose throughout the assembly, and
they cried out to the Lord God with a loud voice. 30And Uzzi'ah said to
them, “Have courage, my brothers! Let us hold out for five more days; by
that time the Lord our God will restore to us his mercy, for he will not
forsake us utterly. 31But if these days pass by, and no help comes for us, I
will do what you say.”
32 Then he dismissed the people to their various posts, and they went up
on the walls and towers of their city. The women and children he sent
home. And they were greatly depressed in the city.
The Character of Judith
8 At that time Judith heard about these things: she was the daughter of
Merar'i the son of Ox, son of Joseph, son of O'ziel, son of Elki'ah, son of
Anani'as, son of Gideon, son of Raph'aim, son of Ahi'tub, son of Eli'jah, son
of Hilki'ah, son of Eliab, son of Nathan'a-el, son of Sala'miel, son of
Sara'sadai, son of Israel.* 2Her husband Manas'seh, who belonged to her
tribe and family, had died during the barley harvest. 3For as he stood
overseeing the men who were binding sheaves in the field, he was
overcome by the burning heat, and took to his bed and died in Beth''uli'a his
city. So they buried him with his fathers in the field between Do'than and
Bal'amon. 4Judith had lived at home as a widow for three years and four
months. 5She set up a tent for herself on the roof of her house, and belted
sackcloth about her loins and wore the garments of her widowhood. 6She
fasted all the days of her widowhood, except the day before the sabbath and
the sabbath itself, the day before the new moon and the day of the new
moon, and the feasts and days of rejoicing of the house of Israel. 7She was
beautiful in appearance, and had a very lovely face; she was prudent of
heart, discerning in judgment, and quite virtuous. Her husband Manas'seh,
the son of Joseph, the son of Ahi'tub, the son of Melchis, the son of E'liab,
the son of Nathan'a-el, the son of Sara'sadai, the son of Simeon, had left her
gold and silver, and men and women slaves, and cattle, and fields; and she
maintained this estate. 8No one spoke ill of her, for she feared God with
great devotion.
Judith Rebukes the Elders
9 When Judith heard the wicked words spoken by the people against the
ruler, because they were faint for lack of water, and when she heard all that
Uzziah said to them, and how he promised them under oath to surrender the
city to the Assyrians after five days, 10she sent her maid, who was in charge
of all she possessed, to summon l Chabris and Charmis, the elders of her
city. 11They came to her, and she said to them,
“Listen to me, rulers of the people of Beth''uli'a! What you have said to
the people today is not right; you have even sworn and pronounced this oath
between God and you, promising to surrender the city to our enemies unless
the Lord turns and helps us within so many days. 12Who are you, that have
put God to the test this day, and are setting yourselves up in the place of m
God among the sons of men? 13You are putting the Lord Almighty to the
test—but you will never know anything! 14You cannot plumb the depths of
the human heart, nor find out what a man is thinking; how do you expect to
search out God, who made all these things, and find out his mind or
comprehend his thought? No, my brethren, do not provoke the Lord our
God to anger. 15For if he does not choose to help us within these five days,
he has power to protect us within any time he pleases, or even to destroy us
in the presence of our enemies. 16Do not try to bind the purposes of the
Lord our God; for God is not like man, to be threatened, nor like a human
being, to be won over by pleading. 17Therefore, while we wait for his
deliverance, let us call upon him to help us, and he will hear our voice, if it
pleases him.
18 “For never in our generation, nor in these present days, has there been
any tribe or family or people or city of ours which worshiped gods made
with hands, as was done in days gone by—19and that was why our fathers
were handed over to the sword, and to be plundered, and so they suffered a
great catastrophe before our enemies. 20But we know no other god but him,
and therefore we hope that he will not disdain us or any of our nation. 21For
if we are captured all Jude'a will be captured and our sanctuary will be
plundered; and he will exact of us n the penalty for its desecration. 22And
the slaughter of our brethren and the captivity of the land and the desolation
of our inheritance—all this he will bring upon our heads among the
Gentiles, wherever we serve as slaves; and we shall be an offense and a
reproach in the eyes of those who acquire us. 23For our slavery will not
bring us into favor, but the Lord our God will turn it to dishonor.
24 “Now therefore, brethren, let us set an example to our brethren, for their
lives depend upon us, and the sanctuary and the temple and the altar rest
upon us. 25In spite of everything let us give thanks to the Lord our God,
who is putting us to the test as he did our forefathers. 26Remember what he
did with Abraham, and how he tested Isaac, and what happened to Jacob in
Mesopota'mia in Syria, while he was keeping the sheep of La'ban, his
mother’s brother. 27For he has not tried us with fire, as he did them, to
search their hearts, nor has he taken revenge upon us; but the Lord scourges
those who draw near to him, in order to admonish them.”
28 Then Uzzi'ah said to her, “All that you have said has been spoken out of
a true heart, and there is no one who can deny your words. 29Today is not
the first time your wisdom has been shown, but from the beginning of your
life all the people have recognized your understanding, for your heart’s
disposition is right. 30But the people were very thirsty, and they compelled
us to do for them what we have promised, and made us take an oath which
we cannot break. 31So pray for us, since you are a devout woman, and the
Lord will send us rain to fill our cisterns and we will no longer be faint.”
32 Judith said to them, “Listen to me. I am about to do a thing which will
go down through all generations of our descendants. 33Stand at the city gate
tonight, and I will go out with my maid; and within the days after which
you have promised to surrender the city to our enemies, the Lord will
deliver Israel by my hand. 34Only, do not try to find out what I plan; for I
will not tell you until I have finished what I am about to do.”
35 Uzzi'ah and the rulers said to her, “Go in peace, and may the Lord God
go before you, to take revenge upon our enemies.” 36So they returned from
the tent and went to their posts.
The Prayer of Judith
9 Then Judith fell upon her face, and put ashes on her head, and
uncovered the sackcloth she was wearing; and at the very time when that
evening’s incense was being offered in the house of God in Jerusalem,
Judith cried out to the Lord with a loud voice, and said,
2 “O Lord God of my father Simeon, to whom you gave a sword to take
revenge on the strangers who had loosed the girdle o of a virgin to defile
her, and uncovered her thigh to put her to shame, and polluted her womb to
disgrace her; for you have said, ‘It shall not be done’—yet they did it. 3So
you gave up their rulers to be slain, and their bed, which was ashamed of
the deceit they had practiced, to be stained with blood, and you struck down
slaves along with princes, and princes on their thrones; 4and you gave their
wives for a prey and their daughters to captivity, and all their booty to be
divided among your beloved sons, who were zealous for you, and abhorred
the pollution of their blood, and called on you for help—O God, my God,
hear me also, a widow.
5 “For you have done these things and those that went before and those
that followed; you have designed the things that are now, and those that are
to come. Yes, the things you intended came to pass, 6and the things you
willed presented themselves and said, ‘Behold, we are here’; for all your
ways are prepared in advance, and your judgment is with foreknowledge.
7 “Behold now, the Assyrians are increased in their might; they are
exalted, with their horses and riders; they glory in the strength of their foot
soldiers; they trust in shield and spear, in bow and sling, and know not that
you are the Lord who crushes wars; the Lord is your name. 8Break their
strength by your might, and bring down their power in your anger; for they
intend to defile your sanctuary, and to pollute the tabernacle where your
glorious name rests, and to cast down the horn of your altar with the sword.
9Behold their pride, and send your wrath upon their heads; give to me, a
widow, the strength to do what I plan. 10By the deceit of my lips strike
down the slave with the prince and the prince with his servant; crush their
arrogance by the hand of a woman.
11 “For your power depends not upon numbers, nor your might upon men
of strength; for you are God of the lowly, helper of the oppressed, upholder
of the weak, protector of the forlorn, savior of those without hope. 12Hear,
O hear me, God of my father, God of the inheritance of Israel, Lord of
heaven and earth, Creator of the waters, King of all your creation, hear my
prayer! 13Make my deceitful words to be their wound and stripe, for they
have planned cruel things against your covenant, and against your
consecrated house, and against the top of Zion, and against the house
possessed by your children. 14And cause your whole nation and every tribe
to know and understand that you are God, the God of all power and might,
and that there is no other who protects the people of Israel but you alone!”
Judith Prepares to Go to Holofernes
10 When Judith p had ceased crying out to the God of Israel, and had
ended all these words, 2she rose from where she lay prostrate and called her
maid and went down into the house where she lived on sabbaths and on her
feast days; 3and she removed the sackcloth which she had been wearing,
and took off her widow’s garments, and bathed her body with water, and
anointed herself with precious ointment, and combed her hair and put on a
tiara, and arrayed herself in her most festive apparel, which she used to
wear while her husband Manas'seh was living. 4And she put sandals on her
feet, and put on her anklets and bracelets and rings, and her earrings and all
her ornaments,* and made herself very beautiful, to entice the eyes of all
men who might see her. 5And she gave her maid a bottle of wine and a flask
of oil, and filled a bag with parched grain and a cake of dried fruit and fine
bread; and she wrapped up all her vessels and gave them to her to carry.
6 Then they went out to the city gate of Beth''uli'a, and found Uzzi'ah
standing there with the elders of the city, Chabris and Charmis. 7When they
saw her, and noted how her face was altered and her clothing changed, they
greatly admired her beauty, and said to her, 8“May the God of our fathers
grant you favor and fulfil your plans, that the people of Israel may glory and
Jerusalem may be exalted.” And she worshiped God.
9 Then she said to them, “Order the gate of the city to be opened for me,
and I will go out and accomplish the things about which you spoke with
me.” So they ordered the young men to open the gate for her, as she had
said. 10When they had done this, Judith went out, she and her maid with
her; and the men of the city watched her until she had gone down the
mountain and passed through the valley and they could no longer see her.
Judith Is Captured
11 The women q went straight on through the valley; and an Assyrian
patrol met her 12and took her into custody, and asked her, “To what people
do you belong, and where are you coming from, and where are you going?”
She replied, “I am a daughter of the Hebrews, but I am fleeing from them,
for they are about to be handed over to you to be devoured. 13I am on my
way to the presence of Hol''ofer'nes the commander of your army, to give
him a true report; and I will show him a way by which he can go and
capture all the hill country without losing one of his men, captured or
slain.”
14 When the men heard her words, and observed her face—she was in
their eyes marvelously beautiful—they said to her, 15“You have saved your
life by hurrying down to the presence of our lord. Go at once to his tent;
some of us will escort you and hand you over to him. 16And when you stand
before him, do not be afraid in your heart, but tell him just what you have
said, and he will treat you well.”
17 They chose from their number a hundred men to accompany her and her
maid, and they brought them to the tent of Hol''ofer'nes. 18There was great
excitement in the whole camp, for her arrival was reported from tent to tent,
and they came and stood around her as she waited outside the tent of
Hol''ofer'nes while they told him about her. 19And they marveled at her
beauty, and admired the Israelites, judging them by her, and every one said
to his neighbor, “Who can despise these people, who have women like this
among them? Surely not a man of them had better be left alive, for if we let
them go they will be able to ensnare the whole world!”
Judith Is Brought before Holofernes
20 Then Hol''ofer'nes’ companions and all his servants came out and led
her into the tent. 21Hol''ofer'nes was resting on his bed, under a canopy
which was woven with purple and gold and emeralds and precious stones.
22When they told him of her he came forward to the front of the tent, with
silver lamps carried before him. 23And when Judith came into the presence
of Hol''ofer'nes r and his servants, they all marveled at the beauty of her
face; and she prostrated herself and made obeisance to him, and his slaves
raised her up.
11 Then Hol''ofer'nes said to her, “Take courage, woman, and do not be
afraid in your heart, for I have never hurt any one who chose to serve
Nebuchadnez'zar, the king of all the earth. 2And even now, if your people
who live in the hill country had not slighted me, I would never have lifted
my spear against them; but they have brought all this on themselves. 3And
now tell me why you have fled from them and have come over to us—since
you have come to safety. 4Have courage; you will live, tonight and from
now on. No one will hurt you, but all will treat you well, as they do the
servants of my lord King Nebuchadnez'zar.”
Judith Deceives Holofernes
5 Judith replied to him, “Accept the words of your servant, and let your
maidservant speak in your presence, and I will tell nothing false to my lord
this night. 6And if you follow out the words of your maidservant, God will
accomplish something through you, and my lord will not fail to achieve his
purposes. 7Nebuchadnez'zar the king of the whole earth lives, and as his
power endures, who had sent you to direct every living soul, not only do
men serve him because of you, but also the beasts of the field and the cattle
and the birds of the air will live by your power under Nebuchadnezzar and
all his house. 8For we have heard of your wisdom and skill, and it is
reported throughout the whole world that you are the one good man in the
whole kingdom, thoroughly informed and marvelous in military strategy.
9 “Now as for the things A'chior said in your council, we have heard his
words, for the men of Beth''uli'a spared him and he told them all he had said
to you. 10Therefore, my lord and master, do not disregard what he said, but
keep it in your mind, for it is true: our nation cannot be punished, nor can
the sword prevail against them, unless they sin against their God.
11 “And now, in order that my lord may not be defeated and his purpose
frustrated, death will fall upon them, for a sin has overtaken them by which
they are about to provoke their God to anger when they do what is wrong.
12Since their food supply is exhausted and their water has almost given out,
they have planned to kill their cattle and have determined to use all that
God by his laws has forbidden them to eat. 13They have decided to consume
the first fruits of the grain and the tithes of the wine and oil, which they had
consecrated and set aside for the priests who minister in the presence of our
God at Jerusalem—although it is not lawful for any of the people so much
as to touch these things with their hands. 14They have sent men to
Jerusalem, because even the people living there have been doing this, to
bring back to them permission from the senate. 15When the word reaches
them and they proceed to do this, on that day they will be handed over to
you to be destroyed.
16 “Therefore, when I, your servant, learned all this, I fled from them; and
God has sent me to accomplish with you things that will astonish the whole
world, as many as shall hear about them. 17For your servant is religious, and
serves the God of heaven day and night; therefore, my lord, I will remain
with you, and every night your servant will go out into the valley, and I will
pray to God and he will tell me when they have committed their sins. 18And
I will come and tell you, and then you shall go out with your whole army,
and not one of them will withstand you. 19Then I will lead you through the
middle of Jude'a, till you come to Jerusalem; and I will set your throne s in
the midst of it; and you will lead them like sheep that have no shepherd, and
not a dog will so much as open its mouth to growl at you. For this has been
told me, by my foreknowledge; it was announced to me, and I was sent to
tell you.”
20 Her words pleased Hol''ofer'nes and all his servants, and they marveled
at her wisdom and said, 21 “There is not such a woman from one end of the
earth to the other, either for beauty of face or wisdom of speech!” 22And
Hol''ofer'nes said to her, “God has done well to send you before the people,
to lend strength to our hands and to bring destruction upon those who have
slighted my lord. 23You are not only beautiful in appearance, but wise in
speech; and if you do as you have said, your God shall be my God, and you
shall live in the house of King Nebuchadnez'zar and be renowned
throughout the whole world.”
Judith as a Guest of Holofernes
12 Then he commanded them to bring her in where his silver dishes
were kept, and ordered them to set a table for her with some of his own
food and to serve her with his own wine. 2But Judith said, “I cannot eat it,
lest it be an offense; but I will be provided from the things I have brought
with me.” 3Hol''ofer'nes said to her, “If your supply runs out, where can we
get more like it for you? For none of your people is here with us.” 4Judith
replied, “As your soul lives, my lord, your servant will not use up the things
I have with me before the Lord carries out by my hand what he has
determined to do.”
5 Then the servants of Hol''ofer'nes brought her into the tent, and she slept
until midnight. Along toward the morning watch she arose 6and sent to
Hol''ofer'nes and said, “Let my lord now command that your servant be
permitted to go out and pray.” 7So Hol''ofer'nes commanded his guards not
to hinder her. And she remained in the camp for three days, and went out
each night to the valley of Beth''uli'a, and bathed at the spring in the camp. t
8When she came up from the spring she prayed the Lord God of Israel to
direct her way for the raising up of her people. 9So she returned clean and
stayed in the tent until she ate her food toward evening.
Judith Attends Holofernes’ Banquet
10 On the fourth day Hol''ofer'nes held a banquet for his slaves only, and
did not invite any of his officers. 11And he said to Bago'as, the eunuch who
had charge of all his personal affairs, “Go now and persuade the Hebrew
woman who is in your care to join us and eat and drink with us. 12For it will
be a disgrace if we let such a woman go without enjoying her company, for
if we do not embrace her she will laugh at us.” 13So Bago'as went out from
the presence of Hol''ofer'nes, and approached her and said, “This beautiful
maidservant will please come to my lord and be honored in his presence,
and drink wine and be merry with us, and become today like one of the
daughters of the Assyrians who serve in the house of Nebuchadnez'zar.”
14And Judith said, “Who am I, to refuse my lord? Surely whatever pleases
him I will do at once, and it will be a joy to me until the day of my death!”
15So she got up and arrayed herself in all her woman’s finery, and her maid
went and spread on the ground for her before Hol''ofer'nes the soft fleeces
which she had received from Bago'as for her daily use, so that she might
recline on them when she ate.
16 Then Judith came in and lay down, and Hol''ofer'nes’ heart was
ravished with her and he was moved with great desire to possess her; for he
had been waiting for an opportunity to deceive her, ever since the day he
first saw her. 17So Hol''ofer'nes said to her, “Drink now, and be merry with
us!” 18Judith said, “I will drink now, my lord, because my life means more
to me today than in all the days since I was born.” 19Then she took and ate
and drank before him what her maid had prepared. 20And Hol''ofer'nes was
greatly pleased with her, and drank a great quantity of wine, much more
than he had ever drunk in any one day since he was born.
Judith Beheads Holofernes
13 When evening came, his slaves quickly withdrew, and Bago'as
closed the tent from outside and shut out the attendants from his master’s
presence; and they went to bed, for they all were weary because the banquet
had lasted long. 2So Judith was left alone in the tent, with Hol''ofer'nes
stretched out on his bed, for he was overcome with wine.
3 Now Judith had told her maid to stand outside the bedchamber and to
wait for her to come out, as she did every day; for she said she would be
going out for her prayers. And she had said the same thing to Bago'as. 4So
every one went out, and no one, either small or great, was left in the
bedchamber. Then Judith, standing beside his bed, said in her heart, “O
Lord God of all might, look in this hour upon the work of my hands for the
exaltation of Jerusalem. 5For now is the time to help your inheritance, and
to carry out my undertaking for the destruction of the enemies who have
risen up against us.”
6 She went up to the post at the end of the bed, above Hol''ofer'nes’ head,
and took down his sword that hung there. 7She came close to his bed and
took hold of the hair of his head, and said, “Give me strength this day, O
Lord God of Israel!” 8And she struck his neck twice with all her might, and
severed his head from his body. 9Then she tumbled his body off the bed and
pulled down the canopy from the posts; after a moment she went out, and
gave Hol''ofer'nes’ head to her maid, 10who placed it in her food bag.
Then the two of them went out together, as they were accustomed to go
for prayer; and they passed through the camp and circled around the valley
and went up the mountain to Beth''uli'a and came to its gates. 11Judith called
out from afar to the watchmen at the gates, “Open, open the gate! God, our
God, is still with us, to show his power in Israel, and his strength against
our enemies, even as he has done this day!”
Judith Returns to Her People
12 When the men of her city heard her voice, they hurried down to the city
gate and called together the elders of the city. 13They all ran together, both
small and great, for it was unbelievable that she had returned; they opened
the gate and admitted them, and they kindled a fire for light, and gathered
around them. 14Then she said to them with a loud voice, “Praise God, O
praise him! Praise God, who has not withdrawn his mercy from the house
of Israel, but has destroyed our enemies by my hand this very night!”
15 Then she took the head out of the bag and showed it to them, and said,
“See, here is the head of Hol''ofer'nes, the commander of the Assyrian army,
and here is the canopy beneath which he lay in his drunken stupor. The
Lord has struck him down by the hand of a woman. 16As the Lord lives,
who has protected me in the way I went, it was my face that tricked him to
his destruction, and yet he committed no act of sin with me, to defile and
shame me.”
17 All the people were greatly astonished, and bowed down and worshiped
God, and said with one accord, “Blessed are you, our God, who have
brought into contempt this day the enemies of your people.”
18 And Uzzi'ah said to her, “O daughter, you are blessed by the Most High
God above all women on earth; and blessed be the Lord God, who created
the heavens and the earth, who has guided you to strike the head of the
leader of our enemies. 19Your hope will never depart from the hearts of
men, as they remember the power of God. 20May God grant this to be a
perpetual honor to you, and may he visit you with blessings, because you
did not spare your own life when our nation was brought low, but have
avenged our ruin, walking in the straight path before our God.” And all the
people said, “So be it, so be it!” *
Judith’s Counsel
14 Then Judith said to them, “Listen to me, my brethren, and take this
head and hang it upon the parapet of your wall. 2And as soon as morning
comes and the sun rises, let every valiant man take his weapons and go out
of the city, and set a captain over them, as if you were going down to the
plain against the Assyrian outpost; only do not go down. 3Then they will
seize their arms and go into the camp and rouse the officers of the Assyrian
army; and they will rush into the tent of Hol''ofer'nes, and will not find him.
Then fear will come over them, and they will flee before you, 4and you and
all who live within the borders of Israel shall pursue them and cut them
down as they flee. 5But before you do all this, bring A'chior the Am'monite
to me, and let him see and recognize the man who despised the house of
Israel and sent him to us as if to his death.”
6 So they summoned A'chior from the house of Uzzi'ah. And when he
came and saw the head of Hol''ofer'nes in the hand of one of the men at the
gathering of the people, he fell down on his face and his spirit failed him.
7And when they raised him up he fell at Judith’s feet, and knelt before her,
and said, “Blessed are you in every tent of Judah! In every nation those who
hear your name will be alarmed. 8Now tell me what you have done during
these days.”
Then Judith described to him in the presence of the people all that she had
done, from the day she left until the moment of her speaking to them. 9And
when she had finished, the people raised a great shout and made a joyful
noise in their city. 10And when A'chior saw all that the God of Israel had
done, he believed firmly in God, and was circumcised, and joined the house
of Israel, remaining so to this day.
Holofernes’ Death Is Discovered
11 As soon as it was dawn they hung the head of Hol''ofer'nes on the wall,
and every man took his weapons, and they went out in companies to the
passes in the mountains. 12And when the Assyrians saw them they sent
word to their commanders, and they went to the generals and the captains
and to all their officers. 13So they came to Hol''ofer'nes’ tent and said to the
steward in charge of all his personal affairs, “Wake up our lord, for the
slaves have been so bold as to come down against us to give battle in order
to be destroyed completely.”
14 So Bago'as went in and knocked at the door of the tent, for he supposed
that he was sleeping with Judith. 15But when no one answered, he opened it
and went into the bedchamber and found him thrown down on the platform
dead, with his head cut off and missing. 16And he cried out with a loud
voice and wept and groaned and shouted, and tore his garments. 17Then he
went to the tent where Judith had stayed, and when he did not find her he
rushed out to the people and shouted, 18 “The slaves have tricked us! One
Hebrew woman has brought disgrace upon the house of King
Nebuchadnez'zar! For look, here is Hol''ofer'nes lying on the ground, and
his head is not on him!”
19 When the leaders of the Assyrian army heard this, they tore their tunics
and were greatly dismayed, and their loud cries and shouts arose in the
midst of the camp.
The Assyrian Army Flees
15 When the men in the tents heard it, they were amazed at what had
happened. 2Fear and trembling came over them, so that they did not wait for
one another, but with one impulse all rushed out and fled by every path
across the plain and through the hill country. 3Those who had camped in the
hills around Beth''uli'a also took to flight. Then the men of Israel, every one
that was a soldier, rushed out upon them. 4And Uzz'iah sent men to
Bet''omastha'im and Bebai and Choba and Ko'la, and to all the frontiers of
Israel, to tell what had taken place and to urge all to rush out upon their
enemies to destroy them. 5And when the Israelites heard it, with one accord
they fell upon the enemy, u and cut them down as far as Cho'ba. Those in
Jerusalem and all the hill country also came, for they were told what had
happened in the camp of the enemy; and those in Gilead and in Galilee
outflanked them with great slaughter, even beyond Damascus and its
borders. 6The rest of the people of Beth''uli'a fell upon the Assyrian camp
and plundered it, and were greatly enriched. 7And the Israelites, when they
returned from the slaughter, took possession of what remained, and the
villages and towns in the hill country and in the plain got a great amount of
booty, for there was a vast quantity of it.
The Israelites Celebrate
8 Then Jo'akim the high priest, and the senate of the people of Israel who
lived at Jerusalem, came to witness the good things which the Lord had
done for Israel, and to see Judith and to greet her. 9And when they met her
they all blessed her with one accord and said to her, “You are the exaltation
of Jerusalem,* you are the great glory of Israel, you are the great pride of
our nation! 10You have done all this singlehanded; you have done great
good to Israel, and God is well pleased with it. May the Almighty Lord
bless you for ever!” And all the people said, “So be it!”
11 So all the people plundered the camp for thirty days. They gave Judith
the tent of Hol''ofer'nes and all his silver dishes and his beds and his bowls
and all his furniture; and she took them and loaded her mule and hitched up
her carts and piled the things on them.
12 Then all the women of Israel gathered to see her, and blessed her, and
some of them performed a dance for her; and she took branches in her
hands and gave them to the women who were with her; 13and they crowned
themselves with olive wreaths, she and those who were with her; and she
went before all the people in the dance, leading all the women, while all the
men of Israel followed, bearing their arms and wearing garlands and with
songs on their lips.
The Song of Praise of Judith
16 Then Judith began this thanksgiving before all Israel, and all the
people loudly sang this song of praise. 2And Judith said,
00Begin a song to my God with tambourines,
sing to my Lord with cymbals.

00Raise to him a new psalm; v
00 exalt him, and call upon his name.
03For God is the Lord who crushes wars;
for he has delivered me out of the hands of my pursuers,

and brought me to his camp, in the midst of the people.
04The Assyrian came down from the mountains of the north;
he came with myriads of his warriors;

00their multitude blocked up the valleys,
their cavalry covered the hills.

05He boasted that he would burn up my territory,
and kill my young men with the sword,

00and dash my infants to the ground
and seize my children as prey,

and take my virgins as booty.
06But the Lord Almighty has foiled them
by the hand of a woman.

07For their mighty one did not fall by the hands of the young men,
nor did the sons of the Titans strike him,

nor did tall giants set upon him;
00but Judith the daughter of Merar'i undid him
with the beauty of her countenance.
08For she took off her widow’s mourning
to exalt the oppressed in Israel.

00She anointed her face with ointment
and fastened her hair with a tiara

and put on a linen gown to deceive him.
09Her sandal ravished his eyes,
her beauty captivated his mind,

and the sword severed his neck.
10The Persians trembled at her boldness,
the Medes were daunted at her daring.
11Then my oppressed people shouted for joy;
my weak people shouted w and the enemy x trembled;

they lifted up their voices, and the enemy x were turned back.
12The sons of maidservants have pierced them through;
they were wounded like the children of fugitives,

they perished before the army of my Lord.
13I will sing to my God a new song:
00O Lord, you are great and glorious,
wonderful in strength, invincible.

14Let all your creatures serve you,
for you spoke, and they were made.

00You sent forth your Spirit, y and it formed them;
there is none that can resist your voice.

15For the mountains shall be shaken to their foundations with the waters;
at your presence the rocks shall melt like wax,

00but to those who fear you
you will continue to show mercy.

16For every sacrifice as a fragrant offering is a small thing,
and all fat for burnt offerings to you is a very little thing,
00but he who fears the Lord shall be great for ever.
17Woe to the nations that rise up against my people!
The Lord Almighty will take vengeance on them in the day of

judgment;
00fireand worms he will give to their flesh;
they shall weep in pain for ever.
18 When they arrived at Jerusalem they worshiped God. As soon as the
people were purified, they offered their burnt offerings, their freewill
offerings, and their gifts. 19Judith also dedicated to God all the vessels of
Hol''ofer'nes, which the people had given her; and the canopy which she
took for herself from his bedchamber she gave as a votive offering to the
Lord. 20So the people continued feasting in Jerusalem before the sanctuary
for three months, and Judith remained with them.
The Renown and Death of Judith
21 After this every one returned home to his own inheritance, and Judith
went to Beth''uli'a, and remained on her estate, and was honored in her time
throughout the whole country. 22Many desired to marry her, but she
remained a widow all the days of her life after Manas'seh her husband died
and was gathered to his people. 23She became more and more famous, and
grew old in her husband’s house, until she was one hundred and five years
old. She set her maid free. She died in Beth''uli'a, and they buried her in the
cave of her husband Manas'seh, 24and the house of Israel mourned for her
seven days. Before she died she distributed her property to all those who
were next of kin to her husband Manas'seh, and to her own nearest kindred.
25And no one ever again spread terror among the people of Israel in the
days of Judith, or for a long time after her death.*
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Esther
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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THE BOOK OF ESTHER
Mordecai’s Dream
11 * 2In the second year of the reign of Artaxerxes the Great, on the first
day of Nisan, Mordecai the son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, of the
tribe of Benjamin, had a dream. 3He was a Jew, dwelling in the city of Susa,
a great man, serving in the court of the king. 4He was one of the captives
whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had brought from Jerusalem with
Jeconiah king of Judea. And this was his dream:
5 Behold, noise a and confusion, thunders and earthquake, tumult upon the
earth! 6And behold, two great dragons came forward, both ready to fight,
and they roared terribly. 7And at their roaring every nation prepared for
war, to fight against the nation of the righteous. 8And behold, a day of
darkness and gloom, tribulation and distress, affliction and great tumult
upon the earth! 9And the whole righteous nation was troubled; they feared
the evils that threatened them, and were ready to perish. 10Then they cried
to God; and from their cry, as though from a tiny spring, there came a great
river, with abundant water; 11light came, and the sun rose, and the lowly
were exalted and consumed those held in honor.
12 Mordecai saw in this dream what God had determined to do, and after
he awoke he had it on his mind and sought all day to understand it in every
detail.
Mordecai Discovers a Plot
against the King
12 Now Mordecai took his rest in the courtyard with Gabatha and
Tharra, the two eunuchs of the king who kept watch in the courtyard. 2He
overheard their conversation and inquired into their purposes, and learned
that they were preparing to lay hands upon Artaxerxes the king; and he
informed the king concerning them. 3Then the king examined the two
eunuchs, and when they confessed they were led to execution. 4The king
made a permanent record of these things, and Mordecai wrote an account
of them. 5And the king ordered Mordecai to serve in the court and rewarded
him for these things. 6But Haman, the son of Hammedatha, a Bougaean,
was in great honor with the king, and he sought to injure Mordecai and his
people because of the two eunuchs of the king.
King Ahasuerus Deposes Queen Vashti
1 In the days of Ahas'u-e'rus, the Ahasu-erus who reigned from India to
Ethiopia over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, 2in those days
when King Ahas'u-e'rus sat on his royal throne in Susa the capital, 3in the
third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his princes and servants, the
army chiefs a of Persia and Med'ia and the nobles and governors of the
provinces being before him, 4while he showed the riches of his royal glory
and the splendor and pomp of his majesty for many days, a hundred and
eighty days. 5And when these days were completed, the king gave for all
the people present in Susa the capital, both great and small, a banquet
lasting for seven days, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace. 6There
were white cotton curtains and blue hangings caught up with cords of fine
linen and purple to silver rings b and marble pillars, and also couches of
gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl
and precious stones. 7Drinks were served in golden goblets, goblets of
different kinds, and the royal wine was lavished according to the bounty of
the king. 8And drinking was according to the law, no one was compelled;
for the king had given orders to all the officials of his palace to do as every
man desired. 9Queen Vashti also gave a banquet for the women in the
palace which belonged to King Ahas'u-e'rus.
10 On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he
commanded Mehu'man, Biztha, Harbo'na, Bigtha and Abagtha, Ze'thar and

Car'kas, the seven eunuchs who served King Ahas'u-e'rus as chamberlains,
11to bring Queen Vashti before the king with her royal crown, in order to
show the peoples and the princes her beauty; for she was fair to behold.
12But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command conveyed by
the eunuchs. At this the king was enraged, and his anger burned within him.
13 Then the king said to the wise men who knew the times—for this was
the king’s procedure toward all who were versed in law and judgment, 14the
men next to him being Carshe'na, She'thar, Adma'tha, Tar'shish, Me'res,
Marse'na, and Memu'can, the seven princes of Persia and Med'ia, who saw
the king’s face, and sat first in the kingdom—: 15 “According to the law,
what is to be done to Queen Vashti, because she has not performed the
command of King Ahas'u-e'rus conveyed by the eunuchs?” 16Then
Memu'can said in presence of the king and the princes, “Not only to the
king has Queen Vashti done wrong, but also to all the princes and all the
peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahas'u-e'rus. 17For this deed of
the queen will be made known to all women, causing them to look with
contempt upon their husbands, since they will say, ‘King Ahas'u-e'rus
commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, and she did not come.’
18This very day the ladies of Persia and Med'ia who have heard of the
queen’s behavior will be telling it to all the king’s princes, and there will be
contempt and wrath in plenty. 19If it please the king, let a royal order go
forth from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the
Medes so that it may not be altered, that Vashti is to come no more before
King Ahas'u-e'rus; and let the king give her royal position to another who is
better than she. 20So when the decree made by the king is proclaimed
throughout all his kingdom, vast as it is, all women will give honor to their
husbands, high and low.” 21This advice pleased the king and the princes,
and the king did as Memu'can proposed; 22he sent letters to all the royal
provinces, to every province in its own script and to every people in its own
language, that every man be lord in his own house and speak according to
the language of his people.
Esther Is Chosen as Queen
2 After these things, when the anger of King Ahas'u-e'rus had abated,
he remembered Vashti and what she had done and what had been decreed
against her. 2Then the king’s servants who attended him said, “Let beautiful
young virgins be sought out for the king. 3And let the king appoint officers
in all the provinces of his kingdom to gather all the beautiful young virgins
to the harem in Susa the capital, under custody of Hegai the king’s eunuch
who is in charge of the women; let their ointments be given them. 4And let
the maiden who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti.” This pleased
the king, and he did so.
5 Now there was a Jew in Susa the capital whose name was Mor'decai, the
son of Ja'ir, son of Shim'e-i, son of Kish, a Benjaminite, 6who had been
carried away from Jerusalem among the captives carried away with
Jeconi'ah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon had
carried away. 7He had brought up Hadas'sah, that is Esther, the daughter of
his uncle, for she had neither father nor mother; the maiden was beautiful
and lovely, and when her father and her mother died, Mor'decai adopted her
as his own daughter. 8So when the king’s order and his edict were
proclaimed, and when many maidens were gathered in Susa the capital in
custody of Hegai, Esther also was taken into the king’s palace and put in
custody of Hegai who had charge of the women. 9And the maiden pleased
him and won his favor; and he quickly provided her with her ointments and
her portion of food, and with seven chosen maids from the king’s palace,
and advanced her and her maids to the best place in the harem. 10Esther had
not made known her people or kindred, for Mor'decai had charged her not
to make it known. 11And every day Mor'decai walked in front of the court
of the harem, to learn how Esther was and how she fared.
12 Now when the turn came for each maiden to go in to King Ahas'u-e'rus,
after being twelve months under the regulations for the women, since this
was the regular period of their beautifying, six months with oil of myrrh
and six months with spices and ointments for women—13when the maiden
went in to the king in this way she was given whatever she desired to take
with her from the harem to the king’s palace. 14In the evening she went, and
in the morning she came back to the second harem in custody of Shaash'gaz
the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the concubines; she did not go in to
the king again, unless the king delighted in her and she was summoned by
name.
15 When the turn came for Esther the daughter of Ab'ihail the uncle of
Mor'decai, who had adopted her as his own daughter, to go in to the king,
she asked for nothing except what Hegai the king’s eunuch, who had charge
of the women, advised. Now Esther found favor in the eyes of all who saw
her. 16And when Esther was taken to King Ahas'u-e'rus into his royal palace
in the tenth month, which is the month of Te'beth, in the seventh year of his
reign, 17the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found
grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal
crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti. 18Then the king
gave a great banquet to all his princes and servants; it was Esther’s banquet.
He also granted a remission of taxes c to the provinces, and gave gifts with
royal liberality.
Mordecai Discovers a Plot
19 When the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mor'decai
was sitting at the king’s gate. 20Now Esther had not made known her
kindred or her people, as Mor'decai had charged her; for Esther obeyed
Mordecai just as when she was brought up by him. 21And in those days, as
Mor'decai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthan and Te'resh, two of the
king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, became angry and sought to lay
hands on King Ahas'u-e'rus. 22And this came to the knowledge of
Mor'decai, and he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther told the king in the
name of Mordecai. 23When the affair was investigated and found to be so,
the men were both hanged on the gallows. And it was recorded in the Book
of the Chronicles in the presence of the king.
Haman Seeks to Destroy the Jews
3 After these things King Ahas'u-e'rus promoted Ha'man the Ag'agite,
the son of Hammeda'tha, and advanced him and set his seat above all the
princes who were with him. 2And all the king’s servants who were at the
king’s gate bowed down and did obeisance to Ha'man; for the king had so
commanded concerning him. But Mor'decai did not bow down or do
obeisance. 3Then the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate said to
Mor'decai, “Why do you transgress the king’s command?” 4And when they
spoke to him day after day and he would not listen to them, they told
Ha'man, in order to see whether Mor'decai’s words would avail; for he had
told them that he was a Jew. 5And when Ha'man saw that Mor'decai did not
bow down or do obeisance to him, Ha'man was filled with fury. 6But he
disdained to lay hands on Mor'decai alone. So, as they had made known to
him the people of Mordecai, Ha'man sought to destroy all the Jews, the
people of Mordecai, throughout the whole kingdom of Ahas'u-e'rus.
7 In the first month, which is the month of Ni'san, in the twelfth year of
King Ahas'u-e'rus, they cast Pur, that is the lot, before Ha'man day after
day; and they cast it month after month till the twelfth month, which is the
month of Adar'. 8Then Ha'man said to King Ahas'u-e'rus, “There is a certain
people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the
provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from those of every
other people, and they do not keep the king’s laws, so that it is not for the
king’s profit to tolerate them. 9If it please the king, let it be decreed that
they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the
hands of those who have charge of the king’s business, that they may put it
into the king’s treasuries.” 10So the king took his signet ring from his hand
and gave it to Ha'man the Ag'agite, the son of Hammeda'tha, the enemy of
the Jews. 11And the king said to Ha'man, “The money is given to you, the
people also, to do with them as it seems good to you.”
12 Then the king’s secretaries were summoned on the thirteenth day of the
first month, and an edict, according to all that Ha'man commanded, was
written to the king’s satraps and to the governors over all the provinces and
to the princes of all the peoples, to every province in its own script and
every people in its own language; it was written in the name of King
Ahas'u-e'rus and sealed with the king’s ring. 13Letters were sent by couriers
to all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to slay, and to annihilate all Jews,
young and old, women and children, in one day, the thirteenth day of the
twelfth month, which is the month of Adar', and to plunder their goods.
The King’s Letter
13 This is a copy of the letter: “The Great King, Artaxerxes, to the
rulers of the hundred and twenty-seven provinces from India to Ethiopia
and to the governors under them, writes thus:
2 “Having become ruler of many nations and master of the whole world,
not elated with presumption of authority but always acting reasonably and
with kindness, I have determined to settle the lives of my subjects in lasting
tranquillity and, in order to make my kingdom peaceable and open to travel
throughout all its extent, to re-establish the peace which all men desire.
3 “When I asked my counselors how this might be accomplished, Haman,
who excels among us in sound judgment, and is distinguished for his

unchanging good will and steadfast fidelity, and has attained the second
place in the kingdom, 4pointed out to us that among all the nations in the
world there is scattered a certain hostile people, who have laws contrary to
those of every nation and continually disregard the ordinances of the kings,
so that the unifying of the kingdom which we honorably intend cannot be
brought about. 5We understand that this people, and it alone, stands
constantly in opposition to all men, perversely following a strange manner
of life and laws, and is ill-disposed to our government, doing all the harm
they can so that our kingdom may not attain stability.
6 “Therefore we have decreed that those indicated to you in the letters of
Haman, who is in charge of affairs and is our second father, shall all, with
their wives and children, be utterly destroyed by the sword of their enemies,
without pity or mercy, on the fourteenth day of the twelfth month, Adar, of
this present year, 7so that those who have long been and are now hostile
may in one day go down in violence to Hades, and leave our government
completely secure and untroubled hereafter.”
14A copy of the document was to be issued as a decree in every province
by proclamation to all the peoples to be ready for that day. 15The couriers
went in haste by order of the king, and the decree was issued in Susa the
capital. And the king and Ha'man sat down to drink; but the city of Susa
was perplexed.
Esther Agrees to Help the Jews
4 When Mor'decai learned all that had been done, Mordecai tore his
clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the
city, wailing with a loud and bitter cry; 2he went up to the entrance of the
king’s gate, for no one might enter the king’s gate clothed with sackcloth.
3And in every province, wherever the king’s command and his decree came,
there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and
lamenting, and most of them lay in sackcloth and ashes.
4 When Esther’s maids and her eunuchs came and told her, the queen was
deeply distressed; she sent garments to clothe Mor'decai, so that he might

take off his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5Then Esther called
for Ha'thach, one of the king’s eunuchs, who had been appointed to attend
her, and ordered him to go to Mor'decai to learn what this was and why it
was. 6Ha'thach went out to Mor'decai in the open square of the city in front
of the king’s gate, 7and Mor'decai told him all that had happened to him,
and the exact sum of money that Ha'man had promised to pay into the
king’s treasuries for the destruction of the Jews. 8Mor'decai also gave him a
copy of the written decree issued in Susa for their destruction, that he might
show it to Esther and explain it to her and charge her to go to the king to
make supplication to him and entreat him for her people, “Remembering
the days of your lowliness, when you were cared for by me, because Haman,
who is next to the king, spoke against us for our destruction. Beseech the
Lord and speak to the king concerning us and deliver us from death.” 9And
Ha'thach went and told Esther what Mor'decai had said. 10Then Esther
spoke to Ha'thach and gave him a message for Mor'decai, saying, 11 “All the
king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that if any man
or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there
is but one law; all alike are to be put to death, except the one to whom the
king holds out the golden scepter that he may live. And I have not been
called to come in to the king these thirty days.” 12And they told Mor'decai
what Esther had said. 13Then Mor'decai told them to return answer to
Esther, “Think not that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than
all the other Jews. 14For if you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and
deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quarter, but you and your
father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to
the kingdom for such a time as this?” 15Then Esther told them to reply to
Mor'decai, 16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast
on my behalf, and neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. I and
my maids will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is
against the law; and if I perish, I perish.” 17Mor'decai then went away and
did everything as Esther had ordered him.
Mordecai’s Prayer
[13] 8 Then Mordecai b prayed to the Lord, and said: “O God of
Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, blessed are you:
9 “O Lord, Lord, King who rule over all things, for the universe is in your
power and there is no one who can oppose you if it is your will to save
Israel. 10For you have made heaven and earth and every wonderful thing
under heaven, 11and you are Lord of all, and there is no one who can resist
you. 12You know all things; 13you know, O Lord, that I would have been
willing to kiss the soles of Haman’s feet to save Israel! 14But I did not do
this, lest I set the glory of man above the glory of God; I will not bow down
to any one but you, O Lord, my God. 15And now, O Lord God and King,
God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, spare your people; for
the eyes of our foes are upon us c to annihilate us, and they desire to destroy
your inheritance. 16Do not neglect your portion, which you redeemed for
yourself out of the land of Egypt. 17Hear my prayer, and have mercy upon
your inheritance; turn our mourning into feasting, that we may live and
sing praise to your name, O Lord; do not destroy the mouth of those who
praise you.”
18 And all Israel cried out mightily, for their death was before their eyes.
Esther’s Prayer
14 And Esther the queen, seized with deathly anxiety, fled to the Lord;
2she took off her splendid apparel and put on the garments of distress and
mourning, and instead of costly perfumes she covered her head with ashes
and dung, and she utterly humbled her body, and every part that she loved
to adorn she covered with her tangled hair. 3And she lay on the earth
together with all her maidservants, from morning until evening, and said:
“God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, blessed are you; help
me, who am alone and have no helper but you, 4for my danger is in my
hand. 5Ever since I was born I have heard in the tribe of my family that you,
O Lord, took Israel out of all the nations, and our fathers from among all
their ancestors, for an everlasting inheritance, and that you did for them all
that you promised. 6And now we have sinned before you, and you have
given us into the hands of our enemies, 7because we glorified their gods.
You are righteous, O Lord! 8And now they are not satisfied that we are in
bitter slavery, but they have covenanted with their idols 9to abolish what
your mouth has ordained and to destroy your inheritance, to stop the
mouths of those who praise you and to quench your altar and the glory of
your house, 10to open the mouths of the nations for the praise of vain idols,
and to magnify for ever a mortal king. 11O Lord, do not surrender your
scepter to what has no being; and do not let them mock at our downfall; but
turn their plan against themselves, and make an example of the man who
began this against us. I have heard from the books of my ancestors that you
liberate all those who are pleasing to you, O Lord, until the very end. And
now, assist me, who am all alone, and have no one but you, O Lord, my
God. Come to my aid, for I am an orphan. 12Remember, O Lord; make
yourself known in this time of our affliction, and give me courage, O King
of the gods and Master of all dominion! 13Put eloquent speech in my mouth
before the lion, and turn his heart to hate the man who is fighting against
us, so that there may be an end of him and those who agree with him. 14But
save us from the hand of our enemies; turn our mourning into gladness and
our affliction into well-being. 15You have knowledge of all things; and you
know that I hate the splendor of the wicked and abhor the bed of the
uncircumcised and of any alien. 16You know my necessity—that I abhor the
sign of my proud position, which is upon my head on the days when I
appear in public. I abhor it like a menstruous rag, and I do not wear it on
the days when I am at leisure. 17And your servant has not eaten at Haman’s
table, and I have not honored the king’s feast or drunk the wine of the
libations. 18Your servant has had no joy since the day that I was brought
here until now, except in you, O Lord God of Abraham. 19O God, whose
might is over all, hear the voice of the despairing, and save us from the
hands of evildoers. And save me from my fear!”
Esther’s Invitation to the King and Haman
15 * On the third day, when she ended her prayer, she took off the
garments in which she had worshiped, and clothed herself in splendid
attire. 2Then, majestically adorned, after invoking the aid of the all-seeing
God and Savior, she took her two maids with her, 3leaning daintily on one,
4while the other followed carrying her train. 5She was radiant with perfect
beauty, and she looked happy, as if beloved, but her heart was frozen with
fear. 6When she had gone through all the doors, she stood before the king.
He was seated on his royal throne, clothed in the full array of his majesty,
all covered with gold and precious stones. And he was most terrifying.
7 Lifting his face, flushed with splendor, he looked at her in fierce anger.
And the queen faltered, and turned pale and faint, and collapsed upon the
head of the maid who went before her. 8Then God changed the spirit of the
king to gentleness, and in alarm he sprang from his throne and took her in
his arms until she came to herself. And he comforted her with soothing
words, and said to her, 9“What is it, Esther? I am your brother. Take
courage; 10you shall not die, for our law applies only to the people. d Come
near.”
11 Then he raised the golden scepter and touched it to her neck; 12and he
embraced her, and said, “Speak to me.” 13And she said to him, “I saw you,
my lord, like an angel of God, and my heart was shaken with fear at your
glory. 14For you are wonderful, my lord, and your countenance is full of
grace.” 15But as she was speaking, she fell fainting. 16And the king was
agitated, and all his servants sought to comfort her.
[5] 3 And the king said to her, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your
request? It shall be given you, even to the half of my kingdom.” 4And
Esther said, “If it please the king, let the king and Ha'man come this day to
a dinner that I have prepared for the king.” 5Then said the king, “Bring
Ha'man quickly, that we may do as Esther desires.” So the king and Ha'man
came to the dinner that Esther had prepared. 6And as they were drinking
wine, the king said to Esther, “What is your petition? It shall be granted
you. And what is your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be
fulfilled.” 7But Esther said, “My petition and my request is: 8If I have found
favor in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my petition
and fulfil my request, let the king and Ha'man come tomorrow d to the
dinner which I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do as the king has
said.”
Haman Plans to Have Mordecai Hanged
9 And Ha'man went out that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman
saw Mor'decai in the king’s gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before
him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. 10Nevertheless Ha'man
restrained himself, and went home; and he sent and fetched his friends and
his wife Ze'resh. 11And Ha'man recounted to them the splendor of his
riches, the number of his sons, all the promotions with which the king had
honored him, and how he had advanced him above the princes and the
servants of the king. 12And Ha'man added, “Even Queen Esther let no one
come with the king to the banquet she prepared but myself. And tomorrow
also I am invited by her together with the king. 13Yet all this does me no
good, so long as I see Mor'decai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.” 14Then
his wife Ze'resh and all his friends said to him, “Let a gallows fifty cubits
high be made, and in the morning tell the king to have Mor'decai hanged
upon it; then go merrily with the king to the dinner.” This counsel pleased
Ha'man, and he had the gallows made.
The King Honors Mordecai
6 On that night the king could not sleep; and he gave orders to bring the
book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the
king. 2And it was found written how Mor'decai had told about Big'thana
and Te'resh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who
had sought to lay hands upon King Ahas'u-e'rus. 3And the king said, “What
honor or dignity has been bestowed on Mor'decai for this?” The king’s
servants who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.” 4And the
king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Ha'man had just entered the outer
court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mor'decai
hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him. 5So the king’s servants
told him, “Ha'man is there, standing in the court.” And the king said, “Let
him come in.” 6So Ha'man came in, and the king said to him, “What shall
be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to
himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?” 7And
Ha'man said to the king, “For the man whom the king delights to honor, 8let
royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse which the
king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set; 9and let the robes
and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble princes; let
him e clothe the man whom the king delights to honor, and let him e conduct
the man on horseback through the open square of the city, proclaiming
before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to
honor.’ ” 10Then the king said to Ha'man, “Make haste, take the robes and
the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mor'decai the Jew who sits at the
king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.” 11So Ha'man took
the robes and the horse, and he clothed Mor'decai and made him ride
through the open square of the city, proclaiming, “Thus shall it be done to
the man whom the king delights to honor.”
12 Then Mor'decai returned to the king’s gate. But Ha'man hurried to his
house, mourning and with his head covered. 13And Ha'man told his wife
Ze'resh and all his friends everything that had befallen him. Then his wise
men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mor'decai, before whom you have
begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not prevail against him but
will surely fall before him.”
Haman’s Downfall and Mordecai’s Advancement
14 While they were yet talking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and
brought Ha'man in haste to the banquet that Esther had prepared.

7 So the king and Ha'man went in to feast with Queen Esther. 2And on
the second day, as they were drinking wine, the king again said to Esther,
“What is your petition, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And what is
your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” 3Then
Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if
it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at
my request. 4For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain,
and to be annihilated. If we had been sold merely as slaves, men and
women, I would have held my peace; for our affliction is not to be
compared with the loss to the king.” 5Then King Ahas'u-e'rus said to Queen
Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, that would presume to do this?” 6And
Esther said, “A foe and enemy! This wicked Ha'man!” Then Ha'man was in
terror before the king and the queen. 7And the king rose from the feast in
wrath and went into the palace garden; but Ha'man stayed to beg his life
from Queen Esther, for he saw that evil was determined against him by the
king. 8And the king returned from the palace garden to the place where they
were drinking wine, as Ha'man was falling on the couch where Esther was;
and the king said, “Will he even assault the queen in my presence, in my
own house?” As the words left the mouth of the king, they covered
Haman’s face. 9Then said Harbo'na, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the
king, “Moreover, the gallows which Ha'man has prepared for Mor'decai,
whose word saved the king, is standing in Haman’s house, fifty cubits
high.” 10And the king said, “Hang him on that.” So they hanged Ha'man on
the gallows which he had prepared for Mor'decai. Then the anger of the
king abated.
8 On that day King Ahas'u-e'rus gave to Queen Esther the house of

Ha'man, the enemy of the Jews. And Mor'decai came before the king, for
Esther had told what he was to her; 2and the king took off his signet ring,
which he had taken from Ha'man, and gave it to Mor'decai. And Esther set
Mordecai over the house of Haman.
Esther Saves the Jews
3 Then Esther spoke again to the king; she fell at his feet and besought him
with tears to avert the evil design of Ha'man the Ag'agite and the plot which
he had devised against the Jews. 4And the king held out the golden scepter
to Esther, 5and Esther rose and stood before the king. And she said, “If it
please the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and if the thing seem
right before the king, and I be pleasing in his eyes, let an order be written to
revoke the letters devised by Ha'man the Ag'agite, the son of Hammeda'tha,
which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king.
6For how can I endure to see the calamity that is coming to my people? Or
how can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred?” 7Then King

Ahas'u-e'rus said to Queen Esther and to Mor'decai the Jew, “Behold, I have
given Esther the house of Ha'man, and they have hanged him on the
gallows, because he would lay hands on the Jews. 8And you may write as
you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, and seal it with
the king’s ring; for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with
the king’s ring cannot be revoked.”
9 The king’s secretaries were summoned at that time, in the third month,
which is the month of Si'van, on the twenty-third day; and an edict was
written according to all that Mor'decai commanded concerning the Jews to
the satraps and the governors and the princes of the provinces from India to
Ethiopia, a hundred and twenty-seven provinces, to every province in its
own script and to every people in its own language, and also to the Jews in
their script and their language. 10The writing was in the name of King
Ahas'u-e'rus and sealed with the king’s ring, and letters were sent by
mounted couriers riding on swift horses that were used in the king’s service,
bred from the royal stud. 11By these the king allowed the Jews who were in
every city to gather and defend their lives, to destroy, to slay, and to
annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack
them, with their children and women, and to plunder their goods, 12upon
one day throughout all the provinces of King Ahas'u-e'rus, on the thirteenth
day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar'.
The King’s Edict
16 The following is a copy of this letter:
“The Great King, Artaxerxes, to the rulers of the provinces from
India to Ethiopia, one hundred and twenty-seven satrapies, and to those
who are loyal to our government, greeting.
2 “The more often they are honored by the too great kindness of their
benefactors, the more proud do many men become. 3They not only seek to
injure our subjects, but in their inability to stand prosperity they even
undertake to scheme against their own benefactors. 4They not only take
away thankfulness from among men, but, carried away by the boasts of
those who know nothing of goodness, they suppose that they will escape the
evil-hating justice of God, who always sees everything. 5And often many of
those who are set in places of authority have been made in part responsible
for the shedding of innocent blood, and have been involved in irremediable
calamities, by the persuasion of friends who have been entrusted with the
administration of public affairs, 6when these men by the false trickery of
their evil natures beguile the sincere good will of their sovereigns.
7 “What has been wickedly accomplished through the pestilent behavior of
those who exercise authority unworthily, can be seen not so much from the
more ancient records which we hand on as from investigation of matters
close at hand. 8For the future we will take care to render our kingdom quiet
and peaceable for all men, 9by changing our methods and always judging
what comes before our eyes with more equitable consideration. 10For
Haman, the son of Hammedatha, a Macedonian (really an alien to the
Persian blood, and quite devoid of our kindliness), having become our
guest, 11so far enjoyed the good will that we have for every nation that he
was called our father and was continually bowed down to by all as the
person second to the royal throne. 12But, unable to restrain his arrogance,
he undertook to deprive us of our kingdom and our life, 13and with intricate
craft and deceit asked for the destruction of Mordecai, our savior and
perpetual benefactor, and of Esther, the blameless partner of our kingdom,
together with their whole nation. 14He thought that in this way he would
find us undefended and would transfer the kingdom of the Persians to the
Macedonians.
15 “But we find that the Jews, who were consigned to annihilation by this
thrice accursed man, are not evildoers but are governed by most righteous
laws 16and are sons of the Most High, the most mighty living God, who has
directed the kingdom both for us and for our fathers in the most excellent
order.
17 “You will therefore do well not to put in execution the letters sent by
Haman the son of Hammedatha, 18because the man himself who did these
things has been hanged at the gate of Susa, with all his household. For
God, who rules over all things, has speedily inflicted on him the punishment
he deserved.
19 “Therefore post a copy of this letter publicly in every place, and permit
the Jews to live under their own laws. 20And give them reinforcements, so
that on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, Adar, on that very day they
may defend themselves against those who attack them at the time of their
affliction. 21For God, who rules over all things, has made this day to be a
joy to his chosen people instead of a day of destruction for them.
22 “Therefore you shall observe this with all good cheer as a notable day
among your commemorative festivals, 23so that both now and hereafter it
may mean salvation for us and the loyal Persians, but that for those who
plot against us it may be a reminder of destruction.
24 “Every city and country, without exception, which does not act
accordingly, shall be destroyed in wrath with spear and fire. It shall be

made not only impassable for men, but also most hateful for all time to
beasts and birds.”
13A copy of what was written was to be issued as a decree in every
province, and by proclamation to all peoples, and the Jews were to be ready
on that day to avenge themselves upon their enemies. 14So the couriers,
mounted on their swift horses that were used in the king’s service, rode out
in haste, urged by the king’s command; and the decree was issued in Susa
the capital.
15 Then Mor'decai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of
blue and white, with a great golden crown and a mantle of fine linen and
purple, while the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. 16The Jews had light
and gladness and joy and honor. 17And in every province and in every city,
wherever the king’s command and his edict came, there was gladness and
joy among the Jews, a feast and a holiday. And many from the peoples of
the country declared themselves Jews, for the fear of the Jews had fallen
upon them.
The Destruction of the Enemies of the Jews
9 Now in the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar', on the
thirteenth day of the same, when the king’s command and edict were about
to be executed, on the very day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to get
the mastery over them, but which had been changed to a day when the Jews
should get the mastery over their foes, 2the Jews gathered in their cities
throughout all the provinces of King Ahas'u-e'rus to lay hands on such as
sought their hurt. And no one could make a stand against them, for the fear
of them had fallen upon all peoples. 3All the princes of the provinces and
the satraps and the governors and the royal officials also helped the Jews,
for the fear of Mor'decai had fallen upon them. 4For Mor'decai was great in
the king’s house, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces; for the
man Mordecai grew more and more powerful. 5So the Jews struck all their
enemies with the sword, slaughtering, and destroying them, and did as they
pleased to those who hated them. 6In Susa the capital itself the Jews slew
and destroyed five hundred men, 7and also slew Par-shan-da'tha and
Dalphon and Aspa'tha 8and Pora'tha and Ada'lia and Arida'tha 9and
Parmash'ta and Ar'isai and Ar'idai and Vaiza'tha, 10the ten sons of Ha'man
the son of Hammeda'tha, the enemy of the Jews; but they laid no hand on
the plunder.
11 That very day the number of those slain in Susa the capital was reported
to the king. 12And the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the capital the
Jews have slain five hundred men and also the ten sons of Ha'man. What
then have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces! Now what is your
petition? It shall be granted you. And what further is your request? It shall
be fulfilled.” 13And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the Jews who are
in Susa be allowed tomorrow also to do according to this day’s edict. And
let the ten sons of Ha'man be hanged on the gallows.” 14So the king
commanded this to be done; a decree was issued in Susa, and the ten sons
of Ha'man were hanged. 15The Jews who were in Susa gathered also on the
fourteenth day of the month of Adar' and they slew three hundred men in
Susa; but they laid no hands on the plunder.
The Feast of Purim Inaugurated
16 Now the other Jews who were in the king’s provinces also gathered to
defend their lives, and got relief from their enemies, and slew seventy-five
thousand of those who hated them; but they laid no hands on the plunder.
17This was on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar', and on the
fourteenth day they rested and made that a day of feasting and gladness.
18But the Jews who were in Susa gathered on the thirteenth day and on the
fourteenth, and rested on the fifteenth day, making that a day of feasting and
gladness. 19Therefore the Jews of the villages, who live in the open towns,
hold the fourteenth day of the month of Adar' as a day for gladness and
feasting and holiday-making, and a day on which they send choice portions
to one another.
20 And Mor'decai recorded these things, and sent letters to all the Jews
who were in all the provinces of King Ahas'u-e'rus, both near and far,
21enjoining them that they should keep the fourteenth day of the month
Adar' and also the fifteenth day of the same, year by year, 22as the days on
which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had
been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a
holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for
sending choice portions to one another and gifts to the poor.
23 So the Jews undertook to do as they had begun, and as Mor'decai had
written to them. 24For Ha'man the Ag'agite, the son of Hammeda'tha, the
enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had
cast Pur, that is the lot, to crush and destroy them; 25but when Esther came
before the king, he gave orders in writing that his wicked plot which he had
devised against the Jews should come upon his own head, and that he and
his sons should be hanged on the gallows. 26Therefore they called these
days Purim, after the term Pur. And therefore, because of all that was
written in this letter, and of what they had faced in this matter, and of what
had befallen them, 27the Jews ordained and took it upon themselves and
their descendants and all who joined them, that without fail they would
keep these two days according to what was written and at the time
appointed every year, 28that these days should be remembered and kept
throughout every generation, in every family, province, and city, and that
these days of Purim should never fall into disuse among the Jews, nor
should the commemoration of these days cease among their descendants.
29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Ab'ihail, and Mor'decai the Jew
gave full written authority, confirming this second letter about Purim.
30Letters were sent to all the Jews, to the hundred and twenty-seven
provinces of the kingdom of Ahas'u-e'rus, in words of peace and truth,

31that these days of Purim should be observed at their appointed seasons, as
Mor'decai the Jew and Queen Esther enjoined upon the Jews, and as they
had laid down for themselves and for their descendants, with regard to their
fasts and their lamenting. 32The command of Queen Esther fixed these
practices of Purim, and it was recorded in writing.
Mordecai’s Dream Fulfilled
10 King Ahas'u-e'rus laid tribute on the land and on the coastlands of
the sea. 2And all the acts of his power and might, and the full account of the
high honor of Mor'decai, to which the king advanced him, are they not
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Med'ia and Persia?
3For Mor'decai the Jew was next in rank to King Ahas'u-e'rus, and he was
great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brethren, for he
sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people.
10 4 And Mordecai said, “These things have come from God. 5For I
remember the dream that I had concerning these matters, and none of them
has failed to be fulfilled. 6The tiny spring which became a river, and there
was light and the sun and abundant water—the river is Esther, whom the
king married and made queen. 7The two dragons are Haman and myself.
8The nations are those that gathered to destroy the name of the Jews. 9And
my nation, this is Israel, who cried out to God and were saved. The Lord
has saved his people; the Lord has delivered us from all these evils; God
has done great signs and wonders, which have not occurred among the
nations. 10For this purpose he made two lots, one for the people of God and
one for all the nations. 11And these two lots came to the hour and moment
and day of decision before God and among all the nations. 12And God
remembered his people and vindicated his inheritance. 13So they will
observe these days in the month of Adar, on the fourteenth and fifteenth of
that month, with an assembly and joy and gladness before God, from
generation to generation for ever among his people Israel.”
Postscript
11 1In the fourth year of the reign of Ptolemy and Cleopatra, Dositheus,
who said that he was a priest and a Levite, e and Ptolemy his son brought to
Egypt f the preceeding Letter of Purim, which they said was genuine and
had been translated by Lysimachus the son of Ptolemy, one of the residents
of Jerusalem.
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Job
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42
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THE BOOK OF JOB
Job and His Family
1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man
was blameless and upright, one who feared God, and turned away from evil.
2There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. 3He had seven
thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, and five
hundred she-donkeys, and very many servants; so that this man was the
greatest of all the people of the east. 4His sons used to go and hold a feast in
the house of each on his day; and they would send and invite their three
sisters to eat and drink with them. 5And when the days of the feast had run
their course, Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in
the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all;
for Job said, “It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their
hearts.” Thus Job did continually.
Satan Is Allowed to Tempt Job
6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves
before the LORD, and Satan a also came among them. 7The LORD said to
Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the LORD, “From
going back and forth on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.”
8And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that
there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears
God and turns away from evil?” 9Then Satan answered the LORD, “Does
Job fear God for nothing? 10Have you not put a hedge about him and his
house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his
hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11But put forth your
hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.”
12And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power;
only upon himself do not put forth your hand.” So Satan went forth from
the presence of the LORD.
Job Loses His Property and Children
13 Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and
drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house; 14and there came a messenger
to Job, and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside
them; 15and the Sabe'ans fell upon them and took them, and slew the
servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.”
16While he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, “The fire of God
fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants, and consumed
them; and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17While he was yet speaking,
there came another, and said, “The Chalde'ans formed three companies, and
made a raid upon the camels and took them, and slew the servants with the
edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18While he was
yet speaking, there came another, and said, “Your sons and daughters were
eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house; 19and behold, a
great wind came across the wilderness, and struck the four corners of the
house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead; and I alone
have escaped to tell you.”
20 Then Job arose, and tore his robe, and shaved his head, and fell upon
the ground, and worshiped. 21And he said, “Naked I came from my

mother’s womb, and naked shall I return; the LORD gave, and the LORD has
taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”
22 In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.
Job Is Afflicted with Sores

2 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present
themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them to present
himself before the LORD. 2And the LORD said to Satan, “From where have
you come?” Satan answered the LORD, “From going back and forth on the
earth, and from walking up and down on it.” 3And the LORD said to Satan,
“Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the
earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from
evil? He still holds fast his integrity, although you moved me against him,
to destroy him without cause.” 4Then Satan answered the LORD, “Skin for
skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. 5But put forth your hand
now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.”
6And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power; only spare his
life.”
7 So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD, and afflicted Job
with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.
8And he took a potsherd with which to scrape himself, and sat among the
ashes.
9 Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse
God, and die.” 10But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women
would speak. Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not
receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
Job’s Three Friends
11 Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon
him, they came each from his own place, Eli'phaz the Te'manite, Bildad the
Shuhite, and Zo'phar the Na'amathite. They made an appointment together
to come to condole with him and comfort him. 12And when they saw him
from afar, they did not recognize him; and they raised their voices and
wept; and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward
heaven. 13And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven
nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was
very great.
Job Curses the Day of His Birth
3 After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth.
02And Job said:
03 “Let the day perish wherein I was born,
and the night which said,
‘A man-child is conceived.’
4Let that day be darkness!
May God above not seek it,

nor light shine upon it.
5Let gloom and deep darkness claim it.
Let clouds dwell upon it;
let the blackness of the day terrify it.
6That night—let thick darkness seize it!
let it not rejoice among the days of the year,

let it not come into the number of the months.
7Yes, let that night be barren;
let no joyful cry be heard b in it.

8Let those curse it who curse the day,
who are skilled to rouse up Levi'athan.
9Let the stars of its dawn be dark;
let it hope for light, but have none,

nor see the eyelids of the morning;
10because it did not shut the doors of my mother’s womb,
nor hide trouble from my eyes.
11 “Why did I not die at birth,
come forth from the womb and expire?
12Why did the knees receive me?
Or why the breasts, that I should suck?
13For then I should have lain down and been quiet;
I should have slept; then I should have been at rest,
14with kings and counselors of the earth
who rebuilt ruins for themselves,
15or with princes who had gold,
who filled their houses with silver.

16Or why was I not as a hidden untimely birth,
as infants that never see the light?

17There the wicked cease from troubling,
and there the weary are at rest.

18There the prisoners are at ease together;
they hear not the voice of the taskmaster.

19The small and the great are there,
and the slave is free from his master.

20 “Why is light given to him who is in misery,
and life to the bitter in soul,
21who long for death, but it comes not,
and dig for it more than for hidden treasures;
22who rejoice exceedingly,
and are glad, when they find the grave?

23Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden,
whom God has hedged in?

24For my sighing comes as c my bread,
and my groanings are poured out like water.

25For the thing that I fear comes upon me,
and what I dread befalls me.

26I am not at ease, nor am I quiet;
I have no rest; but trouble comes.”

Eliphaz Speaks: Suffering Is a Result of Sin
4 Then Eli'phaz the Te'manite answered:
2 “If one ventures a word with you, will you be offended?
Yet who can keep from speaking?

3Behold, you have instructed many,
and you have strengthened the weak hands.
4Your words have upheld him who was stumbling,
and you have made firm the feeble knees.
5But now it has come to you, and you are impatient;
it touches you, and you are dismayed.

6Is not your fear of God your confidence,
and the integrity of your ways your hope?

7 “Think now, who that was innocent ever perished?
Or where were the upright cut off?

8As I have seen, those who plow iniquity
and sow trouble reap the same.

9By the breath of God they perish,
and by the blast of his anger they are consumed.

10The roar of the lion, the voice of the fierce lion,
the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
11The strong lion perishes for lack of prey,
and the whelps of the lioness are scattered.
12 “Now a word was brought to me stealthily,
my ear received the whisper of it.

13Amid thoughts from visions of the night,
when deep sleep falls on men,

14dread came upon me, and trembling,
which made all my bones shake.

15A spirit glided past my face;
the hair of my flesh stood up.

16It stood still,
but I could not discern its appearance.

A form was before my eyes;
there was silence, then I heard a voice:
17‘Can mortal man be righteous before d God?
Can a man be pure before d his Maker?

18Even in his servants he puts no trust,
and his angels he charges with error;
19how much more those who dwell in houses of clay,
whose foundation is in the dust,

who are crushed before the moth.
20Between morning and evening they are destroyed;
they perish for ever without any regarding it.

21If their tent-cord is plucked up within them,
do they not die, and that without wisdom?’
5 “Call now; is there any one who will answer you?

To which of the holy ones will you turn?
2Surely vexation kills the fool,
and jealousy slays the simple.

3I have seen the fool taking root,
but suddenly I cursed his dwelling.

4His sons are far from safety,
they are crushed in the gate,
and there is no one to deliver them.
5His harvest the hungry eat,
and he takes it even out of thorns; e

and the thirsty f pant after his g wealth.
6For affliction does not come from the dust,
nor does trouble sprout from the ground;

7but man is born to trouble
as the sparks fly upward.

8 “As for me, I would seek God,
and to God would I commit my cause;

9who does great things and unsearchable,
marvelous things without number:
10he gives rain upon the earth
and sends waters upon the fields;
11he sets on high those who are lowly,
and those who mourn are lifted to safety.
12He frustrates the devices of the crafty,
so that their hands achieve no success.

13He takes the wise in their own craftiness;
and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end.
14They meet with darkness in the daytime,
and grope at noonday as in the night.
15But he saves the fatherless from their mouth, h
the needy from the hand of the mighty.

16So the poor have hope,
and injustice shuts her mouth.

17 “Behold, happy is the man whom God reproves;
therefore despise not the chastening of the Almighty.

18For he wounds, but he binds up;
he strikes, but his hands heal.
19He will deliver you from six troubles;
in seven there shall no evil touch you.

20In famine he will redeem you from death,
and in war from the power of the sword.

21You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue,
and shall not fear destruction when it comes.

22At destruction and famine you shall laugh,
and shall not fear the beasts of the earth.

23For you shall be in league with the stones of the field,
and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you.

24You shall know that your tent is safe,
and you shall inspect your fold and miss nothing.

25You shall know also that your descendants shall be many,
and your offspring as the grass of the earth.
26You shall come to your grave in ripe old age,
as a shock of grain comes up to the threshing floor in its season.

27Behold, this we have searched out; it is true.
Hear, and know it for your good.” i

Job Replies to Eliphaz
6 Then Job answered:
2 “O that my vexation were weighed,
and all my calamity laid in the balances!

3For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea;
therefore my words have been rash.
4For the arrows of the Almighty are in me;
my spirit drinks their poison;
the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
5Does the wild donkey bray when he has grass,
or the ox low over his fodder?
6Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt,
or is there any taste in the slime of the purslane? j

7My appetite refuses to touch them;
they are as food that is loathsome to me. k

8 “O that I might have my request,
and that God would grant my desire;

9that it would please God to crush me,
that he would let loose his hand and cut me off!

10This would be my consolation;
I would even exult l in pain unsparing;

for I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
11What is my strength, that I should wait?
And what is my end, that I should be patient?
12Is my strength the strength of stones,
or is my flesh bronze?
13In truth I have no help in me,
and any resource is driven from me.

14 “He who withholds m kindness from a friend
forsakes the fear of the Almighty.

15My brethren are treacherous as a torrent-bed,
as freshets that pass away,

16which are dark with ice,
and where the snow hides itself.

17In time of heat they disappear;
when it is hot, they vanish from their place.

18The caravans turn aside from their course;
they go up into the waste, and perish.
19The caravans of Te'ma look,
the travelers of Sheba hope.

20They are disappointed because they were confident;
they come there and are confounded.
21Such you have now become to me; n
you see my calamity, and are afraid.

22Have I said, ‘Make me a gift’?
Or, ‘From your wealth offer a bribe for me’?

23Or, ‘Deliver me from the adversary’s hand’?
Or, ‘Ransom me from the hand of oppressors’?

24 “Teach me, and I will be silent;
make me understand how I have erred.
25How forceful are honest words!
But what does reproof from you reprove?

26Do you think that you can reprove words,
when the speech of a despairing man is wind?

27You would even cast lots over the fatherless,
and bargain over your friend.

28 “But now, be pleased to look at me;
for I will not lie to your face.

29Turn, I beg, let no wrong be done.
Turn now, my vindication is at stake.

30Is there any wrong on my tongue?
Cannot my taste discern calamity?

Job Speaks of His Sufferings
7 “Has not man a hard service upon earth,
and are not his days like the days of a hireling?
2Like a slave who longs for the shadow,
and like a hireling who looks for his wages,

3so I am allotted months of emptiness,
and nights of misery are apportioned to me.

4When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I arise?’
But the night is long,
and I am full of tossing till the dawn.
5My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt;
my skin hardens, then breaks out afresh.

6My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
and come to their end without hope.
7 “Remember that my life is a breath;
my eye will never again see good.
8The eye of him who sees me will behold me no more;
while your eyes are upon me, I shall be gone.

9As the cloud fades and vanishes,
so he who goes down to Sheol does not come up;
10he returns no more to his house,
nor does his place know him any more.

11 “Therefore I will not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;

I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12Am I the sea, or a sea monster,
that you set a guard over me?

13When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
my couch will ease my complaint,’

14then you scare me with dreams
and terrify me with visions,
15so that I would choose strangling
and death rather than my bones.

16I loathe my life; I would not live for ever.
Let me alone, for my days are a breath.
17What is man, that you make so much of him,
and that you set your mind upon him,

18visit him every morning,
and test him every moment?

19How long will you not look away from me,
nor let me alone till I swallow my spittle?

20If I sin, what do I do to you, you watcher of men?
Why have you made me your mark?

Why have I become a burden to you?
21Why do you not pardon my transgression
and take away my iniquity?
For now I shall lie in the earth;
you will seek me, but I shall not be.”
Bildad Speaks: God Is Just
8 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered:
2 “How long will you say these things,
and the words of your mouth be a great wind?
3Does God pervert justice?
Or does the Almighty pervert the right?

4If your children have sinned against him,
he has delivered them into the power of their transgression.

5If you will seek God
and make supplication to the Almighty,

6if you are pure and upright,
surely then he will rouse himself for you

and reward you with a rightful habitation.
7And though your beginning was small,
your latter days will be very great.

8 “For inquire, I beg you, of bygone ages,
and consider what the fathers have found;

9for we are but of yesterday, and know nothing,
for our days on earth are a shadow.
10Will they not teach you, and tell you,
and utter words out of their understanding?

11 “Can papyrus grow where there is no marsh?
Can reeds flourish where there is no water?

12While yet in flower and not cut down,
they wither before any other plant.

13Such are the paths of all who forget God;
the hope of the godless man shall perish.

14His confidence breaks in sunder,
and his trust is a spider’s web. o

15He leans against his house, but it does not stand;
he lays hold of it, but it does not endure.
16He thrives before the sun,
and his shoots spread over his garden.

17His roots twine about the stone-heap;
he lives among the rocks. p

18If he is destroyed from his place,
then it will deny him, saying, ‘I have never seen you.’
19Behold, this is the joy of his way;
and out of the earth others will spring.
20 “Behold, God will not reject a blameless man,
nor take the hand of evildoers.
21He will yet fill your mouth with laughter,
and your lips with shouting.

22Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
and the tent of the wicked will be no more.”

Job Replies to Bildad
2 “Truly I know that it is so:
But how can a man be just before God?

3If one wished to contend with him,
one could not answer him once in a thousand times.

4He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength
—who has hardened himself against him, and succeeded?—

5he who removes mountains, and they know it not,
when he overturns them in his anger;

6who shakes the earth out of its place,
and its pillars tremble;

7who commands the sun, and it does not rise;
who seals up the stars;

8who alone stretched out the heavens,
and trampled the waves of the sea; q

9who made the Bear and Ori'on,
the Plei'ades and the chambers of the south;

10who does great things beyond understanding,
and marvelous things without number.

11Behold, he passes by me, and I see him not;
he moves on, but I do not perceive him.

12Behold, he snatches away; who can hinder him?
Who will say to him, ‘What are you doing?’

13 “God will not turn back his anger;
beneath him bowed the helpers of Ra'hab.

14How then can I answer him,
choosing my words with him?
15Though I am innocent, I cannot answer him;
I must appeal for mercy to my accuser. r

16If I summoned him and he answered me,
I would not believe that he was listening to my voice.

17For he crushes me with a tempest,
and multiplies my wounds without cause;

18he will not let me get my breath,
but fills me with bitterness.

19If it is a contest of strength, behold him!
If it is a matter of justice, who can summon him? s

20Though I am innocent, my own mouth would condemn me;
though I am blameless, he would prove me perverse.
21I am blameless; I regard not myself;
I loathe my life.
22It is all one; therefore I say,
he destroys both the blameless and the wicked.

23When disaster brings sudden death,
he mocks at the calamity t of the innocent.

24The earth is given into the hand of the wicked;
he covers the faces of its judges—

if it is not he, who then is it?
25 “My days are swifter than a runner;
they flee away, they see no good.

26They go by like skiffs of reed,
like an eagle swooping on the prey.

27If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint,
I will put off my sad countenance, and be of good cheer,’

28I become afraid of all my suffering,
for I know you will not hold me innocent.

29I shall be condemned;
why then do I labor in vain?

30If I wash myself with snow,
and cleanse my hands with lye,

31yet you will plunge me into a pit,
and my own clothes will abhor me.
32For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him,
that we should come to trial together.

33There is no u umpire between us,
who might lay his hand upon us both.

34Let him take his rod away from me,
and let not dread of him terrify me.

35Then I would speak without fear of him,
for I am not so in myself.

Job Says He Loathes His Life
10 “I loathe my life;
I will give free utterance to my complaint;
I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
2I will say to God, Do not condemn me;
let me know why you contend against me.

3Does it seem good to you to oppress,
to despise the work of your hands

and favor the designs of the wicked?
4Do you have eyes of flesh?
Do you see as man sees?

5Are your days as the days of man,
or your years as man’s years,

6that you seek out my iniquity
and search for my sin,

7although you know that I am not guilty,
and there is none to deliver out of your hand?
8Your hands fashioned and made me;
and now you turn about and destroy me. v

9Remember that you have made me of clay; w
and will you turn me to dust again?

10Did you not pour me out like milk
and curdle me like cheese?

11You clothed me with skin and flesh,
and knit me together with bones and sinews.

12You have granted me life and mercy;
and your care has preserved my spirit.
13Yet these things you hid in your heart;
I know that this was your purpose.

14If I sin, you mark me,
and do not acquit me of my iniquity.

15If I am wicked, woe to me!
If I am righteous, I cannot lift up my head,

for I am filled with disgrace
and look upon my affliction.
16And if I lift myself up, x you hunt me like a lion,
and again work wonders against me;

17you renew your witnesses against me,
and increase your vexation toward me;

you bring fresh hosts against me. y
18 “Why did you bring me forth from the womb?
Would that I had died before any eye had seen me,
19and were as though I had not been,
carried from the womb to the grave.

20Are not the days of my life few? z
Let me alone, that I may find a little comfort a

21before I go from where I shall not return,
to the land of gloom and deep darkness,

22the land of gloom b and chaos,
where light is as darkness.”

Zophar Speaks: Job’s Guilt
Deserves Punishment
11 Then Zo'phar the Na'amathite answered:
2 “Should a multitude of words go unanswered,
and a man full of talk be vindicated?
3Should your babble silence men,
and when you mock, shall no one shame you?

4For you say, ‘My doctrine is pure,
and I am clean in God’s eyes.’

5But oh, that God would speak,
and open his lips to you,
6and that he would tell you the secrets of wisdom!
For he is manifold in understanding. c
Know then that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves.
7 “Can you find out the deep things of God?
Can you find out the limit of the Almighty?

8It is higher than heaven d—what can you do?
Deeper than Sheol—what can you know?
9Its measure is longer than the earth,
and broader than the sea.

10If he passes through, and imprisons,
and calls to judgment, who can hinder him?

11For he knows worthless men;
when he sees iniquity, will he not consider it?

12But a stupid man will get understanding,
when a wild donkey’s colt is born a man.

13 “If you set your heart aright,
you will stretch out your hands toward him.

14If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,
and let not wickedness dwell in your tents.

15Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish;
you will be secure, and will not fear.
16You will forget your misery;
you will remember it as waters that have passed away.

17And your life will be brighter than the noonday;
its darkness will be like the morning.

18And you will have confidence, because there is hope;
you will be protected e and take your rest in safety.

19You will lie down, and none will make you afraid;
many will entreat your favor.

20But the eyes of the wicked will fail;
all way of escape will be lost to them,

and their hope is to breathe their last.”
Job Replies to Zophar
2 “No doubt you are the people,
and wisdom will die with you.
3But I have understanding as well as you;
I am not inferior to you.

Who does not know such things as these?
4I am a laughingstock to my friends;
I, who called upon God and he answered me,

a just and blameless man, am a laughingstock.
5In the thought of one who is at ease there is contempt for misfortune;
it is ready for those whose feet slip.

6The tents of robbers are at peace,
and those who provoke God are secure,

who bring their god in their hand. f
7 “But ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
the birds of the air, and they will tell you;

8or the plants of the earth, g and they will teach you;
and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
9Who among all these does not know
that the hand of the LORD has done this?

10In his hand is the life of every living thing
and the breath of all mankind.

11Does not the ear try words
as the palate tastes food?

12Wisdom is with the aged,
and understanding in length of days.

13 “With God h are wisdom and might;
he has counsel and understanding.

14If he tears down, none can rebuild;
if he shuts a man in, none can open.

15If he withholds the waters, they dry up;
if he sends them out, they overwhelm the land.
16With him are strength and wisdom;
the deceived and the deceiver are his.

17He leads counselors away stripped,
and judges he makes fools.

18He looses the bonds of kings,
and binds a waistcloth on their loins.
19He leads priests away stripped,
and overthrows the mighty.
20He deprives of speech those who are trusted,
and takes away the discernment of the elders.

21He pours contempt on princes,
and looses the belt of the strong.

22He uncovers the deeps out of darkness,
and brings deep darkness to light.
23He makes nations great, and he destroys them:
he enlarges nations, and leads them away.

24He takes away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth,
and makes them wander in a pathless waste.

25They grope in the dark without light;
and he makes them stagger like a drunken man.

13 “Behold, my eye has seen all this,
my ear has heard and understood it.
2What you know, I also know;
I am not inferior to you.

3But I would speak to the Almighty,
and I desire to argue my case with God.

4As for you, you whitewash with lies;
worthless physicians are you all.

5Oh, that you would keep silent,
and it would be your wisdom!

6Hear now my reasoning,
and listen to the pleadings of my lips.

7Will you speak falsely for God,
and speak deceitfully for him?
8Will you show partiality toward him,
will you plead the case for God?

9Will it be well with you when he searches you out?
Or can you deceive him, as one deceives a man?

10He will surely rebuke you
if in secret you show partiality.

11Will not his majesty terrify you,
and the dread of him fall upon you?
12Your maxims are proverbs of ashes,
your defenses are defenses of clay.

13 “Let me have silence, and I will speak,
and let come on me what may.

14I will take i my flesh in my teeth,
and put my life in my hand.

15Behold, he will slay me; I have no hope;
yet I will defend my ways to his face.

16This will be my salvation,
that a godless man shall not come before him.

17Listen carefully to my words,
and let my declaration be in your ears.

18Behold, I have prepared my case;
I know that I shall be vindicated.

19Who is there that will contend with me?
For then I would be silent and die.

20Only grant two things to me,
then I will not hide myself from your face:

21withdraw your hand far from me,
and let not dread of you terrify me.

22Then call, and I will answer;
or let me speak, and do reply to me.

23How many are my iniquities and my sins?
Make me know my transgression and my sin.

24Why do you hide your face,
and count me as your enemy?

25Will you frighten a driven leaf
and pursue dry chaff?

26For you write bitter things against me,
and make me inherit the iniquities of my youth.

27You put my feet in the stocks,
and watch all my paths;

you set a bound to the soles of my feet.
28Man j wastes away like a rotten thing,
like a garment that is moth-eaten.
The Frailty of Man
14 “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
2He comes forth like a flower, and withers;
he flees like a shadow, and continues not.

3And do you open your eyes upon such a one
and bring him k into judgment with you?

4Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?
There is not one.

5Since his days are determined,
and the number of his months is with you,

and you have appointed his bounds that he cannot pass,
6look away from him, and desist, l
that he may enjoy, like a hireling, his day.

7 “For there is hope for a tree,
if it be cut down, that it will sprout again,

and that its shoots will not cease.
8Though its root grow old in the earth,
and its stump die in the ground,

9yet at the scent of water it will bud
and put forth branches like a young plant.

10But man dies, and is laid low;
man breathes his last, and where is he?

11As waters fail from a lake,
and a river wastes away and dries up,

12so man lies down and rises not again;
till the heavens are no more he will not awake,

or be roused out of his sleep.
13Oh, that you would hide me in Sheol,
that you would conceal me until your wrath be past,

that you would appoint me a set time, and remember me!
14If a man die, shall he live again?
All the days of my service I would wait,

till my release should come.
15You would call, and I would answer you;
you would long for the work of your hands.
16For then you would number my steps,
you would not keep watch over my sin;
17my transgression would be sealed up in a bag,
and you would cover over my iniquity.

18 “But the mountain falls and crumbles away,
and the rock is removed from its place;

19the waters wear away the stones;
the torrents wash away the soil of the earth;

so you destroy the hope of man.
20You prevail for ever against him, and he passes;
you change his countenance, and send him away.

21His sons come to honor, and he does not know it;
they are brought low, and he perceives it not.

22He feels only the pain of his own body,
and he mourns only for himself.”

Eiphaz Rebukes Job
2 “Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge,
and fill himself with the east wind?

3Should he argue in unprofitable talk,
or in words with which he can do no good?

4But you are doing away with the fear of God,
and hindering meditation before God.

5For your iniquity teaches your mouth,
and you choose the tongue of the crafty.

6Your own mouth condemns you, and not I;
your own lips testify against you.

7 “Are you the first man that was born?
Or were you brought forth before the hills?

8Have you listened in the council of God?
And do you limit wisdom to yourself?

9What do you know that we do not know?
What do you understand that is not clear to us?

10Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us,
older than your father.
11Are the consolations of God too small for you,
or the word that deals gently with you?
12Why does your heart carry you away,
and why do your eyes flash,

13that you turn your spirit against God,
and let such words go out of your mouth?

14What is man, that he can be clean?
Or he who is born of a woman, that he can be righteous?

15Behold, God puts no trust in his holy ones,
and the heavens are not clean in his sight;

16how much less one who is abominable and corrupt,
a man who drinks iniquity like water!
17“I will show you, hear me;
and what I have seen I will declare

18(what wise men have told,
and their fathers have not hidden,

19to whom alone the land was given,
and no stranger passed among them).

20The wicked man writhes in pain all his days,
through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless.
21Terrifying sounds are in his ears;
in prosperity the destroyer will come upon him.

22He does not believe that he will return out of darkness,
and he is destined for the sword.

23He wanders abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand;
24distress and anguish terrify him;
they prevail against him, like a king prepared for battle.

25Because he has stretched forth his hand against God,
and bids defiance to the Almighty,

26running stubbornly against him
with a thick-bossed shield;

27because he has covered his face with his fat,
and gathered fat upon his loins,

28and has lived in desolate cities,
in houses which no man should inhabit,
which were destined to become heaps of ruins;
29he will not be rich, and his wealth will not endure,
nor will he strike root in the earth; m

30he will not escape from darkness;
the flame will dry up his shoots,

and his blossom n will be swept away o by the wind.
31Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself;
for emptiness will be his recompense.

32It will be paid in full before his time,
and his branch will not be green.

33He will shake off his unripe grape, like the vine,
and cast off his blossom, like the olive tree.

34For the company of the godless is barren,
and fire consumes the tents of bribery.

35They conceive mischief and bring forth evil
and their heart prepares deceit.”

Job Reaffirms His Innocence
2 “I have heard many such things;
miserable comforters are you all.

3Shall windy words have an end?
Or what provokes you that you answer?
4I also could speak as you do,
if you were in my place;

I could join words together against you,
and shake my head at you.
5I could strengthen you with my mouth,
and the solace of my lips would assuage your pain.

6 “If I speak, my pain is not assuaged,
and if I forbear, how much of it leaves me?

7Surely now God has worn me out;
he has p made desolate all my company.

8And he has p shriveled me up,
which is a witness against me;

and my leanness has risen up against me,
it testifies to my face.
9He has torn me in his wrath, and hated me;
he has gnashed his teeth at me;

my adversary sharpens his eyes against me.
10Men have gaped at me with their mouth,
they have struck me insolently upon the cheek,

they mass themselves together against me.
11God gives me up to the ungodly,
and casts me into the hands of the wicked.

12I was at ease, and he broke me asunder;
he seized me by the neck and dashed me to pieces;
he set me up as his target,
13 his archers surround me.
He slashes open my kidneys, and does not spare;

he pours out my gall on the ground.
14He breaks me with breach upon breach;
he runs upon me like a warrior.

15I have sewn sackcloth upon my skin,
and have laid my strength in the dust.

16My face is red with weeping,
and on my eyelids is deep darkness;

17although there is no violence in my hands,
and my prayer is pure.

18 “O earth, cover not my blood,
and let my cry find no resting place.

19Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven,
and he that vouches for me is on high.

20My friends scorn me;
my eye pours out tears to God,

21that he would maintain the right of a man with God,
like q that of a man with his neighbor.

22For when a few years have come
I shall go the way from where I shall not return.

Job Prays for Relief
17 My spirit is broken, my days are extinct,
the grave is ready for me.
2Surely there are mockers about me,
and my eye dwells on their provocation.

3 “Lay down a pledge for me with yourself;
who is there that will give surety for me?

4Since you have closed their minds to understanding,
therefore you will not let them triumph.

5He who informs against his friends to get a share of their property,
the eyes of his children will fail.

6 “He has made me a byword of the peoples,
and I am one before whom men spit.

7My eye has grown dim from grief,
and all my members are like a shadow.

8Upright men are appalled at this,
and the innocent stirs himself up against the godless.

9Yet the righteous holds to his way,
and he that has clean hands grows stronger and stronger.

10But you, come on again, all of you,
and I shall not find a wise man among you.

11My days are past, my plans are broken off,
the desires of my heart.

12They make night into day;
‘The light,’ they say, ‘is near to the darkness.’ r

13If I look for Sheol as my house,
if I spread my couch in darkness,

14if I say to the pit, ‘You are my father,’
and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’

15where then is my hope?
Who will see my hope?

16Will it go down to the bars of Sheol?
Shall we descend together into the dust?”

Bildad Speaks: God Punishes the Wicked
2 “How long will you hunt for words?
Consider, and then we will speak.
3Why are we counted as cattle?
Why are we stupid in your sight?
4You who tear yourself in your anger,
shall the earth be forsaken for you,

or the rock be removed out of its place?
5 “Yes, the light of the wicked is put out,
and the flame of his fire does not shine.

6The light is dark in his tent,
and his lamp above him is put out.

7His strong steps are shortened
and his own schemes throw him down.

8For he is cast into a net by his own feet,
and he walks on a pitfall.
9A trap seizes him by the heel,
a snare lays hold of him.

10A rope is hid for him in the ground,
a trap for him in the path.

11Terrors frighten him on every side,
and chase him at his heels.

12His strength is hunger-bitten,
and calamity is ready for his stumbling.

13By disease his skin is consumed, s
the first-born of death consumes his limbs.

14He is torn from the tent in which he trusted,
and is brought to the king of terrors.

15In his tent dwells that which is none of his;
brimstone is scattered upon his habitation.
16His roots dry up beneath,
and his branches wither above.

17His memory perishes from the earth,
and he has no name in the street.

18He is thrust from light into darkness,
and driven out of the world.

19He has no offspring or descendant among his people,
and no survivor where he used to live.

20They of the west are appalled at his day,
and horror seizes them of the east.
21Surely such are the dwellings of the ungodly,
such is the place of him who knows not God.”

Job Answers: I Know That My Redeemer Lives
2 “How long will you torment me,
and break me in pieces with words?

3These ten times you have cast reproach upon me;
are you not ashamed to wrong me?
4And even if it be true that I have erred,
my error remains with myself.

5If indeed you magnify yourselves against me,
and make my humiliation an argument against me,

6know then that God has put me in the wrong,
and closed his net about me.

7Behold, I cry out, ‘Violence!’ but I am not answered;
I call aloud, but there is no justice.

8He has walled up my way, so that I cannot pass,
and he has set darkness upon my paths.

9He has stripped from me my glory,
and taken the crown from my head.

10He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone,
and my hope has he pulled up like a tree.
11He has kindled his wrath against me,
and counts me as his adversary.

12His troops come on together;
they have cast up siegeworks t against me,

and encamp round about my tent.
13 “He has put my brethren far from me,
and my acquaintances are wholly estranged from me.

14My kinsfolk and my close friends have failed me;
15 the guests in my house have forgotten me;
my maidservants count me as a stranger;

I have become an alien in their eyes.
16I call to my servant, but he gives me no answer;
I must beseech him with my mouth.
17I am repulsive to my wife,
loathsome to the sons of my own mother.

18Even young children despise me;
when I rise they talk against me.

19All my intimate friends abhor me,
and those whom I loved have turned against me.

20My bones cling to my skin and to my flesh,
and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.

21Have pity on me, have pity on me, O you my friends,
for the hand of God has touched me!

22Why do you, like God, pursue me?
Why are you not satisfied with my flesh?

23 “Oh, that my words were written!
Oh, that they were inscribed in a book!

24Oh, that with an iron pen and lead
they were graven in the rock for ever!

25For I know that my Redeemer u lives,
and at last he will stand upon the earth; v

and after my skin has been thus destroyed,
then from w my flesh I shall see God, x
whom I shall see on my side, y
and my eyes shall behold, and not another.
My heart faints within me!
28If you say, ‘How we will pursue him!’
and, ‘The root of the matter is found in him’;

29be afraid of the sword,
for wrath brings the punishment of the sword,
that you may know there is a judgment.”
Zophar Speaks: Wickedness
Receives Retribution
20 Then Zo'phar the Na'amathite answered:
2 “Therefore my thoughts answer me,
because of my haste within me.

3I hear censure which insults me,
and out of my understanding a spirit answers me.
4Do you not know this from of old,
since man was placed upon earth,

5that the exulting of the wicked is short,
and the joy of the godless but for a moment?

6Though his height mount up to the heavens,
and his head reach to the clouds,

7he will perish for ever like his own dung;
those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’

8He will fly away like a dream, and not be found;
he will be chased away like a vision of the night.

9The eye which saw him will see him no more,
nor will his place any more behold him.

10His children will seek the favor of the poor,
and his hands will give back his wealth.

11His bones are full of youthful vigor,
but it will lie down with him in the dust.

12 “Though wickedness is sweet in his mouth,
though he hides it under his tongue,

13though he is loath to let it go,
and holds it in his mouth,

14yet his food is turned in his stomach;
it is the gall of asps within him.

15He swallows down riches and vomits them up again;
God casts them out of his belly.

16He will suck the poison of asps;
the tongue of a viper will kill him.

17He will not look upon the rivers,
the streams flowing with honey and curds.

18He will give back the fruit of his toil,
and will not swallow it down;

from the profit of his trading
he will get no enjoyment.
19For he has crushed and abandoned the poor,
he has seized a house which he did not build.

20 “Because his greed knew no rest,
he will not save anything in which he delights.
21There was nothing left after he had eaten;
therefore his prosperity will not endure.

22In the fulness of his sufficiency he will be in straits;
all the force of misery will come upon him.

23To fill his belly to the full
God z will send his fierce anger into him,

and rain it upon him as his food. a
24He will flee from an iron weapon;
a bronze arrow will strike him through.

25It is drawn forth and comes out of his body,
the glittering point comes out of his gall;

terrors come upon him.
26Utter darkness is laid up for his treasures;
a fire not blown upon will devour him;

what is left in his tent will be consumed.
27The heavens will reveal his iniquity,
and the earth will rise up against him.

28The possessions of his house will be carried away,
dragged off in the day of God’s b wrath.

29This is the wicked man’s portion from God,
the heritage decreed for him by God.”

Job Replies: The Wicked Often Prosper
2 “Listencarefully to my words,
and let this be your consolation.
3Bear with me, and I will speak,
and after I have spoken, mock on.

4As for me, is my complaint against man?
Why should I not be impatient?

5Look at me, and be appalled,
and lay your hand upon your mouth.
6When I think of it I am dismayed,
and shuddering seizes my flesh.

7Why do the wicked live,
reach old age, and grow mighty in power?
8Their children are established in their presence,
and their offspring before their eyes.

9Their houses are safe from fear,
and no rod of God is upon them.

10Their bull breeds without fail;
their cow calves, and does not cast her calf.

11They send forth their little ones like a flock,
and their children dance.

12They sing to the tambourine and the lyre,
and rejoice to the sound of the pipe.

13They spend their days in prosperity,
and in peace they go down to Sheol.

14They say to God, ‘Depart from us!
We do not desire the knowledge of your ways.

15What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?
And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’

16Behold, is not their prosperity in their hand?
The counsel of the wicked is far from me.

17 “ How often is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out?
That their calamity comes upon them?

That God c distributes pains in his anger?
18That they are like straw before the wind,
and like chaff that the storm carries away?

19You say, ‘God stores up their iniquity for their sons.’
Let him recompense it to themselves, that they may know it.

20Let their own eyes see their destruction,
and let them drink of the wrath of the Almighty.

21For what do they care for their houses after them,
when the number of their months is cut off?

22Will any teach God knowledge,
seeing that he judges those that are on high?

23One dies in full prosperity,
being wholly at ease and secure,

24his body d full of fat
and the marrow of his bones moist.
25Another dies in bitterness of soul,
never having tasted of good.

26They lie down alike in the dust,
and the worms cover them.

27 “Behold, I know your thoughts,
and your schemes to wrong me.

28For you say, ‘Where is the house of the prince?
Where is the tent in which the wicked dwelt?’

29Have you not asked those who travel the roads,
and do you not accept their testimony

30that the wicked man is spared in the day of calamity,
that he is rescued in the day of wrath?

31Who declares his way to his face,
and who repays him for what he has done?

32When he is borne to the grave,
watch is kept over his tomb.

33The clods of the valley are sweet to him;
all men follow after him,

and those who go before him are innumerable.
34How then will you comfort me with empty nothings?
There is nothing left of your answers but falsehood.”

Eliphaz Speaks: Job’s Wickedness Must Be Great
2 “Can a man be profitable to God?
Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself.

3Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous,
or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless?

4Is it for your fear of him that he reproves you,
and enters into judgment with you?

5Is not your wickedness great?
There is no end to your iniquities.

6For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing,
and stripped the naked of their clothing.
7You have given no water to the weary to drink,
and you have withheld bread from the hungry.
8The man with power possessed the land,
and the favored man dwelt in it.

9You have sent widows away empty,
and the arms of the fatherless were crushed.

10Therefore snares are round about you,
and sudden terror overwhelms you;

11your light is darkened, so that e you cannot see,
and a flood of water covers you.

12 “Is not God high in the heavens?
See the highest stars, how lofty they are!

13Therefore you say, ‘What does God know?
Can he judge through the deep darkness?

14Thick clouds enwrap him, so that he does not see,
and he walks on the vault of heaven.’

15Will you keep to the old way
which wicked men have trod?

16They were snatched away before their time;
their foundation was washed away.

17They said to God, ‘Depart from us,’
and ‘What can the Almighty do to us?’ f

18Yet he filled their houses with good things—
but the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

19The righteous see it and are glad;
the innocent laugh them to scorn,
20saying, ‘Surely our adversaries are cut off,
and what they left the fire has consumed.’

21 “Agree with God, and be at peace;
thereby good will come to you.

22Receive instruction from his mouth,
and lay up his words in your heart.

23If you return to the Almighty and humble yourself, g
if you remove unrighteousness far from your tents,

24if you lay gold in the dust,
and gold of O'phir among the stones of the torrent bed,
25and if the Almighty is your gold,
and your precious silver;
26then you will delight yourself in the Almighty,
and lift up your face to God.

27You will make your prayer to him, and he will hear you;
and you will pay your vows.

28You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you,
and light will shine on your ways.

29For God abases the proud, h
but he saves the lowly.

30He delivers the innocent man; i
you will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”

Job Replies: I Am Hemmed In
2 “Today also my complaint is bitter, j
his k hand is heavy in spite of my groaning.

3Oh, that I knew where I might find him,
that I might come even to his seat!

4I would lay my case before him
and fill my mouth with arguments.

5I would learn what he would answer me,
and understand what he would say to me.

6Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power?
No; he would give heed to me.

7There an upright man could reason with him,
and I should be acquitted for ever by my judge.

8 “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there;
and backward, but I cannot perceive him;

9on the left hand I seek him, l but I cannot behold him;
I m turn to the right hand, but I cannot see him.

10But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

11My foot has held fast to his steps;
I have kept his way and have not turned aside.

12I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;
I have treasured in n my bosom the words of his mouth.
13But he is unchangeable and who can turn him?
What he desires, that he does.

14For he will complete what he appoints for me;
and many such things are in his mind.

15Therefore I am terrified at his presence;
when I consider, I am in dread of him.

16God has made my heart faint;
the Almighty has terrified me;
17for I am o hemmed in by darkness,
and thick darkness covers my face. p

Job Complains of Violence
24 “Why are not times of judgment kept by the Almighty,
and why do those who know him never see his days?
2Men remove landmarks;
they seize flocks and pasture them.

3They drive away the donkey of the fatherless;
they take the widow’s ox for a pledge.

4They thrust the poor off the road;
the poor of the earth all hide themselves.

5Behold, like wild donkeys in the desert
they go forth to their toil,

seeking prey in the wilderness
as food q for their children.
6They gather their r fodder in the field
and they glean the vineyard of the wicked man.

7They lie all night naked, without clothing,
and have no covering in the cold.

8They are wet with the rain of the mountains,
and cling to the rock for want of shelter.

9(There are those who snatch the fatherless child from the breast,
and take in pledge the infant of the poor.)

10They go about naked, without clothing;
hungry, they carry the sheaves;

11among the olive rows of the wicked s they make oil;
they tread the wine presses, but suffer thirst.
12From out of the city the dying groan,
and the soul of the wounded cries for help;
yet God pays no attention to their prayer.
13 “There are those who rebel against the light,
who are not acquainted with its ways,

and do not stay in its paths.
14The murderer rises in the dark, t
that he may kill the poor and needy;

and in the night he is as a thief.
15The eye of the adulterer also waits for the twilight,
saying, ‘No eye will see me’;

and he disguises his face.
16In the dark they dig through houses;
by day they shut themselves up;

they do not know the light.
17For deep darkness is morning to all of them;
for they are friends with the terrors of deep darkness.

18 “You say, ‘They are swiftly carried away upon the face of the
waters;
their portion is cursed in the land;
no treader turns toward their vineyards.
19Drought and heat snatch away the snow waters;
so does Sheol those who have sinned.

20The squares of the town u forget them;
their name v is no longer remembered;

so wickedness is broken like a tree.’
21 “They feed on the barren childless woman,
and do no good to the widow.

22Yet God w prolongs the life of the mighty by his power;
they rise up when they despair of life.

23He gives them security, and they are supported;
and his eyes are upon their ways.

24They are exalted a little while, and then are gone;
they wither and fade like the mallow; x

they are cut off like the heads of grain.
25Ifit is not so, who will prove me a liar,
and show that there is nothing in what I say?”
Bildad Speaks: How Can Man Be Righteous?
2 “Dominion and fear are with God; y
he makes peace in his high heaven.

3Is there any number to his armies?
Upon whom does his light not arise?

4How then can man be righteous before God?
How can he who is born of woman be clean?

5Behold, even the moon is not bright
and the stars are not clean in his sight;

6how much less man, who is a maggot,
and the son of man, who is a worm!”

Job Speaks of God’s Power
2 “How you have helped him who has no power!
How you have saved the arm that has no strength!

3How you have counseled him who has no wisdom,
and plentifully declared sound knowledge!

4With whose help have you uttered words,
and whose spirit has come forth from you?

5The shades below tremble,
the waters and their inhabitants.

6Sheol is naked before God,
and Abad'don has no covering.

7He stretches out the north over the void,
and hangs the earth upon nothing.

8He binds up the waters in his thick clouds,
and the cloud is not torn under them.

9He covers the face of the moon, z
and spreads over it his cloud.

10He has described a circle upon the face of the waters
at the boundary between light and darkness.

11The pillars of heaven tremble,
and are astounded at his rebuke.
12By his power he stilled the sea;
by his understanding he struck Ra'hab.

13By his wind the heavens were made fair;
his hand pierced the fleeing serpent.

14Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways;
and how small a whisper do we hear of him!

But the thunder of his power who can understand?”
Job Maintains His Integrity
27 And Job again took up his discourse, and said:
2 “As God lives, who has taken away my right,
and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter;

3as long as my breath is in me,
and the spirit of God is in my nostrils;

4my lips will not speak falsehood,
and my tongue will not utter deceit.

5Far be it from me to say that you are right;
till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.

6I hold fast my righteousness, and will not let it go;
my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.

7 “Let my enemy be as the wicked,
and let him that rises up against me be as the unrighteous.

8For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off,
when God takes away his life?

9Will God hear his cry,
when trouble comes upon him?

10Will he take delight in the Almighty?
Will he call upon God at all times?

11I will teach you concerning the hand of God;
what is with the Almighty I will not conceal.

12Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves;
why then have you become altogether vain?

13 “This is the portion of a wicked man with God,
and the heritage which oppressors receive from the Almighty:

14If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword;
and his offspring have not enough to eat.
15Those who survive him the pestilence buries,
and their widows make no lamentation.

16Though he heap up silver like dust,
and pile up clothing like clay;

17he may pile it up, but the just will wear it,
and the innocent will divide the silver.

18The house which he builds is like a spider’s web, a
like a booth which a watchman makes.

19He goes to bed rich, but will do so no more; b
he opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone.

20Terrors overtake him like a flood;
in the night a whirlwind carries him off.

21The east wind lifts him up and he is gone;
it sweeps him out of his place.

22It c hurls at him without pity;
he flees from its d power in headlong flight.

23It c claps its d hands at him,
and hisses at him from its d place.

Where Shall Wisdom Be Found?
28 “Surely there is a mine for silver,
and a place for gold which they refine.
2Iron is taken out of the earth,
and copper is smelted from the ore.

3Men put an end to darkness,
and search out to the farthest bound

the ore in gloom and deep darkness.
4They open shafts in a valley away from where men live;
they are forgotten by travelers,

they hang afar from men, they swing back and forth.
5As for the earth, out of it comes bread;
but underneath it is turned up as by fire.

6Its stones are the place of sapphires, e
and it has dust of gold.

7 “That path no bird of prey knows,
and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.
8The proud beasts have not trodden it;
the lion has not passed over it.

9 “Man puts his hand to the flinty rock,
and overturns mountains by the roots.

10He cuts out channels in the rocks,
and his eye sees every precious thing.

11He binds up the streams so that they do not trickle,
and the thing that is hidden he brings forth to light.

12 “But where shall wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?

13Man does not know the way to it, f
and it is not found in the land of the living.

14The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’
and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’

15It cannot be gotten for gold,
and silver cannot be weighed as its price.

16It cannot be valued in the gold of O'phir,
in precious onyx or sapphire. g

17Gold and glass cannot equal it,
nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.

18No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;
the price of wisdom is above pearls.

19The topaz of Ethiopia cannot compare with it,
nor can it be valued in pure gold.

20 “From where does wisdom come?
And where is the place of understanding?

21It is hidden from the eyes of all living,
and concealed from the birds of the air.

22Abad'don and Death say,
‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’

23 “God understands the way to it,
and he knows its place.

24For he looks to the ends of the earth,
and sees everything under the heavens.
25When he gave to the wind its weight,
and meted out the waters by measure;
26when he made a decree for the rain,
and a way for the lightning of the thunder;

27then he saw it and declared it;
he established it, and searched it out.

28And he said to man,
‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;

and to depart from evil is understanding.’ ”
Job Recalls Past Happiness
29 And Job again took up his discourse, and said:
2 “Oh, that I were as in the months of old,
as in the days when God watched over me;

3when his lamp shone upon my head,
and by his light I walked through darkness;

4as I was in my autumn days,
when the friendship of God was upon my tent;

5when the Almighty was yet with me,
when my children were about me;

6when my steps were washed with milk,
and the rock poured out for me streams of oil!

7When I went out to the gate of the city,
when I prepared my seat in the square,

8the young men saw me and withdrew,
and the aged rose and stood;

9the princes refrained from talking,
and laid their hand on their mouth;

10the voice of the nobles was hushed,
and their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth.

11When the ear heard, it called me blessed,
and when the eye saw, it approved;

12because I delivered the poor who cried,
and the fatherless who had none to help him.

13The blessing of him who was about to perish came upon me,
and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.
14I put on righteousness, and it clothed me;
my justice was like a robe and a turban.
15I was eyes to the blind,
and feet to the lame.

16I was a father to the poor,
and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know.
17I broke the fangs of the unrighteous,
and made him drop his prey from his teeth.

18Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my nest,
and I shall multiply my days as the sand,

19my roots spread out to the waters,
with the dew all night on my branches,

20my glory fresh with me,
and my bow ever new in my hand.’

21 “Men listened to me, and waited,
and kept silence for my counsel.

22After I spoke they did not speak again,
and my word dropped upon them.

23They waited for me as for the rain;
and they opened their mouths as for the spring rain.

24I smiled on them when they had no confidence;
and the light of my countenance they did not cast down.

25I chose their way, and sat as chief,
and I dwelt like a king among his troops,

like one who comforts mourners.
Job Speaks of His Present Suffering
30 “But now they make sport of me,
men who are younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
to set with the dogs of my flock.
2What could I gain from the strength of their hands,
men whose vigor is gone?

3Through want and hard hunger
they gnaw the dry and desolate ground; h

4they pick mallow and the leaves of bushes,
and to warm themselves the roots of the broom.
5They are driven out from among men;
they shout after them as after a thief.

6In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,
in holes of the earth and of the rocks.

7Among the bushes they bray;
under the nettles they huddle together.

8A senseless, a disreputable brood,
they have been whipped out of the land.

9 “And now I have become their song,
I am a byword to them.
10They abhor me, they keep aloof from me;
they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.

11Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me,
they have cast off restraint in my presence.

12On my right hand the rabble rise,
they drive me i forth,

they cast up against me their ways of destruction.
13They break up my path,
they promote my calamity;

no one restrains j them.
14As through k a wide breach they come;
amid the crash they roll on.

15Terrors are turned upon me;
my honor is pursued as by the wind,

and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.
16 “And now my soul is poured out within me;
days of affliction have taken hold of me.

17The night racks my bones,
and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.

18With violence it seizes my garment; l
it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.

19God has cast me into the mire,
and I have become like dust and ashes.

20I cry to you and you do not answer me;
I stand, and you do not m heed me.
21You have turned cruel to me;
with the might of your hand you persecute me.

22You lift me up on the wind, you make me ride on it,
and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.

23Yes, I know that you will bring me to death,
and to the house appointed for all living.

24 “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand,
and in his disaster cry for help? n

25Did not I weep for him whose day was hard?
Was not my soul grieved for the poor?

26But when I looked for good, evil came;
and when I waited for light, darkness came.

27My heart is in turmoil, and is never still;
days of affliction come to meet me.

28I go about blackened, but not by the sun;
I stand up in the assembly, and cry for help.

29I am a brother of jackals,
and a companion of ostriches.

30My skin turns black and falls from me,
and my bones burn with heat.
31My lyre is turned to mourning,
and my pipe to the voice of those who weep.

Job Asserts His Integrity
31 “I have made a covenant with my eyes;
how then could I look upon a virgin?
2What would be my portion from God above,
and my heritage from the Almighty on high?

3Does not calamity befall the unrighteous,
and disaster the workers of iniquity?

4Does not he see my ways,
and number all my steps?

5 “If I have walked with falsehood,
and my foot has hastened to deceit;

6(Let me be weighed in a just balance,
and let God know my integrity!)
7if my step has turned aside from the way,
and my heart has gone after my eyes,
and if any spot has clung to my hands;
8then let me sow, and another eat;
and let what grows for me be rooted out.

9 “If my heart has been enticed to a woman,
and I have lain in wait at my neighbor’s door;

10then let my wife grind for another,
and let others bow down upon her.

11For that would be a heinous crime;
that would be an iniquity to be punished by the judges;

12for that would be a fire which consumes unto Abad'don,
and it would burn to the root all my increase.

13 “If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or my maidservant,
when they brought a complaint against me;

14what then shall I do when God rises up?
When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him?

15Did not he who made me in the womb make him?
And did not one fashion us in the womb?

16 “If I have withheld anything that the poor desired,
or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,

17or have eaten my morsel alone,
and the fatherless has not eaten of it

18(for from his youth I reared him as a father,
and from his mother’s womb I guided him o );

19if I have seen any one perish for lack of clothing,
or a poor man without covering;

20if his loins have not blessed me,
and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;

21if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,
because I saw help in the gate;

22then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,
and let my arm be broken from its socket.

23For I was in terror of calamity from God,
and I could not have faced his majesty.
24 “If I have made gold my trust,
or called fine gold my confidence;

25if I have rejoiced because my wealth was great,
or because my hand had gotten much;

26if I have looked at the sun p when it shone,
or the moon moving in splendor,

27and my heart has been secretly enticed,
and my mouth has kissed my hand;
28this also would be an iniquity to be punished by the judges,
for I should have been false to God above.

29 “If I have rejoiced at the ruin of him that hated me,
or exulted when evil overtook him

30(I have not let my mouth sin
by asking for his life with a curse);

31if the men of my tent have not said,
‘Who is there that has not been filled with his meat?’
32(the sojourner has not lodged in the street;
I have opened my doors to the wayfarer);

33if I have concealed my transgressions from men, q
by hiding my iniquity in my bosom,

34because I stood in great fear of the multitude,
and the contempt of families terrified me,
so that I kept silence, and did not go out of doors—
35Oh, that I had one to hear me!
(Here is my signature! let the Almighty answer me!)

Oh, that I had the indictment written by my adversary!
36Surely I would carry it on my shoulder;
I would bind it on me as a crown;

37I would give him an account of all my steps;
like a prince I would approach him.

38 “If my land has cried out against me,
and its furrows have wept together;

39if I have eaten its yield without payment,
and caused the death of its owners;

40letthorns grow instead of wheat,
and foul weeds instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.
Young Elihu Rebukes Job’s Friends
32 So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous
in his own eyes. 2Then Eli'hu the son of Bar'achel the Buzite, of the family
of Ram, became angry. He was angry at Job because he justified himself
rather than God; 3he was angry also at Job’s three friends because they had
found no answer, although they had declared Job to be in the wrong. 4Now
Eli'hu had waited to speak to Job because they were older than he. 5And
when Eli'hu saw that there was no answer in the mouths of these three men,
he became angry.
6 And Eli'hu the son of Bar'achel the Buzite answered:
“I am young in years,
and you are aged;
therefore I was timid and afraid
to declare my opinion to you.
7I said, ‘Let days speak,
and many years teach wisdom.’

8But it is the spirit in a man,
the breath of the Almighty, that makes him understand.

9It is not the old r that are wise,
nor the aged that understand what is right.

10Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me;
let me also declare my opinion.’

11 “Behold, I waited for your words.
I listened for your wise sayings,

while you searched out what to say.
12I gave you my attention,
and, behold, there was none that confuted Job,

or that answered his words, among you.
13Beware lest you say, ‘We have found wisdom;
God may vanquish him, not man.’

14He has not directed his words against me,
and I will not answer him with your speeches.
15 “They are discomfited, they answer no more;
they have not a word to say.
16And shall I wait, because they do not speak,
because they stand there, and answer no more?

17I also will give my answer;
I also will declare my opinion.

18For I am full of words,
the spirit within me constrains me.

19Behold, my heart is like wine that has no vent;
like new wineskins, it is ready to burst.

20I must speak, that I may find relief;
I must open my lips and answer.

21I will not show partiality to any person
or use flattery toward any man.

22For I do not know how to flatter,
else would my Maker soon put an end to me.

Elihu Addresses Job
33 “But now, hear my speech, O Job,
and listen to all my words.
2Behold, I open my mouth;
the tongue in my mouth speaks.

3My words declare the uprightness of my heart,
and what my lips know they speak sincerely.

4The spirit of God has made me,
and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

5Answer me, if you can;
set your words in order before me; take your stand.

6Behold, I am toward God as you are;
I too was formed from a piece of clay.
7Behold, no fear of me need terrify you;
my pressure will not be heavy upon you.

8 “Surely, you have spoken in my hearing,
and I have heard the sound of your words.

9You say, ‘I am clean, without transgression;
I am pure, and there is no iniquity in me.
10Behold, he finds occasions against me,
he counts me as his enemy;
11he puts my feet in the stocks,
and watches all my paths.’

12 “Behold, in this you are not right. I will answer you.
God is greater than man.

13Why do you contend against him,
saying, ‘He will answer none of my s words’?

14For God speaks in one way,
and in two, though man does not perceive it.

15In a dream, in a vision of the night,
when deep sleep falls upon men,

while they slumber on their beds,
16then he opens the ears of men,
and terrifies them with warnings,

17that he may turn man aside from his deed,
and cut off t pride from man;

18he keeps back his soul from the Pit,
his life from perishing by the sword.

19 “Man is also chastened with pain upon his bed,
and with continual strife in his bones;

20so that his life loathes bread,
and his appetite dainty food.

21His flesh is so wasted away that it cannot be seen;
and his bones which were not seen stick out.

22His soul draws near the Pit,
and his life to those who bring death.

23If there be for him an angel,
a mediator, one of the thousand,

to declare to man what is right for him;
24and he is gracious to him, and says,
‘Deliver him from going down into the Pit,

I have found a ransom;
25let his flesh become fresh with youth;
let him return to the days of his youthful vigor’;

26then man prays to God, and he accepts him,
he comes into his presence with joy.
He recounts u to men his salvation,
27 and he sings before men, and says:
‘I sinned and perverted what was right,

and it was not repaid to me.
28He has redeemed my soul from going down into the Pit,
and my life shall see the light.’

29 “Behold, God does all these things,
twice, three times, with a man,

30to bring back his soul from the Pit,
that he may see the light of life. v

31Give heed, O Job, listen to me;
be silent, and I will speak.

32If you have anything to say, answer me;
speak, for I desire to justify you.

33If not, listen to me;
be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Elihu Proclaims God’s Justice
34 Then Eli'hu said:
2 “Hear my words, you wise men,
and give ear to me, you who know;
3for the ear tests words
as the palate tastes food.

4Let us choose what is right;
let us determine among ourselves what is good.

5For Job has said, ‘I am innocent,
and God has taken away my right;

6in spite of my right I am counted a liar;
my wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.’

7What man is like Job,
who drinks up scoffing like water,

8who goes in company with evildoers
and walks with wicked men?

9For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing
that he should take delight in God.’
10 “Therefore, hear me, you men of understanding,
far be it from God that he should do wickedness,
and from the Almighty that he should do wrong.
11For according to the work of a man he will repay him,
and according to his ways he will make it befall him.

12Of a truth, God will not do wickedly,
and the Almighty will not pervert justice.

13Who gave him charge over the earth
and who laid on him w the whole world?

14If he should take back his spirit x to himself,
and gather to himself his breath,

15all flesh would perish together,
and man would return to dust.

16 “If you have understanding, hear this;
listen to what I say.

17Shall one who hates justice govern?
Will you condemn him who is righteous and mighty,

18who says to a king, ‘Worthless one,’
and to nobles, ‘Wicked man’;

19who shows no partiality to princes,
nor regards the rich more than the poor,

for they are all the work of his hands?
20In a moment they die;
at midnight the people are shaken and pass away,

and the mighty are taken away by no human hand.
21 “For his eyes are upon the ways of a man,
and he sees all his steps.

22There is no gloom or deep darkness
where evildoers may hide themselves.

23For he has not appointed a time y for any man
to go before God in judgment.

24He shatters the mighty without investigation,
and sets others in their place.

25Thus, knowing their works,
he overturns them in the night, and they are crushed.

26He strikes them for their wickedness
in the sight of men,
27because they turned aside from following him,
and had no regard for any of his ways,

28so that they caused the cry of the poor to come to him,
and he heard the cry of the afflicted—

29When he is quiet, who can condemn?
When he hides his face, who can behold him,

whether it be a nation or a man? —
30that a godless man should not reign,
that he should not ensnare the people.

31 “For has any one said to God,
‘I have borne chastisement; I will not offend any more;

32teach me what I do not see;
if I have done iniquity, I will do it no more’?

33Will he then make repayment to suit you,
because you reject it?

For you must choose, and not I;
therefore declare what you know. z
34Men of understanding will say to me,
and the wise man who hears me will say:

35‘Job speaks without knowledge,
his words are without insight.’

36Would that Job were judged to the end,
because he answers like wicked men.

37For he adds rebellion to his sin;
he claps his hands among us,

and multiplies his words against God.”
Elihu Condemns Self-righteousness
35 And Eli'hu said:
2 “Do you think this to be just?
Do you say, ‘It is my right before God,’
3that you ask, ‘What advantage have I?
How am I better off than if I had sinned?’

4I will answer you
and your friends with you.
5Look at the heavens, and see;
and behold the clouds, which are higher than you.
6If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against him?
And if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?

7If you are righteous, what do you give to him;
or what does he receive from your hand?

8Your wickedness concerns a man like yourself,
and your righteousness a son of man.

9 “Because of the multitude of oppressions people cry out;
they call for help because of the arm of the mighty.

10But none says, ‘Where is God my Maker,
who gives songs in the night,

11who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth,
and makes us wiser than the birds of the air?’

12There they cry out, but he does not answer,
because of the pride of evil men.

13Surely God does not hear an empty cry,
nor does the Almighty regard it.

14How much less when you say that you do not see him,
that the case is before him, and you are waiting for him!
15And now, because his anger does not punish,
and he does not greatly heed transgression, a

16Job opens his mouth in empty talk,
he multiplies words without knowledge.”

Elihu Speaks on God’s Behalf
36 And Eli'hu continued, and said:
2 “Bear with me a little, and I will show you,
for I have yet something to say on God’s behalf.

3I will fetch my knowledge from afar,
and ascribe righteousness to my Maker.

4For truly my words are not false;
one who is perfect in knowledge is with you.

5 “Behold, God is mighty, and does not despise any;
he is mighty in strength of understanding.

6He does not keep the wicked alive,
but gives the afflicted their right.
7He does not withdraw his eyes from the righteous,
but with kings upon the throne

he sets them for ever, and they are exalted.
8And if they are bound in fetters
and caught in the cords of affliction,

9then he declares to them their work
and their transgressions, that they are behaving arrogantly.

10He opens their ears to instruction,
and commands that they return from iniquity.

11If they listen and serve him,
they complete their days in prosperity,

and their years in pleasantness.
12But if they do not listen, they perish by the sword,
and die without knowledge.

13 “The godless in heart cherish anger;
they do not cry for help when he binds them.

14They die in youth,
and their life ends in shame. b

15He delivers the afflicted by their affliction,
and opens their ear by adversity.

16He also allured you out of distress
into a broad place where there was no cramping,

and what was set on your table was full of rich food.
17 “But you are full of the judgment on the wicked;
judgment and justice seize you.

18Beware lest wrath entice you into scoffing;
and let not the greatness of the ransom turn you aside.
19Will your cry avail to keep you from distress,
or all the force of your strength?

20Do not long for the night,
when peoples are cut off in their place.

21Take heed, do not turn to iniquity,
for this you have chosen rather than affliction.

22Behold, God is exalted in his power;
who is a teacher like him?
23Who has prescribed for him his way,
or who can say, ‘You have done wrong’?
24 “Remember to extol his work,
of which men have sung.

25All men have looked on it;
man beholds it from afar.

26Behold, God is great, and we know him not;
the number of his years is unsearchable.

27For he draws up the drops of water,
he c distils his mist in rain

28which the skies pour down,
and drop upon man abundantly.

29Can any one understand the spreading of the clouds,
the thunderings of his pavilion?

30Behold, he scatters his lightning about him,
and covers the roots of the sea.

31For by these he judges peoples;
he gives food in abundance.

32He covers his hands with the lightning,
and commands it to strike the mark.

33Its crashing declares concerning him,
who is jealous with anger against iniquity.

The Greatness of God
37 “At this also my heart trembles,
and leaps out of its place.
2Listen to the thunder of his voice
and the rumbling that comes from his mouth.

3Under the whole heaven he lets it go,
and his lightning to the corners of the earth.

4After it his voice roars;
he thunders with his majestic voice

and he does not restrain the bolts of lightning d when his voice is
heard.
5God thunders wondrously with his voice;
he does great things which we cannot comprehend.
6For to the snow he says, ‘Fall on the earth’;
and to the shower and the rain, e ‘Be strong.’
7He seals up the hand of every man,
that all men may know his work. f

8Then the beasts go into their lairs,
and remain in their dens.

9From its chamber comes the whirlwind,
and cold from the scattering winds.

10By the breath of God ice is given,
and the broad waters are frozen fast.

11He loads the thick cloud with moisture;
the clouds scatter his lightning.

12They turn round and round by his guidance,
to accomplish all that he commands them

on the face of the habitable world.
13Whether for correction, or for his land,
or for love, he causes it to happen.

14 “Hear this, O Job;
stop and consider the wondrous works of God.

15Do you know how God lays his command upon them,
and causes the lightning of his cloud to shine?

16Do you know the balancings of the clouds,
the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge,

17you whose garments are hot
when the earth is still because of the south wind?

18Can you, like him, spread out the skies,
hard as a molten mirror?

19Teach us what we shall say to him;
we cannot draw up our case because of darkness.

20Shall it be told him that I would speak?
Did a man ever wish that he would be swallowed up?

21 “And now men cannot look on the light
when it is bright in the skies,

when the wind has passed and cleared them.
22Out of the north comes golden splendor;
God is clothed with awesome majesty.
23The Almighty—we cannot find him;
he is great in power and justice,

and abundant righteousness he will not violate.
24Therefore men fear him;
he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.”
The Lord Answers Job
38 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind:
2 “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
3Gird up your loins like a man,
I will question you, and you shall declare to me.

4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.

5Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?

6On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,

7when the morning stars sang together,
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors,
when it burst forth from the womb;

9when I made clouds its garment,
and thick darkness its swaddling band;

10and prescribed bounds for it,
and set bars and doors,

11and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be stayed’?

12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
and caused the dawn to know its place,

13that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth,
and the wicked be shaken out of it?

14It is changed like clay under the seal,
and it is dyed g like a garment.

15From the wicked their light is withheld,
and their uplifted arm is broken.
16 “Have you entered into the springs of the sea,
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
17Have the gates of death been revealed to you,
or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?

18Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?
Declare, if you know all this.

19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light,
and where is the place of darkness,

20that you may take it to its territory
and that you may discern the paths to its home?

21You know, for you were born then,
and the number of your days is great!

22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,
or have you seen the storehouses of the hail,

23which I have reserved for the time of trouble,
for the day of battle and war?

24What is the way to the place where the light is distributed,
or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?

25 “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain,
and a way for the thunderbolt,

26to bring rain on a land where no man is,
on the desert in which there is no man;

27to satisfy the waste and desolate land,
and to make the ground put forth grass?

28 “Has the rain a father,
or who has begotten the drops of dew?

29From whose womb did the ice come forth,
and who has given birth to the hoarfrost of heaven?

30The waters become hard like stone,
and the face of the deep is frozen.

31 “Can you bind the chains of the Plei'ades,
or loose the cords of Ori'on?

32Can you lead forth the Maz'zaroth in their season,
or can you guide the Bear with its children?

33Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you establish their rule on the earth?
34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
that a flood of waters may cover you?
35Can you send forth bolts of lightning, that they may go
and say to you, ‘Here we are’?

36Who has put wisdom in the clouds, h
or given understanding to the mists? h

37Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,

38when the dust runs into a mass
and the clods cling tightly together?

39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,

40when they crouch in their dens,
or lie in wait in their hiding places?

41Who provides for the raven its prey,
when its young ones cry to God,

and wander about for lack of food?
The Lord Questions Job
39 “Do you know when the mountain goats bring forth?
Do you observe the deer bringing forth their young?
2Can you number the months that they fulfil,
and do you know the time when they bring forth,

3when they crouch, bring forth their offspring,
and are delivered of their young?

4Their young ones become strong, they grow up in the open;
they go forth, and do not return to them.

5 “Who has let the wild donkey go free?
Who has loosed the bonds of the swift donkey,

6to whom I have given the steppe for his home,
and the salt land for his dwelling place?

7He scorns the tumult of the city;
he hears not the shouts of the driver.

8He ranges the mountains as his pasture,
and he searches after every green thing.

9 “Is the wild ox willing to serve you?
Will he spend the night at your crib?
10Can you bind him in the furrow with ropes,
or will he harrow the valleys after you?

11Will you depend on him because his strength is great,
and will you leave to him your labor?

12Do you have faith in him that he will return,
and bring your grain to your threshing floor? i

13 “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly;
but are they the pinions and plumage of love? j

14For she leaves her eggs to the earth,
and lets them be warmed on the ground,

15forgetting that a foot may crush them,
and that the wild beast may trample them.

16She deals cruelly with her young, as if they were not hers;
though her labor be in vain, yet she has no fear;

17because God has made her forget wisdom,
and given her no share in understanding.

18When she rouses herself to flee, k
she laughs at the horse and his rider.

19 “Do you give the horse his might?
Do you clothe his neck with strength? l

20Do you make him leap like the locust?
His majestic snorting is terrible.

21He paws m in the valley, and exults in his strength;
he goes out to meet the weapons.

22He laughs at fear, and is not dismayed;
he does not turn back from the sword.

23Upon him rattle the quiver,
the flashing spear and the javelin.

24With fierceness and rage he swallows the ground;
he cannot stand still at the sound of the trumpet.

25When the trumpet sounds, he says ‘Aha!’
He smells the battle from afar,

the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.
26 “Is it by your wisdom that the hawk soars,
and spreads his wings toward the south?
27Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up
and makes his nest on high?

28On the rock he dwells and makes his home
in the fastness of the rocky crag.

29From there he spies out the prey;
his eyes behold it afar off.

30His young ones suck up blood;
and where the slain are, there is he.”

Dialogue: God Challenges Job
40 And the LORD said to Job:
2 “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?
He who argues with God, let him answer it.”

3Then Job answered the LORD:
4 “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you?
I lay my hand on my mouth.

5I have spoken once, and I will not answer;
twice, but I will proceed no further.”

6Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind:
7 “Gird up your loins like a man;
I will question you, and you declare to me.

8Will you even put me in the wrong?
Will you condemn me that you may be justified?

9Have you an arm like God,
and can you thunder with a voice like his?

10 “Deck yourself with majesty and dignity;
clothe yourself with glory and splendor.

11Pour forth the overflowings of your anger,
and look on every one that is proud, and abase him.

12Look on every one that is proud, and bring him low;
and tread down the wicked where they stand.
13Hide them all in the dust together;
bind their faces in the world below. n

14Then will I also acknowledge to you,
that your own right hand can give you victory.
15 “Behold, Be'hemoth, o
which I made as I made you;

he eats grass like an ox.
16Behold, his strength in his loins,
and his power in the muscles of his belly.

17He makes his tail stiff like a cedar;
the sinews of his thighs are knit together.

18His bones are tubes of bronze,
his limbs like bars of iron.

19 “He is the first of the works p of God;
let him who made him bring near his sword!

20For the mountains yield food for him
where all the wild beasts play.

21Under the lotus plants he lies,
in the hiding place of the reeds and in the marsh.

22For his shade the lotus trees cover him;
the willows of the brook surround him.

23Behold, if the river is turbulent he is not frightened;
he is confident though Jordan rushes against his mouth.

24Can one take him with hooks, q
or pierce his nose with a snare?

41 r “Can
you draw out Levi'athan s with a fishhook,
or press down his tongue with a cord?
2Can you put a rope in his nose,
or pierce his jaw with a hook?

3Will he make many supplications to you?
Will he speak to you soft words?

4Will he make a covenant with you
to take him for your servant for ever?

5Will you play with him as with a bird,
or will you put him on leash for your maidens?

6Will traders bargain over him?
Will they divide him up among the merchants?

7Can you fill his skin with harpoons,
or his head with fishing spears?
8Lay hands on him;
think of the battle; you will not do it again!

9 t Behold, the hope of a man is disappointed;
he is laid low even at the sight of him.

10No one is so fierce that he dares to stir him up.
Who then is he that can stand before me?

11Who has given to me, u that I should repay him?
Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.

12 “I will not keep silence concerning his limbs,
or his mighty strength, or his large frame.

13Who can strip off his outer garment?
Who can penetrate his double coat of mail? v

14Who can open the doors of his face?
Round about his teeth is terror.

15His back w is made of rows of shields,
shut up closely as with a seal.

16One is so near to another
that no air can come between them.

17They are joined one to another;
they clasp each other and cannot be separated.

18His sneezings flash forth light,
and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn.

19Out of his mouth go flaming torches;
sparks of fire leap forth.

20Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke,
as from a boiling pot and burning rushes.

21His breath kindles coals,
and a flame comes forth from his mouth.

22In his neck abides strength,
and terror dances before him.

23The folds of his flesh cling together,
firmly cast upon him and immovable.

24His heart is hard as a stone,
hard as the nether millstone.
25When he raises himself up the mighty x are afraid;
at the crashing they are beside themselves.
26Though the sword reaches him, it does not avail;
nor the spear, the dart, or the javelin.

27He counts iron as straw,
and bronze as rotten wood.

28The arrow cannot make him flee;
for him slingstones are turned to stubble.

29Clubs are counted as stubble;
he laughs at the rattle of javelins.

30His underparts are like sharp potsherds;
he spreads himself like a threshing sledge on the mire.

31He makes the deep boil like a pot;
he makes the sea like a pot of ointment.

32Behind him he leaves a shining wake;
one would think the deep to be hoary.

33Upon earth there is not his like,
a creature without fear.

34He beholds everything that is high;
he is king over all the sons of pride.”

Job Is Humbled and Repents
42 Then Job answered the LORD:
2 “I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

3‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,

things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
4‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you declare to me.’

5I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;

6therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”

Job’s Friends Are Humiliated
7 After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eli'phaz
the Te'manite: “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two
friends; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.
8Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job,
and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray
for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your
folly; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.”
9So Eli'phaz the Te'manite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zo'phar the
Na'amathite went and did what the LORD had told them; and the LORD
accepted Job’s prayer.
Job’s Fortunes Are Restored Twofold
10 And the LORD restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his
friends; and the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before. 11Then
came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before,
and ate bread with him in his house; and they showed him sympathy and
comforted him for all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him; and
each of them gave him a piece of money y and a ring of gold. 12And the
LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; and he had
fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and
a thousand she-donkeys. 13He had also seven sons and three daughters.
14And he called the name of the first Jemi'mah; and the name of the second
Kezi'ah; and the name of the third Ker'en-hap'puch. 15And in all the land
there were no women so fair as Job’s daughters; and their father gave them
inheritance among their brothers. 16And after this Job lived a hundred and
forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. 17And
Job died, an old man, and full of days.
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Psalms
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52
53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76
77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100
101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117
118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134
135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 145 146 147 148 149 150
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THE BOOK OF THE PSALMS
The Two Ways
1 * Blessed is the man

who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2but his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

3He is like a tree
planted by streams of water,

that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
4The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff which the wind drives away.

5Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

6for the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

God’s Promise to His Anointed
2 * Why do the nations conspire

and the peoples plot in vain?
2The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together,

against the LORD and his anointed, saying,
3“Let us burst their bonds asunder,
and cast their cords from us.”

4He who sits in the heavens laughs;
the LORD has them in derision.

5Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
and terrify them in his fury, saying,
6“I have set my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”

7 I will tell of the decree of the LORD:
He said to me, “You are my son,

today I have begotten you.
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession.

9You shall break them with a rod of iron,
and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”

10Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
be warned, O rulers of the earth.

11Serve the LORD with fear,
with trembling 12rejoice,a

lest he be angry, and you perish in the way;
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Trust in God under Adversity
A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.
3 O LORD, how many are my foes!
Many are rising against me;
2many are saying of me,
there is no help for him in God.

Selah
3But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head.

4I cry aloud to the LORD,
and he answers me from his holy mountain.
Selah
5I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.

6I am not afraid of ten thousands of people
who have set themselves against me round about.

7Arise, O LORD!
Deliver me, O my God!
For you strike all my enemies on the cheek,
you break the teeth of the wicked.
8Deliverance belongs to the LORD;
your blessing be upon your people!

Selah
Confident Plea for Deliverance from Enemies
To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments.
A Psalm of David.
4 Answer me when I call, O God of my right!
You have given me room when I was in distress.
Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.
2O sons of men, how long will you be dull of heart?
How long will you love vain words, and seek after
lies? Selah
3But know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself;
the LORD hears when I call to him.
4 Be angry, but sin not;
commune with your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.

Selah
5Offer right sacrifices,
and put your trust in the LORD.
6There are many who say, “O that we might see some good!
Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD!”
7You have put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.
8In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Trust in God for Deliverance from Enemies
To the choirmaster: for the flutes.
A Psalm of David.
5 Give ear to my words, O LORD;
give heed to my groaning.
2Listen to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
3O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you, and watch.
4For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not sojourn with you.

5The boastful may not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6You destroy those who speak lies;
the LORD abhors bloodthirsty and deceitful men.

7But I through the abundance of your merciful love
will enter your house,
I will worship toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
8Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
9 For there is no truth in their mouth;
their heart is destruction,

their throat is an open sepulchre,
they flatter with their tongue.
10Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;

because of their many transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
11But let all who take refuge in you rejoice,
let them ever sing for joy;

and do defend them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
12For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.
Prayer for Recovery from Grave Illness
To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments;
according to The Sheminith.
A Psalm of David.
6 O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
nor chasten me in your wrath.
2Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am languishing;
O LORD, heal me, for my bones are troubled.

3My soul also is sorely troubled.
But you, O LORD—how long?

4Turn, O Lord, save my life;
deliver me for the sake of your merciful love.
5For in death there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who can give you praise?
6I am weary with my moaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;

I drench my couch with my weeping.
7My eye wastes away because of grief,
it grows weak because of all my foes.

8 Depart from me, all you workers of evil;
for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.

9The LORD has heard my supplication;
the LORD accepts my prayer.

10All my enemies shall be ashamed and sorely troubled;
they shall turn back, and be put to shame in a moment.

Plea for Help against Persecution
A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD
concerning Cush a Benjaminite.
7 O LORD my God, in you I take refuge;
save me from all my pursuers, and deliver me,
2lest like a lion they rend me,
dragging me away, with none to rescue.
3O LORD my God, if I have done this,
if there is wrong in my hands,

4if I have repaid my friend with evil
or plundered my enemy without cause,
5let the enemy pursue me and overtake me,
and let him trample my life to the ground,
and lay my soul in the dust.
Selah
6 Arise, O LORD, in your anger,
lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
awake, O my God; b you have appointed a judgment.
7Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;
and over it take your seat c on high.

8The LORD judges the peoples;
judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness
and according to the integrity that is in me.
9 O let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
but establish the righteous,

you who try the minds and hearts,
O righteous God.
10My shield is with God,
who saves the upright in heart.

11God is a righteous judge,
and a God who has indignation every day.

12If a man d does not repent, God d will whet his sword;
he has bent and strung his bow;

13he has prepared his deadly weapons,
making his arrows fiery shafts.

14Behold, the wicked man conceives evil,
and is pregnant with mischief,

and brings forth lies.
15He makes a pit, digging it out,
and falls into the hole which he has made.
16His mischief returns upon his own head,
and on his own skull his violence descends.
17I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness,
and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.
Divine Majesty and Human Dignity
To the choirmaster: according to The Gittith.
A Psalm of David.
8 * O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You whose glory above the heavens is chanted
2 by the mouth of babies and infants,
you have founded a bulwark because of your foes,

to still the enemy and the avenger.
3When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars which you have established;

4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?
5Yet you have made him little less than the angels,
and you have crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet,

7all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,

8the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the sea.

9O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
God’s Power and Justice
To the choirmaster: according to Muth-labben.
A Psalm of David.
9 I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
2I will be glad and exult in you,
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

3When my enemies turned back,
they stumbled and perished before you.

4For you have maintained my just cause;
you have sat on the throne giving righteous judgment.

5You have rebuked the nations, you have destroyed the wicked;
you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.
6The enemies have vanished in everlasting ruins;
their cities you have rooted out;

the very memory of them has perished.
7But the LORD sits enthroned for ever,
he has established his throne for judgment;

8 and he judges the world with righteousness,
he judges the peoples with equity.
9The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.

10And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.
11Sing praises to the LORD, who dwells in Zion!
Tell among the peoples his deeds!

12For he who avenges blood is mindful of them;
he does not forget the cry of the poor.
13Be gracious to me, O LORD!
Behold what I suffer from those who hate me,

O you who lift me up from the gates of death,
14that I may recount all your praises,
that in the gates of the daughter of Zion

I may rejoice in your deliverance.
15The nations have sunk in the pit which they made;
in the net which they hid has their own foot been caught.
16The LORD has made himself known, he has executed judgment;
the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.

Higgaion. Selah
17The wicked shall depart to Sheol,
all the nations that forget God.
18For the needy shall not always be forgotten,
and the hope of the poor shall not perish for ever.
19Arise, O LORD! Let not man prevail;
let the nations be judged before you!

20Put them in fear, O LORD!
Let the nations know that they are but men!

Selah
Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies
10 Why do you stand afar off, O LORD?

Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;
let them be caught in the schemes which they have devised.

3For the wicked boasts of the desires of his heart,
and the man greedy for gain curses and renounces the LORD.
4In the pride of his countenance the wicked does not seek him;
all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”

5His ways prosper at all times;
your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
as for all his foes, he puffs at them.
6He thinks in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”

7 His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.

8He sits in ambush in the villages;
in hiding places he murders the innocent.

His eyes stealthily watch for the hapless,
9 he lurks in secret like a lion in his den;
he lurks that he may seize the poor,

he seizes the poor when he draws him into his net.
10The hapless is crushed, sinks down,
and falls by his might.

11He thinks in his heart, “God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”

12Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand;
forget not the poor.

13Why does the wicked renounce God,
and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?

14You see; yes, you note trouble and vexation,
that you may take it into your hands;

the hapless commits himself to you;
you have been the helper of the fatherless.
15Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
seek out his wickedness till you find none.

16The LORD is king for ever and ever;
the nations shall perish from his land.
17O LORD, you will hear the desire of the meek;
you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear
18to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,
so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.

Song of Trust in God
To the choirmaster. Of David.
11[10] In the LORD I take refuge;
how can you say to me,
“Flee like a bird to the mountains; e
2for behold, the wicked bend the bow,
they have fitted their arrow to the string,

to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart;
3if the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?”
4The LORD is in his holy temple,
the LORD’s throne is in heaven;

his eyes behold, his eyelids test, the children of men.
5The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked,
and his soul hates him that loves violence.

6On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and brimstone;
a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.

7For the LORD is righteous, he loves righteous deeds;
the upright shall behold his face.

Plea for Help in Evil Times
To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.
A Psalm of David.
12[11] Help, LORD; for there is no longer any one that is godly;
for the faithful have vanished from among the sons of men.
2Every one utters lies to his neighbor;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

3May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,

4those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is our master?”
5“Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the LORD;

“I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
6The promises of the LORD are promises that are pure,
silver refined in a furnace on the ground,

purified seven times.
7Do, O LORD, protect us,
guard us for ever from this generation.

8On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the sons of men.

To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
13[12] How long, O LORD? Will you forget me for ever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2How long must I bear pain f in my soul,
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?

How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
3Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
lighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;

4lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him”;
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

5But I have trusted in your merciful love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6I will sing to the LORD,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Denunciation of Godlessness
To the choirmaster.
Of David.
14[13]1 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds,
there is none that does good.
2The LORD looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
to see if there are any that act wisely,

that seek after God.
3They have all gone astray, they are all alike corrupt;
there is none that does good,

no, not one.
4Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
who eat up my people as they eat bread,

and do not call upon the LORD?
5There they shall be in great terror,
for God is with the generation of the righteous.

6You would confound the plans of the poor,
but the LORD is his refuge.

7O that deliverance for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,
Jacob shall rejoice, Israel shall be glad.
Who Shall Abide in God’s Sanctuary?
A Psalm of David.
15[14] O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent?
Who shall dwell on your holy mountain?
2He who walks blamelessly, and does what is right,
and speaks truth from his heart;

3who does not slander with his tongue,
and does no evil to his friend,
nor takes up a reproach against his neighbor;
4in whose eyes a reprobate is despised,
but who honors those who fear the LORD;

who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5who does not put out his money at interest,
and does not take a bribe against the innocent.

He who does these things shall never be moved.
Song of Trust and Security in God
A Miktam of David.
16[15] Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.”g

3As for the saints in the land, they are the noble,
in whom is all my delight.

4Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows;h
their libations of blood I will not pour out

or take their names upon my lips.
5The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.

6The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
yes, I have a goodly heritage.

7I bless the LORD who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
8 I keep the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

9Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;
my body also dwells secure.

10For you do not give me up to Sheol,
or let your godly one see the Pit.

11You show me the path of life;
in your presence there is fulness of joy,

in your right hand are pleasures for evermore.
Prayer for Deliverance from Persecutors
A Prayer of David.
17[16] Hear a just cause, O LORD;
attend to my cry!
Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit!
2From you let my vindication come!
Let your eyes see the right!

3If you try my heart, if you visit me by night,
if you test me, you will find no wickedness in me;

my mouth does not transgress.
4With regard to the works of men, by the word of your lips
I have avoided the ways of the violent.
5My steps have held fast to your paths,
my feet have not slipped.

6I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me, hear my words.

7Wondrously show your mercies,
O savior of those who seek refuge

from their adversaries at your right hand.
8Keep me as the apple of the eye;
hide me in the shadow of your wings,

9from the wicked who despoil me,
my deadly enemies who surround me.

10They close their hearts to pity;
with their mouths they speak arrogantly.

11They track me down; now they surround me;
they set their eyes to cast me to the ground.

12They are like a lion eager to tear,
as a young lion lurking in ambush.

13Arise, O LORD! confront them, overthrow them!
Deliver my life from the wicked by your sword,

14from men by your hand, O LORD,
from men whose portion in life is of the world.

May their belly be filled with what you have stored up for them;
may their children have more than enough;
may they leave something over to their babies.
15As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
when I awake, I shall be satisfied with beholding your form.

Royal Thanksgiving for Victory
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD,
who addressed the words of this song to the LORD
on the day when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies,
and from the hand of Saul.
He said:
18[17] * I love you, O LORD, my strength.
2The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,

my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.

4The cords of death encompassed me,
the torrents of perdition assailed me;

5the cords of Sheol entangled me,
the snares of death confronted me.

6In my distress I called upon the LORD;
to my God I cried for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.
7Then the earth reeled and rocked;
the foundations also of the mountains trembled

and quaked, because he was angry.
8Smoke went up from his nostrils,
and devouring fire from his mouth;

glowing coals flamed forth from him.
9He bowed the heavens, and came down;
thick darkness was under his feet.

10He rode on a cherub, and flew;
he came swiftly upon the wings of the wind.

11He made darkness his covering around him,
his canopy thick clouds dark with water.

12Out of the brightness before him
there broke through his clouds

hailstones and coals of fire.
13The LORD also thundered in the heavens,
and the Most High uttered his voice,

hailstones and coals of fire.
14And he sent out his arrows, and scattered them;
he flashed forth lightnings, and routed them.

15Then the channels of the sea were seen,
and the foundations of the world were laid bare,

at your rebuke, O LORD,
at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
16He reached from on high, he took me,
he drew me out of many waters.

17He delivered me from my strong enemy,
and from those who hated me;
for they were too mighty for me.
18They came upon me in the day of my calamity;
but the LORD was my stay.

19He brought me forth into a broad place;
he delivered me, because he delighted in me.

20The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he recompensed me.

21For I have kept the ways of the LORD,
and have not wickedly departed from my God.

22For all his ordinances were before me,
and his statutes I did not put away from me.

23I was blameless before him,
and I kept myself from guilt.

24Therefore the LORD has recompensed me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

25With the loyal you show yourself loyal;
with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
26with the pure you show yourself pure;
and with the crooked you show yourself perverse.

27For you deliver a humble people;
but the haughty eyes you bring down.

28Yes, you light my lamp;
the LORD my God lightens my darkness.

29Yes, by you I can crush a troop;
and by my God I can leap over a wall.

30This God—his way is perfect;
the promise of the LORD proves true;

he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
31For who is God, but the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God?—

32the God who girded me with strength,
and made my way safe.
33He made my feet like deer’s feet,
and set me secure on the heights.

34He trains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

35You have given me the shield of your salvation,
and your right hand supported me,

and your help i made me great.
36You gave a wide place for my steps under me,
and my feet did not slip.

37I pursued my enemies and overtook them;
and did not turn back till they were consumed.

38I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;
they fell under my feet.
39For you girded me with strength for the battle;
you made my assailants sink under me.

40You made my enemies turn their backs to me,
and those who hated me I destroyed.

41They cried for help, but there was none to save,
they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.

42I beat them fine as dust before the wind;
I cast them out like the mire of the streets.

43You delivered me from strife with the peoples; j
you made me the head of the nations;

people whom I had not known served me.
44As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me;
foreigners came cringing to me.

45Foreigners lost heart,
and came trembling out of their strongholds.
46The LORD lives; and blessed be my rock,
and exalted be the God of my salvation,

47the God who gave me vengeance
and subdued peoples under me;

48who delivered me from my enemies;
yes, you exalted me above my adversaries;

you delivered me from men of violence.
49For this I will extol you, O LORD, among the nations,
and sing praises to your name.

50Great triumphs he gives to his king,
and shows mercy to his anointed,

to David and his descendants for ever.
God’s Glory in Creation and the Law
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
19[18] The heavens are telling the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
2Day to day pours forth speech,
and night to night declares knowledge.
3There is no speech, nor are there words;
their voice is not heard;

4yet their voice k goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.

In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5which comes forth like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and like a strong man runs its course with joy.

6Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them;

and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul;

the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple;
8the precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart;

the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
9the fear of the LORD is clean,
enduring for ever;

the ordinances of the LORD are true,
and righteous altogether.
10More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;

sweeter also than honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
11Moreover by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.

12But who can discern his errors?
Clear me from hidden faults.
13Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!

Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
14Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,

O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.
Prayer for Victory
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
20[19] The LORD answer you in the day of trouble!
The name of the God of Jacob protect you!
2May he send you help from the sanctuary,
and give you support from Zion!
3May he remember all your offerings,
and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices!

Selah
4May he grant you your heart’s desire,
and fulfil all your plans!

5May we shout for joy over your victory,
and in the name of our God set up our banners!

May the LORD fulfil all your petitions!
6Now I know that the LORD will help his anointed;
he will answer him from his holy heaven

with mighty victories by his right hand.
7Some boast of chariots, and some of horses;
but we boast of the name of the LORD our God.

8They will collapse and fall;
but we shall rise and stand upright.
9Give victory to the king, O LORD;
answer us when we call.l

Thanksgiving for Victory
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
21[20] In your strength the king rejoices, O LORD;
and in your help how greatly he exults!
2You have given him his heart’s desire,
and have not withheld the request of his lips.

Selah
3For you meet him with goodly blessings;
you set a crown of fine gold upon his head.

4He asked life of you; you gave it to him,
length of days for ever and ever.

5His glory is great through your help;
splendor and majesty you bestow upon him.

6Yes, you make him most blessed for ever;
you make him glad with the joy of your face.

7For the king trusts in the LORD;
and through the steadfast love of the Most High he shall not be moved.
8Your hand will find out all your enemies;
your right hand will find out those who hate you.
9You will make them as a blazing oven
when you appear.

The LORD will swallow them up in his wrath;
and fire will consume them.
10You will destroy their offspring from the earth,
and their children from among the sons of men.

11If they plan evil against you,
if they devise mischief, they will not succeed.

12For you will put them to flight;
you will aim at their faces with your bows.

13Be exalted, O LORD, in your strength!
We will sing and praise your power.

Plea for Deliverance from Suffering and Hostility
To the choirmaster: according to The Hind of the Dawn.
A Psalm of David.
22[21] * My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
2O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night, but find no rest.

3Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.

4In you our fathers trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.

5To you they cried, and were saved;
in you they trusted, and were not disappointed.

6But I am a worm, and no man;
scorned by men, and despised by the people.

7All who see me mock at me,
they make mouths at me, they wag their heads;

8“He committed his cause to the LORD; let him deliver him,
let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”

9Yet you are he who took me from the womb;
you kept me safe upon my mother’s breasts.

10Upon you was I cast from my birth,
and since my mother bore me you have been my God.

11Be not far from me,
for trouble is near

and there is none to help.
12Many bulls encompass me,
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;

13they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.

14I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;

my heart is like wax,
it is melted within my breast;
15my strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue cleaves to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.
16Yes, dogs are round about me;
a company of evildoers encircle me;

they have pierced m my hands and feet—
17I can count all my bones—
they stare and gloat over me;

18they divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.

19But you, O LORD, be not far off!
O my help, hasten to my aid!
20Deliver my soul from the sword,
my life n from the power of the dog!

21Save me from the mouth of the lion,
my afflicted soul o from the horns of the wild oxen!

22I will tell of your name to my brethren;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:

23You who fear the LORD, praise him!
all you sons of Jacob, glorify him,

and stand in awe of him, all you sons of Israel!
24For he has not despised or abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted;

and he has not hidden his face from him,
but has heard, when he cried to him.
25From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.

26The afflicted p shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the LORD!

May your hearts live for ever!
27All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the LORD;

and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.q
28For dominion belongs to the LORD,
and he rules over the nations.

29Yes, to him r shall all the proud of the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,

and he who cannot keep himself alive.
30Posterity shall serve him;
men shall tell of the Lord to the coming generation,

31and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn,
that he has wrought it.

The Divine Shepherd
A Psalm of David.
23[22] The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want;
2 he makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters; s

3 he restores my soul. t
He leads me in paths of righteousness u

for his name’s sake.
4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,v
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil,
my cup overflows.
6Surely w goodness and mercy x shall follow me
all the days of my life;

and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for ever. y
Entrance into the Temple
A Psalm of David.
24[23] The earth is the LORD’s and the fulness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein;
2for he has founded it upon the seas,
and established it upon the rivers.

3Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?
And who shall stand in his holy place?

4He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false,

and does not swear deceitfully.
5He will receive blessing from the LORD,
and vindication from the God of his salvation.

6Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek the face of the God of Jacob.z

Selah
7Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors!
that the King of glory may come in.
8Who is the King of glory?
The LORD, strong and mighty,

the LORD, mighty in battle!
9Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up,a O ancient doors!

that the King of glory may come in.
10Who is this King of glory?
The LORD of hosts,

he is the King of glory!
Selah
Prayer for Guidance and for Deliverance
A Psalm of David.
25[24] To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul.
2O my God, in you I trust,
let me not be put to shame;

let not my enemies exult over me.
3Yes, let none that wait for you be put to shame;
let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.

4Make me to know your ways, O LORD;
teach me your paths.

5Lead me in your truth, and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;

for you I wait all the day long.
6Be mindful of your compassion, O LORD, and of your merciful love,
for they have been from of old.

7Remember not the sins of my youth, or my transgressions;
according to your mercy remember me,

for your goodness’ sake, O LORD!
8Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore he instructs sinners in the way.

9He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.

10All the paths of the LORD are mercy and faithfulness,
for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
11For your name’s sake, O LORD,
pardon my guilt, for it is great.

12Who is the man that fears the LORD?
Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.

13He himself shall abide in prosperity,
and his children shall possess the land.

14The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.

15My eyes are ever toward the LORD,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net.

16Turn to me, and be gracious to me;
for I am lonely and afflicted.

17Relieve the troubles of my heart,
and bring me b out of my distresses.

18Consider my affliction and my trouble,
and forgive all my sins.

19Consider how many are my foes,
and with what violent hatred they hate me.

20Oh, guard my life, and deliver me;
let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.

21May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
for I wait for you.

22Redeem Israel, O God,
out of all his troubles.

Plea for Justice; and Declaration of Righteousness
A Psalm of David.
26[25] Vindicate me, O LORD,
for I have walked in my integrity,
and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.
2Prove me, O LORD, and try me;
test my heart and my mind.

3For your mercy is before my eyes,
and I walk in faithfulness to you.c

4I do not sit with false men,
nor do I consort with dissemblers;

5I hate the company of evildoers,
and I will not sit with the wicked.

6I wash my hands in innocence,
and go about your altar, O LORD,

7singing aloud a song of thanksgiving,
and telling all your wondrous deeds.

8O LORD, I love the habitation of your house,
and the place where your glory dwells.
9Sweep me not away with sinners,
nor my life with bloodthirsty men,

10men in whose hands are evil devices,
and whose right hands are full of bribes.

11But as for me, I walk in my integrity;
redeem me, and have mercy on me.

12My foot stands on level ground;
in the great congregation I will bless the LORD.

Triumphant Song of Confidence
A Psalm of David.
27[26] The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold d of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?
2When evildoers assail me,
to devour my flesh, e
my adversaries and foes,
they shall stumble and fall.
3Though a host encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;

though war arise against me,
yet I will be confident.
4One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after;

that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the LORD,
and to inquire in his temple.
5For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;

he will conceal me under the cover of his tent,
he will set me high upon a rock.
6And now my head shall be lifted up
above my enemies round about me;

and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the LORD.
7Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud,
be gracious to me and answer me!

8You have said, “Seek my face.”
My heart says to you,

“Your face, LORD, do I seek.”
9 Hide not your face from me.
Turn not your servant away in anger,

you who have been my help.
Cast me not off, forsake me not,
O God of my salvation!
10For my father and my mother have forsaken me,
but the LORD will take me up.

11Teach me your way, O LORD;
and lead me on a level path

because of my enemies.
12Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;
for false witnesses have risen against me,

and they breathe out violence.
13I believe that I shall see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living!

14Wait for the LORD;
be strong, and let your heart take courage;

yes, wait for the LORD!
Prayer for Help; and Thanksgiving for It
A Psalm of David.
28[27] To you, O LORD, I call;
my rock, be not deaf to me,
lest, if you be silent to me,
I become like those who go down to the Pit.
2Hear the voice of my supplication,
as I cry to you for help,

as I lift up my hands
toward your most holy sanctuary. f
3Take me not off with the wicked,
with those who are workers of evil,

who speak peace with their neighbors,
while mischief is in their hearts.
4Repay them according to their work,
and according to the evil of their deeds;
repay them according to the work of their hands;
render them their due reward.
5Because they do not regard the works of the LORD,
or the work of his hands,

he will break them down and build them up no more.
6Blessed be the LORD!
for he has heard the voice of my supplications.

7The LORD is my strength and my shield;
in him my heart trusts;

so I am helped, and my heart exults,
and with my song I give thanks to him.
8The LORD is the strength of his people,
he is the saving refuge of his anointed.

9O save your people, and bless your heritage;
be their shepherd, and carry them for ever.

The Voice of God in a Great Storm
A Psalm of David.
29[28] Ascribe to the LORD, O sons of God, g
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
2Ascribe to the LORD the glory of his name;
worship the LORD in holy attire.

3The voice of the LORD is upon the waters;
the God of glory thunders,

the LORD, upon many waters.
4The voice of the LORD is powerful,
the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.
5The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars,
the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon.

6He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf,
and Sir'ion like a young wild ox.

7The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire.
8The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness,
the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

9The voice of the LORD makes the oaks to whirl, h
and strips the forests bare;

and in his temple all cry, “Glory!”
10The LORD sits enthroned over the flood;
the LORD sits enthroned as king for ever.

11May the LORD give strength to his people!
May the LORD bless his people with peace!
Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness
A Psalm of David.
A Song at the dedication of the Temple.
30[29] I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up,
and have not let my foes rejoice over me.
2O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,
and you have healed me.

3O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol,
restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit. i

4Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints,
and give thanks to his holy name.

5For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.

Weeping may last for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
6As for me, I said in my prosperity,
“I shall never be moved.”

7By your favor, O LORD,
you had established me as a strong mountain;

you hid your face,
I was dismayed.
8To you, O LORD, I cried;
and to the LORD I made supplication:

9“What profit is there in my death,
if I go down to the Pit?

Will the dust praise you?
Will it tell of your faithfulness?
10Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me!
O LORD, be my helper!”
11You have turned my mourning into dancing;
you have loosed my sackcloth

and clothed me with gladness,
12that my soul j may praise you and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you for ever.

Prayer and Praise for Deliverance from Enemies
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
31[30] In you, O LORD, I seek refuge;
let me never be put to shame;
in your righteousness deliver me!
2Incline your ear to me,
rescue me speedily!
Be a rock of refuge for me,
a strong fortress to save me!
3Yes, you are my rock and my fortress;
for your name’s sake lead me and guide me,

4take me out of the net which is hidden for me,
for you are my refuge.

5Into your hand I commit my spirit;
you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.

6You hate k those who pay regard to vain idols;
but I trust in the LORD.

7I will rejoice and be glad for your merciful love,
because you have seen my lowliness,
you have taken heed of my adversities,
8and have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
you have set my feet in a broad place.

9Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress;
my eye is wasted from grief,

my soul and my body also.
10For my life is spent with sorrow,
and my years with sighing;

my strength fails because of my misery, l
and my bones waste away.
11I am the scorn of all my adversaries,
a horror m to my neighbors,
an object of dread to my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street flee from me.
12I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;
I have become like a broken vessel.

13Yes, I hear the whispering of many—
terror on every side!—

as they scheme together against me,
as they plot to take my life.
14But I trust in you, O LORD,
I say, “You are my God.”

15My times are in your hand;
deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors!

16Let your face shine on your servant;
save me in your merciful love!

17Let me not be put to shame, O LORD,
for I call on you;

let the wicked be put to shame,
let them go dumbfounded to Sheol.
18Let the lying lips be silent,
which speak insolently against the righteous

in pride and contempt.
19O how abundant is your goodness,
which you have laid up for those who fear you,

and wrought for those who take refuge in you,
in the sight of the sons of men!
20In the shelter of your presence you hide them
from the plots of men;

you hold them safe under your shelter
from the strife of tongues.
21Blessed be the LORD,
for he has wondrously shown me his merciful love

when I was beset as in a besieged city.
22I had said in my alarm,
“I am driven far n from your sight.”

But you heard my supplications,
when I cried to you for help.
23Love the LORD, all you his saints!
The LORD preserves the faithful,

but abundantly repays him who acts haughtily.
24Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
all you who wait for the LORD!

The Joy of Forgiveness
A Psalm of David.
A Maskil.
32[31] Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
2Blessed is the man to whom the LORD imputes no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

3When I declared not my sin, my body wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
4For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up o as by the heat of summer.

Selah
5I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not hide my iniquity;

I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”;
then you forgave the guilt of my sin.
Selah
6Therefore let every one who is godly
offer prayer to you;

at a time of distress, p in the rush of great waters,
they shall not reach him.
7You are a hiding place for me,
you preserve me from trouble;

you surround me with deliverance. q
Selah
8I will instruct you and teach you
the way you should go;

I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
9Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,
which must be curbed with bit and bridle,
else it will not keep with you.
10Many are the pangs of the wicked;
but steadfast love surrounds him who trusts in the LORD.

11Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

The Greatness and Goodness of God
33[32] Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous!

Praise befits the upright.
2Praise the LORD with the lyre,
make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

3Sing to him a new song,
play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

4For the word of the LORD is upright;
and all his work is done in faithfulness.
5He loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of the mercy of the LORD.

6By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
and all their host by the breath of his mouth.

7He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle;
he put the deeps in storehouses.

8Let all the earth fear the LORD,
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

9For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood forth.

10The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nought;
he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

11The counsel of the LORD stands for ever,
the thoughts of his heart to all generations.

12Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

13The LORD looks down from heaven,
he sees all the sons of men;

14from where he sits enthroned he looks forth
on all the inhabitants of the earth,

15he who fashions the hearts of them all,
and observes all their deeds.

16A king is not saved by his great army;
a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.

17The war horse is a vain hope for victory,
and by its great might it cannot save.

18Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his merciful love,

19that he may deliver their soul from death,
and keep them alive in famine.

20Our soul waits for the LORD;
he is our help and shield.

21Yes, our heart is glad in him,
because we trust in his holy name.

22Let your mercy, O LORD, be upon us,
even as we hope in you.

Praise for Deliverance from Trouble
A Psalm of David, when he feigned madness before Abimelech,
so that he drove him out, and he went away.
34[33] I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2My soul makes its boast in the LORD;
let the humble hear and be glad.

3O magnify the LORD with me,
and let us exalt his name together!

4I sought the LORD, and he answered me,
and delivered me from all my fears.

5Look to him, and be radiant;
so your r faces shall never be ashamed.

6This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him,
and saved him out of all his troubles.

7The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.

8O taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

9O fear the LORD, you his saints,
for those who fear him have no want!

10The young lions suffer want and hunger;
but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

11Come, O sons, listen to me,
I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

12What man is there who desires life,
and covets many days, that he may enjoy good?

13Keep your tongue from evil,
and your lips from speaking deceit.

14Depart from evil, and do good;
seek peace, and pursue it.

15The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous,
and his ears toward their cry.

16The face of the LORD is against evildoers,
to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

17When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears,
and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18The LORD is near to the brokenhearted,
and saves the crushed in spirit.

19Many are the afflictions of the righteous;
but the LORD delivers him out of them all.

20He keeps all his bones;
not one of them is broken.

21Evil shall slay the wicked;
and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

22The LORD redeems the life of his servants;
none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

A Psalm of David.
35[34] Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;
fight against those who fight against me!
2Take hold of shield and buckler,
and rise for my help!

3Draw the spear and javelin
against my pursuers!
Say to my soul,
“I am your deliverance!”
4Let them be put to shame and dishonor
who seek after my life!

Let them be turned back and confounded
who devise evil against me!
5Let them be like chaff before the wind,
with the angel of the LORD driving them on!

6Let their way be dark and slippery,
with the angel of the LORD pursuing them!

7For without cause they hid their net for me;
without cause they dug a pit s for my life.

8Let ruin come upon them unawares!
And let the net which they hid ensnare them;

let them fall therein to ruin!
9Then my soul shall rejoice in the LORD,
exulting in his deliverance.

10All my bones shall say,
“O LORD, who is like you,

you who deliver the weak
from him who is too strong for him,
the weak and needy from him who despoils him?”
11Malicious witnesses rise up;
they ask me of things that I do not know.

12They repay me evil for good;
my soul is forlorn.
13But I, when they were sick—
I wore sackcloth,
I afflicted myself with fasting.
I prayed with head bowed t on my bosom,
14 as though I grieved for my friend or my brother;
I went about as one who laments his mother,

bowed down and in mourning.
15But at my stumbling they gathered in glee,
they gathered together against me;

cripples whom I did not know
slandered me without ceasing;
16they impiously mocked more and more, u
gnashing at me with their teeth.

17How long, O LORD, will you look on?
Rescue me from their ravages,

my life from the lions!
18Then I will thank you in the great congregation;
in the mighty throng I will praise you.

19Let not those rejoice over me
who are wrongfully my foes,

and let not those wink the eye
who hate me without cause.
20For they do not speak peace,
but against those who are quiet in the land

they conceive words of deceit.
21They open wide their mouths against me;
they say, “Aha, Aha!

our eyes have seen it!”
22You have seen, O LORD; be not silent!
O Lord, be not far from me!

23Bestir yourself, and awake for my right,
for my cause, my God and my Lord!

24Vindicate me, O LORD, my God, according to your righteousness;
and let them not rejoice over me!

25Let them not say to themselves,
“Aha, we have our heart’s desire!”

Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up.”
26Let them be put to shame and confusion altogether
who rejoice at my calamity!
Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor
who magnify themselves against me!
27Let those who desire my vindication
shout for joy and be glad,

and say evermore,
“Great is the LORD,
who delights in the welfare of his servant!”
28Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness
and of your praise all the day long.

Human Wickedness and Divine Goodness
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD.
36[35] Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart;
there is no fear of God
before his eyes.
2For he flatters himself in his own eyes
that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.

3The words of his mouth are mischief and deceit;
he has ceased to act wisely and do good.
4He plots mischief while on his bed;
he sets himself in a way that is not good;

he spurns not evil.
5Your mercy, O LORD, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.

6Your righteousness is like the mountains of God,
your judgments are like the great deep;

man and beast you save, O LORD.
7How precious is your mercy, O God!
The children of men take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

8They feast on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
9For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light do we see light.

10O continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
and your salvation to the upright of heart!

11Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,
nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

12There the evildoers lie prostrate,
they are thrust down, unable to rise.

Exhortation to Patience and Trust
A Psalm of David.
37[36] Do not fret because of the wicked,
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2For they will soon fade like the grass,
and wither like the green herb.

3Trust in the LORD, and do good;
so you will dwell in the land, and be nourished in safety.

4Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him, and he will act.

6He will bring forth your vindication as the light,
and your right as the noonday.
7Be still before the LORD, and wait patiently for him;
do not fret over him who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!
8Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Do not fret; it tends only to evil.

9For the wicked shall be cut off;
but those who wait for the LORD shall possess the land.
10Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more;
though you look well at his place, he will not be there.

11But the meek shall possess the land,
and delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

12The wicked plots against the righteous,
and gnashes his teeth at him;

13but the LORD laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his day is coming.

14The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows,
to bring down the poor and needy,

to slay those who walk uprightly;
15their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.

16Better is a little that the righteous has
than the abundance of many wicked.

17For the arms of the wicked shall be broken;
but the LORD upholds the righteous.
18The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
and their heritage will abide for ever;

19they are not put to shame in evil times,
in the days of famine they have abundance.

20But the wicked perish;
the enemies of the LORD are like the glory of the pastures,
they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
21The wicked borrows, and cannot pay back,
but the righteous is generous and gives;

22for those blessed by the LORD shall possess the land,
but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

23The steps of a man are from the LORD,
and he establishes him in whose way he delights;

24though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the LORD is the stay of his hand.

25I have been young, and now am old;
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken

or his children begging bread.
26He is ever giving liberally and lending,
and his children become a blessing.

27Depart from evil, and do good;
so shall you abide for ever.

28For the LORD loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.

The righteous shall be preserved for ever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
29The righteous shall possess the land,
and dwell upon it for ever.

30The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.

31The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip.

32The wicked watches the righteous,
and seeks to slay him.

33The LORD will not abandon him to his power,
or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

34Wait for the LORD, and keep to his way,
and he will exalt you to possess the land;

you will look on the destruction of the wicked.
35I have seen a wicked man overbearing,
and towering like a cedar of Lebanon. v

36Again I w passed by, and, behold, he was no more;
though I sought him, he could not be found.

37Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright,
for there is posterity for the man of peace.

38But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off.

39The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
he is their refuge in the time of trouble.

40The LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked, and saves them,

because they take refuge in him.
A Penitent Sufferer’s Plea for Healing
A Psalm of David, for the memorial offering.
38[37] O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
nor chasten me in your wrath!
2For your arrows have sunk into me,
and your hand has come down on me.

3There is no soundness in my flesh
because of your indignation;

there is no health in my bones
because of my sin.
4For my iniquities have gone over my head;
they weigh like a burden too heavy for me.

5My wounds grow foul and fester
because of my foolishness,
6I am utterly bowed down and prostrate;
all the day I go about mourning.

7For my loins are filled with burning,
and there is no soundness in my flesh.

8I am utterly spent and crushed;
I groan because of the tumult of my heart.

9Lord, all my longing is known to you,
my sighing is not hidden from you.

10My heart throbs, my strength fails me;
and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.
11My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague,
and my kinsmen stand afar off.

12Those who seek my life lay their snares,
those who seek my hurt speak of ruin,

and meditate treachery all the day long.
13But I am like a deaf man, I do not hear,
like a mute man who does not open his mouth.
14Yes, I am like a man who does not hear,
and in whose mouth are no rebukes.

15But for you, O LORD, do I wait;
it is you, O LORD my God, who will answer.

16For I pray, “Only let them not rejoice over me,
who boast against me when my foot slips!”
17For I am ready to fall,
and my pain is ever with me.

18I confess my iniquity,
I am sorry for my sin.

19Those who are my foes without cause x are mighty,
and many are those who hate me wrongfully.

20Those who render me evil for good
are my adversaries because I follow after good.

21Do not forsake me, O LORD!
O my God, be not far from me!

22Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!
Prayer for Wisdom and Forgiveness
To the choirmaster: to Jeduthun.
A Psalm of David.
39[38] I said, “I will guard my ways,
that I may not sin with my tongue;
I will bridle y my mouth,
so long as the wicked are in my presence.”
2I was mute and silent,
I held my peace to no avail;

my distress grew worse,
3 my heart became hot within me.
As I mused, the fire burned;

then I spoke with my tongue:
4“LORD, let me know my end,
and what is the measure of my days;

let me know how fleeting my life is!
5Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,
and my lifetime is as nothing in your sight.

Surely every man stands as a mere breath! Selah
6 Surely man goes about as a shadow!
Surely for nought are they in turmoil;

man heaps up, and knows not who will gather!
7“And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My hope is in you.
8Deliver me from all my transgressions.
Make me not the scorn of the fool!

9I am silent, I do not open my mouth;
for it is you who have done it.

10Remove your stroke from me;
I am spent by the blows z of your hand.

11When you chasten man
with rebukes for sin,

you consume like a moth what is dear to him;
surely every man is a mere breath!
Selah
12“Hear my prayer, O LORD,
and give ear to my cry;

hold not your peace at my tears!
For I am your passing guest,
a sojourner, like all my fathers.
13Look away from me, that I may know gladness,
before I depart and be no more!”

Thanksgiving for Deliverance; and Prayer for Help
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
40[39] I waited patiently for the LORD;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2He drew me up from the desolate pit, a
out of the miry bog,

and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.

Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the LORD.
4Blessed is the man who makes
the LORD his trust,
who does not turn to the proud,
to those who go astray after false gods!
5You have multiplied, O LORD my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;

none can compare with you!
Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
they would be more than can be numbered.
6Sacrifice and offering you do not desire;
but you have given me an open ear. b

Burnt offering and sin offering
you have not required.
7Then I said, “Behold, I come;
in the roll of the book it is written of me;

8I delight to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart.”

9I have told the glad news of deliverance
in the great congregation;

behold, I have not restrained my lips,
as you know, O LORD.
10I have not hidden your saving help within my heart,
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;

I have not concealed your mercy and your faithfulness
from the great congregation.
11Do not, O LORD, withhold
your compassion from me,

let your mercy and your faithfulness
ever preserve me!
12For evils have encompassed me
without number;
my iniquities have overtaken me,
till I cannot see;
they are more than the hairs of my head;
my heart fails me.
13Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me!
O LORD, make haste to help me!

14Let them be put to shame and confusion altogether
who seek to snatch away my life;

let them be turned back and brought to dishonor
who desire my hurt!
15Let them be appalled because of their shame
who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”

16But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;

may those who love your salvation
say continually, “Great is the LORD!”
17As for me, I am poor and needy;
but the Lord takes thought for me.

You are my help and my deliverer;
do not delay, O my God!
Assurance of God’s Help; and a Plea for Healing
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
41[40] Blessed is he who considers the poor! c
The LORD delivers him in the day of trouble;
2the LORD protects him and keeps him alive;
he is called blessed in the land;

you do not give him up to the will of his enemies.
3The LORD sustains him on his sickbed;
in his illness you heal all his infirmities. d

4As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me;
heal me, for I have sinned against you!”

5My enemies say of me in malice:
“When will he die, and his name perish?”
6And when one comes to see me, he utters empty words,
while his heart gathers mischief;

when he goes out, he tells it abroad.
7All who hate me whisper together about me;
they imagine the worst for me.

8They say, “A deadly thing has fastened upon him;
he will not rise again from where he lies.”

9Even my bosom friend in whom I trusted,
who ate of my bread, has lifted his heel against me.

10But you, O LORD, be gracious to me,
and raise me up, that I may repay them!

11By this I know that you are pleased with me,
in that my enemy has not triumphed over me.

12But you have upheld me because of my integrity,
and set me in your presence for ever.

from everlasting to everlasting!

Amen and Amen.
BOOK II
Longing for God and His Help in Distress
To the choirmaster.
A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.
OceanofPDF.com
42[41] * As a deer longs
for flowing streams,
so longs my soul
for you, O God.
2My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.

When shall I come and behold
the face of God?
3My tears have been my food
day and night,

while men say to me continually,
“Where is your God?”
4These things I remember,
as I pour out my soul:
how I went with the throng,
and led them in procession to the house of God,
with glad shouts and songs of thanksgiving,
a multitude keeping festival.
5Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my savior 6and my God.
My soul is cast down within me,
therefore I remember you
from the land of Jordan and of Hermon,
from Mount Mizar.
7Deep calls to deep
at the thunder of your cataracts;

all your waves and your billows
have gone over me.
8By day the LORD commands his steadfast love;
and at night his song is with me,

a prayer to the God of my life.
9I say to God, my rock:
“Why have you forgotten me?

Why do I go mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?”
10As with a deadly wound in my body,
my adversaries taunt me,
while they say to me continually,
“Where is your God?”

my help and my God.
Prayer to God in Time of Trouble
43[42] Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause

against an ungodly people;
from deceitful and unjust men
deliver me!
2For you are the God in whom I take refuge;
why have you cast me off?

Why do I go mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?
3Oh, send out your light and your truth;
let them lead me,

let them bring me to your holy hill
and to your dwelling!
4Then I will go to the altar of God,
to God my exceeding joy;
and I will praise you with the lyre,
O God, my God.
my savior and my God.
National Lament and Prayer for Help
To the choirmaster.
A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.
44[43] We have heard with our ears, O God,
our fathers have told us,
what deeds you performed in their days,
in the days of old:
2you with your own hand drove out the nations,
but you planted them;
you afflicted the peoples,
but you set them free;
3for not by their own sword did they win the land,
nor did their own arm give them victory;

but your right hand, and your arm,
and the light of your countenance;
for you delighted in them.
4You are my King and my God,
who ordain e victories for Jacob.

5Through you we push down our foes;
through your name we tread down our assailants.
6For not in my bow do I trust,
nor can my sword save me.
7But you have saved us from our foes,
and have put to confusion those who hate us.

8In God we have boasted continually,
and we will give thanks to your name for ever.
Selah
9Yet you have cast us off and abased us,
and have not gone out with our armies.
10You have made us turn back from the foe;
and our enemies have gotten spoil.

11You have made us like sheep for slaughter,
and have scattered us among the nations.

12You have sold your people for a trifle,
demanding no high price for them.
13You have made us the taunt of our neighbors,
the derision and scorn of those about us.
14You have made us a byword among the nations,
a laughingstock f among the peoples.

15All day long my disgrace is before me,
and shame has covered my face,
16at the words of the taunters and revilers,
at the sight of the enemy and the avenger.
17All this has come upon us,
though we have not forgotten you,
or been false to your covenant.
18Our heart has not turned back,
nor have our steps departed from your way,

19that you should have broken us in the place of jackals,
and covered us with deep darkness.

20If we had forgotten the name of our God,
or spread forth our hands to a strange god,

21would not God discover this?
For he knows the secrets of the heart.

22No, for your sake we are slain all the day long,
and accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

23Rouse yourself! Why do you sleep, O Lord?
Awake! Do not cast us off for ever!
24Why do you hide your face?
Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?
25For our soul is bowed down to the dust;
our body clings to the ground.
26Rise up, come to our help!
Deliver us for the sake of your merciful love!

Ode for a Royal Wedding
To the choirmaster: according to Lilies.
A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song.
45[44] My heart overflows with a goodly theme;
I address my verses to the king;
my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.
2You are the fairest of the sons of men;
grace is poured upon your lips;

therefore God has blessed you for ever.
3Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one,
in your glory and majesty!
4In your majesty ride forth victoriously
for the cause of truth and to defend g the right;

let your right hand teach you dread deeds!
5Your arrows are sharp
in the heart of the king’s enemies;

the peoples fall under you.
6Your divine throne h endures for ever and ever.
Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity;
7 you love righteousness and hate wickedness.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness above your fellows;
8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.
From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;

9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;
at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

10Hear, O daughter, consider, and incline your ear;
forget your people and your father’s house;

11 and the king will desire your beauty.
Since he is your lord, bow to him;

12 the people i of Tyre will court your favor with gifts,
the richest of the people 13with all kinds of wealth.

The daughter of the king is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes; j
14 in many-colored robes she is led to the king,
with her virgin companions, her escort,k in her train.

15With joy and gladness they are led along
as they enter the palace of the king.

16Instead of your fathers shall be your sons;
you will make them princes in all the earth.

17I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations;
therefore the peoples will praise you for ever and ever.
God’s Defense of His City and People
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.
According to Alamoth.
A Song.
46[45] God is our refuge and strength,
a very present l help in trouble.
2Therefore we will not fear though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;

3though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult.

Selah
4There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
5God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
6The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge. m

Selah
8Come, behold the works of the LORD,
how he has wrought desolations in the earth.

9He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear,

he burns the chariots with fire!
10“Be still, and know that I am God.
I am exalted among the nations,

I am exalted in the earth!”
11The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge. m

Selah
God’s Rule over the Nations
To the choirmaster.
47[46] Clap your hands, all peoples!
Shout to God with loud songs of joy!
2For the LORD, the Most High, is awesome,
a great king over all the earth.
3He subdued peoples under us,
and nations under our feet.
4He chose our heritage for us,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves.

Selah
5God has gone up with a shout,
the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.

6Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our King, sing praises!

7For God is the king of all the earth;
sing praises with a psalm! n

8God reigns over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.

9The princes of the peoples gather
as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
he is highly exalted!
The Glory and Strength of Zion
A Song.
48[47] Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised
in the city of our God!
His holy mountain, 2beautiful in elevation,
is the joy of all the earth,
Mount Zion, in the far north,
the city of the great King.
3Within her citadels God
has shown himself a sure defense.

4For behold, the kings assembled,
they came on together.

5As soon as they saw it, they were astounded,
they were in panic, they took to flight;
6trembling took hold of them there,
anguish as of a woman with labor pains.

7By the east wind you shattered
the ships of Tarshish.
8As we have heard, so have we seen
in the city of the LORD of hosts,

in the city of our God,
which God establishes for ever.
Selah
9We have thought on your mercy, O God,
in the midst of your temple.

10As your name, O God,
so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth.

Your right hand is filled with victory;
11 let Mount Zion be glad!
Let the daughters of Judah rejoice

because of your judgments!
12Walk about Zion, go round about her,
number her towers,

13consider well her ramparts,
go through her citadels;

that you may tell the next generation
14 that this is God,
our God for ever and ever.
He will be our guide for ever.
The Folly of Trust in Riches
To the choirmaster.
49[48] Hear this, all peoples!
Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
2both low and high,
rich and poor together!

3My mouth shall speak wisdom;
the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.

4I will incline my ear to a proverb;
I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre.

5Why should I fear in times of trouble,
when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me,

6men who trust in their wealth
and boast of the abundance of their riches?

7Truly no man can ransom himself,o
or give to God the price of his life,

8for the ransom of his p life is costly,
and can never suffice,
9that he should continue to live on for ever,
and never see the Pit.

10Yes, he shall see that even the wise die,
the fool and the stupid alike must perish

and leave their wealth to others.
11Their graves q are their homes for ever,
their dwelling places to all generations,

though they named lands their own.
12Man cannot abide in his pomp,
he is like the beasts that perish.

13This is the fate of those who have foolish confidence,
the end of those r who are pleased with their portion.

Selah
14Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
Death shall be their shepherd;
straight to the grave they descend,s
and their form shall waste away;
Sheol shall be their home.t
15But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,
for he will receive me.

Selah
16Be not afraid when one becomes rich,
when the glory u of his house increases.

17For when he dies he will carry nothing away;
his glory u will not go down after him.

18Though, while he lives, he counts himself happy,
and though a man gets praise when he does well for himself,
19he will go to the generation of his fathers,
who will never more see the light.

20Man cannot abide in his pomp,
he is like the beasts that perish.
The Acceptable Sacrifice
A Psalm of Asaph.
50[49] The Mighty One, God the LORD,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
2Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth.

3Our God comes, he does not keep silence,
before him is a devouring fire,

round about him a mighty tempest.
4He calls to the heavens above
and to the earth, that he may judge his people:

5“Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”

6The heavens declare his righteousness,
for God himself is judge!
Selah
7“Hear, O my people, and I will speak,
O Israel, I will testify against you.

I am God, your God.
8I do not reprove you for your sacrifices;
your burnt offerings are continually before me.

9I will accept no bull from your house,
nor he-goat from your folds.

10For every beast of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.

11I know all the birds of the air,v
and all that moves in the field is mine.
12“If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
for the world and all that is in it is mine.

13Do I eat the flesh of bulls,
or drink the blood of goats?

14Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,w
and pay your vows to the Most High;

15and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”

16But to the wicked God says:
“What right have you to recite my statutes,

or take my covenant on your lips?
17For you hate discipline,
and you cast my words behind you.

18If you see a thief, you are a friend of his;
and you keep company with adulterers.

19“You give your mouth free rein for evil,
and your tongue frames deceit.

20You sit and speak against your brother;
you slander your own mother’s son.

21These things you have done and I have been silent;
you thought that I was one like yourself.

But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you.
22“Mark this, then, you who forget God,
lest I tear, and there be none to deliver!

23He who brings thanksgiving as his sacrifice honors me;
to him who orders his way aright

I will show the salvation of God!”
Prayer for Cleansing and Pardon
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came to him,
after he had gone in to Bathsheba.
51[50] * Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your merciful love;
according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
3For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.

4Against you, you only, have I sinned,
and done that which is evil in your sight,
so that you are justified in your sentence
and blameless in your judgment.
5Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.

6Behold, you desire truth in the inward being;
therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart.

7Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

8Make me hear x joy and gladness;
let the bones which you have broken rejoice.

9Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.

10Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and put a new and right y spirit within me.

11Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your holy Spirit from me.
12Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.

13Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.

14Deliver me from bloodguilt,z O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance.
15O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall show forth your praise.

16For you take no delight in sacrifice;
were I to give a burnt offering, you would not be pleased.

17The sacrifice acceptable to God a is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

18Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;
rebuild the walls of Jerusalem,
19then will you delight in right sacrifices,
in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;

then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Judgment on the Deceitful
To the choirmaster.
A Maskil of David, when Doeg, the Edomite, came and told Saul,
“David has come to the house of Ahimelech.”
52[51] Why do you boast, O mighty man,
of mischief done against the godly? b
All the day 2you are plotting destruction.
Your tongue is like a sharp razor,
you worker of treachery.
3You love evil more than good,
and lying more than speaking the truth.

Selah
4You love all words that devour,
O deceitful tongue.
5But God will break you down for ever;
he will snatch and tear you from your tent;

he will uproot you from the land of the living.
Selah
6The righteous shall see, and fear,
and shall laugh at him, saying,

7“See the man who would not make God his refuge,
but trusted in the abundance of his riches,

and sought refuge in his wealth!” c
8But I am like a green olive tree
in the house of God.

I trust in the mercy of God
for ever and ever.
9I will thank you for ever,
because you have done it.

I will proclaim d your name, for it is good,
in the presence of the godly.
Denunciation of Godlessness
To the choirmaster: according to Mahalath.
A Maskil of David.
53[52] The fool says in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity;
there is none that does good.
2God looks down from heaven
upon the sons of men

to see if there are any that are wise,
that seek after God.
3They have all fallen away;
they are all alike depraved;
there is none that does good,
no, not one.
4Have those who work evil no understanding,
who eat up my people as they eat bread,

and do not call upon God?
5There they are, in great terror,
in terror such as has not been!

For God will scatter the bones of the ungodly; e
they will be put to shame, f for God has rejected them.
6O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion!
When God restores the fortunes of his people,

Jacob will rejoice and Israel be glad.
Prayer for Vindication
A Maskil of David, when the Ziphites went and told Saul,
“David is in hiding among us.”
54[53] Save me, O God, by your name,
and vindicate me by your might.
2Hear my prayer, O God;
give ear to the words of my mouth.

3For insolent men g have risen against me,
ruthless men seek my life;

they do not set God before them.
Selah
4Behold, God is my helper;
the Lord is the upholder h of my life.

5He will repay my enemies with evil;
in your faithfulness put an end to them.

6With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name, O LORD, for it is good.

7For you have delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.

Complaint about a Friend’s Treachery
A Maskil of David.
55[54] Give ear to my prayer, O God;
and hide not yourself from my supplication!
2Attend to me, and answer me;
I am overcome by my trouble.
I am distraught 3by the noise of the enemy,
because of the oppression of the wicked.
For they bring i trouble upon me,
and in anger they cherish enmity against me.
4My heart is in anguish within me,
the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

5Fear and trembling come upon me,
and horror overwhelms me.

6And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest;

7yes, I would wander afar,
I would lodge in the wilderness,

Selah
8I would wait for him who saves me
from the raging wind and tempest.”

9Destroy their plans, j O Lord, confuse their tongues;
for I see violence and strife in the city.
10Day and night they go around it
on its walls;
and mischief and trouble are within it,
11 ruin is in its midst;
oppression and fraud

do not depart from its market place.
12It is not an enemy who taunts me—
then I could bear it;

it is not an adversary who deals insolently with me—
then I could hide from him.
13But it is you, my equal,
my companion, my familiar friend.

14We used to hold sweet converse together;
within God’s house we walked in fellowship.

15Let death k come upon them;
let them go down to Sheol alive;

let them go away in terror into their graves.l
16But I call upon God;
and the LORD will save me.

17Evening and morning and at noon
I utter my complaint and moan,

and he will hear my voice.
18He will deliver my soul in safety
from the battle that I wage,
for many are arrayed against me.
19God will give ear, and humble them,
he who is enthroned from of old;

because they keep no law,m
and do not fear God. Selah
20My companion stretched out his hand against his friends,
he violated his covenant.

21His speech was smoother than butter,
yet war was in his heart;

his words were softer than oil,
yet they were drawn swords.
22Cast your burden n on the LORD,
and he will sustain you;

he will never permit
the righteous to be moved.
23But you, O God, will cast them down
into the lowest pit;

men of blood and treachery
shall not live out half their days.
But I will trust in you.
Trust in God under Persecution
To the choirmaster:
according to The Dove on Far-off Terebinths.
A Miktam of David, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.
56[55] Have mercy on me, O God, for men trample upon me;
all day long foes oppress me;
2my enemies trample upon me all day long,
for many fight against me proudly.
3When I am afraid,
I put my trust in you.

4In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust without a fear.

What can flesh do to me?
5All day long they seek to injure my cause;
all their thoughts are against me for evil.

6They band themselves together, they lurk,
they watch my steps.

As they have waited for my life,
7 so recompense o them for their crime;
in wrath cast down the peoples, O God!

8You have kept count of my tossings;
put my tears in your bottle!
Are they not in your book?
9Then my enemies will be turned back
in the day when I call.

This I know, that p God is for me.
10In God, whose word I praise,
in the LORD, whose word I praise,

11in God I trust without a fear.
What can man do to me?

12My vows to you I must perform, O God;
I will render thank offerings to you.

13For you have delivered my soul from death,
yes, my feet from falling,

that I may walk before God
in the light of life.
Praise and Assurance under Persecution
To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy.
A Miktam of David, when he fled from Saul, in the cave.
57[56] Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.
2I cry to God Most High,
to God who fulfils his purpose for me.

3He will send from heaven and save me,
he will put to shame those who trample upon me.

Selah
God will send forth his mercy and his faithfulness!
4I lie in the midst of lions
that greedily devour q the sons of men;

their teeth are spears and arrows,
their tongues sharp swords.
5Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!

6They set a net for my steps;
my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my way,
but they have fallen into it
themselves. Selah
7My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
8 Awake, my soul!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!
9I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.

10For your mercy is great to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.


Prayer for Vengeance
A Miktam of David.
58[57] Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods?s
Do you judge the sons of men uprightly?
2No, in your hearts you devise wrongs;
your hands deal out violence on earth.

3The wicked go astray from the womb,
they err from their birth, speaking lies.

4They have venom like the venom of a serpent,
like the deaf adder that stops its ear,

5so that it does not hear the voice of charmers
or of the cunning enchanter.
6O God, break the teeth in their mouths;
tear out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD!

7Let them vanish like water that runs away;
like grass let them be trodden down and wither.t

8Let them be like the snail which dissolves into slime,
like the untimely birth that never sees the sun.

9Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of thorns,
whether green or ablaze, may he sweep them away!

10The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance;
he will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.

11Men will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous;
surely there is a God who judges on earth.”
A Miktam of David, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to
kill him.
59[58] Deliver me from my enemies, O my God,
protect me from those who rise up against me,
2deliver me from those who work evil,
and save me from bloodthirsty men.

3For behold, they lie in wait for my life;
fierce men band themselves against me.

For no transgression or sin of mine, O LORD,
4 for no fault of mine, they run and make ready.
Rouse yourself, come to my help, and see!

5 You, LORD God of hosts, are God of Israel.
Awake to punish all the nations;

spare none of those who treacherously plot evil.
Selah
6Each evening they come back,
howling like dogs

and prowling about the city.
7There they are, bellowing with their mouths,
and snarling with u their lips—

for “Who,” they think, “will hear us?”
8But you, O LORD, laugh at them;
you hold all the nations in derision.

9O my Strength, I will sing praises to you; v
for you, O God, are my fortress.

10My God in his mercy will meet me;
my God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.

11Slay them not, lest my people forget;
make them totter by your power, and bring them down,

O Lord, our shield!
12For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips,
let them be trapped in their pride.

For the cursing and lies which they utter,
13 consume them in wrath,
consume them till they are no more,

that men may know that God rules over Jacob
to the ends of the earth.
Selah
14Each evening they come back,
howling like dogs

and prowling about the city.
15They roam about for food,
and growl if they do not get their fill.

16But I will sing of your might;
I will sing aloud of your mercy in the morning.

For you have been to me a fortress
and a refuge in the day of my distress.
17O my Strength, I will sing praises to you,
for you, O God, are my fortress,

the God who shows me mercy.
Prayer for National Victory after Defeat
To the choirmaster: according to Shushan Eduth.
A Miktam of David; for instruction; when he strove with Aram-naharaim
and with Aram-zobah,
and when Joab on his return killed twelve thousand of Edom in the Valley
of Salt.
60[59] O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;
you have been angry; oh, restore us.
2You have made the land to quake, you have torn it open;
repair its breaches, for it totters.

3You have made your people suffer hard things;
you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.

4You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
to rally to it from the bow.w

Selah
5That your beloved may be delivered,
give victory by your right hand and answer us!

6God has spoken in his sanctuary: x
“With exultation I will divide up Shechem

and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
7Gilead is mine; Manas'seh is mine;
E'phraim is my helmet;
Judah is my scepter.
8Moab is my washbasin;
upon Edom I cast my shoe;

over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
9Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?

10Have you not rejected us, O God?
You do not go forth, O God, with our armies.

11O grant us help against the foe,
for vain is the help of man!

12With God we shall do valiantly;
it is he who will tread down our foes.

Assurance of God’s Protection
A Psalm of David.
61[60] Hear my cry, O God,
listen to my prayer;
2from the end of the earth I call to you,
when my heart is faint.

Lead me
to the rock that is higher than I;
3for you are my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.

4Let me dwell in your tent for ever!
Oh, to be safe under the shelter of your wings!

Selah
5For you, O God, have heard my vows,
you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6Prolong the life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!

7May he be enthroned for ever before God;
bid steadfast love and faithfulness watch over him!

8So will I ever sing praises to your name,
as I pay my vows day after day.
Song of Trust in God Alone
To the choirmaster: according to Jeduthun.
A Psalm of David.
62[61] For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly moved.

3How long will you set upon a man
to shatter him, all of you,

like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4They only plan to thrust him down from his eminence.
They take pleasure in falsehood.

They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse.
Selah
5For God alone my soul waits in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.

7On God rests my deliverance and my honor;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

8Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;

God is a refuge for us. Selah
9Men of low estate are but a breath,
men of high estate are a delusion;

in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.
10Put no confidence in extortion,
set no vain hopes on robbery;

if riches increase, set not your heart on them.
11Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:

that power belongs to God;
12 and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
For you repay a man

according to his work.
Comfort and Assurance in God’s Presence
A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.
63[62] O God, you are my God, I seek you,
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where no water is.
2So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.

3Because your merciful love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.

4So I will bless you as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands and call on your name.

5My soul is feasted as with marrow and fat,
and my mouth praises you with joyful lips,

6when I think of you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

7for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy.

8My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.

9But those who seek to destroy my life
shall go down into the depths of the earth;

10they shall be given over to the power of the sword,
they shall be prey for jackals.
11But the king shall rejoice in God;
all who swear by him shall glory;

for the mouths of liars will be stopped.
Prayer for Protection from Enemies
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
64[63] Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint;
preserve my life from dread of the enemy,
2hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
from the scheming of evildoers,

3who whet their tongues like swords,
who aim bitter words like arrows,

4shooting from ambush at the blameless,
shooting at him suddenly and without fear.
5They hold fast to their evil purpose;
they talk of laying snares secretly,

thinking, “Who can see us? y
6 Who can search out our crimes? z
We have thought out a cunningly conceived plot.”

For the inward mind and heart of a man are deep!
7But God will shoot his arrow at them;
they will be wounded suddenly.

8Because of their tongue he will bring them to ruin; a
all who see them will wag their heads.

9Then all men will fear;
they will tell what God has wrought,

and ponder what he has done.
10Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD,
and take refuge in him!

Let all the upright in heart glory!
Thanksgiving for Earth’s Bounty
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song.
65[64] Praise is due to you,
O God, in Zion;
and to you shall vows be performed in Jerusalem,
2 O you who hear prayer!
To you shall all flesh come

3 on account of sins.
When our transgressions prevail over us,b
you forgive them.
4Blessed is he whom you choose and bring near,
to dwell in your courts!

We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
your holy temple!
5By dread deeds you answer us with deliverance,
O God of our salvation,

who are the hope of all the ends of the earth,
and of the farthest seas;
6who by your strength have established the mountains,
being girded with might;

7who still the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,

the tumult of the peoples;
8so that those who dwell at earth’s farthest bounds
are afraid at your signs;

you make the outgoings of the morning and the evening
to shout for joy.
9You visit the earth and water it,
you greatly enrich it;

the river of God is full of water;
you provide their grain,
for so you have prepared it.
10You water its furrows abundantly,
settling its ridges,

softening it with showers,
and blessing its growth.
11You crown the year with your bounty;
the tracks of your chariot overflow with richness.

12The pastures of the wilderness drip,
the hills gird themselves with joy,

13the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,
the valleys deck themselves with grain,

they shout and sing together for joy.
Praise for God’s Goodness to Israel
To the choirmaster. A Song. A Psalm.
66[65] Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;
2 sing the glory of his name;
give to him glorious praise!

3Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you.

4All the earth worships you;
they sing praises to you,

sing praises to your name.”
Selah
5Come and see what God has done:
he is awesome in his deeds among men.

6He turned the sea into dry land;
men passed through the river on foot.

There did we rejoice in him,
7 who rules by his might for ever,
whose eyes keep watch on the nations—

let not the rebellious exalt themselves.
Selah
8Bless our God, O peoples,
let the sound of his praise be heard,

9who has kept us among the living,
and has not let our feet slip.

10For you, O God, have tested us;
you have tried us as silver is tried.
11You brought us into the net;
you laid affliction on our backs;

12you let men ride over our heads;
we went through fire and through water;

yet you have brought us forth to a spacious place.c
13I will come into your house with burnt offerings;
I will pay you my vows,

14that which my lips uttered
and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

15I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatlings,
with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah
16Come and hear, all you who fear God,
and I will tell what he has done for me.

17I cried aloud to him,
and he was extolled with my tongue.

18If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.

19But truly God has listened;
he has given heed to the voice of my prayer.

20Blessed be God,
because he has not rejected my prayer

or removed his merciful love from me!
The Nations Called to Praise God
A Psalm. A Song.
67[66] May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
Selah
2that your way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations.

3Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!

4Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you judge the peoples with equity

and guide the nations upon earth.
Selah
5Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!

6The earth has yielded its increase;
God, our God, has blessed us.

7God has blessed us;
let all the ends of the earth fear him!

Praise and Thanksgiving
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
A Song.
68[67] * Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered;
let those who hate him flee before him!
2As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;
as wax melts before fire,

let the wicked perish before God!
3But let the righteous be joyful;
let them exult before God;

let them be jubilant with joy!
4Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds; d

his name is the LORD, exult before him!
5Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
is God in his holy habitation.

6God gives the desolate a home to dwell in;
he leads out the prisoners to prosperity;

but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.
7O God, when you went forth before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness,

Selah
8the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,
at the presence of God;

yon Sinai quaked at the presence of God,
the God of Israel.
9Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad;
you restored your heritage as it languished;

10your flock found a dwelling in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.

11The Lord gives the command;
great is the host of those who bore the tidings:

12 “The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!”
The women at home divide the spoil,

13 though they stay among the sheepfolds—
the wings of a dove covered with silver,

its pinions with green gold.
14When the Almighty scattered kings there,
snow fell on Zalmon.

15O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan;
O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan!

16Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountain,
at the mount which God desired for his abode,

yes, where the LORD will dwell for ever?
17With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand,
thousands upon thousands,

the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place.e
18You ascended the high mount,
leading captives in your train,
and receiving gifts among men,
even among the rebellious, that the LORD God may dwell there.
19Blessed be the Lord,
who daily bears us up;

God is our salvation. Selah
20Our God is a God of salvation;
and to GOD, the Lord, belongs escape from death.

21But God will shatter the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.

22The Lord said,
“I will bring them back from Bashan,

I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23that you may bathe f your feet in blood,
that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”
24Your solemn processions are seen,g O God,
the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—
25the singers in front, the minstrels last,
between them maidens playing timbrels:

26“Bless God in the great congregation,
the LORD, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!”

27There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
the princes of Judah in their throng,
the princes of Zeb'ulun, the princes of Naph'tali.
28Summon your might, O God;
show your strength, O God, you who have wrought for us.
29Because of your temple at Jerusalem
kings bear gifts to you.

30Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds,
the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.

Trample h under foot those who lust after tribute;
scatter the peoples who delight in war.i
31Let bronze be brought from Egypt;
let Ethiopia hasten to stretch out her hands to God.

32Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth;
sing praises to the Lord,

Selah
33to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
behold, he sends forth his voice, his mighty voice.

34Ascribe power to God,
whose majesty is over Israel,

and his power is in the skies.
35Awesome is God in his j sanctuary,
the God of Israel,

he gives power and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!
Prayer for Deliverance from Persecution
A Psalm of David.
69[68] Save me, O God!
For the waters have come up to my neck.
2I sink in deep mire,
where there is no foothold;

I have come into deep waters,
and the flood sweeps over me.
3I am weary with my crying;
my throat is parched.
My eyes grow dim
with waiting for my God.
4More in number than the hairs of my head
are those who hate me without cause;

mighty are those who would destroy me,
those who attack me with lies.
What I did not steal
must I now restore?
5O God, you know my folly;
the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you.

6Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me,
O Lord GOD of hosts;

let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me,
O God of Israel.
7For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach,
that shame has covered my face.

8I have become a stranger to my brethren,
an alien to my mother’s sons.

9For zeal for your house has consumed me,
and the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
10When I humbled k my soul with fasting,
it became my reproach.
11When I made sackcloth my clothing,
I became a byword to them.

12I am the talk of those who sit in the gate,
and the drunkards make songs about me.

13But as for me, my prayer is to you, O LORD.
At an acceptable time, O God,

in the abundance of your mercy answer me.
With your faithful help 14rescue me
from sinking in the mire;
let me be delivered from my enemies
and from the deep waters.
15Let not the flood sweep over me,
or the deep swallow me up,

or the pit close its mouth over me.
16Answer me, O LORD, for your merciful love is good;
according to your abundant compassion, turn to me.

17Hide not your face from your servant;
for I am in distress, make haste to answer me.

18Draw near to me, redeem me,
set me free because of my enemies!

19You know my reproach,
and my shame and my dishonor;

my foes are all known to you.
20Insults have broken my heart,
so that I am in despair.
I looked for pity, but there was none;
and for comforters, but I found none.
21They gave me gall for food,
and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

22Let their own table before them become a snare;
let their sacrificial feasts l be a trap.

23Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see;
and make their loins tremble continually.

24Pour out your indignation upon them,
and let your burning anger overtake them.

25May their camp be a desolation,
let no one dwell in their tents.

26For they persecute him whom you have struck down,
and him m whom you have wounded, they afflict still more.n
27Add to them punishment upon punishment;
may they have no acquittal from you.

28Let them be blotted out of the book of the living;
let them not be enrolled among the righteous.

29But I am afflicted and in pain;
let your salvation, O God, set me on high!

30I will praise the name of God with a song;
I will magnify him with thanksgiving.

31This will please the LORD more than an ox
or a bull with horns and hoofs.

32Let the humble see it and be glad;
you who seek God, let your hearts revive.

33For the LORD hears the needy,
and does not despise his own that are in bonds.

34Let heaven and earth praise him,
OceanofPDF.com
the seas and everything that moves therein.
35For God will save Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah;

and his servants shall dwell o there and possess it;
36 the children of his servants shall inherit it,
and those who love his name shall dwell in it.
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David, for the memorial offering.
70[69] Be pleased, O God, to deliver me!
O LORD, make haste to help me!
2Let them be put to shame and confusion
who seek my life!

Let them be turned back and brought to dishonor
who desire my harm!
3Let them be appalled because of their shame
who say, “Aha, Aha!”
4May all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you!

May those who love your salvation
say evermore, “God is great!”
5But I am poor and needy;
hasten to me, O God!
You are my help and my deliverer;
O LORD, do not delay!
Prayer for Lifelong Protection and Help
71[70] In you, O LORD, I take refuge;

let me never be put to shame!
2In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
incline your ear to me, and save me!

3Be to me a rock of refuge,
a strong fortress,p to save me,

for you are my rock and my fortress.
4Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man.

5For you, O Lord, are my hope,
my trust, O LORD, from my youth.

6Upon you I have leaned from my birth;
from my mother’s womb, you have been my strength.
My praise is continually of you.
7I have been as a portent to many;
but you are my strong refuge.
8My mouth is filled with your praise,
and with your glory all the day.

9Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
forsake me not when my strength is spent.
10For my enemies speak concerning me,
those who watch for my life consult together,

11and say, “God has forsaken him;
pursue and seize him,

for there is none to deliver him.”
12O God, be not far from me;
O my God, make haste to help me!

13May my accusers be put to shame and consumed;
with scorn and disgrace may they be covered

who seek my harm.
14But I will hope continually,
and will praise you yet more and more.

15My mouth will tell of your righteous acts,
of your deeds of salvation all the day,
for their number is past my knowledge.
16With the mighty deeds of the Lord GOD I will come,
I will praise your righteousness, yours alone.
17O God, from my youth you have taught me,
and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.

18So even to old age and gray hairs,
O God, do not forsake me,
till I proclaim your might
to all the generations to come.q
Your power 19and your righteousness, O God,
reach the high heavens.
You who have done great things,
O God, who is like you?
20You who have made me see many sore troubles
will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
you will bring me up again.
21You will increase my honor,
and comfort me again.

22I will also praise you with the harp
for your faithfulness, O my God;
I will sing praises to you with the lyre,
O Holy One of Israel.
23My lips will shout for joy,
when I sing praises to you;

my soul also, which you have rescued.
24And my tongue will talk of your righteous help
all the day long,

for they have been put to shame and disgraced
who sought to do me harm.
Prayer for Guidance and Support for the King
A Psalm of Solomon.
72[71] Give the king your justice, O God,
and your righteousness to the royal son!
2May he judge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice!
3Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness!

4May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the needy,

and crush the oppressor!
5May he live r while the sun endures,
and as long as the moon, throughout all generations!
6May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
like showers that water the earth!
7In his days may righteousness flourish,
and peace abound, till the moon be no more!
8May he have dominion from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth!

9May his foes s bow down before him,
and his enemies lick the dust!
10May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles
render him tribute,
may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts!
11May all kings fall down before him,
all nations serve him!
12For he delivers the needy when he calls,
the poor and him who has no helper.

13He has pity on the weak and the needy,
and saves the lives of the needy.

14From oppression and violence he redeems their souls;
and precious is their blood in his sight.

15Long may he live,
may gold of Sheba be given to him!

May prayer be made for him continually,
and blessings invoked for him all the day!
16May there be abundance of grain in the land;
on the tops of the mountains may it wave;
may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may men blossom forth from the cities
like the grass of the field!
17May his name endure for ever,
his fame continue as long as the sun!

May men bless themselves by him,
all nations call him blessed!
who alone does wondrous things.

19Blessed be his glorious name for ever;
may his glory fill the whole earth! Amen and Amen!
20The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended.
BOOK III
Plea for Relief from Oppressors
A Psalm of Asaph.
73[72] Truly God is good to the upright,
to those who are pure in heart.t
2But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,
my steps had well nigh slipped.
3For I was envious of the arrogant,
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4For they have no pangs;
their bodies are sound and sleek.

5They are not in trouble as other men are;
they are not stricken like other men.

6Therefore pride is their necklace;
violence covers them as a garment.

7Their eyes swell out with fatness,
their hearts overflow with follies.

8They scoff and speak with malice;
loftily they threaten oppression.

9They set their mouths against the heavens,
and their tongue struts through the earth.
10Therefore the people turn and praise them; u
and find no fault in them.v

11And they say, “How can God know?
Is there knowledge in the Most High?”

12Behold, these are the wicked;
always at ease, they increase in riches.

13All in vain have I kept my heart clean
and washed my hands in innocence.

14For all the day long I have been stricken,
and chastened every morning.

15If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
I would have been untrue to the generation of your children.

16But when I thought how to understand this,
it seemed to me a wearisome task,
17until I went into the sanctuary of God;
then I perceived their end.
18Truly you set them in slippery places;
you make them fall to ruin.

19How they are destroyed in a moment,
swept away utterly by terrors!

20They are w like a dream when one awakes,
on awaking you despise their phantoms.

21When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart,
22I was stupid and ignorant,
I was like a beast toward you.
23Nevertheless I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.

24You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory.x

25Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides you.

26My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength y of my heart and my portion for ever.

27For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;
you put an end to those who are false to you.

28But for me it is good to be near God;
I have made the Lord GOD my refuge,
that I may tell of all your works.
Plea for Help in Time of National Humiliation
A Maskil of Asaph.
74[73] O God, why do you cast us off for ever?
Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture?
2Remember your congregation, which you have gotten of old,
which you have redeemed to be the tribe of your heritage!
Remember Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
3Direct your steps to the perpetual ruins;
the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary!

4Your foes have roared in the midst of your holy place;
they set up their own signs for signs.

5At the upper entrance they hacked
the wooden trellis with axes.z

6And then all its carved wood
they broke down with hatchets and hammers.
7They set your sanctuary on fire;
to the ground they desecrated the dwelling place of your name.

8They said to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”;
they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

9We do not see our signs;
there is no longer any prophet,

and there is none among us who knows how long.
10How long, O God, is the foe to scoff?
Is the enemy to revile your name for ever?

11Why do you hold back your hand,
why do you keep your right hand ina your bosom?

12Yet God my King is from of old,
working salvation in the midst of the earth.

13You divided the sea by your might;
you broke the heads of the dragons on the waters.

14You crushed the heads of Leviathan,
you gave him as food b for the creatures of the wilderness.

15You cut open springs and brooks;
you dried up ever-flowing streams.

16Yours is the day, yours also the night;
you have established the luminaries and the sun.
17You have fixed all the bounds of the earth;
you have made summer and winter.

18Remember this, O LORD, how the enemy scoffs,
and an impious people reviles your name.

19Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild beasts;
do not forget the souls of your poor for ever.

20Have regard for your c covenant;
for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.
21Let not the humble be put to shame;
let the poor and needy praise your name.

22Arise, O God, plead your cause;
remember how the impious scoff at you all the day!

23Do not forget the clamor of your foes,
the uproar of your adversaries which goes up continually!
Thanksgiving for God’s Wondrous Deeds
A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
75[74] We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks;
we call on your name and recount d your wondrous deeds.
2At the set time which I appoint
I will judge with equity.

3When the earth totters, and all its inhabitants,
it is I who keep steady its pillars.

Selah
4I say to the boastful, “Do not boast,”
and to the wicked, “Do not lift up your horn;

5do not lift up your horn on high,
or speak with insolent neck.”

6For not from the east or from the west
and not from the wilderness comes lifting up;
7but it is God who executes judgment,
putting down one and lifting up another.

8For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup,
with foaming wine, well mixed;

and he will pour a draught from it,
and all the wicked of the earth
shall drain it down to the dregs.
9But I will rejoice e for ever,
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.

10All the horns of the wicked he f will cut off,
but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.

Israel’s God—Judge of All the Earth
A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
76[75] In Judah God is known,
his name is great in Israel.
2His abode has been established in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.

3There he broke the flashing arrows,
the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.

Selah
4Glorious are you, more majestic
than the everlasting mountains.g

5The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil;
they sank into sleep;

all the men of war
were unable to use their hands.
6At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both rider and horse lay stunned.
7But you, you are awesome!
Who can stand before you

when once your anger is roused?
8From the heavens you pronounced judgment;
the earth feared and was still,

9when God arose to establish judgment
to save all the oppressed of the earth.

Selah
10Surely the wrath of men shall praise you;
the residue of wrath you will bind around you.

11Make your vows to the LORD your God, and perform them;
let all around him bring gifts

to him who is to be feared,
12who cuts off the spirit of princes,
who is awesome to the kings of the earth.

God’s Mighty Deeds Recalled
To the choirmaster: according to Jeduthun.
A Psalm of Asaph.
77[76] I cry aloud to God,
aloud to God, that he may hear me.
2In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;

my soul refuses to be comforted.
3I think of God, and I moan;
I meditate, and my spirit faints.

Selah
4You keep my eyelids from closing;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.

5I consider the days of old,
I remember the years long ago.

6I commune h with my heart in the night;
I meditate and search my spirit: i

7“Will the Lord spurn for ever,
and never again be favorable?

8Has his steadfast love for ever ceased?
Are his promises at an end for all time?

9Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has he in anger shut up his compassion?”

Selah
10And I say, “It is my grief
that the right hand of the Most High has changed.”
11I will call to mind the deeds of the LORD;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.

12I will meditate on all your work,
and muse on your mighty deeds.

13Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is great like our God?

14You are the God who works wonders,
who have manifested your might among the peoples.

15With your arm you redeemed your people,
the sons of Jacob and Joseph.

Selah
16When the waters saw you, O God,
when the waters saw you, they were afraid,

yes, the deep trembled.
17The clouds poured out water;
the skies gave forth thunder;
your arrows flashed on every side.
18The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
your lightnings lighted up the world;

the earth trembled and shook.
19Your way was through the sea,
your path through the great waters;

yet your footprints were unseen.
20You led your people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

God’s Goodness and Israel’s Ingratitude
A Maskil of Asaph.
78[77] Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
2I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,

3things that we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.

4We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation

the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might,
and the wonders which he has wrought.
5He established a testimony in Jacob,
and appointed a law in Israel,

which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children;
6that the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,

and arise and tell them to their children,
7 so that they should set their hope in God,
and not forget the works of God,

but keep his commandments;
8and that they should not be like their fathers,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.
9The E'phraimites, armed with j the bow,
turned back on the day of battle.

10They did not keep God’s covenant,
but refused to walk according to his law.
11They forgot what he had done,
and the miracles that he had shown them.

12In the sight of their fathers he wrought marvels
in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zo'an.

13He divided the sea and let them pass through it,
and made the waters stand like a heap.

14In the daytime he led them with a cloud,
and all the night with a fiery light.

15He cleft rocks in the wilderness,
and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.

16He made streams come out of the rock,
and caused waters to flow down like rivers.

17Yet they sinned still more against him,
rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
18They tested God in their heart
by demanding the food they craved.

19They spoke against God, saying,
“Can God spread a table in the wilderness?

20He struck the rock so that water gushed out
and streams overflowed.

Can he also give bread,
or provide meat for his people?”
21Therefore, when the LORD heard, he was full of wrath;
a fire was kindled against Jacob,

his anger mounted against Israel;
22because they had no faith in God,
and did not trust his saving power.

23Yet he commanded the skies above,
and opened the doors of heaven;
24and he rained down upon them manna to eat,
and gave them the bread of heaven.

25Man ate of the bread of the angels;
he sent them food in abundance.

26He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens,
and by his power he led out the south wind;

27he rained flesh upon them like dust,
winged birds like the sand of the seas;

28he let them fall in the midst of their camp,
all around their habitations.

29And they ate and were well filled,
for he gave them what they craved.

30But before they had sated their craving,
while the food was still in their mouths,

31the anger of God rose against them
and he slew the strongest of them,
and laid low the picked men of Israel.
32In spite of all this they still sinned;
despite his wonders they did not believe.

33So he made their days vanish like a breath,
and their years in terror.

34When he slew them, they sought for him;
they repented and sought God earnestly.

35They remembered that God was their rock,
the Most High God their redeemer.

36But they flattered him with their mouths;
they lied to him with their tongues.

37Their heart was not steadfast toward him;
they were not true to his covenant.
38Yet he, being compassionate,
forgave their iniquity,

and did not destroy them;
he restrained his anger often,
and did not stir up all his wrath.
39He remembered that they were but flesh,
a wind that passes and comes not again.

40How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness
and grieved him in the desert!

41They tested him again and again,
and provoked the Holy One of Israel.

42They did not keep in mind his power,
or the day when he redeemed them from the foe;

43when he wrought his signs in Egypt,
and his miracles in the fields of Zo'an.

44He turned their rivers to blood,
so that they could not drink of their streams.

45He sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them,
and frogs, which destroyed them.

46He gave their crops to the caterpillar,
and the fruit of their labor to the locust.

47He destroyed their vines with hail,
and their sycamores with frost.

48He gave over their cattle to the hail,
and their flocks to thunderbolts.

49He let loose on them his fierce anger,
wrath, indignation, and distress,

a company of destroying angels.
50He made a path for his anger;
he did not spare them from death,

but gave their lives over to the plague.
51He struck all the first-born in Egypt,
the first issue of their strength in the tents of Ham.

52Then he led forth his people like sheep,
and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.

53He led them in safety, so that they were not afraid;
but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

54And he brought them to his holy land,
to the mountain which his right hand had won.

55He drove out nations before them;
he apportioned them for a possession

and settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.
56Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God,
and did not observe his decrees,

57but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers;
they twisted like a deceitful bow.
58For they provoked him to anger with their high places;
they moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

59When God heard, he was full of wrath,
and he utterly rejected Israel.

60He forsook his dwelling at Shiloh,
the tent where he dwelt among men,

61and delivered his power to captivity,
his glory to the hand of the foe.

62He gave his people over to the sword,
and vented his wrath on his heritage.

63Fire devoured their young men,
and their maidens had no marriage song.

64Their priests fell by the sword,
and their widows made no lamentation.

65Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,
like a strong man shouting because of wine.

66And he put his adversaries to rout;
he put them to everlasting shame.

67He rejected the tent of Joseph,
he did not choose the tribe of E'phraim;

68but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he loves.

69He built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded for ever.

70He chose David his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds;

71from tending the ewes that had young he brought him
to be the shepherd of Jacob his people,

of Israel his inheritance.
72With upright heart he tended them,
and guided them with skilful hand.

Plea for Mercy for Jerusalem
A Psalm of Asaph.
79[78] O God, the heathen have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple;
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
2They have given the bodies of your servants
to the birds of the air for food,

the flesh of your saints to the beasts of the earth.
3They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,

and there was none to bury them.
4We have become a taunt to our neighbors,
mocked and derided by those round about us.

5How long, O LORD? Will you be angry for ever?
Will your jealous wrath burn like fire?

6Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you,
and on the kingdoms

that do not call on your name!
7For they have devoured Jacob,
and laid waste his habitation.

8Do not remember against us the iniquities of our forefathers;
let your compassion come speedily to meet us,

for we are brought very low.
9Help us, O God of our salvation,
for the glory of your name;

deliver us, and forgive our sins,
for your name’s sake!
10Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”

Let the avenging of the outpoured blood of your servants
be known among the nations before our eyes!
11Let the groans of the prisoners come before you;
according to your great power preserve those doomed to die!

12Return sevenfold into the bosom of our neighbors
the taunts with which they have taunted you, O Lord!

13Then we your people, the flock of your pasture,
will give thanks to you for ever;

from generation to generation we will recount your praise.
Prayer for Israel’s Restoration
A Testimony of Asaph.
A Psalm.
80[79] Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock!
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
2 before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manas'seh!
Stir up your might,

and come to save us!
3Restore us, O God;
let your face shine, that we may be saved!

4O LORD God of hosts,
how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?

5You have fed them with the bread of tears,
and given them tears to drink in full measure.

6You make us the scornk of our neighbors;
and our enemies laugh among themselves.

7Restore us, O God of hosts;

8You brought a vine out of Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.

9You cleared the ground for it;
it took deep root and filled the land.

10The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches;

11it sent out its branches to the sea,
and its shoots to the River.

12Why then have you broken down its walls,
so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit?
13The boar from the forest ravages it,
and all that move in the field feed on it.

14Turn again, O God of hosts!
Look down from heaven, and see;

have regard for this vine,
15 the stock which your right hand planted.l
16They have burned it with fire, they have cut it down;
may they perish at the rebuke of your countenance!

17But let your hand be upon the man of your right hand,
the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself!
18Then we will never turn back from you;
give us life, and we will call on your name!

19Restore us, O LORD God of hosts!
God’s Appeal to Stubborn Israel
A Psalm of Asaph.
81[80] Sing aloud to God our strength;
shout for joy to the God of Jacob!
2Raise a song, sound the timbrel,
the sweet lyre with the harp.

3Blow the trumpet at the new moon,
at the full moon, on our feast day.

4For it is a statute for Israel,
an ordinance of the God of Jacob.
5He made it a decree in Joseph,
when he went out over m the land of Egypt.

I hear a voice I had not known:
6“I relieved your n shoulder of the burden;
your n hands were freed from the basket.

7In distress you called, and I delivered you;
I answered you in the secret place of thunder;

I tested you at the waters of Mer'ibah.
Selah
8Hear, O my people, while I admonish you!
O Israel, if you would but listen to me!
9There shall be no strange god among you;
you shall not bow down to a foreign god.

10I am the LORD your God,
who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.

Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
11“But my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel would have none of me.

12So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to follow their own counsels.

13O that my people would listen to me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!

14I would soon subdue their enemies,
and turn my hand against their foes.

15Those who hate the LORD would cringe toward him,
and their fate would last for ever.

16I would feed youo with the finest of the wheat,
and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

A Plea for Justice
A Psalm of Asaph.
82[81] God has taken his place in the divine council;
in the midst of the angels he holds judgment:
2“How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked?

Selah
3Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.

4Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”

5They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6I say, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;

7nevertheless, you shall die like men,
and fall like any prince.” p

8Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for to you belong all the nations!

Prayer for Judgment on Israel’s Foes
A Song.
A Psalm of Asaph.
83[82] O God, do not keep silence;
do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
2For behold, your enemies are in tumult;
those who hate you have raised their heads.

3They lay crafty plans against your people;
they consult together against your protected ones.

4They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation;
let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”

5Yes, they conspire with one accord;
against you they make a covenant—

6the tents of Edom and the Ish'maelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,

7Gebal and Ammon and Am'alek,
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;

8Assyria also has joined them;
they are the strong arm of the children of Lot.

Selah
9Do to them as you did to Mid'ian,
as to Sis'era and Jabin at the river Kishon,

10who were destroyed at En-dor,
who became dung for the ground.

11Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,
all their princes like Zebah and Zalmun'na,

12who said, “Let us take possession for ourselves
of the pastures of God.”

13O my God, make them like whirling dust,q
like chaff before the wind.

14As fire consumes the forest,
as the flame sets the mountains ablaze,

15so you pursue them with your tempest
and terrify them with your hurricane!

16Fill their faces with shame,
that they may seek your name, O LORD.

17Let them be put to shame and dismayed for ever;
let them perish in disgrace.

18Let them know that you alone,
whose name is the LORD,

are the Most High over all the earth.
The Joy of Worship in the Temple
84[83] How lovely is your dwelling place,
O LORD of hosts!
2My soul longs, yes, faints
for the courts of the LORD;

my heart and flesh sing for joy
to the living God.
3Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my King and my God.
4Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise!

Selah
5Blessed are the men whose strength is in you,
in whose heart are the highways to Zion.r

6As they go through the valley of Baca
they make it a place of springs;

the early rain also covers it with pools.
7They go from strength to strength;
the God of gods will be seen in Zion.

8O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob!

Selah
9Behold our shield, O God;
look upon the face of your anointed!

10For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
he bestows favor and honor.

No good thing does the LORD withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
12O LORD of hosts,
blessed is the man who trusts in you!

Prayer for the Restoration of God’s Favor
To the choirmaster.
85[84] LORD, you were favorable to your land;
you brought back the captives of Jacob.
2You forgave the iniquity of your people;
you pardoned all their sin.

Selah
3You withdrew all your wrath;
you turned from your hot anger.

4Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away your indignation toward us!

5Will you be angry with us for ever?
Will you prolong your anger to all generations?

6Will you not revive us again,
that your people may rejoice in you?

7Show us your merciful love, O LORD,
and grant us your salvation.

8Let me hear what God the LORD will speak,
for he will speak peace to his people,

to his saints, to those who turn to him in their hearts.s
9Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him,
that glory may dwell in our land.

10Mercy and faithfulness will meet;
righteousness and peace will kiss each other.

11Faithfulness will spring up from the ground,
and righteousness will look down from heaven.
12Yes, the LORD will give what is good,
and our land will yield its increase.

13Righteousness will go before him,
and make his footsteps a way.
Supplication for Help against Enemies
A Prayer of David.
86[85] Incline your ear, O LORD, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
2Preserve my life, for I am godly;
save your servant who trusts in you.

You are my God; 3have mercy on me, O Lord,
for to you do I cry all the day.
4Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.

5For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in mercy to all who call on you.

6Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer;
listen to my cry of supplication.

7In the day of my trouble I call on you,
for you do answer me.

8There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,
nor are there any works like yours.

9All the nations you have made shall come
and bow down before you, O Lord,

and shall glorify your name.
10For you are great and do wondrous things,
you alone are God.

11Teach me your way, O LORD,
that I may walk in your truth;

unite my heart to fear your name.
12I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,
and I will glorify your name for ever.

13For great is your merciful love toward me;
you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

14O God, insolent men have risen up against me;
a band of ruthless men seek my life,

and they do not set you before them.
15But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy and faithfulness.

16Turn to me and take pity on me;
give your strength to your servant,

and save the son of your handmaid.
17Show me a sign of your favor,
that those who hate me may see and be put to shame

because you, LORD, have helped me and comforted me.
The Joy of Living in Zion
A Song.
87[86] On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion
more than all the dwelling places of Jacob.

3Glorious things are spoken of you,
O city of God. Selah

4Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon;
behold, Philis'tia and Tyre, with Ethiopia—

“This one was born there,” they say.
5And of Zion it shall be said,
“This one and that one were born in her”;

for the Most High himself will establish her.
6The LORD records as he registers the peoples,
“This one was born there.”

Selah
7Singers and dancers alike say,
“All my springs are in you.”

Prayer for Help in Despondency
A Song. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.
To the choirmaster: according to Mahalath Leannoth.
A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
88[87] O LORD, my God, I call for help t by day;
I cry out in the night before you.
2Let my prayer come before you,
incline your ear to my cry!

3For my soul is full of troubles,
and my life draws near to Sheol.

4I am reckoned among those who go down to the Pit;
I am a man who has no strength,

5like one forsaken among the dead,
like the slain that lie in the grave,

like those whom you remember no more,
for they are cut off from your hand.
6You have put me in the depths of the Pit,
in the regions dark and deep.

7Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
and you overwhelm me with all your waves.

Selah
8You have caused my companions to shun me;
you have made me a thing of horror to them.

I am shut in so that I cannot escape;
9 my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call upon you, O LORD;

I spread out my hands to you.
10Do you work wonders for the dead?
Do the shades rise up to praise you?

Selah
11Is your mercy declared in the grave,
or your faithfulness in Abad'don?

12Are your wonders known in the darkness,
or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?

13But I, O LORD, cry to you;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.

14O LORD, why do you cast me off?
Why do you hide your face from me?

15Afflicted and close to death from my youth,
I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.u
16Your wrath has swept over me;
your dread assaults destroy me.

17They surround me like a flood all day long;
they close in upon me together.

18You have caused loved one and friend to shun me;
my companions are in darkness.

God’s Covenant with David
A Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
89[88] I will sing of your mercies,
O LORD,v for ever;
with my mouth I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations.
2For your merciful love was established for ever,
your faithfulness is firm as the heavens.

3You have said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
I have sworn to David my servant:

4‘I will establish your descendants for ever,
and build your throne for all generations.’ ”

Selah
5Let the heavens praise your wonders, O LORD,
your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones!

6For who in the skies can be compared to the LORD?
Who among the heavenly beings w is like the LORD,

7a God feared in the council of the holy ones,
great and awesome x above all that are round about him?
8O LORD God of hosts,
who is mighty as you are, O LORD,

with your faithfulness round about you?
9You rule the raging of the sea;
when its waves rise, you still them.

10You crushed Rahab like a carcass,
you scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.

11The heavens are yours, the earth also is yours;
the world and all that is in it, you have founded them.
12The north and the south, you have created them;
Tabor and Hermon joyously praise your name.
13You have a mighty arm;
strong is your hand, high your right hand.

14Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.

15Blessed are the people who know the festal shout,
who walk, O LORD, in the light of your countenance,

16who exult in your name all the day,
and extol y your righteousness.

17For you are the glory of their strength;
by your favor our horn is exalted.

18For our shield belongs to the LORD,
our king to the Holy One of Israel.

19Of old you spoke in a vision
to your faithful one, and said:

“I have set the crown z upon one who is mighty,
I have exalted one chosen from the people.
20I have found David, my servant;
with my holy oil I have anointed him;

21so that my hand shall ever abide with him,
my arm also shall strengthen him.

22The enemy shall not outwit him,
the wicked shall not humble him.

23I will crush his foes before him
and strike down those who hate him.

24My faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him,
and in my name shall his horn be exalted.

25I will set his hand on the sea
and his right hand on the rivers.

26He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father,
my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’

27And I will make him the first-born,
the highest of the kings of the earth.

28My merciful love I will keep for him for ever,
and my covenant will stand firm for him.

29I will establish his line for ever
and his throne as the days of the heavens.

30If his children forsake my law
and do not walk according to my ordinances,

31if they violate my statutes
and do not keep my commandments,

32then I will punish their transgression with the rod
and their iniquity with scourges;

33but I will not remove from him my merciful love,
or be false to my faithfulness.
34I will not violate my covenant,
or alter the word that went forth from my lips.

35Once for all I have sworn by my holiness;
I will not lie to David.

36His line shall endure for ever,
his throne as long as the sun before me.

37Like the moon it shall be established for ever;
it shall stand firm while the skies endure.” a

Selah
38But now you have cast off and rejected,
you are full of wrath against your anointed.

39You have renounced the covenant with your servant;
you have defiled his crown in the dust.

40You have breached all his walls;
you have laid his strongholds in ruins.

41All that pass by despoil him;
he has become the scorn of his neighbors.

42You have exalted the right hand of his foes;
you have made all his enemies rejoice.

43Yes, you have turned back the edge of his sword,
and you have not made him stand in battle.
44You have removed the scepter from his hand,b
and cast his throne to the ground.

45You have cut short the days of his youth;
you have covered him with shame.

Selah
46How long, O LORD? Will you hide yourself for ever?
How long will your wrath burn like fire?

47Remember, O Lord,c what the measure of life is,
for what vanity you have created all the sons of men!
48What man can live and never see death?
Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol?

Selah
49Lord, where is your steadfast love of old,
which by your faithfulness you swore to David?

50Remember, O Lord, how your servant is scorned;
how I bear in my bosom the insults d of the peoples,

51with which your enemies taunt, O LORD,
with which they mock the footsteps of your anointed.

52 Blessed be the LORD for ever! Amen and Amen.
BOOK IV
God’s Eternity and Human Frailty
A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.
90[89] LORD, you have been our dwelling place e
in all generations.
2Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,

from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3You turn man back to the dust,
and say, “Turn back, O children of men!”

4For a thousand years in your sight
are but as yesterday when it is past,

or as a watch in the night.
5You sweep men away; they are like a dream,
like grass which is renewed in the morning:

6in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.

7For we are consumed by your anger;
by your wrath we are overwhelmed.

8You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your countenance.

9For all our days pass away under your wrath,
our years come to an end f like a sigh.

10The years of our life are threescore and ten,
or even by reason of strength fourscore;

yet their span g is but toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11Who considers the power of your anger,
and your wrath according to the fear of you?

12So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.

13Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!

14Satisfy us in the morning with your mercy,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

15Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us,
and as many years as we have seen evil.

16Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.

17Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us,

yes, establish the work of our hands.
91[90] He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High,

who abides in the shadow of the Almighty,
2will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress;
my God, in whom I trust.”

3For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence;

4he will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;

his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.

7A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand;

but it will not come near you.
8You will only look with your eyes
and see the recompense of the wicked.

9Because you have made the LORD your refuge,h
the Most High your habitation,

10no evil shall befall you,
no scourge come near your tent.

11For he will give his angels charge of you
to guard you in all your ways.

12On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.

13You will tread on the lion and the adder,
the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
14Because he clings to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.

15When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,

I will rescue him and honor him.
16With long life I will satisfy him,
and show him my salvation.
Thanksgiving for Vindication
A Psalm.
A Song for the Sabbath.
92[91] It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2to declare your merciful love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,

3to the music of the lute and the harp,
to the melody of the lyre.

4For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your work;
at the works of your hands I sing for joy.
5How great are your works, O LORD!
Your thoughts are very deep!

6The dull man cannot know,
the stupid cannot understand this:

7that, though the wicked sprout like grass
and all evildoers flourish,

they are doomed to destruction for ever,
8 but you, O LORD, are on high for ever.
9For, behold, your enemies, O LORD,
for, behold, your enemies shall perish;

all evildoers shall be scattered.
10But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
you have poured over me i fresh oil.

11My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies,
my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.

12The righteous flourish like the palm tree,
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

13They are planted in the house of the LORD,
they flourish in the courts of our God.

14They still bring forth fruit in old age,
they are ever full of sap and green,

15to show that the LORD is upright;
he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

The Majesty of God’s Rule
93[92] * The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty;

the LORD is robed, he is girded with strength.
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;
2 your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.

3The floods have lifted up, O LORD,
the floods have lifted up their voice,

the floods lift up their roaring.
4Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
mightier than the waves j of the sea,

the LORD on high is mighty!
5Your decrees are very sure;
holiness befits your house,

O LORD, for evermore.
God the Avenger of the Righteous
94[93] O LORD, you God of vengeance,

you God of vengeance, shine forth!
2Rise up, O judge of the earth;
render to the proud their deserts!

3O LORD, how long shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked exult?

4They pour out their arrogant words,
they boast, all the evildoers.

5They crush your people, O LORD,
and afflict your heritage.
6They slay the widow and the sojourner,
and murder the fatherless;

7and they say, “The LORD does not see;
the God of Jacob does not perceive.”

8Understand, O dullest of the people!
Fools, when will you be wise?

9He who planted the ear, does he not hear?
OceanofPDF.com
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
10He who chastens the nations, does he not chastise?
He who teaches men knowledge,

11the LORD, knows the thoughts of man,
that they are but a breath.
12Blessed is the man whom you chasten, O LORD,
and whom you teach out of your law

13to give him respite from days of trouble,
until a pit is dug for the wicked.

14For the LORD will not forsake his people;
he will not abandon his heritage;

15for justice will return to the righteous,
and all the upright in heart will follow it.

16Who rises up for me against the wicked?
Who stands up for me against evildoers?

17If the LORD had not been my help,
my soul would soon have dwelt in the land of silence.

18When I thought, “My foot slips,”
your mercy, O LORD, held me up.

19When the cares of my heart are many,
your consolations cheer my soul.

20Can wicked rulers be allied with you,
who frame mischief by statute?
21They band together against the life of the righteous,
and condemn the innocent to death.

22But the LORD has become my stronghold,
and my God the rock of my refuge.
23He will bring back on them their iniquity
and wipe them out for their wickedness;

the LORD our God will wipe them out.
A Call to Worship and Obedience
95[94] O come, let us sing to the LORD;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

3For the LORD is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.

4In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
5The sea is his, for he made it;
for his hands formed the dry land.

6O come, let us worship and bow down,
let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!

7For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.
O that today you would listen to his voice!
8 Harden not your hearts, as at Mer'ibah,
as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,

9when your fathers tested me,
and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

10For forty years I was wearied of that generation
and said, “They are a people who err in heart,

and they do not regard my ways.”
11Therefore I swore in my anger
that they should not enter my rest.
Praise to God Who Comes in Judgment
96[95] O sing to the LORD a new song;

sing to the LORD, all the earth!
2Sing to the LORD, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.

3Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!
4For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;
he is to be feared above all gods.
5For all the gods of the peoples are idols;
but the LORD made the heavens.

6Honor and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

7Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength!

8Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come into his courts!
9Worship the LORD in holy attire;
tremble before him, all the earth!
10Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns!
Yes, the world is established, it shall never be moved;

he will judge the peoples with equity.”
11Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
12 let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy
13 before the LORD, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with his truth.
The Glory of God’s Reign
97[96] The LORD reigns; let the earth rejoice;

let the many islands be glad!
2Clouds and thick darkness are round about him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3Fire goes before him,
and burns up his adversaries round about.
4His lightnings lighten the world;
the earth sees and trembles.

5The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the Lord of all the earth.

6The heavens proclaim his righteousness;
and all the peoples behold his glory.
7All worshipers of images are put to shame,
who make their boast in worthless idols;
let all his angels bow down before him.
8Zion hears and is glad,
and the daughters of Judah rejoice,

because of your judgments, O God.
9For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.

10The LORD loves those who hate evil;k
he preserves the lives of his saints;
he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
11Light dawns l for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
12Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!
Praise the Judge of the World
A Psalm.
98[97] O sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
have gotten him victory.
2The LORD has made known his victory,
he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.

3He has remembered his mercy and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.

All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
4Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises!

5Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody!

6With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!
7Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who dwell in it!
8Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing for joy together

9before the LORD, for he comes
to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
Praise to God for His Holiness
99[98] The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!

He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2The LORD is great in Zion;
he is exalted over all the peoples.
3Let them praise your great and awesome name!
Holy is he!
4Mighty King,m lover of justice,
you have established equity;

you have executed justice
and righteousness in Jacob.
5Extol the LORD our God;
worship at his footstool!

Holy is he!
6Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel also was among those who called on his name.

They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
7He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
they kept his testimonies,
and the statutes that he gave them.
8O LORD our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them,
but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9Extol the LORD our God,
and worship at his holy mountain;

for the LORD our God is holy!
All Lands Summoned to Praise God
A Psalm for the thank offering.
100[99] Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the lands! n
2 Serve the LORD with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!

3Know that the LORD is God!
It is he that made us, and we are his; o

we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!

Give thanks to him, bless his name!
5For the LORD is good;
his mercy endures for ever,

and his faithfulness to all generations.
A Sovereign’s Pledge of Integrity and Justice
A Psalm of David.
101[100] I will sing of mercy and of justice;
to you, O LORD, I will sing.
2I will give heed to the way that is blameless.
Oh, when will you come to me?

I will walk with integrity of heart
within my house;
3I will not set before my eyes
anything that is base.
I hate the work of those who fall away;
it shall not cling to me.
4Perverseness of heart shall be far from me;
I will know nothing of evil.

5Him who slanders his neighbor secretly
I will destroy.
The man of haughty looks and arrogant heart
I will not endure.
6I will look with favor on the faithful in the land,
that they may dwell with me;

he who walks in the way that is blameless
shall minister to me.
7No man who practices deceit
shall dwell in my house;
no man who utters lies
shall continue in my presence.
8Morning by morning I will destroy
all the wicked in the land,

cutting off all the evildoers
from the city of the LORD.
Prayer to the Eternal King for Help
A prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint
before the LORD.
102[101] Hear my prayer, O LORD;
let my cry come to you!
2Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress!

Incline your ear to me;
answer me speedily in the day when I call!
3For my days pass away like smoke,
and my bones burn like a furnace.
4My heart is struck down like grass, and withered;
I forget to eat my bread.

5Because of my loud groaning
my bones cling to my flesh.

6I am like a vulture p of the wilderness,
like an owl of the waste places;

7I lie awake,
I am like a lonely bird on the housetop.

8All the day my enemies taunt me,
those who deride me use my name for a curse.

9For I eat ashes like bread,
and mingle tears with my drink,

10because of your indignation and anger;
for you have taken me up and thrown me away.
11My days are like an evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.

12But you, O LORD, are enthroned for ever;
your name endures to all generations.

13You will arise and have pity on Zion;
it is the time to favor her;
the appointed time has come.
14For your servants hold her stones dear,
and have pity on her dust.

15The nations will fear the name of the LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory.

16For the LORD will build up Zion,
he will appear in his glory;
17he will regard the prayer of the destitute,
and will not despise their supplication.

18Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people yet unborn may praise the LORD:

19that he looked down from his holy height,
from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,
20to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to set free those who were doomed to die;

21that men may declare in Zion the name of the LORD,
and in Jerusalem his praise,

22when peoples gather together,
and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.

23He has broken my strength in mid-course;
he has shortened my days.

24“O my God,” I say, “do not take me from here
in the midst of my days,

you whose years endure
throughout all generations!”
25Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.

26They will perish, but you endure;
they will all wear out like a garment.

You change them like clothing, and they pass away;
27 but you are the same, and your years have no end.
28The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
their posterity shall be established before you.

Thanksgiving for God’s Goodness
A Psalm of David.
103[102] Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all that is within me, bless his holy name!
2Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,

4who redeems your life from the Pit,
who crowns you with mercy and compassion,

5who satisfies you with good as long as you live q
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

6The LORD works vindication
and justice for all who are oppressed.

7He made known his ways to Moses,
his acts to the people of Israel.
8The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.

9He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger for ever.

10He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.

11For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his mercy toward those who fear him;

12as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

13As a father pities his children,
so the LORD pities those who fear him.

14For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust.
15As for man, his days are like grass;
he flourishes like a flower of the field;

16for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.

17But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting
upon those who fear him,

and his righteousness to children’s children,
18to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.

19The LORD has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.
20Bless the LORD, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
hearkening to the voice of his word!
21Bless the LORD, all his hosts,
his ministers that do his will!

22Bless the LORD, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.

Bless the LORD, O my soul!
God the Creator and Provider
104[103] * Bless the LORD, O my soul!

O LORD my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with honor and majesty,
2 who cover yourself with light as with a garment,
who have stretched out the heavens like a tent,

3 who have laid the beams of your chambers on the waters,
who make the clouds your chariot,

who ride on the wings of the wind,
4who make the winds your messengers,
fire and flame your ministers.

5You set the earth on its foundations,
so that it should never be shaken.

6You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
the waters stood above the mountains.

7At your rebuke they fled;
at the sound of your thunder they took to flight.
8The mountains rose, the valleys sank down
to the place which you appointed for them.

9You set a bound which they should not pass,
so that they might not again cover the earth.

10You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
they flow between the hills,
11they give drink to every beast of the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.

12By them the birds of the air have their habitation;
they sing among the branches.

13From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.

14You cause the grass to grow for the cattle,
and plants for man to cultivate,r

that he may bring forth food from the earth,
15 and wine to gladden the heart of man,
oil to make his face shine,

and bread to strengthen man’s heart.
16The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly,
the cedars of Lebanon which he planted.
17In them the birds build their nests;
the stork has her home in the fir trees.

18The high mountains are for the wild goats;
the rocks are a refuge for the badgers.

19You have made the moon to mark the seasons;
the sun knows its time for setting.

20You make darkness, and it is night,
when all the beasts of the forest creep forth.

21The young lions roar for their prey,
seeking their food from God.

22When the sun rises, they get them away
and lie down in their dens.

23Man goes forth to his work
and to his labor until the evening.
24O LORD, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom you have made them all;

the earth is full of your creatures.
25Yonder is the sea, great and wide,
which teems with things innumerable,

living things both small and great.
26There go the ships,
and Leviathan which you formed to sport in it.

27These all look to you,
to give them their food in due season.
28When you give to them, they gather it up;
when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
29When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
when you take away their spirit, they die
and return to their dust.
30When you send forth your Spirit,s they are created;
and you renew the face of the earth.

31May the glory of the LORD endure for ever,
may the LORD rejoice in his works,

32who looks on the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke!

33I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.

34May my meditation be pleasing to him,
for I rejoice in the LORD.

35Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
and let the wicked be no more!

Bless the LORD, O my soul!
Praise the LORD!
God’s Faithfulness to Israel
105[104] O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name,

make known his deeds among the peoples!
2Sing to him, sing praises to him,
tell of all his wonderful works!

3Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!

4Seek the LORD and his strength,
seek his presence continually!

5Remember the wonderful works that he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,
6O offspring of Abraham his servant,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!

7He is the LORD our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.
8He is mindful of his covenant for ever,
of the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,

9the covenant which he made with Abraham,
his sworn promise to Isaac,

10which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant,

11saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as your portion for an inheritance.”

12When they were few in number,
of little account, and sojourners in it,
13wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people,

14he allowed no one to oppress them;
he rebuked kings on their account,

15saying, “Touch not my anointed ones,
do my prophets no harm!”
16When he summoned a famine on the land,
and broke every staff of bread,

17he had sent a man ahead of them,
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.

18His feet were hurt with shackles,
his neck was put in a collar of iron;

19until what he had said came to pass
the word of the LORD tested him.

20The king sent and released him,
the ruler of the peoples set him free;

21he made him lord of his house,
and ruler of all his possessions,

22to instruct t his princes at his pleasure,
and to teach his elders wisdom.

23Then Israel came to Egypt;
Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.

24And the LORD made his people very fruitful,
and made them stronger than their foes.

25He turned their hearts to hate his people,
to deal craftily with his servants.

26He sent Moses his servant,
and Aaron whom he had chosen.

27They wrought his signs among them,
and miracles in the land of Ham.

28He sent darkness, and made the land dark;
they rebelled u against his words.

29He turned their waters into blood,
and caused their fish to die.

30Their land swarmed with frogs,
even in the chambers of their kings.

31He spoke, and there came swarms of flies,
and gnats throughout their country.

32He gave them hail for rain,
and lightning that flashed through their land.

33He struck their vines and fig trees,
and shattered the trees of their country.

34He spoke, and the locusts came,
and young locusts without number;

35which devoured all the vegetation in their land,
and ate up the fruit of their ground.

36He struck all the first-born in their land,
the first issue of all their strength.

37Then he led forth Israel with silver and gold,
and there was none among his tribes who stumbled.

38Egypt was glad when they departed,
for dread of them had fallen upon it.

39He spread a cloud for a covering,
and fire to give light by night.

40They asked, and he brought quails,
and gave them bread from heaven in abundance.

41He opened the rock, and water gushed forth;
it flowed through the desert like a river.

42For he remembered his holy promise,
and Abraham his servant.
43So he led forth his people with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.

44And he gave them the lands of the nations;
and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples’ toil,

45to the end that they should keep his statutes,
and observe his laws.

Praise the LORD!
A Confession of Israel’s Sins
106[105] Praise the LORD!

O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
2Who can utter the mighty doings of the LORD,
or show forth all his praise?

3Blessed are they who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times!

4Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people;
help me when you deliver them;

5that I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,
that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation,

that I may glory with your heritage.
6Both we and our fathers have sinned;
we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.

7Our fathers, when they were in Egypt,
did not consider your wonderful works;

they did not remember the abundance of your mercy,
but rebelled against the Most Highv at the Red Sea.
8Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
that he might make known his mighty power.

9He rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry;
and he led them through the deep as through a desert.

10So he saved them from the hand of the foe,
and delivered them from the power of the enemy.

11And the waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them was left.

12Then they believed his words;
they sang his praise.

13But they soon forgot his works;
they did not wait for his counsel.

14But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness,
and put God to the test in the desert;

15he gave them what they asked,
but sent a wasting disease among them.

16When men in the camp were jealous of Moses
and Aaron, the holy one of the LORD,
17the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
and covered the company of Abi'ram.

18Fire also broke out in their company;
the flame burned up the wicked.

19They made a calf in Horeb
and worshiped a molten image.

20They exchanged the glory of God
for the image of an ox that eats grass.

21They forgot God, their Savior,
who had done great things in Egypt,

22wondrous works in the land of Ham,
and awesome things by the Red Sea.

23Therefore he said he would destroy them—
had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach before him,
to turn away his wrath from destroying them.
24Then they despised the pleasant land,
having no faith in his promise.

25They murmured in their tents,
and did not obey the voice of the LORD.

26Therefore he raised his hand and swore to them
that he would make them fall in the wilderness,

27and would disperse w their descendants among the nations,
scattering them over the lands.

28Then they attached themselves to the Ba'al of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead;

29they provoked the LORD to anger with their doings,
and a plague broke out among them.
30Then Phin'ehas stood up and interposed,
and the plague was stayed.

31And that has been reckoned to him as righteousness
from generation to generation for ever.

32They angered him at the waters of Mer'ibah,
and it went ill with Moses on their account;

33for they made his spirit bitter,
and he spoke words that were rash.

34They did not destroy the peoples,
as the LORD commanded them,

35but they mingled with the nations
and learned to do as they did.

36They served their idols,
which became a snare to them.
37They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to the demons;

38they poured out innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,

whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
and the land was polluted with blood.
39Thus they became unclean by their acts,
and played the harlot in their doings.

40Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people,
and he abhorred his heritage;

41he gave them into the hand of the nations,
so that those who hated them ruled over them.

42Their enemies oppressed them,
and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43Many times he delivered them,
but they were rebellious in their purposes,

and were brought low through their iniquity.
44Nevertheless he regarded their distress,
when he heard their cry.

45He remembered for their sake his covenant,
and relented according to the abundance of his mercy.
46He caused them to be pitied
by all those who held them captive.

47Save us, O LORD our God,
and gather us from among the nations,

that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
from everlasting to everlasting!
And let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise the LORD!
BOOK V
Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Many Troubles
107[106] O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

2Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
whom he has redeemed from trouble

3and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,

from the north and from the south.
4Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to a city to dwell in;

5hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.

6Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress;

7he led them by a straight way,
till they reached a city to dwell in.
8Let them thank the LORD for his merciful love,
for his wonderful works to the sons of men!

9For he satisfies him who is thirsty,
and the hungry he fills with good things.

10Some sat in darkness and in gloom,
prisoners in affliction and in irons,

11for they had rebelled against the words of God,
and spurned the counsel of the Most High.

12Their hearts were bowed down with hard labor;
they fell down, with none to help.


14he brought them out of darkness and gloom,
and broke their bonds asunder.

15Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,

16For he shatters the doors of bronze,
and cuts in two the bars of iron.

17Some were sickx through their sinful ways,
and because of their iniquities suffered affliction;

18they loathed any kind of food,
and they drew near to the gates of death.


20he sent forth his word, and healed them,
and delivered them from destruction.

21Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,

22And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!

23Some went down to the sea in ships,
doing business on the great waters;

24they saw the deeds of the LORD,
his wondrous works in the deep.

25For he commanded, and raised the stormy wind,
which lifted up the waves of the sea.

26They mounted up to heaven, they went down to the depths;
their courage melted away in their evil plight;

27they reeled and staggered like drunken men,
and were at their wits’ end.


29he made the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.

30Then they were glad because they had quiet,
and he brought them to their desired haven.

31Let them thank the LORD for his merciful love,

32Let them extol him in the congregation of the people,
and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

33He turns rivers into a desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,

34a fruitful land into a salty waste,
because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.

35He turns a desert into pools of water,
a parched land into springs of water.

36And there he lets the hungry dwell,
and they establish a city to live in;

37they sow fields, and plant vineyards,
and get a fruitful yield.

38By his blessing they multiply greatly;
and he does not let their cattle decrease.

39When they are diminished and brought low
through oppression, trouble, and sorrow,

40he pours contempt upon princes
and makes them wander in trackless wastes;

41but he raises up the needy out of affliction,
and makes their families like flocks.

42The upright see it and are glad;
and all wickedness stops its mouth.

43Whoever is wise, let him give heed to these things;
let men consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

Praise and Prayer for Victory
A Song.
A Psalm of David.
108[107] My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
Awake, my soul!
2Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!

3I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples,
I will sing praises to you among the nations.

4For your steadfast love is great above the heavens,
your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.


6That your beloved may be delivered,
give help by your right hand, and answer me!

7God has promised in his sanctuary: y
“With exultation I will divide up She'chem,

and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
8Gilead is mine; Manas'seh is mine;
E'phraim is my helmet;
Judah my scepter.
9Moab is my washbasin;
upon Edom I cast my shoe;

over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
10Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?

11Have you not rejected us, O God?
You do not go forth, O God, with our armies.

12O grant us help against the foe,
for vain is the help of man!

13With God we shall do valiantly;
it is he who will tread down our foes.

Prayer for Vindication and Vengeance
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
109[108] Be not silent, O God of my praise!
2For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,
speaking against me with lying tongues.

3They beset me with words of hate,
and attack me without cause.
4In return for my love they accuse me,
even as I make prayer for them.z

5So they reward me evil for good,
and hatred for my love.

6Appoint a wicked man against him;
let an accuser bring him to trial.a

7When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;
let his prayer be counted as sin!
8May his days be few;
may another seize his goods!

9May his children be fatherless,
and his wife a widow!

10May his children wander about and beg;
may they be driven out of b the ruins they inhabit!

11May the creditor seize all that he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!

12Let there be none to extend kindness to him,
nor any to pity his fatherless children!

13May his posterity be cut off;
may his name be blotted out in the second generation!

14May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD,
and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!

15Let them be before the LORD continually;
and may his c memory be cut off from the earth!

16For he did not remember to show kindness,
but pursued the poor and needy

and the brokenhearted to their death.
17He loved to curse; let curses come on him!
He did not like blessing; may it be far from him!

18He clothed himself with cursing as his coat,
may it soak into his body like water,

like oil into his bones!
19May it be like a garment which he wraps round him,
like a belt with which he daily girds himself!

20May this be the reward of my accusers from the LORD,
of those who speak evil against my life!

21But you, O GOD my Lord,
deal on my behalf for your name’s sake;
because your mercy is good, deliver me!
22For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is stricken within me.

23I am gone, like a shadow at evening;
I am shaken off like a locust.

24My knees are weak through fasting;
my body has become gaunt.

25I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they wag their heads.

26Help me, O LORD my God!
Save me according to your merciful love!

27Let them know that this is your hand;
you, O LORD, have done it!

28Let them curse, but do bless!
Let my assailants be put to shame;d may your servant be glad!

29May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a mantle!

30With my mouth I will give great thanks to the LORD;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.

31For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save him from those who condemn him to death.

Assurance of Victory for God’s Priest-King
A Psalm of David.
110[109] * The LORD says to my lord:
“Sit at my right hand,
till I make your enemies your footstool.”
2The LORD sends forth from Zion
your mighty scepter.

Rule in the midst of your foes!
3Yours is dominion
on the day you lead your host

in holy splendor.e
From the womb of the morning
I begot you. f
4The LORD has sworn
and will not change his mind,

“You are a priest for ever
according to the order of Melchiz'edek.”
5The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.

6He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;

he will shatter chiefs g
over the wide earth.
7He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.

Praise for God’s Wonderful Works

I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
2Great are the works of the LORD,
studied by all who have pleasure in them.

3Full of honor and majesty is his work,
and his righteousness endures for ever.

4He has caused his wonderful works to be remembered;
the LORD is gracious and merciful.

5He provides food for those who fear him;
he is ever mindful of his covenant.

6He has shown his people the power of his works,
in giving them the heritage of the nations.

7The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy,

8they are established for ever and ever,
to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.

9He sent redemption to his people;
he has commanded his covenant for ever.

Holy and awesome is his name!
10The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;
a good understanding have all those who practice it.

His praise endures for ever!
Blessings of the Righteous

Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commandments!
2His descendants will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3Wealth and riches are in his house;
and his righteousness endures for ever.

4Light rises in the darkness for the upright;
the LORD h is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

5It is well with the man who deals generously and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice.

6For the righteous will never be moved;
he will be remembered for ever.

7He is not afraid of evil tidings;
his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.

8His heart is steady, he will not be afraid,
until he sees his desire on his adversaries.

9He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures for ever;

his horn is exalted in honor.
10The wicked man sees it and is angry;
he gnashes his teeth and melts away;

the desire of the wicked man comes to nought.
God the Helper of the Needy

Praise, O servants of the LORD,
praise the name of the LORD!
2Blessed be the name of the LORD
from this time forth and for evermore!

3From the rising of the sun to its setting
the name of the LORD is to be praised!

4The LORD is high above all nations,
and his glory above the heavens!

5Who is like the LORD our God,
who is seated on high,

6who looks far down
upon the heavens and the earth?

7He raises the poor from the dust,
and lifts the needy from the ash heap,

8to make them sit with princes,
with the princes of his people.
9He gives the barren woman a home,
making her the joyous mother of children.

Praise the LORD!
God’s Wonders at the Exodus
114[113] When Israel went forth from Egypt,

the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,
2Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.

3The sea looked and fled,
Jordan turned back.

4The mountains skipped like rams,
the hills like lambs.

5What ails you, O sea, that you flee?
O Jordan, that you turn back?

6O mountains, that you skip like rams?
O hills, like lambs?

7Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the LORD,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,

8who turns the rock into a pool of water,
the flint into a spring of water.

The Impotence of Idols and the Greatness of God
115 Not to us, O LORD, not to us,

but to your name give glory,
for the sake of your mercy and your faithfulness!
2Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”

3Our God is in the heavens;
he does whatever he pleases.
4Their idols are silver and gold,
the work of men’s hands.

5They have mouths, but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see.

6They have ears, but do not hear;
noses, but do not smell.

7They have hands, but do not feel;
feet, but do not walk;

and they do not make a sound in their throat.
8Those who make them are like them;
so are all who trust in them.

9O Israel, trust in the LORD!
He is their help and their shield.

10O house of Aaron, put your trust in the LORD!

11You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD!

12The LORD has been mindful of us; he will bless us;
he will bless the house of Israel;

he will bless the house of Aaron;
13he will bless those who fear the LORD,
both small and great.

14May the LORD give you increase,
you and your children!

15May you be blessed by the LORD,
who made heaven and earth!

16The heavens are the LORD’s heavens,
but the earth he has given to the sons of men.

17The dead do not praise the LORD,
nor do any that go down into silence.
18But we will bless the LORD
from this time forth and for evermore.

Praise the LORD!
Thanksgiving for Recovery from Illness
116[114] I love the LORD, because he has heard

my voice and my supplications.
2Because he inclined his ear to me,
therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

3The snares of death encompassed me;
the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;

I suffered distress and anguish.
4Then I called on the name of the LORD:
“O LORD, I beg you, save my life!”

5Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;
our God is merciful.

6The LORD preserves the simple;
when I was brought low, he saved me.

7Return, O my soul, to your rest;
for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.

8For you have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,

my feet from stumbling;
9I walk before the LORD
in the land of the living.

[115] 10I kept my faith, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted”;
11I said in my consternation,
“Men are all a vain hope.”

12What shall I render to the LORD
for all his bounty to me?

13I will lift up the chalice of salvation
and call on the name of the LORD,

14I will pay my vows to the LORD
in the presence of all his people.

15Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his saints.
16O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid.

You have loosed my bonds.
17I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on the name of the LORD.

18I will pay my vows to the LORD
in the presence of all his people,

19in the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.

Praise the LORD!
Universal Call to Worship
117[116] Praise the LORD, all nations!

Extol him, all peoples!
2For great is his mercy toward us;
and the faithfulness of the LORD endures for ever.

Praise the LORD!
A Song of Victory
118[117] O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

his mercy endures for ever!
2Let Israel say,
“His mercy endures for ever.”

3Let the house of Aaron say,

4Let those who fear the LORD say,

5Out of my distress I called on the LORD;
the LORD answered me and set me free.

6With the LORD on my side I do not fear.
What can man do to me?
7The LORD is on my side to help me;
I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.

8It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to put confidence in man.

9It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to put confidence in princes.
10All nations surrounded me;
in the name of the LORD I cut them off!
11They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side;

12They surrounded me like bees,
they blazed i like a fire of thorns;

13I was pushed hard, j so that I was falling,
but the LORD helped me.

14The LORD is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation.

15Listen, glad songs of victory
in the tents of the righteous:

“The right hand of the LORD does valiantly!
16 The right hand of the LORD is exalted;
the right hand of the LORD does valiantly!”

17I shall not die, but I shall live,
and recount the deeds of the LORD.

18The LORD has chastened me sorely,
but he has not given me over to death.

19Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them

and give thanks to the LORD.
20This is the gate of the LORD;
the righteous shall enter through it.

21I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.

22The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.

23This is the LORD’s doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.

24This is the day which the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.

25Save us, we beg you, O LORD!
O LORD, we beg you, give us success!

26Blessed be he who enters in the name of the LORD!
We bless you from the house of the LORD.

27The LORD is God,
and he has given us light.

Bind the festal procession with branches,
up to the horns of the altar!
28You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
you are my God, I will extol you.

29O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

The Glories of God’s Law
119[118] * Blessed are those whose way is blameless,

who walk in the law of the LORD!
2Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with their whole heart,

3who also do no wrong,
but walk in his ways!
4You have commanded your precepts
to be kept diligently.
5O that my ways may be steadfast
in keeping your statutes!

6Then I shall not be put to shame,
having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.

7I will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn your righteous ordinances.

8I will observe your statutes;
O forsake me not utterly!

9How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.

10With my whole heart I seek you;
let me not wander from your commandments!

11I have laid up your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.

12Blessed are you, O LORD;
teach me your statutes!
13With my lips I declare
all the ordinances of your mouth.

14In the way of your testimonies I delight
as much as in all riches.

15I will meditate on your precepts,
and fix my eyes on your ways.

16I will delight in your statutes;
I will not forget your word.

17Deal bountifully with your servant,
that I may live and observe your word.

18Open my eyes, that I may behold
wondrous things out of your law.

19I am a sojourner on earth;
hide not your commandments from me!

20My soul is consumed with longing
for your ordinances at all times.

21You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones,
who wander from your commandments;

22take away from me their scorn and contempt,
for I have kept your testimonies.

23Even though princes sit plotting against me,
your servant will meditate on your statutes.

24Your testimonies are my delight,
they are my counselors.

25My soul clings to the dust;
revive me according to your word!

26When I told of my ways, you answered me;

27Make me understand the way of your precepts,
and I will meditate on your wondrous works.

28My soul melts away for sorrow;
strengthen me according to your word!

29Put false ways far from me;
and graciously teach me your law!

30I have chosen the way of faithfulness,
I set your ordinances before me.

31I cling to your testimonies, O LORD;
let me not be put to shame!

32I will run in the way of your commandments
when you enlarge my understanding!
OceanofPDF.com
33Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes;
and I will keep it to the end.

34Give me understanding, that I may keep your law
and observe it with my whole heart.

35Lead me in the path of your commandments,
for I delight in it.
36Incline my heart to your testimonies,
and not to gain!

37Turn my eyes from looking at vanities;
and give me life in your ways.

38Confirm to your servant your promise,
which is for those who fear you.

39Turn away the reproach which I dread;
for your ordinances are good.

40Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your righteousness give me life!

41Let your mercy come to me, O LORD,
your salvation according to your promise;

42then shall I have an answer for those who taunt me,
for I trust in your word.

43And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth,
for my hope is in your ordinances.

44I will keep your law continually,
for ever and ever;

45and I shall walk at liberty,
for I have sought your precepts.

46I will also speak of your testimonies before kings,
and shall not be put to shame;
47for I find my delight in your commandments,
which I love.
48I revere your commandments, which I love,
and I will meditate on your statutes.

49Remember your word to your servant,
in which you have made me hope.

50This is my comfort in my affliction
that your promise gives me life.
51Godless men utterly deride me,
but I do not turn away from your law.

52When I think of your ordinances from of old,
I take comfort, O LORD.

53Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked,
who forsake your law.

54Your statutes have been my songs
in the house of my pilgrimage.

55I remember your name in the night, O LORD,
and keep your law.

56This blessing has fallen to me,
that I have kept your precepts.

57The LORD is my portion;
I promise to keep your words.

58I entreat your favor with all my heart;
be gracious to me according to your promise.

59When I think of your ways,
I turn my feet to your testimonies;

60I hasten and do not delay
to keep your commandments.

61Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me,
I do not forget your law.
62At midnight I rise to praise you,
because of your righteous ordinances.
63I am a companion of all who fear you,
of those who keep your precepts.

64The earth, O LORD, is full of your steadfast love;
65You have dealt well with your servant,
O LORD, according to your word.

66Teach me good judgment and knowledge,
for I believe in your commandments.
67Before I was afflicted I went astray;
but now I keep your word.
68You are good and do good;
teach me your statutes.

69The godless besmear me with lies,
but with my whole heart I keep your precepts;
70their heart is gross like fat,
but I delight in your law.
71It is good for me that I was afflicted,
that I might learn your statutes.

72The law of your mouth is better to me
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
73Your hands have made and fashioned me;
give me understanding that I may learn your commandments.

74Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice,
because I have hoped in your word.

75I know, O LORD, that your judgments are right,
and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
76Let your mercy be ready to comfort me
according to your promise to your servant.
77Let your compassion come to me, that I may live;
for your law is my delight.

78Let the godless be put to shame,
because they have subverted me with guile;
as for me, I will meditate on your precepts.
79Let those who fear you turn to me,
that they may know your testimonies.
80May my heart be blameless in your statutes,
that I may not be put to shame!

81My soul languishes for your salvation;
I hope in your word.
82My eyes fail with watching for your promise;
I ask, “When will you comfort me?”

83For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten your statutes.

84How long must your servant endure?
When will you judge those who persecute me?
85Godless men have dug pitfalls for me,
men who do not conform to your law.

86All your commandments are sure;
they persecute me with falsehood; help me!
87They have almost made an end of me on earth;
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88In your mercy spare my life,
that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.
89For ever, O LORD, your word
is firmly fixed in the heavens.

90Your faithfulness endures to all generations;
you have established the earth, and it stands fast.
91By your appointment they stand this day;
for all things are your servants.
92If your law had not been my delight,
I should have perished in my affliction.

93I will never forget your precepts;
for by them you have given me life.

94I am yours, save me;
for I have sought your precepts.

95The wicked lie in wait to destroy me;
but I consider your testimonies.

96I have seen a limit to all perfection,
but your commandment is exceedingly broad.

97Oh, how I love your law!
It is my meditation all the day.
98Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies,
for it is ever with me.

99I have more understanding than all my teachers,
for your testimonies are my meditation.

100I understand more than the aged,
for I keep your precepts.

101I hold back my feet from every evil way,
in order to keep your word.

102I do not turn aside from your ordinances,
for you have taught me.
103How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104Through your precepts I get understanding;
therefore I hate every false way.

105Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.
106I have sworn an oath and confirmed it,
to observe your righteous ordinances.

107I am sorely afflicted;
give me life, O LORD, according to your word!

108Accept my offerings of praise, O LORD,
and teach me your ordinances.

109I hold my life in my hand continually,
but I do not forget your law.

110The wicked have laid a snare for me,
but I do not stray from your precepts.

111Your testimonies are my heritage for ever;
yes, they are the joy of my heart.
112I incline my heart to perform your statutes
for ever, to the end.
113I hate double-minded men,
but I love your law.

114You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in your word.
115Depart from me, you evildoers,
that I may keep the commandments of my God.
116Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live,
and let me not be put to shame in my hope!

117Hold me up, that I may be safe
and have regard for your statutes continually!

118You spurn all who go astray from your statutes;
yes, their cunning is in vain.

119All the wicked of the earth you count as dross;
therefore I love your testimonies.

120My flesh trembles for fear of you,
and I am afraid of your judgments.

121I have done what is just and right;
do not leave me to my oppressors.

122Be surety for your servant for good;
let not the godless oppress me.

123My eyes fail with watching for your salvation,
and for the fulfilment of your righteous promise.
124Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love,
and teach me your statutes.
125I am your servant; give me understanding,
that I may know your testimonies!

126It is time for the LORD to act,
for your law has been broken.

127Therefore I love your commandments
above gold, above fine gold.

128Therefore I direct my steps by all your precepts; k
I hate every false way.

129Your testimonies are wonderful;
therefore my soul keeps them.

130The unfolding of your words gives light;
it imparts understanding to the simple.

131With open mouth I pant,
because I long for your commandments.
132Turn to me and be gracious to me,
as you always do toward those who love your name.
133Keep steady my steps according to your promise,
and let no iniquity get dominion over me.

134Redeem me from man’s oppression,
that I may keep your precepts.

135Make your face shine upon your servant,
and teach me your statutes.

136My eyes shed streams of tears,
because men do not keep your law.

137You are righteous, O LORD,
and right are your judgments.

138You have appointed your testimonies in righteousness
and in all faithfulness.
139My zeal consumes me,
because my foes forget your words.
140Your promise is well tried,
and your servant loves it.

141I am small and despised,
yet I do not forget your precepts.

142Your righteousness is righteous for ever,
and your law is true.

143Trouble and anguish have come upon me,
but your commandments are my delight.
144Your testimonies are righteous for ever;
give me understanding that I may live.

145With my whole heart I cry; answer me, O LORD!
I will keep your statutes.

146I cry to you; save me,
that I may observe your testimonies.

147I rise before dawn and cry for help;
I hope in your words.

148My eyes are awake before the watches of the night,
that I may meditate upon your promise.

149Hear my voice in your steadfast love;
O LORD, in your justice preserve my life.

150They draw near who persecute me with evil purpose;
they are far from your law.
151But you are near, O LORD,
and all your commandments are true.

152Long have I known from your testimonies
that you have founded them for ever.

153Look on my affliction and deliver me,
for I do not forget your law.

154Plead my cause and redeem me;
give me life according to your promise!

155Salvation is far from the wicked,
for they do not seek your statutes.
156Great is your mercy, O LORD;
give me life according to your justice.

157Many are my persecutors and my adversaries,
but I do not swerve from your testimonies.
158I look at the faithless with disgust,
because they do not keep your commands.

159Consider how I love your precepts!
Preserve my life according to your steadfast love.

160The sum of your word is truth;
and every one of your righteous ordinances endures for ever.

161Princes persecute me without cause,
but my heart stands in awe of your words.

162I rejoice at your word
like one who finds great spoil.

163I hate and abhor falsehood,
but I love your law.

164Seven times a day I praise you
for your righteous ordinances.

165Great peace have those who love your law;
nothing can make them stumble.
166I hope for your salvation, O LORD,
and I do your commandments.

167My soul keeps your testimonies;
I love them exceedingly.

168I keep your precepts and testimonies,
for all my ways are before you.

169Let my cry come before you, O LORD;
give me understanding according to your word!

170Let my supplication come before you;
deliver me according to your word.

171My lips will pour forth praise
that you teach me your statutes.

172My tongue will sing of your word,
for all your commandments are right.
173Let your hand be ready to help me,
for I have chosen your precepts.

174I long for your salvation, O LORD,
and your law is my delight.

175Let my soul live, that I may praise you,
and let your ordinances help me.

176I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant,
for I do not forget your commandments.

Prayer for Deliverance from Slanderers
A Song of Ascents.
120[119] * In my distress I cry to the LORD,
that he may answer me:
2“Deliver me, O LORD,
from lying lips,

from a deceitful tongue.”
3What shall be given to you?
And what more shall be done to you,

you deceitful tongue?
4A warrior’s sharp arrows,
with glowing coals of the broom tree!

5Woe is me, that I sojourn in Meshech,
that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!

6Too long have I had my dwelling
among those who hate peace.

7I am for peace;
but when I speak,

they are for war!
A Song of Ascents.
121[120] I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
2My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.

3He will not let your foot be moved,
he who keeps you will not slumber.
4Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

5The LORD is your keeper;
the LORD is your shade

on your right hand.
6The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7The LORD will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.

8The LORD will keep
your going out and your coming in

Song of Praise; and a Prayer for Jerusalem
A Song of Ascents.
Of David.
122[121] I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the LORD!”
2Our feet have been standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem!

3Jerusalem, built as a city
which is bound firmly together,

4to which the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the LORD.
5There thrones for judgment were set,
the thrones of the house of David.

6Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
“May they prosper who love you!

7Peace be within your walls,
and security within your towers!”

8For my brethren and companions’ sake
I will say, “Peace be within you!”

9For the sake of the house of the LORD our God,
I will seek your good.

Supplication for Mercy
A Song of Ascents.
123[122] To you I lift up my eyes,
O you who are enthroned in the heavens!
2Behold, as the eyes of servants
look to the hand of their master,

as the eyes of a maid
to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the LORD our God,
till he have mercy upon us.
3Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us,
for we have had more than enough of contempt.

4Too long our soul has been sated
with the scorn of those who are at ease,

the contempt of the proud.
Thanksgiving for Israel’s Deliverance
A Song of Ascents.
Of David.
124[123] If it had not been the LORD who was on our side,
let Israel now say—
2if it had not been the LORD who was on our side,
when men rose up against us,

3then they would have swallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us;

4then the flood would have swept us away,
the torrent would have gone over us;

5then over us would have gone
the raging waters.
6Blessed be the LORD,
who has not given us

as prey to their teeth!
7We have escaped as a bird
from the snare of the fowlers;

the snare is broken,
and we have escaped!
8Our help is in the name of the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.

The Security of God’s People
A Song of Ascents.
125[124] Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be moved, but abides for ever.
2As the mountains are round about Jerusalem,
so the LORD is round about his people,

3For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest
upon the land allotted to the righteous,

lest the righteous put forth
their hands to do wrong.
4Do good, O LORD, to those who are good,
and to those who are upright in their hearts!

5But those who turn aside upon their crooked ways
the LORD will lead away with evildoers!

Peace be in Israel!
A Harvest of Joy
A Song of Ascents.
126[125] When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, l
we were like those who dream.
2Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;

then they said among the nations,
“The LORD has done great things for them.”
3The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad.
4Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the watercourses in the Neg'eb!

5May those who sow in tears
reap with shouts of joy!
6He that goes forth weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,

shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.
God’s Blessings in the Home
A Song of Ascents.
Of Solomon.
127[126] Unless the LORD builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
2It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,

eating the bread of anxious toil;
for m he gives to his beloved sleep.
3Behold, sons are a heritage from the LORD,
the fruit of the womb a reward.

4Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the sons of one’s youth.

5Happy is the man who has
his quiver full of them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
The Happy Home of the Faithful
A Song of Ascents.
128[127] Blessed is every one who fears the LORD,
who walks in his ways!
2You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;
you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you.

3Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
within your house;

your children will be like olive shoots
around your table.
4Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
who fears the LORD.

5The LORD bless you from Zion!
May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem

all the days of your life!
6May you see your children’s children!
Peace be upon Israel!

Prayer for the Downfall of Israel’s Enemies
A Song of Ascents.
129[128] “Sorely have they afflicted me from my youth,”
let Israel now say—
2“Sorely have they afflicted me from my youth,
yet they have not prevailed against me.

3The plowers plowed upon my back;
they made long their furrows.”

4The LORD is righteous;
he has cut the cords of the wicked.
5May all who hate Zion
be put to shame and turned backward!

6Let them be like the grass on the housetops,
which withers before it grows up,

7with which the reaper does not fill his hand
or the binder of sheaves his arms,

8while those who pass by do not say,
“The blessing of the LORD be upon you!

We bless you in the name of the LORD!”
Waiting for Divine Redemption
A Song of Ascents.
130[129] Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD!
2 Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive

to the voice of my supplications!
3If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,
Lord, who could stand?

4But there is forgiveness with you,
that you may be feared.

5I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;

6my soul waits for the LORD
more than watchmen for the morning,
more than watchmen for the morning.
7O Israel, hope in the LORD!
For with the LORD there is mercy,

and with him is plenteous redemption.
8And he will redeem Israel
from all his iniquities.

Song of Quiet Trust
A Song of Ascents.
Of David.
131[130] O LORD, my heart is not lifted up,
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.
2But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a child quieted at its mother’s breast;

like a child that is quieted is my soul.
3O Israel, hope in the LORD

The Eternal Dwelling of God in Zion
A Song of Ascents.
132[131] Remember, O LORD, in David’s favor,
his humility;
2how he swore to the LORD
and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,

3“I will not enter my house
or get into my bed;

4I will not give sleep to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
5until I find a place for the LORD,
a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

6Behold, we heard of it in Eph'rathah,
we found it in the fields of Ja'ar.

7“Let us go to his dwelling place;
let us worship at his footstool!”
8Arise, O LORD, and go to your resting place,
you and the ark of your might.

9Let your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let your saints shout for joy.

10For your servant David’s sake
do not turn away the face of your anointed one.

11The LORD swore to David a sure oath
from which he will not turn back:

“One of the sons of your body
I will set on your throne.
12If your sons keep my covenant
and my testimonies which I shall teach them,

their sons also for ever
shall sit upon your throne.”
13For the LORD has chosen Zion;
he has desired it for his habitation:

14“This is my resting place for ever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.

15I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.

16Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.

17There I will make a horn to sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
18His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but upon himself his crown will shed its luster.”

The Blessedness of Unity
A Song of Ascents.
133[132] Behold, how good and pleasant it is
when brothers dwell in unity!
2It is like the precious oil upon the head,
running down upon the beard,

upon the beard of Aaron,
running down on the collar of his robes!
3It is like the dew of Hermon,
which falls on the mountains of Zion!
For there the LORD has commanded the blessing,
life for evermore.
Praise in the Night
A Song of Ascents.
134[133] Come, bless the LORD,
all you servants of the LORD,
who stand by night in the house of the LORD!
2Lift up your hands to the holy place,
and bless the LORD!

3May the LORD bless you from Zion,
he who made heaven and earth!

Praise for God’s Goodness and Might

Praise the name of the LORD,
give praise, O servants of the LORD,
2you that stand in the house of the LORD,
in the courts of the house of our God!

3Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good;
sing to his name, for he is gracious!

4For the LORD has chosen Jacob for himself,
Israel as his own possession.

5For I know that the LORD is great,
and that our Lord is above all gods.

6Whatever the LORD pleases he does,
in heaven and on earth,

in the seas and all deeps.
7He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth,
who makes lightnings for the rain

and brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
8He it was who struck the first-born of Egypt,
both of man and of beast;

9who in your midst, O Egypt,
sent signs and wonders

against Pharaoh and all his servants;
10who struck many nations
and slew mighty kings,

11Sihon, king of the Amorites,
and Og, king of Bashan,

and all the kingdoms of Canaan,
12and gave their land as a heritage,
a heritage to his people Israel.

13Your name, O LORD, endures for ever,
your renown, O LORD, throughout all ages.
14For the LORD will vindicate his people,
and have compassion on his servants.

15The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
the work of men’s hands.

16They have mouths, but they speak not,
they have eyes, but they see not,

17they have ears, but they hear not,
nor is there any breath in their mouths.

18Like them be those who make them!—
yes, every one who trusts in them!

19O house of Israel, bless the LORD!
O house of Aaron, bless the LORD!

20O house of Levi, bless the LORD!
You that fear the LORD, bless the LORD!
21Blessed be the LORD from Zion,
he who dwells in Jerusalem!

Praise the LORD!
God’s Work in Creation and in History
136[135] O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,

for his mercy endures for ever.
2O give thanks to the God of gods,

3O give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his mercy endures for ever;

4to him who alone does great wonders,

5to him who by understanding made the heavens,

6to him who spread out the earth upon the waters,

7to him who made the great lights,

8the sun to rule over the day,

9the moon and stars to rule over the night,

10to him who struck the first-born of Egypt,

11and brought Israel out from among them,

12with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,

13to him who divided the Red Sea in two,

14and made Israel pass through the midst of it,

15but overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea,

16to him who led his people through the wilderness,

17to him who struck great kings,

18and slew famous kings,

19Sihon, king of the Amorites,

20and Og, king of Bashan,

21and gave their land as a heritage,
22a heritage to Israel his servant,

23It is he who remembered us in our low estate,

24and rescued us from our foes,

25he who gives food to all flesh,

26O give thanks to the God of heaven,

Lament over the Destruction of Jerusalem
137[136] * By the waters o of Babylon, there we sat down and wept,

when we remembered Zion.
2On the willows p there
we hung up our lyres.

3For there our captors
required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4How shall we sing the LORD’s song
in a foreign land?
5If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand wither!

6Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth,
if I do not remember you,

if I do not set Jerusalem
above my highest joy!
7Remember, O LORD, against the E'domites
the day of Jerusalem,

how they said, “Raze it, raze it!
Down to its foundations!”
8O daughter of Babylon, you devastator! q
Happy shall he be who repays you

with what you have done to us!
9Happy shall he be who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rock!

Thanksgiving and Praise
A Psalm of David.
138[137] I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart;
before the angels I sing your praise;
2I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your mercy and your faithfulness;
for you have exalted above everything
your name and your word. r
3On the day I called, you answered me,
my strength of soul you increased. s

4All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O LORD,
for they have heard the words of your mouth;

5and they shall sing of the ways of the LORD,
for great is the glory of the LORD.

6For though the LORD is high, he regards the lowly;
but the haughty he knows from afar.

7Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;

you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
8The LORD will fulfil his purpose for me;
your mercy, O LORD, endures for ever.

Do not forsake the work of your hands.
The Inescapable God
To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
139[138] O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
2You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.

3You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.

5You beset me behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.

6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high, I cannot attain it.

7Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
8If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!

9If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.

11If I say, “Let only darkness cover me,
and the light about me be night,”

12even the darkness is not dark to you,
the night is bright as the day;

for darkness is as light with you.
13For you formed my inward parts,
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

14I praise you, for I am wondrously made.t
Wonderful are your works!

You know me right well;
15 my frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,

intricately wrought in the depths of the earth.
16Your eyes beheld my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,

the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
17How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
When I awake, I am still with you.u
19O that you would slay the wicked, O God,
and that men of blood would depart from me,
20men who maliciously defy you,
who lift themselves up against you for evil! v

21Do I not hate them that hate you, O LORD?
And do I not loathe them that rise up against you?

22I hate them with perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.

23Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!

24And see if there be any wicked w way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting! x

To the choirmaster.
A Psalm of David.
140[139] Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men;
preserve me from violent men,
2who plan evil things in their heart,
and stir up wars continually.

3They make their tongue sharp as a serpent’s,
and under their lips is the poison of vipers.

Selah
4Guard me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked;
preserve me from violent men,
who have planned to trip up my feet.
5Arrogant men have hidden a trap for me,
and with cords they have spread a net, y

by the wayside they have set snares for me.
Selah
6I say to the LORD, You are my God;
give ear to the voice of my supplications, O LORD!

7O LORD, my Lord, my strong deliverer,
you have covered my head in the day of battle.

8Grant not, O LORD, the desires of the wicked;
do not further his evil plot!
Selah
9Those who surround me lift up their head,z
let the mischief of their lips overwhelm them!

10Let burning coals fall upon them!
Let them be cast into pits, no more to rise!

11Let not the slanderer be established in the land;
let evil hunt down the violent man speedily!

12I know that the LORD maintains the cause of the afflicted,
and executes justice for the needy.

13Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name;
the upright shall dwell in your presence.
Prayer for Preservation from Evil
A Psalm of David.
141[140] I call upon you, O LORD; make haste to me!
Give ear to my voice, when I call to you!
2Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,
and the lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice!

3Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD,
keep watch over the door of my lips!

4Incline not my heart to any evil,
to busy myself with wicked deeds
in company with men who work iniquity;
and let me not eat of their dainties!
5 Let a good man strike or rebuke me in kindness,
but let the oil of the wicked never anoint my head; a

for my prayer is continually b against their wicked deeds.
6When they are given over to those who shall condemn them,
then they shall learn that the word of the LORD is true.
7As a rock which one cleaves and shatters on the land,
so shall their bones be strewn at the mouth of Sheol. c

8But my eyes are toward you, O LORD God;
in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!

9Keep me from the trap which they have laid for me,
and from the snares of evildoers!

10Let the wicked together fall into their own nets,
while I escape.
Prayer for Deliverance from Persecutors
A Maskil of David, when he was in the cave.
A Prayer.
142[141] I cry with my voice to the LORD,
with my voice I make supplication to the LORD,
2I pour out my complaint before him,
I tell my trouble before him.

3When my spirit is faint,
you know my way!
In the path where I walk
they have hidden a trap for me.
4I look to the right and watch,d
but there is none who takes notice of me;

no refuge remains to me,
no man cares for me.
5I cry to you, O LORD;
I say, You are my refuge,

my portion in the land of the living.
6Give heed to my cry;
for I am brought very low!

Deliver me from my persecutors;
for they are too strong for me!
7Bring me out of prison,
that I may give thanks to your name!
The righteous will surround me;
for you will deal bountifully with me.
A Psalm of David.
143[142] Hear my prayer, O LORD; give ear to my supplications!
In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!
2Enter not into judgment with your servant;
for no man living is righteous before you.

3For the enemy has pursued me;
he has crushed my life to the ground;
he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4Therefore my spirit faints within me;
my heart within me is appalled.

5I remember the days of old,
I meditate on all that you have done;

I muse on what your hands have wrought.
6I stretch out my hands to you;
my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.

Selah
7Make haste to answer me, O LORD!
My spirit fails!
Hide not your face from me,
lest I be like those who go down to the Pit.
8Let me hear in the morning of your merciful love,
for in you I put my trust.
Teach me the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my soul.
9Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies!
I have fled to you for refuge! e

10Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God!

Let your good spirit lead me
on a level path!
11For your name’s sake, O LORD, preserve my life!
In your righteousness bring me out of trouble!

12And in your steadfast love cut off my enemies,
and destroy all my adversaries,

for I am your servant.
Prayer for National Deliverance and Security
A Psalm of David.
144[143] Blessed be the LORD, my rock,
who trains my hands for war,
and my fingers for battle;
2my mercy f and my fortress,
my stronghold and my deliverer,
my shield and he in whom I take refuge,
who subdues my people under me. g
3O LORD, what is man that you regard him,
or the son of man that you think of him?

4Man is like a breath,
his days are like a passing shadow.

5Bow your heavens, O LORD, and come down!
Touch the mountains that they smoke!

6Flash forth the lightning and scatter them,
send out your arrows and rout them!

7Stretch forth your hand from on high,
rescue me and deliver me from the many waters,

from the hand of aliens,
8whose mouths speak lies,
and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

9I will sing a new song to you, O God;
upon a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,

10who give victory to kings,
who rescue David your h servant from the cruel sword.

11Rescue me from the cruel sword,
and deliver me from the hand of aliens,

whose mouths speak lies,
and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
12May our sons in their youth
be like plants full grown,

our daughters like corner pillars
cut for the structure of a palace;
13may our garners be full,
providing all manner of store;

may our sheep bring forth thousands
and ten thousands in our fields;
14may our cattle be heavy with young,
suffering no mischance or failure in bearing;

may there be no cry of distress in our streets!
15Happy the people to whom such blessings fall!
Happy the people whose God is the LORD!

The Greatness and the Goodness of God
A Song of Praise.
Of David.
145[144] I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name for ever and ever.
2Every day I will bless you,
and praise your name for ever and ever.

3Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.

4One generation shall laud your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.

5On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.

6Men shall proclaim the might of your awesome acts,
and I will declare your greatness.

7They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness,
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

8The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.

9The LORD is good to all,
and his compassion is over all that he has made.

10All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD,
and all your saints shall bless you!

11They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom,
and tell of your power,

12to make known to the sons of men your h mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your h kingdom.

13Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

The LORD is faithful in all his words,
and gracious in all his deeds.i
14The LORD upholds all who are falling,
and raises up all who are bowed down.

15The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.

16You open your hand,
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.

17The LORD is just in all his ways,
and kind in all his doings.

18The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.

19He fulfils the desire of all who fear him,
he also hears their cry, and saves them.

20The LORD preserves all who love him;
but all the wicked he will destroy.

21My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD,
and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.
Praise for God’s Help

Praise the LORD, O my soul!
2I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have being.

3Put not your trust in princes,
in a son of man, in whom there is no help.

4When his breath departs he returns to his earth;
on that very day his plans perish.

5Happy is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD his God,

6who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them;

who keeps faith for ever;
7 who executes justice for the oppressed;
who gives food to the hungry.

The LORD sets the prisoners free;
8 the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;

the LORD loves the righteous.
9The LORD watches over the sojourners,
he upholds the widow and the fatherless;

but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10The LORD will reign for ever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.

Praise the LORD!
Praise for God’s Care for Jerusalem

For it is good to sing praises to our God;
for he is gracious, and a song of praise is seemly.
2The LORD builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the outcasts of Israel.

3He heals the brokenhearted,
and binds up their wounds.

4He determines the number of the stars,
he gives to all of them their names.

5Great is our LORD, and abundant in power;
his understanding is beyond measure.

6The LORD lifts up the downtrodden,
he casts the wicked to the ground.

7Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God upon the lyre!

8He covers the heavens with clouds,
he prepares rain for the earth,
he makes grass grow upon the hills.
9He gives to the beasts their food,
and to the young ravens which cry.

10His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the legs of a man;

11but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love.

[147] 12Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
13For he strengthens the bars of your gates;
he blesses your sons within you.

14He makes peace in your borders;
he fills you with the finest of the wheat.

15He sends forth his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.

16He gives snow like wool;
he scatters hoarfrost like ashes.

17He casts forth his ice like morsels;
who can stand before his cold?

18He sends forth his word, and melts them;
he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.

19He declares his word to Jacob,
his statutes and ordinances to Israel.

20He has not dealt thus with any other nation;
they do not know his ordinances.

Praise the LORD!
Praise for God’s Universal Glory
148 Praise the LORD!

Praise the LORD from the heavens,
praise him in the heights!
2Praise him, all his angels,
praise him, all his host!

3Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars!

4Praise him, you highest heavens,
and you waters above the heavens!

5Let them praise the name of the LORD!
For he commanded and they were created.
6And he established them for ever and ever;
he fixed their bounds which cannot be passed. j

7Praise the LORD from the earth,
you sea monsters and all deeps,

8fire and hail, snow and frost,
stormy wind fulfilling his command!

9Mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars!

10Beasts and all cattle,
creeping things and flying birds!

11Kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth!

12Young men and maidens together,
old men and children!

13Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;

his glory is above earth and heaven.
14He has raised up a horn for his people,
praise for all his saints,

for the people of Israel who are near to him.
Praise the LORD!
Praise for God’s Goodness to Israel
149 Praise the LORD!

Sing to the LORD a new song,
his praise in the assembly of the faithful!
2Let Israel be glad in his Maker,
let the sons of Zion rejoice in their King!

3Let them praise his name with dancing,
making melody to him with timbrel and lyre!
4For the LORD takes pleasure in his people;
he adorns the humble with victory.

5Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy on their couches.

6Let the high praises of God be in their throats
and two-edged swords in their hands,

7to wreak vengeance on the nations
and chastisement on the peoples,

8to bind their kings with chains
and their nobles with fetters of iron,

9to execute on them the judgment written!
This is glory for all his faithful ones.

Praise the LORD!
Praise for God’s Surpassing Greatness
150 * Praise the LORD!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty firmament!
2Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his exceeding greatness!

3Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!

4Praise him with timbrel and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!

5Praise him with sounding cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!

6Let everything that breathes praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!
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Proverbs
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31
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THE BOOK OF THE PROVERBS
The Call of Wisdom
1* The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:
2That men may know wisdom and instruction,
understand words of insight,
3receive instruction in wise dealing,
righteousness, justice, and equity;

4that prudence may be given to the simple,
knowledge and discretion to the youth—

5the wise man also may hear and increase in learning,
and the man of understanding acquire skill,

6to understand a proverb and a figure,
the words of the wise and their riddles.

7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge;
fools despise wisdom and instruction.

8Hear, my son, your father’s instruction,
and reject not your mother’s teaching;

9for they are a fair garland for your head,
and pendants for your neck.

10My son, if sinners entice you,
do not consent.
11If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood,
let us wantonly ambush the innocent;

12like Sheol let us swallow them alive
and whole, like those who go down to the Pit;
13we shall find all precious goods,
we shall fill our houses with spoil;

14throw in your lot among us,
we will all have one purse”—
15my son, do not walk in the way with them,
hold back your foot from their paths;

16for their feet run to evil,
and they make haste to shed blood.

17For in vain is a net spread
in the sight of any bird;

18but these men lie in wait for their own blood,
they set an ambush for their own lives.
19Such are the ways of all who get gain by violence;
it takes away the life of its possessors.
20Wisdom cries aloud in the street;
in the markets she raises her voice;

21on the top of the walls a she cries out;
at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:

22“How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing

and fools hate knowledge?
23Give heed b to my reproof;
behold, I will pour out my thoughts c to you;

I will make my words known to you.
24Because I have called and you refused to listen,
have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded,

25and you have ignored all my counsel
and would have none of my reproof,

26I also will laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when panic strikes you,

27when panic strikes you like a storm,
and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,

when distress and anguish come upon you.
28Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;
they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
29Because they hated knowledge
and did not choose the fear of the LORD,
30would have none of my counsel,
and despised all my reproof,

31therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way
and be sated with their own devices.

32For the simple are killed by their turning away,
and the complacence of fools destroys them;
33but he who listens to me will dwell secure
and will be at ease, without dread of evil.”
The Treasure of Wisdom
2 My son, if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
2making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;

3yes, if you cry out for insight
and raise your voice for understanding,

4if you seek it like silver
and search for it as for hidden treasures;
5then you will understand the fear of the LORD
and find the knowledge of God.
6For the LORD gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;

7he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8guarding the paths of justice
and preserving the way of his saints.
9Then you will understand righteousness and justice
and equity, every good path;
10for wisdom will come into your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

11discretion will watch over you;
understanding will guard you;
12delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
13who forsake the paths of uprightness
to walk in the ways of darkness,

14who rejoice in doing evil
and delight in the perverseness of evil;

15men whose paths are crooked,
and who are devious in their ways.
16You will be saved from the loose d woman,
from the adventuress e with her smooth words,

17who forsakes the companion of her youth
and forgets the covenant of her God;

18for her house sinks down to death,
and her paths to the shades;
19none who go to her come back
nor do they regain the paths of life.
20So you will walk in the way of good men
and keep to the paths of the righteous.
21For the upright will inhabit the land,
and men of integrity will remain in it;
22but the wicked will be cut off from the land,
and the treacherous will be rooted out of it.
Exhortation to Be Wise and to Honor God
3 My son, do not forget my teaching,
but let your heart keep my commandments;
2for length of days and years of life
and abundant welfare will they give you.
3Let not loyalty and faithfulness forsake you;
bind them about your neck,

write them on the tablet of your heart.
4So you will find favor and good repute f
in the sight of God and man.

5Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not rely on your own insight.

6In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.

7Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.

8It will be healing to your flesh g
and refreshment h to your bones.

9Honor the LORD with your substance
and with the first fruits of all your produce;
10then your barns will be filled with plenty,
and your vats will be bursting with wine.

11My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline
or be weary of his reproof,

12for the LORD reproves him whom he loves,
as a father the son in whom he delights.

13Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
and the man who gets understanding,
14for the gain from it is better than gain from silver
and its profit better than gold.
15She is more precious than jewels,
and nothing you desire can compare with her.

16Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.

17Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
and all her paths are peace.

18She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her;
those who hold her fast are called happy.

19The LORD by wisdom founded the earth;
by understanding he established the heavens;

20by his knowledge the deeps broke forth,
and the clouds drop down the dew.
21My son, keep sound wisdom and discretion;
let them not escape from your sight, i

22and they will be life for your soul
and adornment for your neck.

23Then you will walk on your way securely
and your foot will not stumble.

24If you sit down, j you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

25Do not be afraid of sudden panic,
or of the ruin k of the wicked, when it comes;

26for the LORD will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being caught.
27Do not withhold good from those to whom it l is due,
when it is in your power to do it.
28Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again,
tomorrow I will give it”—when you have it with you.

29Do not plan evil against your neighbor
who dwells trustingly beside you.

30Do not contend with a man for no reason,
when he has done you no harm.
31Do not envy a man of violence
and do not choose any of his ways;
32for the perverse man is an abomination to the LORD,
but the upright are in his confidence.

33The LORD’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
but he blesses the abode of the righteous.

34Toward the scorners he is scornful,
but to the humble he shows favor.
35The wise will inherit honor,
but fools get m disgrace.

A Father’s Advice
4 Hear, O sons, a father’s instruction,
and be attentive, that you may gain n insight;
2for I give you good precepts:
do not forsake my teaching.

3When I was a son with my father,
tender, the only one in the sight of my mother,

4he taught me, and said to me,
“Let your heart hold fast my words;

keep my commandments, and live;
5do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
Get wisdom; get insight.o

6Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her, and she will guard you.

7The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
8Prize her highly, p and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
9She will place on your head a fair garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”

10Hear, my son, and accept my words,
that the years of your life may be many.

11I have taught you the way of wisdom;
I have led you in the paths of uprightness.

12When you walk, your step will not be hampered;
and if you run, you will not stumble.
13Keep hold of instruction, do not let go;
guard her, for she is your life.
14Do not enter the path of the wicked,
and do not walk in the way of evil men.

15Avoid it; do not go on it;
turn away from it and pass on.

16For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;
they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.
17For they eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.
18But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,
which shines brighter and brighter until full day.

19The way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know over what they stumble.

20My son, be attentive to my words;
incline your ear to my sayings.

21Let them not escape from your sight;
keep them within your heart.

22For they are life to him who finds them,
and healing to all his flesh.

23Keep your heart with all vigilance;
for from it flow the springs of life.

24Put away from you crooked speech,
and put devious talk far from you.
25Let your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.

26Take heed to q the path of your feet,
then all your ways will be sure.

27Do not swerve to the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.

Warning against Loose Women
5 My son, be attentive to my wisdom,
incline your ear to my understanding;
2that you may keep discretion,
and your lips may guard knowledge.
3For the lips of a loose woman drip honey,
and her speech r is smoother than oil;

4but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.

5Her feet go down to death;
her steps follow the path to s Sheol;

6she does not take heed to t the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it.

7And now, O sons, listen to me,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

8Keep your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house;

9lest you give your honor to others
and your years to the merciless;

10lest strangers take their fill of your strength,u
and your labors go to the house of an alien;
11and at the end of your life you groan,
when your flesh and body are consumed,

12and you say, “How I hated discipline,
and my heart despised reproof!

13I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
or incline my ear to my instructors.

14I was at the point of utter ruin
in the assembled congregation.”

15Drink water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well.

16Should your springs be scattered abroad,
streams of water in the streets?

17Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.
18Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

19 a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
Let her affection fill you at all times with delight,
be infatuated always with her love.
20Why should you be infatuated, my son, with a loose woman
and embrace the bosom of an adventuress?

21For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD,
and he watches v all his paths.

22The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
and he is caught in the toils of his sin.

23He dies for lack of discipline,
and because of his great folly he is lost.
Practical Admonitions and Warnings
6 My son, if you have become surety for your neighbor,
have given your pledge for a stranger;
2if you are snared in the utterance of your lips,w
caught in the words of your mouth;
3then do this, my son, and save yourself,
for you have come into your neighbor’s power:
go, hasten,x and importune your neighbor.
4Give your eyes no sleep
and your eyelids no slumber;

5save yourself like a gazelle from the hunter, y
like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

6Go to the ant, O sluggard;
consider her ways, and be wise.

7Without having any chief,
officer or ruler,
8she prepares her food in summer,
and gathers her sustenance in harvest.

9How long will you lie there, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?
10A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,

11and poverty will come upon you like a vagabond,
and want like an armed man.

12A worthless person, a wicked man,
goes about with crooked speech,
13winks with his eyes, scrapes z with his feet,
points with his finger,
14with perverted heart devises evil,
continually sowing discord;

15therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly;
in a moment he will be broken beyond healing.
16There are six things which the LORD hates,
seven which are an abomination to him:

17haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,

18a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that make haste to run to evil,

19a false witness who breathes out lies,
and a man who sows discord among brothers.

20My son, keep your father’s commandment,
and forsake not your mother’s teaching.

21Bind them upon your heart always;
tie them about your neck.

22When you walk, they a will lead you;
when you lie down, they a will watch over you;

and when you awake, they a will talk with you.
23For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,

24to preserve you from the evil woman,
from the smooth tongue of the adventuress.

25Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;

26for a harlot may be hired for a loaf of bread,b
but an adulteress c stalks a man’s very life.

27Can a man carry fire in his bosom
and his clothes not be burned?

28Or can one walk upon hot coals
and his feet not be scorched?
29So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
none who touches her will go unpunished.
30Men do not despise d a thief if he steals
to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry.
31And if he is caught, he will pay sevenfold;
he will give all the goods of his house.

32He who commits adultery has no sense;
he who does it destroys himself.

33Wounds and dishonor will he get,
and his disgrace will not be wiped away.

34For jealousy makes a man furious,
and he will not spare when he takes revenge.

35He will accept no compensation,
nor be appeased though you multiply gifts.
False Attractions of Adultery
7 My son, keep my words
and treasure up my commandments with you;
2keep my commandments and live,
keep my teachings as the apple of your eye;
3bind them on your fingers,
write them on the tablet of your heart.

4Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and call insight your intimate friend;

5to preserve you from the loose woman,
from the adventuress with her smooth words.

6For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,

7and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,

a young man without sense,
8passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
9in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.

10And behold, a woman meets him,
dressed as a harlot, wily of heart.e

11She is loud and wayward,
her feet do not stay at home;
12now in the street, now in the market,
and at every corner she lies in wait.
13She seizes him and kisses him,
and with impudent face she says to him:

14“I had to offer sacrifices,
and today I have paid my vows;
15so now I have come out to meet you,
to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.

16I have decked my couch with coverings,
colored spreads of Egyptian linen;

17I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.

18Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;
let us delight ourselves with love.

19For my husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey;

20he took a bag of money with him;
at full moon he will come home.”

21With much seductive speech she persuades him;
with her smooth talk she compels him.
22All at once he follows her,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,

or as a stag is caught fast f
23 till an arrow pierces its entrails;
as a bird rushes into a snare;

he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24And now, O sons, listen to me,
and be attentive to the words of my mouth.

25Let not your heart turn aside to her ways,
do not stray into her paths;

26for many a victim has she laid low;
yes, all her slain are a mighty host.

27Her house is the way to Sheol,
going down to the chambers of death.
Eternity of Wisdom
8 Does not wisdom call,
does not understanding raise her voice?
2On the heights beside the way,
in the paths she takes her stand;
3beside the gates in front of the town,
at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud:

4“To you, O men, I call,
and my cry is to the sons of men.

5O simple ones, learn prudence;
O foolish men, pay attention.

6Hear, for I will speak noble things,
and from my lips will come what is right;

7for my mouth will utter truth;
wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

8All the words of my mouth are righteous;
there is nothing twisted or crooked in them.
9They are all straight to him who understands
and right to those who find knowledge.

10Take my instruction instead of silver,
and knowledge rather than choice gold;

11for wisdom is better than jewels,
and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.
12I, wisdom, dwell in prudence, g
and I find knowledge and discretion.

13The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil

and perverted speech I hate.
14I have counsel and sound wisdom,
I have insight, I have strength.

15By me kings reign,
and rulers decree what is just;

16by me princes rule,
and nobles govern h the earth.

17I love those who love me,
and those who seek me diligently find me.
18Riches and honor are with me,
enduring wealth and prosperity.
19My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,
and my yield than choice silver.

20I walk in the way of righteousness,
in the paths of justice,

21endowing with wealth those who love me,
and filling their treasuries.

22The LORD created me at the beginning of his work,i
the first of his acts of old.

23Ages ago I was set up,
at the first, before the beginning of the earth.

24When there were no depths I was brought forth,
when there were no springs abounding with water.

25Before the mountains had been shaped,
before the hills, I was brought forth;

26before he had made the earth with its fields, j
or the first of the dust j of the world.

27When he established the heavens, I was there,
when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,

28when he made firm the skies above,
when he established j the fountains of the deep,

29when he assigned to the sea its limit,
so that the waters might not transgress his command,

when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
30then I was beside him, like a master workman; l
and I was daily his m delight,

rejoicing before him always,
31rejoicing in his inhabited world
and delighting in the sons of men.

32And now, my sons, listen to me:
happy are those who keep my ways.

33Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not neglect it.

34Happy is the man who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates,
waiting beside my doors.
35For he who finds me finds life
and obtains favor from the LORD;

36but he who misses me injures himself;
all who hate me love death.”

The Feast of Wisdom; and General Maxims
9 Wisdom has built her house,
she has set up n her seven pillars.
2She has slaughtered her beasts, she has mixed her wine,
she has also set her table.

3She has sent out her maids to call
from the highest places in the town,

4“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
To him who is without sense she says,

5“Come, eat of my bread
and drink of the wine I have mixed.

6Leave simpleness,o and live,
and walk in the way of insight.”

7He who corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse,
and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury.

8Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you;
reprove a wise man, and he will love you.

9Give instruction p to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;
teach a righteous man and he will increase in learning.

10The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

11For by me your days will be multiplied,
and years will be added to your life.

12If you are wise, you are wise for yourself;
if you scoff, you alone will bear it.

13A foolish woman is noisy;
she is wanton q and knows no shame.r

14She sits at the door of her house,
she takes a seat on the high places of the town,
15callingto those who pass by,
who are going straight on their way,
16“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
And to him who is without sense she says,

17“Stolen water is sweet,
and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”

18But he does not know that the dead s are there,
that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

Wise Sayings of Solomon
10 The proverbs of Solomon.
A wise son makes a glad father,
but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.
2Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from death.

3The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry,
but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.

4A slack hand causes poverty,
but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

5A son who gathers in summer is prudent,
but a son who sleeps in harvest brings shame.

6Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

7The memory of the righteous is a blessing,
but the name of the wicked will rot.

8The wise of heart will heed commandments,
but a prating fool will come to ruin.

9He who walks in integrity walks securely,
but he who perverts his ways will be found out.

10He who winks the eye causes trouble,
but he who boldly reproves makes peace.t

11The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

12Hatred stirs up strife,
but love covers all offenses.

13On the lips of him who has understanding wisdom is found,
but a rod is for the back of him who lacks sense.
14Wise men lay up knowledge,
but the babbling of a fool brings ruin near.

15A rich man’s wealth is his strong city;
the poverty of the poor is their ruin.

16The wage of the righteous leads to life,
the gain of the wicked to sin.

17He who heeds instruction is on the path to life,
but he who rejects reproof goes astray.

18He who conceals hatred has lying lips,
and he who utters slander is a fool.

19When words are many, transgression is not lacking,
but he who restrains his lips is prudent.

20The tongue of the righteous is choice silver;
the mind of the wicked is of little worth.
21The lips of the righteous feed many,
but fools die for lack of sense.

22The blessing of the LORD makes rich,
and he adds no sorrow with it.u

23It is like sport to a fool to do wrong,
but wise conduct is pleasure to a man of understanding.

24What the wicked dreads will come upon him,
but the desire of the righteous will be granted.

25When the tempest passes, the wicked is no more,
but the righteous is established for ever.

26Like vinegar to the teeth, and smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.
27The fear of the LORD prolongs life,
but the years of the wicked will be short.

28The hope of the righteous ends in gladness,
but the expectation of the wicked comes to nothing.

29The LORD is a stronghold to him whose way is upright,
but destruction to evildoers.

30The righteous will never be removed,
but the wicked will not dwell in the land.
31The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,
but the perverse tongue will be cut off.
32The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,
but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.

11 A false balance is an abomination to the LORD,
but a just weight is his delight.
2When pride comes, then comes disgrace;
but with the humble is wisdom.
3The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.

4Riches do not profit in the day of wrath,
but righteousness delivers from death.

5The righteousness of the blameless keeps his way straight,
but the wicked falls by his own wickedness.
6The righteousness of the upright delivers them,
but the treacherous are taken captive by their lust.

7When the wicked dies, his hope perishes,
and the expectation of the godless comes to nothing.

8The righteous is delivered from trouble,
and the wicked gets into it instead.

9With his mouth the godless man would destroy his neighbor,
but by knowledge the righteous are delivered.

10When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices;
and when the wicked perish there are shouts of gladness.

11By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,
but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.

12He who belittles his neighbor lacks sense,
but a man of understanding remains silent.
13He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets,
but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing hidden.

14Where there is no guidance, a people falls;
but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.

15He who gives surety for a stranger will smart for it,
but he who hates suretyship is secure.

16A gracious woman gets honor,
and violent men get riches.
17A man who is kind benefits himself,
but a cruel man hurts himself.

18A wicked man earns deceptive wages,
but one who sows righteousness gets a sure reward.

19He who is steadfast in righteousness will live,
but he who pursues evil will die.

20Men of perverse mind are an abomination to the LORD,
but those of blameless ways are his delight.

21Be assured, an evil man will not go unpunished,
but those who are righteous will be delivered.

22Like a gold ring in a swine’s snout
is a beautiful woman without discretion.

23The desire of the righteous ends only in good;
the expectation of the wicked in wrath.

24One man gives freely, yet grows all the richer;
another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.

25A liberal man will be enriched,
and one who waters will himself be watered.

26The people curse him who holds back grain,
but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it.

27He who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
but evil comes to him who searches for it.

28He who trusts in his riches will wither,v
but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.

29He who troubles his household will inherit wind,
and the fool will be servant to the wise.

30The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
but lawlessness w takes away lives.

31If the righteous is repaid on earth,
how much more the wicked and the sinner!

12 Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,
but he who hates reproof is stupid.
2A good man obtains favor from the LORD,
but a man of evil devices he condemns.
3A man is not established by wickedness,
but the root of the righteous will never be moved.
4A good wife is the crown of her husband,
but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones.

5The thoughts of the righteous are just;
the counsels of the wicked are treacherous.

6The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,
but the mouth of the upright delivers men.

7The wicked are overthrown and are no more,
but the house of the righteous will stand.

8A man is commended according to his good sense,
but one of perverse mind is despised.

9Better is a man of humble standing who works for himself
than one who plays the great man but lacks bread.
10A righteous man has regard for the life of his beast,
but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.

11He who tills his land will have plenty of bread,
but he who follows worthless pursuits has no sense.

12The strong tower of the wicked comes to ruin,
but the root of the righteous stands firm.x

13An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips,
but the righteous escapes from trouble.

14From the fruit of his words a man is satisfied with good,
and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him.

15The way of a fool is right in his own eyes,
but a wise man listens to advice.

16The vexation of a fool is known at once,
but the prudent man ignores an insult.

17He who speaks the truth gives honest evidence,
but a false witness utters deceit.

18There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts,
but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

19Truthful lips endure for ever,
but a lying tongue is but for a moment.

20Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil,
but those who plan good have joy.
21No ill befalls the righteous,
but the wicked are filled with trouble.

22Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD,
but those who act faithfully are his delight.

23A prudent man conceals his knowledge,
but fools y proclaim their folly.

24The hand of the diligent will rule,
while the slothful will be put to forced labor.

25Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down,
but a good word makes him glad.

26A righteous man turns away from evil,z
but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

27A slothful man will not catch his prey,a
but the diligent man will get precious wealth.b

28In the path of righteousness is life,
but the way of error leads to death.c

13 A wise son hears his father’s instruction,
but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
2From the fruit of his mouth a good man eats good,
but the desire of the treacherous is for violence.

3He who guards his mouth preserves his life;
he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.

4The soul of the sluggard craves, and gets nothing,
while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

5A righteous man hates falsehood,
but a wicked man acts shamefully and disgracefully.

6Righteousness guards him whose way is upright,
but sin overthrows the wicked.

7One man pretends to be rich, yet has nothing;
another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.

8The ransom of a man’s life is his wealth,
but a poor man has no means of redemption.d

9The light of the righteous rejoices,
but the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
10By insolence the heedless make strife,
but with those who take advice is wisdom.
11Wealth hastily gotten e will dwindle,
but he who gathers little by little will increase it.

12Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

13He who despises the word brings destruction on himself,
but he who respects the commandment will be rewarded.

14The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,
that one may avoid the snares of death.

15Good sense wins favor,
but the way of the faithless is their ruin. f

16In everything a prudent man acts with knowledge,
but a fool flaunts his folly.

17A bad messenger plunges men into trouble,
but a faithful envoy brings healing.

18Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction,
but he who heeds reproof is honored.

19A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul;
but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools.

20He who walks with wise men becomes wise,
but the companion of fools will suffer harm.

21Misfortune pursues sinners,
but prosperity rewards the righteous.
22A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous.

23The fallow ground of the poor yields much food,
but it is swept away through injustice.

24He who spares the rod hates his son,
but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

25The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite,
but the belly of the wicked suffers want.

14 Wisdom g builds her house,
but folly with her own hands tears it down.
2He who walks in uprightness fears the LORD,
but he who is devious in his ways despises him.
3The talk of a fool is a rod for his back,h
but the lips of the wise will preserve them.
4Where there are no oxen, there is no i grain;
but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

5A faithful witness does not lie,
but a false witness breathes out lies.

6A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,
but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding.

7Leave the presence of a fool,
for there you do not meet words of knowledge.

8The wisdom of a prudent man is to discern his way,
but the folly of fools is deceiving.

9God scorns the wicked, j
but the upright enjoy his favor.

10The heart knows its own bitterness,
and no stranger shares its joy.
11The house of the wicked will be destroyed,
but the tent of the upright will flourish.

12There is a way which seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death.k

13Even in laughter the heart is sad,
and the end of joy is grief.

14A perverse man will be filled with the fruit of his ways,
and a good man with the fruit of his deeds.l

15The simple believes everything,
but the prudent looks where he is going.

16A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil,
but a fool throws off restraint and is careless.

17A man of quick temper acts foolishly,
but a man of discretion is patient.m

18The simple acquire folly,
but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19The evil bow down before the good,
the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
20The poor is disliked even by his neighbor,
but the rich has many friends.
21He who despises his neighbor is a sinner,
but happy is he who is kind to the poor.

22Do they not err that devise evil?
Those who devise good meet loyalty and faithfulness.

23In all toil there is profit,
but mere talk tends only to want.

24The crown of the wise is their wisdom,n
but folly is the garland o of fools.

25A truthful witness saves lives,
but one who utters lies is a betrayer.

26In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence,
and his children will have a refuge.

27The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,
that one may avoid the snares of death.

28In a multitude of people is the glory of a king,
but without people a prince is ruined.

29He who is slow to anger has great understanding,
but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

30A tranquil mind gives life to the flesh,
but passion makes the bones rot.

31He who oppresses a poor man insults his Maker,
but he who is kind to the needy honors him.

32The wicked is overthrown through his evil-doing,
but the righteous finds refuge through his integrity. p

33Wisdom abides in the mind of a man of understanding,
but it is not q known in the heart of fools.

34Righteousness exalts a nation,
but sin is a reproach to any people.

35A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor,
but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

15 A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
2The tongue of the wise dispenses knowledge, r
but the mouths of fools pour out folly.
3The eyes of the LORD are in every place,
keeping watch on the evil and the good.

4A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

5A fool despises his father’s instruction,
but he who heeds admonition is prudent.

6In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,
but trouble befalls the income of the wicked.

7The lips of the wise spread knowledge;
not so the minds of fools.

8The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD,
but the prayer of the upright is his delight.

9The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD,
but he loves him who pursues righteousness.

10There is severe discipline for him who forsakes the way;
he who hates reproof will die.

11Sheol and Abad'don lie open before the LORD,
how much more the hearts of men!

12A scoffer does not like to be reproved;
he will not go to the wise.

13A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance,
but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.

14The mind of him who has understanding seeks knowledge,
but the mouths of fools feed on folly.

15All the days of the afflicted are evil,
but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.

16Better is a little with the fear of the LORD
than great treasure and trouble with it.

17Better is a dinner of herbs where love is
than a fatted ox and hatred with it.

18A hot-tempered man stirs up strife,
but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

19The way of a sluggard is overgrown with thorns,
but the path of the upright is a level highway.

20A wise son makes a glad father,
but a foolish man despises his mother.
21Folly is a joy to him who has no sense,
but a man of understanding walks aright.

22Without counsel plans go wrong,
but with many advisers they succeed.

23To make an apt answer is a joy to a man,
and a word in season, how good it is!

24The wise man’s path leads upward to life,
that he may avoid Sheol beneath.

25The LORD tears down the house of the proud,
but maintains the widow’s boundaries.
26The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD,
the words of the pure are pleasing to him.s

27He who is greedy for unjust gain makes trouble for his household,
but he who hates bribes will live.

28The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer,
but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.

29The LORD is far from the wicked,
but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

30The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,
and good news refreshes t the bones.

31He whose ear heeds wholesome admonition
will abide among the wise.

32He who ignores instruction despises himself,
but he who heeds admonition gains understanding.

33The fear of the LORD is instruction in wisdom,
and humility goes before honor.

Solomon’s Proverbs on Life and Conduct
16 The plans of the mind belong to man,
but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.
2All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,
but the LORD weighs the spirit.

3Commit your work to the LORD,
and your plans will be established.

4The LORD has made everything for its purpose,
even the wicked for the day of trouble.
5Every one who is arrogant is an abomination to the LORD;
be assured, he will not go unpunished.

6By loyalty and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,
and by the fear of the LORD a man avoids evil.

7When a man’s ways please the LORD,
he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

8Better is a little with righteousness
than great revenues with injustice.

9A man’s mind plans his way,
but the LORD directs his steps.

10Inspired decisions are on the lips of a king;
his mouth does not sin in judgment.

11A just balance and scales are the LORD’s;
all the weights in the bag are his work.

12It is an abomination to kings to do evil,
for the throne is established by righteousness.

13Righteous lips are the delight of a king,
and he loves him who speaks what is right.

14A king’s wrath is a messenger of death,
and a wise man will appease it.

15In the light of a king’s face there is life,
and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain.
16To get wisdom is better u than gold;
to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

17The highway of the upright turns aside from evil;
he who guards his way preserves his life.

18Pride goes before destruction,
and a haughty spirit before a fall.

19It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor
than to divide the spoil with the proud.

20He who gives heed to the word will prosper,
and happy is he who trusts in the LORD.

21The wise of heart is called a man of discernment,
and pleasant speech increases persuasiveness.

22Wisdom is a fountain of life to him who has it,
but folly is the chastisement of fools.
23The mind of the wise makes his speech judicious,
and adds persuasiveness to his lips.

24Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
sweetness to the soul and health to the body.

25There is a way which seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death. v

26A worker’s appetite works for him;
his mouth urges him on.

27A worthless man plots evil,
and his speech is like a scorching fire.

28A perverse man spreads strife,
and a whisperer separates close friends.

29A man of violence entices his neighbor
and leads him in a way that is not good.

30He who winks his eyes plans w perverse things,
he who compresses his lips brings evil to pass.

31A hoary head is a crown of glory;
it is gained in a righteous life.

32He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.

33The lot is cast into the lap,
but the decision is wholly from the LORD.

17 Better is a dry morsel with quiet
than a house full of feasting with strife.
2A slave who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully,
and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
3The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
and the LORD tries hearts.

4An evildoer listens to wicked lips;
and a liar gives heed to a mischievous tongue.

5He who mocks the poor insults his Maker;
he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.

6Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
and the glory of sons is their fathers.
7Fine speech is not becoming to a fool;
still less is false speech to a prince.
8A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of him who gives it;
wherever he turns he prospers.

9He who forgives an offense seeks love,
but he who repeats a matter alienates a friend.

10A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding
than a hundred blows into a fool.

11An evil man seeks only rebellion,
and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.

12Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs,
rather than a fool in his folly.

13If a man returns evil for good,
evil will not depart from his house.

14The beginning of strife is like letting out water;
so quit before the quarrel breaks out.

15He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous
are both alike an abomination to the LORD.

16Why should a fool have a price in his hand to buy wisdom,
when he has no mind?

17A friend loves at all times,
and a brother is born for adversity.

18A man without sense gives a pledge,
and becomes surety in the presence of his neighbor.
19He who loves transgression loves strife;
he who makes his door high seeks destruction.

20A man of crooked mind does not prosper,
and one with a perverse tongue falls into calamity.

21A stupid son is a grief to a father;
and the father of a fool has no joy.

22A cheerful heart is a good medicine,
but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.

23A wicked man accepts a bribe from the bosom
to pervert the ways of justice.

24A man of understanding sets his face toward wisdom,
but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
25A foolish son is a grief to his father
and bitterness to her who bore him.
26To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good;
to flog noble men is wrong.

27He who restrains his words has knowledge,
and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.

28Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;
when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

18 He who is estranged x seeks pretexts y
to break out against all sound judgment.
2A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
but only in expressing his opinion.
3When wickedness comes, contempt comes also;
and with dishonor comes disgrace.

4The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters;
the fountain of wisdom is a gushing stream.

5It is not good to be partial to a wicked man,
or to deprive a righteous man of justice.

6A fool’s lips bring strife,
and his mouth invites a flogging.

7A fool’s mouth is his ruin,
and his lips are a snare to himself.

8The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.

9He who is slack in his work
is a brother to him who destroys.

10The name of the LORD is a strong tower;
the righteous man runs into it and is safe.

11A rich man’s wealth is his strong city,
and like a high wall protecting him.z

12Before destruction a man’s heart is haughty,
but humility goes before honor.

13If one gives answer before he hears,
it is his folly and shame.
14A man’s spirit will endure sickness;
but a broken spirit who can bear?
15An intelligent mind acquires knowledge,
and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.

16A man’s gift makes room for him
and brings him before great men.

17He who states his case first seems right,
until the other comes and examines him.

18The lot puts an end to disputes
and decides between powerful contenders.

19A brother helped is like a strong city,a
but quarreling is like the bars of a castle.

20From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied;
he is satisfied by the yield of his lips.

21Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
and those who love it will eat its fruits.

22He who finds a wife finds a good thing,
and obtains favor from the LORD.

23The poor use entreaties,
but the rich answer roughly.

24There are b friends who pretend to be friends,c
but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

19 Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity
than a man who is perverse in speech, and is a fool.
2It is not good for a man to be without knowledge,
and he who makes haste with his feet misses his way.
3When a man’s folly brings his way to ruin,
his heart rages against the LORD.

4Wealth brings many new friends,
but a poor man is deserted by his friend.

5A false witness will not go unpunished,
and he who utters lies will not escape.

6Many seek the favor of a generous man,
and every one is a friend to a man who gives gifts.

7All a poor man’s brothers hate him;
how much more do his friends go far from him!
He pursues them with words, but does not have them.d
8He who gets wisdom loves himself;
he who keeps understanding will prosper.

9A false witness will not go unpunished,
and he who utters lies will perish.

10It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury,
much less for a slave to rule over princes.

11Good sense makes a man slow to anger,
and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

12A king’s wrath is like the growling of a lion,
but his favor is like dew upon the grass.

13A foolish son is ruin to his father,
and a wife’s quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.

14House and wealth are inherited from fathers,
but a prudent wife is from the LORD.

15Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep,
and an idle person will suffer hunger.

16He who keeps the commandment keeps his life;
he who despises the word e will die.

17He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD,
and he will repay him for his deed.

18Discipline your son while there is hope;
do not set your heart on his destruction.

19A man of great wrath will pay the penalty;
for if you deliver him, you will only have to do it again. f

20Listen to advice and accept instruction,
that you may gain wisdom for the future.

21Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
but it is the purpose of the LORD that will be established.

22What is desired in a man is loyalty,
and a poor man is better than a liar.
23The fear of the LORD leads to life;
and he who has it rests satisfied;

he will not be visited by harm.
24The sluggard buries his hand in the dish,
and will not even bring it back to his mouth.
25Strike a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence;
reprove a man of understanding, and he will gain knowledge.

26He who does violence to his father and chases away his mother
is a son who causes shame and brings reproach.

27Cease, my son, to hear instruction
only to stray from the words of knowledge.

28A worthless witness mocks at justice,
and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.

29Condemnation is ready for scoffers,
and flogging for the backs of fools.

20 Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler;
and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.
2The dread wrath of a king is like the growling of a lion;
he who provokes him to anger forfeits his life.

3It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife;
but every fool will be quarreling.

4The sluggard does not plow in the autumn;
he will seek at harvest and have nothing.

5The purpose in a man’s mind is like deep water,
but a man of understanding will draw it out.

6Many a man proclaims his own loyalty,
but a faithful man who can find?

7A righteous man who walks in his integrity—
blessed are his sons after him!

8A king who sits on the throne of judgment
winnows all evil with his eyes.

9Who can say, “I have made my heart clean;
I am pure from my sin”?

10Diverse weights and diverse measures
are both alike an abomination to the LORD.

11Even a child makes himself known by his acts,
whether what he does is pure and right.

12The hearing ear and the seeing eye,
the LORD has made them both.
13Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty;
open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.
14“It is bad, it is bad,” says the buyer;
but when he goes away, then he boasts.

15There is gold, and abundance of costly stones;
but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

16Take a man’s garment when he has given surety for a stranger,
and hold him in pledge when he gives surety for foreigners.

17Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man,
but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel.

18Plans are established by counsel;
by wise guidance wage war.

19He who goes about gossiping reveals secrets;
therefore do not associate with one who speaks foolishly.

20If one curses his father or his mother,
his lamp will be put out in utter darkness.

21An inheritance gotten hastily in the beginning
will in the end not be blessed.

22Do not say, “I will repay evil”;
wait for the LORD, and he will help you.

23Diverse weights are an abomination to the LORD,
and false scales are not good.

24A man’s steps are ordered by the LORD;
how then can man understand his way?

25It is a snare for a man to say rashly, “It is holy,”
and to reflect only after making his vows.

26A wise king winnows the wicked,
and drives the wheel over them.

27The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD,
searching all his innermost parts.

28Loyalty and faithfulness preserve the king
and his throne is upheld by righteousness. g

29The glory of young men is their strength,
but the beauty of old men is their gray hair.

30Blows that wound cleanse away evil;
strokes make clean the innermost parts.
21 The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD;
he turns it wherever he will.
2Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,
but the LORD weighs the heart.

3To do righteousness and justice
is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.

4Haughty eyes and a proud heart,
the lamp of the wicked, are sin.

5The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,
but every one who is hasty comes only to want.

6The getting of treasures by a lying tongue
is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.

7The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,
because they refuse to do what is just.

8The way of the guilty is crooked,
but the conduct of the pure is right.
9It is better to live in a corner of the housetop
than in a house shared with a contentious woman.

10The soul of the wicked desires evil;
his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes.

11When a scoffer is punished, the simple becomes wise;
when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge.

12The righteous observes the house of the wicked;
the wicked are cast down to ruin.

13He who closes his ear to the cry of the poor
will himself cry out and not be heard.

14A gift in secret averts anger;
and a bribe in the bosom, strong wrath.

15When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous,
but dismay to evildoers.
16A man who wanders from the way of understanding
will rest in the assembly of the dead.

17He who loves pleasure will be a poor man;
he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.
18The wicked is a ransom for the righteous,
and the faithless for the upright.
19It is better to live in a desert land
than with a contentious and fretful woman.

20Precious treasure remains h in a wise man’s dwelling,
but a foolish man devours it.

21He who pursues righteousness and kindness
will find life i and honor.

22A wise man scales the city of the mighty
and brings down the stronghold in which they trust.

23He who keeps his mouth and his tongue
keeps himself out of trouble.

24“Scoffer” is the name of the proud, haughty man
who acts with arrogant pride.

25The desire of the sluggard kills him
for his hands refuse to labor.

26All day long the wicked covets, j
but the righteous gives and does not hold back.

27The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;
how much more when he brings it with evil intent.

28A false witness will perish,
but the word of a man who hears will endure.

29A wicked man puts on a bold face,
but an upright man considers k his ways.

30No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel,
can avail against the LORD.

31The horse is made ready for the day of battle,
but the victory belongs to the LORD.

22 A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
and favor is better than silver or gold.
2The rich and the poor meet together;
the LORD is the maker of them all.

3A prudent man sees danger and hides himself;
but the simple go on, and suffer for it.

4The reward for humility and fear of the LORD
is riches and honor and life.
5Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;
he who guards himself will keep far from them.

6Train up a child in the way he should go,
and when he is old he will not depart from it.

7The rich rules over the poor,
and the borrower is the slave of the lender.

8He who sows injustice will reap calamity,
and the rod of his fury will fail.

9He who has a bountiful eye will be blessed,
for he shares his bread with the poor.

10Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out,
and quarreling and abuse will cease.

11He who loves purity of heart,
and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend.
12The eyes of the LORD keep watch over knowledge,
but he overthrows the words of the faithless.

13The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside!
I shall be slain in the streets!”

14The mouth of a loose woman is a deep pit;
he with whom the LORD is angry will fall into it.

15Folly is bound up in the heart of a child,
but the rod of discipline drives it far from him.

16He who oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth,
or gives to the rich, will only come to want.

Sayings of the Wise
17Incline your ear, and hear the words of the wise,
and apply your mind to my knowledge;

18for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you,
if all of them are ready on your lips.

19That your trust may be in the LORD,
I have made them known to you today, even to you.

20Have I not written for you thirty sayings
of admonition and knowledge,

21to show you what is right and true,
that you may give a true answer to those who sent you?
22Do not rob the poor, because he is poor,
or crush the afflicted at the gate;
23for the LORD will plead their cause
and despoil of life those who despoil them.

24Make no friendship with a man given to anger,
nor go with a wrathful man,

25lest you learn his ways
and entangle yourself in a snare.

26Be not one of those who give pledges,
who become surety for debts.

27If you have nothing with which to pay,
why should your bed be taken from under you?

28Remove not the ancient landmark
which your fathers have set.

29Do you see a man skilful in his work?
he will stand before kings;

he will not stand before obscure men.
Precepts and Warnings
23 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
observe carefully what l is before you;
2and put a knife to your throat
if you are a man given to appetite.

3Do not desire his delicacies,
for they are deceptive food.

4Do not toil to acquire wealth;
be wise enough to desist.

5When your eyes light upon it, it is gone;
for suddenly it takes to itself wings,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.
6Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy;
do not desire his delicacies;

7for he is like one who is inwardly reckoning.m
“Eat and drink!” he says to you;

but his heart is not with you.
8You will vomit up the morsels which you have eaten,
and waste your pleasant words.
9Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,
for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

10Do not remove an ancient landmark
or enter the fields of the fatherless;

11for their Redeemer is strong;
he will plead their cause against you.

12Apply your mind to instruction
and your ear to words of knowledge.

13Do not withhold discipline from a child;
if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.

14If you beat him with the rod
you will save his life from Sheol.

15My son, if your heart is wise,
my heart too will be glad.

16My soul will rejoice
when your lips speak what is right.

17Let not your heart envy sinners,
but continue in the fear of the LORD all the day.

18Surely there is a future,
and your hope will not be cut off.

19Hear, my son, and be wise,
and direct your mind in the way.

20Be not among winebibbers,
or among gluttonous eaters of meat;

21for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
and drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.

22Listen to your father who begot you,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.

23Buy truth, and do not sell it;
buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.

24The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;
he who begets a wise son will be glad in him.

25Let your father and mother be glad,
let her who bore you rejoice.

26My son, give me your heart,
and let your eyes observe n my ways.
27For a harlot is a deep pit;
an adventuress is a narrow well.

28She lies in wait like a robber
and increases the faithless among men.

29Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
Who has strife? Who has complaining?

Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes?
30Those who tarry long over wine,
those who go to try mixed wine.

31Do not look at wine when it is red,
when it sparkles in the cup

and goes down smoothly.
32At the last it bites like a serpent,
and stings like an adder.

33Your eyes will see strange things,
and your mind utter perverse things.

34You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,
like one who lies on the top of a mast. o

35“They struck me,” you will say, p “but I was not hurt;
they beat me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake?
I will seek another drink.”
24 Be not envious of evil men,
nor desire to be with them;
2for their minds devise violence,
and their lips talk of mischief.

3By wisdom a house is built,
and by understanding it is established;

4by knowledge the rooms are filled
with all precious and pleasant riches.

5A wise man is mightier than a strong man, q
and a man of knowledge than he who has strength;

6for by wise guidance you can wage your war,
and in abundance of counselors there is victory.
7Wisdom is too high for a fool;
in the gate he does not open his mouth.
8He who plans to do evil
will be called a mischief-maker.

9The devising of folly is sin,
and the scoffer is an abomination to men.

10If you faint in the day of adversity,
your strength is small.

11Rescue those who are being taken away to death;
hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.

12If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,”
does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?

Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it,
and will he not repay man according to his work?
13My son, eat honey, for it is good,
and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.
14Know that wisdom is such to your soul;
if you find it, there will be a future,

and your hope will not be cut off.
15Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the
righteous;
do not violence to his home;
16for a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again;
but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.

17Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,
and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles;

18lest the LORD see it, and be displeased,
and turn away his anger from him.

19Fret not yourself because of evildoers,
and be not envious of the wicked;

20for the evil man has no future;
the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
21My son, fear the LORD and the king,
and do not disobey either of them; r

22for disaster from them will rise suddenly,
and who knows the ruin that will come from them both?
23 These also are sayings of the wise.
Partiality in judging is not good.
24He who says to the wicked, “You are innocent,”
will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations;

25but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight,
and a good blessing will be upon them.
26He who gives a right answer
kisses the lips.

27Prepare your work outside,
get everything ready for you in the field;

and after that build your house.
28Be not a witness against your neighbor without cause,
and do not deceive with your lips.

29Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me;
I will pay the man back for what he has done.”

30I passed by the field of a sluggard,
by the vineyard of a man without sense;

31and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns;
the ground was covered with nettles,

and its stone wall was broken down.
32Then I saw and considered it;
I looked and received instruction.
33A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,

34and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man.

Further Wise Sayings of Solomon
25 These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezeki'ah king
of Judah copied.
2It is the glory of God to conceal things,
but the glory of kings is to search things out.

3As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth,
so the mind of kings is unsearchable.

4Take away the dross from the silver,
and the smith has material for a vessel;
5take away the wicked from the presence of the king,
and his throne will be established in righteousness.
6Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence
or stand in the place of the great;

7for it is better to be told, “Come up here,”
than to be put lower in the presence of the prince.

What your eyes have seen
8 do not hastily bring into court;
for s what will you do in the end,

when your neighbor puts you to shame?
9Argue your case with your neighbor himself,
and do not disclose another’s secret;

10lest he who hears you bring shame upon you,
and your ill repute have no end.

11A word fitly spoken
is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.

12Like a gold ring or an ornament of gold
is a wise reprover to a listening ear.

13Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest
is a faithful messenger to those who send him,

he refreshes the spirit of his masters.
14Like clouds and wind without rain
is a man who boasts of a gift he does not give.

15With patience a ruler may be persuaded,
and a soft tongue will break a bone.

16If you have found honey, eat only enough for you,
lest you be sated with it and vomit it.

17Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house,
lest he become weary of you and hate you.

18A man who bears false witness against his neighbor
is like a war club, or a sword, or a sharp arrow.

19Trust in a faithless man in time of trouble
is like a bad tooth or a foot that slips.

20He who sings songs to a heavy heart
is like one who takes off a garment on a cold day,

and like vinegar on a wound. t
21If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat;
and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;

22for you will heap coals of fire on his head,
and the LORD will reward you.

23The north wind brings forth rain;
and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

24It is better to live in a corner of the housetop
than in a house shared with a contentious woman.

25Like cold water to a thirsty soul,
so is good news from a far country.

26Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain
is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.

27It is not good to eat much honey,
so be sparing of complimentary words. u

28A man without self-control
is like a city broken into and left without walls.

26 Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,
so honor is not fitting for a fool.
2Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,
a curse that is causeless does not alight.

3A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,
and a rod for the back of fools.

4Answer not a fool according to his folly,
lest you be like him yourself.

5Answer a fool according to his folly,
lest he be wise in his own eyes.

6He who sends a message by the hand of a fool
cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.

7Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless,
is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

8Like one who binds the stone in the sling
is he who gives honor to a fool.

9Like a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard
is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

10Like an archer who wounds everybody
is he who hires a passing fool or drunkard. v
11Like a dog that returns to his vomit
is a fool who repeats his folly.

12Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.

13The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!
There is a lion in the streets!”

14As a door turns on its hinges,
so does a sluggard on his bed.

15The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;
it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.

16The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes
than seven men who can answer discreetly.

17He who meddles in a quarrel not his own
is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.
18Like a madman who throws firebrands,
arrows, and death,

19is the man who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I am only joking!”

20For lack of wood the fire goes out;
and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases.

21As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,
so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.

22The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.

23Like the glaze w covering an earthen vessel
are smooth x lips with an evil heart.

24He who hates, dissembles with his lips
and harbors deceit in his heart;

25when he speaks graciously, believe him not,
for there are seven abominations in his heart;

26though his hatred be covered with guile,
his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

27He who digs a pit will fall into it,
and a stone will come back upon him who starts it rolling.
28A lying tongue hates its victims,
and a flattering mouth works ruin.
27 Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring forth.
2Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;
a stranger, and not your own lips.
3A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

4Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming;
but who can stand before jealousy?

5Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.

6Faithful are the wounds of a friend;
profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

7He who is sated loathes honey,
but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet.

8Like a bird that strays from its nest,
is a man who strays from his home.

9Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
but the soul is torn by trouble. y

10Your friend, and your father’s friend, do not forsake;
and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity.

Better is a neighbor who is near
than a brother who is far away.
11Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad,
that I may answer him who reproaches me.

12A prudent man sees danger and hides himself;
but the simple go on, and suffer for it.

13Take a man’s garment when he has given surety for a stranger,
and hold him in pledge when he gives surety for foreigners. z

14He who blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,
rising early in the morning,

will be counted as cursing.
15A continual dripping on a rainy day
and a contentious woman are alike;
16to restrain her is to restrain the wind a
or to grasp oil in one’s right hand.
17Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.

18He who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,
and he who guards his master will be honored.

19As in water face answers to face,
so the mind of man reflects the man.

20Sheol and Abad'don are never satisfied,
and never satisfied are the eyes of man.

21The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
and a man is judged by his praise.

22Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle
along with crushed grain,

yet his folly will not depart from him.
23Know well the condition of your flocks,
and give attention to your herds;
24for riches do not last for ever;
and does a crown endure to all generations?

25When the grass is gone, and the new growth appears,
and the herbage of the mountains is gathered,

26the lambs will provide your clothing,
and the goats the price of a field;

27there will be enough goats’ milk for your food,
for the food of your household

and maintenance for your maidens.
The Wicked and the Righteous Contrasted
28 The wicked flee when no one pursues,
but the righteous are bold as a lion.
2When a land transgresses
it has many rulers;
but with men of understanding and knowledge
its stability will long continue.
3A poor man who oppresses the poor
is a beating rain that leaves no food.
4Those who forsake the law praise the wicked,
but those who keep the law strive against them.
5Evil men do not understand justice,
but those who seek the LORD understand it completely.

6Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity
than a rich man who is perverse in his ways.

7He who keeps the law is a wise son,
but a companion of gluttons shames his father.

8He who augments his wealth by interest and increase
gathers it for him who is kind to the poor.

9If one turns away his ear from hearing the law,
even his prayer is an abomination.

10He who misleads the upright into an evil way
will fall into his own pit;

but the blameless will have an excellent inheritance.
11A rich man is wise in his own eyes,
but a poor man who has understanding will find him out.
12When the righteous triumph, there is great glory;
but when the wicked rise, men hide themselves.

13He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

14Blessed is the man who fears the LORD always;
but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

15Like a roaring lion or a charging bear
is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

16A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor;
but he who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.

17If a man is burdened with the blood of another,
let him be a fugitive until death;

let no one help him.
18He who walks in integrity will be delivered,
but he who is perverse in his ways will fall into a pit. b

19He who tills his land will have plenty of bread,
but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.

20A faithful man will abound with blessings,
but he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.
21To show partiality is not good;
but for a piece of bread a man will do wrong.
22A miserly man hastens after wealth,
and does not know that want will come upon him.
23He who rebukes a man will afterward find more favor
than he who flatters with his tongue.

24He who robs his father or his mother
and says, “That is no transgression,”

is the companion of a man who destroys.
25A greedy man stirs up strife,
but he who trusts in the LORD will be enriched.

26He who trusts in his own mind is a fool;
but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.

27He who gives to the poor will not want,
but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.

28When the wicked rise, men hide themselves,
but when they perish, the righteous increase.

29 He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck,
will suddenly be broken beyond healing.
2When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice;
but when the wicked rule, the people groan.
3He who loves wisdom makes his father glad,
but one who keeps company with harlots squanders his substance.
4By justice a king gives stability to the land,
but one who exacts gifts ruins it.

5A man who flatters his neighbor
spreads a net for his feet.

6An evil man is ensnared in his transgression,
but a righteous man sings and rejoices.

7A righteous man knows the rights of the poor;
a wicked man does not understand such knowledge.

8Scoffers set a city aflame,
but wise men turn away wrath.

9If a wise man has an argument with a fool,
the fool only rages and laughs, and there is no quiet.
10Bloodthirsty men hate one who is blameless,
and the wicked c seek his life.
11A fool gives full vent to his anger,
but a wise man quietly holds it back.

12If a ruler listens to falsehood,
all his officials will be wicked.

13The poor man and the oppressor meet together;
the LORD gives light to the eyes of both.

14If a king judges the poor with equity
his throne will be established for ever.

15The rod and reproof give wisdom,
but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.
16When the wicked are in authority, transgression increases;
but the righteous will look upon their downfall.

17Discipline your son, and he will give you rest;
he will give delight to your heart.

18Where there is no prophecy the people cast off restraint,
but blessed is he who keeps the law.

19By mere words a servant is not disciplined,
for though he understands, he will not give heed.

20Do you see a man who is hasty in his words?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.

21He who pampers his servant from childhood,
will in the end find him his heir. d

22A man of wrath stirs up strife,
and a man given to anger causes much transgression.

23A man’s pride will bring him low,
but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.

24The partner of a thief hates his own life;
he hears the curse, but discloses nothing.

25The fear of man lays a snare,
but he who trusts in the LORD is safe.

26Many seek the favor of a ruler,
but from the LORD a man gets justice.

27An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous,
but he whose way is straight is an abomination to the wicked.
Sayings of Agur
30 The words of Agur son of Ja'keh of Mas'sa. e
The man says to Ith'iel,
to Ithiel and U'cal: f
2Surely I am too stupid to be a man.
I have not the understanding of a man.

3I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I knowledge of the Holy One.

4Who has ascended to heaven and come down?
Who has gathered the wind in his fists?

Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name, and what is his son’s name?
Surely you know!
5Every word of God proves true;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

6Do not add to his words,
lest he rebuke you, and you be found a liar.

7Two things I ask of you;
deny them not to me before I die:

8Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;

feed me with the food that is needful for me,
9lest I be full, and deny you,
and say, “Who is the LORD?”

or lest I be poor, and steal,
and profane the name of my God.
10Do not slander a servant to his master,
lest he curse you, and you be held guilty.

11There are those who curse their fathers
and do not bless their mothers.

12There are those who are pure in their own eyes
but are not cleansed of their filth.

13There are those—how lofty are their eyes,
how high their eyelids lift!
14There are those whose teeth are swords,
whose teeth are knives,

to devour the poor from off the earth,
the needy from among men.
15The leech g has two daughters;
“Give, give,” they cry.

Three things are never satisfied;
four never say, “Enough”:
16Sheol, the barren womb,
the earth ever thirsty for water,

and the fire which never says, “Enough.” h
17The eye that mocks a father
and scorns to obey a mother

will be picked out by the ravens of the valley
and eaten by the vultures.
18Three things are too wonderful for me;
four I do not understand:

19the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a serpent on a rock,

the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a maiden.
20This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats, and wipes her mouth,

and says, “I have done no wrong.”
21Under three things the earth trembles;
under four it cannot bear up:

22a slave when he becomes king,
and a fool when he is filled with food;

23an unloved woman when she gets a husband,
and a maid when she succeeds her mistress.

24Four things on earth are small,
but they are exceedingly wise:

25the ants are a people not strong,
yet they provide their food in the summer;

26the badgers are a people not mighty,
yet they make their homes in the rocks;
27the locusts have no king,
yet all of them march in rank;

28the lizard you can take in your hands,
yet it is in kings’ palaces.

29Three things are stately in their tread;
four are stately in their stride:

30the lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and does not turn back before any;

31the strutting cock, i the he-goat,
and a king striding before j his people.

32If you have been foolish, exalting yourself,
or if you have been devising evil,

put your hand on your mouth.
33For pressing milk produces curds,
pressing the nose produces blood,

and pressing anger produces strife.
Sayings of Lemuel’s Mother; Praise of a Good Wife
31 The words of Lem'uel, king of Massa,k which his mother taught him:
2What, my son? What, son of my womb?
What, son of my vows?
3Give not your strength to women,
your ways to those who destroy kings.

4It is not for kings, O Lem'uel,
it is not for kings to drink wine,

or for rulers to desire l strong drink;
5lest they drink and forget what has been decreed,
and pervert the rights of all the afflicted.

6Give strong drink to him who is perishing,
and wine to those in bitter distress;

7let them drink and forget their poverty,
and remember their misery no more.

8Open your mouth for the mute,
for the rights of all who are left desolate. m

9Open your mouth, judge righteously,
maintain the rights of the poor and needy.
10Who can find a good wife?
She is far more precious than jewels.

11The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.

12She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.

13She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.

14She is like the ships of the merchant,
she brings her food from afar.

15She rises while it is yet night
and provides food for her household

and tasks for her maidens.
16She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

17She clothes her loins with strength
and makes her arms strong.

18She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.

19She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.

20She opens her hand to the poor,
and reaches out her hands to the needy.

21She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in scarlet.

22She makes herself coverings;
her clothing is fine linen and purple.

23Her husband is known in the gates,
when he sits among the elders of the land.

24She makes linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.

25Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.

26She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27She looks well to the ways of her household,
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:

29“Many women have done excellently,
but you surpass them all.”

30Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

31Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.
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Ecclesiastes
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
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THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES
All Is Vanity
1* The words of the Preacher, a the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher,
vanity of vanities! All is vanity.
3What does man gain by all the toil
at which he toils under the sun?

4A generation goes, and a generation comes,
but the earth remains for ever.

5The sun rises and the sun goes down,
and hastens to the place where it rises.

6The wind blows to the south,
and goes round to the north;

round and round goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns.
7All streams run to the sea,
but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
there they flow again.
8All things are full of weariness;
a man cannot utter it;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
nor the ear filled with hearing.
9What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done;

and there is nothing new under the sun.
10Is there a thing of which it is said,
“See, this is new”?

It has been already,
in the ages before us.
11There is no remembrance of former things,
nor will there be any remembrance

of later things yet to happen
among those who come after.
Vanity in Seeking Wisdom
12 I the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13And I
applied my mind to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under
heaven; it is an unhappy business that God has given to the sons of men to
be busy with. 14I have seen everything that is done under the sun; and
behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind. b
15What is crooked cannot be made straight,
and what is lacking cannot be numbered.
16 I said to myself, “I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who
were over Jerusalem before me; and my mind has had great experience of
wisdom and knowledge.” 17And I applied my mind to know wisdom and to
know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a striving after
wind.
18For in much wisdom is much vexation,
and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

Vanity in Self-indulgence
2 I said to myself, “Come now, I will make a test of pleasure; enjoy
yourself.” But behold, this also was vanity. 2I said of laughter, “It is mad,”
and of pleasure, “What use is it?” 3I searched with my mind how to cheer
my body with wine—my mind still guiding me with wisdom—and how to
lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the sons of men to do
under heaven during the few days of their life. 4I made great works; I built
houses and planted vineyards for myself; 5I made myself gardens and parks,
and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. 6I made myself pools from
which to water the forest of growing trees. 7I bought male and female
slaves, and had slaves who were born in my house; I had also great
possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in
Jerusalem. 8I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of
kings and provinces; I got singers, both men and women, and many
concubines, c man’s delight.
9 So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem;
also my wisdom remained with me. 10And whatever my eyes desired I did
not keep from them; I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found
pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil. 11Then I
considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had spent in doing it,
and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing
to be gained under the sun.
Vanity of Folly and Toil
12 So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly; for what can
the man do who comes after the king? Only what he has already done.
13Then I saw that wisdom excels folly as light excels darkness. 14The wise
man has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness; and yet I
perceived that one fate comes to all of them. 15Then I said to myself, “What
befalls the fool will befall me also; why then have I been so very wise?”
And I said to myself that this also is vanity. 16For of the wise man as of the
fool there is no enduring remembrance, seeing that in the days to come all
will have been long forgotten. How the wise man dies just like the fool!
17So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me;
for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
18 I hated all my toil in which I had toiled under the sun, seeing that I
must leave it to the man who will come after me; 19and who knows whether
he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master of all for which I
toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. 20So I turned
about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under
the sun, 21because sometimes a man who has toiled with wisdom and
knowledge and skill must leave all to be enjoyed by a man who did not toil
for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. 22What has a man from all the toil
and strain with which he toils beneath the sun? 23For all his days are full of
pain, and his work is a vexation; even in the night his mind does not rest.
This also is vanity.
24 There is nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink and
find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God; 25for
apart from him d who can eat or who can have enjoyment? 26For to the man
who pleases him God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy; but to the
sinner he gives the work of gathering and heaping, only to give to one who
pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
Everything Has a Season
3 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under
heaven:
2a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

9What gain has the worker from his toil?
God-given Tasks
10 I have seen the business that God has given to the sons of men to be
busy with. 11He has made everything beautiful in its time; also he has put
eternity into man’s mind, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done
from the beginning to the end. 12I know that there is nothing better for them
than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live; 13also that it is
God’s gift to man that every one should eat and drink and take pleasure in
all his toil. 14I know that whatever God does endures for ever; nothing can
be added to it, nor anything taken from it; God has made it so, in order that
men should fear before him. 15That which is, already has been; that which
is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away.
Judgment and the Future Belong to God
16 Moreover I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there
was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was
wickedness. 17I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the
wicked, for he has appointed a time for every matter, and for every work.
18I said in my heart with regard to the sons of men that God is testing them
to show them that they are but beasts. 19For the fate of the sons of men and
the fate of beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have
the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts; for all is vanity.
20All go to one place; all are from the dust, and all turn to dust again.
21Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the
beast goes down to the earth? 22So I saw that there is nothing better than
that a man should enjoy his work, for that is his lot; who can bring him to
see what will be after him?
Injustice of Life
4 Again I saw all the oppressions that are practiced under the sun. And
behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them! On
the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to
comfort them. 2And I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate
than the living who are still alive; 3but better than both is he who has not yet
been, and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.
4 Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work come from a man’s envy of
his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
5 The fool folds his hands, and eats his own flesh.
6 Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving
after wind.
7 Again, I saw vanity under the sun: 8a person who has no one, either son
or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eyes are never satisfied
with riches, so that he never asks, “For whom am I toiling and depriving
myself of pleasure?” This also is vanity and an unhappy business.
Value of Friendship
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil.
10For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow; but woe to him who is alone
when he falls and has not another to lift him up. 11Again, if two lie together,
they are warm; but how can one be warm alone? 12And though a man might
prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him. A threefold cord
is not quickly broken.
13 Better is a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king, who will
no longer take advice, 14even though he had gone from prison to the throne
or in his own kingdom had been born poor. 15I saw all the living who move
about under the sun, as well as that f youth, who was to stand in his place;
16there was no end of all the people; he was over all of them. Yet those who
come later will not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and a striving
after wind.
Reverence, Humility, Enjoyment
5 g Guard your steps when you go to the house of God; to draw near to
listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know that
they are doing evil. 2 h Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be
hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven, and you upon earth;
therefore let your words be few.
3 For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many
words.
4 When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it; for he has no
pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. 5It is better that you should not vow
than that you should vow and not pay. 6Let not your mouth lead you into
sin, and do not say before the messenger i that it was a mistake; why should
God be angry at your voice, and destroy the work of your hands?
7 For when dreams increase, empty words grow many: j but you must
fear God.
8 If you see in a province the poor oppressed and justice and right
violently taken away, do not be amazed at the matter; for the high official is
watched by a higher, and there are yet higher ones over them. 9But in all, a
king is an advantage to a land with cultivated fields. k
10 He who loves money will not be satisfied with money; nor he who
loves wealth, with gain: this also is vanity.
11 When goods increase, they increase who eat them; and what gain has
their owner but to see them with his eyes?
12 Sweet is the sleep of a laborer, whether he eats little or much; but the
surfeit of the rich will not let him sleep.
13 There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: riches were
kept by their owner to his hurt, 14and those riches were lost in a bad
venture; and he is father of a son, but he has nothing in his hand. 15As he
came from his mother’s womb he shall go again, naked as he came, and
shall take nothing for his toil, which he may carry away in his hand. 16This
also is a grievous evil: just as he came, so shall he go; and what gain has he
that he toiled for the wind, 17and spent all his days in darkness and grief,l in
much vexation and sickness and resentment?
18 Behold, what I have seen to be good and to be fitting is to eat and
drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun
the few days of his life which God has given him, for this is his lot. 19Every
man also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to
enjoy them, and to accept his lot and find enjoyment in his toil—this is the
gift of God. 20For he will not much remember the days of his life because
God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.
Frustration of Desires
6 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy upon
men: 2a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he
lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to
enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them; this is vanity; it is a sore affliction.
3If a man begets a hundred children, and lives many years, so that the days
of his years are many, but he does not enjoy life’s good things, and also has
no burial, I say that an untimely birth is better off than he. 4For it comes
into vanity and goes into darkness, and in darkness its name is covered;
5moreover it has not seen the sun or known anything; yet it finds rest rather
than he. 6Even though he should live a thousand years twice told, yet enjoy
no good—do not all go to the one place?
7 All the toil of man is for his mouth, yet his appetite is not satisfied.
8For what advantage has the wise man over the fool? And what does the
poor man have who knows how to conduct himself before the living?
9Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of desire; this also is
vanity and a striving after wind.

10 Whatever has come to be has already been named, and it is known
what man is, and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he.
11The more words, the more vanity, and what is man the better? 12For who
knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life,
which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him
under the sun?
Wisdom and Folly Compared
7 A good name is better than precious ointment;
and the day of death, than the day of birth.
2It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting;
for this is the end of all men,
and the living will lay it to heart.
3Sorrow is better than laughter,
for by sadness of countenance the heart is made glad.

4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning;
but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise
than to hear the song of fools.
6For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,
so is the laughter of the fools;
this also is vanity.
7Surely oppression makes the wise man foolish,
and a bribe corrupts the mind.

8Better is the end of a thing than its beginning;
and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

9Be not quick to anger,
for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.

10Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?”
For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.

11Wisdom is good with an inheritance,
an advantage to those who see the sun.

12For the protection of wisdom is like the protection of money;
and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of

him who has it.
13Consider the work of God;
who can make straight what he has made crooked?
14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider;
God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out
anything that will be after him.
Inequalities of Life
15 In my vain life I have seen everything; there is a righteous man who
perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who prolongs his
life in his evil-doing. 16Be not righteous overmuch, and do not make
yourself overwise; why should you destroy yourself? 17Be not wicked
overmuch, neither be a fool; why should you die before your time? 18It is
good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your
hand; for he who fears God shall come forth from them all.
19 Wisdom gives strength to the wise man more than ten rulers that are in
a city.
20 Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never
sins.
21 Do not give heed to all the things that men say, lest you hear your
servant cursing you; 22your heart knows that many times you have yourself
cursed others.
23 All this I have tested by wisdom; I said, “I will be wise”; but it was far
from me. 24That which is, is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it
out? 25I turned my mind to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and
the sum of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness
which is madness. 26And I found more bitter than death the woman whose
heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters; he who pleases God
escapes her, but the sinner is taken by her. 27Behold, this is what I found,
says the Preacher, adding one thing to another to find the sum, 28which my
mind has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. One man among a
thousand I found, but a woman among all these I have not found. 29Behold,
this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out
many devices.
Obedience to Rulers
8 Who is like the wise man?
And who knows the interpretation of a thing?
A man’s wisdom makes his face shine,
and the hardness of his countenance is changed.
2 Keep m the king’s command, and because of your sacred oath be not
dismayed; 3go from his presence, do not delay when the matter is
unpleasant, for he does whatever he pleases. 4For the word of the king is
supreme, and who may say to him, “What are you doing?” 5He who obeys a
command will meet no harm, and the mind of a wise man will know the
time and way. 6For every matter has its time and way, although man’s
trouble lies heavy upon him. 7For he does not know what is to be, for who
can tell him how it will be? 8No man has power to retain the spirit, or
authority over the day of death; there is no discharge from war, nor will
wickedness deliver those who are given to it. 9All this I observed while
applying my mind to all that is done under the sun, while man lords it over
man to his hurt.
God’s Ways Are Inscrutable
10 Then I saw the wicked buried; they used to go in and out of the holy
place, and were praised in the city where they had done such things. This
also is vanity. 11Because sentence against an evil deed is not executed
speedily, the heart of the sons of men is fully set to do evil. 12Though a
sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will
be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him; 13but it will
not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like a shadow,
because he does not fear before God.
14 There is a vanity which takes place on earth, that there are righteous
men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are
wicked men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I
said that this also is vanity. 15And I commend enjoyment, for man has no
good thing under the sun but to eat and drink and enjoy himself, for this
will go with him in his toil through the days of life which God gives him
under the sun.
16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom, and to see the business that
is done on earth, how neither day nor night one’s eyes see sleep; 17then I
saw all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done
under the sun. However much man may toil in seeking, he will not find it
out; even though a wise man claims to know, he cannot find it out.
Acceptance of Life As It Comes
9 But all this I laid to heart, examining it all, how the righteous and the
wise and their deeds are in the hand of God; whether it is love or hate man
does not know. Everything before them is vanity, n 2since one fate comes to
all, to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil, o to the clean
and the unclean, to him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As
is the good man, so is the sinner; and he who swears is as he who shuns an
oath. 3This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that one fate comes to
all; also the hearts of men are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts
while they live, and after that they go to the dead. 4But he who is joined
with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 5For
the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have
no more reward; but the memory of them is lost. 6Their love and their hate
and their envy have already perished, and they have no more for ever any
share in all that is done under the sun.
7 Go, eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry
heart; for God has already approved what you do.
8 Let your garments be always white; let not oil be lacking on your head.
9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life
which he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life
and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. 10Whatever your hand finds
to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or thought or knowledge
or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.
11 Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the
battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor
favor to the men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all. 12For man
does not know his time. Like fish which are taken in an evil net, and like
birds which are caught in a snare, so the sons of men are snared at an evil
time, when it suddenly falls upon them.
Wisdom Superior to Folly
13 I have also seen this example of wisdom under the sun, and it seemed
great to me. 14There was a little city with few men in it; and a great king
came against it and besieged it, building great siegeworks against it. 15But
there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the
city. Yet no one remembered that poor man. 16But I say that wisdom is
better than might, though the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words
are not heeded.
17 The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the shouting of a
ruler among fools. 18Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner
destroys much good.
Observations of Wisdom
10 Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off an evil odor;
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
2A wise man’s heart inclines him toward the right,
but a fool’s heart toward the left.
3Even when the fool walks on the road, he lacks sense,
and he says to every one that he is a fool.

4If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your place,
for deference will make amends for great offenses.

5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as it were an error
proceeding from the ruler: 6folly is set in many high places, and the rich sit
in a low place. 7I have seen slaves on horses, and princes walking on foot
like slaves.
8He who digs a pit will fall into it;
and a serpent will bite him who breaks through a wall.
9He who quarries stones is hurt by them;
and he who splits logs is endangered by them.
10If the iron is blunt, and one does not whet the edge,
he must put forth more strength;
but wisdom helps one to succeed.
11If the serpent bites before it is charmed,
there is no advantage in a charmer.

12The words of a wise man’s mouth win him favor,
but the lips of a fool consume him.

13The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness,
and the end of his talk is wicked madness.

14A fool multiplies words,
though no man knows what is to be,

and who can tell him what will be after him?
15The toil of a fool wearies him,
so that he does not know the way to the city.

16Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child,
and your princes feast in the morning!

17Happy are you, O land, when your king is the son of free men,
and your princes feast at the proper time,
for strength, and not for drunkenness!
18Through sloth the roof sinks in,
and through indolence the house leaks.

19Bread is made for laughter,
and wine gladdens life,

and money answers everything.
20Even in your thought, do not curse the king,
nor in your bedchamber curse the rich;

for a bird of the air will carry your voice,
or some winged creature tell the matter.
The Value of Diligence
11 Cast your bread upon the waters,
for you will find it after many days.
2Give a portion to seven, or even to eight,
for you know not what evil may happen on earth.
3If the clouds are full of rain,
they empty themselves on the earth;
and if a tree falls to the south or to the north,
in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.
4He who observes the wind will not sow;
and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

5 As you do not know how the spirit comes to the bones in the womb p of
a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes
everything.
6 In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand;
for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike
will be good.
Youth and Old Age
7 Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to behold the sun.
8 For if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him
remember that the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is vanity.
9 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in
the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your
eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
10 Remove vexation from your mind, and put away pain from your body;
for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.
Advice to the Young
12 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the
evil days come, and the years draw nigh, when you will say, “I have no
pleasure in them”; 2before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars
are darkened and the clouds return after the rain; 3in the day when the
keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders
cease because they are few, and those that look through the windows are
dimmed, 4and the doors on the street are shut; when the sound of the
grinding is low, and one rises up at the voice of a bird, and all the daughters
of song are brought low; 5they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors
are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along
q and desire fails; because man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners
go about the streets; 6before the silver cord is snapped,r or the golden bowl
is broken, or the pitcher is broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the
cistern, 7and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to
God who gave it. 8Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.
Epilogue
9 Besides being wise, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge,
weighing and studying and arranging proverbs with great care. 10The
Preacher sought to find pleasing words, and uprightly he wrote words of
truth.
11 The sayings of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are
the collected sayings which are given by one Shepherd. 12My son, beware
of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much
study is a weariness of the flesh.
13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God, and keep his
commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. s 14For God will bring
every deed into judgment, with t every secret thing, whether good or evil.
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Song of Solomon
Chapters
12345678
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THE SONG OF SOLOMON
Song of the Bride and Her Companions
1* The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.
2O that you a would kiss me with the kisses of your b mouth!
For your love is better than wine,
3 your anointing oils are fragrant,
your name is oil poured out;

therefore the maidens love you.
4Draw me after you, let us make haste.
The king has brought me into his chambers.

We will exult and rejoice in you;
we will extol your love more than wine;
rightly do they love you.
5I am very dark, but comely,
O daughters of Jerusalem,
like the tents of Ke'dar,
like the curtains of Solomon.
6Do not gaze at me because I am swarthy,
because the sun has scorched me.

My mother’s sons were angry with me,
they made me keeper of the vineyards;
but, my own vineyard I have not kept!
7Tell me, you whom my soul loves,
where you pasture your flock,

where you make it lie down at noon;
for why should I be like one who wanders c
beside the flocks of your companions?
8If you do not know,
O fairest among women,
follow in the tracks of the flock,
and pasture your kids
beside the shepherds’ tents.
9I compare you, my love,
to a mare of Pharaoh’s chariots.
10Your cheeks are comely with ornaments,
your neck with strings of jewels.

11We will make you ornaments of gold,
studded with silver.
12While the king was on his couch,
my nard gave forth its fragrance.
13My beloved is to me a bag of myrrh,
that lies between my breasts.

14My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
in the vineyards of En-ge'di.

15Behold, you are beautiful, my love;
behold, you are beautiful;

your eyes are doves.
16Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved,
truly lovely.
Our couch is green;
17 the beams of our house are cedar,
our rafters d are pine.

A Springtime Canticle
2 I am a rose e of Sharon,
a lily of the valleys.
2As a lily among brambles,
so is my love among maidens.

3As an apple tree among the trees of the wood,
so is my beloved among young men.
With great delight I sat in his shadow,
and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
4He brought me to the banqueting house,
and his banner over me was love.

5Sustain me with raisins,
refresh me with apples;
for I am sick with love.
6O that his left hand were under my head,
and that his right hand embraced me!
7I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles or the deer of the field,

that you stir not up nor awaken love
until it please.
8The voice of my beloved!
Behold, he comes,
leaping upon the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
9My beloved is like a gazelle,
or a young stag.
Behold, there he stands
behind our wall,
gazing in at the windows,
looking through the lattice.
10My beloved speaks and says to me:
“Arise, my love, my dove, my fair one,

and come away;
11for behold, the winter is past,
the rain is over and gone.
12The flowers appear on the earth,
the time of pruning has come,
and the voice of the turtledove
is heard in our land.
13The fig tree puts forth its figs,
and the vines are in blossom;
they give forth fragrance.
Arise, my love, my fair one,
and come away.
14O my dove, in the clefts of the rock,
in the covert of the cliff,

let me see your face,
let me hear your voice,
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is comely.
15Catch us the foxes,
the little foxes,
that spoil the vineyards,
for our vineyards are in blossom.”
16My beloved is mine and I am his,
he pastures his flock among the lilies.
17Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
turn, my beloved, be like a gazelle,
or a young stag upon rugged f mountains.
Love Seeking the Bridegroom
3 Upon my bed by night
I sought him whom my soul loves;
I sought him, but found him not;
I called him, but he gave no answer. g
2“I will rise now and go about the city,
in the streets and in the squares;
I will seek him whom my soul loves.”
I sought him, but found him not.
3The watchmen found me,
as they went about in the city.

“Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”
4Scarcely had I passed them,
when I found him whom my soul loves.

I held him, and would not let him go
until I had brought him into my mother’s house,
and into the chamber of her that conceived me.
by the gazelles or the deer of the field,
that you stir not up nor awaken love until it please.
6What is that coming up from the wilderness,
like a column of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
with all the fragrant powders of the merchant?
7Behold, it is the litter of Solomon!
About it are sixty mighty men

of the mighty men of Israel,
8all belted with swords
and expert in war,

each with his sword at his thigh,
against alarms by night.
9King Solomon made himself a palanquin
from the wood of Lebanon.
10He made its posts of silver,
its back of gold, its seat of purple;

it was lovingly wrought within h
by the daughters of Jerusalem.
11Go forth, O daughters of Zion,
and behold King Solomon,

with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart.
The Bride’s Beauty Extolled
4 Behold, you are beautiful, my love,
behold, you are beautiful!
Your eyes are doves
behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats,
moving down the slopes of Gilead.
2Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes
that have come up from the washing,
all of which bear twins,
and not one among them is bereaved.
3Your lips are like a scarlet thread,
and your mouth is lovely.

Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.
4Your neck is like the tower of David,
built for an arsenal, i

whereon hang a thousand bucklers,
all of them shields of warriors.
5Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle,
that feed among the lilies.
6Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
I will hasten to the mountain of myrrh
and the hill of frankincense.
7You are all fair, my love;
there is no flaw in you.

8Come with me from Lebanon, my bride;
come with me from Lebanon.
Depart j from the peak of Ama'na,
from the peak of Se'nir and Hermon,
from the dens of lions,
from the mountains of leopards.
9You have ravished my heart, my sister, my bride,
you have ravished my heart with a glance of your eyes,

with one jewel of your necklace.
10How sweet is your love, my sister, my bride!
how much better is your love than wine,

and the fragrance of your oils than any spice!
11Your lips distil nectar, my bride;
honey and milk are under your tongue;

the scent of your garments is like the scent of Lebanon.
12A garden locked is my sister, my bride,
a garden locked, a fountain sealed.

13Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates
with all choicest fruits,
henna with nard,
14nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all trees of frankincense,

myrrh and aloes,
with all chief spices—
15a garden fountain, a well of living water,
and flowing streams from Lebanon.

16Awake, O north wind,
and come, O south wind!

Blow upon my garden,
let its fragrance be wafted abroad.
Let my beloved come to his garden,
and eat its choicest fruits.
The Groom’s Song of Love;
and the Torment of Separation
5 I come to my garden, my sister, my bride,
I gather my myrrh with my spice,
I eat my honeycomb with my honey,
I drink my wine with my milk.
Eat, O friends, and drink:
drink deeply, O lovers!
2I slept, but my heart was awake.
Hark! my beloved is knocking.

“Open to me, my sister, my love,
my dove, my perfect one;
for my head is wet with dew,
my locks with the drops of the night.”
3I had put off my garment,
how could I put it on?

I had bathed my feet,
how could I soil them?
4My beloved put his hand to the latch,
and my heart was thrilled within me.

5I arose to open to my beloved,
and my hands dripped with myrrh,

my fingers with liquid myrrh,
upon the handles of the bolt.
6I opened to my beloved,
but my beloved had turned and gone.

My soul failed me when he spoke.
I sought him, but found him not;
I called him, but he gave no answer.
7The watchmen found me,
as they went about in the city;

they beat me, they wounded me,
they took away my mantle,
those watchmen of the walls.
if you find my beloved,
that you tell him
I am sick with love.
9What is your beloved more than another beloved,
O fairest among women?

What is your beloved more than another beloved,
that you thus adjure us?
10My beloved is all radiant and ruddy,
distinguished among ten thousand.

11His head is the finest gold;
his locks are wavy,

black as a raven.
12His eyes are like doves
beside springs of water,

bathed in milk,
fitly set.k
13His cheeks are like beds of spices,
yielding fragrance.
His lips are lilies,
distilling liquid myrrh.
14His arms are rounded gold,
set with jewels.

His body is ivory work,l
encrusted with sapphires.m
15His legs are alabaster columns,
set upon bases of gold.

His appearance is like Lebanon,
choice as the cedars.
16His speech is most sweet,
and he is altogether desirable.

This is my beloved and this is my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.
Colloquy of the Friends and the Bride;
the Bridegroom’s Praise of the Bride
6 Where has your beloved gone,
O fairest among women?
Where has your beloved turned,
that we may seek him with you?
2My beloved has gone down to his garden,
to the beds of spices,
to pasture his flock in the gardens,
and to gather lilies.
3I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;
he pastures his flock among the lilies.

4You are beautiful as Tirzah, my love,
comely as Jerusalem,
terrible as an army with banners.
5Turn away your eyes from me,
for they disturb me—

Your hair is like a flock of goats,
moving down the slopes of Gilead.
6Your teeth are like a flock of ewes,
that have come up from the washing,

all of them bear twins,
not one among them is bereaved.
7Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.

8There are sixty queens and eighty concubines,
and maidens without number.
9My dove, my perfect one, is only one,
the darling of her mother,

flawless to her that bore her.
The maidens saw her and called her happy;
the queens and concubines also, and they praised her.
10“Who is this that looks forth like the dawn,
fair as the moon, bright as the sun,

terrible as an army with banners?”
11I went down to the nut orchard,
to look at the blossoms of the valley,
to see whether the vines had budded,
whether the pomegranates were in bloom.
12Before I was aware, my fancy set me
in a chariot beside my prince.n

13oReturn, return, O Shu'lammite,
return, return, that we may look upon you.
Why should you look upon the Shulammite,
as upon a dance before two armies? p
Colloquy of the Bride and the Groom
7 How graceful are your feet in sandals,
O queenly maiden!
Your rounded thighs are like jewels,
the work of a master hand.
2Your navel is a rounded bowl
that never lacks mixed wine.
Your belly is a heap of wheat,
encircled with lilies.
3Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle.
4Your neck is like an ivory tower.
Your eyes are pools in Hesh'bon,

by the gate of Bath-rab'bim.
Your nose is like a tower of Lebanon,
overlooking Damascus.
5Your head crowns you like Car'mel,
and your flowing locks are like purple;

a king is held captive in the tresses. q
6How fair and pleasant you are,
O loved one, delectable maiden! r

7You are stately s as a palm tree,
and your breasts are like its clusters.

8I say I will climb the palm tree
and lay hold of its branches.

Oh, may your breasts be like clusters of the vine,
and the scent of your breath like apples,
9and your kisses t like the best wine
that goes down u smoothly,

gliding over lips and teeth. v
10I am my beloved’s,
and his desire is for me.

11Come, my beloved,
let us go forth into the fields,

and lodge in the villages;
12let us go out early to the vineyards,
and see whether the vines have budded,

whether the grape blossoms have opened
and the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
13The mandrakes give forth fragrance,
and over our doors are all choice fruits,

new as well as old,
which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.
Metaphors of Love
8 O that you were like a brother to me,
that nursed at my mother’s breast!
If I met you outside, I would kiss you,
and none would despise me.
2I would lead you and bring you
into the house of my mother,

and into the chamber of her that conceived me. w
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
the juice of my pomegranates.
3O that his left hand were under my head,
and that his right hand embraced me!

that you stir not up nor awaken love

until it please.
5Who is that coming up from the wilderness,
leaning upon her beloved?
Under the apple tree I awakened you.
There your mother was in travail with you,
there she who bore you was in travail.
6Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm;

for love is strong as death,
jealousy is cruel as the grave.
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
a most vehement flame.
7Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can floods drown it.

If a man offered for love
all the wealth of his house,
it would be utterly scorned.
8We have a little sister,
and she has no breasts.

What shall we do for our sister,
on the day when she is spoken for?
9If she is a wall,
we will build upon her a battlement of silver;

but if she is a door,
we will enclose her with boards of cedar.
10I was a wall,
and my breasts were like towers;

then I was in his eyes
as one who brings x peace.
11Solomon had a vineyard at Ba'al-ha'mon;
he let out the vineyard to keepers;

each one was to bring for its fruit a thousand pieces of silver.
12My vineyard, my very own, is for myself;
you, O Solomon, may have the thousand,

and the keepers of the fruit two hundred.
13O you who dwell in the gardens,
my companions are listening for your voice;

let me hear it.
14Make haste, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or a young stag
upon the mountains of spices.
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Wisdom of Solomon
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
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THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON
Exhortation to Uprightness and Avoidance of Evil
1 * Love righteousness, you rulers of the earth,
think of the Lord with uprightness,
and seek him with sincerity of heart;
2because he is found by those who do not put him to the test,
and manifests himself to those who do not distrust him.

3For perverse thoughts separate men from God,
and when his power is tested, it convicts the foolish;

4because wisdom will not enter a deceitful soul,
nor dwell in a body enslaved to sin.

5For a holy and disciplined spirit * will flee from deceit,
and will rise and depart from foolish thoughts,

and will be ashamed at the approach of unrighteousness.
6For wisdom is a kindly spirit
and will not free a blasphemer from the guilt of his words;
because God is witness of his inmost feelings,
and a true observer of his heart, and a hearer of his tongue.
7Because the Spirit of the Lord has filled the world,
and that which holds all things together knows what is said;
8therefore no one who utters unrighteous things will escape notice,
and justice, when it punishes, will not pass him by.

9For inquiry will be made into the counsels of an ungodly man,
and a report of his words will come to the Lord,

to convict him of his lawless deeds;
10because a jealous ear hears all things,
and the sound of murmurings does not go unheard.

11Beware then of useless murmuring,
and keep your tongue from slander;

because no secret word is without result, a
and a lying mouth destroys the soul.
12Do not invite death by the error of your life,
nor bring on destruction by the works of your hands;

13because God did not make death, and
he does not delight in the death of the living.
14For he created all things that they might exist,
and the creatures b of the world are wholesome,

and there is no destructive poison in them;
and the dominion c of Hades is not on earth.
15For righteousness is immortal.
16But ungodly men by their words and deeds summoned death; d
considering him a friend, they pined away,

and they made a covenant with him,
because they are fit to belong to his party.
2 For they reasoned unsoundly, saying to themselves,
“Short and sorrowful is our life,
and there is no remedy when a man comes to his end,
and no one has been known to return from Hades.
2Because we were born by mere chance,
and hereafter we shall be as though we had never been;

because the breath in our nostrils is smoke,
and reason is a spark kindled by the beating of our hearts.
3When it is extinguished, the body will turn to ashes,
and the spirit will dissolve like empty air.

4Our name will be forgotten in time,
and no one will remember our works;

our life will pass away like the traces of a cloud,
and be scattered like mist
that is chased by the rays of the sun
and overcome by its heat.
5For our allotted time is the passing of a shadow,
and there is no return from our death,

because it is sealed up and no one turns back.
6“Come, therefore, let us enjoy the good things that exist,
and make use of the creation to the full as in youth.

7Let us take our fill of costly wine and perfumes,
and let no flower of spring pass by us.

8Let us crown ourselves with rosebuds before they wither.
9Let none of us fail to share in our revelry,
everywhere let us leave signs of enjoyment,
because this is our portion, and this our lot.
10Let us oppress the righteous poor man;
let us not spare the widow

nor regard the gray hairs of the aged.
11But let our might be our law of right,
for what is weak proves itself to be useless.

12“Let us lie in wait for the righteous man,
because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions;

he reproaches us for sins against the law,
and accuses us of sins against our training.
13He professes to have knowledge of God,
and calls himself a child e of the Lord.

14He became to us a reproof of our thoughts;
15the very sight of him is a burden to us,
because his manner of life is unlike that of others,

and his ways are strange.
16We are considered by him as something base,
and he avoids our ways as unclean;

he calls the last end of the righteous happy,
and boasts that God is his father.
17Let us see if his words are true,
and let us test what will happen at the end of his life;
18for if the righteous man is God’s son, he will help him,
and will deliver him from the hand of his adversaries.

19Let us test him with insult and torture,
that we may find out how gentle he is,

and make trial of his forbearance.
20Let us condemn him to a shameful death,
for, according to what he says, he will be protected.”

21Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray,
for their wickedness blinded them,

22and they did not know the secret purposes of God,
nor hope for the wages of holiness,
nor discern the prize for blameless souls;
23for God created man for incorruption,
and made him in the image of his own eternity, f

24but through the devil’s envy death entered the world,
and those who belong to his party experience it.

The Destiny of the Righteous
Contrasted to the Ungodly
3 But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
2In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died,
and their departure was thought to be an affliction,

3and their going from us to be their destruction;
but they are at peace.

4For though in the sight of men they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality.

5Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;

6like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.

7In the time of their visitation they will shine forth,
and will run like sparks through the stubble.

8They will govern nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord will reign over them for ever.

9Those who trust in him will understand truth,
and the faithful will abide with him in love,

because grace and mercy are upon his elect,
and he watches over his holy ones. g
10But the ungodly will be punished as their reasoning deserves,
who disregarded the righteous man h and rebelled against the Lord;
11for whoever despises wisdom and instruction is miserable.
Their hope is vain, their labors are unprofitable,

and their works are useless.
12Their wives are foolish, and their children evil;
13their offspring are accursed.
For blessed is the barren woman who is undefiled,
who has not entered into a sinful union;
she will have fruit when God examines souls.
14Blessed also is the eunuch whose hands have done no lawless deed,
and who has not devised wicked things against the Lord;
for special favor will be shown him for his faithfulness,
and a place of great delight in the temple of the Lord.
15For the fruit of good labors is renowned,
and the root of understanding does not fail.

16But children of adulterers will not come to maturity,
and the offspring of an unlawful union will perish.

17Even if they live long they will be held of no account,
and finally their old age will be without honor.

18If they die young, they will have no hope
and no consolation in the day of decision.

19For the end of an unrighteous generation is grievous.
The Reward of the Righteous

4 Better than this is childlessness with virtue,
for in the memory of virtue i is immortality,
because it is known both by God and by men.
2When it is present, men imitate j it,
and they long for it when it has gone;

and throughout all time it marches crowned in triumph,
victor in the contest for prizes that are undefiled.
3But the prolific brood of the ungodly will be of no use,
and none of their illegitimate seedlings will strike a deep root

or take a firm hold.
4For even if they put forth boughs for a while,
standing insecurely they will be shaken by the wind,

and by the violence of the winds they will be uprooted.
5The branches will be broken off before they come to maturity,
and their fruit will be useless,

not ripe enough to eat, and good for nothing.
6For children born of unlawful unions
are witnesses of evil against their parents when God examines them.k
7But the righteous man, though he die early, will be at rest.
8For old age is not honored for length of time,
nor measured by number of years;

9but understanding is gray hair for men,
and a blameless life is ripe old age.

10There was one who pleased God and was loved by him,
and while living among sinners he was taken up.

11He was caught up lest evil change his understanding
or guile deceive his soul.

12For the fascination of wickedness obscures what is good,
and roving desire perverts the innocent mind.

13Being perfected in a short time, he fulfilled long years;
14for his soul was pleasing to the Lord,
therefore he took him quickly from the midst of wickedness.

15Yet the peoples saw and did not understand,
nor take such a thing to heart,

that God’s grace and mercy are with his elect,
and he watches over his holy ones.
16The righteous man who has died will condemn the ungodly who are
living,
and youth that is quickly perfected l will condemn the prolonged old age
of the unrighteous man.
17For they will see the end of the wise man,
and will not understand what the Lord purposed for him,
and for what he kept him safe.
18They will see, and will have contempt for him,
but the Lord will laugh them to scorn.

After this they will become dishonored corpses,
and an outrage among the dead for ever;
19because he will dash them speechless to the ground,
and shake them from the foundations;

they will be left utterly dry and barren,
and they will suffer anguish,
and the memory of them will perish.
20They will come with dread when their sins are reckoned up,
and their lawless deeds will convict them to their face.

5 Then the righteous man will stand with great confidence
in the presence of those who have afflicted him,
and those who make light of his labors.
2When they see him, they will be shaken with dreadful fear,
and they will be amazed at his unexpected salvation.

3They will speak to one another in repentance,
and in anguish of spirit they will groan, and say,

4“This is the man whom we once held in derision
and made a byword of reproach—we fools!

We thought that his life was madness
and that his end was without honor.
5Why has he been numbered among the sons of God?
And why is his lot among the saints?

6So it was we who strayed from the way of truth,
and the light of righteousness did not shine on us,

and the sun did not rise upon us.
7We took our fill of the paths of lawlessness and destruction,
and we journeyed through trackless deserts,

but the way of the Lord we have not known.
8What has our arrogance profited us?
And what good has our boasted wealth brought us?

9“All those things have vanished like a shadow,
and like a rumor that passes by;

10like a ship that sails through the billowy water,
and when it has passed no trace can be found,

nor track of its keel in the waves;
11or as, when a bird flies through the air,
no evidence of its passage is found;

the light air, lashed by the beat of its pinions
and pierced by the force of its rushing flight,
is traversed by the movement of its wings,
and afterward no sign of its coming is found there;
12or as, when an arrow is shot at a target,
the air, thus divided, comes together at once,

so that no one knows its pathway.
13So we also, as soon as we were born, ceased to be,
and we had no sign of virtue to show,

but were consumed in our wickedness.” *
14Because the hope of the ungodly man is like chaff m carried by the
wind,
and like a light hoarfrost n driven away by a storm;
it is dispersed like smoke before the wind,
and it passes like the remembrance of a guest who stays but a day.
15But the righteous live for ever,
and their reward is with the Lord;

the Most High takes care of them.
16Therefore they will receive a glorious crown
and a beautiful diadem from the hand of the Lord,

because with his right hand he will cover them,
and with his arm he will shield them.
17The Lord o will take his zeal as his whole armor,
and will arm all creation to repel p his enemies;

18he will put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and wear impartial justice as a helmet;

19he will take holiness as an invincible shield,
20and sharpen stern wrath for a sword,
and creation will join with him to fight against the madmen.
21Shafts of lightning will fly with true aim,
and will leap to the target as from a well-drawn bow of clouds,

22and hailstones full of wrath will be hurled as from a catapult;
the water of the sea will rage against them,

and rivers will relentlessly overwhelm them;
23a mighty wind will rise against them,
and like a tempest it will winnow them away.

Lawlessness will lay waste the whole earth,
and evil-doing will overturn the thrones of rulers.
Admonition to Rulers
6 Listen therefore, O kings, and understand;
learn, O judges of the ends of the earth.
2Give ear, you that rule over multitudes,
and boast of many nations.
3For your dominion was given you from the Lord,
and your sovereignty from the Most High,

who will search out your works and inquire into your plans.
4Because as servants of his kingdom you did not rule rightly,
nor keep the law,

nor walk according to the purpose of God,
5he will come upon you terribly and swiftly,
because severe judgment falls on those in high places.

6For the lowliest man may be pardoned in mercy,
but mighty men will be mightily tested. *

7For the Lord of all will not stand in awe of any one,
nor show deference to greatness;

because he himself made both small and great,
and he takes thought for all alike.
8But a strict inquiry is in store for the mighty.
9To you then, O monarchs, my words are directed,
that you may learn wisdom and not transgress.

10For they will be made holy who observe holy things in holiness,
and those who have been taught them will find a defense.
11Therefore set your desire on my words;
long for them, and you will be instructed.

12Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her,

and is found by those who seek her.
13She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.
14He who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for he will find her sitting at his gates.

15To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,
and he who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,
16because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths,

and meets them in every thought.
17The beginning of wisdom q is the most sincere desire for instruction,
and concern for instruction is love of her,

18and love of her is the keeping of her laws,
and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,

19and immortality brings one near to God;
20so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.
21Therefore if you delight in thrones and scepters, O monarchs over
the peoples,
honor wisdom, that you may reign for ever.
22I will tell you what wisdom is and how she came to be,
and I will hide no secrets from you,

but I will trace her course from the beginning of creation,
and make knowledge of her clear,
and I will not pass by the truth;
23neither will I travel in the company of sickly envy,
for envy r does not associate with wisdom.

24A multitude of wise men is the salvation of the world,
and a sensible king is the stability of his people.

25Therefore be instructed by my words,
and you will profit.

Solomon’s Prayer for and Love of Wisdom
7 I also am mortal, like all men,
a descendant of the first-formed child of earth;
and in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh,
2within the period of ten months, compacted with blood,
from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage.

3And when I was born, I began to breathe the common air,
and fell upon the kindred earth,

and my first sound was a cry, like that of all.
4I was nursed with care in swaddling cloths.
5For no king has had a different beginning of existence;
6there is for all mankind one entrance into life, and a common departure.
7Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me;
I called upon God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.

8I preferred her to scepters and thrones,
and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her.

9Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem,
because all gold is but a little sand in her sight,

and silver will be accounted as clay before her.
10I loved her more than health and beauty,
and I chose to have her rather than light,

because her radiance never ceases.
11All good things came to me along with her,
and in her hands uncounted wealth.

12I rejoiced in them all, because wisdom leads them;
but I did not know that she was their mother.

13I learned without guile and I impart without grudging;
I do not hide her wealth,

14for it is an unfailing treasure for men;
those who get it obtain friendship with God,

commended for the gifts that come from instruction.
15May God grant that I speak with judgment
and have thoughts worthy of what I have received,

for he is the guide even of wisdom
and the corrector of the wise.
16For both we and our words are in his hand,
as are all understanding and skill in crafts.

17For it is he who gave me unerring knowledge of what exists,
to know the structure of the world and the activity of the elements;
18the beginning and end and middle of times,
the alternations of the solstices and the changes of the seasons,

19the cycles of the year and the constellations of the stars,
20the natures of animals and the tempers of wild beasts,
the powers of spirits s and the reasonings of men,
the varieties of plants and the virtues of roots;
21I learned both what is secret and what is manifest,
22for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me.
For in her there is a spirit that is intelligent, holy,

unique, manifold, subtle,
mobile, clear, unpolluted,
distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen,
irresistible, 23beneficent, humane,
steadfast, sure, free from anxiety,
all-powerful, overseeing all,
and penetrating through all spirits
that are intelligent and pure and most subtle.
24For wisdom is more mobile than any motion;
because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things.

25For she is a breath of the power of God,
and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;

therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.
26For she is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,

and an image of his goodness.
27Though she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;

in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God, and prophets;
28for God loves nothing so much as the man who lives with wisdom.
29For she is more beautiful than the sun,
and excels every constellation of the stars.

Compared with the light she is found to be superior,
30for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.

8 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.
2I loved her and sought her from my youth,
and I desired to take her for my bride,
and I became enamored of her beauty.
3She glorifies her noble birth by living with God,
and the Lord of all loves her.

4For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God,
and an associate in his works.

5If riches are a desirable possession in life,
what is richer than wisdom who effects all things?

6And if understanding is effective,
who more than she is fashioner of what exists?

7And if any one loves righteousness,
her labors are virtues;

for she teaches self-control and prudence,
justice and courage;
nothing in life is more profitable for men than these.
8And if any one longs for wide experience,
she knows the things of old, and infers the things to come;
she understands turns of speech and the solutions of riddles;
she has foreknowledge of signs and wonders
and of the outcome of seasons and times.
9Therefore I determined to take her to live with me,
knowing that she would give me good counsel

and encouragement in cares and grief.
10Because of her I shall have glory among the multitudes
and honor in the presence of the elders, though I am young.

11I shall be found keen in judgment,
and in the sight of rulers I shall be admired.

12When I am silent they will wait for me,
and when I speak they will give heed;

and when I speak at greater length
they will put their hands on their mouths.
13Because of her I shall have immortality,
and leave an everlasting remembrance to those who come after me.

14I shall govern peoples,
and nations will be subject to me;
15dread monarchs will be afraid of me when they hear of me;
among the people I shall show myself capable, and courageous in war.
16When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her,
for companionship with her has no bitterness,

and life with her has no pain, but gladness and joy.
17When I considered these things inwardly,
and thought upon them in my mind,

that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality,
18and in friendship with her, pure delight,
and in the labors of her hands, unfailing wealth,

and in the experience of her company, understanding,
and renown in sharing her words,
I went about seeking how to get her for myself.
19As a child I was by nature well endowed,
and a good soul fell to my lot;

20or rather, being good, I entered an undefiled body.
21But I perceived that I would not possess wisdom unless God gave her
to me—
and it was a mark of insight to know whose gift she was—
so I appealed to the Lord and implored him,
and with my whole heart I said:
The Prayer of Solomon
9 “O God of my fathers and Lord of mercy,
who have made all things by your word,
2and by your wisdom have formed man,
to have dominion over the creatures you have made,

3and rule the world in holiness and righteousness,
and pronounce judgment in uprightness of soul,

4give me the wisdom that sits by your throne,
and do not reject me from among your servants.

5For I am your slave and the son of your maidservant,
a man who is weak and short-lived,

with little understanding of judgment and laws;
6for even if one is perfect among the sons of men,
yet without the wisdom that comes from you he will be regarded as
nothing.
7You have chosen me to be king of your people
and to be judge over your sons and daughters.

8You have given command to build a temple on your holy mountain,
and an altar in the city of your habitation,

a copy of the holy tent which you prepared from the beginning.
9With you is wisdom, who knows your works
and was present when you made the world,

and who understands what is pleasing in your sight
and what is right according to your commandments.
10Send her forth from the holy heavens,
and from the throne of your glory send her,

that she may be with me and toil,
and that I may learn what is pleasing to you.
11For she knows and understands all things,
and she will guide me wisely in my actions

and guard me with her glory.
12Then my works will be acceptable,
and I shall judge your people justly,

and shall be worthy of the throne t of my father.
13For what man can learn the counsel of God?
Or who can discern what the Lord wills?

14For the reasoning of mortals is worthless,
and our designs are likely to fail,

15for a perishable body weighs down the soul,
and this earthy tent burdens the thoughtful u mind.

16We can hardly guess at what is on earth,
and what is at hand we find with labor;

but who has traced out what is in the heavens?
17Who has learned your counsel, unless you have given wisdom
and sent your holy Spirit from on high?

18And thus the paths of those on earth were set right,
and men were taught what pleases you,
and were saved by wisdom.”
The Deeds of Wisdom
10 Wisdom v protected the first-formed father of the world,
when he alone had been created;
she delivered him from his transgression,
2and gave him strength to rule all things.
3But when an unrighteous man departed from her in his anger,
he perished because in rage he slew his brother.

4When the earth was flooded because of him, wisdom again saved it,
steering the righteous man by a paltry piece of wood.

5Wisdom w also, when the nations in wicked agreement had been
confounded,
recognized the righteous man and preserved him blameless before God,
and kept him strong in the face of his compassion for his child.
6Wisdom w rescued a righteous man when the ungodly were perishing;
he escaped the fire that descended on the Five Cities. x

7Evidence of their wickedness still remains:
a continually smoking wasteland,

plants bearing fruit that does not ripen,
and a pillar of salt standing as a monument to an unbelieving soul.
8For because they passed wisdom by,
they not only were hindered from recognizing the good,

but also left for mankind a reminder of their folly,
so that their failures could never go unnoticed.
9Wisdom rescued from troubles those who served her.
10When a righteous man fled from his brother’s wrath,
she guided him on straight paths;

she showed him the kingdom of God,
and gave him knowledge of angels; y
she prospered him in his labors,
and increased the fruit of his toil.
11When his oppressors were covetous,
she stood by him and made him rich.

12She protected him from his enemies,
and kept him safe from those who lay in wait for him;
in his arduous contest she gave him the victory,
so that he might learn that godliness is more powerful than anything.
13When a righteous man was sold, wisdom z did not desert him,
but delivered him from sin.

She descended with him into the dungeon,
14and when he was in prison she did not leave him,
until she brought him the scepter of a kingdom

and authority over his masters.
Those who accused him she showed to be false,
and she gave him everlasting honor.
15A holy people and blameless race
wisdom a delivered from a nation of oppressors.

16She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord,
and withstood dread kings with wonders and signs.

17She gave to holy men the reward of their labors;
she guided them along a marvelous way,

and became a shelter to them by day,
and a starry flame through the night.
18She brought them over the Red Sea,
and led them through deep waters;

19but she drowned their enemies,
and cast them up from the depth of the sea.

20Therefore the righteous plundered the ungodly;
they sang hymns, O Lord, to your holy name,

and praised with one accord your defending hand,
21because wisdom opened the mouth of the mute,
and made the tongues of infants speak clearly.

11 Wisdom a prospered their works by the hand of a holy prophet.
2They journeyed through an uninhabited wilderness,
and pitched their tents in untrodden places.
3They withstood their enemies and fought off their foes.
4When they thirsted they called upon you,
and water was given them out of flinty rock,
and slaking of thirst from hard stone.
5For through the very things by which their enemies were punished,
they themselves received benefit in their need.

6Instead of the fountain of an ever-flowing river,
stirred up and defiled with blood

7in rebuke for the decree to slay the infants,
you gave them abundant water unexpectedly,

8showing by their thirst at that time
how you punished their enemies.

9For when they were tried, though they were being disciplined in mercy,
they learned how the ungodly were tormented when judged in wrath.
10For you tested them as a father does in warning,
but you examined the ungodly b as a stern king does in condemnation.

11Whether absent or present, they were equally distressed,
12for a twofold grief possessed them,
and a groaning at the memory of what had occurred.

13For when they heard that through their own punishments
the righteous c had received benefit, they perceived it was the Lord’s
doing.
14For though they had mockingly rejected him who long before had been
cast out and exposed,

at the end of the events they marveled at him,
for their thirst was not like that of the righteous.
15In return for their foolish and wicked thoughts,
which led them astray to worship irrational serpents and worthless

animals,
you sent upon them a multitude of irrational creatures to punish them,
16that they might learn that one is punished by the very things by which
he sins.
17For your all-powerful hand,
which created the world out of formless matter,

did not lack the means to send upon them a multitude of bears, or bold
lions,
18or newly created unknown beasts full of rage,
or such as breathe out fiery breath,
or belch forth a thick pall of smoke,
or flash terrible sparks from their eyes;
not only could their damage exterminate men,d
but the mere sight of them could kill by fright.
20Even apart from these, men e could fall at a single breath
when pursued by justice

and scattered by the breath of your power.
But you have arranged all things by measure and number and weight.
21For it is always in your power to show great strength,
and who can withstand the might of your arm?

22Because the whole world before you is like a speck that tips the scales,
and like a drop of morning dew that falls upon the ground.
23But you are merciful to all, for you can do all things,
and you overlook men’s sins, that they may repent.

24For you love all things that exist,
and you loathe none of the things which you have made,
for you would not have made anything if you had hated it.
25How would anything have endured if you had not willed it?
Or how would anything not called forth by you have been preserved?
26You spare all things, for they are yours, O Lord who love the living. *
12 For your immortal spirit is in all things.

2Therefore you correct little by little those who trespass,
and remind and warn them of the things wherein they sin,
that they may be freed from wickedness and put their trust in you, O
Lord.
3Those who dwelt of old in your holy land
4you hated for their detestable practices,
their works of sorcery and unholy rites,

5their merciless slaughter f of children,
and their sacrificial feasting on human flesh and blood.

These initiates from the midst of a heathen cult, g
6these parents who murder helpless lives,
you wanted to destroy by the hands of our fathers,
7that the land most precious of all to you
might receive a worthy colony of the servants h of God.

8But even these you spared, since they were but men,
and sent wasps i as forerunners of your army,

to destroy them little by little,
9though you were not unable to give the ungodly into the hands of the
righteous in battle,
or to destroy them at one blow by dread wild beasts or your stern word.
10But judging them little by little you gave them a chance to repent,
though you were not unaware that their origin j was evil
and their wickedness inborn,
and that their way of thinking would never change.
11For they were an accursed race from the beginning,
and it was not through fear of any one that you left them unpunished for
their sins.
12For who will say, “What have you done?”
Or who will resist your judgment?

Who will accuse you for the destruction of nations which you made?
Or who will come before you to plead as an advocate for unrighteous
men?
13For neither is there any god besides you, whose care is for all men,k
to whom you should prove that you have not judged unjustly;
14nor can any king or monarch confront you about those whom you have
punished.
15You are righteous and rule all things righteously,
deeming it alien to your power

to condemn him who does not deserve to be punished.
16For your strength is the source of righteousness,
and your sovereignty over all causes you to spare all.

17For you show your strength when men doubt the completeness of your
power,
and rebuke any insolence among those who know it. l
18You who are sovereign in strength judge with mildness,
and with great forbearance you govern us;
for you have power to act whenever you choose.
19Through such works you have taught your people
that the righteous man must be kind,

and you have filled your sons with good hope,
because you give repentance for sins.
20For if you punished with such great care and indulgence m
the enemies of your servants n and those deserving of death,

granting them time and opportunity to give up their wickedness,
21with what strictness you have judged your sons,
to whose fathers you gave oaths and covenants full of good promises!
22So while chastening us you scourge our enemies ten thousand times
more,
so that we may meditate upon your goodness when we judge,
and when we are judged we may expect mercy.
23Therefore those who in folly of life lived unrighteously
you tormented through their own abominations.

24For they went far astray on the paths of error,
accepting as gods those animals which even their enemies o despised;

they were deceived like foolish infants.
25Therefore, as to thoughtless children,
you sent your judgment to mock them.

26But those who have not heeded the warning of light rebukes
will experience the deserved judgment of God.

27For when in their suffering they became incensed
at those creatures which they had thought to be gods, being punished by

means of them,
they saw and recognized as the true God him whom they had before
refused to know.
Therefore the utmost condemnation came upon them.
The Foolishness of Idolatry
13 For all men who were ignorant of God were foolish by nature;
and they were unable from the good things that are seen to know him
who exists,
nor did they recognize the craftsman while paying heed to his works;
2but they supposed that either fire or wind or swift air,
or the circle of the stars, or turbulent water,

or the luminaries of heaven were the gods that rule the world.
3If through delight in the beauty of these things men p assumed them to
be gods,
let them know how much better than these is their Lord,
for the author of beauty created them.
4And if men p were amazed at their power and working,
let them perceive from them

how much more powerful is he who formed them.
5For from the greatness and beauty of created things
comes a corresponding perception of their Creator.

6Yet these men are little to be blamed,
for perhaps they go astray

while seeking God and desiring to find him.
7For as they live among his works they keep searching,
and they trust in what they see, because the things that are seen are
beautiful.
8Yet again, not even they are to be excused;
9for if they had the power to know so much
that they could investigate the world,

how did they fail to find sooner the Lord of these things?
10But miserable, with their hopes set on dead things, are the men
who give the name “gods” to the works of men’s hands,

gold and silver fashioned with skill,
and likenesses of animals,
or a useless stone, the work of an ancient hand.
11A skilled woodcutter may saw down a tree easy to handle
and skilfully strip off all its bark,

and then with pleasing workmanship
make a useful vessel that serves life’s needs,
12and burn the castoff pieces of his work
to prepare his food, and eat his fill.

13But a castoff piece from among them, useful for nothing,
a stick crooked and full of knots,
he takes and carves with care in his leisure,
and shapes it with skill gained in idleness; q
he forms it like the image of a man,
14or makes it like some worthless animal,
giving it a coat of red paint and coloring its surface red

and covering every blemish in it with paint;
15then he makes for it a niche that befits it,
and sets it in the wall, and fastens it there with iron.

16So he takes thought for it, that it may not fall,
because he knows that it cannot help itself,

for it is only an image and has need of help.
17When he prays about possessions and his marriage and children,
he is not ashamed to address a lifeless thing.

18For health he appeals to a thing that is weak;
for life he prays to a thing that is dead;

for aid he entreats a thing that is utterly inexperienced;
for a prosperous journey, a thing that cannot take a step;
19for money-making and work and success with his hands
he asks strength of a thing whose hands have no strength.

14 Again, one preparing to sail and about to voyage over raging
waves
calls upon a piece of wood more fragile than the ship which carries him.
2For it was desire for gain that planned that vessel,
and wisdom was the craftsman who built it;

3but it is your providence, O Father, that steers its course,
because you have given it a path in the sea,

and a safe way through the waves,
4showing that you can save from every danger,
so that even if a man lacks skill, he may put to sea.

5It is your will that works of your wisdom should not be without effect;
therefore men trust their lives even to the smallest piece of wood,
and passing through the billows on a raft they come safely to land.
6For even in the beginning, when arrogant giants were perishing,
the hope of the world took refuge on a raft,
and guided by your hand left to the world the seed of a new generation.
7For blessed is the wood by which righteousness comes.
8But the idol made with hands is accursed, and so is he who made it;
because he did the work, and the perishable thing was named a god.
9For equally hateful to God are the ungodly man and his ungodliness,
10for what was done will be punished together with him who did it.
11Therefore there will be a visitation also upon the heathen idols,
because, though part of what God created, they became an abomination,

and became traps for the souls of men
and a snare to the feet of the foolish.
12For the idea of making idols was the beginning of fornication,
and the invention of them was the corruption of life,

13for neither have they existed from the beginning
nor will they exist for ever.

14For through the vanity of men they entered the world,
and therefore their speedy end has been planned.

15For a father, consumed with grief at an untimely bereavement,
made an image of his child, who had been suddenly taken from him;
and he now honored as a god what was once a dead human being,
and handed on to his dependents secret rites and initiations.
16Then the ungodly custom, grown strong with time, was kept as a law,
and at the command of monarchs graven images were worshiped.

17When men could not honor monarchs r in their presence, since they
lived at a distance,
they imagined their appearance far away,
and made a visible image of the king whom they honored,
so that by their zeal they might flatter the absent one as though present.
18Then the ambition of the craftsman impelled
even those who did not know the king to intensify their worship.
19For he, perhaps wishing to please his ruler,
skilfully forced the likeness to take more beautiful form,

20and the multitude, attracted by the charm of his work,
now regarded as an object of worship the one whom shortly before they
had honored as a man.
21And this became a hidden trap for mankind,
because men, in bondage to misfortune or to royal authority,

bestowed on objects of stone or wood the name that ought not to be
shared.
22Afterward it was not enough for them to err about the knowledge of
God,
but they live in great strife due to ignorance,
and they call such great evils peace.
23For whether they kill children in their initiations, or celebrate secret
mysteries,
or hold frenzied revels with strange customs,
24they no longer keep either their lives or their marriages pure,
but they either treacherously kill one another, or grieve one another by
adultery,
25and all is a raging riot of blood and murder, theft and deceit, corruption,
faithlessness, tumult, perjury,
26confusion over what is good, forgetfulness of favors,
pollution of souls, sex perversion,

disorder in marriage, adultery, and debauchery.
27For the worship of idols not to be named
is the beginning and cause and end of every evil.

28For their worshipers s either rave in exultation, or prophesy lies,
or live unrighteously, or readily commit perjury;

29for because they trust in lifeless idols
they swear wicked oaths and expect to suffer no harm.

30But just penalties will overtake them on two counts:
because they thought wickedly of God in devoting themselves to idols,

and because in deceit they swore unrighteously through contempt for
holiness.
31For it is not the power of the things by which men swear, t
but the just penalty for those who sin,

that always pursues the transgression of the unrighteous.
True Worship of God Contrasted to Idols
15 But you, our God, are kind and true,
patient, and ruling all things u in mercy.
2For even if we sin we are yours, knowing your power;
but we will not sin, because we know that we are considered yours.
3For to know you is complete righteousness,
and to know your power is the root of immortality.

4For neither has the evil intent of human art misled us,
nor the fruitless toil of painters,

a figure stained with varied colors,
5whose appearance arouses yearning in fools,
so that they desire v the lifeless form of a dead image.

6Lovers of evil things and fit for such objects of hope w
are those who either make or desire or worship them.

7For when a potter kneads the soft earth
and laboriously molds each vessel for our service,

he fashions out of the same clay
both the vessels that serve clean uses
and those for contrary uses, making all in like manner;
but which shall be the use of each of these
the worker in clay decides.
8With misspent toil, he forms a futile god from the same clay—
this man who was made of earth a short time before

and after a little while goes to the earth from which he was taken,
when he is required to return the soul that was lent him.
9But he is not concerned that he is destined to die
or that his life is brief,

but he competes with workers in gold and silver,
and imitates workers in copper;
and he counts it his glory that he molds counterfeit gods.
10His heart is ashes, his hope is cheaper than dirt,
and his life is of less worth than clay,

11because he failed to know the one who formed him
and inspired him with an active soul

and breathed into him a living spirit.
12But he x considered our existence an idle game,
and life a festival held for profit,
for he says one must get money however one can, even by base means.
13For this man, more than all others, knows that he sins
when he makes from earthy matter fragile vessels and graven images.
14But most foolish, and more miserable than an infant,
are all the enemies who oppressed your people.

15For they thought that all their heathen idols were gods,
though these have neither the use of their eyes to see with,
nor nostrils with which to draw breath,
nor ears with which to hear,
nor fingers to feel with,
and their feet are of no use for walking.
16For a man made them,
and one whose spirit is borrowed formed them;

for no man can form a god which is like himself.
17He is mortal, and what he makes with lawless hands is dead,
for he is better than the objects he worships,

since y he has life, but they never have.
18The enemies of your people z worship even the most hateful animals,
which are worse than all others, when judged by their lack of
intelligence;
19and even as animals they are not so beautiful in appearance that one
would desire them,

but they have escaped both the praise of God and his blessing.
16 Therefore those men were deservedly punished through such
creatures,
and were tormented by a multitude of animals.
2Instead of this punishment you showed kindness to your people,
and you prepared quails to eat,

a delicacy to satisfy the desire of appetite;
3in order that those men, when they desired food,
might lose the least remnant of appetite a

because of the odious creatures sent to them,
while your people,b after suffering want a short time,
might partake of delicacies.
4For it was necessary that upon those oppressors inexorable want should
come,
while to these it was merely shown how their enemies were being
tormented.
5For when the terrible rage of wild beasts came upon your people c
and they were being destroyed by the bites of writhing serpents,

your wrath did not continue to the end;
6they were troubled for a little while as a warning,
and received a token of deliverance to remind them of your law’s

command.
7For he who turned toward it was saved, not by what he saw,
but by you, the Savior of all.

8And by this also you convinced our enemies
that it is you who deliver from every evil.

9For they were killed by the bites of locusts and flies,
and no healing was found for them,

because they deserved to be punished by such things;
10but your sons were not conquered even by the teeth of venomous
serpents,
for your mercy came to their help and healed them.
11To remind them of your oracles they were bitten,
and then were quickly delivered,

lest they should fall into deep forgetfulness
and become unresponsive d to your kindness.
12For neither herb nor poultice cured them,
but it was your word, O Lord, which heals all men.

13For you have power over life and death;
you lead men down to the gates of Hades and back again.
14A man in his wickedness kills another,
but he cannot bring back the departed spirit,

nor set free the imprisoned soul.
15To escape from your hand is impossible;
16for the ungodly, refusing to know you,
were scourged by the strength of your arm,
pursued by unusual rains and hail and relentless storms,
and utterly consumed by fire.
17For—most incredible of all—in the water, which quenches all things,
the fire had still greater effect,

for the universe defends the righteous.
18At one time the flame was restrained,
so that it might not consume the creatures sent against the ungodly,
but that seeing this they might know
that they were being pursued by the judgment of God;
19and at another time even in the midst of water it burned more intensely
than fire,
to destroy the crops of the unrighteous land.
20Instead of these things you gave your people the food of angels,
and without their toil you supplied them from heaven with bread ready to
eat,
providing every pleasure and suited to every taste.
21For your sustenance manifested your sweetness toward your children;
and the bread, ministering e to the desire of the one who took it,
was changed to suit every one’s liking.
22Snow and ice withstood fire without melting,
so that they might know that the crops of their enemies

were being destroyed by the fire that blazed in the hail
and flashed in the showers of rain;
23whereas the fire,f in order that the righteous might be fed,
even forgot its native power.

24For creation, serving you who have made it,
exerts itself to punish the unrighteous,

and in kindness relaxes on behalf of those who trust in you.
25Therefore at that time also, changed into all forms,
it served your all-nourishing bounty,

according to the desire of those who had need, g
26so that your sons, whom you loved, O Lord, might learn
that it is not the production of crops that feeds man,
but that your word preserves those who trust in you.
27For what was not destroyed by fire
was melted when simply warmed by a fleeting ray of the sun,

28to make it known that one must rise before the sun to give you thanks,
and must pray to you at the dawning of the light;

29for the hope of an ungrateful man will melt like wintry frost,
and flow away like waste water.

The Plague of Darkness and Death
17 Great are your judgments and hard to describe;
therefore uninstructed souls have gone astray.
2For when lawless men supposed that they held the holy nation in their
power,
they themselves lay as captives of darkness and prisoners of long night,
shut in under their roofs, exiles from eternal providence.
3For thinking that in their secret sins they were unobserved
behind a dark curtain of forgetfulness,

they were scattered, terribly h alarmed,
and appalled by specters.
4For not even the inner chamber that held them protected them from fear,
but terrifying sounds rang out around them,

and dismal phantoms with gloomy faces appeared.
5And no power of fire was able to give light,
nor did the brilliant flames of the stars

avail to illumine that hateful night.
6Nothing was shining through to them
except a dreadful, self-kindled fire,

and in terror they deemed the things which they saw
to be worse than that unseen appearance.
7The delusions of their magic art lay humbled,
and their boasted wisdom was scornfully rebuked.

8For those who promised to drive off the fears and disorders of a sick
soul
were sick themselves with ridiculous fear.
9For even if nothing disturbing frightened them,
yet, scared by the passing of beasts and the hissing of serpents,
10they perished in trembling fear,
refusing to look even at the air, though it nowhere could be avoided.

11For wickedness is a cowardly thing, condemned by its own testimony; i
distressed by conscience, it has always exaggerated j the difficulties.

12For fear is nothing but surrender of the helps that come from reason;
13and the inner expectation of help, being weak,
prefers ignorance of what causes the torment.

14But throughout the night, which was really powerless,
and which beset them from the recesses of powerless Hades,

they all slept the same sleep,
15and now were driven by monstrous specters,
and now were paralyzed by their souls’ surrender,

for sudden and unexpected fear overwhelmed them.
16And whoever was there fell down,
and thus was kept shut up in a prison not made of iron;

17for whether he was a farmer or a shepherd
or a workman who toiled in the wilderness,

he was seized, and endured the inescapable fate;
for with one chain of darkness they all were bound.
18Whether there came a whistling wind,
or a melodious sound of birds in wide-spreading branches,

or the rhythm of violently rushing water,
19or the harsh crash of rocks hurled down,
or the unseen running of leaping animals,

or the sound of the most savage roaring beasts,
or an echo thrown back from a hollow of the mountains,
it paralyzed them with terror.
20For the whole world was illumined with brilliant light,
and was engaged in unhindered work,

21while over those men alone heavy night was spread,
an image of the darkness that was destined to receive them;

but still heavier than darkness were they to themselves.
18 But for your holy ones there was very great light.
Their enemies k heard their voices but did not see their forms,
and counted them happy for not having suffered,
2and were thankful that your holy ones, k though previously wronged,
were doing them no injury;

and they begged their pardon for having been at variance with them. l
3Therefore you provided a flaming pillar of fire
as a guide for your people’s m unknown journey,

and a harmless sun for their glorious wandering.
4For their enemies n deserved to be deprived of light and imprisoned in
darkness,
those who had kept your sons imprisoned,
through whom the imperishable light of the law was to be given to the
world.
5When they had resolved to kill the infants of your holy ones,
and one child had been exposed and rescued,

in punishment you took away a multitude of their children;
and you destroyed them all together by a mighty flood.
6That night was made known beforehand to our fathers,
so that they might rejoice in sure knowledge of the oaths in which they
trusted.
7The deliverance of the righteous and the destruction of their enemies
were expected by your people.

8For by the same means by which you punished our enemies
you called us to yourself and glorified us.

9For in secret the holy children of good men offered sacrifices,
and with one accord agreed to the divine law,

that the saints would share alike the same things,
both blessings and dangers;
and already they were singing the praises of the fathers. o
10But the discordant cry of their enemies echoed back,
and their piteous lament for their children was spread abroad.
11The slave was punished with the same penalty as the master,
and the common man suffered the same loss as the king;
12and they all together, by the one form of death,
had corpses too many to count.
For the living were not sufficient even to bury them,
since in one instant their most valued children had been destroyed.
13For though they had disbelieved everything because of their magic arts,
yet, when their first-born were destroyed, they acknowledged your

people to be God’s son.
14For while gentle silence enveloped all things,
and night in its swift course was now half gone,

15your all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne,
into the midst of the land that was doomed,

a stern warrior 16carrying the sharp sword of your authentic command,
and stood and filled all things with death,
and touched heaven while standing on the earth.
17Then at once apparitions in dreadful dreams greatly troubled them,
and unexpected fears assailed them;

18and one here and another there, hurled down half dead,
made known why they were dying;

19for the dreams which disturbed them forewarned them of this,
so that they might not perish without knowing why they suffered.
20The experience of death touched also the righteous,
and a plague came upon the multitude in the desert,

but the wrath did not long continue.
21For a blameless man was quick to act as their champion;
he brought forward the shield of his ministry,

prayer and propitiation by incense;
he withstood the anger and put an end to the disaster,
showing that he was your servant.
22He conquered the wrath p not by strength of body,
and not by force of arms,

but by his word he subdued the punisher,
appealing to the oaths and covenants given to our fathers.
23For when the dead had already fallen on one another in heaps,
he intervened and held back the wrath,

and cut off its way to the living.
24For upon his long robe the whole world was depicted,
and the glories of the fathers were engraved on the four rows of stones,
and your majesty on the diadem upon his head.
25To these the destroyer yielded, these he q feared;
for merely to test the wrath was enough.

God’s Continuing Help for His People
19 But the ungodly were assailed to the end by pitiless anger,
for God r knew in advance even their future actions,
2that, though they themselves had permitted s your people to depart
and hastily sent them forth,

they would change their minds and pursue them.
3For while they were still busy at mourning,
and were lamenting at the graves of their dead,

they reached another foolish decision,
and pursued as fugitives those whom they had begged and compelled to
depart.
4For the fate they deserved drew them on to this end,
and made them forget what had happened,

in order that they might fill up the punishment which their torments still
lacked,
5and that your people might experience t an incredible journey,
but they themselves might meet a strange death.

6For the whole creation in its nature was fashioned anew,
complying with your commands,

that your children u might be kept unharmed.
7The cloud was seen overshadowing the camp,
and dry land emerging where water had stood before,

an unhindered way out of the Red Sea,
and a grassy plain out of the raging waves,
8where those protected by your hand passed through as one nation,
after gazing on marvelous wonders.

9For they ranged like horses,
and leaped like lambs,

praising you, O Lord, who delivered them.
10For they still recalled the events of their sojourn,
how instead of producing animals the earth brought forth gnats,

and instead of fish the river spewed out vast numbers of frogs.
11Afterward they saw also a new kind v of birds,
when desire led them to ask for luxurious food;

12for, to give them relief, quails came up from the sea.
13The punishments did not come upon the sinners
without prior signs in the violence of thunder,

for they justly suffered because of their wicked acts;
for they practiced a more bitter hatred of strangers.
14Others had refused to receive strangers when they came to them,
but these made slaves of guests who were their benefactors.

15And not only so, but punishment of some sort will come upon the
former
for their hostile reception of the strangers;
16but the latter, after receiving them with festal celebrations,
afflicted with terrible sufferings

those who had already shared the same rights.
17They were stricken also with loss of sight—
just as were those at the door of the righteous man—

when, surrounded by yawning darkness,
each tried to find the way through his own door.
18For the elements changed w places with one another,
as on a harp the notes vary the nature of the rhythm,

while each note remains the same. x
This may be clearly inferred from the sight of what took place.
19For land animals were transformed into water creatures,
and creatures that swim moved over to the land.

20Fire even in water retained its normal power,
and water forgot its fire-quenching nature.

21Flames, on the contrary, failed to consume
the flesh of perishable creatures that walked among them,

nor did they melt y the crystalline, easily melted kind of heavenly food.
22For in everything, O Lord, you have exalted and glorified your
people;
and you have not neglected to help them at all times and in all places.
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Sirach
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51
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THE BOOK OF SIRACH
The Prologue
Whereas many great teachings have been given to us through the law and
the prophets and the others that followed them, on account of which we
should praise Israel for instruction and wisdom; and since it is necessary not
only that the readers themselves should acquire understanding but also that
those who love learning should be able to help the outsiders by both
speaking and writing, my grandfather Jesus, after devoting himself
especially to the reading of the law and the prophets and the other books of
our fathers, and after acquiring considerable proficiency in them, was
himself also led to write something pertaining to instruction and wisdom, in
order that, by becoming conversant with this also, those who love learning
should make even greater progress in living according to the law.
You are urged therefore to read with good will and attention, and to be
indulgenta in cases where, despite our diligent labor in translating, we may
seem to have rendered some phrases imperfectly. For what was originally
expressed in Hebrew does not have exactly the same sense when translated
into another language. Not only this work, but even the law itself, the
prophecies, and the rest of the books differ not a little as originally
expressed.
When I came to Egypt in the thirty-eighth year of the reign of Euer'getes
and stayed for some time, I found opportunity for no little instruction.b It
seemed highly necessary that I should myself devote some pains and labor
to the translation of the following book, using in that period of time great
watchfulness and skill in order to complete and publish the book for those
living abroad who wished to gain learning, being prepared in character to
live according to the law.
In Praise of Wisdom
1 * All wisdom comes from the Lord
and is with him for ever.
2The sand of the sea, the drops of rain,
and the days of eternity—who can count them?
3The height of heaven, the breadth of the earth,
the abyss, and wisdom—who can search them out?
4Wisdom was created before all things,
and prudent understanding from eternity.c

5The source of wisdom is God’s word in the highest heaven,
and her ways are the eternal commandments.
6The root of wisdom—to whom has it been revealed?
Her clever devices—who knows them?d

7The knowledge of wisdom—to whom was it manifested?
And her abundant experience—who has understood it?

8There is One who is wise, the Creator of all,
the King greatly to be feared, sitting upon his throne, and ruling as
God.
9The Lord himself created wisdome in the holy spirit;
he saw her and apportioned her,
he poured her out upon all his works.
10She dwells with all flesh according to his gift,
and he supplied her to those who love him.

11The fear of the Lord is glory and exultation,
and gladness and a crown of rejoicing.

12The fear of the Lord delights the heart,
and gives gladness and joy and long life.

13With him who fears the Lord it will go well at the end;
on the day of his death he will be blessed.

14To fear the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
she is created with the faithful in the womb.

15She madef among men an eternal foundation,
and among their descendants she will be trusted.
16To fear the Lord is wisdom’s full measure;
she satisfiesg men with her fruits;

17she fills their whole house with desirable goods,
and their storehouses with her produce.

18The fear of the Lord is the crown of wisdom,
making peace and perfect health to flourish.

19He saw her and apportioned her;
he rained down knowledge and discerning comprehension,
and he exalted the glory of those who held her fast.
20To fear the Lord is the root of wisdom,
and her branches are long life.h

22Unrighteous anger cannot be justified,
for a man’s anger tips the scale to his ruin.
23A patient man will endure until the right moment,
and then joy will burst forth for him.
24He will hide his words until the right moment,
and the lips of many will tell of his good sense.
25In the treasuries of wisdom are wise sayings,
but godliness is an abomination to a sinner.

26If you desire wisdom, keep the commandments,
and the Lord will supply it for you.
27For the fear of the Lord is wisdom and instruction,
and he delights in fidelity and meekness.
28Do not disobey the fear of the Lord;
do not approach him with a divided mind.

29Be not a hypocrite in men’s sight,i
and keep watch over your lips.

30Do not exalt yourself lest you fall,
and thus bring dishonor upon yourself.
The Lord will reveal your secrets
and cast you down in the midst of the congregation,
because you did not come in the fear of the Lord,
and your heart was full of deceit.
Duties toward God
2 My son, if you come forward to serve the Lord,
remain in justice and in fear,
and prepare yourself for temptation.j
2Set your heart right and be steadfast,
incline your ear, and receive words of understanding,

and do not be hasty in time of calamity.
3Await God’s patience, cling to him and do not depart,
that you may be wise in all your ways.
4Accept whatever is brought upon you,
and endure it in sorrow;
in changes that humble you be patient.
5For gold and silver are tested in the fire,
and acceptable men in the furnace of humiliation.
6Trust in God, and he will help you;
hope in him, and he will make your ways straight.
Stay in fear of him, and grow old in him.
7You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy;
and turn not aside, lest you fall.
8You who fear the Lord, trust in him,
and your reward will not fail;
9you who fear the Lord, hope for good things,
for everlasting joy and mercy.
You who fear the Lord, love him,
and your hearts will be made radiant.
10Consider the ancient generations and see:
who ever trusted in the Lord and was put to shame?

Or who ever persevered in his commandmentsk and was forsaken?
Or who ever called upon him and was overlooked?
11For the Lord is compassionate and merciful;
he forgives sins and saves in time of affliction,

and he is the shield of all who seek him in truth.
12Woe to timid hearts and to slack hands,
and to the sinner who walks along two ways!

13Woe to the faint heart, for it has no trust!
Therefore it will not be sheltered.
14Woe to you who have lost your endurance!
What will you do when the Lord punishes you?
15Those who fear the Lord will not disobey his words,
and those who love him will keep his ways.
16Those who fear the Lord will seek his approval,
and those who love him will be filled with the law.
17Those who fear the Lord will prepare their hearts,
and will humble themselves before him.

18Let us falll into the hands of the Lord,
but not into the hands of men;

for as his majesty is,
so also is his mercy.
Duties toward Parents and Others
3 Listen to me your father, O children;
and act accordingly, that you may be kept in safety.
2For the Lord honored the father above the children,
and he confirmed the right of the mother over her sons.
3Whoever honors his father atones for sins,
and preserves himself from them.
When he prays, he is heard;
4 and whoever glorifies his mother is like one who lays up treasure.
5Whoever honors his father will be gladdened by his own children,
and when he prays he will be heard.

6Whoever glorifies his father will have long life,
and whoever obeys the Lord will refresh his mother;

7 he will serve his parents as his masters.m
8Honor your father by word and deed,
that a blessing from him may come upon you.

9For a father’s blessing strengthens the houses of the children,
but a mother’s curse uproots their foundations.

10Do not glorify yourself by dishonoring your father,
for your father’s dishonor is no glory to you.
11For a man’s glory comes from honoring his father,
and it is a disgrace for children not to respect their mother.
12O son, help your father in his old age,
and do not grieve him as long as he lives;

13even if he is lacking in understanding, show forbearance;
and do not despise him all the days of his life.

14For kindness to a father will not be forgotten,
and against your sins it will be credited to you

—a house raised in justice to you.
15in the day of your affliction it will be remembered in your favor;
as frost in fair weather, your sins will melt away.

16Whoever forsakes his father is like a blasphemer,
and whoever angers his mother is cursed by the Lord.

17My son, perform your tasks in meekness;
then you will be loved more than a giver of gifts.
18The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself;
so you will find favor with God.n
19There are many who are noble and renowned,
but it is to the humble that he reveals his mysteries.

20For great is the might of the Lord;
he is glorified by the humble.

21Seek not what is too difficult for you,
nor investigate what is beyond your power.

22Reflect upon what has been assigned to you,
and do not be curious about many of his works,
for you do not need to see with your eyes what is hidden.
23Do not meddle in what is beyond your tasks,
for matters too great for human understanding have been shown you.
24For their hasty judgment has led many astray,
and wrong opinion has caused their thoughts to slip.o

26A stubborn mind will be afflicted at the end,
and whoever loves danger will perish by it.

27A stubborn mind will be burdened by troubles,
and the sinner will heap sin upon sin.

28The affliction of the proud has no healing,
for a plant of wickedness has taken root in them,

though it will not be perceived.
29The mind of the wise man will ponder the words of the wise,
and an attentive ear is the wise man’s desire.
30Water extinguishes a blazing fire:
so almsgiving atones for sin.
31Whoever repays favors gives thought to the future;
at the moment of his falling he will find support.

Precepts for Everyday Life
4 My son, deprive not the poor of his living,
and do not keep needy eyes waiting.
2Do not grieve the one who is hungry,
nor anger a man in want.

3Do not add to the troubles of an angry mind,
nor delay your gift to a beggar.

4Do not reject an afflicted suppliant,
nor turn your face away from the poor.
5Do not avert your eye from the needy,
nor give a man occasion to curse you;
6for if in bitterness of soul he calls down a curse upon you,
his Creator will hear his prayer.
7Make yourself beloved in the congregation;
bow your head low to a great man.

8Incline your ear to the poor,
and answer him peaceably and gently.

9Deliver him who is wronged from the hand of the wrongdoer;
and do not be fainthearted in judging a case.

10Be like a father to orphans,
and instead of a husband to their mother;

you will then be like a son of the Most High,
and he will love you more than does your mother.
11Wisdom breathes life into her sons
and gives help to those who seek her.

12Whoever loves her loves life,
and those who seek her early

will win the Lord’s good favor.
13Whoever holds her fast will obtain glory,
and the Lord will bless the place shep enters.

14Those who serve her will minister to the Holy One;q
the Lord loves those who love her.

15He who obeys her will judge the nations,
and whoever gives heed to her will dwell secure.
16If he has faith in her he will obtain her;
and his descendants will remain in possession of her.

17For she will walk with him in disguise,
and at first she will put him to the test;

she will bring fear and cowardice upon him,
and will torment him by her discipline
until he holds her in his thoughts,
and she trusts him.
18Then she will come straight back to him and strengthen him,
she will gladden him and will reveal her secrets to him,
and store up for him knowledge
and the discernment of what is right.
19But if he goes astray she will forsake him,
and give him over into the hands of his foe.

20Observe the right time, and beware of evil;r
and do not bring shame on yourself.
21For there is a shame which brings sin,
and there is a shame which is glory and favor.

22Do not show partiality, to your own harm,
or deference, to your downfall.

23Do not refrain from speaking at the crucial time,s
and do not hide your wisdom.t

24For wisdom is known through speech,
and education through the words of the tongue.

25Never speak against the truth,
but be mindful of your ignorance.

26Do not be ashamed to confess your sins,
and do not try to stop the current of a river.
27Do not subject yourself to a foolish fellow,
nor show partiality to a ruler.

28Strive even to death for the truth
and the Lord God will fight for you.

29Do not be reckless in your speech,
or sluggish and remiss in your deeds.

30Do not be like a lion in your home,
nor be a faultfinder with your servants.

31Let not your hand be extended to receive,
but withdrawn when it is time to repay.

5 Do not set your heart on your wealth,
nor say, “I have enough.”
2Do not follow your inclination and strength,
walking according to the desires of your heart.

3Do not say, “Who will have power over me?”
or “Who will bring me down because of my deeds?”

for God will surely punish you.
4Do not say, “I sinned, and what happened to me?”
for the Most High is slow to anger.
5Do not be so confident of atonement
that you add sin to sin.

6Do not say, “His mercy is great,
he will forgiveu the multitude of my sins,”

for both mercy and wrath are with him,
and his anger rests on sinners.
7Do not delay to turn to the Lord,
nor postpone it from day to day;

for suddenly the wrath of the Lord will go forth,
and at the time of punishment you will perish.
8Do not depend on dishonest wealth,
for it will not benefit you in the day of calamity.

9Do not winnow with every wind,
nor follow every path:

the double-tongued sinner does that.
10Be steadfast in your understanding,
and let your speech be consistent.

11Be quick to hear,
and be deliberate in answering.

12If you have understanding, answer your neighbor;
but if not, put your hand on your mouth.

13Glory and dishonor come from speaking,
and a man’s tongue is his downfall.

14Do not be called a slanderer,
and do not lie in ambush with your tongue;
for shame comes to the thief,
and severe condemnation to the double-tongued.
15In great or small matters do not act amiss,
and do not become an enemy instead of a friend;

6 for a bad name incurs shame and reproach:
so fares the double-tongued sinner.
2Do not exalt yourself through your soul’s counsel,
lest your soul be torn in pieces like a bull.v
3You will devour your leaves and destroy your fruit,
and will be left like a withered tree.
4An evil soul will destroy him who has it,
and make him the laughingstock of his enemies.

5A pleasant voice multiplies friends and softens enemies,
and a gracious tongue multiplies courtesies.
6Let those that are at peace with you be many,
but let your advisers be one in a thousand.

7When you gain a friend, gain him through testing,
and do not trust him hastily.

8For there is a friend who is such at his own convenience,
but will not stand by you in your day of trouble.

9And there is a friend who changes into an enemy,
and will disclose a quarrel to your disgrace.

10And there is a friend who is a table companion,
but will not stand by you in your day of trouble.

11In prosperity he will make himself your equal,
and be bold with your servants;

12but if you are brought low he will turn against you,
and will hide himself from your presence.
13Keep yourself far from your enemies,
and be on guard toward your friends.

14A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter:
he that has found one has found a treasure.

15There is nothing so precious as a faithful friend,
and no scales can measure his excellence.

16A faithful friend is an elixir of life;
and those who fear the Lord will find him.

17Whoever fears the Lord directs his friendship aright,
for as he is, so is his neighbor also.

18My son, from your youth up choose instruction,
and until you are old you will keep finding wisdom.
19Come to her like one who plows and sows,
and wait for her good harvest.
For in her service you will toil a little while,
and soon you will eat of her produce.
20She seems very harsh to the uninstructed;
a weakling will not remain with her.
21She will weigh him down like a heavy testing stone,
and he will not be slow to cast her off.

22For wisdom is like her name,
and is not manifest to many.

23Listen, my son, and accept my judgment;
do not reject my counsel.

24Put your feet into her chains,
and your neck into her collar.

25Put your shoulder under her and carry her,
and do not fret under her bonds.
26Come to her with all your soul,
and keep her ways with all your might.

27Search out and seek, and she will become known to you;
and when you get hold of her, do not let her go.
28For at last you will find the rest she gives,
and she will be changed into joy for you.

29Then her chains will become for you a strong protection,
and her collar a glorious robe.

30Her yokew is a golden ornament,
and her bonds are a cord of blue.

31You will wear her like a glorious robe,
and put her on like a crown of gladness.

32If you are willing, my son, you will be taught,
and if you apply yourself you will become clever.
33If you love to listen you will gain knowledge,
and if you incline your ear you will become wise.

34Stand in the assembly of the elders.
Who is wise? Cling to him.

35Be ready to listen to everyx narrative,
and do not let wise proverbs escape you.

36If you see an intelligent man, visit him early;
let your foot wear out his doorstep.

Reflect on the statutes of the Lord,
and meditate at all times on his commandments.
It is he who will give insight toy your mind,
and your desire for wisdom will be granted.
Advice for Right Conduct
7 Do no evil, and evil will never befall you.
2Stay away from wrong, and it will turn away from you.
3My son, do not sow the furrows of injustice,
and you will not reap a sevenfold crop.
4Do not seek from the Lord the highest office,
nor the seat of honor from the king.
5Do not assert your righteousness before the Lord,
nor display your wisdom before the king.

6Do not seek to become a judge,
lest you be unable to remove iniquity,

lest you be partial to a powerful man,
and thus put a blot on your integrity.
7Do not offend against the public,
and do not disgrace yourself among the people.

8Do not commit a sin twice;
even for one you will not go unpunished.

9Do not say, “He will consider the multitude of my gifts,
and when I make an offering to the Most High God he will accept it.”
10Do not be fainthearted in your prayer,
nor neglect to give alms.
11Do not ridicule a man who is bitter in soul,
for there is One who abases and exalts.

12Do not devisez a lie against your brother,
nor do the like to a friend.

13Refuse to utter any lie,
for the habit of lying serves no good.

14Do not prattle in the assembly of the elders,
nor repeat yourself in your prayer.

15Do not hate toilsome labor,
or farm work, which were created by the Most High.

16Do not count yourself among the crowd of sinners;
remember that wrath does not delay.

17Humble yourself greatly,
for the punishment of the ungodly is fire and worms.a
18Do not exchange a friend for money,
or a real brother for the gold of Ophir.

19Do not deprive yourself of a wise and good wife,
for her charm is worth more than gold.

20Do not abuse a servant who performs his work faithfully,
or a hired laborer who devotes himself to you.

21Let your soul loveb an intelligent servant;
do not withhold from him his freedom.

22Do you have cattle? Look after them;
if they are profitable to you, keep them.
23Do you have children? Discipline them,
and make them obedientc from their youth.

24Do you have daughters? Be concerned for their chastity,d
and do not show yourself too indulgent with them.

25Give a daughter in marriage; you will have finished a great task.
But give her to a man of understanding.

26If you have a wife who pleases you,e do not cast her out;
but do not trust yourself to one whom you detest.

27With all your heart honor your father,
and do not forget the birth pangs of your mother.

28Remember that through your parentsf you were born;
and what can you give back to them that equals their gift to you?
29With all your soul fear the Lord,
and honor his priests.

30With all your might love your Maker,
and do not forsake his ministers.

31Fear the Lord and honor the priest,
and give him his portion, as is commanded you:

the first fruits, the guilt offering, the gift of the shoulders,
the sacrifice of sanctification, and the first fruits of the holy things.
32Stretch forth your hand to the poor,
so that your blessing may be complete.

33Give graciously to all the living,
and withhold not kindness from the dead.
34Do not fail those who weep,
but mourn with those who mourn.
35Do not shrink from visiting a sick man,
because for such deeds you will be loved.

36In all you do, remember the end of your life,
and then you will never sin.

Prudence
8 Do not contend with a powerful man,
lest you fall into his hands.
2Do not quarrel with a rich man,
lest his resources outweigh yours;
for gold has ruined many,
and has perverted the minds of kings.
3Do not argue with a chatterer,
nor heap wood on his fire.

4Do not jest with an ill-bred person,
lest your ancestors be disgraced.

5Do not reproach a man who is turning away from sin;
remember that we all deserve punishment.

6Do not disdain a man when he is old,
for some of us are growing old.

7Do not rejoice over any one’s death;
remember that we all must die.

8Do not slight the discourse of the sages,
but busy yourself with their maxims;
because from them you will gain instruction
and learn how to serve great men.
9Do not disregard the discourse of the aged,
for they themselves learned from their fathers;

because from them you will gain understanding
and learn how to give an answer in time of need.
10Do not kindle the coals of a sinner,
lest you be burned in his flaming fire.

11Do not get up and leave an insolent fellow,
lest he lie in ambush against your words.
12Do not lend to a man who is stronger than you;
but if you do lend anything, be as one who has lost it.
13Do not give surety beyond your means,
but if you give surety, be concerned as one who must pay.

14Do not go to law against a judge,
for the decision will favor him because of his standing.

15Do not travel on the road with a foolhardy fellow,
lest he be burdensome to you;

for he will act as he pleases,
and through his folly you will perish with him.
16Do not fight with a wrathful man,
and do not cross the wilderness with him;

because blood is as nothing in his sight,
and where no help is at hand, he will strike you down.
17Do not consult with a fool,
for he will not be able to keep a secret.

18In the presence of a stranger do nothing that is to be kept secret,
for you do not know what he will divulge.g

19Do not reveal your thoughts to every one,
lest you drive away your good luck.h

On Conduct toward Others
9 Do not be jealous of the wife of your bosom,
and do not teach her an evil lesson to your own hurt.
2Do not give yourself to a woman
so that she gains mastery over your strength.
3Do not go to meet a loose woman,
lest you fall into her snares.

4Do not associate with a woman singer,
lest you be caught in her intrigues.

5Do not look intently at a virgin,
lest you stumble and incur penalties for her.

6Do not give yourself to harlots
lest you lose your inheritance.

7Do not look around in the streets of a city,
nor wander about in its deserted sections.
8Turn away your eyes from a shapely woman,
and do not look intently at beauty belonging to another;
many have been misled by a woman’s beauty,
and by it passion is kindled like a fire.
9Never dine with another man’s wife,
nor revel with her at wine;

lest your heart turn aside to her,
and in bloodi you be plunged into destruction.
10Forsake not an old friend,
for a new one does not compare with him.

A new friend is like new wine;
when it has aged you will drink it with pleasure.
11Do not envy the honors of a sinner,
for you do not know what his end will be.

12Do not delight in what pleases the ungodly;
remember that they will not be held guiltless as long as they live.
13Keep far from a man who has the power to kill,
and you will not be worried by the fear of death.

But if you approach him, make no misstep,
lest he rob you of your life.
Know that you are walking in the midst of snares,
and that you are going about on the city battlements.
14As much as you can, aim to know your neighbors,
and consult with the wise.

15Let your conversation be with men of understanding,
and let all your discussion be about the law of the Most High.
16Let righteous men be your dinner companions,
and let your glorying be in the fear of the Lord.

17A work will be praised for the skill of the craftsmen;
so a people’s leader is proved wise by his words.

18A babbler is feared in his city,
and the man who is reckless in speech will be hated.

10 A wise magistrate will educate his people,
and the rule of an understanding man will be well ordered.
2Like the magistrate of the people, so are his officials;
and like the ruler of the city, so are all its inhabitants.
3An undisciplined king will ruin his people,
but a city will grow through the understanding of its rulers.

4The government of the earth is in the hands of the Lord,
and over it he will raise up the right man for the time.
5The success of a man is in the hands of the Lord,
and he confers his honor upon the person of the scribe.j

6Do not be angry with your neighbor for any injury,
and do not attempt anything by acts of insolence.

7Arrogance is hateful before the Lord and before men,
and injustice is outrageous to both.

8Sovereignty passes from nation to nation
on account of injustice and insolence and wealth.
9How can he who is dust and ashes be proud?
for even in life his bowels decay.k

10A long illness baffles the physician;l
the king of today will die tomorrow.

11For when a man is dead,
he will inherit creeping things, and wild beasts, and worms.

12The beginning of man’s pride is to depart from the Lord;
his heart has forsaken his Maker.

13For the beginning of pride is sin,
and the man who clings to it pours out abominations.

Therefore the Lord brought upon them extraordinary afflictions,
and destroyed them utterly.
14The Lord has cast down the thrones of rulers,
and has seated the lowly in their place.

15The Lord has plucked up the roots of the nations,m
and has planted the humble in their place.

16The Lord has overthrown the lands of the nations,
and has destroyed them to the foundations of the earth.

17He has removed some of them and destroyed them,
and has extinguished the memory of them from the earth.

18Pride was not created for men,
nor fierce anger for those born of women.
19What race is worthy of honor? The human race.
What race is worthy of honor? Those who fear the Lord.
What race is unworthy of honor? The human race.
What race is unworthy of honor? Those who transgress the
commandments.
20Among brothers their leader is worthy of honor,
and those who fear the Lord are worthy of honor in his eyes.n
22The rich, and the eminent, and the poor—
their glory is the fear of the Lord.

23It is not right to despise an intelligent poor man,
nor is it proper to honor a sinful man.

24The nobleman, and the judge, and the ruler will be honored,
but none of them is greater than the man who fears the Lord.
25Free men will be at the service of a wise servant,
and a man of understanding will not grumble.

26Do not make a display of your wisdom when you do your work,
nor glorify yourself at a time when you are in want.

27Better is a man who works and has an abundance of everything,
than one who goes about boasting, but lacks bread.

28My son, glorify yourself with humility,
and ascribe to yourself honor according to your worth.
29Who will justify the man that sins against himself?
And who will honor the man that dishonors his own life?
30A poor man is honored for his knowledge,
while a rich man is honored for his wealth.

31A man honored in poverty, how much more in wealth!
And a man dishonored in wealth, how much more in poverty!

11 The wisdom of a humble man will lift up his head,
and will seat him among the great.
2Do not praise a man for his good looks,
nor loathe a man because of his appearance.

3The bee is small among flying creatures,
but her product is the best of sweet things.

4Do not boast about wearing fine clothes,
nor exalt yourself in the day that you are honored;
for the works of the Lord are wonderful,
and his works are concealed from men.
5Many kings have had to sit on the ground,
but one who was never thought of has worn a crown.

6Many rulers have been greatly disgraced,
and illustrious men have been handed over to others.

7Do not find fault before you investigate;
first consider, and then reprove.

8Do not answer before you have heard,
nor interrupt a speaker in the midst of his words.

9Do not argue about a matter which does not concern you,
nor sit with sinners when they judge a case.

10My son, do not busy yourself with many matters;
if you multiply activities you will not go unpunished,

and if you pursue you will not overtake,
and by fleeing you will not escape.
11There is a man who works, and toils, and presses on,
but is so much the more in want.

12There is another who is slow and needs help,
who lacks strength and abounds in poverty;

but the eyes of the Lord look upon him for his good;
he lifts him out of his low estate
13and raises up his head,
so that many are amazed at him.

14Good things and bad, life and death,
poverty and wealth, come from the Lord.o

17The gift of the Lord endures for those who are godly,
and what he approves will have lasting success.

18There is a man who is rich through his diligence and self-denial,
and this is the reward allotted to him:

19when he says, “I have found rest,
and now I shall enjoyp my goods!”

he does not know how much time will pass
until he leaves them to others and dies.
20Stand by your covenantq and attend to it,
and grow old in your work.
21Do not wonder at the works of a sinner,
but trust in the Lord and keep at your toil;

for it is easy in the sight of the Lord
to enrich a poor man quickly and suddenly.
22The blessing of the Lord isr the reward of the godly,
and quickly God causes his blessing to flourish.

23Do not say, “What do I need,
and what prosperity could be mine in the future?”

24Do not say, “I have enough,
and what calamity could happen to me in the future?”

25In the day of prosperity, adversity is forgotten,
and in the day of adversity, prosperity is not remembered.

26For it is easy in the sight of the Lord
to reward a man on the day of death according to his conduct.

27The misery of an hour makes one forget luxury,
and at the close of a man’s life his deeds will be revealed.

28Call no one happy before his death;
a man will be known through his children.

29Do not bring every man into your home,
for many are the wiles of the crafty.

30Like a decoy partridge in a cage, so is the mind of a proud man,
and like a spy he observes your weakness;s

31for he lies in wait, turning good into evil,
and to worthy actions he will attach blame.
32From a spark of fire come many burning coals,
and a sinner lies in wait to shed blood.

33Beware of a scoundrel, for he devises evil,
lest he give you a lasting blemish.

34Receive a stranger into your home and he will upset you with
commotion,
and will estrange you from your family.
Friends and Enemies
12 If you do a kindness, know to whom you do it,
and you will be thanked for your good deeds.
2Do good to a godly man, and you will be repaid—
if not by him, certainly by the Most High.
3No good will come to the man who persists in evil
or to him who does not give alms.

4Give to the godly man, but do not help the sinner.
5 Do good to the humble, but do not give to the ungodly;
hold back his bread, and do not give it to him,

lest by means of it he subdue you;
for you will receive twice as much evil
for all the good which you do to him.
6For the Most High also hates sinners
and will inflict punishment on the ungodly.t

7Give to the good man, but do not help the sinner.
8A friend will not be knownu in prosperity,
nor will an enemy be hidden in adversity.
9A man’s enemies are grieved when he prospers,
and in his adversity even his friend will separate from him.
10Never trust your enemy,
for like the rusting of copper, so is his wickedness.

11Even if he humbles himself and goes about cringing,
watch yourself, and be on your guard against him;

and you will be to him like one who has polished a mirror,
and you will know that it was not hopelessly tarnished.
12Do not put him next to you,
lest he overthrow you and take your place;

do not have him sit at your right,
lest he try to take your seat of honor,
and at last you will realize the truth of my words,
and be stung by what I have said.
13Who will pity a snake charmer bitten by a serpent,
or any who go near wild beasts?

14So no one will pity a man who associates with a sinner
and becomes involved in his sins.

15He will stay with you for a time,
but if you falter, he will not stand by you.
16An enemy will speak sweetly with his lips,
but in his mind he will plan to throw you into a pit;
an enemy will weep with his eyes,
but if he finds an opportunity his thirst for blood will be insatiable.
17If calamity befalls you, you will find him there ahead of you;
and while pretending to help you, he will trip you by the heel;
18he will shake his head, and clap his hands,
and whisper much, and change his expression.

Responsible Use of Riches
13 Whoever touches pitch will be defiled,
and whoever associates with a proud man will become like him.
2Do not lift a weight beyond your strength,
nor associate with a man mightier and richer than you.
How can the clay pot associate with the iron kettle?
The pot will strike against it, and will itself be broken.
3A rich man does wrong, and he even adds reproaches;
a poor man suffers wrong, and he must add apologies.

4A rich manv will exploit you if you can be of use to him,
but if you are in need he will forsake you.

5If you own something, he will live with you;
he will drain your resources and he will not care.

6When he needs you he will deceive you,
he will smile at you and give you hope.

He will speak to you kindly and say, “What do you need?”
7He will shame you with his foods,
until he has drained you two or three times;

and finally he will deride you.
Should he see you afterwards, he will forsake you,
and shake his head at you.
8Take care not to be led astray,
and not to be humiliated in your feasting.w

9When a powerful man invites you, be reserved;
and he will invite you the more often.

10Do not push forward, lest you be repulsed;
and do not remain at a distance, lest you be forgotten.
11Do not try to treat him as an equal,
nor trust his abundance of words;
for he will test you through much talk,
and while he smiles he will be examining you.
12Cruel is he who does not keep words to himself;
he will not hesitate to injure or to imprison.

13Keep words to yourself and be very watchful,
for you are walking about with your own downfall.x

15Every creature loves its like,
and every person his neighbor;

16all living beings associate by species,
and a man clings to one like himself.

17What fellowship has a wolf with a lamb?
No more has a sinner with a godly man.

18What peace is there between a hyena and a dog?
And what peace between a rich man and a poor man?

19Wild donkeys in the wilderness are the prey of lions;
likewise the poor are pastures for the rich.

20Humility is an abomination to a proud man;
likewise a poor man is an abomination to a rich one.

21When a rich man totters, he is steadied by friends,
but when a humble man falls, he is even pushed away by friends.

22If a rich man slips, his helpers are many;
he speaks unseemly words, and they justify him.

If a humble man slips, they even reproach him;
he speaks sensibly, and receives no attention.
23When the rich man speaks all are silent,
and they extol to the clouds what he says.

When the poor man speaks they say, “Who is this fellow?”
And should he stumble, they even push him down.
24Riches are good if they are free from sin,
and poverty is evil in the opinion of the ungodly.

25A man’s heart changes his countenance,
either for good or for evil.y

26The mark of a happy heart is a cheerful face,
but to devise proverbs requires painful thinking.
14 Blessed is the man who does not blunder with his lips
and need not suffer grief for sin.
2Blessed is he whose heart does not condemn him,
and who has not given up his hope.

3Riches are not seemly for a stingy man;
and of what use is property to an envious man?

4Whoever accumulates by depriving himself, accumulates for others;
and others will live in luxury on his goods.

5If a man is mean to himself, to whom will he be generous?
He will not enjoy his own riches.

6No one is meaner than the man who is grudging to himself,
and this is the retribution for his baseness;

7even if he does good, he does it unintentionally,
and betrays his baseness in the end.
8Evil is the man with a grudging eye;
he averts his face and disregards people.

9A greedy man’s eye is not satisfied with a portion,
and mean injustice withers the soul.

10A stingy man’s eye begrudges bread,
and it is lacking at his table.

11My son, treat yourself well, according to your means,
and present worthy offerings to the Lord.

12Remember that death will not delay,
and the decreez of Hades has not been shown to you.

13Do good to a friend before you die,
and reach out and give to him as much as you can.

14Do not deprive yourself of a happy day;
let not your share of desired good pass by you.

15Will you not leave the fruit of your labors to another,
and what you acquired by toil to be divided by lot?

16Give, and take, and beguile yourself,
because in Hades one cannot look for luxury.

17All living beings become old like a garment,
for the decreea from of old is, “You must surely die!”
18Like flourishing leaves on a spreading tree
which sheds some and puts forth others,

so are the generations of flesh and blood:
one dies and another is born.
19Every product decays and ceases to exist,
and the man who made it will pass away with it.
20Blessed is the man who meditates onb wisdom
and who reasons intelligently.

21He who reflects in his mind on her ways
will also ponder her secrets.

22Pursue wisdomc like a hunter,
and lie in wait on her paths.

23He who peers through her windows
will also listen at her doors;

24he who encamps near her house
will also fasten his tent peg to her walls;

25he will pitch his tent near her,
and will lodge in an excellent lodging place;

26he will place his children under her shelter,
and will camp under her boughs;

27he will be sheltered by her from the heat,
and will dwell in the midst of her glory.

Freedom of Choice and Its Consequences
15 The man who fears the Lord will do this,
and he who holds to the law will obtain wisdom.d
2She will come to meet him like a mother,
and like the wife of his youth she will welcome him.
3She will feed him with the bread of understanding,
and give him the water of wisdom to drink.

4He will lean on her and will not fall,
and he will rely on her and will not be put to shame.

5She will exalt him above his neighbors,
and will open his mouth in the midst of the assembly;

she will fill him with a spirit of wisdom and understanding,
and clothe him with a robe of glory.
6He will find gladness and a crown of rejoicing,
and will acquire an everlasting name.
7Foolish men will not obtain her,
and sinful men will not see her.

8She is far from men of pride,
and liars will never think of her.

9A hymn of praise is not fitting on the lips of a sinner,
for it has not been sent from the Lord.

10For a hymn of praise should be uttered in wisdom,
and the Lord will prosper it.

11Do not say, “Because of the Lord I left the right way”;
for hee will not do what he hates.

12Do not say, “It was he who led me astray”;
for he has no need of a sinful man.

13The Lord hates all abominations,
and they are not loved by those who fear him.

14It was he who created man in the beginning,
and he left him in the power of his own inclination.

15If you will, you can keep the commandments, they will save you;
if you trust in God, you too shall live.

16He has placed before you fire and water:
stretch out your hand for whichever you wish.

17Before a manf are life and death, good and evil,
and whichever he chooses will be given to him.

18For great is the wisdom of the Lord;
he is mighty in power and sees everything.

19The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
and he knows every deed of man.

20He has not commanded any one to be ungodly,
and he has not given any one permission to sin.

16 Do not desire a multitude of useless children,
nor rejoice in ungodly sons.
2If they multiply, do not rejoice in them,
unless the fear of the Lord is in them.
3Do not trust in their survival,
and do not rely on their multitude;
for one is better than a thousand,g
and to die childless is better than to have ungodly children.
4For through one man of understanding a city will be filled with people,
but through a tribe of lawless men it will be made desolate.

5Many such things my eye has seen,
and my ear has heard things more striking than these.

6In an assembly of sinners a fire will be kindled,
and in a disobedient nation wrath was kindled.

7He was not propitiated for the ancient giants
who revolted in their might.

8He did not spare the neighbors of Lot,
whom he loathed on account of their insolence.

9He showed no pity for a nation devoted to destruction,
for those destroyed in their sins;

10nor for the six hundred thousand men on foot,
who rebelliously assembled in their stubbornness.

11Even if there is only one stiffnecked person,
it will be a wonder if he remains unpunished.

For mercy and wrath are with the Lord;h
he is mighty to forgive, and he pours out wrath.
12As great as his mercy, so great is also his reproof;
he judges a man according to his deeds.

13The sinner will not escape with his plunder,
and the patience of the godly will not be frustrated.

14He will make room for every act of mercy;
every one will receive in accordance with his deeds.i

17Do not say, “I shall be hidden from the Lord,
and who from on high will remember me?

Among so many people I shall not be known,
for what is my soul in the boundless creation?
18Behold, heaven and the highest heaven,
the abyss and the earth, will tremble at his visitation.

19The mountains also and the foundations of the earth
shake with trembling when he looks upon them.
20And no mind will reflect on this.
Who will ponder his ways?
21Like a tempest which no man can see,
so most of his works are concealed.

22Who will announce his acts of justice?
Or who will await them? For the covenant is far off.”

23This is what one devoid of understanding thinks;
a senseless and misguided man thinks foolishly.

24Listen to me, my son, and acquire knowledge,
and pay close attention to my words.

25I will impart instruction by weight,
and declare knowledge accurately.

26The works of the Lord have existed from the beginning by his
creation,j
and when he made them, he determined their divisions.
27He arranged his works in an eternal order,
and their dominionk for alll generations;

they neither hunger nor grow weary,
and they do not cease from their labors.
28They do not crowd one another aside,
and they will never disobey his word.

29After this the Lord looked upon the earth,
and filled it with his good things;

30with all kinds of living beings he covered its surface,
and to it they return.

Wisdom concerning God’s Gifts to Men
17 The Lord created man out of earth,
and made him into his own image;
2he turned him back into earth again,
but clothed him in strength like his own.o
3He gave to menm few days, a limited time,
but granted them authority over the things upon the earth.n
4He placed the fear of themp in all flesh,
and granted them dominion over beasts and birds.q

6He made for themr discretion, with a tongue and eyes and ears;
he gave them a mind for thinking,
and filled them with the discipline of discernment.
7He created in them the knowledge of the spirit;
he filled their hearts with understanding,

and showed them good and evil.
8He placed the fear of him into their hearts,
showing them the majesty of his works.s

9He made them glory in his wondrous deeds,
10 that they might praise his holy name,
to proclaim the grandeur of his works.

11He bestowed knowledge upon them,
and allotted to them the law of life.

12He established with them an eternal covenant,
and showed them his justice and his judgments.

13Their eyes saw his glorious majesty,
and their ears heard the glory of his voice.

14And he said to them, “Beware of all unrighteousness.” t
And he gave commandment to each of them concerning his neighbor.

15Their ways are always before him,
they will not be hidden from his eyes.u

17He appointed a ruler for every nation,
but Israel is the Lord’s own portion.v

19All their works are as the sun before him,
and his eyes are continually upon their ways.

20Their iniquities are not hidden from him,
and all their sins are before the Lord.w

22A man’s almsgiving is like a signet with the Lord,x
and he will keep a person’s kindness like the apple of his eye.
23Afterward he will arise and repay them,
and he will bring their recompense on their heads.

24Yet to those who repent he grants a return,
and he encourages those whose endurance is failing,

and he has appointed to them the lot of truth.
25Turn to the Lord and forsake your sins;
pray in his presence and lessen your offenses.
26Return to the Most High and turn away from iniquity,y
and hate abominations intensely.
Know the justice and the judgments of God,
and stand firm the lot that is set before you,
in prayer to God, the Almighty.
27Who will sing praises to the Most High in Hades,
as do those who are alive and give thanks?

Tarry not in the waywardness of the ungodly,
and give thanks before death.
28From the dead, as from one who does not exist, thanksgiving has
ceased;
he who is alive and well sings the Lord’s praises.
29How great is the mercy of the Lord,
and his forgiveness for those who turn to him!

30For all things cannot be in men,z
since a son of man is not immortal.

31What is brighter than the sun? Yet its light fails.a
So flesh and blood devise evil.
32He marshals the host of the height of heaven;
but all men are dust and ashes.

God and Man
18 He who lives for ever created the whole universe;
the Lord alone will be declared righteous.b
4To none has he given power to proclaim his works;
and who can search out his mighty deeds?

5Who can measure his majestic power?
And who can fully recount his mercies?

6It is not possible to diminish or increase them,
nor is it possible to trace the wonders of the Lord.

7When a man has finished, he is just beginning,
and when he stops, he will be at a loss.

8What is man, and of what use is he?
What is his good and what is his evil?

9The number of a man’s days is great if he reaches a hundred years.
10Like a drop of water from the sea and a grainc of sand
so are a few years in the day of eternity.
11Therefore the Lord is patient with them
and pours out his mercy upon them.

12He sees and recognizes that their end will be evil;
therefore he grants them forgiveness in abundance.

13The compassion of man is for his neighbor,
but the compassion of the Lord is for all living beings.

He rebukes and trains and teaches them,
and turns them back, as a shepherd his flock.
14He has compassion on those who accept his discipline
and who are eager for his judgments.

15My son, do not mix reproach with your good deeds,
nor cause grief by your words when you present a gift.
16Does not the dew assuage the scorching heat?
So a word is better than a gift.

17Indeed, does not a word surpass a good gift?
Both are to be found in a gracious man.

18A fool is ungracious and abusive,
and the gift of a grudging man makes the eyes dim.

19Before you speak, learn,
and before you fall ill, take care of your health.
20Before judgment, examine yourself,
and in the hour of visitation you will find forgiveness.

21Before falling ill, humble yourself,
and when you are on the point of sinning, turn back.

22Let nothing hinder you from paying a vow promptly,
and do not wait until death to be released from it.

23Before making a vow,d prepare yourself;
and do not be like a man who tempts the Lord.

24Think of his wrath on the day of death,
and of the moment of vengeance when he turns away his face.

25In the time of plenty think of the time of hunger;
in the days of wealth think of poverty and need.

26From morning to evening conditions change,
and all things move swiftly before the Lord.
27A wise man is cautious in everything,
and in days of sin he guards against wrongdoing.
28Every intelligent man knows wisdom,
and he praises the one who finds her.

29Those who understand sayings become skilled themselves,
and pour forth apt proverbs.

30Do not follow your base desires,
but restrain your appetites.

31If you allow your soul to take pleasure in base desire,
it will make you the laughingstock of your enemies.

32Do not revel in great luxury,
lest you become impoverished by its expense.

33Do not become a beggar by feasting with borrowed money,
when you have nothing in your purse.

True Wisdom Contrasted to
Cleverness and Evil
19 A workman who is a drunkard will not become rich;
he who despises small things will fail little by little.
2Wine and women lead intelligent men astray,
and the man who consorts with harlots is very reckless.

3Decay and worms will inherit him,
and the reckless soul will be snatched away.
4One who trusts others too quickly is lightminded,
and one who sins does wrong to himself.

5One who rejoices in wickednesse will be condemned,f
6and for one who hates gossip evil is lessened.
7Never repeat a conversation,
and you will lose nothing at all.

8With friend or foe do not report it,
and unless it would be a sin for you, do not disclose it;

9for some one has heard you and watched you,
and when the time comes he will hate you.

10Have you heard a word? Let it die with you.
Be brave! It will not make you burst!
11With such a word a fool will suffer pangs
like a woman in labor with a child.
12Like an arrow stuck in the flesh of the thigh,
so is a word inside a fool.

13Question a friend, perhaps he did not do it;
but if he did anything, so that he may do it no more.

14Question a neighbor, perhaps he did not say it;
but if he said it, so that he may not say it again.

15Question a friend, for often it is slander;
so do not believe everything you hear.

16A person may make a slip without intending it.
Who has never sinned with his tongue?

17Question your neighbor before you threaten him;
and let the law of the Most High take its course.g
20All wisdom is the fear of the Lord,
and in all wisdom there is the fulfilment of the law.h

22But the knowledge of wickedness is not wisdom,
nor is there prudence where sinners take counsel.

23There is a cleverness which is abominable,
but there is a fool who merely lacks wisdom.

24Better is the God-fearing man who lacks intelligence,
than the highly prudent man who transgresses the law.

25There is a cleverness which is scrupulous but unjust,
and there are people who distort kindness to gain a verdict.
26There is a rascal bowed down in mourning,i
but inwardly he is full of deceit.

27He hides his face and pretends not to hear;
but where no one notices, he will forestall you.

28And if by lack of strength he is prevented from sinning,
he will do evil when he finds an opportunity.

29A man is known by his appearance,
and a sensible man is known by his face, when you meet him.
30A man’s attire and open-mouthed laughter,
and a man’s manner of walking, show what he is.

On Silence and Speech
20 There is a reproof which is not timely;
and there is a man who keeps silent but is wise.
2How much better it is to reprove than to stay angry!
And the one who confesses his fault will be kept from loss.j
4Like a eunuch’s desire to violate a maiden
is a man who executes judgments by violence.

5There is one who by keeping silent is found wise,
while another is detested for being too talkative.

6There is one who keeps silent because he has no answer,
while another keeps silent because he knows when to speak.

7A wise man will be silent until the right moment,
but a braggart and fool goes beyond the right moment.

8Whoever uses too many words will be loathed,
and whoever usurps the right to speak will be hated.

9There may be good fortune for a man in adversity,
and a windfall may result in a loss.

10There is a gift that profits you nothing,
and there is a gift that brings a double return.

11There are losses because of glory,
and there are men who have raised their heads from humble
circumstances.
12There is a man who buys much for a little,
but pays for it seven times over.

13The wise man makes himself beloved through his words,
but the courtesies of fools are wasted.

14A fool’s gift will profit you nothing,
for he has many eyes instead of one.

15He gives little and upbraids much,
he opens his mouth like a herald;

today he lends and tomorrow he asks it back;
such a one is a hateful man.
16A fool will say, “I have no friend,
and there is no gratitude for my good deeds;

those who eat my bread speak unkindly.”
17How many will ridicule him, and how often!
18A slip on the pavement is better than a slip of the tongue;
so the downfall of the wicked will occur speedily.
19An ungracious man is like a story told at the wrong time,
which is continually on the lips of the ignorant.

20A proverb from a fool’s lips will be rejected,
for he does not tell it at its proper time.

21A man may be prevented from sinning by his poverty,
so when he rests he feels no remorse.

22A man may lose his life through shame,
or lose it because of his foolish look.

23A man may for shame make promises to a friend,
and needlessly make him an enemy.
24A lie is an ugly blot on a man;
it is continually on the lips of the ignorant.

25A thief is preferable to a habitual liar,
but the lot of both is ruin.

26The disposition of a liar brings disgrace,
and his shame is ever with him.

27He who speaks wisely will advance himself,
and a sensible man will please great men.

28Whoever cultivates the soil will heap up his harvest,
and whoever pleases great men will atone for injustice.

29Presents and gifts blind the eyes of the wise;
like a muzzle on the mouth they avert reproofs.

30Hidden wisdom and unseen treasure,
what advantage is there in either of them?
31Better is the man who hides his folly
than the man who hides his wisdom.k

Various Sins and Foolishness
21 Have you sinned, my son? Do so no more,
but pray about your former sins.
2Flee from sin as from a snake;
for if you approach sin, it will bite you.
Its teeth are lion’s teeth,
and destroy the souls of men.
3All lawlessness is like a two-edged sword;
there is no healing for its wound.
4Terror and violence will lay waste riches;
thus the house of the proud will be laid waste.
5The prayer of a poor man goes from his lips to the ears of God,l
and his judgment comes speedily.

6Whoever hates reproof walks in the steps of the sinner,
but he that fears the Lord will repent in his heart.

7He who is mighty in speech is known from afar;
but the sensible man, when he slips, is aware of it.

8A man who builds his house with other people’s money
is like one who gathers stones for his burial mound.m

9An assembly of the wicked is like tow gathered together,
and their end is a flame of fire.

10The way of sinners is smoothly paved with stones,
but at its end is the pit of Hades.

11Whoever keeps the law controls his thoughts,
and wisdom is the fulfilment of the fear of the Lord.

12He who is not clever cannot be taught,
but there is a cleverness which increases bitterness.

13The knowledge of a wise man will increase like a flood,
and his counsel like a flowing spring.

14The mind of a fool is like a broken jar;
it will hold no knowledge.

15When a man of understanding hears a wise saying,
he will praise it and add to it;

when a reveler hears it, he dislikes it
and casts it behind his back.
16A fool’s narration is like a burden on a journey,
but delight will be found in the speech of the intelligent.

17The utterance of a sensible man will be sought in the assembly,
and they will ponder his words in their minds.

18Like a house that has vanished, so is wisdom to a fool;
and the knowledge of the ignorant is unexamined talk.

19To a senseless man education is chains on his feet,
and like manacles on his right hand.

20A fool raises his voice when he laughs,
but a clever man smiles quietly.
21To a sensible man education is like a golden ornament,
and like a bracelet on the right arm.

22The foot of a fool rushes into a house,
but a man of experience stands respectfully before it.

23A boor peers into the house from the door,
but a cultivated man remains outside.

24It is ill-mannered for a man to listen at a door,
and a discreet man is grieved by the disgrace.

25The lips of strangers will speak of these things,n
but the words of the prudent will be weighed in the balance.

26The mind of fools is in their mouth,
but the mouth of wise men is ino their mind.

27When an ungodly man curses his adversary,p
he curses his own soul.

28A whisperer defiles his own soul
and is hated in his neighborhood.

On Wisdom, Folly, and Self-Control
22 The indolent may be compared to a filthy stone,
and every one hisses at his disgrace.
2The indolent may be compared to the filth of dunghills;
any one that picks it up will shake it off his hand.
3It is a disgrace to be the father of an undisciplined son,
and the birth of a daughter is a loss.

4A sensible daughter obtains her husband,
but one who acts shamefully brings grief to her father.

5An impudent daughter disgraces father and husband,
and will be despised by both.

6Like music in mourning is a tale told at the wrong time,
but chastising and discipline are wisdom at all times.

7He who teaches a fool is like one who glues potsherds together,
or who rouses a sleeper from deep slumber.

8He who tells a story to a fool tells it to a drowsy man;
and at the end he will say, “What is it?” q

11Weep for the dead, for he lacks the light;
and weep for the fool, for he lacks intelligence;
weep less bitterly for the dead, for he has attained rest;
but the life of the fool is worse than death.
12Mourning for the dead lasts seven days,
but for a fool or an ungodly man it lasts all his life.

13Do not talk much with a foolish man,
and do not visit an unintelligent man;
guard yourself from him to escape trouble,
and you will not be soiled when he shakes himself off;
avoid him and you will find rest,
and you will never be wearied by his madness.
14What is heavier than lead?
And what is its name except “Fool”?

15Sand, salt, and a piece of iron
are easier to bear than a stupid man.

16A wooden beam firmly bonded into a building
will not be torn loose by an earthquake;
so the mind firmly fixed on a reasonable counsel
will not be afraid in a crisis.
17A mind settled on an intelligent thought
is like the stucco decoration on the wall of a colonnade.r

18Fences set on a high place
will not stand firm against the wind;

so a timid heart with a fool’s purpose
will not stand firm against any fear.
19A man who pricks an eye will make tears fall,
and one who pricks the heart makes it show feeling.
20One who throws a stone at birds scares them away,
and one who reviles a friend will break off the friendship.
21Even if you have drawn your sword against a friend,
do not despair, for a renewal of friendship is possible.

22If you have opened your mouth against your friend,
do not worry, for reconciliation is possible;

but as for reviling, arrogance, disclosure of secrets, or a treacherous blow
—
in these cases any friend will flee.
23Gainthe trust of your neighbor in his poverty,
that you may rejoice with him in his prosperity;
stand by him in time of affliction,
that you may share with him in his inheritance.s
24The vapor and smoke of the furnace precede the fire;
so insults precede bloodshed.

25I will not be ashamed to protect a friend,
and I will not hide from him;

26but if some harm should happen to me because of him,
whoever hears of it will beware of him.

27O that a guard were set over my mouth,
and a seal of prudence upon my lips,

that it may keep me from falling,
so that my tongue may not destroy me! t
23 O Lord, Father and Ruler of my life,
do not abandon me to their counsel,
and let me not fall because of them!
2O that whips were set over my thoughts,
and the discipline of wisdom over my mind! u

That they may not spare me in my errors,
and that it may not pass by myv sins;
3in order that my mistakes may not be multiplied,
and my sins may not abound;

then I will not fall before my adversaries,
and my enemy will not rejoice over me.
4O Lord, Father and God of my life,
do not give me haughty eyes,

5 and remove from me evil desire.
6Let neither gluttony nor lust overcome me,
and do not surrender me to a shameless soul.

7Listen, my children, to instruction concerning speech;
the one who observes it will never be caught.
8The sinner is overtaken through his lips,
the reviler and the arrogant are tripped by them.
9Do not accustom your mouth to oaths,
and do not habitually utter the name of the Holy One;

10for as a servant who is continually examined under torture
will not lack bruises,

so also the man who always swears and utters the Name
will not be cleansed from sin.
11A man who swears many oaths will be filled with iniquity,
and the scourge will not leave his house;

if he offends, his sin remains on him,
and if he disregards it, he sins doubly;
if he has sworn needlessly, he will not be justified,
for his house will be filled with calamities.
12There is an utterance which is comparable to death;w
may it never be found in the inheritance of Jacob!

For all these errors will be far from the godly,
and they will not wallow in sins.
13Do not accustom your mouth to lewd vulgarity,
for it involves sinful speech.

14Remember your father and mother
whenx you sit among great men;

lest you be forgetful in their presence,
and be deemed a fool on account of your habits;
then you will wish that you had never been born,
and you will curse the day of your birth.
15A man accustomed to using insulting words
will never become disciplined all his days.

16Two sorts of men multiply sins,
and a third incurs wrath.

The soul heated like a burning fire
will not be quenched until it is consumed;
a man who commits fornication with his near of kiny
will never cease until the fire burns him up.
17To a fornicator all bread tastes sweet;
he will never cease until he dies.
18A man who breaks his marriage vows
says to himself, “Who sees me?

Darkness surrounds me, and the walls hide me,
and no one sees me. Why should I fear?
The Most High will not take notice of my sins.”
19His fear is confined to the eyes of men,
and he does not realize that the eyes of the Lord

are ten thousand times brighter than the sun;
they look upon all the ways of men,
and perceive even the hidden places.
20Before the universe was created, it was known to him;
so it was also after it was finished.

21This man will be punished in the streets of the city,
and where he least suspects it, he will be seized.

22So it is with a woman who leaves her husband
and provides an heir by a stranger.

23For first of all, she has disobeyed the law of the Most High;
second, she has committed an offense against her husband;

and third, she has committed adultery through harlotry
and brought forth children by another man.
24She herself will be brought before the assembly,
and punishment will fall on her children.

25Her children will not take root,
and her branches will not bear fruit.

26She will leave her memory for a curse,
and her disgrace will not be blotted out.

27Those who survive her will recognize
that nothing is better than the fear of the Lord,

and nothing sweeter than to heed the commandments of the Lord.z
The Praise of Wisdom
24 Wisdom will praise herself and is honored in God,
and will glory in the midst of her people.a
2In the assembly of the Most High she will open her mouth,
and in the presence of his host she will glory.
In the midst of her people she is exalted;
in holy fulness she is admired.
In the multitude of the chosen she finds praise,
and among the blessed she is blessed, saying:
3“I came forth from the mouth of the Most High,
the first-born before all creatures.
I ordained that an unfailing light
should arise in the heavens,
and I covered the earth like a mist.
4I dwelt in high places,
and my throne was in a pillar of cloud.

5Alone I have made the circuit of the vault of heaven
and have walked in the depths of the abyss.

6In the waves of the sea, in the whole earth,
and in every people and nation I have gotten a possession.

7Among all these I sought a resting place;
I sought in whose territory I might lodge.

8“Then the Creator of all things gave me a commandment,
and the one who created me assigned a place for my tent.

And he said, ‘Make your dwelling in Jacob,
and in Israel receive your inheritance,
and among my chosen put down your roots.’
9From eternity, in the beginning, he created me,
and for eternity I shall not cease to exist.

10In the holy tabernacle I ministered before him,
and so I was established in Zion.

11In the beloved city likewise he gave me a resting place,
and in Jerusalem was my dominion.

12So I took root in an honored people,
in the portion of the Lord, who is their inheritance,

and my abode was in the full assembly of the saints.
13“I grew tall like a cedar in Lebanon,
and like a cypress on the heights of Hermon.

14I grew tall like a palm tree in En-ge'di,b
and like rose plants in Jericho;

like a beautiful olive tree in the field,
and like a plane tree I grew tall.
15Like cassia and camel’s thorn I gave forth the aroma of spices,
and like choice myrrh I spread a pleasant odor,

like galbanum, onycha, and stacte,
and like the fragrance of frankincense in the tabernacle.
16Like a terebinth I spread out my branches,
and my branches are glorious and graceful.

17Like a vine I caused loveliness to bud,
and my blossoms became glorious and abundant fruit.c

19“Come to me, you who desire me,
and eat your fill of my produce.

20For my teaching is sweeter than honey,
and my inheritance sweeter than the honeycomb,

and my remembrance lasts throughout all generations.
21Those who eat me will hunger for more,
and those who drink me will thirst for more.

22Whoever obeys me will not be put to shame,
and those who work with my help will not sin.”

23All this is the book of the covenant of the Most High God,
the law which Moses commanded us

as an inheritance for the congregations of Jacob.d
25It fills men with wisdom, like the Pi'shon,
and like the Tigris at the time of the first fruits.

26It makes them full of understanding, like the Euphrates,
and like the Jordan at harvest time.

27It makes instruction shine forth like light,
like the Gi'hon at the time of vintage.

28Just as the first man did not know her perfectly,
the last one has not fathomed her;

29for her thought is more abundant than the sea,
and her counsel deeper than the great abyss.
30I went forth like a canal from a river
and like a water channel into a garden.

31I said, “I will water my orchard
and drench my garden plot”;
and behold, my canal became a river,
and my river became a sea.
32I will again make instruction shine forth like the dawn,
and I will make it shine afar;

33I will again pour out teaching like prophecy,
and leave it to all future generations.

34Observe that I have not labored for myself alone,
but for all who seek instruction.e

The Good and the Evil in Daily Life
25 My soul takes pleasure in three things,
and they are beautiful in the sight of the Lord and of men:f
agreement between brothers, friendship between neighbors,
and a wife and husband who live in harmony.
2My soul hates three kinds of men,
and I am greatly offended at their life:

a beggar who is proud, a rich man who is a liar,
and an adulterous old man who lacks good sense.
3You have gathered nothing in your youth;
how then can you find anything in your old age?

4What an attractive thing is judgment in gray-haired men,
and for the aged to possess good counsel!

5How attractive is wisdom in the aged,
and understanding and counsel in honorable men!

6Rich experience is the crown of the aged,
and their boast is the fear of the Lord.

7With nine thoughts I have gladdened my heart,
and a tenth I shall tell with my tongue:

a man rejoicing in his children;
a man who lives to see the downfall of his foes;
8happy is he who lives with an intelligent wife,
and he who has not made a slip with his tongue,

and he who has not served a man inferior to himself;
9happy is he who has gained good sense,
and he who speaks to attentive listeners.

10How great is he who has gained wisdom!
But there is no one superior to him who fears the Lord.
11The fear of the Lord surpasses everything;
to whom shall be likened the one who holds it fast?g

13Any wound, but not a wound of the heart!
Any wickedness, but not the wickedness of a wife!

14Any attack, but not an attack from those who hate!
And any vengeance, but not the vengeance of enemies!

15There is no venomh worse than a snake’s venom,h
and no wrath worse than an enemy’s wrath.

16I would rather dwell with a lion and a dragon
than dwell with an evil wife.

17The wickedness of a wife changes her appearance,
and darkens her face like that of a bear.

18Her husband takes his meals among the neighbors,
and he cannot help sighingi bitterly.

19Any iniquity is insignificant compared to a wife’s iniquity;
may a sinner’s lot befall her!

20A sandy ascent for the feet of the aged—
such is a garrulous wife for a quiet husband.

21Do not be ensnared by a woman’s beauty,
and do not desire a woman for her possessions.j

22There is wrath and impudence and great disgrace
when a wife supports her husband.

23A dejected mind, a gloomy face,
and a wounded heart are caused by an evil wife.

Drooping hands and weak knees
are caused by the wife who does not make her husband happy.
24From a woman sin had its beginning,
and because of her we all die.

25Allow no outlet to water,
and no boldness of speech in an evil wife.

26If she does not go as you direct,
separate her from yourself.

26 Happy is the husband of a good wife;
the number of his days will be doubled.
2A loyal wife rejoices her husband,
and he will complete his years in peace.
3A good wife is a great blessing;
she will be granted among the blessings of the man who fears the
Lord.
4Whether rich or poor, his heart is glad,
and at all times his face is cheerful.

5Of three things my heart is afraid,
and of a fourth I am frightened:k

The slander of a city, the gathering of a mob,
and false accusation—all these are worse than death.
6There is grief of heart and sorrow when a wife is envious of a rival,
and a tongue-lashing makes it known to all.

7An evil wife is an ox yoke which chafes;
taking hold of her is like grasping a scorpion.

8There is great anger when a wife is drunken;
she will not hide her shame.

9A wife’s harlotry shows in her lustful eyes,
and she is known by her eyelids.

10Keep strict watch over a headstrong daughter,
lest, when she finds liberty, she use it to her hurt.

11Be on guard against her impudent eye,
and do not wonder if she sins against you.
12As a thirsty wayfarer opens his mouth
and drinks from any water near him,

so will she sit in front of every post
and open her quiver to the arrow.
13A wife’s charm delights her husband,
and her skill puts fat on his bones.

14A sensible and silent wife is a gift of the Lord,
and there is nothing so precious as a disciplined soul.

15A modest wife adds charm to charm,
and no balance can weigh the value of a chaste soul.

16Like the sun rising in the heights of the Lord,
so is the beauty of a good wife in her well-ordered home.

17Like the shining lamp on the holy lampstand,
so is a beautiful face on a stately figure.
18Like pillars of gold on a base of silver,
so are beautiful feet with a steadfast heart.l

28At two things my heart is grieved,
and because of a third anger comes over me:

a warrior in want through poverty,
and intelligent men who are treated contemptuously;
a man who turns back from righteousness to sin—
the Lord will prepare him for the sword!
29A merchant can hardly keep from wrongdoing,
and a tradesman will not be declared innocent of sin.

27 Many have committed sin for a trifle,m
and whoever seeks to get rich will avert his eyes.
2As a stake is driven firmly into a fissure between stones,
so sin is wedged in between selling and buying.
3If a man is not steadfast and zealous in the fear of the Lord,
his house will be quickly overthrown.

4When a sieve is shaken, the refuse remains;
so a man’s filth remains in his thoughts.
5The kiln tests the potter’s vessels;
so the test of just men is in tribulation.

6The fruit discloses the cultivation of a tree;
so the expression of a thought discloses the cultivation of a man’s

mind.
7Do not praise a man before you hear him speak,
for this is the test of men.

8If you pursue justice, you will attain it
and wear it as a glorious robe.

9Birds flock with their kind;
so truth returns to those who practice it.

10A lion lies in wait for prey;
so does sin for the workers of iniquity.

11The talk of the godly man is always wise,
but the fool changes like the moon.

12Among stupid people watch for a chance to leave,
but among thoughtful people stay on.
13The talk of fools is offensive,
and their laughter is wantonly sinful.

14The talk of men given to swearing makes one’s hair stand on end,
and their quarrels make a man stop his ears.

15The strife of the proud leads to bloodshed,
and their abuse is grievous to hear.

16Whoever betrays secrets destroys confidence,
and he will never find a congenial friend.

17Love your friend and keep faith with him;
but if you betray his secrets, do not run after him.

18For as a man destroys his enemy,
so you have destroyed the friendship of your neighbor.

19And as you allow a bird to escape from your hand,
so you have let your neighbor go, and will not catch him again.
20Do not go after him, for he is too far off,
and has escaped like a gazelle from a snare.

21For a wound may be bandaged,
and there is reconciliation after abuse,

but whoever has betrayed secrets is without hope.
22Whoever winks his eye plans evil deeds,
and no one can keep him from them.

23In your presence his mouth is all sweetness,
and he admires your words;

but later he will twist his speech
and with your own words he will give offense.
24I have hated many things, but none to be compared to him;
even the Lord will hate him.

25Whoever throws a stone straight up throws it on his own head;
and a treacherous blow opens up wounds.

26He who digs a pit will fall into it,
and he who sets a snare will be caught in it.

27If a man does evil, it will roll back upon him,
and he will not know where it came from.

28Mockery and abuse issue from the proud man,n
but vengeance lies in wait for him like a lion.
29Those who rejoice in the fall of the godly will be caught in a snare,
and pain will consume them before their death.

30Anger and wrath, these also are abominations,
and the sinful man will possess them.

28 He that takes vengeance will suffer vengeance from the Lord,
and he will firmly establisho his sins.
2Forgive your neighbor the wrong he has done,
OceanofPDF.com
and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray.
3Does a man harbor anger against another,
and yet seek for healing from the Lord?
4Does he have no mercy toward a man like himself,
and yet pray for his own sins?

5If he himself, being flesh, maintains wrath,
will he then seek forgiveness from God?

Who will make expiation for his sins?
6Remember the end of your life, and cease from enmity,
remember destruction and death, and be true to the commandments.
7Remember the commandments, and do not be angry with your
neighbor;
remember the covenant of the Most High, and overlook ignorance.
8Refrain from strife, and you will lessen sins;
for a man given to anger will kindle strife,

9and a sinful man will disturb friends
and inject enmity among those who are at peace.

10In proportion to the fuel for the fire, so will be the burning,
and in proportion to the obstinacy of strife will be the burning;p

in proportion to the strength of the man will be his anger,
and in proportion to his wealth he will heighten his wrath.
11A hasty quarrel kindles fire,
and urgent strife sheds blood.
12If you blow on a spark, it will glow;
if you spit on it, it will be put out;

and both come out of your mouth.
13Curse the whisperer and deceiver,
for he has destroyed many who were at peace.

14Slanderq has shaken many,
and scattered them from nation to nation,

and destroyed strong cities,
and overturned the houses of great men.
15Slanderq has driven away courageous women,
and deprived them of the fruit of their toil.

16Whoever pays heed to slanderr will not find rest,
nor will he settle down in peace.

17The blow of a whip raises a welt,
but a blow of the tongue crushes the bones.
18Many have fallen by the edge of the sword,
but not so many as have fallen because of the tongue.
19Happy is the man who is protected from it,
who has not been exposed to its anger,

who has not borne its yoke,
and has not been bound with its chains;
20for its yoke is a yoke of iron,
and its chains are chains of bronze;

21its death is an evil death,
and Hades is preferable to it.

22It will not be master over the godly,
and they will not be burned in its flame.

23Those who forsake the Lord will fall into its power;
it will burn among them and will not be put out.

It will be sent out against them like a lion;
like a leopard it will mangle them.
24See that you fence in your property with thorns,
lock up your silver and gold,

25make balances and scales for your words,
and make a door and a bolt for your mouth.

26Beware lest you err with your tongue,s
lest you fall before him who lies in wait.
On Lending and Borrowing, Home, and Hospitality
29 He that shows mercy will lend to his neighbor,
and he that strengthens him with his hand keeps the commandments.
2Lend to your neighbor in the time of his need;
and in turn, repay your neighbor promptly.
3Confirm your word and keep faith with him,
and on every occasion you will find what you need.
4Many persons regard a loan as a windfall,
and cause trouble to those who help them.

5A man will kiss another’s hands until he gets a loan,
and will lower his voice in speaking of his neighbor’s money;

but at the time for repayment he will delay,
and will pay in words of unconcern,
and will find fault with the time.
6If the lendert exerts pressure, he will hardly get back half,
and will regard that as a windfall.
If he does not, the borroweru has robbed him of his money,
and he has needlessly made him his enemy;
he will repay him with curses and reproaches,
and instead of glory will repay him with dishonor.
7Because of such wickedness, therefore,v many have refused to lend;
they have been afraid of being defrauded needlessly.
8Nevertheless, be patient with a man in humble circumstances,
and do not make him wait for your alms.
9Help a poor man for the commandment’s sake,
and because of his need do not send him away empty.

10Lose your silver for the sake of a brother or a friend,
and do not let it rust under a stone and be lost.

11Lay up your treasure according to the commandments of the Most
High,
and it will profit you more than gold.
12Store up almsgiving in your treasury,
and it will rescue you from all affliction;

13more than a mighty shield and more than a heavy spear,
it will fight on your behalf against your enemy.

14A good man will be surety for his neighbor,
but a man who has lost his sense of shame will fail him.
15Do not forget all the kindness of your surety,
for he has given his life for you.
16A sinner will overthrow the prosperity of his surety,
17 and one who does not feel grateful will abandon his rescuer.
18Being surety has ruined many men who were prosperous,
and has shaken them like a wave of the sea;
it has driven men of power into exile,
and they have wandered among foreign nations.
19The sinner who has fallen into suretyship
and pursues gain will fall into lawsuits.

20Assist your neighbor according to your ability,
but take heed to yourself lest you fall.
21The essentials for life are water and bread
and clothing and a house to cover one’s nakedness.
22Better is the life of a poor man under the shelter of his roof
than sumptuous food in another man’s house.
23Be content with little or much.w
24It is a miserable life to go from house to house,
and where you are a stranger you may not open your mouth;
25you will play the host and provide drink without being thanked,
and besides this you will hear bitter words:

26“Come here, stranger, prepare the table,
and if you have anything at hand, let me have it to eat.”

27“Give place, stranger, to an honored person;
my brother has come to stay with me; I need my house.”

28These things are hard to bear for a man who has feeling:
scolding about lodgingx and the reproach of the moneylender.

Discipline of Children, Right Attitudes
30 He who loves his son will whip him often,
in order that he may rejoice at the way he turns out.
2He who disciplines his son will profit by him,
and will boast of him among acquaintances.
3He who teaches his son will make his enemies envious,
and will glory in him in the presence of friends.

4They father may die, and yet he is not dead,
for he has left behind him one like himself;
5while alive he saw and rejoiced,
and when he died he was not grieved;
6he has left behind him an avenger against his enemies,
and one to repay the kindness of his friends.

7He who spoils his son will bind up his wounds,
and his feelings will be troubled at every cry.

8A horse that is untamed turns out to be stubborn,
and a son unrestrained turns out to be wilful.

9Pamper a child, and he will frighten you;
play with him, and he will give you grief.
10Do not laugh with him, lest you have sorrow with him,
and in the end you will gnash your teeth.
11Give him no authority in his youth,
and do not ignore his errors.

12Bow down his neck in his youth,z
and beat his sides while he is young,

lest he become stubborn and disobey you,
and you have sorrow of soul from him.a
13Discipline your son and take pains with him,
that you may not be offended by his shamelessness.

14Better off is a poor man who is well and strong in constitution
than a rich man who is severely afflicted in body.

15Health and soundness are better than all gold,
and a robust body than countless riches.
16There is no wealth better than health of body,
and there is no gladness above joy of heart.
17Death is better than a miserable life,
and eternal restb than chronic sickness.

18Good things poured out upon a mouth that is closed
are like offerings of food placed upon a grave.

19Of what use to an idol is an offering of fruit?
For it can neither eat nor smell.

So is he who is afflicted by the Lord;
20he sees with his eyes and groans,
like a eunuch who embraces a maiden and groans.

21Do not give yourself over to sorrow,
and do not afflict yourself deliberately.
22Gladness of heart is the life of man,
and the rejoicing of a man is length of days.
23Delight your soul and comfort your heart,
and remove sorrow far from you,

for sorrow has destroyed many,
and there is no profit in it.
24Jealousy and anger shorten life,
and anxiety brings on old age too soon.
25A man of cheerful and good heart
will give heed to the food he eats.
Right Conduct
31 Wakefulness over wealth wastes away one’s flesh,
and anxiety about it removes sleep.
2Wakeful anxiety prevents slumber,
and a severe illness carries off sleep.c
3The rich man toils as his wealth accumulates,
and when he rests he fills himself with his dainties.

4The poor man toils as his livelihood diminishes,
and when he rests he becomes needy.
5He who loves gold will not be justified,
and he who pursues money will be led astrayd by it.

6Many have come to ruin because of gold,
and their destruction has met them face to face.

7It is a stumbling block to those who are devoted to it,
and every fool will be taken captive by it.

8Blessed is the rich man who is found blameless,
and who does not go after gold.

9Who is he? And we will call him blessed,
for he has done wonderful things among his people.

10Who has been tested by it and been found perfect?
Let it be for him a ground for boasting.

Who has had the power to transgress and did not transgress,
and to do evil and did not do it?
11His prosperity will be established,
and the assembly will relate his acts of charity.
12Are you seated at the table of a great man?e
Do not be greedyf at it,

and do not say, “There is certainly much upon it!”
13Remember that a greedyg eye is a bad thing.
What has been created more greedyg than the eye?

Therefore it sheds tears from every face.
14Do not reach out your hand for everything you see,
and do not crowd your neighborh at the dish.
15Judge your neighbor’s feelings by your own,
and in every matter be thoughtful.
16Eat like a human being what is set before you,
and do not chew greedily, lest you be hated.

17Be the first to stop eating, for the sake of good manners,
and do not be insatiable, lest you give offense.

18If you are seated among many persons,
do not reach out your hand before they do.

19How ample a little is for a well-disciplined man!
He does not breathe heavily upon his bed.

20Healthy sleep depends on moderate eating;
he rises early, and feels fit.i

The distress of sleeplessness and of nausea
and colic are with the glutton.
21If you are overstuffed with food,
get up in the middle of the meal, and you will have relief.
22Listen to me, my son, and do not disregard me,
and in the end you will appreciate my words.

In all your work be industrious,
and no sickness will overtake you.
23Men will praise the one who is liberal with food,
and their testimony to his excellence is trustworthy.
24The city will complain of the one who is miserly with food,
and their testimony to his miserliness is accurate.

25Do not aim to be valiant over wine,
for wine has destroyed many.

26Fire and water provej the temper of steel,
so wine tests hearts in the strife of the proud.

27Wine is like life to men,
if you drink it in moderation.

What is life to a man who is without wine?
It has been created to make men glad.
28Wine drunk in season and temperately
is rejoicing of heart and gladness of soul.

29Wine drunk to excess is bitterness of soul,
with provocation and stumbling.
30Drunkenness increases the anger of a fool to his injury,
reducing his strength and adding wounds.
31Do not reprove your neighbor at a banquet of wine,
and do not despise him in his merrymaking;

speak no word of reproach to him,
and do not afflict him by making demands of him.
32 If they make you master of the feast, do not exalt yourself;
be among them as one of them;
take good care of them and then be seated;
2 when you have fulfilled your duties, take your place,
that you may be merry on their account

and receive a wreath for your excellent leadership.
3Speak, you who are older, for it is fitting that you should,
but with accurate knowledge, and do not interrupt the music.

4Where there is entertainment, do not pour out talk;
do not display your cleverness out of season.

5A ruby seal in a setting of gold
is a concert of music at a banquet of wine.

6A seal of emerald in a rich setting of gold
is the melody of music with good wine.
7Speak, young man, if there is need of you,
but no more than twice, and only if asked.

8Speak concisely, say much in few words;
be as one who knows and yet holds his tongue.

9Among the great do not act as their equal;
and when another is speaking, do not babble.

10Lightning speeds before the thunder,
and approval precedes a modest man.

11Leave in good time and do not be the last;
go home quickly and do not linger.

12Amuse yourself there, and do what you have in mind,
but do not sin through proud speech.

13And for these things bless him who made you
and satisfies you with his good gifts.
14He who fears the Lord will accept his discipline,
and those who rise early to seek himk will find favor.
15He who seeks the law will be filled with it,
but the hypocrite will stumble at it.

16Those who fear the Lord will form true judgments,
and like a light they will kindle righteous deeds.

17A sinful man will shun reproof,
and will find a decision according to his liking.

18A man of judgment will not overlook an idea,
and an insolentl and proud man will not cower in fear.m

19Do nothing without deliberation;
and when you have acted, do not regret it.

20Do not go on a path full of hazards,
and do not stumble over stony ground.

21Do not be overconfident on a smoothn way,
22 and give good heed to your paths.o
23Guardp yourself in every act,
for this is the keeping of the commandments.

24He who believes the law gives heed to the commandments,
and he who trusts the Lord will not suffer loss.

Practical Advice
33 No evil will befall the man who fears the Lord,
but in trial he will deliver him again and again.
2A wise man will not hate the law,
but he who is hypocritical about it is like a boat in a storm.
3A man of understanding will trust in the law;
for him the law is as dependable as an inquiry by means of Urim.

4Prepare what to say, and thus you will be heard;
bind together your instruction, and make your answer.
5The heart of a fool is like a cart wheel,
and his thoughts like a turning axle.

6A stallion is like a mocking friend;
he neighs under every one who sits on him.

7Why is any day better than another,
when all the daylight in the year is from the sun?
8By the Lord’s decision they were distinguished,
and he appointed the different seasons and feasts;
9some of them he exalted and hallowed,
and some of them he made ordinary days.

10All men are from the ground,
and Adam was created of the dust.
11In the fulness of his knowledge the Lord distinguished them
and appointed their different ways;

12some of them he blessed and exalted,
and some of them he made holy and brought near to himself;

but some of them he cursed and brought low,
and he turned them out of their place.
13As clay in the hand of the potter—
for all his ways are as he pleases—

so men are in the hand of him who made them,
to give them as he decides.
14Good is the opposite of evil,
and life the opposite of death;

so the sinner is the opposite of the godly.
15Look upon all the works of the Most High;
they likewise are in pairs, one the opposite of the other.
16I was the last on watch;
I was like one who gleans after the grape-gatherers;

by the blessing of the Lord I excelled,
and like a grape-gatherer I filled my wine press.
17Consider that I have not labored for myself alone,
but for all who seek instruction.

18Hear me, you who are great among the people,
and you leaders of the congregation, listen.

19To son or wife, to brother or friend,
do not give power over yourself, as long as you live;

and do not give your property to another,
lest you change your mind and must ask for it.
20While you are still alive and have breath in you,
do not let any one take your place.
21For it is better that your children should ask from you
than that you should look to the hand of your sons.
22Excel in all that you do;
bring no stain upon your honor.

23At the time when you end the days of your life,
in the hour of death, distribute your inheritance.

24Fodder and a stick and burdens for a donkey;
bread and discipline and work for a servant.

25Set your slave to work, and you will find rest;
leave his hands idle, and he will seek liberty.

26Yoke and thong will bow the neck,
and for a wicked servant there are racks and tortures.
27Put him to work, that he may not be idle,
for idleness teaches much evil.

28Set him to work, as is fitting for him,
and if he does not obey, make his chains heavy.

29Do not act immoderately toward anybody,
and do nothing without discretion.

30If you have a servant, let him be as yourself,
because you have bought him with blood.

31If you have a servant, treat him as a brother,
for as your own soul you will need him.

If you ill-treat him, and he leaves and runs away,
which way will you go to seek him?
Fear of the Lord, Sacrifices, Justice, and Prayer
34 A man of no understanding has vain and false hopes,
and dreams give wings to fools.
2As one who catches at a shadow and pursues the wind,
so is he who gives heed to dreams.
3The vision of dreams is this against that,
the likeness of a face confronting a face.

4From an unclean thing what will be made clean?
And from something false what will be true?
5Divinations and omens and dreams are folly,
and like a woman with labor pains the mind has fancies.
6Unless they are sent from the Most High as a visitation,
do not give your mind to them.
7For dreams have deceived many,
and those who put their hope in them have failed.
8Without such deceptions the law will be fulfilled,
and wisdom is made perfect in truthful lips.

9An educatedq man knows many things,
and one with much experience will speak with understanding.
10He that is inexperienced knows few things,
but he that has traveled acquires much cleverness.

11I have seen many things in my travels,
and I understand more than I can express.

12I have often been in danger of death,
but have escaped because of these experiences.

13The spirit of those who fear the Lord will live,
for their hope is in him who saves them.

14He who fears the Lord will not be timid,
nor play the coward, for he is his hope.

15Blessed is the soul of the man who fears the Lord!
To whom does he look? And who is his support?

16The eyes of the Lord are upon those who love him,
a mighty protection and strong support,
a shelter from the hot wind and a shade from noonday sun,
a guard against stumbling and a defense against falling.
17He lifts up the soul and gives light to the eyes;
he grants healing, life, and blessing.

18If one sacrifices from what has been wrongfully obtained, the
offering is blemished;r
the giftss of the lawless are not acceptable.
19The Most High is not pleased with the offerings of the ungodly;
and he is not propitiated for sins by a multitude of sacrifices.

20Like one who kills a son before his father’s eyes
is the man who offers a sacrifice from the property of the poor.
21The bread of the needy is the life of the poor;
whoever deprives them of it is a man of blood.

22To take away a neighbor’s living is to murder him;
to deprive an employee of his wages is to shed blood.
23When one builds and another tears down,
what do they gain but toil?

24When one prays and another curses,
to whose voice will the Lord listen?

25If a man washes after touching a dead body, and touches it again,
what has he gained by his washing?

26So if a man fasts for his sins,
and goes again and does the same things,

who will listen to his prayer?
And what has he gained by humbling himself?
The Law and Sacrifice—Divine Justice
35 He who keeps the law makes many offerings;
he who heeds the commandments sacrifices a peace offering.
2He who returns a kindness offers fine flour,
and he who gives alms sacrifices a thank offering.

3To keep from wickedness is pleasing to the Lord,
and to forsake unrighteousness is atonement.
4Do not appear before the Lord empty-handed,
5 for all these things are to be done because of the commandment.
6The offering of a righteous man anoints the altar,
and its pleasing odor rises before the Most High.

7The sacrifice of a righteous man is acceptable,
and the memory of it will not be forgotten.

8Glorify the Lord generously,
and do not stint the first fruits of your hands.

9With every gift show a cheerful face,
and dedicate your tithe with gladness.

10Give to the Most High as he has given,
and as generously as your hand has found.

11For the Lord is the one who repays,
and he will repay you sevenfold.
12Do not offer him a bribe, for he will not accept it;
and do not trust to an unrighteous sacrifice;

for the Lord is the judge,
and with him is no partiality.
13He will not show partiality in the case of a poor man;
and he will listen to the prayer of one who is wronged.

14He will not ignore the supplication of the fatherless,
nor the widow when she pours out her story.

15Do not the tears of the widow run down her cheek
as she cries out against him who has caused them to fall?
16He whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted,
and his prayer will reach to the clouds.

17The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds,
and he will not be consoled until it reaches the Lord;t

he will not desist until the Most High visits him,
and the just judge executes judgment.
18And the Lord will not delay,
neither will he be patient with them,

till he crushes the loins of the unmerciful
and repays vengeance on the nations;
till he takes away the multitude of the insolent,
and breaks the scepters of the unrighteous;
19till he repays man according to his deeds,
and the works of men according to their devices;

till he judges the case of his people
and makes them rejoice in his mercy.
20Mercy is as welcome when he afflicts them
as clouds of rain in the time of drought.

A Prayer for God’s People; Wise Sayings
36 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, the God of all, and look upon us,
and show us the light of your mercy;
2 send fear of you upon the nations.
3Lift up your hand against foreign nations
and let them see your might.

4As in us you have been sanctified before them,
so in them may you be magnified before us;

5and let them know you, as we have known
that there is no God but you, O Lord.
6Show signs anew, and work further wonders;
make your hand and your right arm glorious.
7Rouse your anger and pour out your wrath;
destroy the adversary and wipe out the enemy.

8Hasten the day, and remember the appointed time,u
and let people recount your mighty deeds.

9Let him who survives be consumed in the fiery wrath,
and may those who harm your people meet destruction.

10Crush the heads of the rulers of the enemy,
who say, “There is no one but ourselves.”

11Gather all the tribes of Jacob,
and givev them their inheritance, as at the beginning.

12Have mercy, O Lord, upon the people called by your name,
upon Israel, whom you have likened to aw first-born son.

13Have pity on the city of your sanctuary,x
Jerusalem, the place of your rest.

14Fill Zion with the celebration of your wondrous deeds,
and your templey with your glory.

15Bear witness to those whom you created in the beginning,
and fulfil the prophecies spoken in your name.

16Reward those who wait for you,
and let your prophets be found trustworthy.

17Listen, O Lord, to the prayer of your servants,
according to the blessing of Aaron for your people,

and direct us in the way of righteousness,
and all who are on the earth will know
that you are the Lord, the God of the ages.
18The stomach will take any food,
yet one food is better than another.

19As the palate tastes the kinds of game,
so an intelligent mind detects false words.

20A perverse mind will cause grief,
but a man of experience will pay him back.

21A woman will accept any man,
but one daughter is better than another.
22A woman’s beauty gladdens the countenance,
and surpasses every human desire.
23If kindness and humility mark her speech,
her husband is not like other men.

24He who acquires a wife gets his best possession,z
a helper fit for him and a pillar of support.a

25Where there is no fence, the property will be plundered;
and where there is no wife, a man will wander about and sigh.
26For who will trust a nimble robber
that skips from city to city?

So who will trust a man that has no home,
and lodges wherever night finds him?
Concerning Good Council, Reason, and Moderation
37 Every friend will say, “I too am a friend”;
but some friends are friends only in name.
2Is it not a grief to the death
when a companion and friend turns to enmity?

3O evil imagination, why were you formed
to cover the land with deceit?

4Some companions rejoice in the happiness of a friend,
but in time of trouble are against him.

5Some companions help a friend for their stomachs’ sake,
and in the face of battle take up the shield.

6Do not forget a friend in your heart,
and be not unmindful of him in your wealth.

7Every counselor praises counsel,
but some give counsel in their own interest.

8Be wary of a counselor,
and learn first what is his interest—

for he will take thought for himself—
lest he cast the lot against you
9 and tell you, “Your way is good,”
and then stand aloof to see what will happen to you.

10Do not consult with one who looks at you suspiciously;
hide your counsel from those who are jealous of you.
11Do not consult with a woman about her rival
or with a coward about war,
with a merchant about barter
or with a buyer about selling,
with a grudging man about gratitude
or with a merciless man about kindness,
with an idler about any work
or with a man hired for a year about completing his work,
with a lazy servant about a big task—
pay no attention to these in any matter of counsel.
12But stay constantly with a godly man
whom you know to be a keeper of the commandments,

whose soul is in accord with your soul,
and who will sorrow with you if you fail.
13And establish the counsel of your own heart,
for no one is more faithful to you than it is.
14For a man’s soul sometimes keeps him better informed
than seven watchmen sitting high on a watchtower.

15And besides all this pray to the Most High
that he may direct your way in truth.

16Reason is the beginning of every work,
and counsel precedes every undertaking.

17As a clue to changes of heart
18 four turns of fortune appear,
good and evil, life and death;

and it is the tongue that continually rules them.
19A man may be shrewd and the teacher of many,
and yet be unprofitable to himself.
20A man skilled in words may be hated;
he will be destitute of all food,

21for grace was not given him by the Lord,
since he is lacking in all wisdom.

22A man may be wise to his own advantage,
and the fruits of his understanding may be trustworthy on his lips.

23A wise man will instruct his own people,
and the fruits of his understanding will be trustworthy.
24A wise man will have praise heaped upon him,
and all who see him will call him happy.

25The life of a man is numbered by days,
but the days of Israel are without number.

26He who is wise among his people will inherit confidence,b
and his name will live for ever.
27My son, test your soul while you live;
see what is bad for it and do not give it that.

28For not everything is good for every one,
and not every person enjoys everything.

29Do not have an insatiable appetite for any luxury,
and do not give yourself up to food;

30for overeating brings sickness,
and gluttony leads to nausea.

31Many have died of gluttony,
but he who is careful to avoid it prolongs his life.

Concerning Physicians, Tradesmen, and Craftsmen
38 Honor the physician with the honor due him,c according to your need
of him,
for the Lord created him;
2for healing comes from the Most High,
and he will receive a gift from the king.

3The skill of the physician lifts up his head,
and in the presence of great men he is admired.

4The Lord created medicines from the earth,
and a sensible man will not despise them.

5Was not water made sweet with a tree
in order that hisd power might be known?

6And he gave skill to men
that hee might be glorified in his marvelous works.

7By them he heals and takes away pain;
8 the pharmacist makes of them a compound.
His works will never be finished;

and from him healthf is upon the face of the earth.
9My son, when you are sick do not be negligent,
but pray to the Lord, and he will heal you.

10Give up your faults and direct your hands aright,
and cleanse your heart from all sin.

11Offer a sweet-smelling sacrifice, and a memorial portion of fine flour,
and pour oil on your offering, as much as you can afford.g

12And give the physician his place, for the Lord created him;
let him not leave you, for there is need of him.

13There is a time when success lies in the hands of physicians,h
14 for they too will pray to the Lord
that he should grant them success in diagnosisi

and in healing, for the sake of preserving life.
15He who sins before his Maker,
may he fall into the carej of a physician.

16My son, let your tears fall for the dead,
and as one who is suffering grievously begin the lament.

Lay out his body with the honor due him,
and do not neglect his burial.
17Let your weeping be bitter and your wailing fervent;
observe the mourning according to his merit,

for one day, or two, to avoid criticism;
then be comforted for your sorrow.
18For sorrow results in death,
and sorrow of heart saps one’s strength.

19In calamity sorrow continues,
and the life of the poor man weighs down his heart.
20Do not give your heart to sorrow;
drive it away, remembering the end of life.
21Do not forget, there is no coming back;
you do the deadk no good, and you injure yourself.

22“Remember my doom, for yours is like it:
yesterday it was mine, and today it is yours.”

23When the dead is at rest, let his remembrance cease,
and be comforted for him when his spirit has departed.

24The wisdom of the scribe depends on the opportunity of leisure;
and he who has little business may become wise.
25How can he become wise who handles the plow,
and who glories in the shaft of a goad,

who drives oxen and is occupied with their work,
and whose talk is aboutl bulls?
26He sets his heart on plowing furrows,
and he is careful about fodder for the heifers.

27So too is every craftsman and master workman
who labors by night as well as by day;

those who cut the signets of seals,
each is diligent in making a great variety;
he sets his heart on painting a lifelike image,
and he is careful to finish his work.
28So too is the smith sitting by the anvil,
intent upon his handiwork in iron;

the breath of the fire melts his flesh,
and he wastes away inm the heat of the furnace;
he inclines his ear to the sound of the hammer,n
and his eyes are on the pattern of the object.
He sets his heart on finishing his handiwork,
and he is careful to complete its decoration.
29So too is the potter sitting at his work
and turning the wheel with his feet;
he is always deeply concerned over his work,
and all his output is by number.
30He moulds the clay with his arm
and makes it pliable with his feet;

he sets his heart to finish the glazing,
and he is careful to clean the furnace.
31All these rely upon their hands,
and each is skilful in his own work.

32Without them a city cannot be established,
and men can neither sojourn nor live there.

33Yet they are not sought out for the council of the people,
nor do they attain eminence in the public assembly.
They do not sit in the judge’s seat,
nor do they understand the sentence of judgment;
they cannot expound discipline or judgment,
and they are not found using proverbs.
34But they keep stable the fabric of the world,
and their prayer is in the practice of their trade.

The Student of the Law; and Praise of God
39 On the other hand he who devotes himself
to the study of the law of the Most High
will seek out the wisdom of all the ancients,
and will be concerned with prophecies;
2he will preserve the discourse of notable men
and penetrate the subtleties of parables;

3he will seek out the hidden meanings of proverbs
and be at home with the obscurities of parables.

4He will serve among great men
and appear before rulers;

he will travel through the lands of foreign nations,
for he tests the good and the evil among men.
5He will set his heart to rise early
to seek the Lord who made him,

and will make supplication before the Most High;
he will open his mouth in prayer
and make supplication for his sins.
6If the great Lord is willing,
he will be filled with the spirit of understanding;

he will pour forth wordso of wisdom
and give thanks to the Lord in prayer.
7He will direct his counsel and knowledge rightly,
and meditate on his secrets.

8He will reveal instruction in his teaching,
and will glory in the law of the Lord’s covenant.

9Many will praise his understanding,
and it will never be blotted out;

his memory will not disappear,
and his name will live through all generations.
10Nations will declare his wisdom,
and the congregation will proclaim his praise;

11if he lives long, he will leave a name greater than a thousand,
and if he goes to rest, it is enoughp for him.

12I have yet more to say, which I have thought upon,
and I am filled, like the moon at the full.

13Listen to me, O you holy sons,
and bud like a rose growing by a stream of water;
14send forth fragrance like frankincense,
and put forth blossoms like a lily.

Scatter the fragrance, and sing a hymn of praise;
bless the Lord for all his works;
15ascribe majesty to his name
and give thanks to him with praise,

with songs on your lips, and with lyres;
and this you shall say in thanksgiving:
16“All things are the works of the Lord, for they are very good,
and whatever he commands will be done in his time.”

17No one can say, “What is this?” “ Why is that?”
for in God’sq time all things will be sought after.

At his word the waters stood in a heap,
and the reservoirs of water at the word of his mouth.
18At his command whatever pleases him is done,
and none can limit his saving power.

19The works of all flesh are before him,
and nothing can be hid from his eyes.

20From everlasting to everlasting he beholds them,
and nothing is marvelous to him.

21No one can say, “What is this?” “ Why is that?”
for everything has been created for its use.

22His blessing covers the dry land like a river,
and drenches it like a flood.

23The nations will incur his wrath,
just as he turns fresh water into salt.
24To the holy his ways are straight,
just as they are obstacles to the wicked.
25From the beginning good things were created for good people,
just as evil things for sinners.
26Basic to all the needs of man’s life
are water and fire and iron and salt

and wheat flour and milk and honey,
the blood of the grape, and oil and clothing.
27All these are for good to the godly,
just as they turn into evils for sinners.

28There are winds that have been created for vengeance,
and in their anger they scourge heavily;

in the time of consummation they will pour out their strength
and calm the anger of their Maker.
29Fire and hail and famine and pestilence,
all these have been created for vengeance;

30the teeth of wild beasts, and scorpions and vipers,
and the sword that punishes the ungodly with destruction;
31they will rejoice in his commands,
and be made ready on earth for their service,

and when their times come they will not transgress his word.
32Therefore from the beginning I have been convinced,
and have thought this out and left it in writing:

33The works of the Lord are all good,
and he will supply every need in its hour.

34And no one can say, “This is worse than that,”
for all things will prove good in their season.

35So now sing praise with all your heart and voice,
and bless the name of the Lord.

Human Wretchedness and Joys of Life
40 Much labor was created for every man,
and a heavy yoke is upon the sons of Adam,
from the day they come forth from their mother’s womb
till the day they return tor the mother of all.
2Their perplexities and fear of heart—
their anxious thought is the day of death,
3from the man who sits on a splendid throne
to the one who is humbled in dust and ashes,

4from the man who wears purple and a crown
to the one who is clothed in burlap;

5there is anger and envy and trouble and unrest,
and fear of death, and fury and strife.

And when one rests upon his bed,
his sleep at night confuses his mind.
6He gets little or no rest,
and afterward in his sleep, as though he were on watch,

he is troubled by the visions of his mind
like one who has escaped from the battle-front;
7at the moment of his rescue he wakes up,
and wonders that his fear came to nothing.

8With all flesh, both man and beast,
and upon sinners seven times more,

9are death and bloodshed and strife and sword,
calamities, famine and affliction and plague.

10All these were created for the wicked,
and on their account the flood came.

11All things that are from the earth turn back to the earth,
and what is from the waters returns to the sea.

12All bribery and injustice will be blotted out,
but good faith will stand for ever.

13The wealth of the unjust will dry up like a torrent,
and crash like a loud clap of thunder in a rain.

14A generous man will be made glad;
likewise transgressors will utterly fail.

15The children of the ungodly will not put forth many branches;
they are unhealthy roots upon sheer rock.

16The reeds by any water or river bank
will be plucked up before any grass.

17Kindness is like a garden of blessings,
and almsgiving endures for ever.

18Life is sweet for the self-reliant and the worker,s
but he who finds treasure is better off than both.
19Children and the building of a city establish a man’s name,
but a blameless wife is accounted better than both.

20Wine and music gladden the heart,
but the love of wisdom is better than both.

21The flute and the harp make pleasant melody,
but a pleasant voice is better than both.

22The eye desires grace and beauty,
but the green shoots of grain more than both.

23A friend or a companion never meets one amiss,
but a wife with her husband is better than both.

24Brothers and help are for a time of trouble,
but almsgiving rescues better than both.

25Gold and silver make the foot stand sure,
but good counsel is esteemed more than both.

26Riches and strength lift up the heart,
but the fear of the Lord is better than both.

There is no loss in the fear of the Lord,
and with it there is no need to seek for help.
27The fear of the Lord is like a garden of blessing,
and covers a mant better than any glory.

28My son, do not lead the life of a beggar;
it is better to die than to beg.

29When a man looks to the table of another,
his existence cannot be considered as life.

He pollutes himself with another man’s food,
but a man who is intelligent and well instructed guards against that.
30In the mouth of the shameless begging is sweet,
but in his stomach a fire is kindled.

A Series of Contrasts
41 O death, how bitter is the reminder of you
to one who lives at peace among his possessions,
to a man without distractions, who is prosperous in everything,
and who still has the vigor to enjoy his food!
2O death, how welcome is your sentence
to one who is in need and is failing in strength,
very old and distracted over everything;
to one who is contrary, and has lost his patience!
3Do not fear the sentence of death;
remember your former days and the end of life;

this is the decree from the Lord for all flesh,
4 and how can you reject the good pleasure of the Most High?
Whether life is for ten or a hundred or a thousand years,

there is no inquiry about it in Hades.
5The children of sinners are abominable children,
and they frequent the haunts of the ungodly.

6The inheritance of the children of sinners will perish,
and on their posterity will be a perpetual reproach.

7Children will blame an ungodly father,
for they suffer reproach because of him.

8Woe to you, ungodly men,
who have forsaken the law of the Most High God!

9When you are born, you are born to a curse;
and when you die, a curse is your lot.

10Whatever is from the dust returns to dust;
so the ungodly go from curse to destruction.

11The mourning of men is about their bodies,
but the evil name of sinners will be blotted out.

12Have regard for your name, since it will remain for you
longer than a thousand great stores of gold.

13The days of a good life are numbered,
but a good name endures for ever.

14My children, observe instruction and be at peace;
hidden wisdom and unseen treasure,

what advantage is there in either of them?
15Better is the man who hides his folly
than the man who hides his wisdom.

16Therefore show respect for my words:
For it is not good to retain every kind of shame,

and not everything is confidently esteemed by every one.
17Be ashamed of immorality, before your father or mother;
and of a lie, before a prince or a ruler;
18of a transgression, before a judge or magistrate;
and of iniquity, before a congregation or the people;

of unjust dealing, before your partner or friend;
19 and of theft, in the place where you live.
Be ashamed before the truth of God and his covenant.

Be ashamed of selfish behavior at meals,u
of surliness in receiving and giving,
20 and of silence, before those who greet you;
of looking at a woman who is a harlot,

21 and of rejecting the appeal of a kinsman;
of taking away some one’s portion or gift,

and of gazing at another man’s wife;
22of meddling with his maidservant—
and do not approach her bed;

of abusive words, before friends—
and do not upbraid after making a gift;
23of repeating and telling what you hear,
and of revealing secrets.

Then you will show proper shame,
and will find favor with every man.
42 Of the following things do not be ashamed,
and do not let partiality lead you to sin:
2of the law of the Most High and his covenant,
and of rendering judgment to acquit the ungodly;
3of keeping accounts with a partner or with traveling companions,
and of dividing the inheritance of friends;

4of accuracy with scales and weights,
and of acquiring much or little;

5of profit from dealing with merchants,
and of much discipline of children,

and of whipping a wicked servant severely.v
6Where there is an evil wife, a seal is a good thing;
and where there are many hands, lock things up.
7Whatever you deal out, let it be by number and weight,
and make a record of all that you give out or take in.
8Do not be ashamed to instruct the stupid or foolish
or the aged man who quarrels with the young.

Then you will be truly instructed,
and will be approved before all men.
9A daughter keeps her father secretly wakeful,
and worry over her robs him of sleep;

when she is young, lest she not marry,
or if married, lest she be hated;
10while a virgin, lest she be defiled
or become pregnant in her father’s house;

or having a husband, lest she prove unfaithful,
or, though married, lest she be barren.
11Keep strict watch over a headstrong daughter,
lest she make you a laughingstock to your enemies,

a byword in the city and notoriousw among the people,
and put you to shame before the great multitude.
12Do not look upon any one for beauty,
and do not sit in the midst of women;

13for from garments comes the moth,
and from a woman comes woman’s wickedness.

14Better is the wickedness of a man than a woman who does good;
and it is a woman who brings shame and disgrace.

15I will now call to mind the works of the Lord,
and will declare what I have seen.

By the words of the Lord his works are done,
and in his will, justice is carried out.
16The sun looks down on everything with its light,
and the work of the Lord is full of his glory.

17The Lord has not enabled his holy ones
to recount all his marvelous works,

which the Lord the Almighty has established
that the universe may stand firm in his glory.
18He searches out the abyss, and the hearts of men,x
and considers their crafty devices.
For the Most High knows all that may be known,
and he looks into the signsy of the age.
19He declares what has been and what is to be,
and he reveals the tracks of hidden things.

20No thought escapes him,
and not one word is hidden from him.

21He has ordained the splendors of his wisdom,
and he is from everlasting and to everlasting.
Nothing can be added or taken away,
and he needs no one to be his counselor.
22How greatly to be desired are all his works,
and how sparkling they are to see! z

23All these things live and remain for ever
for every need, and are all obedient.

24All things are twofold, one opposite the other,
and he has made nothing incomplete.

25One confirms the good things of the other,
and who can have enough of beholding his glory?

God’s Greatness in Creation
43 The pride of the heavenly heights is the clear firmament,
the appearance of heaven in a spectacle of glory.
2The sun, when it appears, making proclamation as it goes forth,
is a marvelous instrument, the work of the Most High.
3At noon it parches the land;
and who can withstand its burning heat?

4A man tendinga a furnace works in burning heat,
but the sun burns the mountains three times as much;

it breathes out fiery vapors,
and with bright beams it blinds the eyes.
5Great is the Lord who made it;
and at his command it hastens on its course.

6He made the moon also, to serve in its seasonb
to mark the times and to be an everlasting sign.

7From the moon comes the sign for feast days,
a light that wanes when it has reached the full.
8The month is named for the moon,
increasing marvelously in its phases,
an instrument of the hosts on high
shining forth in the firmament of heaven.
9The glory of the stars is the beauty of heaven,
a gleaming array in the heights of the Lord.

10At the command of the Holy One they stand as ordered,
they never relax in their watches.

11Look upon the rainbow, and praise him who made it,
exceedingly beautiful in its brightness.

12It encircles the heaven with its glorious arc;
the hands of the Most High have stretched it out.

13By his command he sends the driving snow
and speeds the lightning of his judgment.

14Therefore the storehouses are opened,
and the clouds fly forth like birds.
15In his majesty he amasses the clouds,
and the hailstones are broken in pieces.

16At his appearing the mountains are shaken;
at his will the south wind blows.

17The voice of his thunder rebukes the earth;
so do the tempest from the north and the whirlwind.

He scatters the snow like birds flying down,
and its descent is like locusts alighting.
18The eye marvels at the beauty of its whiteness,
and the mind is amazed at its falling.

19He pours the hoarfrost upon the earth like salt,
and when it freezes, it becomes pointed thorns.

20The cold north wind blows,
and ice freezes over the water;
it rests upon every pool of water,
and the water puts it on like a breastplate.
21He consumes the mountains and burns up the wilderness,
and withers the tender grass like fire.

22A mist quickly heals all things;
when the dew appears, it refreshes from the heat.
23By his counsel he stilled the great deep
and planted islands in it.
24Those who sail the sea tell of its dangers,
and we marvel at what we hear.

25For in it are strange and marvelous works,
all kinds of living things, and huge creatures of the sea.

26Because of him his messenger finds the way,
and by his word all things hold together.
27Though we speak much we cannot reach the end,
and the sum of our words is: “He is the all.”

28Where shall we find strength to praise him?
For he is greater than all his works.

29Terrible is the Lord and very great,
and marvelous is his power.

30When you praise the Lord, exalt him as much as you can;
for he will surpass even that.

When you exalt him, put forth all your strength,
and do not grow weary, for you cannot praise him enough.
31Who has seen him and can describe him?
Or who can extol him as he is?

32Many things greater than these lie hidden,
for we have seen but few of his works.
33For the Lord has made all things,
and to the godly he has granted wisdom.

Praise of Our Fathers
44 Let us now praise famous men,
and our fathers in their generations.
2The Lord apportioned to themc great glory,
his majesty from the beginning.
3There were those who ruled in their kingdoms,
and were men renowned for their power,

giving counsel by their understanding,
and proclaiming prophecies;
4leaders of the people in their deliberations
and in understanding of learning for the people,
wise in their words of instruction;
5those who composed musical tunes,
and set forth verses in writing;

6rich men furnished with resources,
living peaceably in their habitations—

7all these were honored in their generations,
and were the glory of their times.

8There are some of them who have left a name,
so that men declare their praise.

9And there are some who have no memorial,
who have perished as though they had not lived;

they have become as though they had not been born,
and so have their children after them.
10But these were men of mercy,
whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten;

11their prosperity will remain with their descendants,
and their inheritance to their children’s children.d

12Their descendants stand by the covenants;
their children also, for their sake.

13Their posterity will continue for ever,
and their glory will not be blotted out.

14Their bodies were buried in peace,
and their name lives to all generations.

15Peoples will declare their wisdom,
and the congregation proclaims their praise.

16E'noch pleased the Lord, and was taken up;
he was an example of repentance to all generations.

17Noah was found perfect and righteous;
in the time of wrath he was taken in exchange;

therefore a remnant was left to the earth
when the flood came.
18Everlasting covenants were made with him
that all flesh should not be blotted out by a flood.

19Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations,
and no one has been found like him in glory;

20he kept the law of the Most High,
and was taken into covenant with him;
he established the covenant in his flesh,
and when he was tested he was found faithful.
21Therefore the Lorde assured him by an oath
that the nations would be blessed through his posterity;

that he would multiply him like the dust of the earth,
and exalt his posterity like the stars,
and cause them to inherit from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
22To Isaac also he gave the same assurance
for the sake of Abraham his father.

23The blessing of all men and the covenant
he made to rest upon the head of Jacob;

he acknowledged him with his blessings,
and gave him his inheritance;f
he determined his portions,
and distributed them among twelve tribes.
45 From his descendants the Lordg brought forth a man of mercy,
who found favor in the sight of all flesh
and was beloved by God and man,
Moses, whose memory is blessed.
2He made him equal in glory to the holy ones,
and made him great in the fears of his enemies.

3By his words he caused signs to cease;
the Lordg glorified him in the presence of kings.

He gave him commands for his people,
and showed him part of his glory.
4He sanctified him through faithfulness and meekness;
he chose him out of all mankind.
5He made him hear his voice,
and led him into the thick darkness,

and gave him the commandments face to face,
the law of life and knowledge,
to teach Jacob the covenant,
and Israel his judgments.
6He exalted Aaron, the brother of Moses,h
a holy man like him, of the tribe of Levi.
7He made an everlasting covenant with him,
and gave him the priesthood of the people.

He blessed him with splendid vestments,
and put a glorious robe upon him.
8He clothed him with superb perfection,
and strengthened him with the symbols of authority,

the linen breeches, the long robe, and the ephod.
9And he encircled him with pomegranates,
with very many golden bells round about,

to send forth a sound as he walked,
to make their ringing heard in the temple
as a reminder to the sons of his people;
10with a holy garment, of gold and blue
and purple, the work of an embroiderer;

with the oracle of judgment, U'rim and Thummim;
11 with twisted scarlet, the work of a craftsman;
with precious stones engraved like signets,

in a setting of gold, the work of a jeweler,
for a reminder, in engraved letters,
according to the number of the tribes of Israel;
12with a gold crown upon his turban,
inscribed like a signet with “Holiness,”

a distinction to be prized, the work of an expert,
the delight of the eyes, richly adorned.
13Before his time there never were such beautiful things.
No outsider ever put them on,

but only his sons
and his descendants perpetually.
14His sacrifices shall be wholly burned
twice every day continually.

15Moses ordained him,
and anointed him with holy oil;

it was an everlasting covenant for him
and for his descendants all the days of heaven,
to minister to the Lordi and serve as priest
and bless his people in his name.
16He chose him out of all the living
to offer sacrifice to the Lord,

incense and a pleasing odor as a memorial portion,
to make atonement for the people.j
17In his commandments he gave him
authority in statutes andk judgments,

to teach Jacob the testimonies,
and to enlighten Israel with his law.
18Outsiders conspired against him,
and envied him in the wilderness,

Da'than and Abi'ram and their men
and the company of Ko'rah, in wrath and anger.
19The Lord saw it and was not pleased,
and in the wrath of his anger they were destroyed;

he wrought wonders against them
to consume them in flaming fire.
20He added glory to Aaron
and gave him a heritage;

he allotted to him the first of the first fruits,
he prepared bread of first fruits in abundance;
21for they eat the sacrifices to the Lord,
which he gave to him and his descendants.

22But in the land of the people he has no inheritance,
and he has no portion among the people;

for the Lordl himself is hism portion and inheritance.
23Phin'ehas the son of Elea'zar is the third in glory,
for he was zealous in the fear of the Lord,

and stood fast, when the people turned away,
in the ready goodness of his soul,
and made atonement for Israel.
24Therefore a covenant of peace was established with him,
that he should be leader of the sanctuary and of his people,

that he and his descendants should have
the dignity of the priesthood for ever.
25A covenant was also established with David,
the son of Jesse, of the tribe of Judah:
the heritage of the king is from son to son only;
so the heritage of Aaron is for his descendants.
26May the Lordn grant you wisdom in your heart
to judge his people in righteousness,

so that their prosperity may not vanish,
and that their glory may endure throughout their generations.o
46 Joshua the son of Nun was mighty in war,
and was the successor of Moses in prophesying.
He became, in accordance with his name,
a great savior of God’sp elect,
to take vengeance on the enemies that rose against them,
so that he might give Israel its inheritance.
2How glorious he was when he lifted his hands
and stretched out his sword against the cities!

3Who before him ever stood so firm?
For he waged the wars of the Lord.

4Was not the sun held back by his hand?
And did not one day become as long as two?

5He called upon the Most High, the Mighty One,
when enemies pressed him on every side,

6and the great Lord answered him
with hailstones of mighty power.

He hurled down war upon that nation,
and at the descent of Beth-ho'ronq he destroyed those who resisted,
so that the nations might know his armament,
that he was fighting in the sight of the Lord;
for he wholly followed the Mighty One.
7And in the days of Moses he did a loyal deed,
he and Caleb the son of Jephun'neh:

they withstood the congregation,r
restrained the people from sin,
and stilled their wicked murmuring.
8And these two alone were preserved
out of six hundred thousand people on foot,
to bring them into their inheritance,
into a land flowing with milk and honey.
9And the Lord gave Caleb strength,
which remained with him to old age,

so that he went up to the hill country,
and his children obtained it for an inheritance;
10so that all the sons of Israel might see
that it is good to follow the Lord.

11The judges also, with their respective names,
those whose hearts did not fall into idolatry
and who did not turn away from the Lord—
may their memory be blessed!
12May their bones revive from where they lie,
and may the name of those who have been honored

live again in their sons!
13Samuel, beloved by his Lord,
a prophet of the Lord, established the kingdom
and anointed rulers over his people.
14By the law of the Lord he judged the congregation,
and the Lord watched over Jacob.

15By his faithfulness he was proved to be a prophet,
and by his words he became known as a trustworthy seer.

16He called upon the Lord, the Mighty One,
when his enemies pressed him on every side,

and he offered in sacrifice a sucking lamb.
17Then the Lord thundered from heaven,
and made his voice heard with a mighty sound;

18and he wiped out the leaders of the people of Tyre
and all the rulers of the Philis'tines.

19Before the time of his eternal sleep,
Samuels called men to witness before the Lord and his anointed:
“I have not taken any one’s property,
not so much as a pair of shoes.”
And no man accused him.
20Even after he had fallen asleep he prophesied
and revealed to the king his death,

and lifted up his voice out of the earth in prophecy,
to blot out the wickedness of the people.
47 And after him Nathan rose up
to prophesy in the days of David.
2As the fat is selected from the peace offering,
so David was selected from the sons of Israel.
3He played with lions as with young goats,
and with bears as with lambs of the flock.

4In his youth did he not kill a giant,
and take away reproach from the people,

when he lifted his hand with a stone in the sling
and struck down the boasting of Goliath?
5For he appealed to the Lord, the Most High,
and he gave him strength in his right hand

to slay a man mighty in war,
to exalt the powert of his people.
6So they glorified him for his ten thousands,
and praised him for the blessings of the Lord,

when the glorious diadem was bestowed upon him.
7For he wiped out his enemies on every side,
and annihilated his adversaries the Philis'tines;

he crushed their powert even to this day.
8In all that he did he gave thanks
to the Holy One, the Most High, with ascriptions of glory;

he sang praise with all his heart,
and he loved his Maker.
9He placed singers before the altar,
to make sweet melody with their voices.

10He gave beauty to the feasts,
and arranged their times throughout the year,u

while they praised God’sv holy name,
and the sanctuary resounded from early morning.
11The Lord took away his sins,
and exalted his powerw for ever;
he gave him the covenant of kings
and a throne of glory in Israel.
12After him rose up a wise son
who fared amplyx because of him;

13Solomon reigned in days of peace,
and God gave him rest on every side,

that he might build a house for his name
and prepare a sanctuary to stand for ever.
14How wise you became in your youth!
You overflowed like a river with understanding.
15Your soul covered the earth,
and you filled it with parables and riddles.

16Your name reached to far-off islands,
and you were loved for your peace.

17For your songs and proverbs and parables,
and for your interpretations, the countries marveled at you.

18In the name of the Lord God,
who is called the God of Israel,

you gathered gold like tin
and amassed silver like lead.
19But you laid your loins beside women,
and through your body you were brought into subjection.

20You put stain upon your honor,
and defiled your posterity,
so that you brought wrath upon your children
and they were grievedy at your folly,
21so that the sovereignty was divided
and a disobedient kingdom arose out of E'phraim.

22But the Lord will never give up his mercy,
nor cause any of his works to perish;

he will never blot out the descendants of his chosen one,
nor destroy the posterity of him who loved him;
so he gave a remnant to Jacob,
and to David a root of his stock.
23Solomon rested with his fathers,
and left behind him one of his sons,

ample inz folly and lacking in understanding,
Rehobo'am, whose policy caused the people to revolt.
Also Jerobo'am the son of Ne'bat, who caused Israel to sin
and gave to E'phraim a sinful way.
24Their sins became exceedingly many,
so as to remove them from their land.

25For they sought out every sort of wickedness,
till vengeance came upon them.

48 Then the prophet Eli'jah arose like a fire,
and his word burned like a torch.
2He brought a famine upon them,
and by his zeal he made them few in number.
3By the word of the Lord he shut up the heavens,
and also three times brought down fire.

4How glorious you were, O Eli'jah, in your wondrous deeds!
And who has the right to boast which you have?

5You who raised a corpse from death
and from Hades, by the word of the Most High;

6who brought kings down to destruction,
and famous men from their beds,

and easily destroyed their dominion;
7who heard rebuke at Sinai
and judgments of vengeance at Horeb;

8who anointed kings to inflict retribution,
and prophets to succeed you.a

9You who were taken up by a whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot with horses of fire;

10you who are readyb at the appointed time, it is written,
to calm the wrath of God before it breaks out in fury,

to turn the heart of the father to the son,
and to restore the tribes of Jacob.
11Blessed are those who saw you,
and those who have fallen asleepc in your love;
for we also shall surely live,
but our name, after death, will not be such.d
12It was Eli'jah who was covered by the whirlwind,
and Eli'sha was filled with his spirit;

in all his days he did not tremble before any ruler,
and no one brought him into subjection.
13Nothing was too hard for him,
and when he was dead his body prophesied.

14As in his life he did wonders,
so in death his deeds were marvelous.

15For all this the people did not repent,
and they did not forsake their sins,

till they were carried away captive from their land
and were scattered over all the earth;
the people were left very few in number,
but with rulers from the house of David.
16Some of them did what was pleasing to God,e
but others multiplied sins.

17Hezeki'ah fortified his city,
and brought water into the midst of it;

he tunneled the sheer rock with iron
and built pools for water.
18In his days Sennach'erib came up,
and sent the Rab'shakeh;f

he lifted up his hand against Zion
and made great boasts in his arrogance.
19Then their hearts were shaken and their hands trembled,
and they were in anguish, like women with labor pains.

20But they called upon the Lord who is merciful,
spreading forth their hands toward him;

and the Holy One quickly heard them from heaven,
and delivered them by the hand of Isaiah.
21The Lordg struck the camp of the Assyrians,
and his angel wiped them out.
22For Hezeki'ah did what was pleasing to the Lord,
and he held strongly to the ways of David his father,
which Isai'ah the prophet commanded,
who was great and faithful in his vision.
23In his days the sun went backward,
and he lengthened the life of the king.
24By the spirit of might he saw the last things,
and comforted those who mourned in Zion.

25He revealed what was to occur to the end of time,
and the hidden things before they came to pass.

49 The memory of Josi'ah is like a blending of incense
prepared by the art of the perfumer;
it is sweet as honey to every mouth,
and like music at a banquet of wine.
2He was led aright in converting the people,
and took away the abominations of iniquity.

3He set his heart upon the Lord;
in the days of wicked men he strengthened godliness.

4Except David and Hezeki'ah and Josi'ah
they all sinned greatly,

for they forsook the law of the Most High;
the kings of Judah came to an end;
5for they gave their power to others,
and their glory to a foreign nation,

6who set fire to the chosen city of the sanctuary,
and made her streets desolate,
according to the wordh of Jeremi'ah.
7For they had afflicted him;
yet he had been consecrated in the womb as prophet,

to pluck up and afflict and destroy,
and likewise to build and to plant.
8It was Ezek'iel who saw the vision of glory
which Godi showed him above the chariot of the cherubim.

9For Godi remembered his enemies with storm,
and did good to those who directed their ways rightly.j
10May the bones of the twelve prophets
revive from where they lie,

for they comforted the people of Jacob
and delivered them with confident hope.
11How shall we magnify Zerub'babel?
He was like a signet on the right hand,

12 and so was Jesh'ua the son of Jo'zadak;
in their days they built the house

and raised a templek holy to the Lord,
prepared for everlasting glory.
13The memory of Nehemi'ah also is lasting;
he raised for us the walls that had fallen,

and set up the gates and bars
and rebuilt our ruined houses.
14No one like E'noch has been created on earth,
for he was taken up from the earth.

15And no man like Josephl has been born,
and his bones are cared for.

16Shem and Seth were honored among men,
and Adam above every living being in the creation.

Simon Son of Onias; a Benediction, and an Epilogue
50 The leader of his brethren and the pride of his peoplem
was Simon the high priest, son of Oni'as,
who in his life repaired the house,
and in his time fortified the temple.
2He laid the foundations for the high double walls,n
the high retaining walls for the temple enclosure.

3In his days a cistern for water was quarried out,o
a reservoir like the sea in circumference.

4He considered how to save his people from ruin,
and fortified the city to withstand a seige.

5How glorious he was when the people gathered round him
as he came out of the inner sanctuary! p

6Like the morning star among the clouds,
like the moon when it is full;
7like the sun shining upon the temple of the Most High,
and like the rainbow gleaming in glorious clouds;
8like roses in the days of the first fruits,
like lilies by a spring of water,

like a green shoot on Lebanonq on a summer day;
9like fire and incense in the censer,
like a vessel of hammered gold

adorned with all kinds of precious stones;
10like an olive tree putting forth its fruit,
and like a cypress towering in the clouds.

11When he put on his glorious robe
and clothed himself with superb perfection

and went up to the holy altar,
he made the court of the sanctuary glorious.
12And when he received the portions from the hands of the priests,
as he stood by the hearth of the altar

with a garland of brethren around him,
he was like a young cedar on Lebanon;
and they surrounded him like the trunks of palm trees,
13 all the sons of Aaron in their splendor
with the Lord’s offering in their hands,

before the whole congregation of Israel.
14Finishing the service at the altars,
and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty,

15he reached out his hand to the cup
and poured a libation of the blood of the grape;

he poured it out at the foot of the altar,
a pleasing odor to the Most High, the King of all.
16Then the sons of Aaron shouted,
they sounded the trumpets of hammered work,

they made a great noise to be heard
for remembrance before the Most High.
17Then all the people together made haste
and fell to the ground upon their faces

to worship their Lord,
the Almighty, God Most High.
18And the singers praised him with their voices
in sweet and full-toned melody.r

19And the people besought the Lord Most High
in prayer before him who is merciful,

till the order of worship of the Lord was ended;
so they completed his service.
20Then Simons came down, and lifted up his hands
over the whole congregation of the sons of Israel,

to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips,
and to glory in his name;
21and they bowed down in worship a second time,
to receive the blessing from the Most High.

22And now bless the God of all,
who in every way does great things;
who exalts our days from birth,
and deals with us according to his mercy.
23May he give ust gladness of heart,
and grant that peace may be in our days in Israel,

as in the days of old,
24that Israel may believe that the God of mercy is with us
to deliver us in ouru days!

25With two nations my soul is vexed,
and the third is no nation:

26Those who live on Mount Se'ir,v and the Philis'tines,
and the foolish people that dwell in She'chem.

27Instruction in understanding and knowledge
I have written in this book,

Jesus the son of Si'rach, son of Elea'zar,w of Jerusalem,
who out of his heart poured forth wisdom.
28Blessed is he who concerns himself with these things,
and he who lays them to heart will become wise.

29For if he does them, he will be strong for all things,
for the light of the Lord is his path.

The Search for Wisdom
51 I will give thanks to you, O Lord and King,
and will praise you as God my Savior.
I give thanks to your name,
2 for you have been my protector and helper
and have delivered my body from destruction

and from the snare of a slanderous tongue,
from lips that utter lies.
Before those who stood by
you were my helper, 3and delivered me,
in the greatness of your mercy and of your name,
from the gnashings of teeth about to devour me,x
from the hand of those who sought my life,
from the many afflictions that I endured,
4from choking fire on every side
and from the midst of fire which I did not kindle,
5from the depths of the belly of Hades,
from an unclean tongue and lying words—

6 the slander of an unrighteous tongue to the king.
My soul drew near to death,

and my life was very near to Hades beneath.
7They surrounded me on every side,
and there was no one to help me;

I looked for the assistance of men,
and there was none.
8Then I remembered your mercy, O Lord,
and your work from of old,

that you deliver those who wait for you
and save them from the hand of their enemies.
9And I sent up my supplication from the earth,
and prayed for deliverance from death.

10I appealed to the Lord, the Father of my lord,
not to forsake me in the days of affliction,

at the time when there is no help against the proud.
11I will praise your name continually,
and will sing praise with thanksgiving.
My prayer was heard,
12 for you saved me from destruction
and rescued me from an evil plight.

Therefore I will give thanks to you and praise you,
and I will bless the name of the Lord.
13While I was still young, before I went on my travels,
I sought wisdom openly in my prayer.

14Before the temple I asked for her,
and I will search for her to the last.

15From blossom toy ripening grape
my heart delighted in her;

my foot entered upon the straight path;
from my youth I followed her steps.
16I inclined my ear a little and received her,
and I found for myself much instruction.

17I made progress therein;
to him who gives wisdom I will give glory.

18For I resolved to live according to wisdom,z
and I was zealous for the good;

and I shall never be put to shame.
19My soul grappled with wisdom,z
and in my conduct I was strict;a

I spread out my hands to the heavens,
and lamented my ignorance of her.
20I directed my soul to her,
and through purification I found her.

I gained understandingb with her from the first,
therefore I will not be forsaken.
21My heart was stirred to seek her,
therefore I have gained a good possession.

22The Lord gave me a tongue as my reward,
and I will praise him with it.

23Draw near to me, you who are untaught,
and lodge in my school.

24Why do you say you are lacking in these things,c
and why are your souls very thirsty?
25I opened my mouth and said,
Get these thingsd for yourselves without money.

26Put your neck under the yoke,
and let your souls receive instruction;

it is to be found close by.
27See with your eyes that I have labored little
and found for myself much rest.

28Get instruction with a large sum of silver,
and you will gain by it much gold.

29May your soul rejoice in his mercy,
and may you not be put to shame when you praise him.
30Do your work before the appointed time,
and in God’se time he will give you your reward.
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Isaiah
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52
53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66
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THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH
The Sinfulness of Judah
1 * The vision of Isai'ah the son of A'moz, which he saw concerning
Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzzi'ah, Jo'tham, A'haz, and Hezeki'ah,
kings of Judah.
2Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth;
for the LORD has spoken:
“Sons have I reared and brought up,
but they have rebelled against me.
3The ox knows its owner,
and the donkey its master’s crib;
but Israel does not know,
my people does not understand.”
4Ah, sinful nation,
a people laden with iniquity,
offspring of evildoers,
sons who deal corruptly!
They have forsaken the LORD,
they have despised the Holy One of Israel,
they are utterly estranged.
5Why will you still be struck down,
that you continue to rebel?

The whole head is sick,
and the whole heart faint.
6From the sole of the foot even to the head,
there is no soundness in it,
but bruises and sores
and bleeding wounds;
they are not pressed out, or bound up,
or softened with oil.
7Your country lies desolate,
your cities are burned with fire;

in your very presence
strangers devour your land;
it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.
8And the daughter of Zion is left
like a booth in a vineyard,
like a lodge in a cucumber field,
like a besieged city.
9If the LORD of hosts
had not left us a few survivors,

we should have been like Sodom,
and become like Gomor'rah.
10Hear the word of the LORD,
you rulers of Sodom!

Give ear to the teaching of our God,
you people of Gomor'rah!
11“What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?
says the LORD;

I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of fed beasts;
I do not delight in the blood of bulls,
or of lambs, or of he-goats.
12“When you come to appear before me,
who requires of you

this trampling of my courts?
13Bring no more vain offerings;
incense is an abomination to me.

New moon and sabbath and the calling of assemblies—
I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly.
14Your new moons and your appointed feasts
my soul hates;
they have become a burden to me,
I am weary of bearing them.
15When you spread forth your hands,
I will hide my eyes from you;

even though you make many prayers,
I will not listen;
your hands are full of blood.
16Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;
remove the evil of your doings

from before my eyes;
cease to do evil,
17 learn to do good;
seek justice,
correct oppression;
defend the fatherless,
plead for the widow.
18“Come now, let us reason together,
says the LORD:

though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.
19If you are willing and obedient,
you shall eat the good of the land;

20but if you refuse and rebel,
you shall be devoured by the sword;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
21How the faithful city
has become a harlot,
she that was full of justice!
Righteousness lodged in her,
but now murderers.
22Your silver has become dross,
your wine mixed with water.
23Your princes are rebels
and companions of thieves.
Every one loves a bribe
and runs after gifts.
They do not defend the fatherless,
and the widow’s cause does not come to them.
24Therefore the Lord says,
the LORD of hosts,
the Mighty One of Israel:
“Ah, I will vent my wrath on my enemies,
and avenge myself on my foes.
25Iwill turn my hand against you
and will smelt away your dross as with lye
and remove all your alloy.
26And I will restore your judges as at the first,
and your counselors as at the beginning.
Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness,
the faithful city.”
27Zion shall be redeemed by justice,
and those in her who repent, by righteousness.
28But rebels and sinners shall be destroyed together,
and those who forsake the LORD shall be consumed.
29For you shall be ashamed of the oaks
in which you delighted;

and you shall blush for the gardens
which you have chosen.
30For you shall be like an oak
whose leaf withers,

and like a garden without water.
31And the strong shall become tow,
and his work a spark,

and both of them shall burn together,
with none to quench them.
The Lord’s Universal Reign
2 The word which Isai'ah the son of A'moz saw concerning Judah and
Jerusalem.
2It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the LORD
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
3 and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,

to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more. *
5O house of Jacob,
come, let us walk

in the light of the LORD.
6For you have rejected your people,
the house of Jacob,

because they are full of diviners a from the east
and of soothsayers like the Philis'tines,
and they strike hands with foreigners.
7Their land is filled with silver and gold,
and there is no end to their treasures;
their land is filled with horses,
and there is no end to their chariots.
8Their land is filled with idols;
they bow down to the work of their hands,

to what their own fingers have made.
9So man is humbled,
and men are brought low—

forgive them not!
10Enter into the rock,
and hide in the dust

from before the terror of the LORD,
and from the glory of his majesty.
11The haughty looks of man shall be brought low,
and the pride of men shall be humbled;
and the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.
12For the LORD of hosts has a day
against all that is proud and lofty,

against all that is lifted up and high; b
13against all the cedars of Lebanon,
lofty and lifted up;
and against all the oaks of Bashan;
14against all the high mountains,
and against all the lofty hills;

15against every high tower,
and against every fortified wall;

16against all the ships of Tar'shish,
and against all the beautiful craft.
17And the haughtiness of man shall be humbled,
and the pride of men shall be brought low;
and the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.
18And the idols shall utterly pass away.
19And men shall enter the caves of the rocks
and the holes of the ground,

and from the glory of his majesty,
when he rises to terrify the earth.
20In that day men will cast forth
their idols of silver and their idols of gold,

which they made for themselves to worship,
to the moles and to the bats,
21to enter the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs,

and from the glory of his majesty,
when he rises to terrify the earth.
22Turn away from man
in whose nostrils is breath,

for of what account is he?
The Lord’s Judgment
3 For behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts,
is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah
stay and staff,
the whole stay of bread,
and the whole stay of water;
2the mighty man and the soldier,
the judge and the prophet,
the diviner and the elder,
3the captain of fifty
and the man of rank,
the counselor and the skilful magician
and the expert in charms.
4And I will make boys their princes,
and infants shall rule over them.

5And the people will oppress one another,
every man his fellow

and every man his neighbor;
the youth will be insolent to the elder,
and the base fellow to the honorable.
6When a man takes hold of his brother
in the house of his father, saying:

“You have a mantle;
you shall be our leader,
and this heap of ruins
shall be under your rule”;
7in that day he will speak out, saying:
“I will not be a healer;

in my house there is neither bread nor mantle;
you shall not make me
leader of the people.”
8For Jerusalem has stumbled,
and Judah has fallen;
because their speech and their deeds are against the LORD,
defying his glorious presence.
9Their partiality witnesses against them;
they proclaim their sin like Sodom,

they do not hide it.
Woe to them!
For they have brought evil upon themselves.
10Tell the righteous that it shall be well with them,
for they shall eat the fruit of their deeds.

11Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him,
for what his hands have done shall be done to him.
12My people—children are their oppressors,
and women rule over them.
O my people, your leaders mislead you,
and confuse the course of your paths.
13The LORD has taken his place to contend,
he stands to judge his people. d

14The LORD enters into judgment
with the elders and princes of his people:

“It is you who have devoured the vineyard,
the spoil of the poor is in your houses.
15What do you mean by crushing my people,
by grinding the face of the poor?” says the Lord GOD of hosts.
16The LORD said:
Because the daughters of Zion are haughty

and walk with outstretched necks,
glancing wantonly with their eyes,
mincing along as they go,
tinkling with their feet;
17the Lord will strike with a scab
the heads of the daughters of Zion,

and the LORD will lay bare their secret parts.
18 In that day the Lord will take away the finery of the anklets, the
headbands, and the crescents; 19the pendants, the bracelets, and the scarfs;
20the headdresses, the armlets, the sashes, the perfume boxes, and the
amulets; 21the signet rings and nose rings; 22the festal robes, the mantles,
the cloaks, and the handbags; 23the garments of gauze, the linen garments,
the turbans, and the veils.
24Instead of perfume there will be rottenness;
and instead of a belt, a rope;

and instead of well-set hair, baldness;
and instead of a rich robe, a putting on of sackcloth;
instead of beauty, shame. e
25Your men shall fall by the sword
and your mighty men in battle.
26And her gates shall lament and mourn;
ravaged, she shall sit upon the ground.
4 And seven women shall take hold of one man in that day, saying, “We
will eat our own bread and wear our own clothes, only let us be called by
your name; take away our reproach.”
2 In that day the branch of the LORD shall be beautiful and glorious, and
the fruit of the land shall be the pride and glory of the survivors of Israel.
3And he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy,
every one who has been recorded for life in Jerusalem, 4when the Lord shall
have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the
bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst by a spirit of judgment and by a
spirit of burning. 5Then the LORD will create over the whole site of Mount
Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, and smoke and the shining of
a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory there will be a canopy and a
pavilion. 6It will be for a shade by day from the heat, and for a refuge and a
shelter from the storm and rain.
The Parable of the Vineyard
5 * Let me sing for my beloved
a love song concerning his vineyard:
My beloved had a vineyard
on a very fertile hill.
2He dug it and cleared it of stones,
and planted it with choice vines;

he built a watchtower in the midst of it,
and hewed out a wine vat in it;
and he looked for it to yield grapes,
but it yielded wild grapes.
3And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem
and men of Judah,

judge, I beg you, between me
and my vineyard.
4What more was there to do for my vineyard,
that I have not done in it?

When I looked for it to yield grapes,
why did it yield wild grapes?
5And now I will tell you
what I will do to my vineyard.

I will remove its hedge,
and it shall be devoured;
I will break down its wall,
and it shall be trampled down.
6I will make it a waste;
it shall not be pruned or hoed,

and briers and thorns shall grow up;
I will also command the clouds
that they rain no rain upon it.
7For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts
is the house of Israel,

and the men of Judah
are his pleasant planting;
and he looked for justice,
but behold, bloodshed;
for righteousness,
but behold, a cry!
8Woe to those who join house to house,
who add field to field,

until there is no more room,
and you are made to dwell alone
in the midst of the land.
9The LORD of hosts has sworn in my hearing:
“Surely many houses shall be desolate,

large and beautiful houses, without inhabitant.
10For ten acres of vineyard shall yield but one bath,
and a homer of seed shall yield but an ephah.”

11Woe to those who rise early in the morning,
that they may run after strong drink,

who linger late into the evening
till wine inflames them!
12They have lyre and harp,
timbrel and flute and wine at their feasts;
but they do not regard the deeds of the LORD,
or see the work of his hands.
13Therefore my people go into exile for want of knowledge;
their honored men are dying of hunger,

and their multitude is parched with thirst.
14Therefore Sheol has enlarged its appetite
and opened its mouth beyond measure,

and the nobility of Jerusalem f and her multitude go down,
her throng and he who exults in her.
15Man is bowed down, and men are brought low,
and the eyes of the haughty are humbled.
16But the LORD of hosts is exalted in justice,
and the Holy God shows himself holy in righteousness.

17Then shall the lambs graze as in their pasture,
fatlings and kids g shall feed among the ruins.

18Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood,
who draw sin as with cart ropes,

19who say: “Let him make haste,
let him speed his work

that we may see it;
let the purpose of the Holy One of Israel draw near,
and let it come, that we may know it!”
20Woe to those who call evil good and good evil,
who put darkness for light

and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter!
21Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
and shrewd in their own sight!

22Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine,
and valiant men in mixing strong drink,

23who acquit the guilty for a bribe,
and deprive the innocent of his right!

24Therefore, as the tongue of fire devours the stubble,
and as dry grass sinks down in the flame,
so their root will be as rottenness,
and their blossom go up like dust;
for they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts,
and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
25Therefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people,
and he stretched out his hand against them and struck them,
and the mountains quaked;
and their corpses were as refuse
in the midst of the streets.
For all this his anger is not turned away
and his hand is stretched out still.
26He will raise a signal for a nation afar off,
and whistle for it from the ends of the earth;

and behold, swiftly, speedily it comes!
27None is weary, none stumbles,
none slumbers or sleeps,

not a waistcloth is loose,
not a sandal-thong broken;
28their arrows are sharp,
all their bows bent,

their horses’ hoofs seem like flint,
and their wheels like the whirlwind.
29Their roaring is like a lion,
like young lions they roar;

they growl and seize their prey,
they carry it off, and none can rescue.
30They will growl over it on that day,
like the roaring of the sea.

And if one look to the land,
behold, darkness and distress;
and the light is darkened by its clouds.
A Vision of the Lord in the Temple
6 * In the year that King Uzzi'ah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a
throne, high and lifted up; and his train filled the temple. 2Above him stood
the seraphim; each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with
two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3And one called to another
and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who
called, and the house was filled with smoke. 5And I said: “Woe is me! For I
am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people
of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”
6 Then flew one of the seraphim to me, having in his hand a burning coal
which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7And he touched my mouth,
and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and
your sin forgiven.” 8And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall
I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” 9And
he said, “Go, and say to this people:
‘Hear and hear, but do not understand;
see and see, but do not perceive.’
10Make the heart of this people fat,
and their ears heavy,

and shut their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”
11Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”
And he said:
“Until cities lie waste
without inhabitant,
and houses without men,
and the land is utterly desolate,
12and the LORD removes men far away,
and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
13And though a tenth remain in it,
it will be burned again,

like a terebinth or an oak,
whose stump remains standing
when it is felled.”
The holy seed is its stump.
Isaiah Reassures King Ahaz
7 In the days of A'haz the son of Jo'tham, son of Uzzi'ah, king of Judah,
Re'zin the king of Syria and Pe'kah the son of Remali'ah the king of Israel
came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but they could not conquer it.
2When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with E'phraim,” his
heart and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake
before the wind.
3 And the LORD said to Isai'ah, “Go forth to meet A'haz, you and
She'arjash''ub h your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the
highway to the Fuller’s Field, 4and say to him, ‘Take heed, be quiet, do not
fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering
stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Re'zin and Syria and the son of
Remali'ah. 5Because Syria, with E'phraim and the son of Remali'ah, has
devised evil against you, saying, 6“Let us go up against Judah and terrify it,
and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Ta'be-el as king in
the midst of it,” 7thus says the Lord GOD:
It shall not stand,
and it shall not come to pass.
8For the head of Syria is Damascus,
and the head of Damascus is Re'zin.

(Within sixty-five years E'phraim will be broken to pieces so that it will
no longer be a people.)
9And the head of E'phraim is Samar'ia,
and the head of Samaria is the son of Remali'ah.

If you will not believe,
surely you shall not be established.’”
The Sign of Immanuel
10 Again the LORD spoke to A'haz, 11“Ask a sign of the LORD your God;
let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12But A'haz said, “I will not ask,
and I will not put the LORD to the test.” 13And he said, “Hear then, O house
of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also?
14Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin i * shall
conceive and bear j a son, and shall call his name Imman'u-el.k 15He shall
eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the
good. 16For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the
good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted.
17The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your
father’s house such days as have not come since the day that E'phraim
departed from Judah—the king of Assyria.”
18 In that day the LORD will whistle for the fly which is at the sources of
the streams of Egypt, and for the bee which is in the land of Assyria. 19And
they will all come and settle in the steep ravines, and in the clefts of the
rocks, and on all the thornbushes, and on all the pastures.
20 In that day the Lord will shave with a razor which is hired beyond the
River—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it
will sweep away the beard also.
21 In that day a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep; 22and
because of the abundance of milk which they give, he will eat curds; for
every one that is left in the land will eat curds and honey.
23 In that day every place where there used to be a thousand vines, worth
a thousand shekels of silver, will become briers and thorns. 24With bow and
arrows men will come there, for all the land will be briers and thorns; 25and
as for all the hills which used to be hoed with a hoe, you will not come
there for fear of briers and thorns; but they will become a place where cattle
are let loose and where sheep tread.
Isaiah’s Son a Sign of Assyrian Invasion
8 Then the LORD said to me, “Take a large tablet and write upon it in
common characters, ‘Belonging to Ma'her-shal'al-hash''-baz.’ ” l 2And I got
reliable witnesses, Uri'ah the priest and Zechari'ah the son of Jeberechi'ah,
to attest for me. 3And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore
a son. Then the LORD said to me, “Call his name Ma'her-shal'al-hash''-baz;
4for before the child knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the
wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samar'ia will be carried away before
the king of Assyria.”
5 The LORD spoke to me again: 6“Because this people have refused the
waters of Shilo'ah that flow gently, and melt in fear before m Re'zin and the
son of Remali'ah; 7therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them
the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his
glory; and it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks; 8and it
will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the
neck; and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Imman'u-
el.”
9Be broken, you peoples, and be dismayed;
give ear, all you far countries;

gird yourselves and be dismayed;
gird yourselves and be dismayed.
10Take counsel together, but it will come to nought;
speak a word, but it will not stand,

for God is with us.x
11 For the LORD spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and
warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: 12“Do not call
conspiracy all that this people call conspiracy, and do not fear what they
fear, nor be in dread. 13But the LORD of hosts, him you shall regard as holy;
let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 14And he will become a
sanctuary, and a stone of offense, and a rock of stumbling to both houses of
Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15And many shall
stumble thereon; they shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and
taken.”
Disciples of Isaiah
16 Bind up the testimony, seal the teaching among my disciples. 17I will
wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will
hope in him. 18Behold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are
signs and portents in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount
Zion. 19And when they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the wizards
who chirp and mutter,” should not a people consult their God? Should they
consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20To the teaching and to the
testimony! Surely for this word which they speak there is no dawn. 21They
will pass through the land,n greatly distressed and hungry; and when they
are hungry, they will be enraged and will curse o their king and their God,
and turn their faces upward; 22and they will look to the earth, but behold,
distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be thrust into
thick darkness.
The Righteous Reign
9 p But there will be no gloom for her that was in anguish. In the former
time he brought into contempt the land of Zeb'ulun and the land of
Naph'tali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the
land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
2 qThe people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;

those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shined.
3You have multiplied the nation,
you have increased its joy;

they rejoice before you
as with joy at the harvest,
as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
4For the yoke of his burden,
and the staff for his shoulder,

the rod of his oppressor,
you have broken as on the day of Mid'ian.
5For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
and every garment rolled in blood

will be burned as fuel for the fire.
6For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government will be upon his shoulder,
and his name will be called
“Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” *
7Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,

upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom,
to establish it, and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.
8The Lord has sent a word against Jacob,
and it will light upon Israel;

9and all the people will know,
E'phraim and the inhabitants of Samar'ia,
who say in pride and in arrogance of heart:
10“The bricks have fallen,
but we will build with dressed stones;

the sycamores have been cut down,
but we will put cedars in their place.”
11So the LORD raises adversaries r against them,
and stirs up their enemies.
12The Syrians on the east and the Philis'tines on the west
devour Israel with open mouth.

13The people did not turn to him who struck them,
nor seek the LORD of hosts.

14So the LORD cut off from Israel head and tail,
palm branch and reed in one day—

15the elder and honored man is the head,
and the prophet who teaches lies is the tail;

16for those who lead this people lead them astray,
and those who are led by them are swallowed up.

17Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over their young men,
and has no compassion on their fatherless and widows;

for every one is godless and an evildoer,
and every mouth speaks folly.
18For wickedness burns like a fire,
it consumes briers and thorns;

it kindles the thickets of the forest,
and they roll upward in a column of smoke.
19Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts
the land is burned,

and the people are like fuel for the fire;
no man spares his brother.
20They snatch on the right, but are still hungry,
and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied;
each devours his neighbor’s s flesh,
21Manas'seh E'phraim, and Ephraim Manasseh,
and together they are against Judah.

Judgment on the Oppressors
10 Woe to those who decree iniquitous decrees,
and the writers who keep writing oppression,
2to turn aside the needy from justice
and to rob the poor of my people of their right,

that widows may be their spoil,
and that they may make the fatherless their prey!
3What will you do on the day of punishment,
in the storm which will come from afar?

To whom will you flee for help,
and where will you leave your wealth?
4Nothing remains but to crouch among the prisoners
or fall among the slain.
5Ah, Assyria, the rod of my anger,
the staff of my fury!t

6Against a godless nation I send him,
and against the people of my wrath I command him,

to take spoil and seize plunder,
and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
7But he does not so intend,
and his mind does not so think;

but it is in his mind to destroy,
and to cut off nations not a few;
8for he says:
“Are not my commanders all kings?

9Is not Calno like Car'chemish?
Is not Ha'math like Arpad?
Is not Samar'ia like Damascus?
10As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols
whose graven images were greater than those of Jerusalem and

Samar'ia,
11shall I not do to Jerusalem and her idols
as I have done to Samar'ia and her images?”

12 When the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on
Jerusalem he u will punish the arrogant boasting of the king of Assyria and
his haughty pride. 13For he says:
“By the strength of my hand I have done it,
and by my wisdom, for I have understanding;
I have removed the boundaries of peoples,
and have plundered their treasures;
like a bull I have brought down those who sat on thrones.
14My hand has found like a nest
the wealth of the peoples;

and as men gather eggs that have been forsaken
so I have gathered all the earth;
and there was none that moved a wing,
or opened the mouth, or chirped.”
15Shall the axe vaunt itself over him who hews with it,
or the saw magnify itself against him who wields it?

As if a rod should wield him who lifts it,
or as if a staff should lift him who is not wood!
16Therefore the Lord, the LORD of hosts,
will send wasting sickness among his stout warriors,

and under his glory a burning will be kindled,
like the burning of fire.
17The light of Israel will become a fire,
and his Holy One a flame;

and it will burn and devour
his thorns and briers in one day.
18The glory of his forest and of his fruitful land
the LORD will destroy, both soul and body,

and it will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19The remnant of the trees of his forest will be so few
that a child can write them down.
The Repentant Remnant of Israel
20 In that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of
Jacob will no more lean upon him that struck them, but will lean upon the
LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. 21A remnant will return, the remnant
of Jacob, to the mighty God. 22For though your people Israel be as the sand
of the sea, only a remnant of them will return. Destruction is decreed,
overflowing with righteousness. 23For the Lord, the LORD of hosts, will
make a full end, as decreed, in the midst of all the earth.
24 Therefore thus says the Lord, the LORD of hosts: “O my people, who
dwell in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrians when they strike with the rod
and lift up their staff against you as the Egyptians did. 25For in a very little
while my indignation will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to
their destruction. 26And the LORD of hosts will wield against them a
scourge, as when he struck Mid'ian at the rock of Or'eb; and his rod will be
over the sea, and he will lift it as he did in Egypt. 27And in that day his
burden will depart from your shoulder, and his yoke will be destroyed from
your neck.”
He has gone up from Rimmon,v
28 he has come to Ai'ath;
he has passed through Migron,

at Mich'mash he stores his baggage;
29they have crossed over the pass,
at Ge'ba they lodge for the night;

Ra'mah trembles,
Gib'eah of Saul has fled.
30Cry aloud, O daughter of Gallim!
Listen, O La'ishah!
Answer her, O An'athoth!
31Madme'nah is in flight,
the inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety.

32This very day he will halt at Nob,
he will shake his fist

at the mount of the daughter of Zion,
the hill of Jerusalem.
33Behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts
will lop the boughs with terrifying power;
the great in height will be hewn down,
and the lofty will be brought low.
34He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an axe,
and Lebanon with its majestic trees w will fall.

The Shoot from the Stump of Jesse and the Peaceful Kingdom
11 * There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
2And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,

the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.*
3And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,

or decide by what his ears hear;
4but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;

and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
5Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,
and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

6The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid,

and the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
and a little child shall lead them.
7The cow and the bear shall feed;
their young shall lie down together;

and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den.
9They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;

for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea.
10 In that day the root of Jesse shall stand as an ensign to the peoples; him
shall the nations seek, and his dwellings shall be glorious.
11 In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover
the remnant which is left of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from
Path'ros, from Ethiopia, from E'lam, from Shi'nar, from Ha'math, and from
the islands of the sea.
12He will raise an ensign for the nations,
and will assemble the outcasts of Israel,

and gather the dispersed of Judah
from the four corners of the earth.
13The jealousy of E'phraim shall depart,
and those who harass Judah shall be cut off;

Ephraim shall not be jealous of Judah,
and Judah shall not harass Ephraim.
14But they shall swoop down upon the shoulder of the Philis'tines in the
west,
and together they shall plunder the people of the east.
They shall put forth their hand against E'dom and Moab,
and the Am'monites shall obey them.
15And the LORD will utterly destroy
the tongue of the sea of Egypt;

and will wave his hand over the River
with his scorching wind,
and strike it into seven channels
that men may cross dryshod.
16And there will be a highway from Assyria
for the remnant which is left of his people,

as there was for Israel
when they came up from the land of Egypt.
Thanksgiving and Praise
12 You will say in that day:
“I will give thanks to you, O LORD,
for though you were angry with me,
your anger turned away,
and you did comfort me.
2“Behold, God is my salvation;
I will trust, and will not be afraid;
for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song,
and he has become my salvation.”
3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. 4And you will
say in that day:
“Give thanks to the LORD,
call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the nations,
proclaim that his name is exalted.
5“Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously;
let this be known x in all the earth.

6Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

An Oracle concerning Babylon
13 The oracle concerning Babylon which Isai'ah the son of A'moz saw.
2On a bare hill raise a signal,
cry aloud to them;
wave the hand for them to enter
the gates of the nobles.
3I myself have commanded my consecrated ones,
have summoned my mighty men to execute my anger,

my proudly exulting ones.
4Listen, a tumult on the mountains
as of a great multitude!
Listen, an uproar of kingdoms,
of nations gathering together!
The LORD of hosts is mustering
a host for battle.
5They come from a distant land,
from the end of the heavens,

the LORD and the weapons of his indignation,
to destroy the whole earth.
6Wail, for the day of the LORD is near;
as destruction from the Almighty it will come!
7Therefore all hands will be feeble,
and every man’s heart will melt,

8 and they will be dismayed.
Pangs and agony will seize them;

they will be in anguish like a woman with labor pains.
They will look aghast at one another;
their faces will be aflame.
9Behold, the day of the LORD comes,
cruel, with wrath and fierce anger,

to make the earth a desolation
and to destroy its sinners from it.
10For the stars of the heavens and their constellations
will not give their light;

the sun will be dark at its rising
and the moon will not shed its light.
11I will punish the world for its evil,
and the wicked for their iniquity;

I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant,
and lay low the haughtiness of the ruthless.
12I will make men more rare than fine gold,
and mankind than the gold of O'phir.

13Therefore I will make the heavens tremble,
and the earth will be shaken out of its place,

at the wrath of the LORD of hosts
in the day of his fierce anger.
14And like a hunted gazelle,
or like sheep with none to gather them,

every man will turn to his own people,
and every man will flee to his own land.
15Whoever is found will be thrust through,
and whoever is caught will fall by the sword.

16Their infants will be dashed in pieces
before their eyes;

their houses will be plundered
and their wives ravished.
17Behold, I am stirring up the Medes against them,
who have no regard for silver

and do not delight in gold.
18Their bows will slaughter the young men;
they will have no mercy on the fruit of the womb;

their eyes will not pity children.
19And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms,
the splendor and pride of the Chalde'ans,

will be like Sodom and Gomor'rah
when God overthrew them.
20It will never be inhabited
or dwelt in for all generations;
no Arab will pitch his tent there,
no shepherds will make their flocks lie down there.
21But wild beasts will lie down there,
and its houses will be full of howling creatures;

there ostriches will dwell,
and there satyrs will dance.
22Hyenas will cry in its towers,
and jackals in the pleasant palaces;

its time is close at hand
and its days will not be prolonged.
Restoration of Israel
14 The LORD will have compassion on Jacob and will again choose
Israel, and will set them in their own land, and strangers will join them and
will cling to the house of Jacob. 2And the peoples will take them and bring
them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them in the LORD’s
land as male and female slaves; they will take captive those who were their
captors, and rule over those who oppressed them.
3 When the LORD has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the
hard service with which you were made to serve, 4you will take up this
taunt against the king of Babylon:
“How the oppressor has ceased,
the insolent fury y ceased!
5The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked,
the scepter of rulers,

6that struck the peoples in wrath
with unceasing blows,

that ruled the nations in anger
with unrelenting persecution.
7The whole earth is at rest and quiet;
they break forth into singing.

8The cypresses rejoice at you,
the cedars of Lebanon, saying,

‘Since you were laid low,
no hewer comes up against us.’
9Sheol beneath is stirred up
to meet you when you come,

it rouses the shades to greet you,
all who were leaders of the earth;
it raises from their thrones
all who were kings of the nations.
10All of them will speak
and say to you:

‘You too have become as weak as we!
You have become like us!’
11Your pomp is brought down to Sheol,
the sound of your harps;

maggots are the bed beneath you,
and worms are your covering.
12“How you are fallen from heaven,
O Day Star, son of Dawn!

How you are cut down to the ground,
you who laid the nations low!
13You said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;

above the stars of God
I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far north;
14I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will make myself like the Most High.’

15But you are brought down to Sheol,
to the depths of the Pit.

16Those who see you will stare at you,
and ponder over you:

‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
who shook kingdoms,
17who made the world like a desert
and overthrew its cities,

who did not let his prisoners go home?’
18All the kings of the nations lie in glory,
each in his own tomb;

19but you are cast out, away from your sepulchre,
like a loathed untimely birth,z

clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword,
who go down to the stones of the Pit,
like a dead body trodden under foot.
20You will not be joined with them in burial,
because you have destroyed your land,

you have slain your people.
“May the descendants of evildoers
nevermore be named!
21Prepare slaughter for his sons
because of the guilt of their fathers,

lest they rise and possess the earth,
and fill the face of the world with cities.”
22 “I will rise up against them,” says the LORD of hosts, “and will cut off
from Babylon name and remnant, offspring and posterity, says the LORD.
23And I will make it a possession of the hedgehog, and pools of water, and I
will sweep it with the broom of destruction, says the LORD of hosts.”
24The LORD of hosts has sworn:
“As I have planned,

so shall it be,
and as I have purposed,
so shall it stand,
25that I will break the Assyrian in my land,
and upon my mountains trample him under foot;

and his yoke shall depart from them,
and his burden from their shoulder.”
26This is the purpose that is purposed
concerning the whole earth;

and this is the hand that is stretched out
over all the nations.
27For the LORD of hosts has purposed,
and who will annul it?

His hand is stretched out,
and who will turn it back?
28In the year that King A'haz died came this oracle:
29“Rejoice not, O Philis'tia, all of you,
that the rod which struck you is broken,

for from the serpent’s root will come forth an adder,
and its fruit will be a flying serpent.
30And the first-born of the poor will feed,
and the needy lie down in safety;

but I will kill your root with famine,
and your remnant I a will slay.
31Wail, O gate; cry, O city;
melt in fear, O Philis'tia, all of you!

For smoke comes out of the north,
and there is no straggler in his ranks.”
32What will one answer the messengers of the nation?
“The LORD has founded Zion,

and in her the afflicted of his people find refuge.”
An Oracle concerning Moab
15 An oracle concerning Moab.
Because Ar is laid waste in a night
Moab is undone;
because Kir is laid waste in a night
Moab is undone.
2The daughter of Di'bon b has gone up
to the high places to weep;

over Nebo and over Med'eba
Moab wails.
On every head is baldness,
every beard is shorn;
3in the streets they put on sackcloth;
on the housetops and in the squares

every one wails and melts in tears.
4Heshbon and E''lea'leh cry out,
their voice is heard as far as Ja'haz;

therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud;
his soul trembles.
5My heart cries out for Moab;
his fugitives flee to Zoar,
to Eg'lath-shelish'iyah.
For at the ascent of Lu'hith
they go up weeping;
on the road to Horona'im
they raise a cry of destruction;
6the waters of Nimrim
are a desolation;
the grass is withered, the new growth fails,
the verdure is no more.
7Therefore the abundance they have gained
and what they have laid up

they carry away
over the Brook of the Willows.
8For a cry has gone
round the land of Moab;

the wailing reaches to Egla'im,
the wailing reaches to Be'er-e'lim.
9For the waters of Di'bon c are full of blood;
yet I will bring upon Dibon c even more,

a lion for those of Moab who escape,
for the remnant of the land.
16 They have sent lambs
to the ruler of the land,
from Se'la, by way of the desert,
to the mount of the daughter of Zion.
2Like fluttering birds,
like scattered nestlings,

so are the daughters of Moab
at the fords of the Arnon.
3“Give counsel,
grant justice;
make your shade like night
at the height of noon;
hide the outcasts,
betray not the fugitive;
4let the outcasts of Moab
sojourn among you;

be a refuge to them
from the destroyer.
When the oppressor is no more,
and destruction has ceased,
and he who tramples under foot
has vanished from the land,
5then a throne will be established in steadfast love
and on it will sit in faithfulness

in the tent of David
one who judges and seeks justice
and is swift to do righteousness.”
6We have heard of the pride of Moab,
how proud he was;

of his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence—
his boasts are false.
7Therefore let Moab wail,
let every one wail for Moab.

Mourn, utterly stricken,
for the raisin-cakes of Kir'-har'eseth.
8For the fields of Heshbon languish,
and the vine of Sibmah;

the lords of the nations
have struck down its branches,
which reached to Ja'zer
and strayed to the desert;
its shoots spread abroad
and passed over the sea.
9Therefore I weep with the weeping of Ja'zer
for the vine of Sibmah;

I drench you with my tears,
O Heshbon and E''lea'leh;
for upon your fruit and your harvest
the battle shout has fallen.
10And joy and gladness are taken away
from the fruitful field;

and in the vineyards no songs are sung,
no shouts are raised;
no treader treads out wine in the presses;
the vintage shout is hushed.d
11Therefore my soul moans like a lyre for Moab,
and my heart for Kirhe'res.

12 And when Moab presents himself, when he wearies himself upon the
high place, when he comes to his sanctuary to pray, he will not prevail.
13 This is the word which the LORD spoke concerning Moab in the past.
14But now the LORD says, “In three years, like the years of a hireling, the
glory of Moab will be brought into contempt, in spite of all his great
multitude, and those who survive will be very few and feeble.”
An Oracle concerning Damascus
17 An oracle concerning Damascus.
Behold, Damascus will cease to be a city,
and will become a heap of ruins.
2Her cities will be deserted for ever;e
they will be for flocks,
which will lie down, and none will make them afraid.
3The fortress will disappear from E'phraim,
and the kingdom from Damascus;

and the remnant of Syria will be
like the glory of the children of Israel, says the LORD of hosts.
4And in that day
the glory of Jacob will be brought low,
and the fat of his flesh will grow lean.
5And it shall be as when the reaper gathers standing grain
and his arm harvests the ears,

and as when one gleans the ears of grain
in the Valley of Reph'aim.
6Gleanings will be left in it,
as when an olive tree is beaten—
two or three berries
in the top of the highest bough,
four or five
on the branches of a fruit tree,
says the LORD God of Israel.
7 In that day men will regard their Maker, and their eyes will look to the
Holy One of Israel; 8they will not have regard for the altars, the work of
their hands, and they will not look to what their own fingers have made,
either the Ashe'rim or the altars of incense.
9 In that day their strong cities will be like the deserted places of the
Hi'vites and the Am'orites,f which they deserted because of the children of
Israel, and there will be desolation.
10For you have forgotten the God of your salvation,
and have not remembered the Rock of your refuge;
therefore, though you plant pleasant plants
and set out slips of an alien god,
11though you make them grow on the day that you plant them,
and make them blossom in the morning that you sow;

yet the harvest will flee away
in a day of grief and incurable pain.
12Ah, the thunder of many peoples,
they thunder like the thundering of the sea!
Ah, the roar of nations,
they roar like the roaring of mighty waters!
13The nations roar like the roaring of many waters,
but he will rebuke them, and they will flee far away,
chased like chaff on the mountains before the wind
and whirling dust before the storm.
14At evening time, behold, terror!
Before morning, they are no more!

This is the portion of those who despoil us,
and the lot of those who plunder us.
18 Ah, land of whirring wings
which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia;
2which sends ambassadors by the Nile,
in vessels of papyrus upon the waters!

Go, you swift messengers,
to a nation, tall and smooth,
to a people feared near and far,
a nation mighty and conquering,
whose land the rivers divide.
3All you inhabitants of the world,
you who dwell on the earth,

when a signal is raised on the mountains, look!
When a trumpet is blown, hear!
4For thus the LORD said to me:
“I will quietly look from my dwelling

like clear heat in sunshine,
like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
5For before the harvest, when the blossom is over,
and the flower becomes a ripening grape,

he will cut off the shoots with pruning hooks,
and the spreading branches he will hew away.
6They shall all of them be left
to the birds of prey of the mountains

and to the beasts of the earth.
And the birds of prey will summer upon them,
and all the beasts of the earth will winter upon them.
OceanofPDF.com
7 At that time gifts will be brought to the LORD of hosts
from a people tall and smooth,
from a people feared near and far,
a nation mighty and conquering,
whose land the rivers divide,
to Mount Zion, the place of the name of the LORD of hosts.
An Oracle concerning Egypt
19 An oracle concerning Egypt.
Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud
and comes to Egypt;
and the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence,
and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.
2And I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians,
and they will fight, every man against his brother
and every man against his neighbor,
city against city, kingdom against kingdom;
3and the spirit of the Egyptians within them will be emptied out,
and I will confound their plans;
and they will consult the idols and the sorcerers,
and the mediums and the wizards;
4and I will give over the Egyptians
into the hand of a hard master;
and a fierce king will rule over them,
says the Lord, the LORD of hosts.
5And the waters of the Nile will be dried up,
and the river will be parched and dry;

6and its canals will become foul,
and the branches of Egypt’s Nile will diminish and dry up,
reeds and rushes will rot away.
7There will be bare places by the Nile,
on the brink of the Nile,

and all that is sown by the Nile will dry up,
be driven away, and be no more.
8The fishermen will mourn and lament,
all who cast hook in the Nile;

and they will languish
who spread nets upon the water.
9The workers in combed flax will be in despair,
and the weavers of white cotton.
10Those who are the pillars of the land will be crushed,
and all who work for hire will be grieved.

11The princes of Zoan are utterly foolish;
the wise counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel.

How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I am a son of the wise,
a son of ancient kings”?
12Where then are your wise men?
Let them tell you and make known

what the LORD of hosts has purposed against Egypt.
13The princes of Zoan have become fools,
and the princes of Memphis are deluded;

those who are the cornerstones of her tribes
have led Egypt astray.
14The LORD has mingled within her a spirit of confusion;
and they have made Egypt stagger in all her doings

as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
15And there will be nothing for Egypt
which head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do.

16 In that day the Egyptians will be like women, and tremble with fear
before the hand which the LORD of hosts shakes over them. 17And the land
of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians; every one to whom it is
mentioned will fear because of the purpose which the LORD of hosts has
purposed against them.
18 In that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt which speak
the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the LORD of hosts. One of
these will be called the City of the Sun.
19 In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of
Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD at its border. 20It will be a sign and a witness
to the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt; when they cry to the LORD
because of oppressors he will send them a savior, and will defend and
deliver them. 21And the LORD will make himself known to the Egyptians;
and the Egyptians will know the LORD in that day and worship with
sacrifice and burnt offering, and they will make vows to the LORD and
perform them. 22And the LORD will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and
they will return to the LORD, and he will heed their supplications and heal
them.
23 In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the
Assyrian will come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the
Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.
24 In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing
in the midst of the earth, 25whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying,
“Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel
my heritage.”
The Conquest of Egypt and Ethiopia
20 In the year that the commander in chief, who was sent by Sargon the
king of Assyria, came to Ash'dod and fought against it and took it,—2at that
time the LORD had spoken by Isai'ah the son of A'moz, saying, “Go, and
loose the sackcloth from your loins and take off your shoes from your feet,”
and he had done so, walking naked and barefoot—3the LORD said, “As my
servant Isai'ah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a
portent against Egypt and Ethiopia, 4so shall the king of Assyria lead away
the Egyptians captives and the Ethiopians exiles, both the young and old,
naked and barefoot, with buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. 5Then
they shall be dismayed and confounded because of Ethiopia their hope and
of Egypt their boast. 6And the inhabitants of this coastland will say in that
day, ‘Behold, this is what has happened to those in whom we hoped and to
whom we fled for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria! And we,
how shall we escape?’ ”
Oracles concerning Babylon, Edom, and Arabia
21 The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea.
As whirlwinds in the Neg'eb sweep on,
it comes from the desert,
from a terrible land.
2A stern vision is told to me;
the plunderer plunders,

and the destroyer destroys.
Go up, O E'lam,
lay siege, O Med'ia;
all the sighing she has caused
I bring to an end.
3Therefore my loins are filled with anguish;
pangs have seized me,
like the pangs of a woman with labor pains;
I am bowed down so that I cannot hear,
I am dismayed so that I cannot see.
4My mind reels, horror has appalled me;
the twilight I longed for

has been turned for me into trembling.
5They prepare the table,
they spread the rugs,

they eat, they drink.
Arise, O princes,
oil the shield!
6For thus the Lord said to me:
“Go, set a watchman,

let him announce what he sees.
7When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs,
riders on donkeys, riders on camels,
let him listen diligently,
very diligently.”
8Then he who saw g cried:
“Upon a watchtower I stand, O LORD,

continually by day,
and at my post I am stationed whole nights.
9And, behold, here come riders,
horsemen in pairs!”
And he answered,
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon;
and all the images of her gods
he has shattered to the ground.”
10O my threshed and winnowed one,
what I have heard from the LORD of hosts,
the God of Israel, I announce to you.
11The oracle concerning Du'mah.
One is calling to me from Se'ir,

“Watchman, what of the night?
Watchman, what of the night?”
12The watchman says:
“Morning comes, and also the night.

If you will inquire, inquire;
come back again.”
13The oracle concerning Arabia.
In the thickets in Arabia you will lodge,

O caravans of De'danites.
14To the thirsty bring water,
meet the fugitive with bread,
O inhabitants of the land of Te'ma.
15For they have fled from the swords,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow,
and from the press of battle.
16 For thus the Lord said to me, “Within a year, according to the years of
a hireling, all the glory of Ke'dar will come to an end; 17and the remainder
of the archers of the mighty men of the sons of Ke'dar will be few; for the
LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken.”
An Oracle concerning the Valley of Vision
22 The oracle concerning the valley of vision.
What do you mean that you have gone up,
all of you, to the housetops,
2you who are full of shoutings,
tumultuous city, exultant town?

Your slain are not slain with the sword
or dead in battle.
3All your rulers have fled together,
without the bow they were captured.

All of you who were found were captured,
though they had fled far away.h
4Therefore I said:
“Look away from me,

let me weep bitter tears;
do not labor to comfort me
for the destruction of the daughter of my people.”
5For the Lord GOD of hosts has a day
of tumult and trampling and confusion
in the valley of vision,
a battering down of walls
and a shouting to the mountains.
6And E'lam bore the quiver
with chariots and horsemen,i

and Kir uncovered the shield.
7Your choicest valleys were full of chariots,
and the horsemen took their stand at the gates.
8He has taken away the covering of Judah.
In that day you looked to the weapons of the House of the Forest, 9and
you saw that the breaches of the city of David were many, and you collected
the waters of the lower pool, 10and you counted the houses of Jerusalem,
and you broke down the houses to fortify the wall. 11You made a reservoir
between the two walls for the water of the old pool. But you did not look to
him who did it, or have regard for him who planned it long ago.
12In that day the Lord GOD of hosts
called to weeping and mourning,

to baldness and putting on of sackcloth;
13and behold, joy and gladness,
slaying oxen and killing sheep,

eating flesh and drinking wine.
“Let us eat and drink,
for tomorrow we die.”
14The LORD of hosts has revealed himself in my ears:
“Surely this iniquity will not be forgiven you

till you die,”
says the Lord GOD of hosts.
Denunciation of Self-Seeking Officials
15 Thus says the Lord GOD of hosts, “Come, go to this steward, to
Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: 16What have you to do
here and whom have you here, that you have hewn here a tomb for yourself,
you who hew a tomb on the height, and carve a habitation for yourself in
the rock? 17Behold, the LORD will hurl you away violently, O you strong
man. He will seize firm hold on you, 18and whirl you round and round, and
throw you like a ball into a wide land; there you shall die, and there shall be
your splendid chariots, you shame of your master’s house. 19I will thrust
you from your office, and you will be cast down from your station. 20In that
day I will call my servant Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah, 21and I will clothe
him with your robe, and will bind your belt on him, and will commit your
authority to his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem
and to the house of Judah. 22And I will place on his shoulder the key of the
house of David; he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and
none shall open. 23And I will fasten him like a peg in a sure place, and he
will become a throne of honor to his father’s house. 24And they will hang
on him the whole weight of his father’s house, the offspring and issue,
every small vessel, from the cups to all the flagons. 25In that day, says the
LORD of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a sure place will give way; and
it will be cut down and fall, and the burden that was upon it will be cut off,
for the LORD has spoken.”
An Oracle concerning Tyre
23 The oracle concerning Tyre.
Wail, O ships of Tar'shish,
for Tyre is laid waste, without house or haven!
From the land of Cyprus
it is revealed to them.
2Be still, O inhabitants of the coast,
O merchants of Si'don;
your messengers passed over the sea j
3 and were on many waters;
your revenue was the grain of Shihor,

the harvest of the Nile;
you were the merchant of the nations.
4Be ashamed, O Si'don, for the sea has spoken,
the stronghold of the sea, saying:
“I have neither endured labor pains nor given birth,
I have neither reared young men nor brought up virgins.”
5When the report comes to Egypt,
they will be in anguish over the report about Tyre.

6Pass over to Tar'shish,
wail, O inhabitants of the coast!

7Is this your exultant city
whose origin is from days of old,

whose feet carried her
to settle afar?
8Who has purposed this
against Tyre, the bestower of crowns,

whose merchants were princes,
whose traders were the honored of the earth?
9The LORD of hosts has purposed it,
to defile the pride of all glory,
to dishonor all the honored of the earth.
10Overflow your land like the Nile,
O daughter of Tar'shish;
there is no restraint any more.
11He has stretched out his hand over the sea,
he has shaken the kingdoms;

the LORD has given command concerning Canaan
to destroy its strongholds.
12And he said:
“You will no more exult,

O oppressed virgin daughter of Si'don;
arise, pass over to Cyprus,
even there you will have no rest.”
13 Behold the land of the Chalde'ans! This is the people; it was not
Assyria. They destined Tyre for wild beasts. They erected their siege
towers, they razed her palaces, they made her a ruin.k
14Wail, O ships of Tar'shish,
for your stronghold is laid waste.
15In that day Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, like the days of one
king. At the end of seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of
the harlot:
16“Take a harp,
go about the city,

O forgotten harlot!
Make sweet melody,
sing many songs,
that you may be remembered.”
17At the end of seventy years, the LORD will visit Tyre, and she will
return to her hire, and will play the harlot with all the kingdoms of the
world upon the face of the earth. 18Her merchandise and her hire will be
dedicated to the LORD; it will not be stored or hoarded, but her merchandise
will supply abundant food and fine clothing for those who dwell before the
LORD.
Impending Judgment on the Earth
24 Behold, the LORD will lay waste the earth and make it desolate,
and he will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants.
2And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest;
as with the slave, so with his master;

as with the maid, so with her mistress;
as with the buyer, so with the seller;
as with the lender, so with the borrower;
as with the creditor, so with the debtor.
3The earth shall be utterly laid waste and utterly despoiled;
for the LORD has spoken this word.

4The earth mourns and withers,
the world languishes and withers;

the heavens languish together with the earth.
5The earth lies polluted
under its inhabitants;
for they have transgressed the laws,
violated the statutes,
broken the everlasting covenant.
6Therefore a curse devours the earth,
and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt;
therefore the inhabitants of the earth are scorched,
and few men are left.
7The wine mourns,
the vine languishes,

all the merry-hearted sigh.
8The mirth of the timbrels is stilled,
the noise of the jubilant has ceased,

the mirth of the lyre is stilled.
9No more do they drink wine with singing;
strong drink is bitter to those who drink it.

10The city of chaos is broken down,
every house is shut up so that none can enter.

11There is an outcry in the streets for lack of wine;
all joy has reached its eventide;

the gladness of the earth is banished.
12Desolation is left in the city,
the gates are battered into ruins.

13For thus it shall be in the midst of the earth
among the nations,
as when an olive tree is beaten,
as at the gleaning when the vintage is done.
14They lift up their voices, they sing for joy;
over the majesty of the LORD they shout from the west.
15Therefore in the east give glory to the LORD;
in the islands of the sea, to the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.
16From the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise,
of glory to the Righteous One.

But I say, “I pine away,
I pine away. Woe is me!
For the treacherous deal treacherously,
the treacherous deal very treacherously.”
17Terror, and the pit, and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the
earth!
18He who flees at the sound of the terror
shall fall into the pit;

and he who climbs out of the pit shall be caught in the snare.
For the windows of heaven are opened,
and the foundations of the earth tremble.
19The earth is utterly broken,
the earth is torn apart,

the earth is violently shaken.
20The earth staggers like a drunken man,
it sways like a hut;

its transgression lies heavy upon it,
and it falls, and will not rise again.
21On that day the LORD will punish
the host of heaven, in heaven,
and the kings of the earth, on the earth.
22They will be gathered together
as prisoners in a pit;
they will be shut up in a prison,
and after many days they will be punished.
23Then the moon will be confounded,
and the sun ashamed;

for the LORD of hosts will reign
on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
and before his elders he will manifest his glory.
Praise for Deliverance from Oppression
25 O LORD, you are my God;
I will exalt you, I will praise your name;
for you have done wonderful things,
plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
2For you have made the city a heap,
the fortified city a ruin;

the palace of strangers is a city no more,
it will never be rebuilt.
3Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
4For you have been a stronghold to the poor,
a stronghold to the needy in his distress,

a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat;
for the blast of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall,
5 like heat in a dry place.
You subdue the noise of the strangers;

as heat by the shade of a cloud,
so the song of the ruthless is stilled.
6 On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of
fat things, a feast of choice wines—of fat things full of marrow, of choice
wines well refined. 7And he will destroy on this mountain the covering that
is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. 8He will
swallow up death for ever, and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all
faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken.
9 It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for
him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us
be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”
10 For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, and Moab shall
be trodden down in his place, as straw is trodden down in a dung-pit. 11And
he will spread out his hands in the midst of it as a swimmer spreads his
hands out to swim; but the LORD will lay low his pride together with the
skill l of his hands. 12And the high fortifications of his walls he will bring
down, lay low, and cast to the ground, even to the dust.
Judah’s Song of Praise to God
26 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
“We have a strong city;
he sets up salvation
as walls and bulwarks.
2Open the gates,
that the righteous nation which keeps faith

may enter in.
3You keep him in perfect peace,
whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you.
4Trust in the LORD for ever,
for the LORD GOD

is an everlasting rock.
5For he has brought low
the inhabitants of the height,
the lofty city.
He lays it low, lays it low to the ground,
casts it to the dust.
6The foot tramples it,
the feet of the poor,

the steps of the needy.”
7The way of the righteous is level;
you m make smooth the path of the righteous.

8In the path of your judgments,
O LORD, we wait for you;

your memorial name
is the desire of our soul.
9My soul yearns for you in the night,
my spirit within me earnestly seeks you.

For when your judgments are in the earth,
the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
10If favor is shown to the wicked,
he does not learn righteousness;

in the land of uprightness he deals perversely
and does not see the majesty of the LORD.
11O LORD, your hand is lifted up,
but they see it not.

Let them see your zeal for your people, and be ashamed.
Let the fire for your adversaries consume them.
12O LORD, you will ordain peace for us,
you have wrought for us all our works.

13O LORD our God,
other lords besides you have ruled over us,

but your name alone we acknowledge.
14They are dead, they will not live;
they are shades, they will not arise;

to that end you have visited them with destruction
and wiped out all remembrance of them.
15But you have increased the nation, O LORD,
you have increased the nation; you are glorified;
you have enlarged all the borders of the land.
16O LORD, in distress they sought you,
they poured out a prayer n

when your chastening was upon them.
17Like a woman with child,
who writhes and cries out in her pangs,

when she is near her time,
so were we because of you, O LORD;
18 we were with child, we writhed,
but we gave birth only to wind.

We have wrought no deliverance in the earth,
and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen.
19Your dead shall live, their bodies o shall rise.
O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy!

For your dew is a dew of light,
and on the land of the shades you will let it fall.
20Come, my people, enter your chambers,
and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourselves for a little while
until the wrath is past.
21For behold, the LORD is coming forth out of his place
to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity,

and the earth will disclose the blood shed upon her,
and will no more cover her slain.
Israel’s Expiation
27 In that day the LORD with his hard and great and strong sword will
punish Levi'athan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he
will slay the dragon that is in the sea.
2Inthat day:
“A pleasant vineyard, sing of it!
3 I, the LORD, am its keeper;
every moment I water it.

Lest any one harm it,
I guard it night and day;
4 I have no wrath.
Would that I had thorns and briers to battle!
I would set out against them,
I would burn them up together.
5Or let them lay hold of my protection,
let them make peace with me,

let them make peace with me.”
6In days to come q Jacob shall take root,
Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots,
and fill the whole world with fruit.
7Hashe struck them down as he struck those who struck them?
Or have they been slain as their slayers were slain?
8Measure by measure,r by exile you contended with them;
he removed them with his fierce blast in the day of the east wind.
9Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be expiated,
and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin:
when he makes all the stones of the altars
like chalkstones crushed to pieces,
no Ashe'rim or incense altars will remain standing.
10For the fortified city is solitary,
a habitation deserted and forsaken, like the wilderness;

there the calf grazes,
there he lies down, and strips its branches.
11When its boughs are dry, they are broken;
women come and make a fire of them.

For this is a people without discernment;
therefore he who made them will not have compassion on them,
he that formed them will show them no favor.
12In that day from the river Euphra'tes to the Brook of Egypt the LORD
will thresh out the grain, and you will be gathered one by one, O people of
Israel. 13And in that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were
lost in the land of Assyria and those who were driven out to the land of
Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain at Jerusalem.
Warning to Jerusalem
28 Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of E'phraim,
and to the fading flower of its glorious beauty,
which is on the head of the rich valley of those overcome with wine!
2Behold, the Lord has one who is mighty and strong;
like a storm of hail, a destroying tempest,

like a storm of mighty, overflowing waters,
he will cast down to the earth with violence.
3The proud crown of the drunkards of E'phraim
will be trodden under foot;

4and the fading flower of its glorious beauty,
which is on the head of the rich valley,

will be like a first-ripe fig before the summer:
when a man sees it, he eats it up
as soon as it is in his hand.
5In that day the LORD of hosts will be a crown of glory,
and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people;

6and a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,
and strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
7These also reel with wine
and stagger with strong drink;

the priest and the prophet reel with strong drink,
they are confused with wine,
they stagger with strong drink;
they err in vision,
they stumble in giving judgment.
8For all tables are full of vomit,
no place is without filthiness.

9“Whom will he teach knowledge,
and to whom will he explain the message?

Those who are weaned from the milk,
those taken from the breast?
10For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
line upon line, line upon line,

here a little, there a little.”
11No, but by men of strange lips
and with an alien tongue
the LORD will speak to this people,
12 to whom he has said,
“This is rest;
give rest to the weary;
and this is repose”;
yet they would not hear.
13Therefore the word of the LORD will be to them
precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

line upon line, line upon line,
here a little, there a little;
that they may go, and fall backward,
and be broken, and snared, and taken.
14Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers,
who rule this people in Jerusalem!

15Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,
and with Sheol we have an agreement;
when the overwhelming scourge passes through
it will not come to us;
for we have made lies our refuge,
and in falsehood we have taken shelter”;
16therefore thus says the Lord GOD,
“Behold, I am laying in Zion for a foundation

a stone, a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation:
‘He who believes will not be in haste.’
17And I will make justice the line,
and righteousness the plummet;

and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,
and waters will overwhelm the shelter.”
18Then your covenant with death will be annulled,
and your agreement with Sheol will not stand;

when the overwhelming scourge passes through
you will be beaten down by it.
19As often as it passes through it will take you;
for morning by morning it will pass through,

by day and by night;
and it will be sheer terror to understand the message.
20For the bed is too short to stretch oneself on it,
and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself in it.

21For the LORD will rise up as on Mount Pera'zim,
he will rage as in the valley of Gib'eon;

to do his deed—strange is his deed!
and to work his work—alien is his work!
22Now therefore do not scoff,
lest your bonds be made strong;

for I have heard a decree of destruction
from the Lord GOD of hosts upon the whole land.
23Give ear, and hear my voice;
listen, and hear my speech.

24Does he who plows for sowing plow continually?
does he continually open and harrow his ground?

25When he has leveled its surface,
does he not scatter dill, sow cummin,

and put in wheat in rows
and barley in its proper place,
and spelt as the border?
26For he is instructed rightly;
his God teaches him.
27Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
nor is a cart wheel rolled over cummin;

but dill is beaten out with a stick,
and cummin with a rod.
28Does one crush bread grain?
No, he does not thresh it for ever;

when he drives his cart wheel over it
with his horses, he does not crush it.
29This also comes from the LORD of hosts;
he is wonderful in counsel,
and excellent in wisdom.
The Siege of Jerusalem
29 Ho Ar'iel, Ariel,
the city where David encamped!
Add year to year;
let the feasts run their round.
2Yet I will distress Ar'iel,
and there shall be moaning and lamentation,
and she shall be to me like an Ariel.
3And I will encamp against you round about,
and will besiege you with towers

and I will raise siegeworks against you.
4Then deep from the earth you shall speak,
from low in the dust your words shall come;

your voice shall come from the ground like the voice of a ghost,
and your speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5But the multitude of your foes s shall be like small dust,
and the multitude of the ruthless like passing chaff.

And in an instant, suddenly,
6 you will be visited by the LORD of hosts
with thunder and with earthquake and great noise,

with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.
7And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ar'iel,
all that fight against her and her stronghold and distress her,
shall be like a dream, a vision of the night.
8As when a hungry man dreams he is eating
and awakes with his hunger not satisfied,

or as when a thirsty man dreams he is drinking
and awakes faint, with his thirst not quenched,
so shall the multitude of all the nations be
that fight against Mount Zion.
9Stupefy yourselves and be in a stupor,
blind yourselves and be blind!

Be drunk, but not with wine;
stagger, but not with strong drink!
10For the LORD has poured out upon you
a spirit of deep sleep,
and has closed your eyes, the prophets,
and covered your heads, the seers.
11 And the vision of all this has become to you like the words of a book
that is sealed. When men give it to one who can read, saying, “Read this,”
he says, “I cannot, for it is sealed.” 12And when they give the book to one
who cannot read, saying, “Read this,” he says, “I cannot read.”
13And the Lord said:
“Because this people draw near with their mouth

and honor me with their lips,
while their hearts are far from me,
and their fear of me is a commandment of men learned by rote;
14therefore, behold, I will again
do marvelous things with this people,

wonderful and marvelous;
and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hidden.”
15Woe to those who hide deep from the LORD their counsel,
whose deeds are in the dark,

and who say, “Who sees us? Who knows us?”
16You turn things upside down!
Shall the potter be regarded as the clay;

that the thing made should say of its maker,
“He did not make me”;
or the thing formed say of him who formed it,
“He has no understanding”?
17Is it not yet a very little while
until Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field,

and the fruitful field shall be regarded as a forest?
18In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book,
and out of their gloom and darkness

the eyes of the blind shall see.
19The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the LORD,
and the poor among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
20For the ruthless shall come to nothing and the scoffer cease,
and all who watch to do evil shall be cut off,

21who by a word make a man out to be an offender,
and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate,
and with an empty plea turn aside him who is in the right.
Hope for the Future
22 Therefore thus says the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning
the house of Jacob:
“Jacob shall no more be ashamed,
no more shall his face grow pale.
23For when he sees his children,
the work of my hands, in his midst,

they will sanctify my name;
they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob,
and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24And those who err in spirit will come to understanding,
and those who murmur will accept instruction.”

A Rebellious People
30 “Woe to the rebellious children,” says the LORD,
“who carry out a plan, but not mine;
and who make a league, but not of my spirit,
that they may add sin to sin;
2who set out to go down to Egypt,
without asking for my counsel,

to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh,
and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!
3Therefore the protection of Pharaoh shall turn to your shame,
and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your humiliation.
4For though his officials are at Zoan
and his envoys reach Han'es,

5every one comes to shame
through a people that cannot profit them,

that brings neither help nor profit,
but shame and disgrace.”
6An oracle on the beasts of the Neg'eb.
Through a land of trouble and anguish,

from where come the lioness and the lion,
the viper and the flying serpent,
they carry their riches on the backs of donkeys,
and their treasures on the humps of camels,
to a people that cannot profit them.
7For Egypt’s help is worthless and empty,
therefore I have called her

“Ra'hab who sits still.”
8And now, go, write it before them on a tablet,
and inscribe it in a book,

that it may be for the time to come as a witness for ever.
9For they are a rebellious people,
lying sons,
sons who will not hear
the instruction of the LORD;
10who say to the seers, “See not”;
and to the prophets, “Prophesy not to us what is right;

speak to us smooth things,
prophesy illusions,
11leave the way, turn aside from the path,
let us hear no more of the Holy One of Israel.”

12Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel,
“Because you despise this word,

and trust in oppression and perverseness,
and rely on them;
13therefore this iniquity shall be to you
like a break in a high wall, bulging out, and about to collapse,

whose crash comes suddenly, in an instant;
14and its breaking is like that of a potter’s vessel
which is smashed so ruthlessly
that among its fragments not a shard is found
with which to take fire from the hearth,
or to dip up water out of the cistern.”
15For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;

in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
And you would not, 16but you said,
“No! We will speed upon horses,”
therefore you shall speed away;
and, “We will ride upon swift steeds,”
therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
17A thousand shall flee at the threat of one,
at the threat of five you shall flee,
till you are left
like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
like a signal on a hill.
18Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you;
therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.

For the LORD is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.
God’s Promise to Zion
19 Yes, O people in Zion who dwell at Jerusalem; you shall weep no
more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when he
hears it, he will answer you. 20And though the Lord give you the bread of
adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself
any more, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. 21And your ears shall hear a
word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the
right or when you turn to the left. 22Then you will defile your silver-covered
graven images and your gold-plated molten images. You will scatter them
as unclean things; you will say to them, “Begone!”
23 And he will give rain for the seed with which you sow the ground, and
grain, the produce of the ground, which will be rich and plenteous. In that
day your flock will be given pasture, and the lamb will graze in open fields;
24and the oxen and the donkeys that till the ground will eat salted food,
which has been winnowed with shovel and fork. 25And upon every lofty
mountain and every high hill there will be brooks running with water, in the
day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. 26Moreover the light of the
moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be
sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day when the LORD binds up the
hurt of his people, and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.
27Behold, the name of the LORD comes from far,
burning with his anger, and in thick rising smoke;

his lips are full of indignation,
and his tongue is like a devouring fire;
28his breath is like an overflowing stream
that reaches up to the neck;
to sift the nations with the sieve of destruction,
and to place on the jaws of the peoples a bridle that leads astray.
Judgment on Assyria
29 You shall have a song as in the night when a holy feast is kept; and
gladness of heart, as when one sets out to the sound of the flute to go to the
mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel. 30And the LORD will cause his
majestic voice to be heard and the descending blow of his arm to be seen, in
furious anger and a flame of devouring fire, with a cloudburst and tempest
and hailstones. 31The Assyrians will be terror-stricken at the voice of the
LORD, when he strikes with his rod. 32And every stroke of the staff of
punishment which the LORD lays upon them will be to the sound of timbrels
and lyres; battling with brandished arm he will fight with them. 33For a
burning place t has long been prepared; yes, for the king u it is made ready,
its pyre made deep and wide, with fire and wood in abundance; the breath
of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, kindles it.
Help from Egypt Is Futile
31 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help
and rely on horses,
who trust in chariots because they are many
and in horsemen because they are very strong,
but do not look to the Holy One of Israel
or consult the LORD!
2And yet he is wise and brings disaster,
he does not call back his words,

but will arise against the house of the evildoers,
and against the helpers of those who work iniquity.
3The Egyptians are men, and not God;
and their horses are flesh, and not spirit.

When the LORD stretches out his hand,
the helper will stumble, and he who is helped will fall,
and they will all perish together.
4For thus the LORD said to me,
As a lion or a young lion growls over his prey,

and when a band of shepherds is called forth against him
is not terrified by their shouting
or daunted at their noise,
so the LORD of hosts will come down
to fight upon Mount Zion and upon its hill.
5Like birds hovering, so the LORD of hosts
will protect Jerusalem;

he will protect and deliver it,
he will spare and rescue it.
6 Turn to him from whom you v have deeply revolted, O people of Israel.
7For in that day every one shall cast away his idols of silver and his idols of
gold, which your hands have sinfully made for you.

8“And the Assyrian shall fall by a sword, not of man;
and a sword, not of man, shall devour him;

and he shall flee from the sword,
and his young men shall be put to forced labor.
9His rock shall pass away in terror,
and his officers desert the standard in panic,”

says the LORD, whose fire is in Zion,
and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
A Reign of Righteousness and Justice
32 Behold, a king will reign in righteousness,
and princes will rule in justice.
2Each will be like a hiding place from the wind,
a covert from the tempest,
like streams of water in a dry place,
like the shade of a great rock in a weary land.
3Then the eyes of those who see will not be closed,
and the ears of those who hear will listen.

4The mind of the rash will have good judgment,
and the tongue of the stammerers will speak readily and distinctly.
5The fool will no more be called noble,
nor the knave said to be honorable.

6For the fool speaks folly,
and his mind plots iniquity:

to practice ungodliness,
to utter error concerning the LORD,
to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied,
and to deprive the thirsty of drink.
7The knaveries of the knave are evil;
he devises wicked devices

to ruin the poor with lying words,
even when the plea of the needy is right.
8But he who is noble devises noble things,
and by noble things he stands.

9Rise up, you women who are at ease, hear my voice;
you complacent daughters, give ear to my speech.
10In little more than a year
you will shudder, you complacent women;

for the vintage will fail,
the fruit harvest will not come.
11Tremble, you women who are at ease,
shudder, you complacent ones;

strip, and make yourselves bare,
and put sackcloth upon your loins.
12Beat upon your breasts for the pleasant fields,
for the fruitful vine,

13for the soil of my people
growing up in thorns and briers;

yes, for all the joyous houses
in the joyful city.
14For the palace will be forsaken,
the populous city deserted;
the hill and the watchtower
will become dens for ever,
a joy of wild donkeys,
a pasture of flocks;
15until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high,
and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field,

and the fruitful field is deemed a forest.
16Then justice will dwell in the wilderness,
and righteousness abide in the fruitful field.
17And the effect of righteousness will be peace,
and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust for ever.
18My people will abide in a peaceful habitation,
in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.

19And the forest will utterly go down, w
and the city will be utterly laid low.

20Happy are you who sow beside all waters,
who let the feet of the ox and the donkey range free.
A Prophecy of Deliverance: The Lord, the Majestic King
33 Woe to you, destroyer,
who yourself have not been destroyed;
you treacherous one,
with whom none has dealt treacherously!
When you have ceased to destroy,
you will be destroyed;
and when you have made an end of dealing treacherously,
you will be dealt with treacherously.
2O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for you.
Be our arm every morning,

our salvation in the time of trouble.
3At the thunderous noise peoples flee,
at the lifting up of yourself nations are scattered;

4and spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
as locusts leap, men leap upon it.

5The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness;

6and he will be the stability of your times,
abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;

the fear of the LORD is his treasure.
7Behold, the valiant ones y cry without;
the envoys of peace weep bitterly.

8The highways lie waste,
the wayfaring man ceases.

Covenants are broken,
witnesses z are despised,
there is no regard for man.
9The land mourns and languishes;
Lebanon is confounded and withers away;

Sharon is like a desert;
and Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
10“Now I will arise,” says the LORD,
“now I will lift myself up;

now I will be exalted.
11You conceive chaff, you bring forth stubble;
your breath is a fire that will consume you.

12And the peoples will be as if burned to lime,
like thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.”

13Hear, you who are far off, what I have done;
and you who are near, acknowledge my might.

14The sinners in Zion are afraid;
trembling has seized the godless:

“Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire?
Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?”
15He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly,
who despises the gain of oppressions,

who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe,
who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed
and shuts his eyes from looking upon evil,
16he will dwell on the heights;
his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks;

his bread will be given him, his water will be sure.
17Your eyes will see the king in his beauty;
they will behold a land that stretches afar.

18Your mind will muse on the terror:
“Where is he who counted, where is he who weighed the tribute?

Where is he who counted the towers?”
19You will see no more the insolent people,
the people of an obscure speech which you cannot comprehend,

stammering in a tongue which you cannot understand.
20Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts!
Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
a quiet habitation, an immovable tent,
whose stakes will never be plucked up,
nor will any of its cords be broken.
21But there the LORD in majesty will be for us
a place of broad rivers and streams,

where no galley with oars can go,
nor stately ship can pass.
22For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our ruler,
the LORD is our king; he will save us.

23Your tackle hangs loose;
it cannot hold the mast firm in its place,

or keep the sail spread out.
Then prey and spoil in abundance will be divided;
even the lame will take the prey.
24And no inhabitant will say, “I am sick”;
the people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity.

The Wrath of the Lord
34 Draw near, O nations, to hear,
and listen, O peoples!
Let the earth listen, and all that fills it;
the world, and all that comes from it.
2For the LORD is enraged against all the nations,
and furious against all their host,

he has doomed them, has given them over for slaughter.
3Their slain shall be cast out,
and the stench of their corpses shall rise;

the mountains shall flow with their blood.
4All the host of heaven shall rot away,
and the skies roll up like a scroll.
All their host shall fall,
as leaves fall from the vine,
like leaves falling from the fig tree.
5For my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens;
behold, it descends for judgment upon E'dom,

upon the people I have doomed.
6The LORD has a sword; it is sated with blood,
it is gorged with fat,
with the blood of lambs and goats,
with the fat of the kidneys of rams.
For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah,
a great slaughter in the land of E'dom.
7Wild oxen shall fall with them,
and young steers with the mighty bulls.

Their land shall be soaked with blood,
and their soil made rich with fat.
8For the LORD has a day of vengeance,
a year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

9And the streams of E'dom a shall be turned into pitch,
and her soil into brimstone;

her land shall become burning pitch.
10Night and day it shall not be quenched;
its smoke shall go up for ever.

From generation to generation it shall lie waste;
none shall pass through it for ever and ever.
11But the hawk and the porcupine shall possess it,
the owl and the raven shall dwell in it.

He shall stretch the line of confusion over it,
and the plummet of chaos over b its nobles.
12They shall name it No Kingdom There,
and all its princes shall be nothing.

13Thorns shall grow over its strongholds,
nettles and thistles in its fortresses.

It shall be the haunt of jackals,
an abode for ostriches.
14And wild beasts shall meet with hyenas,
the satyr shall cry to his fellow;
yes, there shall the night creature alight,
and find for herself a resting place.
15There shall the owl nest and lay
and hatch and gather her young in her shadow;

yes, there shall the kites be gathered,
each one with her mate.
16Seek and read from the book of the LORD:
Not one of these shall be missing;
none shall be without her mate.
For the mouth of the LORD has commanded,
and his Spirit has gathered them.
17He has cast the lot for them,
his hand has portioned it out to them with the line;

they shall possess it for ever,
from generation to generation they shall dwell in it.
The Lord Will Come to Save
35 The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
the desert shall rejoice and blossom;
like the lily 2it shall blossom abundantly,
and rejoice with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
the majesty of Car'mel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the LORD,
the majesty of our God.
3Strengthen the weak hands,
and make firm the feeble knees.

4Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
“Be strong, fear not!

Behold, your God
will come with vengeance,
with the recompense of God.
He will come and save you.”
5Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;

6then shall the lame man leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
7the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water;

the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp, c
the grass shall become reeds and rushes.
8And a highway shall be there,
and it shall be called the Holy Way;

the unclean shall not pass over it,d
and fools shall not err therein.
9No lion shall be there,
nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it;

they shall not be found there,
but the redeemed shall walk there.
10And the ransomed of the LORD shall return,
and come to Zion with singing;

everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem
36 In the fourteenth year of King Hezeki'ah, Sennach'erib king of
Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.
2And the king of Assyria sent the Rab'shakeh from La'chish to King
Hezeki'ah at Jerusalem, with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of

the upper pool on the highway to the Fuller’s Field. 3And there came out to
him Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah, who was over the household, and Shebna
the secretary, and Jo'ah the son of A'saph, the recorder.
4 And the Rab'shakeh said to them, “Say to Hezeki'ah, ‘Thus says the
great king, the king of Assyria: On what do you rest this confidence of
yours? 5Do you think that mere words are strategy and power for war? On
whom do you now rely, that you have rebelled against me? 6Behold, you
are relying on Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand
of any man who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who rely
on him. 7But if you say to me, “We rely on the LORD our God,” is it not he
whose high places and altars Hezeki'ah has removed, saying to Judah and to
Jerusalem, “You shall worship before this altar”? 8Come now, make a
wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand
horses, if you are able on your part to set riders upon them. 9How then can
you repulse a single captain among the least of my master’s servants, when
you rely on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? 10Moreover, is it without
the LORD that I have come up against this land to destroy it? The LORD said
to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”
11 Then Eli'akim, Shebna, and Jo'ah said to the Rab'shakeh, “Please,
speak to your servants in Arama'ic, for we understand it; do not speak to us
in the language of Judah within the hearing of the people who are on the
wall.” 12But the Rab'shakeh said, “Has my master sent me to speak these
words to your master and to you, and not to the men sitting on the wall,
who are doomed with you to eat their own dung and drink their own urine?”
13 Then the Rab'shakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in the
language of Judah: “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria!
14Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezeki'ah deceive you, for he will not be
able to deliver you. 15Do not let Hezeki'ah make you rely on the LORD by
saying, “The LORD will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the
hand of the king of Assyria.” 16Do not listen to Hezeki'ah; for thus says the
king of Assyria: Make your peace with me and come out to me; then every
one of you will eat of his own vine, and every one of his own fig tree, and
every one of you will drink the water of his own cistern; 17until I come and
take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and wine, a land
of bread and vineyards. 18Beware lest Hezeki'ah mislead you by saying,
“The LORD will deliver us.” Has any of the gods of the nations delivered his
land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? 19Where are the gods of
Ha'math and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharva'im? Have they
delivered Samar'ia out of my hand? 20Who among all the gods of these
countries have delivered their countries out of my hand, that the LORD
should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’ ”
21 But they were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s
command was, “Do not answer him.” 22Then Eli'akim the son of Hilki'ah,
who was over the household, and Sheb'na the secretary, and Jo'ah the son of
A'saph, the recorder, came to Hezeki'ah with their clothes torn, and told him
the words of the Rab'shakeh.
Hezekiah Consults Isaiah
37 When King Hezeki'ah heard it, he tore his clothes, and covered
himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. 2And he sent
Eli'akim, who was over the household, and Shebna the secretary, and the
senior priests, clothed with sackcloth, to the prophet Isai'ah the son of
A'moz. 3They said to him, “Thus says Hezeki'ah, ‘This day is a day of
distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to the birth, and
there is no strength to bring them forth. 4It may be that the LORD your God
heard the words of the Rab'shakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria
has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words which the LORD
your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is
left.’ ”
5 When the servants of King Hezeki'ah came to Isai'ah, 6Isai'ah said to
them, “Say to your master, ‘Thus says the LORD: Do not be afraid because
of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of
Assyria have reviled me. 7Behold, I will put a spirit in him, so that he shall
hear a rumor, and return to his own land; and I will make him fall by the
sword in his own land.’ ”
8 The Rab'shakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting
against Libnah; for he had heard that the king had left La'chish. 9Now the
king heard concerning Tirha'kah king of Ethiopia, “He has set out to fight
against you.” And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezeki'ah,
saying, 10“Thus shall you speak to Hezeki'ah king of Judah: ‘Do not let
your God on whom you rely deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will
not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 11Behold, you have heard
what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, destroying them utterly.
And shall you be delivered? 12Have the gods of the nations delivered them,
the nations which my fathers destroyed, Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the
people of Eden who were in Telas'sar? 13Where is the king of Ha'math, the
king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharva'im, the king of He'na, or the
king of Ivvah?’ ”
Hezekiah’s Prayer
14 Hezeki'ah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read
it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the LORD, and spread it before the
LORD. 15And Hezeki'ah prayed to the LORD: 16 “O LORD of hosts, God of
Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone,
of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth. 17Incline
your ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes, O LORD, and see; and hear all
the words of Sennach'erib, which he has sent to mock the living God. 18Of a
truth, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations and their
lands, 19and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the
work of men’s hands, wood and stone; therefore they were destroyed. 20So
now, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the
earth may know that you alone are the LORD.”
21 Then Isai'ah the son of A'moz sent to Hezeki'ah, saying, “Thus says
the LORD, the God of Israel: Because you have prayed to me concerning
Sennach'erib king of Assyria, 22this is the word that the LORD has spoken
concerning him:
‘She despises you, she scorns you—
the virgin daughter of Zion;
she wags her head behind you—
the daughter of Jerusalem.
23‘Whom have you mocked and reviled?
Against whom have you raised your voice

and haughtily lifted your eyes?
Against the Holy One of Israel!
24By your servants you have mocked the Lord,
and you have said, With my many chariots

I have gone up the heights of the mountains,
to the far recesses of Lebanon;
I felled its tallest cedars,
its choicest cypresses;
I came to its remotest height,
its densest forest.
25I dug wells
and drank waters,

and I dried up with the sole of my foot
all the streams of Egypt.
26‘Have you not heard
that I determined it long ago?

I planned from days of old
what now I bring to pass,
that you should make fortified cities
crash into heaps of ruins,
27while their inhabitants, shorn of strength,
are dismayed and confounded,

and have become like plants of the field
and like tender grass,
like grass on the housetops,
blighted e before it is grown.
28‘I know your sitting down
and your going out and coming in,

and your raging against me.
29Because you have raged against me
and your arrogance has come to my ears,

I will put my hook in your nose
and my bit in your mouth,
and I will turn you back on the way
by which you came.’
30 “And this shall be the sign for you: this year eat what grows of itself,
and in the second year what springs of the same; then in the third year sow
and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit. 31And the surviving
remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear
fruit upward; 32for out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of
Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will
accomplish this.
33 “Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria: He
shall not come into this city, or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with
a shield, or cast up a siege mound against it. 34By the way that he came, by
the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, says the LORD.
35For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of
my servant David.”
36 And the angel of the LORD went forth, and slew a hundred and eighty-
five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in
the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. 37Then Sennach'erib king
of Assyria departed, and went home and dwelt at Nin'eveh. 38And as he was
worshiping in the house of Nis'roch his god, Adram'melech and Share'zer,
his sons, slew him with the sword, and escaped into the land of Ar'arat. And
E'sar-had'don his son reigned in his stead.
Hezekiah’s Sickness
38 In those days Hezeki'ah became sick and was at the point of death.
And Isai'ah the prophet the son of A'moz came to him, and said to him,
“Thus says the LORD: Set your house in order; for you shall die, you shall
not recover.” 2Then Hezeki'ah turned his face to the wall, and prayed to the
LORD, 3and said, “Remember now, O LORD, I beseech you, how I have
walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done
what is good in your sight.” And Hezeki'ah wept bitterly. 4Then the word of
the LORD came to Isai'ah: 5“Go and say to Hezeki'ah, Thus says the LORD,
the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your
tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. 6I will deliver you and
this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and defend this city.
7 “This is the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing
that he has promised: 8Behold, I will make the shadow cast by the declining
sun on the dial of A'haz turn back ten steps.” So the sun turned back on the
dial the ten steps by which it had declined. f
9 A writing of Hezeki'ah king of Judah, after he had been sick and had
recovered from his sickness:
10I said, In the noontide of my days
OceanofPDF.com
I must depart;
I am consigned to the gates of Sheol
for the rest of my years.
11I said, I shall not see the LORD
in the land of the living;

I shall look upon man no more
among the inhabitants of the world.
12My dwelling is plucked up and removed from me
like a shepherd’s tent;

like a weaver I have rolled up my life;
he cuts me off from the loom;
from day to night you bring me to an end; g
13 I cry for help h until morning;
like a lion he breaks all my bones;

from day to night you bring me to an end. g
14Like a swallow or a crane i I clamor,
I moan like a dove.

My eyes are weary with looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security!
15But what can I say? For he has spoken to me,
and he himself has done it.

All my sleep has fled j
because of the bitterness of my soul.
16O Lord, by these things men live,
and in all these is the life of my spirit.k

Oh, restore me to health and make me live!
17Behold, it was for my welfare
that I had great bitterness;

but you have held back l my life
from the pit of destruction,
for you have cast all my sins behind your back.
18For Sheol cannot thank you,
death cannot praise you;

those who go down to the pit cannot hope
for your faithfulness.
19The living, the living, he thanks you,
as I do this day;
the father makes known to the children
your faithfulness.
20The LORD will save me,
and we will sing to stringed instruments m

all the days of our life,
at the house of the LORD.
21Now Isai'ah had said, “Let them take a cake of figs, and apply it to the
boil, that he may recover.” 22Hezeki'ah also had said, “What is the sign that
I shall go up to the house of the LORD?”
Envoys from Babylon Welcomed
39 At that time Mer'odach-bal'adan the son of Bal'adan, king of
Babylon, sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezeki'ah, for he heard
that he had been sick and had recovered. 2And Hezeki'ah welcomed them;
and he showed them his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the
precious oil, his whole armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There
was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show
them. 3Then Isai'ah the prophet came to King Hezeki'ah, and said to him,
“What did these men say? And from where did they come to you?”
Hezeki'ah said, “They have come to me from a far country, from Babylon.”
4He said, “What have they seen in your house?” Hezeki'ah answered, “They
have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing in my storehouses that I

did not show them.”
5 Then Isai'ah said to Hezeki'ah, “Hear the word of the LORD of hosts:
6Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which
your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing
shall be left, says the LORD. 7And some of your own sons, who are born to
you, shall be taken away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the
king of Babylon.” 8Then said Hezeki'ah to Isai'ah, “The word of the LORD
which you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “There will be peace and
security in my days.”
God Comforts His People
40 * Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
2Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that her warfare n is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned,
that she has received from the LORD’s hand
double for all her sins.
3A voice cries:
“In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD,

make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
5And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,

6A voice says, “Cry!”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
7The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the LORD blows upon it;

surely the people is grass.
8The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever.
9Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings; o

lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, p
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young.
12Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales
and the hills in a balance?
13Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD,
or as his counselor has instructed him?

14Whom did he consult for his enlightenment,
and who taught him the path of justice,

and taught him knowledge,
and showed him the way of understanding?
15Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
and are accounted as the dust on the scales;

behold, he takes up the isles like fine dust.
16Lebanon would not suffice for fuel,
nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering.

17All the nations are as nothing before him,
they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.
18To whom then will you liken God,
or what likeness compare with him?
19The idol! a workman casts it,
and a goldsmith overlays it with gold,

and casts for it silver chains.
20He who is impoverished q chooses for an offering
wood that will not rot;

he seeks out a skilful craftsman
to set up an image that will not move.
21Have you not known? Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?

Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;
23who brings princes to nought,
and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.

24Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,

when he blows upon them, and they wither,
and the tempest carries them off like stubble.
25To whom then will you compare me,
that I should be like him?

says the Holy One.
26Lift up your eyes on high and see:
who created these?

He who brings out their host by number,
calling them all by name;
by the greatness of his might,
and because he is strong in power
not one is missing.
27Why do you say, O Jacob,
and speak, O Israel,

“My way is hidden from the LORD,
and my right is disregarded by my God”?
28Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,

the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary,
his understanding is unsearchable.
29He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;
31but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,

they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.
Israel Assured of God’s Help
41 Listen to me in silence, O islands;
let the peoples renew their strength;
let them approach, then let them speak;
let us together draw near for judgment.
2Who stirred up one from the east
whom victory meets at every step?

He gives up nations before him,
so that he tramples kings under foot;
he makes them like dust with his sword,
like driven stubble with his bow.
3He pursues them and passes on safely,
by paths his feet have not trod.
4Who has performed and done this,
calling the generations from the beginning?
I, the LORD, the first,
and with the last; I am He.
5The islands have seen and are afraid,
the ends of the earth tremble;

they have drawn near and come.
6Every one helps his neighbor,
and says to his brother, “Take courage!”

7The craftsman encourages the goldsmith,
and he who smooths with the hammer him who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, “It is good”;
and they fasten it with nails so that it cannot be moved.
8But you, Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
the offspring of Abraham, my friend;
9you whom I took from the ends of the earth,
and called from its farthest corners,
saying to you, “You are my servant,
I have chosen you and not cast you off”;
10fear not, for I am with you,
be not dismayed, for I am your God;

I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.
11Behold, all who are incensed against you
shall be put to shame and confounded;
those who strive against you
shall be as nothing and shall perish.
12You shall seek those who contend with you,
but you shall not find them;

those who war against you
shall be as nothing at all.
13For I, the LORD your God,
hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, “Fear not,
I will help you.”
14Fear not, you worm Jacob,
you men of Israel!

I will help you, says the LORD;
your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
15Behold, I will make of you a threshing sledge,
new, sharp, and having teeth;

you shall thresh the mountains and crush them,
and you shall make the hills like chaff;
16you shall winnow them and the wind shall carry them away,
and the tempest shall scatter them.

And you shall rejoice in the LORD;
in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.
17When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,

and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the LORD will answer them,
I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
18I will open rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys;

I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.
19I will put in the wilderness the cedar,
the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive;
I will set in the desert the cypress,
the plane and the pine together;
20that men may see and know,
may consider and understand together,
that the hand of the LORD has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.
21Set forth your case, says the LORD;
bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob.

22Let them bring them, and tell us
what is to happen.
Tell us the former things, what they are,
that we may consider them,
that we may know their outcome;
or declare to us the things to come.
23Tell us what is to come hereafter,
that we may know that you are gods;

do good, or do harm,
that we may be dismayed and terrified.
24Behold, you are nothing,
and your work is nought;

an abomination is he who chooses you.
25I stirred up one from the north, and he has come,
from the rising of the sun, and he shall call on my name;

he shall trample r on rulers as on mortar,
as the potter treads clay.
26Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know,
and beforetime, that we might say, “He is right”?

There was none who declared it, none who proclaimed,
none who heard your words.
27I first have declared it to Zion,s
and I give to Jerusalem a herald of good tidings.

28But when I look there is no one;
among these there is no counselor
who, when I ask, gives an answer.
29Behold, they are all a delusion;
their works are nothing;
their molten images are empty wind.
The Lord’s Servant; and Israel’s Disobedience
42 * Behold my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my Spirit upon him,
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
2He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;

3a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;

he will faithfully bring forth justice.
4He will not fail t or be discouraged u
till he has established justice in the earth;

and the islands wait for his law.
5Thus says God, the LORD,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread forth the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it
and spirit to those who walk in it:
6“I am the LORD, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;

I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
7 to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,

from the prison those who sit in darkness.
8I am the LORD, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,

nor my praise to graven images.
9Behold, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth
I tell you of them.”
10Sing to the LORD a new song,
his praise from the end of the earth!
Let the sea roar v and all that fills it,
the islands and their inhabitants.
11Let the desert and its cities lift up their voice,
the villages that Ke'dar inhabits;

let the inhabitants of Se'la sing for joy,
let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12Let them give glory to the LORD,
and declare his praise in the islands.

13The LORD goes forth like a mighty man,
like a man of war he stirs up his fury;

he cries out, he shouts aloud,
he shows himself mighty against his foes.
14For a long time I have held my peace,
I have kept still and restrained myself;

now I will cry out like a woman with labor pains,
I will gasp and pant.
15I will lay waste mountains and hills,
and dry up all their herbage;

I will turn the rivers into islands,
and dry up the pools.
16And I will lead the blind
in a way that they know not,

in paths that they have not known
I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light,
the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I will do,
and I will not forsake them.
17They shall be turned back and utterly put to shame,
who trust in graven images,

who say to molten images,
“You are our gods.”
18Hear, you deaf;
and look, you blind, that you may see!
19Who is blind but my servant,
or deaf as my messenger whom I send?
Who is blind as my dedicated one,
or blind as the servant of the LORD?
20He sees w many things, but does not observe them;
his ears are open, but he does not hear.

21The LORD was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake,
to magnify his law and make it glorious.

22But this is a people robbed and plundered,
they are all of them trapped in holes

and hidden in prisons;
they have become a prey with none to rescue,
a spoil with none to say, “Restore!”
23Who among you will give ear to this,
will attend and listen for the time to come?
24Who gave up Jacob to the spoiler,
and Israel to the robbers?

Was it not the LORD, against whom we have sinned,
in whose ways they would not walk,
and whose law they would not obey?
25So he poured upon him the heat of his anger
and the might of battle;

it set him on fire round about, but he did not understand;
it burned him, but he did not take it to heart.
The Lord Is Redeemer of Israel
43 But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
2When you pass through the waters I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
3For I am the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

I give Egypt as your ransom,
Ethiopia and Seba in exchange for you.
4Because you are precious in my eyes,
and honored, and I love you,
I give men in return for you,
peoples in exchange for your life.
5Fear not, for I am with you;
I will bring your offspring from the east,

and from the west I will gather you;
6I will say to the north, Give up,
and to the south, Do not withhold;

bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the end of the earth,
7every one who is called by my name,
whom I created for my glory,

whom I formed and made.”
8Bring forth the people who are blind, yet have eyes,
who are deaf, yet have ears!

9Let all the nations gather together,
and let the peoples assemble.

Who among them can declare this,
and show us the former things?
Let them bring their witnesses to justify them,
and let them hear and say, It is true.
10“You are my witnesses,” says the LORD,
“and my servant whom I have chosen,

that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am He.
Before me no god was formed,
nor shall there be any after me.
11I, I am the LORD,
and besides me there is no savior.

12I declared and saved and proclaimed,
when there was no strange god among you;

and you are my witnesses,” says the LORD.
13“I am God, and also henceforth I am He;
there is none who can deliver from my hand;
I work and who can hinder it?”
14Thus says the LORD,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“For your sake I will send to Babylon
and break down all the bars,
and the shouting of the Chalde'ans will be turned to lamentations. x
15I am the LORD, your Holy One,
the Creator of Israel, your King.”

who makes a way in the sea,

a path in the mighty waters,
17who brings forth chariot and horse,
army and warrior;

they lie down, they cannot rise,
they are extinguished, quenched like a wick:
18“Remember not the former things,
nor consider the things of old.

19Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
20The wild beasts will honor me,
the jackals and the ostriches;

for I give water in the wilderness,
rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
21 the people whom I formed for myself
that they might declare my praise.

22“Yet you did not call upon me, O Jacob;
but you have been weary of me, O Israel!

23You have not brought me your sheep for burnt offerings,
or honored me with your sacrifices.

I have not burdened you with offerings,
or wearied you with frankincense.
24You have not bought me sweet cane with money,
or satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices.

But you have burdened me with your sins,
you have wearied me with your iniquities.
25“I, I am He
who blots out your transgressions for my own sake,

and I will not remember your sins.
26Put me in remembrance, let us argue together;
set forth your case, that you may be proved right.

27Your first father sinned,
and your mediators transgressed against me.

28Therefore I profaned the princes of the sanctuary,
I delivered Jacob to utter destruction

and Israel to reviling.
God’s Blessing on Israel
44 “But now hear, O Jacob my servant,
Israel whom I have chosen!
2Thus says the LORD who made you,
who formed you from the womb and will help you:
Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
Jesh'urun whom I have chosen.
3For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;

I will pour my Spirit upon your descendants,
and my blessing on your offspring.
4They shall spring up like grass amid waters, y
like willows by flowing streams.

5This one will say, ‘I am the LORD’s,’
another will call himself by the name of Jacob,
and another will write on his hand, ‘The LORD’s,’
and surname himself by the name of Israel.”
6Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel
and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:

“I am the first and I am the last;
besides me there is no god.
7Who is like me? Let him proclaim it,
let him declare and set it forth before me.

Who has announced from of old the things to come? z
Let them tell us a what is yet to be.
8Fear not, nor be afraid;
have I not told you from of old and declared it?

And you are my witnesses!
Is there a God besides me?
There is no Rock; I know not any.”
The Folly of Idol Worship
9 All who make idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not
profit; their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame.
10Who fashions a god or casts an image, that is profitable for nothing?
11Behold, all his fellows shall be put to shame, and the craftsmen are but
men; let them all assemble, let them stand forth, they shall be terrified, they
shall be put to shame together.
12 The ironsmith fashions it b and works it over the coals; he shapes it
with hammers, and forges it with his strong arm; he becomes hungry and
his strength fails, he drinks no water and is faint. 13The carpenter stretches a
line, he marks it out with a pencil; he fashions it with planes, and marks it
with a compass; he shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a
man, to dwell in a house. 14He cuts down cedars; or he chooses a holm tree
or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest; he plants a
cedar and the rain nourishes it. 15Then it becomes fuel for a man; he takes a
part of it and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread; also he
makes a god and worships it, he makes it a graven image and falls down
before it. 16Half of it he burns in the fire; over the half he eats flesh, he
roasts meat and is satisfied; also he warms himself and says, “Aha, I am
warm, I have seen the fire!” 17And the rest of it he makes into a god, his
idol; and falls down to it and worships it; he prays to it and says, “Deliver
me, for you are my god!”
Israel Is Not Forgotten
18 They know not, nor do they discern; for he has shut their eyes, so that
they cannot see, and their minds, so that they cannot understand. 19No one
considers, nor is there knowledge or discernment to say, “Half of it I burned
in the fire, I also baked bread on its coals, I roasted flesh and have eaten;
and shall I make the residue of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a
block of wood?” 20He feeds on ashes; a deluded mind has led him astray,
and he cannot deliver himself or say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”
21Remember these things, O Jacob,
and Israel, for you are my servant;

I formed you, you are my servant;
O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me.
22I have swept away your transgressions like a cloud,
and your sins like mist;

return to me, for I have redeemed you.
23Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it;
shout, O depths of the earth;

break forth into singing, O mountains,
O forest, and every tree in it!
For the LORD has redeemed Jacob,
and will be glorified in Israel.
24Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer,
who formed you from the womb:

“I am the LORD, who made all things,
who stretched out the heavens alone,
who spread out the earth—Who was with me? c—
25who frustrates the omens of liars,
and makes fools of diviners;
who turns wise men back,
and makes their knowledge foolish;
26who confirms the word of his servant,
and performs the counsel of his messengers;

who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited,’
and of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built,
and I will raise up their ruins’;
27who says to the deep, ‘Be dry,
I will dry up your rivers’;

28who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,
and he shall fulfil all my purpose’;

saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’
and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’ ”
Cyrus, God’s Instrument
45 Thus says the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
and uncover the loins of kings,
to open doors before him
that gates may not be closed:
2“I will go before you
and level the mountains,d

I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut asunder the bars of iron,
3I will give you the treasures of darkness
and the hoards in secret places,

that you may know that it is I, the LORD,
the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
4For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,

I call you by your name,
I surname you, though you do not know me.
5I am the LORD, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I clothe you, though you do not know me,
6that men may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;

I am the LORD, and there is no other.
7I form light and create darkness,
I make well-being and create woe,

I am the LORD, who do all these things.
8“Shower, O heavens, from above,
and let the skies rain down righteousness;

let the earth open, that salvation may sprout forth, e
and let it cause righteousness to spring up also;
I the LORD have created it.
9“Woe to him who strives with his Maker,
an earthen vessel with the potter! f

Does the clay say to him who fashions it, ‘What are you making?’
or ‘Your work has no handles’?
10Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’
or to a woman, ‘With what are you suffering labor pains?’ ”

the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker:

“Will you question me g about my children,
or command me concerning the work of my hands?
12I made the earth,
and created man upon it;

it was my hands that stretched out the heavens,
and I commanded all their host.
13I have aroused him in righteousness,
and I will make straight all his ways;

he shall build my city
and set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,”
says the LORD of hosts.
14Thus says the LORD:
“The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia,

and the Sabe'ans, men of stature,
shall come over to you and be yours,
they shall follow you;
they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you, saying:
‘God is with you only, and there is no other,
no god besides him.’ ”
15Truly, you are a God who hide yourself,
O God of Israel, the Savior.

16All of them are put to shame and confounded,
the makers of idols go in confusion together.

17But Israel is saved by the LORD
with everlasting salvation;

you shall not be put to shame or confounded
to all eternity.
18For thus says the LORD,
who created the heavens
(he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it
(he established it;
he did not create it a chaos,
he formed it to be inhabited!):
“I am the LORD, and there is no other.
19I did not speak in secret,
in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
‘Seek me in chaos.’
I the LORD speak the truth,
I declare what is right.
20“Assemble yourselves and come,
draw near together,

you survivors of the nations!
They have no knowledge
who carry about their wooden idols,
and keep on praying to a god
that cannot save.
21Declare and present your case;
let them take counsel together!

Who told this long ago?
Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the LORD?
And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God and a Savior;
there is none besides me.
22“Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
23By myself I have sworn,
from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness

a word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear.’
24“Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me,
are righteousness and strength;
to him shall come and be ashamed,
all who were incensed against him.
25In the LORD all the offspring of Israel
shall triumph and glory.”

Idols Cannot Save
46 Bel bows down, Nebo stoops,
their idols are on beasts and cattle;
these things you carry are loaded
as burdens on weary beasts.
2They stoop, they bow down together,
they cannot save the burden,

but themselves go into captivity.
3“Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from your birth,
carried from the womb;
4even to your old age I am He,
and to gray hairs I will carry you.

I have made, and I will bear;
I will carry and will save.
5“To whom will you liken me and make me equal,
and compare me, that we may be alike?
6Those who lavish gold from the purse,
and weigh out silver in the scales,

hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god;
then they fall down and worship!
7They lift it upon their shoulders, they carry it,
they set it in its place, and it stands there;

it cannot move from its place.
If one cries to it, it does not answer
or save him from his trouble.
8“Remember this and consider,
recall it to mind, you transgressors,
9 remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;

I am God, and there is none like me,
10declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times things not yet done,

saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
11calling a bird of prey from the east,
the man of my counsel from a far country.

I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass;
I have planned, and I will do it.
12“Listen to me, you stubborn of heart,
you who are far from deliverance:

13I bring near my deliverance, it is not far off,
and my salvation will not tarry;

I will put salvation in Zion,
for Israel my glory.”
The Humiliation of Babylon
47 Come down and sit in the dust,
O virgin daughter of Babylon;
sit on the ground without a throne,
O daughter of the Chalde'ans!
For you shall no more be called
tender and delicate.
2Take the millstones and grind meal,
put off your veil,

strip off your robe, uncover your legs,
pass through the rivers.
3Your nakedness shall be uncovered,
and your shame shall be seen.

I will take vengeance,
and I will spare no man.
4Our Redeemer—the LORD of hosts is his name—
is the Holy One of Israel.
5Sit in silence, and go into darkness,
O daughter of the Chalde'ans;

for you shall no more be called
the mistress of kingdoms.
6I was angry with my people,
I profaned my heritage;
I gave them into your hand,
you showed them no mercy;
on the aged you made your yoke
exceedingly heavy.
7You said, “I shall be mistress for ever,”
so that you did not lay these things to heart

or remember their end.
8Now therefore hear this, you lover of pleasures,
who sit securely,

who say in your heart,
“I am, and there is no one besides me;
I shall not sit as a widow
or know the loss of children”:
9These two things shall come to you
in a moment, in one day;

the loss of children and widowhood
shall come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries
and the great power of your enchantments.
10You felt secure in your wickedness,
you said, “No one sees me”;

your wisdom and your knowledge
led you astray,
and you said in your heart,
“I am, and there is no one besides me.”
11But evil shall come upon you,
for which you cannot atone;

disaster shall fall upon you,
which you will not be able to expiate;
and ruin shall come on you suddenly,
of which you know nothing.
12Stand fast in your enchantments
and your many sorceries,
with which you have labored from your youth;
perhaps you may be able to succeed,
perhaps you may inspire terror.
13You are wearied with your many counsels;
let them stand forth and save you,

those who divide the heavens,
who gaze at the stars,
who at the new moons predict
what h shall befall you.
14Behold, they are like stubble,
the fire consumes them;

they cannot deliver themselves
from the power of the flame.
No coal for warming oneself is this,
no fire to sit before!
15Such to you are those with whom you have labored,
who have trafficked with you from your youth;

they wander about each in his own direction;
there is no one to save you.
Israel’s Unfaithfulness to God the Creator and Redeemer
48 Hear this, O house of Jacob,
who are called by the name of Israel,
and who came forth from the loins i of Judah;
who swear by the name of the LORD,
and confess the God of Israel,
but not in truth or right.
2For they call themselves after the holy city,
and stay themselves on the God of Israel;

the LORD of hosts is his name.
3“The former things I declared of old,
they went forth from my mouth and I made them known;
then suddenly I did them and they came to pass.
4Because I know that you are obstinate,
and your neck is an iron sinew

and your forehead brass,
5I declared them to you from of old,
before they came to pass I announced them to you,

lest you should say, ‘My idol did them,
my graven image and my molten image commanded them.’
6“You have heard; now see all this;
and will you not declare it?

From this time forth I make you hear new things,
hidden things which you have not known.
7They are created now, not long ago;
before today you have never heard of them,

lest you should say, ‘Behold, I knew them.’
8You have never heard, you have never known,
from of old your ear has not been opened.

For I knew that you would deal very treacherously,
and that from birth you were called a rebel.
9“For my name’s sake I defer my anger,
for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,

that I may not cut you off.
10Behold, I have refined you, but not like j silver;
I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.

11For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
for how should my name k be profaned?

My glory I will not give to another.
12“Listen to me, O Jacob,
and Israel, whom I called!

I am He, I am the first,
and I am the last.
13My hand laid the foundation of the earth,
and my right hand spread out the heavens;

when I call to them,
they stand forth together.
14“Assemble, all of you, and hear!
Who among them has declared these things?
The LORD loves him;
he shall perform his purpose on Babylon,
and his arm shall be against the Chalde'ans.
15I, even I, have spoken and called him,
I have brought him, and he will prosper in his way.

16Draw near to me, hear this:
from the beginning I have not spoken in secret,

from the time it came to be I have been there.”
And now the Lord GOD has sent me and his Spirit.
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:

“I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit,
who leads you in the way you should go.
18O that you had listened to my commandments!
Then your peace would have been like a river,

and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
19your offspring would have been like the sand,
and your descendants like its grains;
their name would never be cut off
or destroyed from before me.”
20Go forth from Babylon, flee from Chalde'a,
declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it,

send it forth to the end of the earth;
say, “The LORD has redeemed his servant Jacob!”
21They thirsted not when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow for them from the rock;

he cleft the rock and the water gushed out.
22“There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.”
The Servant’s Mission

49 Listen to me, O islands,
and pay attention, you peoples from afar.
The LORD called me from the womb,
from the body of my mother he named my name.
2He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow,
in his quiver he hid me away.
3And he said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”

4But I said, “I have labored in vain,
I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;

yet surely my right is with the LORD,
and my recompense with my God.”
5And now the LORD says,
who formed me from the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
and that Israel might be gathered to him,
for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,
and my God has become my strength—
6he says:
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant

to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to restore the preserved of Israel;
I will give you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,

to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations,
the servant of rulers:
“Kings shall see and arise;
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;
because of the LORD, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
“In a time of favor I have answered you,

in a day of salvation I have helped you;
I have kept you and given you
as a covenant to the people,
to establish the land,
to apportion the desolate heritages;
9saying to the prisoners, ‘Come forth,’
to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.’

They shall feed along the ways,
on all bare heights shall be their pasture;
10they shall not hunger or thirst,
neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,

for he who has pity on them will lead them,
and by springs of water will guide them.
11And I will make all my mountains a way,
and my highways shall be raised up.

12Behold, these shall come from afar,
and behold, these from the north and from the west,
and these from the land of Sye'ne.” l
13Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!

For the LORD has comforted his people,
and will have compassion on his afflicted.
14But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me,
my Lord has forgotten me.”
15“Can a woman forget her sucking child,
that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?

Even these may forget,
yet I will not forget you.
16Behold, I have graven you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are continually before me.

17Your builders outstrip your destroyers,
and those who laid you waste go forth from you.

18Lift up your eyes round about and see;
they all gather, they come to you.

As I live, says the LORD,
you shall put them all on as an ornament,
you shall bind them on as a bride does.
19“Surely your waste and your desolate places
and your devastated land—
surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,
and those who swallowed you up will be far away.
20The children born in the time of your bereavement
will yet say in your ears:

‘The place is too narrow for me;
make room for me to dwell in.’
21Then you will say in your heart:
‘Who has borne me these?

I was bereaved and barren,
exiled and put away,
but who has brought up these?
Behold, I was left alone;
from where then have these come?’”
22Thus says the Lord GOD:
“Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,
and raise my signal to the peoples;
and they shall bring your sons in their bosom,
and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.
23Kings shall be your foster fathers,
and their queens your nursing mothers.

With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you, and lick the
dust of your feet.
Then you will know that I am the LORD;
those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.”
24Can the prey be taken from the mighty,
or the captives of a tyrant m be rescued?

25Surely, thus says the LORD:
“Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,

and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,
for I will contend with those who contend with you,
and I will save your children.
26I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,
and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.
Then all flesh shall know
that I am the LORD your Savior,
and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
The Sufferings of the Servant
50 Thus says the LORD:
“Where is your mother’s bill of divorce,
with which I put her away?
Or which of my creditors is it
to whom I have sold you?
Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,
and for your transgressions your mother was put away.
2Why, when I came, was there no man?
When I called, was there no one to answer?
Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?
Or have I no power to deliver?
Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,
I make the rivers a desert;
their fish stink for lack of water,
and die of thirst.
3I clothe the heavens with blackness,
and make sackcloth their covering.”

4The Lord GOD has given me
the tongue of those who are taught,

that I may know how to sustain with a word
him that is weary.
Morning by morning he wakens,
he wakens my ear
to hear as those who are taught.
5The Lord GOD has opened my ear,
and I was not rebellious,

I turned not backward.
6I gave my back to those who struck me,
and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;

I hid not my face
from shame and spitting.
7For the Lord GOD helps me;
therefore I have not been confounded;
therefore I have set my face like a flint,
and I know that I shall not be put to shame;
8 he who vindicates me is near.
Who will contend with me?

Let us stand up together.
Who is my adversary?
Let him come near to me.
9Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;
who will declare me guilty?

Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;
the moth will eat them up.
10Who among you fears the LORD
and obeys the voice of his servant,

who walks in darkness
and has no light,
yet trusts in the name of the LORD
and relies upon his God?
11Behold, all you who kindle a fire,
who set brands alight. n

Walk by the light of your fire,
and by the brands which you have kindled!
This shall you have from my hand:
you shall lie down in torment.
The Lord Will Comfort Zion
51 “Listen to me, you who pursue deliverance,
you who seek the LORD;
look to the rock from which you were hewn,
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
2Look to Abraham your father
and to Sarah who bore you;

for when he was but one I called him,
and I blessed him and made him many.
3For the LORD will comfort Zion:
he will comfort all her waste places,
and will make her wilderness like Eden,
her desert like the garden of the LORD;
joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the voice of song.
4“Listen to me, my people,
and give ear to me, my nation;

for a law will go forth from me,
and my justice for a light to the peoples.
5My deliverance draws near speedily,
my salvation has gone forth,

and my arms will rule the peoples;
the islands wait for me,
and for my arm they hope.
6Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;

for the heavens will vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and they who dwell in it will die like gnats; o
but my salvation will be for ever,
and my deliverance will never be ended.
7“Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is my law;
fear not the reproach of men,
and be not dismayed at their revilings.
8For the moth will eat them up like a garment,
and the worm will eat them like wool;

but my deliverance will be for ever,
and my salvation to all generations.”
9Awake, awake, put on strength,
O arm of the LORD;
awake, as in days of old,
the generations of long ago.
Was it not you who cut Ra'hab in pieces,
who pierced the dragon?
10Was it not you who dried up the sea,
the waters of the great deep;
who made the depths of the sea a way
for the redeemed to pass over?
11And the ransomed of the LORD shall return,
and come to Zion with singing;

everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
12“I, I am he who comforts you;
who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,
of the son of man who is made like grass,
13and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,
who stretched out the heavens

and laid the foundations of the earth,
and fear continually all the day
because of the fury of the oppressor,
when he sets himself to destroy?
And where is the fury of the oppressor?
14He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;
he shall not die and go down to the Pit,

neither shall his bread fail.
15For I am the LORD your God,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—

16And I have put my words in your mouth,
and hid you in the shadow of my hand,

stretching out p the heavens
and laying the foundations of the earth,
and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.’ ”
17Rouse yourself, rouse yourself,
stand up, O Jerusalem,
you who have drunk at the hand of the LORD
the cup of his wrath,
who have drunk to the dregs
the bowl of staggering.
18There is none to guide her
among all the sons she has borne;
there is none to take her by the hand
among all the sons she has brought up.
19These two things have befallen you—
who will condole with you?—

devastation and destruction, famine and sword;
who will comfort you? q
20Your sons have fainted,
they lie at the head of every street

like an antelope in a net;
they are full of the wrath of the LORD,
the rebuke of your God.
21Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,
who are drunk, but not with wine:

22Thus says your Lord, the LORD,
your God who pleads the cause of his people:

“Behold, I have taken from your hand
the cup of staggering;
the bowl of my wrath
you shall drink no more;
23and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,
who have said to you,

‘Bow down, that we may pass over’;
and you have made your back like the ground
and like the street for them to pass over.”
Awake to Good Tidings of Redemption
52 Awake, awake,
put on your strength, O Zion;
put on your beautiful garments,
O Jerusalem, the holy city;
for there shall no more come into you
the uncircumcised and the unclean.
2Shake yourself from the dust, arise,
O captive r Jerusalem;
loose the bonds from your neck,
O captive daughter of Zion.
3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be
redeemed without money. 4For thus says the Lord GOD: My people went
down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed
them for nothing. 5Now therefore what have I here, says the LORD, seeing
that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail, says the
LORD, and continually all the day my name is despised. 6Therefore my
people shall know my name; therefore in that day they shall know that it is I
who speak; here am I.”
7How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of him who brings good tidings,

who publishes peace, who brings good tidings of good,
who publishes salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”
8Listen, your watchmen lift up their voice,
together they sing for joy;

for eye to eye they see
the return of the LORD to Zion.
9Break forth together into singing,
you waste places of Jerusalem;

for the LORD has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10The LORD has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;

and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.
11Depart, depart, go out from there,
touch no unclean thing;

go out from the midst of her, purify yourselves,
you who bear the vessels of the LORD.
12For you shall not go out in haste,
and you shall not go in flight,

for the LORD will go before you,
and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
13Behold, my servant shall prosper,
he shall be exalted and lifted up,
and shall be very high.
14As many were astonished at him s —
his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,

and his form beyond that of the sons of men—
15so shall he startle t many nations;
kings shall shut their mouths because of him;

for that which has not been told them they shall see,
and that which they have not heard they shall understand.
The Lord’s Suffering Servant
53 Who has believed what we have heard?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;

he had no form or comeliness that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
3He was despised and rejected u by men;
a man of sorrows,v and acquainted with grief; w

and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4Surely he has borne our griefsx
and carried our sorrows;y

yet we esteemed him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted.
5But he was wounded for our transgressions,
he was bruised for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that made us whole,
and with his stripes we are healed.
6All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way;

and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all. *
7He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;

like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered

that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
9And they made his grave with the wicked
and with a rich man in his death,

although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10Yet it was the will of the LORD to bruise him;
he has put him to grief;z

when he makes himselfa an offering for sin,
he shall see his offspring, he shall prolong his days;
the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand;
11 he shall see the fruit of the travail of his soul and be satisfied;
by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,

make many to be accounted righteous;
and he shall bear their iniquities.
12Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong;

because he poured out his soul to death,
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.
Mercy and Comfort Offered
54 “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;
break forth into singing and cry aloud,
you who have not had labor pains!
For the children of the desolate one will be more
than the children of her that is married, says the LORD.
2Enlarge the place of your tent,
and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;

hold not back, lengthen your cords
and strengthen your stakes.
3For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,
and your descendants will possess the nations
and will people the desolate cities.
4“Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;
be not confounded, for you will not be put to shame;

for you will forget the shame of your youth,
and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.
5For your Maker is your husband,
the LORD of hosts is his name;

and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,
the God of the whole earth he is called.
6For the LORD has called you
like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,

like a wife of youth when she is cast off,
says your God.
7For a brief moment I forsook you,
but with great compassion I will gather you.

8In overflowing wrath for a moment
I hid my face from you,

but with everlasting mercy I will have compassion on you,
says the LORD, your Redeemer.
9“For this is like the days of Noah to me:
as I swore that the waters of Noah

should no more go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you
and will not rebuke you.
10For the mountains may depart
and the hills be removed,

but my mercy shall not depart from you,
and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,
says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
11“O afflicted one, storm-tossed, and not comforted,
behold, I will set your stones in antimony,

and lay your foundations with sapphires.b
12I will make your pinnacles of agate,
your gates of carbuncles,
and all your wall of precious stones.
13All your sons shall be taught by the LORD,
and great shall be the prosperity of your sons.

14In righteousness you shall be established;
you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15If any one stirs up strife,
it is not from me;

whoever stirs up strife with you
shall fall because of you.
16Behold, I have created the smith
who blows the fire of coals,

and produces a weapon for its purpose.
I have also created the ravager to destroy;
17 no weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper,
and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.
This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD
and their vindication from me, says the LORD.”
An Invitation to Abundant Life
55 “Ho, every one who thirsts,
come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.
2Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
3Incline your ear, and come to me;
hear, that your soul may live;

and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, merciful love for David.
4Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and commander for the peoples.
5Behold, you shall call nations that you know not,
and nations that knew you not shall run to you,
because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
for he has glorified you.
6“Seek the LORD while he may be found,
call upon him while he is near;

7let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;

let him return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on him,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, says the LORD.

9For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return there but water the earth,

making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,

but it shall accomplish that which I intend,
and prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
12“For you shall go out in joy,
and be led forth in peace;

the mountains and the hills before you
shall break forth into singing,
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;

and it shall be to the LORD for a memorial,
for an everlasting sign which shall not be cut off.”
Rewards of Righteousness
56 * Thus says the LORD:
“Keep justice, and do righteousness,
for soon my salvation will come,
and my deliverance be revealed.
2Blessed is the man who does this,
and the son of man who holds it fast,

who keeps the sabbath, not profaning it,
and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
3Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say,
“The LORD will surely separate me from his people”;
and let not the eunuch say,
“Behold, I am a dry tree.”
4For thus says the LORD:
“To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me
and hold fast my covenant,
5I will give in my house and within my walls
a monument and a name

better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
which shall not be cut off.
6“And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,
to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD,

and to be his servants,
every one who keeps the sabbath, and does not profane it,
and holds fast my covenant—
7these I will bring to my holy mountain,
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house shall be called a house of prayer
for all peoples.
8Thus says the Lord GOD,
who gathers the outcasts of Israel,

I will gather yet others to him
besides those already gathered.” c
9All you beasts of the field, come to devour—
all you beasts in the forest.
10His watchmen are blind,
they are all without knowledge;
they are all mute dogs,
they cannot bark;
dreaming, lying down,
loving to slumber.
11The dogs have a mighty appetite;
they never have enough.

The shepherds also have no understanding;
they have all turned to their own way,
each to his own gain, one and all.
12“Come,” they say, “let usd get wine,
let us fill ourselves with strong drink;

and tomorrow will be like this day,
great beyond measure.”
Idolatry Condemned
57 The righteous man perishes,
and no one lays it to heart;
devout men are taken away,
while no one understands.
For the righteous man is taken away from calamity,
2 he enters into peace;
they rest in their beds

who walk in their uprightness.
3But you, draw near to here,
sons of the sorceress,

offspring of the adulterer and the harlot.
4Of whom are you making sport?
Against whom do you open your mouth wide

and put out your tongue?
Are you not children of transgression,
the offspring of deceit,
5you who burn with lust among the oaks,
under every green tree;

who slay your children in the valleys,
under the clefts of the rocks?
6Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion;
they, they, are your lot;

to them you have poured out a drink offering,
you have brought a cereal offering.
Shall I be appeased for these things?
7Upon a high and lofty mountain
you have set your bed,

and from there you went up to offer sacrifice.
8Behind the door and the doorpost
you have set up your symbol;

for, deserting me, you have uncovered your bed,
you have gone up to it,
you have made it wide;
and you have made a bargain for yourself with them,
you have loved their bed,
you have looked on nakedness.e
9You journeyed to Mo'lechf with oil
and multiplied your perfumes;

you sent your envoys far off,
and sent down even to Sheol.
10You were wearied with the length of your way,
but you did not say, “It is hopeless”;

you found new life for your strength,
and so you were not faint.
11Whom did you dread and fear,
so that you lied,

and did not remember me,
did not give me a thought?
Have I not held my peace, even for a long time,
and so you do not fear me?
12I will tell of your righteousness and your doings,
but they will not help you.

13When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you!
The wind will carry them off,

a breath will take them away.
But he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land,
and shall inherit my holy mountain.
14And it shall be said,
“Build up, build up, prepare the way,

remove every obstruction from my people’s way.”
15For thus says the high and lofty One
who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:

“I dwell in the high and holy place,
and also with him who is of a contrite and humble spirit,
to revive the spirit of the humble,
and to revive the heart of the contrite.
16For I will not contend for ever,
nor will I always be angry;

for from me proceeds the spirit,
and I have made the breath of life.
17Because of the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry,
I struck him, I hid my face and was angry;

but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart.
18I have seen his ways, but I will heal him;
I will lead him and repay him with comfort,

creating for his mourners the fruit of the lips.
19Peace, peace, to the far and to the near, says the LORD;
and I will heal him.

20But the wicked are like the tossing sea;
for it cannot rest,

and its waters toss up mire and dirt.
21There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.”
True and False Fasting and Worship

58 “Cry aloud, spare not,
lift up your voice like a trumpet;
declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
2Yet they seek me daily,
and delight to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the ordinance of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments,
they delight to draw near to God.
3‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’

Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,g
and oppress all your workers.
4Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with wicked fist.

Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
5Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a man to humble himself?

Is it to bow down his head like a rush,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the LORD?
6“Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,

to undo the thongs of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
7Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
and bring the homeless poor into your house;

when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
8Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;

your righteousness shall go before you,
the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
9Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, Here I am.

“If you take away from the midst of you the yoke,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
11And the LORD will guide you continually,
and satisfy your desire with good things,h

and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail.
12And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;

you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
the restorer of streets to dwell in.
13“If you turn back your foot from the sabbath,
from doing your pleasurei on my holy day,

and call the sabbath a delight
and the holy day of the LORD honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
or seeking your own pleasure, j or talking idly;
14then you shall take delight in the LORD,
and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth;
I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
Injustice and Oppression to Be Punished
59 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,
or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;
2but your iniquities have made a separation
between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you
so that he does not hear.
3For your hands are defiled with blood
and your fingers with iniquity;

your lips have spoken lies,
your tongue mutters wickedness.
4No one enters suit justly,
no one goes to law honestly;
they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies,
they conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.
5They hatch adders’ eggs,
they weave the spider’s web;

he who eats their eggs dies,
and from one which is crushed a viper is hatched.
6Their webs will not serve as clothing;
men will not cover themselves with what they make.

Their works are works of iniquity,
and deeds of violence are in their hands.
7Their feet run to evil,
and they make haste to shed innocent blood;

their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity,
desolation and destruction are in their highways.
8The way of peace they know not,
and there is no justice in their paths;

they have made their roads crooked,
no one who goes in them knows peace.
9Therefore justice is far from us,
and righteousness does not overtake us;

we look for light, and behold, darkness,
and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.
10We grope for the wall like the blind,
we grope like those who have no eyes;

we stumble at noon as in the twilight,
among those in full vigor we are like dead men.
11We all growl like bears,
we moan and moan like doves;

we look for justice, but there is none;
for salvation, but it is far from us.
12For our transgressions are multiplied before you,
and our sins testify against us;

for our transgressions are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
13transgressing, and denying the LORD,
and turning away from following our God,
speaking oppression and revolt,
conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.
14Justice is turned back,
and righteousness stands afar off;

for truth has fallen in the public squares,
and uprightness cannot enter.
15Truth is lacking,
and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.

The LORD saw it, and it displeased him
that there was no justice.
16He saw that there was no man,
and wondered that there was no one to intervene;

then his own arm brought him victory,
and his righteousness upheld him.
17He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and a helmet of salvation upon his head;

he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,
and wrapped himself in fury as a mantle.
18According to their deeds, so will he repay,
wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;

to the islands he will render repayment.
19So they shall fear the name of the LORD from the west,
and his glory from the rising of the sun;

for he will come like a rushing stream,
which the wind of the LORD drives.
20 “And he will come to Zion as Redeemer,
to those in Jacob who turn from transgression, says the LORD.

21 “And as for me, this is my covenant with them, says the LORD: my
spirit which is upon you, and my words which I have put in your mouth,
shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your children, or
out of the mouth of your children’s children, says the LORD, from this time
forth and for evermore.”
The Lord Will Come as a Light and Will Gather His People
60 Arise, shine; for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.
2For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the LORD will arise upon you,
and his glory will be seen upon you.
3And nations shall walk by your light,
and kings in the brightness of your rising.

4Lift up your eyes round about, and see;
they all gather together, they come to you;

your sons shall come from far,
and your daughters shall be carried in the arms.
5Then you shall see and be radiant,
your heart shall thrill and rejoice;k

because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
6A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Mid'ian and E'phah;

all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
and shall proclaim the praise of the LORD.
7All the flocks of Ke'dar shall be gathered to you,
the rams of Nebai'oth shall minister to you;

they shall come up with acceptance on my altar,
and I will glorify my glorious house.
8Who are these that fly like a cloud,
and like doves to their windows?

9For the islands shall wait for me,
the ships of Tar'shish first,

to bring your sons from far,
their silver and gold with them,
for the name of the LORD your God,
and for the Holy One of Israel,
because he has glorified you.
10Foreigners shall build up your walls,
and their kings shall minister to you;

for in my wrath I struck you,
but in my favor I have had mercy on you.
11Your gates shall be open continually;
day and night they shall not be shut;
that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations,
with their kings led in procession.
12For the nation and kingdom
that will not serve you shall perish;

those nations shall be utterly laid waste.
13The glory of Lebanon shall come to you,
the cypress, the plane, and the pine,

to beautify the place of my sanctuary;
and I will make the place of my feet glorious.
14The sons of those who oppressed you
shall come bending low to you;

and all who despised you
shall bow down at your feet;
they shall call you the City of the LORD,
the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
15Whereas you have been forsaken and hated,
with no one passing through,

I will make you majestic for ever,
a joy from age to age.
16You shall suck the milk of nations,
you shall suck the breast of kings;

and you shall know that I, the LORD, am your Savior
and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
and instead of iron I will bring silver;

instead of wood, bronze,
instead of stones, iron.
I will make your overseers peace
and your taskmasters righteousness.
18Violence shall no more be heard in your land,
devastation or destruction within your borders;

you shall call your walls Salvation,
and your gates Praise.
19The sun shall no longer be
your light by day,
nor for brightness shall the moon
give light to you by night;l
but the LORD will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.
20Your sun shall no more go down,
nor your moon withdraw itself;

for the LORD will be your everlasting light,
and your days of mourning shall be ended.
21Your people shall all be righteous;
they shall possess the land for ever,

the shoot of my planting, the work of my hands,
that I might be glorified.
22The least one shall become a clan,
and the smallest one a mighty nation;

I am the LORD;
in its time I will hasten it.
Good Tidings for the Afflicted
61 * The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to bring good tidings to the afflicted;m
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prisonn to those who are bound;
2to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;

to comfort all who mourn;
3to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a garland instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.
4They shall build up the ancient ruins,
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.
5Aliens shall stand and feed your flocks,
foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers;

6but you shall be called the priests of the LORD,
men shall speak of you as the ministers of our God;
you shall eat the wealth of the nations,
and in their riches you shall glory.
7Instead of your shame you shall have a double portion,
instead of dishonor youo shall rejoice in yourp lot;

therefore in yourp land youo shall possess a double portion;
yoursq shall be everlasting joy.
8For I the LORD love justice,
I hate robbery and wrong;r

I will faithfully give them their recompense,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
9Their descendants shall be known among the nations,
and their offspring in the midst of the peoples;

all who see them shall acknowledge them,
that they are a people whom the LORD has blessed.
10I will greatly rejoice in the LORD,
my soul shall exult in my God;

for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,

so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise
to spring forth before all the nations.
The Vindication and Salvation of Zion
62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest,
until her vindication goes forth as brightness,
and her salvation as a burning torch.
2The nations shall see your vindication,
and all the kings your glory;
and you shall be called by a new name
which the mouth of the LORD will give.
3You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

4You shall no more be termed Forsaken,s
and your land shall no more be termed Desolate;t

but you shall be called My delight is in her,u
and your land Married;v
for the LORD delights in you,
and your land shall be married.
5For as a young man marries a virgin,
so shall your sons marry you,

and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
so shall your God rejoice over you.
6Upon your walls, O Jerusalem,
I have set watchmen;

all the day and all the night
they shall never be silent.
You who put the LORD in remembrance,
take no rest,
7and give him no rest
until he establishes Jerusalem

and makes it a praise in the earth.
8The LORD has sworn by his right hand
and by his mighty arm:

“I will not again give your grain
to be food for your enemies,
and foreigners shall not drink your wine
for which you have labored;
9but those who garner it shall eat it
and praise the LORD,

and those who gather it shall drink it
in the courts of my sanctuary.”
10Go through, go through the gates,
prepare the way for the people;
build up, build up the highway,
clear it of stones,
lift up an ensign over the peoples.
11Behold, the LORD has proclaimed
to the end of the earth:

Say to the daughter of Zion,
“Behold, your salvation comes;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.”
12And they shall be called The holy people,
The redeemed of the LORD;

and you shall be called Sought out,
a city not forsaken.
Vengeance on Enemies; God’s Mercy Recounted and Sought
63 Who is this that comes from E'dom,
in crimsoned garments from Bozrah,
he that is glorious in his apparel,
marching in the greatness of his strength?
“It is I, announcing vindication,
mighty to save.”
2Why is your apparel red,
and your garments like his who treads in the wine press?
3“I have trodden the wine press alone,
and from the peoples no one was with me;

I trod them in my anger
and trampled them in my wrath;
their lifeblood is sprinkled upon my garments,
and I have stained all my clothing.
4For the day of vengeance was in my heart,
and my year of redemptionw has come.

5I looked, but there was no one to help;
I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold;

so my own arm brought me victory,
and my wrath upheld me.
6I trod down the peoples in my anger,
I made them drunk in my wrath,

and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.”
7I will recount the merciful love of the LORD,
the praises of the LORD,

according to all that the LORD has granted us,
and the great goodness to the house of Israel
which he has granted them according to his mercy,
according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
8For he said, Surely they are my people,
sons who will not deal falsely;

and he became their Savior.
9In all their affliction he was afflicted,x
and the angel of his presence saved them;

in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;
he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
10But they rebelled
and grieved his holy Spirit;

therefore he turned to be their enemy,
and himself fought against them.
11Then he remembered the days of old,
of Moses his servant.

Where is he who brought up out of the sea
the shepherds of his flock?
Where is he who put in the midst of them
his holy Spirit,
12who caused his glorious arm
to go at the right hand of Moses,

who divided the waters before them
to make for himself an everlasting name,
13 who led them through the depths?
Like a horse in the desert,

they did not stumble.
14Like cattle that go down into the valley,
the Spirit of the LORD gave them rest.
So you led your people,
to make for yourself a glorious name.
15Look down from heaven and see,
from your holy and glorious habitation.

Where are your zeal and your might?
The yearning of your heart and your compassion
are withheld from me.
16For you are our Father,
though Abraham does not know us

and Israel does not acknowledge us;
you, O LORD, are our Father,
our Redeemer from of old is your name.
17O LORD, why do you make us err from your ways
and harden our heart, so that we fear you not?

Return for the sake of your servants,
the tribes of your heritage.
18Your holy people possessed your sanctuary a little while;
our adversaries have trodden it down.

19We have become like those over whom you have never ruled,
like those who are not called by your name.

Prayer for Mercy
64 O that you would tear the heavens and come down,
that the mountains might quake at your presence—
2 y as when fire kindles brushwood
and the fire causes water to boil—

to make your name known to your adversaries,
and that the nations might tremble at your presence!
3When you did terrible things which we looked not for,
you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.

4From of old no one has heard
or perceived by the ear,

no eye has seen a God besides you,
who works for those who wait for him.
5You meet him that joyfully works righteousness,
those that remember you in your ways.
Behold, you were angry, and we sinned;
in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved? z
6We have all become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.

We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
7There is no one that calls upon your name,
that bestirs himself to take hold of you;

for you have hidden your face from us,
and have delivereda us into the hand of our iniquities.
8Yet, O LORD, you are our Father;
we are the clay, and you are our potter;

we are all the work of your hand.
9Be not exceedingly angry, O LORD,
and remember not iniquity for ever.

Behold, consider, we are all your people.
10Your holy cities have become a wilderness,
Zion has become a wilderness,

Jerusalem a desolation.
11Our holy and beautiful house,
where our fathers praised you,

has been burned by fire,
and all our pleasant places have become ruins.
12Will you restrain yourself at these things, O LORD?
Will you keep silent, and afflict us sorely?

The Righteousness of God’s Judgment
65 I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me;
I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me.
I said, “Here am I, here am I,”
to a nation that did not call on my name.
2I spread out my hands all the day
to a rebellious people,
who walk in a way that is not good,
following their own devices;
3a people who provoke me
to my face continually,
sacrificing in gardens
and burning incense upon bricks;
4who sit in tombs,
and spend the night in secret places;

who eat swine’s flesh,
and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
5who say, “Keep to yourself,
do not come near me, for I am set apart from you.”

These are a smoke in my nostrils,
a fire that burns all the day.
6Behold, it is written before me:
“I will not keep silent, but I will repay,

yes, I will repay into their bosom
7 theirb iniquities and theirb fathers’ iniquities together,
says the LORD;

because they burned incense upon the mountains
and reviled me upon the hills,
I will measure into their bosom
payment for their former doings.”
“As the wine is found in the cluster,

and they say, ‘Do not destroy it,
for there is a blessing in it,’
so I will do for my servants’ sake,
and not destroy them all.
9I will bring forth descendants from Jacob,
and from Judah inheritors of my mountains;

my chosen shall inherit it,
and my servants shall dwell there.
10Sharon shall become a pasture for flocks,
and the Valley of A'chor a place for herds to lie down,

for my people who have sought me.
11But you who forsake the LORD,
who forget my holy mountain,

who set a table for Fortune
and fill cups of mixed wine for Destiny;
12I will destine you to the sword,
and all of you shall bow down to the slaughter;

because, when I called, you did not answer,
when I spoke, you did not listen,
but you did what was evil in my eyes,
and chose what I did not delight in.”
13Therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
“Behold, my servants shall eat,

but you shall be hungry;
behold, my servants shall drink,
but you shall be thirsty;
behold, my servants shall rejoice,
but you shall be put to shame;
14behold, my servants shall sing for gladness of heart,
but you shall cry out for pain of heart,

and shall wail for anguish of spirit.
15You shall leave your name to my chosen for a curse,
and the Lord GOD will slay you;

but his servants he will call by a different name.
16So that he who blesses himself in the land
shall bless himself by the God of truth,

and he who takes an oath in the land
shall swear by the God of truth;
because the former troubles are forgotten
and are hidden from my eyes.
17“For behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth;

and the former things shall not be remembered
or come into mind.
18But be glad and rejoice for ever
in that which I create;

for behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing,
and her people a joy.
19I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
and be glad in my people;
no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping
and the cry of distress.
20No more shall there be in it
an infant that lives but a few days,

or an old man who does not fill out his days,
for the child shall die a hundred years old,
and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.
21They shall build houses and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

22They shall not build and another inhabit;
they shall not plant and another eat;

for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23They shall not labor in vain,
or bear children for calamity;c

for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the LORD,
and their children with them.
24Before they call I will answer,
while they are yet speaking I will hear.

25The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
the lion shall eat straw like the ox;

and dust shall be the serpent’s food.
They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain,
says the LORD.”
The Judgment of God
Heaven is my throne
and the earth is my footstool;
what is the house which you would build for me,
and what is the place of my rest?
2All these things my hand has made,
and so all these things are mine, d

says the LORD.
But this is the man to whom I will look,
he that is humble and contrite in spirit,
and trembles at my word.
3“He who slaughters an ox is like him who kills a man;
he who sacrifices a lamb, like him who breaks a dog’s neck;

he who presents a cereal offering, like him who offers swine’s blood;
he who makes a memorial offering of frankincense, like him who
blesses an idol.
These have chosen their own ways,
and their soul delights in their abominations;
4I also will choose affliction for them,
and bring their fears upon them;

because, when I called, no one answered,
when I spoke they did not listen;
but they did what was evil in my eyes,
and chose that in which I did not delight.”
5Hear the word of the LORD,
you who tremble at his word:

“Your brethren who hate you
and cast you out for my name’s sake
have said, ‘Let the LORD be glorified,
that we may see your joy’;
but it is they who shall be put to shame.
6“Listen, an uproar from the city!
A voice from the temple!

The voice of the LORD,
rendering recompense to his enemies!
7“Before she was in labor
she gave birth;

before her pain came upon her
she was delivered of a son.
8Who has heard such a thing?
Who has seen such things?

Shall a land be born in one day?
Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment?
For as soon as Zion was in labor
she brought forth her sons.
9Shall I bring to the birth and not cause to bring forth?
says the LORD;
shall I, who cause to bring forth, shut the womb?
says your God.
10“Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her,
all you who love her;

rejoice with her in joy,
all you who mourn over her;
11that you may suck and be satisfied
with her consoling breasts;

that you may drink deeply with delight
from the abundance of her glory.”
“Behold, I will extend prosperity to her like a river,

and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream;
and you shall suck, you shall be carried upon her hip,
and fondled upon her knees.
13As one whom his mother comforts,
so I will comfort you;

you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
14You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice;
your bones shall flourish like the grass;

and it shall be known that the hand of the LORD is with his servants,
and his indignation is against his enemies.
15“For behold, the LORD will come in fire,
and his chariots like the stormwind,

to render his anger in fury,
and his rebuke with flames of fire.
16For by fire will the LORD execute judgment,
and by his sword, upon all flesh;

and those slain by the LORD shall be many.
17 “Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go into the gardens,
following one in the midst, eating swine’s flesh and the abomination and
mice, shall come to an end together, says the LORD.
The New Heavens and New Earth
18 “For I knowe their works and their thoughts, and I amf coming to
gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and shall see my glory,
19and I will set a sign among them. And from them I will send survivors to
the nations, to Tar'shish, Put,g and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tu'bal and
Ja'van, to the islands afar off, that have not heard my fame or seen my
glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations. 20And they shall
bring all your brethren from all the nations as an offering to the LORD, upon
horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon
dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says the LORD, just as the
sons of Israel bring their cereal offering in a clean vessel to the house of the
LORD. 21And some of them also I will take for priests and for Levites, says
the LORD.
22 “For as the new heavens and the new earth
which I will make

shall remain before me, says the LORD;
so shall your descendants and your name remain.
23From new moon to new moon,
and from sabbath to sabbath,

all flesh shall come to worship before me,
says the LORD.
24 “And they shall go forth and look on the dead bodies of the men that
have rebelled against me; for their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be
quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.”
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Jeremiah
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52
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THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH
Introduction
1* The words of Jeremi'ah, the son of Hilki'ah, of the priests who were
in An'athoth in the land of Benjamin, 2to whom the word of the LORD came
in the days of Josi'ah the son of A'mon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year
of his reign. 3It came also in the days of Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king
of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of Zedeki'ah, the son of
Josiah, king of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.
Jeremiah’s Call and Commission
4 Now the word of the LORD came to me saying,
5“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;

I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
6Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I
am only a youth.” * 7But the LORD said to me,

“Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’;
for to all to whom I send you you shall go,
and whatever I command you you shall speak.
8Be not afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,

says the LORD.”
9Then the LORD put forth his hand and touched my mouth; and the LORD
said to me,
“Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.
10See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to break down,

to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.”
11 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Jeremi'ah, what do
you see?” And I said, “I see a rod of almond.” a 12Then the LORD said to
me, “You have seen well, for I am watchingb over my word to perform it.”
13 The word of the LORD came to me a second time, saying, “What do
you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling pot, facing away from the north.”
14Then the LORD said to me, “Out of the north evil shall break forth upon all
the inhabitants of the land. 15For, behold, I am calling all the tribes of the
kingdoms of the north, says the LORD; and they shall come and every one
shall set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its
walls round about, and against all the cities of Judah. 16And I will utter my
judgments against them, for all their wickedness in forsaking me; they have
burned incense to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands.
17But you, gird up your loins; arise, and say to them everything that I
command you. Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them.
18And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and
bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its princes,
its priests, and the people of the land. 19They will fight against you; but they
shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, says the LORD, to deliver
you.”
Israel’s Apostasy
2 The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2“Go and proclaim in the
hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the LORD,
I remember the devotion of your youth,
your love as a bride,
how you followed me in the wilderness,
in a land not sown.
3Israel was holy to the LORD,
the first fruits of his harvest.

All who ate of it became guilty;
evil came upon them,
says the LORD.”
4 Hear the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the
house of Israel. 5Thus says the LORD:
“What wrong did your fathers find in me
that they went far from me,
and went after worthlessness, and became worthless?
6They did not say, ‘Where is the LORD
who brought us up from the land of Egypt,

who led us in the wilderness,
in a land of deserts and pits,
in a land of drought and deep darkness,
in a land that none passes through,
where no man dwells?’
7And I brought you into a plentiful land
to enjoy its fruits and its good things.
But when you came in you defiled my land,
and made my heritage an abomination.
8The priests did not say, ‘Where is the LORD?’
Those who handle the law did not know me;

the rulersc transgressed against me;
the prophets prophesied by Ba'al,
and went after things that do not profit.
9“Therefore I still contend with you,
says the LORD,
and with your children’s children I will contend.
10For cross to the coasts of Cyprus and see,
or send to Kedar and examine with care;

see if there has been such a thing.
11Has a nation changed its gods,
even though they are no gods?

But my people have changed their glory
for that which does not profit.
12Be appalled, O heavens, at this,
be shocked, be utterly desolate,
says the LORD,
13for my people have committed two evils:
they have forsaken me,

the fountain of living waters,
and hewed out cisterns for themselves,
broken cisterns,
that can hold no water.
14“Is Israel a slave? Is he a homeborn servant?
Why then has he become a prey?

15The lions have roared against him,
they have roared loudly.

They have made his land a waste;
his cities are in ruins, without inhabitant.
16Moreover, the men of Memphis and Tah'panhes
have broken the crown of your head.
17Have you not brought this upon yourself
by forsaking the LORD your God,
when he led you in the way?
18And now what do you gain by going to Egypt,
to drink the waters of the Nile?
Or what do you gain by going to Assyria,
to drink the waters of the Euphra'tes?
19Your wickedness will chasten you,
and your apostasy will reprove you.
Know and see that it is evil and bitter
for you to forsake the LORD your God;
the fear of me is not in you,
says the Lord GOD of hosts.
20“For long ago you broke your yoke
and burst your bonds;

and you said, ‘I will not serve.’
Yes, upon every high hill
and under every green tree
you bowed down as a harlot.
21Yet I planted you a choice vine,
wholly of pure seed.

How then have you turned degenerate
and become a wild vine?
22Though you wash yourself with lye
and use much soap,
the stain of your guilt is still before me,
says the Lord GOD.
23How can you say, ‘I am not defiled,
I have not gone after the Ba'als’?

Look at your way in the valley;
know what you have done—
a restive young camel interlacing her tracks,
24 a wild donkey used to the wilderness,
in her heat sniffing the wind!

Who can restrain her lust?
None who seek her need weary themselves;
in her month they will find her.
25Keep your feet from going unshod
and your throat from thirst.
But you said, ‘It is hopeless,
for I have loved strangers,
and after them I will go.’
26“As a thief is shamed when caught,
so the house of Israel shall be shamed:

they, their kings, their princes,
their priests, and their prophets,
27who say to a tree, ‘You are my father,’
and to a stone, ‘You gave me birth.’

For they have turned their back to me,
and not their face.
But in the time of their trouble they say,
‘Arise and save us!’
28But where are your gods
that you made for yourself?

Let them arise, if they can save you,
in your time of trouble;
for as many as your cities
are your gods, O Judah.
29“Why do you complain against me?
You have all rebelled against me,
says the LORD.
30In vain have I struck down your children,
they took no correction;

your own sword devoured your prophets
like a ravening lion.
31And you, O generation, heed the word of the LORD.
Have I been a wilderness to Israel,

or a land of thick darkness?
Why then do my people say, ‘We are free,
we will come no more to you’?
32Can a maiden forget her ornaments,
or a bride her attire?
Yet my people have forgotten me
days without number.
33“How well you direct your course
to seek lovers!
So that even to wicked women
you have taught your ways.
34Also on your skirts is found
the lifeblood of guiltless poor;
you did not find them breaking in.
Yet in spite of all these things
35you say, ‘I am innocent;
surely his anger has turned from me.’

Behold, I will bring you to judgment
for saying, ‘I have not sinned.’
36How lightly you gad about,
changing your way!

You shall be put to shame by Egypt
as you were put to shame by Assyria.
37From it too you will come away
with your hands upon your head,

for the LORD has rejected those in whom you trust,
and you will not prosper by them.
Unfaithful Israel
3 “Ifd a man divorces his wife
and she goes from him
and becomes another man’s wife,
will he return to her?
Would not that land be greatly polluted?
You have played the harlot with many lovers;
and would you return to me?
says the LORD.
2Lift up your eyes to the bare heights, and see!
Where have you not been lain with?

By the waysides you have sat awaiting lovers
like an Arab in the wilderness.
You have polluted the land
with your vile harlotry.
3Therefore the showers have been withheld,
and the spring rain has not come;

yet you have a harlot’s brow,
you refuse to be ashamed.
4Have you not just now called to me,
‘My father, you are the friend of my youth—

5will he be angry for ever,
will he be indignant to the end?’
Behold, you have spoken,
but you have done all the evil that you could.”
A Call to Repentance
6 The LORD said to me in the days of King Josi'ah: “Have you seen what
she did, that faithless one, Israel, how she went up on every high hill and
under every green tree, and there played the harlot? 7And I thought, ‘After
she has done all this she will return to me’; but she did not return, and her
false sister Judah saw it. 8She saw that for all the adulteries of that faithless
one, Israel, I had sent her away with a decree of divorce; yet her false sister
Judah did not fear, but she too went and played the harlot. 9Because harlotry
was so light to her, she polluted the land, committing adultery with stone
and tree. 10Yet for all this her false sister Judah did not return to me with her
whole heart, but in pretense, says the LORD.”
11 And the LORD said to me, “Faithless Israel has shown herself less
guilty than false Judah. 12Go, and proclaim these words toward the north,
and say,
‘Return, faithless Israel,
says the LORD.
I will not look on you in anger,
for I am merciful,
says the LORD;
I will not be angry for ever.
13Only acknowledge your guilt,
that you rebelled against the LORD your God

and scattered your favors among strangers under every green tree,
and that you have not obeyed my voice,
says the LORD.
14Return, O faithless children,
says the LORD;
for I am your master;
I will take you, one from a city and two from a family,
and I will bring you to Zion.
15 “ ‘And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed
you with knowledge and understanding. 16And when you have multiplied
and increased in the land, in those days, says the LORD, they shall no more
say, “The ark of the covenant of the LORD.” It shall not come to mind, or be
remembered, or missed; it shall not be made again. * 17At that time
Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the LORD, and all nations shall gather
to it, to the presence of the LORD in Jerusalem, and they shall no more
stubbornly follow their own evil heart. 18In those days the house of Judah
shall join the house of Israel, and together they shall come from the land of
the north to the land that I gave your fathers for a heritage.
19“ ‘I thought
how I would set you among my sons,

and give you a pleasant land,
a heritage most beauteous of all nations.
And I thought you would call me, My Father,
and would not turn from following me.
20Surely, as a faithless wife leaves her husband,
so have you been faithless to me, O house of Israel,

says the LORD.’ ”
21A voice on the bare heights is heard,
the weeping and pleading of Israel’s sons,

because they have perverted their way,
they have forgotten the LORD their God.
22“Return, O faithless sons,
I will heal your faithlessness.”

“Behold, we come to you;
for you are the LORD our God.
23Truly the hills are a delusion,
the orgies on the mountains.
Truly in the LORD our God
is the salvation of Israel.
24 “But from our youth the shameful thing has devoured all for which
our fathers labored, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their
daughters. 25Let us lie down in our shame, and let our dishonor cover us;
for we have sinned against the LORD our God, we and our fathers, from our
youth even to this day; and we have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our
God.”
4 “If you return, O Israel,
says the LORD,
to me you should return.
If you remove your abominations from my presence,
and do not waver,
2and if you swear, ‘As the LORD lives,’
in truth, in justice, and in uprightness,

then nations shall bless themselves in him,
and in him shall they glory.”
3 For thus says the LORD to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of
Jerusalem:
“Break up your fallow ground,
and sow not among thorns.
4Circumcise yourselves to the LORD,
remove the foreskin of your hearts,

O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;
lest my wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
because of the evil of your doings.”
Judah Threatened with Invasion
5 Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say,
“Blow the trumpet through the land;
cry aloud and say,
‘Assemble, and let us go
into the fortified cities!’
6Raise a standard toward Zion,
flee for safety, stay not,

for I bring evil from the north,
and great destruction.
7A lion has gone up from his thicket,
a destroyer of nations has set out;

he has gone forth from his place
to make your land a waste;
your cities will be ruins
without inhabitant.
8For this clothe yourself with sackcloth,
lament and wail;

for the fierce anger of the LORD
has not turned back from us.”
9 “In that day, says the LORD, courage shall fail both king and princes;
the priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded.” 10Then I said,
“Ah, Lord GOD, surely you have utterly deceived this people and
Jerusalem, saying, ‘It shall be well with you’; whereas the sword has
reached their very life.”
11 At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A hot wind
from the bare heights in the desert toward the daughter of my people, not to
winnow or cleanse, 12a wind too full for this comes for me. Now it is I who
speak in judgment upon them.”
13Behold, he comes up like clouds,
his chariots like the whirlwind;

his horses are swifter than eagles—
woe to us, for we are ruined!
14O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness,
that you may be saved.
How long shall your evil thoughts
lodge within you?
15For a voice declares from Dan
and proclaims evil from Mount E'phraim.

16Warn the nations that he is coming;
announce to Jerusalem,
“Besiegers come from a distant land;
they shout against the cities of Judah.
17Like keepers of a field they are against her round about,
because she has rebelled against me,
says the LORD.
18Your ways and your doings
have brought this upon you.

This is your doom, and it is bitter;
it has reached your very heart.”
19My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!
Oh, the walls of my heart!
My heart is beating wildly;
I cannot keep silent;
for I hear the sound of the trumpet,
the alarm of war.
20Disaster follows hard on disaster,
the whole land is laid waste.
Suddenly my tents are destroyed,
my curtains in a moment.
21How long must I see the standard,
and hear the sound of the trumpet?

22“For my people are foolish,
they know me not;

they are stupid children,
they have no understanding.
They are skilled in doing evil,
but how to do good they know not.”
23I looked on the earth, and behold, it was waste and void;
and to the heavens, and they had no light.

24I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking,
and all the hills moved back and forth.
25I looked, and behold, there was no man,
and all the birds of the air had fled.

26I looked, and behold, the fruitful land was a desert,
and all its cities were laid in ruins

before the LORD, before his fierce anger.
27 For thus says the LORD, “The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I
will not make a full end.
28For this the earth shall mourn,
and the heavens above be black,

for I have spoken, I have planned;
I have not relented nor will I turn back.”
29At the noise of horseman and archer
every city takes to flight;

they enter thickets; they climb among rocks;
all the cities are forsaken,
and no man dwells in them.
30And you, O desolate one,
what do you mean that you dress in scarlet,

that you deck yourself with ornaments of gold,
that you enlarge your eyes with paint?
In vain you beautify yourself.
Your lovers despise you;
they seek your life.
31For I heard a cry as of a woman with labor pains,
anguish as of one bringing forth her first child,

the cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath,
stretching out her hands,
“Woe is me! I am fainting before murderers.”
The Godlessness of Jerusalem
5 Run back and forth through the streets of Jerusalem,
look and take note!
Search her squares to see
if you can find a man,
one who does justice
and seeks truth;
that I may pardon her.
2Though they say, “As the LORD lives,”
yet they swear falsely.

3O LORD, do not your eyes look for truth?
You have struck them down,

but they felt no anguish;
you have consumed them,
but they refused to take correction.
They have made their faces harder than rock;
they have refused to repent.
4Then I said, “These are only the poor,
they have no sense;

for they do not know the way of the LORD,
the law of their God.
5I will go to the great,
and will speak to them;

for they know the way of the LORD,
the law of their God.”
But they all alike had broken the yoke,
they had burst the bonds.
6Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them,
a wolf from the desert shall destroy them.

A leopard is watching against their cities,
every one who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces;
because their transgressions are many,
their apostasies are great.
7“How can I pardon you?
Your children have forsaken me,

and have sworn by those who are no gods.
When I fed them to the full,
they committed adultery
and trooped to the houses of harlots.
8They were well-fed lusty stallions,
each neighing for his neighbor’s wife.
9Shall I not punish them for these things?
says the LORD;

and shall I not avenge myself
on a nation such as this?
10“Go up through her vine-rows and destroy,
but make not a full end;

strip away her branches,
for they are not the LORD’s.
11For the house of Israel and the house of Judah
have been utterly faithless to me,
says the LORD.
12They have spoken falsely of the LORD,
and have said, ‘He will do nothing;
no evil will come upon us,
nor shall we see sword or famine.
13The prophets will become wind;
the word is not in them.

Thus shall it be done to them!’ ”
14Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts:
“Because theye have spoken this word,
behold, I am making my words in your mouth a fire,
and this people wood, and the fire shall devour them.
15Behold, I am bringing upon you
a nation from afar, O house of Israel,
says the LORD.
It is an enduring nation,
it is an ancient nation,
a nation whose language you do not know,
nor can you understand what they say.
16Their quiver is like an open tomb,
they are all mighty men.

17They shall eat up your harvest and your food;
they shall eat up your sons and your daughters;

they shall eat up your flocks and your herds;
they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees;
your fortified cities in which you trust
they shall destroy with the sword.”
18 “But even in those days, says the LORD, I will not make a full end of
you. 19And when your people say, ‘Why has the LORD our God done all
these things to us?’ you shall say to them, ‘As you have forsaken me and
served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve strangers in a land that
is not yours.’ ”
20Declare this in the house of Jacob,
proclaim it in Judah:
21“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people,
who have eyes, but see not,

who have ears, but hear not.
22Do you not fear me? says the LORD;
Do you not tremble before me?

I placed the sand as the bound for the sea,
a perpetual barrier which it cannot pass;
though the waves toss, they cannot prevail,
though they roar, they cannot pass over it.
23But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart;
they have turned aside and gone away.

24They do not say in their hearts,
‘Let us fear the LORD our God,

who gives the rain in its season,
the autumn rain and the spring rain,
and keeps for us
the weeks appointed for the harvest.’
25Your iniquities have turned these away,
and your sins have kept good from you.

26For wicked men are found among my people;
they lurk like fowlers lying in wait.f

They set a trap;
they catch men.
27Like a basket full of birds,
their houses are full of treachery;

therefore they have become great and rich,
28 they have grown fat and sleek.
They know no bounds in deeds of wickedness;

they judge not with justice
the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper,
and they do not defend the rights of the needy.
29Shall I not punish them for these things?
says the LORD,

on a nation such as this?”
30An appalling and horrible thing
has happened in the land:

31the prophets prophesy falsely,
and the priests rule at their direction;

my people love to have it so,
but what will you do when the end comes?
A Warning to Judah
6 Flee for safety, O people of Benjamin,
from the midst of Jerusalem!
Blow the trumpet in Teko'a,
and raise a signal on Beth''-hacche'rem;
for evil looms out of the north,
and great destruction.
2The comely and delicately bred I will destroy,
the daughter of Zion.

3Shepherds with their flocks shall come against her;
they shall pitch their tents around her,

they shall pasture, each in his place.
4“Prepare war against her;
up, and let us attack at noon!”

“Woe to us, for the day declines,
for the shadows of evening lengthen!”
5“Up, and let us attack by night,
and destroy her palaces!”

6For thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Hew down her trees;

cast up a siege mound against Jerusalem.
This is the city which must be punished;
there is nothing but oppression within her.
7As a well keeps its water fresh,
so she keeps fresh her wickedness;

violence and destruction are heard within her;
sickness and wounds are ever before me.
8Be warned, O Jerusalem,
lest I be alienated from you;
lest I make you a desolation,
an uninhabited land.”
9Thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Gleang thoroughly as a vine

the remnant of Israel;
like a grape-gatherer pass your hand again
over its branches.”
10To whom shall I speak and give warning,
that they may hear?

Behold, their ears are closed,h
they cannot listen;
behold, the word of the LORD is to them an object of scorn,
they take no pleasure in it.
11Therefore I am full of the wrath of the LORD;
I am weary of holding it in.

“Pour it out upon the children in the street,
and upon the gatherings of young men, also;
both husband and wife shall be taken,
the old folk and the very aged.
12Their houses shall be turned over to others,
their fields and wives together;

for I will stretch out my hand
against the inhabitants of the land,”
says the LORD.
13“For from the least to the greatest of them,
every one is greedy for unjust gain;

and from prophet to priest,
every one deals falsely.
14They have healed the wound of my people lightly,
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’

when there is no peace.
15Were they ashamed when they committed abomination?
No, they were not at all ashamed;

they did not know how to blush.
Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;
at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown,”
says the LORD.
“Stand by the roads, and look,

and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
17I set watchmen over you, saying,
‘Give heed to the sound of the trumpet!’

But they said, ‘We will not give heed.’
18Therefore hear, O nations,
and know, O congregation, what will happen to them.

19Hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing evil upon this people,
the fruit of their devices,

because they have not given heed to my words;
and as for my law, they have rejected it.
20To what purpose does frankincense come to me from Sheba,
or sweet cane from a distant land?

Your burnt offerings are not acceptable,
nor your sacrifices pleasing to me.
21Therefore thus says the LORD:
‘Behold, I will lay before this people

stumbling blocks against which they shall stumble;
fathers and sons together,
neighbor and friend shall perish.’ ”
“Behold, a people is coming from the north country,

a great nation is stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
23They lay hold on bow and spear,
they are cruel and have no mercy,

the sound of them is like the roaring sea;
they ride upon horses,
set in array as a man for battle,
against you, O daughter of Zion!”
24We have heard the report of it,
our hands fall helpless;
anguish has taken hold of us,
pain as of a woman with labor pains.
25Go not forth into the field,
nor walk on the road;

for the enemy has a sword,
terror is on every side.
26O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth,
and roll in ashes;

make mourning as for an only son,
most bitter lamentation;
for suddenly the destroyer
will come upon us.
27“I have made you an assayer and tester among my people,
that you may know and assay their ways.

28They are all stubbornly rebellious,
going about with slanders;

they are bronze and iron,
all of them act corruptly.
29The bellows blow fiercely,
the lead is consumed by the fire;

in vain the refining goes on,
for the wicked are not removed.
30Refuse silver they are called,
for the LORD has rejected them.”

Impending Punishment of Judah
7 The word that came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD: 2“Stand in the gate of
the LORD’s house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of
the LORD, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the LORD.
3Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your
doings, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4Do not trust in these
deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD,
the temple of the LORD.’ *
5 “For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly
execute justice one with another, 6if you do not oppress the alien, the
fatherless or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do
not go after other gods to your own hurt, 7then I will let you dwell in this
place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers for ever.
8 “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. 9Will you steal,
murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Ba'al, and go after
other gods that you have not known, 10and then come and stand before me
in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—
only to go on doing all these abominations? 11Has this house, which is
called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself
have seen it, says the LORD. 12Go now to my place that was in Shiloh,
where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it for the
wickedness of my people Israel. 13And now, because you have done all
these things, says the LORD, and when I spoke to you persistently you did
not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer, 14therefore I will do
to the house which is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the
place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. 15And I
will cast you out of my sight, as I cast out all your kinsmen, all the offspring
of E'phraim.
The People’s Disobedience
16 “As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up cry or prayer for
them, and do not intercede with me, for I do not hear you. 17Do you not see
what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
18The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead
dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and they pour out drink
offerings to other gods, to provoke me to anger. 19Is it I whom they
provoke? says the LORD. Is it not themselves, to their own confusion?
20Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, my anger and my wrath will
be poured out on this place, upon man and beast, upon the trees of the field
and the fruit of the ground; it will burn and not be quenched.”
21 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Add your burnt
offerings to your sacrifices, and eat the flesh. 22For in the day that I brought
them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command
them concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23But this command I gave
them, ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people;
and walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’
24But they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own
counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and went backward and
not forward. 25From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt
to this day, I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day
after day; 26yet they did not listen to me, or incline their ear, but stiffened
their neck. They did worse than their fathers.
27 “So you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to
you. You shall call to them, but they will not answer you. 28And you shall
say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the LORD their
God, and did not accept discipline; truth has perished; it is cut off from their
lips.
29Cut off your hair and cast it away;
raise a lamentation on the bare heights,

for the LORD has rejected and forsaken
the generation of his wrath.’
30 “For the sons of Judah have done evil in my sight, says the LORD; they
have set their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to
defile it. 31And they have built the high placei of To'pheth, which is in the
valley of the son of Hin'nom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the
fire; which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind. 32Therefore,
behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when it will no more be called
To'pheth, or the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of Slaughter:
for they will bury in Topheth, because there is no room elsewhere. 33And
the dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air, and for
the beasts of the earth; and none will frighten them away. 34And I will make
to cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice
of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the
voice of the bride; for the land shall become a waste.
A Lament for Judah
8 “At that time, says the LORD, the bones of the kings of Judah, the
bones of its princes, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and
the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be brought out of their
tombs; 2and they shall be spread before the sun and the moon and all the
host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone
after, and which they have sought and worshiped; and they shall not be
gathered or buried; they shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.
3Death shall be preferred to life by all the remnant that remains of this evil
family in all the places where I have driven them, says the LORD of hosts.
4“You shall say to them, Thus says the LORD:
When men fall, do they not rise again?
If one turns away, does he not return?
5Why then has this people turned away
in perpetual backsliding?
They hold fast to deceit,
they refuse to return.
6I have given heed and listened,
but they have not spoken rightly;

no man repents of his wickedness,
saying, ‘What have I done?’
Every one turns to his own course,
like a horse plunging headlong into battle.
7Even the stork in the heavens
knows her times;

and the turtledove, swallow, and cranej
keep the time of their coming;
but my people know not
the ordinance of the LORD. *
8“How can you say, ‘We are wise,
and the law of the LORD is with us’?
But, behold, the false pen of the scribes
has made it into a lie.
9The wise men shall be put to shame,
they shall be dismayed and taken;

behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD,
and what wisdom is in them?
10Therefore I will give their wives to others
and their fields to conquerors,

because from the least to the greatest
every one is greedy for unjust gain;
from prophet to priest
every one deals falsely.
11They have healed the wound of my people lightly,
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
when there is no peace.
12Were they ashamed when they committed abomination?
No, they were not at all ashamed;
they did not know how to blush.
Therefore they shall fall among the fallen;
when I punish them, they shall be overthrown,
says the LORD.
13When I would gather them, says the LORD,
there are no grapes on the vine,

nor figs on the fig tree;
even the leaves are withered,
and what I gave them has passed away from them.” k
14Why do we sit still?
Gather together, let us go into the fortified cities
and perish there;
for the LORD our God has doomed us to perish,
and has given us poisoned water to drink,
because we have sinned against the LORD.
15We looked for peace, but no good came,
for a time of healing, but behold, terror.

16“The snorting of their horses is heard from Dan;
at the sound of the neighing of their stallions

the whole land quakes.
They come and devour the land and all that fills it,
the city and those who dwell in it.
17For behold, I am sending among you serpents,
adders which cannot be charmed,

and they shall bite you,”
says the LORD.
18My grief is beyond healing,l
my heart is sick within me.

19Listen, the cry of the daughter of my people
from the length and breadth of the land:
“Is the LORD not in Zion?
Is her King not in her?”
“Why have they provoked me to anger with their graven images,
and with their foreign idols?”
20“The harvest is past, the summer is ended,
and we are not saved.”

21For the wound of the daughter of my people my heart is wounded,
I mourn, and dismay has taken hold on me.

22Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why then has the health of the daughter of my people
not been restored?
9 m O that my head were waters,
and my eyes a fountain of tears,
that I might weep day and night
for the slain of the daughter of my people!
2n O that I had in the desert
a wayfarers’ lodging place,

that I might leave my people
and go away from them!
For they are all adulterers,
a company of treacherous men.
3They bend their tongue like a bow;
falsehood and not truth has grown strongo in the land;

for they proceed from evil to evil,
and they do not know me, says the LORD.
4Let every one beware of his neighbor,
and put no trust in any brother;

for every brother is a supplanter,
and every neighbor goes about as a slanderer.
5Every one deceives his neighbor,
and no one speaks the truth;

they have taught their tongue to speak lies;
they commit iniquity and are too weary to repent.p
6Heaping oppression upon oppression, and deceit upon deceit,
they refuse to know me, says the LORD.
7Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Behold, I will refine them and test them,

for what else can I do, because of my people?
8Their tongue is a deadly arrow;
it speaks deceitfully;
with his mouth each speaks peaceably to his neighbor,
but in his heart he plans an ambush for him.
9Shall I not punish them for these things? says the LORD;

on a nation such as this?
10“Take upq weeping and wailing for the mountains,
and a lamentation for the pastures of the wilderness,

because they are laid waste so that no one passes through,
and the lowing of cattle is not heard;
both the birds of the air and the beasts
have fled and are gone.
11I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins,
a lair of jackals;
and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation,
without inhabitant.”
12 Who is the man so wise that he can understand this? To whom has the
mouth of the LORD spoken, that he may declare it? Why is the land ruined
and laid waste like a wilderness, so that no one passes through? 13And the
LORD says: “Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them,
and have not obeyed my voice, or walked in accord with it, 14but have
stubbornly followed their own hearts and have gone after the Ba'als, as their
fathers taught them. 15Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel: Behold, I will feed this people with wormwood, and give them
poisonous water to drink. 16I will scatter them among the nations whom
neither they nor their fathers have known; and I will send the sword after
them, until I have consumed them.”
17Thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Consider, and call for the mourning women to come;

send for the skilful women to come;
18let them make haste and raise a wailing over us,
that our eyes may run down with tears,
and our eyelids gush with water.
19For a sound of wailing is heard from Zion:
‘How we are ruined!

We are utterly shamed,
because we have left the land,
because they have cast down our dwellings.’ ”
20Hear, O women, the word of the LORD,
and let your ear receive the word of his mouth;

teach to your daughters a lament,
and each to her neighbor a dirge.
21For death has come up into our windows,
it has entered our palaces,

cutting off the children from the streets
and the young men from the squares.
22Speak, “Thus says the LORD:
‘The dead bodies of men shall fall

like dung upon the open field,
like sheaves after the reaper,
and none shall gather them.’ ”
23 Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not
the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches;
24but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me,
that I am the LORD who practice steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in
the earth; for in these things I delight, says the LORD.” *
25 “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will punish all
those who are circumcised but yet uncircumcised— 26Egypt, Judah, E'dom,
the sons of Ammon, Moab, and all who dwell in the desert that cut the
corners of their hair; for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the
house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”
Idolatry Has Brought Ruin on Israel
10 Hear the word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel.
“Learn not the way of the nations,
nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens
because the nations are dismayed at them,
3for the customs of the peoples are false.
A tree from the forest is cut down,

and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman.
4Men deck it with silver and gold;
they fasten it with hammer and nails

so that it cannot move.
5Their idolsr are like scarecrows in a cucumber field,
and they cannot speak;

they have to be carried,
for they cannot walk.
Be not afraid of them,
for they cannot do evil,
neither is it in them to do good.”
6There is none like you, O LORD;
you are great, and your name is great in might.

7Who would not fear you, O King of the nations?
For this is your due;

for among all the wise ones of the nations
and in all their kingdoms
there is none like you.
8They are both stupid and foolish;
the instruction of idols is but wood!

9Beaten silver is brought from Tar'shish,
and gold from U'phaz.

They are the work of the craftsman and of the hands of the goldsmith;
their clothing is violet and purple;
they are all the work of skilled men.
10But the LORD is the true God;
he is the living God and the everlasting King.

At his wrath the earth quakes,
and the nations cannot endure his indignation.
11 Thus shall you say to them: “The gods who did not make the heavens
and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.” s
12It is he who made the earth by his power,
who established the world by his wisdom,

and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.
13When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
14Every man is stupid and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols;

for his images are false,
and there is no breath in them.
15They are worthless, a work of delusion;
at the time of their punishment they shall perish.

16Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,
for he is the one who formed all things,

and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
17Gather up your bundle from the ground,
O you who dwell under siege!

“Behold, I am slinging out the inhabitants of the land

at this time,
and I will bring distress on them,
that they may feel it.”
19Woe is me because of my hurt!
My wound is grievous.
But I said, “Truly this is an affliction,
and I must bear it.”
20My tent is destroyed,
and all my cords are broken;

my children have gone from me,
and they are not;
there is no one to spread my tent again,
and to set up my curtains.
21For the shepherds are stupid,
and do not inquire of the LORD;
therefore they have not prospered,
and all their flock is scattered.
22Listen, a rumor! Behold, it comes!—
a great commotion out of the north country

to make the cities of Judah a desolation,
a lair of jackals.
23Iknow, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself,
that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.
24Correct me, O LORD, but in just measure;
not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.

25Pour out your wrath upon the nations that know you not,
and upon the peoples that call not on your name;

for they have devoured Jacob;
they have devoured him and consumed him,
and have laid waste his habitation.
Israel and Judah Have Broken the Covenant
11 The word that came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD: 2“Hear the words of
this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem. 3You shall say to them, Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel:
Cursed be the man who does not heed the words of this covenant 4which I
commanded your fathers when I brought them out of the land of Egypt,
from the iron furnace, saying, Listen to my voice, and do all that I
command you. So shall you be my people, and I will be your God, 5that I
may perform the oath which I swore to your fathers, to give them a land
flowing with milk and honey, as at this day.” Then I answered, “So be it,
LORD.”
6 And the LORD said to me, “Proclaim all these words in the cities of
Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: Hear the words of this covenant and
do them. 7For I solemnly warned your fathers when I brought them up out
of the land of Egypt, warning them persistently, even to this day, saying,
Obey my voice. 8Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but every one
walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore I brought upon them
all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did
not.”
9 Again the LORD said to me, “There is revolt among the men of Judah
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10They have turned back to the iniquities
of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words; they have gone after
other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have
broken my covenant which I made with their fathers. 11Therefore, thus says
the LORD, Behold, I am bringing evil upon them which they cannot escape;
though they cry to me, I will not listen to them. 12Then the cities of Judah
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they
burn incense, but they cannot save them in the time of their trouble. 13For
your gods have become as many as your cities, O Judah; and as many as the
streets of Jerusalem are the altars you have set up to shame, altars to burn
incense to Ba'al.
14 “Therefore do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer on
their behalf, for I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their
trouble. 15What right has my beloved in my house, when she has done vile
deeds? Can vowst and sacrificial flesh avert your doom? Can you then
exult? 16The LORD once called you, ‘A green olive tree, fair with excellent
fruit’; but with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its
branches will be consumed. 17The LORD of hosts, who planted you, has
pronounced evil against you, because of the evil which the house of Israel
and the house of Judah have done, provoking me to anger by burning
incense to Ba'al.”
18The LORD made it known to me and I knew;
then you showed me their evil deeds.

19But I was like a gentle lamb
led to the slaughter.

I did not know it was against me
they devised schemes, saying,
“Let us destroy the tree with its fruit,
let us cut him off from the land of the living,
that his name be remembered no more.”
20But, O LORD of hosts, who judge righteously,
who test the heart and the mind,

let me see your vengeance upon them,
for to you have I committed my cause.
21 Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the men of An'athoth, who
seek your life, and say, “Do not prophesy in the name of the LORD, or you
will die by our hand”— 22therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I
will punish them; the young men shall die by the sword; their sons and their
daughters shall die by famine; 23and none of them shall be left. For I will
bring evil upon the men of An'athoth, the year of their punishment.”
Jeremiah Complains to God
12 Righteous are you, O LORD, when I complain to you;
yet I would plead my case before you.
Why does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why do all who are treacherous thrive?
2You plant them, and they take root;
they grow and bring forth fruit;

you are near in their mouth
and far from their heart.
3But you, O LORD, know me;
you see me, and test my mind toward you.

Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter,
and set them apart for the day of slaughter.
4How long will the land mourn,
and the grass of every field wither?

For the wickedness of those who dwell in it
the beasts and the birds are swept away,
because men said, “He will not see our latter end.”
5“If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you,
how will you compete with horses?

And if in a safe land you fall down,
how will you do in the jungle of the Jordan?
6For even your brothers and the house of your father,
even they have dealt treacherously with you;
they are in full cry after you;
believe them not,
though they speak fair words to you.”
7“I have forsaken my house,
I have abandoned my heritage;
I have given the beloved of my soul
into the hands of her enemies.
8My heritage has become to me
like a lion in the forest,

she has lifted up her voice against me;
therefore I hate her.
9Is my heritage to me like a speckled bird of prey?
Are the birds of prey against her round about?

Go, assemble all the wild beasts;
bring them to devour.
10Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard,
they have trampled down my portion,

they have made my pleasant portion
a desolate wilderness.
11They have made it a desolation;
desolate, it mourns to me.

The whole land is made desolate,
but no man lays it to heart.
12Upon all the bare heights in the desert
destroyers have come;

for the sword of the LORD devours
from one end of the land to the other;
no flesh has peace.
13They have sown wheat and have reaped thorns,
they have tired themselves out but profit nothing.

They shall be ashamed of theiru harvests
because of the fierce anger of the LORD.”
The Lord’s Answer
14 Thus says the LORD concerning all my evil neighbors who touch the
heritage which I have given my people Israel to inherit: “Behold, I will
pluck them up from their land, and I will pluck up the house of Judah from
among them. 15And after I have plucked them up, I will again have
compassion on them, and I will bring them again each to his heritage and
each to his land. 16And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the
ways of my people, to swear by my name, ‘As the LORD lives,’ even as they
taught my people to swear by Ba'al, then they shall be built up in the midst
of my people. 17But if any nation will not listen, then I will utterly pluck it
up and destroy it, says the LORD.”
The Linen Waistcloth
13 * Thus said the LORD to me, “Go and buy a linen waistcloth, and put
it on your loins, and do not dip it in water.” 2So I bought a waistcloth
according to the word of the LORD, and put it on my loins. 3And the word of
the LORD came to me a second time, 4“Take the waistcloth which you have
bought, which is upon your loins, and arise, go to the Euphra'tes, and hide it
there in a cleft of the rock.” 5So I went, and hid it by the Euphra'tes, as the
LORD commanded me. 6And after many days the LORD said to me, “Arise,
go to the Euphra'tes, and take from there the waistcloth which I commanded
you to hide there.” 7Then I went to the Euphra'tes, and dug, and I took the
waistcloth from the place where I had hidden it. And behold, the waistcloth
was spoiled; it was good for nothing.
8 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 9 “Thus says the LORD: Even
so will I spoil the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10This
evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own
heart and have gone after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall
be like this waistcloth, which is good for nothing. 11For as the waistcloth
clings to the loins of a man, so I made the whole house of Israel and the
whole house of Judah cling to me, says the LORD, that they might be for me
a people, a name, a praise, and a glory, but they would not listen.
The Jars Filled with Wine
12 “You shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of
Israel, “Every jar shall be filled with wine.” ’ And they will say to you, ‘Do
we not indeed know that every jar will be filled with wine?’ 13Then you
shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD: Behold, I will fill with drunkenness
all the inhabitants of this land: the kings who sit on David’s throne, the
priests, the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 14And I will dash
them one against another, fathers and sons together, says the LORD. I will
not pity or spare or have compassion, that I should not destroy them.’ ”
15Hear and give ear; be not proud,

16Give glory to the LORD your God
before he brings darkness,
before your feet stumble
on the twilight mountains,
and while you look for light
he turns it into gloom
and makes it deep darkness.
17But if you will not listen,
my soul will weep in secret for your pride;

my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears,
because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive.
18Say to the king and the queen mother:
“Take a lowly seat,

for your beautiful crown
has come down from your head.” v
19The cities of the Neg'eb are shut up,
with none to open them;

all Judah is taken into exile,
wholly taken into exile.
20“Lift up your eyes and see
those who come from the north.
Where is the flock that was given you,
your beautiful flock?
21What will you say when they set as head over you
those whom you yourself have taught

to be friends to you?
Will not pangs take hold of you,
like those of a woman with labor pains?
22And if you say in your heart,
‘Why have these things come upon me?’

it is for the greatness of your iniquity
that your skirts are lifted up,
and you suffer violence.
23Can the Ethiopian change his skin
or the leopard his spots?

Then also you can do good
who are accustomed to do evil.
24I will scatter youw like chaff
driven by the wind from the desert.
25This is your lot,
the portion I have measured out to you, says the LORD,

because you have forgotten me
and trusted in lies.
26I myself will lift up your skirts over your face,
and your shame will be seen.

27I have seen your abominations,
your adulteries and neighings, your lewd harlotries,

on the hills in the field.
Woe to you, O Jerusalem!
How long will it be
before you are made clean?”
The Great Drought
14 The word of the LORD which came to Jeremi'ah concerning the
drought:
2“Judah mourns
and her gates languish;

her people lament on the ground,
and the cry of Jerusalem goes up.
3Her nobles send their servants for water;
they come to the cisterns,

they find no water,
they return with their vessels empty;
they are ashamed and confounded
and cover their heads.
4Because of the ground which is dismayed,
since there is no rain on the land,

the farmers are ashamed,
they cover their heads.
5Even the deer in the field forsakes her newborn fawn
because there is no grass.

6The wild donkeys stand on the bare heights,
they pant for air like jackals;
their eyes fail
because there is no herbage.
7“Though our iniquities testify against us,
act, O LORD, for your name’s sake;
for our backslidings are many,
we have sinned against you.
8O you hope of Israel,
its savior in time of trouble,

why should you be like a stranger in the land,
like a wayfarer who turns aside to linger for a night?
9Why should you be like a man confused,
like a mighty man who cannot save?

Yet you, O LORD, are in the midst of us,
and we are called by your name;
leave us not.”
10Thus says the LORD concerning this people:
“They have loved to wander thus,
they have not restrained their feet;
therefore the LORD does not accept them,
now he will remember their iniquity
and punish their sins.”
11 The LORD said to me: “Do not pray for the welfare of this people.
12Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt
offering and cereal offering, I will not accept them; but I will consume them
by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.”
Denunciation of Lying Prophets; and a Prayer for Mercy
13 Then I said: “Ah, Lord GOD, behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You
shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you
assured peace in this place.’ ” 14And the LORD said to me: “The prophets are
prophesying lies in my name; I did not send them, nor did I command them
or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless
divination, and the deceit of their own minds. 15Therefore thus says the
LORD concerning the prophets who prophesy in my name although I did not
send them, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not come on this land’:
By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed. 16And the people
to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, victims
of famine and sword, with none to bury them—them, their wives, their
sons, and their daughters. For I will pour out their wickedness upon them.
17“You shall say to them this word:
‘Let my eyes run down with tears night and day,

and let them not cease,
for the virgin daughter of my people is struck down with a great wound,
with a very grievous blow.
18If I go out into the field,
behold, those slain by the sword!
And if I enter the city,
behold, the diseases of famine!
For both prophet and priest ply their trade through the land,
and have no knowledge.’ ”
19Have you utterly rejected Judah?
Does your soul loathe Zion?

Why have you struck us down
so that there is no healing for us?
We looked for peace, but no good came;
for a time of healing, but behold, terror.
20We acknowledge our wickedness, O LORD,
and the iniquity of our fathers,

for we have sinned against you.
21Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake;
do not dishonor your glorious throne;

remember and do not break your covenant with us.
22Are there any among the false gods of the nations that can bring rain?
Or can the heavens give showers?

Are you not he, O LORD our God?
We set our hope on you,
for you do all these things.
Anguish and Terror Foretold
15 Then the LORD said to me, “Though Moses and Samuel stood before
me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my
sight, and let them go! 2And when they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ you
shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD:
“Those who are for pestilence, to pestilence,
and those who are for the sword, to the sword;
those who are for famine, to famine,
and those who are for captivity, to captivity.” ’
3“I will appoint over them four kinds of destroyers, says the LORD: the
sword to slay, the dogs to tear, and the birds of the air and the beasts of the
earth to devour and destroy. 4And I will make them a horror to all the
kingdoms of the earth because of what Manas'seh the son of Hezeki'ah,
king of Judah, did in Jerusalem.
5“Who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem,
or who will bemoan you?

Who will turn aside
to ask about your welfare?
6You have rejected me, says the LORD,
you keep going backward;

so I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you;—
I am weary of relenting.
7I have winnowed them with a winnowing fork
in the gates of the land;

I have bereaved them, I have destroyed my people;
they did not turn from their ways.
8I have made their widows more in number
than the sand of the seas;

I have brought against the mothers of young men
a destroyer at noonday;
I have made anguish and terror
fall upon them suddenly.
9She who bore seven has languished;
she has swooned away;

her sun went down while it was yet day;
she has been shamed and disgraced.
And the rest of them I will give to the sword
before their enemies,
says the LORD.”
Jeremiah Pleads Again and Is Reassured
10 Woe is me, my mother, that you bore me, a man of strife and
contention to the whole land! I have not lent, nor have I borrowed, yet all of
them curse me. 11So let it be, O LORD,x if I have not entreatedy you for their
good, if I have not pleaded with you on behalf of the enemy in the time of
trouble and in the time of distress! 12Can one break iron, iron from the
north, and bronze?
13“Your wealth and your treasures I will give as spoil, without price, for
all your sins, throughout all your territory. 14I will make you serve your
enemies in a land which you do not know, for in my anger a fire is kindled
which shall burn for ever.”
15O LORD, you know;
remember me and visit me,

and take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In your forbearance take me not away;
know that for your sake I bear reproach.
16Your words were found, and I ate them,
and your words became to me a joy

and the delight of my heart;
for I am called by your name,
O LORD, God of hosts.
17I did not sit in the company of merrymakers,
nor did I rejoice;

I sat alone, because your hand was upon me,
for you had filled me with indignation.
18Why is my pain unceasing,
my wound incurable,
refusing to be healed?
Will you be to me like a deceitful brook,
like waters that fail?
“If you return, I will restore you,

and you shall stand before me.
If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless,
you shall be as my mouth.
They shall turn to you,
but you shall not turn to them.
20And I will make you to this people
a fortified wall of bronze;

they will fight against you,
but they shall not prevail over you,
for I am with you
to save you and deliver you, says the LORD.
21I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked,
and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.”

Jeremiah’s Celibacy and Message
16 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“You shall not take a wife, nor
shall you have sons or daughters in this place. 3For thus says the LORD
concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and
concerning the mothers who bore them and the fathers who begot them in
this land: 4They shall die of deadly diseases. They shall not be lamented,
nor shall they be buried; they shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.
They shall perish by the sword and by famine, and their dead bodies shall
be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth.
5 “For thus says the LORD: Do not enter the house of mourning, or go to
lament, or bemoan them; for I have taken away my peace from this people,
says the LORD, my steadfast love and mercy. 6Both great and small shall die
in this land; they shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or
cut himself or make himself bald for them. 7No one shall break bread for
the mourner, to comfort him for the dead; nor shall any one give him the
cup of consolation to drink for his father or his mother. 8You shall not go
into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink. 9For thus says
the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will make to cease from this
place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of
gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.
10 “And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you,
‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our
iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the LORD our
God?’ 11then you shall say to them: ‘Because your fathers have forsaken
me, says the LORD, and have gone after other gods and have served and
worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, 12and
because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of
you follows his stubborn evil will, refusing to listen to me; 13therefore I will
hurl you out of this land into a land which neither you nor your fathers have
known, and there you shall serve other gods day and night, for I will show
you no favor.’
God Will Restore Israel
14 “Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when it shall
no longer be said, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the sons of Israel out
of the land of Egypt,’ 15but ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the sons of
Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had
driven them.’ For I will bring them back to their own land which I gave to
their fathers.
16 “Behold, I am sending for many fishers, says the LORD, and they shall
catch them; and afterwards I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt
them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks.
17For my eyes are upon all their ways; they are not hidden from me, nor is
their iniquity concealed from my eyes. 18Andz I will doubly recompense

their iniquity and their sin, because they have polluted my land with the
carcasses of their detestable idols, and have filled my inheritance with their
abominations.”
19O LORD, my strength and my stronghold,
my refuge in the day of trouble,

to you shall the nations come
from the ends of the earth and say:
“Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies,
worthless things in which there is no profit.
20Can man make for himself gods?
Such are no gods!”

21 “Therefore, behold, I will make them know, this once I will make them
know my power and my might, and they shall know that my name is the
LORD.”
Judah’s Sin and Shame
17 “The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron; with a point of
diamond it is engraved on the tablet of their heart, and on the horns of their
altars, 2while their children remember their altars and their Ashe'rim, beside
every green tree, and on the high hills, 3on the mountains in the open
country. Your wealth and all your treasures I will give for spoil as the price
of your sina throughout all your territory. 4You shall loosen your handb from
your heritage which I gave to you, and I will make you serve your enemies
in a land which you do not know, for in my anger a fire is kindled which
shall burn for ever.”
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man

and makes flesh his arm,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.
6He is like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see any good come.

He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.
7“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose trust is the LORD.

8He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,

and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
9The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately corrupt;
who can understand it?
10“I the LORD search the mind
and test the heart,

to give to every man according to his ways,
according to the fruit of his doings.”
11Like the partridge that gathers a brood which she did not hatch,
so is he who gets riches but not by right;
in the midst of his days they will leave him,
and at his end he will be a fool.
12A glorious throne set on high from the beginning
is the place of our sanctuary.
13O LORD, the hope of Israel,
all who forsake you shall be put to shame;

those who turn away from youc shall be written in the earth,
for they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living water.
14Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed;
save me, and I shall be saved;
for you are my praise.
15Behold, they say to me,
“Where is the word of the LORD?

Let it come!”
16I have not pressed you to send evil,
nor have I desired the day of disaster,

you know;
that which came out of my lips
was before your face.
17Be not a terror to me;
you are my refuge in the day of evil.

18Let those be put to shame who persecute me,
but let me not be put to shame;

let them be dismayed,
but let me not be dismayed;
bring upon them the day of evil;
destroy them with double destruction!
19 Thus said the LORD to me: “Go and stand in the Benjamind Gate, by
which the kings of Judah enter and by which they go out, and in all the
gates of Jerusalem, 20and say: ‘Hear the word of the LORD, you kings of
Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who enter by
these gates. 21Thus says the LORD: Take heed for the sake of your lives, and
do not bear a burden on the sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of
Jerusalem. 22And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the sabbath
or do any work, but keep the sabbath day holy, as I commanded your
fathers. 23Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck,
that they might not hear and receive instruction.
24 “ ‘But if you listen to me, says the LORD, and bring in no burden by
the gates of this city on the sabbath day, but keep the sabbath day holy and
do no work on it, 25then there shall enter by the gates of this city kingse who
sit on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their
princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city
shall be inhabited for ever. 26And people shall come from the cities of Judah
and the places round about Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the
Shephe'lah, from the hill country, and from the Neg'eb, bringing burnt
offerings and sacrifices, cereal offerings and frankincense, and bringing
thank offerings to the house of the LORD. 27But if you do not listen to me, to
keep the sabbath day holy, and not to bear a burden and enter by the gates
of Jerusalem on the sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it
shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem and shall not be quenched.’ ”
The Potter and the Clay
18 The word that came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD: 2“Arise, and go
down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear my words.” 3So I
went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel.
4And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and
he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.

5 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 6“O house of Israel, can I not
do with you as this potter has done? says the LORD. Behold, like the clay in
the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. 7If at any time I
declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break
down and destroy it, 8and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken,
turns from its evil, I will repent of the evil that I intended to do to it. 9And if
at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and
plant it, 10and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I
will repent of the good which I had intended to do to it. 11Now, therefore,
say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the
LORD, Behold, I am shaping evil against you and devising a plan against
you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your
doings.’
Israel’s Stubborn Idolatry
12 “But they say, ‘That is in vain! We will follow our own plans, and
everyone will act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.’
13“Therefore thus says the LORD:
Ask among the nations,

who has heard the like of this?
The virgin Israel
has done a very horrible thing.
14Does the snow of Lebanon leave
the crags of Sir'ion? f

Do the mountaing waters run dry,h
the cold flowing streams?
15But my people have forgotten me,
they burn incense to false gods;

they have stumbledi in their ways,
in the ancient roads,
and have gone into bypaths,
not the highway,
16making their land a horror,
a thing to be hissed at for ever.

Every one who passes by it is horrified
and shakes his head.
17Like the east wind I will scatter them
before the enemy.

I will show them my back, not my face,
in the day of their calamity.”
Plots against Jeremiah
18 Then they said, “Come, let us make plots against Jeremi'ah, for the
law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word
from the prophet. Come, let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not
heed any of his words.”
19Give heed to me, O LORD,
and listen to my plea.j

20Is evil a recompense for good?
Yet they have dug a pit for my life.

Remember how I stood before you
to speak good for them,
to turn away your wrath from them.
21Therefore deliver up their children to famine;
give them over to the power of the sword,

let their wives become childless and widowed.
May their men meet death by pestilence,
their youths be slain by the sword in battle.
22May a cry be heard from their houses,
when you bring the marauder suddenly upon them!

For they have dug a pit to take me,
and laid snares for my feet.
23Yet, you, O LORD, know
all their plotting to slay me.

Forgive not their iniquity,
nor blot out their sin from your sight.
Let them be overthrown before you;
deal with them in the time of your anger.
The Broken Earthen Flask
19 Thus said the LORD, “Go, buy a potter’s earthen flask, and take some
of the elders of the people and some of the senior priests, 2and go out to the
valley of the son of Hinnom at the entry of the Potsherd Gate, and proclaim
there the words that I tell you. 3You shall say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD,
O kings of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says the LORD of hosts,
the God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon this place that the
ears of every one who hears of it will tingle. 4Because the people have
forsaken me, and have profaned this place by burning incense in it to other
gods whom neither they nor their fathers nor the kings of Judah have
known; and because they have filled this place with the blood of innocents,
5and have built the high places of Ba'al to burn their sons in the fire as burnt
offerings to Baal, which I did not command or decree, nor did it come into
my mind; 6therefore, behold, days are coming, says the LORD, when this
place shall no more be called To'pheth, or the valley of the son of Hinnom,
but the valley of Slaughter. 7And in this place I will make void the plans of
Judah and Jerusalem, and will cause their people to fall by the sword before
their enemies, and by the hand of those who seek their life. I will give their
dead bodies for food to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the earth.
8And I will make this city a horror, a thing to be hissed at; every one who
passes by it will be horrified and will hiss because of all its disasters. 9And I
will make them eat the flesh of their sons and their daughters, and every one
shall eat the flesh of his neighbor in the siege and in the distress, with which
their enemies and those who seek their life afflict them.’
10 “Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with
you, 11and shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: So will I break
this people and this city, as one breaks a potter’s vessel, so that it can never
be mended. Men shall bury in To'pheth because there will be no place else
to bury. 12Thus will I do to this place, says the LORD, and to its inhabitants,
making this city like To'pheth. 13The houses of Jerusalem and the houses of
the kings of Judah—all the houses upon whose roofs incense has been
burned to all the host of heaven, and drink offerings have been poured out
to other gods—shall be defiled like the place of To'pheth.’ ”
14 Then Jeremi'ah came from To'pheth, where the LORD had sent him to
prophesy, and he stood in the court of the LORD’s house, and said to all the
people: 15“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I am
bringing upon this city and upon all its towns all the evil that I have
pronounced against it, because they have stiffened their neck, refusing to
hear my words.”
Jeremiah Is Persecuted by Pashhur and Complains to God
20 Now Pashhur the priest, the son of Im'mer, who was chief officer in
the house of the LORD, heard Jeremi'ah prophesying these things. 2Then
Pashhur beat Jeremi'ah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in
the upper Benjamin Gate of the house of the LORD. 3On the next day, when
Pashhur released Jeremi'ah from the stocks, Jeremi'ah said to him, “The
LORD does not call your name Pashhur, but Terror on every side. 4For thus
says the LORD: Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your
friends. They shall fall by the sword of their enemies while you look on.
And I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon; he shall
carry them captive to Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword.
5Moreover, I will give all the wealth of the city, all its gains, all its prized
belongings, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah into the hand of their
enemies, who shall plunder them, and seize them, and carry them to
Babylon. 6And you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house, shall go into
captivity; to Babylon you shall go; and there you shall die, and there you
shall be buried, you and all your friends, to whom you have prophesied
falsely.”
7O LORD, you have deceived me,
and I was deceived;

you are stronger than I,
and you have prevailed.
I have become a laughingstock all the day;
every one mocks me.
8For whenever I speak, I cry out,
I shout, “Violence and destruction!”

For the word of the LORD has become for me
a reproach and derision all day long.
9If I say, “I will not mention him,
or speak any more in his name,”

there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones,
and I am weary with holding it in,
and I cannot.
10For I hear many whispering.
Terror is on every side!

“Denounce him! Let us denounce him!”
say all my familiar friends,
watching for my fall.
“Perhaps he will be deceived,
then we can overcome him,
and take our revenge on him.”
11But the LORD is with me as a dread warrior;
therefore my persecutors will stumble,

they will not overcome me.
They will be greatly shamed,
for they will not succeed.
Their eternal dishonor
will never be forgotten.
12O LORD of hosts, who test the righteous,
who see the heart and the mind,
OceanofPDF.com
let me see your vengeance upon them,
for to you have I committed my cause.
13Sing to the LORD;
praise the LORD!

For he has delivered the life of the needy
from the hand of evildoers.
14Cursed be the day
on which I was born!

The day when my mother bore me,
let it not be blessed!
15Cursed be the man
who brought the news to my father,

“A son is born to you,”
making him very glad.
16Let that man be like the cities
which the LORD overthrew without pity;

let him hear a cry in the morning
and an alarm at noon,
17because he did not kill me in the womb;
so my mother would have been my grave,

and her womb for ever great.
18Why did I come forth from the womb
to see toil and sorrow,
and spend my days in shame?
21 This is the word which came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD, when King
Zedeki'ah sent to him Pashhur the son of Malchi'ah and Zephani'ah the
priest, the son of Ma-asei'ah, saying, 2“Inquire of the LORD for us, for
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon is making war against us; perhaps the
LORD will deal with us according to all his wonderful deeds, and will make
him withdraw from us.”
3 Then Jeremi'ah said to them: 4“Thus you shall say to Zedeki'ah, ‘Thus
says the LORD, the God of Israel: Behold, I will turn back the weapons of
war which are in your hands and with which you are fighting against the
king of Babylon and against the Chalde'ans who are besieging you outside
the walls; and I will bring them together into the midst of this city. 5I myself
will fight against you with outstretched hand and strong arm, in anger, and
in fury, and in great wrath. 6And I will strike the inhabitants of this city,
both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence. 7Afterward, says
the LORD, I will give Zedeki'ah king of Judah, and his servants, and the
people in this city who survive the pestilence, sword, and famine, into the
hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon and into the hand of their
enemies, into the hand of those who seek their lives. He shall strike them
with the edge of the sword; he shall not pity them, or spare them, or have
compassion.’
8 “And to this people you shall say: ‘Thus says the LORD: Behold, I set
before you the way of life and the way of death. 9He who stays in this city
shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out
and surrenders to the Chalde'ans who are besieging you shall live and shall
have his life as a prize of war. 10For I have set my face against this city for
evil and not for good, says the LORD: it shall be given into the hand of the
king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.’
Message to the King of Judah
11 “And to the house of the king of Judah say, ‘Hear the word of the
LORD, 12O house of David! Thus says the LORD:
“ ‘Execute justice in the morning,
and deliver from the hand of the oppressor
him who has been robbed,
lest my wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
because of your evil doings.’ ”
13“Behold, I am against you, O inhabitant of the valley,
O rock of the plain,

says the LORD;
you who say, ‘Who shall come down against us,
or who shall enter our habitations?’
14I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings,
says the LORD;

I will kindle a fire in her forest,
and it shall devour all that is round about her.”
Exhortation to Repentance
22 Thus says the LORD: “Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and
speak there this word, 2and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O King of
Judah, who sit on the throne of David, you, and your servants, and your
people who enter these gates. 3Thus says the LORD: Do justice and
righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been
robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the alien, the fatherless, and the
widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. 4For if you will indeed obey
this word, then there shall enter the gates of this house kings who sit on the
throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their servants,
and their people. 5But if you will not heed these words, I swear by myself,
says the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation. 6For thus says the
LORD concerning the house of the king of Judah:
“ ‘You are as Gilead to me,
as the summit of Lebanon,
yet surely I will make you a desert,
an uninhabited city.k
7I will prepare destroyers against you,
each with his weapons;

and they shall cut down your choicest cedars,
and cast them into the fire.
8 “ ‘And many nations will pass by this city, and every man will say to
his neighbor, “Why has the LORD dealt thus with this great city?” 9And they
will answer, “Because they forsook the covenant of the LORD their God, and
worshiped other gods and served them.” ’ ”
10Weep not for him who is dead,
nor bemoan him;

but weep bitterly for him who goes away,
for he shall return no more
to see his native land.
Message to the Sons of Josiah
11 For thus says the LORD concerning Shallum the son of Josi'ah, king of
Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, and who went away from
this place: “He shall return here no more, 12but in the place where they have
carried him captive, there shall he die, and he shall never see this land
again.”
13“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness,
and his upper rooms by injustice;
who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing,
and does not give him his wages;
14who says, ‘I will build myself a great house
with spacious upper rooms,’
and cuts out windows for it,
paneling it with cedar,
and painting it with vermilion.
15Do you think you are a king
because you compete in cedar?
Did not your father eat and drink
and do justice and righteousness?
Then it was well with him.
16He judged the cause of the poor and needy;
then it was well.

Is not this to know me?
says the LORD.
17But you have eyes and heart
only for your dishonest gain,

for shedding innocent blood,
and for practicing oppression and violence.”
18Therefore thus says the LORD concerning Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah,
king of Judah:
“They shall not lament for him, saying,
‘Ah my brother!’ or ‘Ah sister!’
They shall not lament for him, saying,
‘Ah lord!’ or ‘Ah his majesty!’
19With the burial of a donkey he shall be buried,
dragged and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.”

20“Go up to Lebanon, and cry out,
and lift up your voice in Bashan;

cry from Ab'arim,
for all your lovers are destroyed.
21I spoke to you in your prosperity,
but you said, ‘I will not listen.’

This has been your way from your youth,
that you have not obeyed my voice.
22The wind shall shepherd all your shepherds,
and your lovers shall go into captivity;
then you will be ashamed and confounded
because of all your wickedness.
23O inhabitant of Lebanon,
nested among the cedars,

how you will groanl when pangs come upon you,
pain as of a woman with labor pains!”
Message concerning Coniah the Son of Jehoiakim
24 “As I live, says the LORD, though Coni'ah the son of Jehoi'akim, king
of Judah, were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off
25and give you into the hand of those who seek your life, into the hand of
those of whom you are afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king
of Babylon and into the hand of the Chalde'ans. 26I will hurl you and the
mother who bore you into another country, where you were not born, and
there you shall die. 27But to the land to which they will long to return, there
they shall not return.”
28Is this man Coni'ah a despised, broken pot,
a vessel no one cares for?

Why are he and his children hurled and cast
into a land which they do not know?
29O land, land, land,
hear the word of the LORD!

“Write this man down as childless,

a man who shall not succeed in his days;
for none of his offspring shall succeed
in sitting on the throne of David,
and ruling again in Judah.”
A Remnant to Be Restored after Exile
23 “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my
pasture!” says the LORD. 2Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel,
concerning the shepherds who care for my people: “You have scattered my
flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them.
Behold, I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the LORD. 3Then I
will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have
driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be
fruitful and multiply. 4I will set shepherds over them who will care for
them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be
missing, says the LORD.
The Righteous Branch
5 “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up for
David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and
shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6In his days Judah will
be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he
will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness.’
7 “Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when men
shall no longer say, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the sons of Israel
out of the land of Egypt,’ 8but ‘As the LORD lives who brought up and led
the descendants of the house of Israel out of the north country and out of all
the countries where hem had driven them.’ Then they shall dwell in their
own land.”
False Prophets Denounced
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart is broken within me,
all my bones shake;
I am like a drunken man,
like a man overcome by wine,
because of the LORD
and because of his holy words.
10For the land is full of adulterers;
because of the curse the land mourns,
and the pastures of the wilderness are dried up.
Their course is evil,
and their might is not right.
11“Both prophet and priest are ungodly;
even in my house I have found their wickedness,

says the LORD.
12Therefore their way shall be to them
like slippery paths in the darkness,
into which they shall be driven and fall;
for I will bring evil upon them
in the year of their punishment,
says the LORD.
13In the prophets of Samar'ia
I saw an unsavory thing:

they prophesied by Ba'al
and led my people Israel astray.
14But in the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen a horrible thing:

they commit adultery and walk in lies;
they strengthen the hands of evildoers,
so that no one turns from his wickedness;
all of them have become like Sodom to me,
and its inhabitants like Gomor'rah.”
15Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets:
“Behold, I will feed them with wormwood,

and give them poisoned water to drink;
for from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness has gone forth into all the land.”
16 Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the
prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes; they speak
visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD. 17They say
continually to those who despise the word of the LORD, ‘It shall be well
with you’; and to every one who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say,
‘No evil shall come upon you.’ ”
18For who among them has stood in the council of the LORD
to perceive and to hear his word,
or who has given heed to his word and listened?
19Behold, the storm of the LORD!
Wrath has gone forth,

a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
20The anger of the LORD will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished
the intents of his mind.
In the latter days you will understand it clearly.
21“I did not send the prophets,
yet they ran;
I did not speak to them,
yet they prophesied.
22But if they had stood in my council,
then they would have proclaimed my words to my people,

and they would have turned them from their evil way,
and from the evil of their doings.
23 “Am I a God at hand, says the LORD, and not a God afar off? 24Can a
man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? says the LORD.
Do I not fill heaven and earth? says the LORD. 25I have heard what the
prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, ‘I have dreamed,
I have dreamed!’ 26How long shall there be liesn in the heart of the prophets
who prophesy lies, and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart, 27who
think to make my people forget my name by their dreams which they tell
one another, even as their fathers forgot my name for Ba'al? 28Let the
prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let him who has my word
speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat? says the
LORD. 29Is not my word like fire, says the LORD, and like a hammer which
breaks the rock in pieces? 30Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets,
says the LORD, who steal my words from one another. 31Behold, I am
against the prophets, says the LORD, who use their tongues and say, ‘Says
the LORD.’ 32Behold, I am against those who prophesy lying dreams, says
the LORD, and who tell them and lead my people astray by their lies and
their recklessness, when I did not send them or charge them; so they do not
profit this people at all, says the LORD.
33 “When one of this people, or a prophet, or a priest asks you, ‘What is
the burden of the LORD?’ you shall say to them, ‘You are the burden,o and I
will cast you off, says the LORD.’ 34And as for the prophet, priest, or one of
the people who says, ‘The burden of the LORD,’ I will punish that man and
his household. 35Thus shall you say, every one to his neighbor and every
one to his brother, ‘What has the LORD answered?’ or ‘What has the LORD
spoken?’ 36But ‘the burden of the LORD’ you shall mention no more, for
the burden is every man’s own word, and you pervert the words of the
living God, the LORD of hosts, our God. 37Thus you shall say to the prophet,
‘What has the LORD answered you?’ or ‘What has the LORD spoken?’ 38But
if you say, ‘The burden of the LORD,’ thus says the LORD, ‘Because you
have said these words, “The burden of the LORD,” when I sent to you,
saying, “You shall not say, ‘The burden of the LORD,’ ” 39therefore, behold,
I will surely lift you up and cast you away from my presence, you and the
city which I gave to you and your fathers. 40And I will bring upon you
everlasting reproach and perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.’ ”
Two Baskets: Good and Bad Figs
24 After Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon had taken into exile from
Jerusalem Jeconi'ah the son of Jehoi'akim, king of Judah, together with the
princes of Judah, the craftsmen, and the smiths, and had brought them to
Babylon, the LORD showed me this vision: Behold, two baskets of figs
placed before the temple of the LORD. 2One basket had very good figs, like
first-ripe figs, but the other basket had very bad figs, so bad that they could
not be eaten. 3And the LORD said to me, “What do you see, Jeremi'ah?” I
said, “Figs, the good figs very good, and the bad figs very bad, so bad that
they cannot be eaten.”
4 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 5“Thus says the LORD, the God
of Israel: Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the exiles from
Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chalde'ans.
6I will set my eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them back to this
land. I will build them up, and not tear them down; I will plant them, and
not uproot them. 7I will give them a heart to know that I am the LORD; and
they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me
with their whole heart.
8“But thus says the LORD: Like the bad figs which are so bad they cannot
be eaten, so will I treat Zedeki'ah the king of Judah, his princes, the remnant
of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of
Egypt. 9I will make them a horrorp to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a
reproach, a byword, a taunt, and a curse in all the places where I shall drive
them. 10And I will send sword, famine, and pestilence upon them, until they
shall be utterly destroyed from the land which I gave to them and their
fathers.”
The Babylonian Captivity Foretold
25 The word that came to Jeremi'ah concerning all the people of Judah,
in the fourth year of Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king of Judah (that was
the first year of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon), 2which Jeremi'ah the
prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and all the inhabitants of
Jerusalem: 3“For twenty-three years, from the thirteenth year of Josi'ah the
son of A'mon, king of Judah, to this day, the word of the LORD has come to
me, and I have spoken persistently to you, but you have not listened. 4You
have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear, although the LORD
persistently sent to you all his servants the prophets, 5saying, ‘Turn now,
every one of you, from his evil way and wrong doings, and dwell upon the
land which the LORD has given to you and your fathers from of old and for
ever; 6do not go after other gods to serve and worship them, or provoke me
to anger with the work of your hands. Then I will do you no harm.’ 7Yet
you have not listened to me, says the LORD, that you might provoke me to
anger with the work of your hands to your own harm.
8 “Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: Because you have not obeyed
my words, 9behold, I will send for all the tribes of the north, says the LORD,
and for Nebuchadrez'zar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring
them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these nations
round about; I will utterly destroy them, and make them a horror, a hissing,
and an everlasting reproach.q 10Moreover, I will banish from them the voice
of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the
voice of the bride, the grinding of the millstones and the light of the lamp.
11This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall
serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12Then after seventy years are
completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the
Chalde'ans, for their iniquity, says the LORD, making the land an everlasting
waste. 13I will bring upon that land all the words which I have uttered
against it, everything written in this book, which Jeremi'ah prophesied
against all the nations. 14For many nations and great kings shall make
slaves even of them; and I will recompense them according to their deeds
and the work of their hands.”
The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath
15 Thus the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this
cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you
drink it. 16They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword
which I am sending among them.”
17 So I took the cup from the LORD’s hand, and made all the nations to
whom the Lord sent me drink it: 18Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, its
kings and princes, to make them a desolation and a waste, a hissing and a
curse, as at this day; 19Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his princes, all
his people, 20and all the foreign folk among them; all the kings of the land
of Uz and all the kings of the land of the Philis'tines (Ash'kelon, Gaza,
Ek'ron, and the remnant of Ash'dod); 21E'dom, Moab, and the sons of
Ammon; 22all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the
islands across the sea; 23De'dan, Te'ma, Buz, and all who cut the corners of
their hair; 24all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the mixed tribes that
dwell in the desert; 25all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of E'lam, and all
the kings of Med'ia; 26all the kings of the north, far and near, one after
another, and all the kingdoms of the world which are on the face of the
earth. And after them the king of Babylonr shall drink.
27 “Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel: Drink, be drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of the
sword which I am sending among you.’
28 “And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then
you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: You must drink! 29For
behold, I begin to work evil at the city which is called by my name, and
shall you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, for I am
summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth, says the LORD
of hosts.’
30 “You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say
to them:
‘The LORD will roar from on high,
and from his holy habitation utter his voice;
he will roar mightily against his fold,
and shout, like those who tread grapes,
against all the inhabitants of the earth.
31The clamor will resound to the ends of the earth,
for the LORD has an indictment against the nations;

he is entering into judgment with all flesh,
and the wicked he will put to the sword,
says the LORD.’
32“Thus says the LORD of hosts:
Behold, evil is going forth

from nation to nation,
and a great tempest is stirring
from the farthest parts of the earth!
33 “And those slain by the LORD on that day shall extend from one end of
the earth to the other. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried;
they shall be dung on the surface of the ground.
34“Wail, you shepherds, and cry,
and roll in ashes, you lords of the flock,

for the days of your slaughter and dispersion have come,
and you shall fall like choice rams.s
35No refuge will remain for the shepherds,
nor escape for the lords of the flock.

36Listen, the cry of the shepherds,
and the wail of the lords of the flock!
For the LORD is despoiling their pasture,
37and the peaceful folds are devastated,
because of the fierce anger of the LORD.
38Like a lion he has left his den,
for their land has become a waste

because of the sword of the oppressor,
and because of his fierce anger.”
Jeremiah Threatened with Death
26 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king of

Judah, this word came from the LORD, 2“Thus says the LORD: Stand in the
court of the LORD’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah which come
to worship in the house of the LORD all the words that I command you to
speak to them; do not hold back a word. 3It may be they will listen, and
every one turn from his evil way, that I may repent of the evil which I
intend to do to them because of their evil doings. 4You shall say to them,
‘Thus says the LORD: If you will not listen to me, to walk in my law which I
have set before you, 5and to heed the words of my servants the prophets
whom I send to you urgently, though you have not heeded, 6then I will
make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all the
nations of the earth.’ ”
7 The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremi'ah
speaking these words in the house of the LORD. 8And when Jeremi'ah had
finished speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak to all the
people, then the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him,
saying, “You shall die! 9Why have you prophesied in the name of the LORD,
saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate,
without inhabitant’?” And all the people gathered about Jeremi'ah in the
house of the LORD.
10 When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the
king’s house to the house of the LORD and took their seat in the entry of the
New Gate of the house of the LORD. 11Then the priests and the prophets said
to the princes and to all the people, “This man deserves the sentence of
death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with
your own ears.”
12 Then Jeremi'ah spoke to all the princes and all the people, saying,
“The LORD sent me to prophesy against this house and this city all the
words you have heard. 13Now therefore amend your ways and your doings,
and obey the voice of the LORD your God, and the LORD will repent of the
evil which he has pronounced against you. 14But as for me, behold, I am in
your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you. 15Only know for
certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood upon
yourselves and upon this city and its inhabitants, for in truth the LORD sent
me to you to speak all these words in your ears.”
16 Then the princes and all the people said to the priests and the
prophets, “This man does not deserve the sentence of death, for he has
spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.” 17And certain of the elders
of the land arose and spoke to all the assembled people, saying, 18“Micah of
Mo'resheth prophesied in the days of Hezeki'ah king of Judah, and said to
all the people of Judah: ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts,
Zion shall be plowed as a field;
Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins,
and the mountain of the house a wooded height.’
19Did Hezeki'ah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not
fear the LORD and entreat the favor of the LORD, and did not the LORD
repent of the evil which he had pronounced against them? But we are about
to bring great evil upon ourselves.”
20 There was another man who prophesied in the name of the LORD,
Uri'ah the son of Shemai'ah from Kir'iath-je'arim. He prophesied against
this city and against this land in words like those of Jeremi'ah. 21And when
King Jehoi'akim, with all his warriors and all the princes, heard his words,
the king sought to put him to death; but when Uri'ah heard of it, he was
afraid and fled and escaped to Egypt. 22Then King Jehoi'akim sent to Egypt
certain men, Elna'than the son of Achbor and others with him, 23and they
fetched Uri'ah from Egypt and brought him to King Jehoi'akim, who slew
him with the sword and cast his dead body into the burial place of the
common people.
24But the hand of Ahi'kam the son of Sha'phan was with Jeremi'ah so that
he was not given over to the people to be put to death.

The Sign of the Thongs and Yoke-bars
27 In the beginning of the reign of Zede- ki'ahu the son of Josi'ah, king
of Judah, this word came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD. 2Thus the LORD said
to me: “Make yourself thongs and yoke-bars, and put them on your neck.
3Send wordv to the king of E'dom, the king of Moab, the king of the sons of
Ammon, the king of Tyre, and the king of Si'don by the hand of the envoys
who have come to Jerusalem to Zedeki'ah king of Judah. 4Give them this
charge for their masters: ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
This is what you shall say to your masters: 5“It is I who by my great power
and my outstretched arm have made the earth, with the men and animals
that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever it seems right to me. 6Now I
have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnez'zar, the king of
Babylon, my servant, and I have given him also the beasts of the field to
serve him. 7All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson,
until the time of his own land comes; then many nations and great kings
shall make him their slave.
8 “ ‘ “But if any nation or kingdom will not serve this Nebuchadnez'zar
king of Babylon, and put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I
will punish that nation with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence,
says the LORD, until I have consumed it by his hand. 9So do not listen to
your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers,w your soothsayers, or your
sorcerers, who are saying to you, ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon.’
10For it is a lie which they are prophesying to you, with the result that you
will be removed far from your land, and I will drive you out, and you will
perish. 11But any nation which will bring its neck under the yoke of the king
of Babylon and serve him, I will leave on its own land, to till it and dwell
there, says the LORD.” ’ ”
12 To Zedeki'ah king of Judah I spoke in like manner: “Bring your necks
under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and
live. 13Why will you and your people die by the sword, by famine, and by
pestilence, as the LORD has spoken concerning any nation which will not
serve the king of Babylon? 14Do not listen to the words of the prophets who
are saying to you, ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon,’ for it is a lie
which they are prophesying to you. 15I have not sent them, says the LORD,
but they are prophesying falsely in my name, with the result that I will drive
you out and you will perish, you and the prophets who are prophesying to
you.”
16 Then I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, “Thus says
the LORD: Do not listen to the words of your prophets who are prophesying
to you, saying, ‘Behold, the vessels of the LORD’s house will now shortly
be brought back from Babylon,’ for it is a lie which they are prophesying to
you. 17Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon and live. Why
should this city become a desolation? 18If they are prophets, and if the word
of the LORD is with them, then let them intercede with the LORD of hosts,
that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the
king of Judah, and in Jerusalem may not go to Babylon. 19For thus says the
LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, the sea, the stands, and the rest of the
vessels which are left in this city, 20which Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon
did not take away, when he took into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon
Jeconi'ah the son of Jehoi'akim, king of Judah, and all the nobles of Judah
and Jerusalem— 21thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
concerning the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, in the house
of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem: 22They shall be carried to Babylon
and remain there until the day when I give attention to them, says the LORD.
Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.”
Hananiah’s False Prophecy
28 In that same year, at the beginning of the reign of Zedeki'ah king of
Judah, in the fifth month of the fourth year, Hanani'ah the son of Azzur, the
prophet from Gib'eon, spoke to me in the house of the LORD, in the presence
of the priests and all the people, saying, 2“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the
God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. 3Within two
years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the LORD’s house,
which Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon took away from this place and
carried to Babylon. 4I will also bring back to this place Jeconi'ah the son of
Jehoi'akim, king of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went to
Babylon, says the LORD, for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.”
5 Then the prophet Jeremi'ah spoke to Hanani'ah the prophet in the
presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of
the LORD; 6and the prophet Jeremi'ah said, “Amen! May the LORD do so;
may the LORD make the words which you have prophesied come true, and
bring back to this place from Babylon the vessels of the house of the LORD,
and all the exiles. 7Yet hear now this word which I speak in your hearing
and in the hearing of all the people. 8The prophets who preceded you and
me from ancient times prophesied war, famine, and pestilence against many
countries and great kingdoms. 9As for the prophet who prophesies peace,
when the word of that prophet comes to pass, then it will be known that the
LORD has truly sent the prophet.”
10 Then the prophet Hanani'ah took the yoke-bars from the neck of
Jeremi'ah the prophet, and broke them. 11And Hanani'ah spoke in the
presence of all the people, saying, “Thus says the LORD: Even so will I
break the yoke of Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon from the neck of all the
nations within two years.” But Jeremi'ah the prophet went his way.
12 Sometime after the prophet Hanani'ah had broken the yoke-bars from
off the neck of Jeremi'ah the prophet, the word of the LORD came to
Jeremi'ah: 13“Go, tell Hanani'ah, ‘Thus says the LORD: You have broken
wooden bars, but Ix will make in their place bars of iron. 14For thus says the
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: I have put upon the neck of all these
nations an iron yoke of servitude to Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon, and
they shall serve him, for I have given to him even the beasts of the field.’ ”
15And Jeremi'ah the prophet said to the prophet Hanani'ah, “Listen,
Hananiah, the LORD has not sent you, and you have made this people trust
in a lie. 16Therefore thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I will remove you from
the face of the earth. This very year you shall die, because you have uttered
rebellion against the LORD.’ ”
17 In that same year, in the seventh month, the prophet Hanani'ah died.
Jeremiah’s Letters to the Exiles in Babylon
29 These are the words of the letter which Jeremi'ah the prophet sent
from Jerusalem to the eldersy of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets,
and all the people, whom Nebuchadnez'zar had taken into exile from
Jerusalem to Babylon. 2This was after King Jeconi'ah, and the queen
mother, the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and
the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. 3The letter was sent by the hand of
Ela'sah the son of Sha'phan and Gemari'ah the son of Hilki'ah, whom
Zedeki'ah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnez'zar king of
Babylon. It said: 4“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the
exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5Build
houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6Take wives
and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your
daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply
there, and do not decrease. 7But seek the welfare of the city where I have
sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you
will find your welfare. 8For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you,
and do not listen to the dreams which they dream,z 9for it is a lie which they
are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the LORD.
10 “For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for
Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfil to you my promise and bring you
back to this place. 11For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD,
plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12Then
you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13You
will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart, 14I will be
found by you, says the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather
you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the
LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into
exile.
15 “Because you have said, ‘The LORD has raised up prophets for us in
Babylon,’— 16Thus says the LORD concerning the king who sits on the
throne of David, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your
kinsmen who did not go out with you into exile: 17‘Thus says the LORD of
hosts, Behold, I am sending on them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I
will make them like vile figs which are so bad they cannot be eaten. 18I will
pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them a
horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and
a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them, 19because they
did not heed my words, says the LORD, which I persistently sent to you by
my servants the prophets, but you would not listen, says the LORD.’—
20Hear the word of the LORD, all you exiles whom I sent away from
Jerusalem to Babylon: 21‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
concerning A'hab the son of Kolai'ah and Zedeki'ah the son of Ma-asei'ah,
who are prophesying a lie to you in my name: Behold, I will deliver them
into the hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon, and he shall slay them
before your eyes. 22Because of them this curse shall be used by all the
exiles from Judah in Babylon: “The LORD make you like Zedeki'ah and
A'hab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire,” 23because they have
committed folly in Israel, they have committed adultery with their
neighbors’ wives, and they have spoken in my name lying words which I
did not command them. I am the one who knows, and I am witness, says the
LORD.’ ”
24 To Shemai'ah of Nehel'am you shall say: 25 “Thus says the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel: You have sent letters in your name to all the people
who are in Jerusalem, and to Zephani'ah the son of Ma-asei'ah the priest,
and to all the priests, saying, 26‘The LORD has made you priest instead of
Jehoi'ada the priest, to have charge in the house of the LORD over every
madman who prophesies, to put him in the stocks and collar. 27Now why
have you not rebuked Jeremi'ah of An'athoth who is prophesying to you?
28For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, “Your exile will be long; build
houses and live in them, and plant gardens and eat their produce.” ’ ”
29 Zephani'ah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremi'ah the
prophet. 30Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah: 31“Send to all the
exiles, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD concerning Shemai'ah of Nehel'am:
Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you when I did not send him, and has
made you trust in a lie, 32therefore thus says the LORD: Behold, I will
punish Shemai'ah of Nehel'am and his descendants; he shall not have any
one living among this people to seea the good that I will do to my people,
says the LORD, for he has talked rebellion against the LORD.’ ”
Hope for the Restoration of Israel
30 The word that came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD: 2“Thus says the
LORD, the God of Israel: Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to
you. 3For behold, days are coming, says the LORD, when I will restore the
fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the LORD, and I will bring
them back to the land which I gave to their fathers, and they shall take
possession of it.”
4 These are the words which the LORD spoke concerning Israel and
Judah:
5“Thus says the LORD:
We have heard a cry of panic,

of terror, and no peace.
6Ask now, and see,
can a man bear a child?

Why then do I see every man
with his hands on his loins like a woman in labor?
Why has every face turned pale?
7Alas! that day is so great
there is none like it;
it is a time of distress for Jacob;
yet he shall be saved out of it.
8 “And it shall come to pass in that day, says the LORD of hosts, that I
will break the yoke from off theirb neck, and I will burst theirb bonds, and
strangers shall no more make servants of them.c * 9But they shall serve the
LORD their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.
10“Then fear not, O Jacob my servant, says the LORD,
nor be dismayed, O Israel;

for behold, I will save you from afar,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
11For I am with you to save you,
says the LORD;
I will make a full end of all the nations
among whom I scattered you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
I will chasten you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.
12“For thus says the LORD:
Your hurt is incurable,

and your wound is grievous.
13There is none to uphold your cause,
no medicine for your wound,

no healing for you.
14All your lovers have forgotten you;
they care nothing for you;

for I have dealt you the blow of an enemy,
the punishment of a merciless foe,
because your guilt is great,
because your sins are flagrant.
15Why do you cry out over your hurt?
Your pain is incurable.

Because your guilt is great,
because your sins are flagrant,
I have done these things to you.
16Therefore all who devour you shall be devoured,
and all your foes, every one of them, shall go into captivity;
those who despoil you shall become a spoil,
and all who prey on you I will make a prey.
17For I will restore health to you,
and your wounds I will heal,

says the LORD,
because they have called you an outcast:
‘It is Zion, for whom no one cares!’
Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob,

and have compassion on his dwellings;
the city shall be rebuilt upon its mound,
and the palace shall stand where it used to be.
19Out of them shall come songs of thanksgiving,
and the voices of those who make merry.

I will multiply them, and they shall not be few;
I will make them honored, and they shall not be small.
20Their children shall be as they were of old,
and their congregation shall be established before me;

and I will punish all who oppress them.
21Their prince shall be one of themselves,
their ruler shall come forth from their midst;

I will make him draw near, and he shall approach me,
for who would dare of himself to approach me?
says the LORD.
22And you shall be my people,
and I will be your God.”

23Behold the storm of the LORD!
Wrath has gone forth,

a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
24The fierce anger of the LORD will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished

the intents of his mind.
In the latter days you will understand this.
31 “At that time, says the LORD, I will be the God of all the families of
Israel, and they shall be my people.”
“The people who survived the sword

found grace in the wilderness;
when Israel sought for rest,
3 the LORD appeared to himd from afar.
I have loved you with an everlasting love;

therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.
4Again I will build you, and you shall be built,
O virgin Israel!
Again you shall adorn yourself with timbrels,
and shall go forth in the dance of the merrymakers.
5Again you shall plant vineyards
upon the mountains of Samar'ia;

the planters shall plant,
and shall enjoy the fruit.
6For there shall be a day when watchmen will call
in the hill country of E'phraim:

‘Arise, and let us go up to Zion,
to the LORD our God.’ ”
“Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,

and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
‘The LORD has saved his people,
the remnant of Israel.’
8Behold, I will bring them from the north country,
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,

among them the blind and the lame,
the woman with child and her who has labor pains, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
9With weeping they shall come,
and with consolationse I will lead them back,

I will make them walk by brooks of water,
in a straight path in which they shall not stumble;
for I am a father to Israel,
and E'phraim is my first-born.
10“Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,
and declare it in the islands afar off;

say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him,
and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.’
11For the LORD has ransomed Jacob,
and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.
12They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the LORD,

over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
their life shall be like a watered garden,
and they shall languish no more.
13Then shall the maidens rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry.

I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
14I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance,
and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness,

says the LORD.”
“A voice is heard in Ra'mah,

lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
because they are not.” *
“Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears;
for your work shall be rewarded, says the LORD,
and they shall come back from the land of the enemy.
17There is hope for your future,
says the LORD,

and your children shall come back to their own country.
18I have heard E'phraim bemoaning,
‘You have chastened me, and I was chastened,

like an untrained calf;
bring me back that I may be restored,
for you are the LORD my God.
19For after I had turned away I repented;
and after I was instructed, I struck my thigh;

I was ashamed, and I was confounded,
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
20Is E'phraim my dear son?
Is he my darling child?
For as often as I speak against him,
I do remember him still.
Therefore my heart yearns for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,
says the LORD.
21“Set up waymarks for yourself,
make yourself guideposts;

consider well the highway,
the road by which you went.
Return, O virgin Israel,
return to these your cities.
22How long will you waver,
O faithless daughter?
For the LORD has created a new thing on the earth:
a woman protects a man.”
23 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Once more they shall
use these words in the land of Judah and in its cities, when I restore their
fortunes:
‘The LORD bless you, O habitation of righteousness,
O holy hill!’
24And Judah and all its cities shall dwell there together, and the farmers
and those who wanderf with their flocks. 25For I will satisfy the weary soul,
and every languishing soul I will replenish.”
26 Thereupon I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.
Individual Responsibility for Conduct
27 “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will sow the
house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of
beast. 28And it shall come to pass that as I have watched over them to pluck
up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch
over them to build and to plant, says the LORD. 29In those days they shall no
longer say:
‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’
30But every one shall die for his own sin; each man who eats sour grapes,
his teeth shall be set on edge.
A New Covenant Promised
31 * “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a
new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32not like the
covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to
bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, and I
showed myself their Master, says the LORD. 33But this is the covenant
which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I
will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will
be their God, and they shall be my people. 34And no longer shall each man
teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they
shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for
I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
who gives the sun for light by day

and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the LORD of hosts is his name:
36“If this fixed order departs
from before me, says the LORD,
then shall the descendants of Israel cease
from being a nation before me for ever.”
“If the heavens above can be measured,

and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
then I will cast off all the descendants of Israel
for all that they have done,
says the LORD.”
The City Will Be Rebuilt
38 “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when the city shall be
rebuilt for the LORD from the tower of Hanan'el to the Corner Gate. 39And
the measuring line shall go out farther, straight to the hill Ga'reb, and shall
then turn to Goah. 40The whole valley of the dead bodies and the ashes, and
all the fields as far as the brook Kid'ron, to the corner of the Horse Gate
toward the east, shall be sacred to the LORD. It shall not be uprooted or
overthrown any more for ever.”
Jeremiah Buys a Field at Anathoth
32 The word that came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD in the tenth year of
Zedeki'ah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrez'zar.
2At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and
Jeremi'ah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard which was in the
palace of the king of Judah. 3For Zedeki'ah king of Judah had imprisoned
him, saying, “Why do you prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the LORD: Behold,
I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take
it; 4Zedeki'ah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the
Chalde'ans, but shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon,
and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye; 5and he shall
take Zedeki'ah to Babylon, and there he shall remain until I visit him, says
the LORD; though you fight against the Chalde'ans, you shall not succeed’?”
6 Jeremi'ah said, “The word of the LORD came to me: 7Behold, Han'amel
the son of Shallum your uncle will come to you and say, ‘Buy my field
which is at An'athoth, for the right of redemption by purchase is yours.’
8Then Han'amel my cousin came to me in the court of the guard, in
accordance with the word of the LORD, and said to me, ‘Buy my field which
is at An'athoth in the land of Benjamin, for the right of possession and
redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the
word of the LORD.
9 “And I bought the field at An'athoth from Han'amel my cousin, and
weighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver. 10I signed the
deed, sealed it, got witnesses, and weighed the money on scales. 11Then I
took the sealed deed of purchase, containing the terms and conditions, and
the open copy; 12and I gave the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of
Neri'ah son of Mah'seiah, in the presence of Han'amel my cousin, in the
presence of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and in the
presence of all the Jews who were sitting in the court of the guard. 13I
charged Baruch in their presence, saying, 14‘Thus says the LORD of hosts,
the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both this sealed deed of purchase and
this open deed, and put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last
for a long time. 15For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses
and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.’
God’s Assurance of the People’s Return
16 “After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neri'ah, I
prayed to the LORD, saying: 17‘Ah Lord GOD! It is you who have made the
heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm!
Nothing is too hard for you, 18who show mercy to thousands, but repay the
guilt of fathers to their children after them, O great and mighty God whose
name is the LORD of hosts, 19great in counsel and mighty in deed; whose
eyes are open to all the ways of men, rewarding every man according to his
ways and according to the fruit of his doings; 20who have shown signs and
wonders in the land of Egypt, and to this day in Israel and among all
mankind, and have made you a name, as at this day. 21You brought your
people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong
hand and outstretched arm, and with great terror; 22and you gave them this
land, which you swore to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with
milk and honey; 23and they entered and took possession of it. But they did
not obey your voice or walk in your law; they did nothing of all you
commanded them to do. Therefore you have made all this evil come upon
them. 24Behold, the siege mounds have come up to the city to take it, and
because of sword and famine and pestilence the city is given into the hands
of the Chalde'ans who are fighting against it. What you spoke has come to
pass, and behold, you see it. 25Yet you, O Lord GOD, have said to me, “Buy
the field for money and get witnesses”—though the city is given into the
hands of the Chalde'ans.’ ”
26 The word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah: 27“Behold, I am the LORD,
the God of all flesh; is anything too hard for me? 28Therefore, thus says the
LORD: Behold, I am giving this city into the hands of the Chalde'ans and
into the hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon, and he shall take it.
29The Chalde'ans who are fighting against this city shall come and set this
city on fire, and burn it, with the houses on whose roofs incense has been
offered to Ba'al and drink offerings have been poured out to other gods, to
provoke me to anger. 30For the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have
done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth; the sons of Israel have
done nothing but provoke me to anger by the work of their hands, says the
LORD. 31This city has aroused my anger and wrath, from the day it was built
to this day, so that I will remove it from my sight 32because of all the evil of
the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah which they did to provoke me to
anger—their kings and their princes, their priests and their prophets, the
men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 33They have turned to me
their back and not their face; and though I have taught them persistently
they have not listened to receive instruction. 34They set up their
abominations in the house which is called by my name, to defile it. 35They
built the high places of Ba'al in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to offer up
their sons and daughters to Mo'lech, though I did not command them, nor
did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause
Judah to sin.
36 “Now therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this
city of which you say, ‘It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by
sword, by famine, and by pestilence’: 37Behold, I will gather them from all
the countries to which I drove them in my anger and my wrath and in great
indignation; I will bring them back to this place, and I will make them dwell
in safety. 38And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. 39I will
give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for their
own good and the good of their children after them. 40I will make with them
an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them;
and I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.
41I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in
faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

42 “For thus says the LORD: Just as I have brought all this great evil upon
this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them.
43Fields shall be bought in this land of which you are saying, It is a
desolation, without man or beast; it is given into the hands of the

Chalde'ans. 44Fields shall be bought for money, and deeds shall be signed
and sealed and witnessed, in the land of Benjamin, in the places about
Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the
cities of the Shephe'lah, and in the cities of the Neg'eb; for I will restore
their fortunes, says the LORD.”
Healing after Punishment
33 The word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah a second time, while he was
still shut up in the court of the guard: 2“Thus says the LORD who made the
earth,g the LORD who formed it to establish it—the LORD is his name: 3Call
to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things which
you have not known. 4For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning
the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah which were torn
down to make a defense against the siege mounds and before the sword:h
5The Chalde'ans are coming in to fighti and to fill them with the dead bodies
of men whom I shall strike in my anger and my wrath, for I have hidden my
face from this city because of all their wickedness. 6Behold, I will bring to
it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundancej of
prosperity and security. 7I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes
of Israel, and rebuild them as they were at first. 8I will cleanse them from
all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin
and rebellion against me. 9And this cityk shall be to me a name of joy, a
praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the
good that I do for them; they shall fear and tremble because of all the good
and all the prosperity I provide for it.
10 “Thus says the LORD: In this place of which you say, ‘It is a waste
without man or beast,’ in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem
that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard
again 11the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the
bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they
bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD:
‘Give thanks to the LORD of hosts,
for the LORD is good,
for his mercy endures for ever!’
For I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the LORD.
12 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: In this place which is waste, without
man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be habitations of
shepherds resting their flocks. 13In the cities of the hill country, in the cities
of the Shephe'lah, and in the cities of the Neg'eb, in the land of Benjamin,
the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, flocks shall again
pass under the hands of the one who counts them, says the LORD.
14 “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will fulfil the
promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 15In those
days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring forth for
David; * and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 16In
those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this
is the name by which it will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness.’
17 “For thus says the LORD: David shall never lack a man to sit on the
throne of the house of Israel, 18and the Levitical priests shall never lack a
man in my presence to offer burnt offerings, to burn cereal offerings, and to
make sacrifices for ever.”
19 The word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah: 20“Thus says the LORD: If
you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so
that day and night will not come at their appointed time, 21then also my
covenant with David my servant may be broken, so that he shall not have a
son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with the Levitical priests my
ministers. 22As the host of heaven cannot be numbered and the sands of the
sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the descendants of David my
servant, and the Levitical priests who minister to me.”
23 The word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah: 24“Have you not observed
what these people are saying, ‘The LORD has rejected the two families
which he chose’? Thus they have despised my people so that they are no
longer a nation in their sight. 25Thus says the LORD: If I have not
established my covenant with day and night and the ordinances of heaven
and earth, 26then I will reject the descendants of Jacob and David my
servant and will not choose one of his descendants to rule over the seed of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes, and will have
mercy upon them.”
Death in Captivity Predicted for Zedekiah
34 The word which came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD, when
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon and all his army and all the kingdoms of
the earth under his dominion and all the peoples were fighting against
Jerusalem and all of its cities: 2“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Go
and speak to Zedeki'ah king of Judah and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD:
Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he
shall burn it with fire. 3You shall not escape from his hand, but shall surely
be captured and delivered into his hand; you shall see the king of Babylon
eye to eye and speak with him face to face; and you shall go to Babylon.’
4Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedeki'ah king of Judah! Thus says the
LORD concerning you: ‘You shall not die by the sword. 5You shall die in
peace. And as spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who
were before you, so men shall burn spices for you and lament for you,
saying, “Alas, lord!” ’ For I have spoken the word, says the LORD.”
6 Then Jeremi'ah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedeki'ah king of
Judah, in Jerusalem, 7when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting
against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that were left, La'chish
and Aze'kah; for these were the only fortified cities of Judah that remained.
Treatment of Hebrew Slaves
8 The word which came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD, after King
Zedeki'ah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a
proclamation of liberty to them, 9that every one should set free his Hebrew
slaves, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother.
10And they obeyed, all the princes and all the people who had entered into
the covenant that every one would set free his slave, male or female, so that
they would not be enslaved again; they obeyed and set them free. 11But
afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they
had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves. 12The word of the
LORD came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD: 13“Thus says the LORD, the God of
Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers when I brought them out of the
land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying, 14‘At the end of sixl
years each of you must set free the fellow Hebrew who has been sold to you
and has served you six years; you must set him free from your service.’ But
your fathers did not listen to me or incline their ears to me. 15You recently
repented and did what was right in my eyes by proclaiming liberty, each to
his neighbor, and you made a covenant before me in the house which is
called by my name; 16but then you turned around and profaned my name
when each of you took back his male and female slaves, whom you had set
free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be
your slaves. 17Therefore, thus says the LORD: You have not obeyed me by
proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; behold, I
proclaim to you liberty to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, says the
LORD. I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 18And the
men who transgressed my covenant and did not keep the terms of the
covenant which they made before me, I will make likem the calf which they
cut in two and passed between its parts— 19the princes of Judah, the princes
of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who
passed between the parts of the calf; 20and I will give them into the hand of
their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives. Their dead
bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.
21And Zedeki'ah king of Judah, and his princes I will give into the hand of
their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives, into the hand
of the army of the king of Babylon which has withdrawn from you.
22Behold, I will command, says the LORD, and will bring them back to this
city; and they will fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire. I will
make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.”
The Rechabites Commended
35 * The word which came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD in the days of
Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king of Judah: 2“Go to the house of the
Re'chabites, and speak with them, and bring them to the house of the LORD,
into one of the chambers; then offer them wine to drink.” 3So I took Ja-
azani'ah the son of Jeremi'ah, son of Ha''bazzini'ah, and his brothers, and all
his sons, and the whole house of the Re'chabites. 4I brought them to the
house of the LORD into the chamber of the sons of Ha'nan the son of
Igdali'ah, the man of God, which was near the chamber of the princes,
above the chamber of Ma-asei'ah the son of Shallum, keeper of the
threshold. 5Then I set before the Re'chabites pitchers full of wine, and cups;
and I said to them, “Drink wine.” 6But they answered, “We will drink no
wine, for Jon'adab the son of Re'chab, our father, commanded us, ‘You shall
not drink wine, neither you nor your sons for ever; 7you shall not build a
house; you shall not sow seed; you shall not plant or have a vineyard; but
you shall live in tents all your days, that you may live many days in the land
where you sojourn.’ 8We have obeyed the voice of Jon'adab the son of
Re'chab, our father, in all that he commanded us, to drink no wine all our
days, ourselves, our wives, our sons, or our daughters, 9and not to build
houses to dwell in. We have no vineyard or field or seed; 10but we have
lived in tents, and have obeyed and done all that Jon'adab our father
commanded us. 11But when Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon came up
against the land, we said, ‘Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the
army of the Chalde'ans and the army of the Syrians.’ So we are living in
Jerusalem.”
12 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah: 13“Thus says the LORD
of hosts, the God of Israel: Go and say to the men of Judah and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction and listen to my
words? says the LORD. 14The command which Jon'adab the son of Re'chab
gave to his sons, to drink no wine, has been kept; and they drink none to
this day, for they have obeyed their father’s command. I have spoken to you
persistently, but you have not listened to me. 15I have sent to you all my
servants the prophets, sending them persistently, saying, ‘Turn now every
one of you from his evil way, and amend your doings, and do not go after
other gods to serve them, and then you shall dwell in the land which I gave
to you and your fathers.’ But you did not incline your ear or listen to me.
16The sons of Jon'adab the son of Re'chab have kept the command which
their father gave them, but this people has not obeyed me. 17Therefore, thus
says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing
on Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have
pronounced against them; because I have spoken to them and they have not
listened, I have called to them and they have not answered.”
18 But to the house of the Re'chabites Jeremi'ah said, “Thus says the
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of
Jon'adab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done all that he
commanded you, 19therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
Jon'adab the son of Re'chab shall never lack a man to stand before me.”
The Scroll Is Read
36 In the fourth year of Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king of Judah, this
word came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD: 2“Take a scroll and write on it all
the words that I have spoken to you against Israel and Judah and all the
nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josi'ah until today. 3It
may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I intend to do to
them, so that every one may turn from his evil way, and that I may forgive
their iniquity and their sin.”
4 Then Jeremi'ah called Baruch the son of Neri'ah, and Baruch wrote
upon a scroll at the dictation of Jeremi'ah all the words of the LORD which
he had spoken to him. 5And Jeremi'ah ordered Baruch, saying, “I am
debarred from going to the house of the LORD; 6so you are to go, and on a
fast day in the hearing of all the people in the LORD’s house you shall read
the words of the LORD from the scroll which you have written at my
dictation. You shall read them also in the hearing of all the men of Judah
who come out of their cities. 7It may be that their supplication will come
before the LORD, and that every one will turn from his evil way, for great is
the anger and wrath that the LORD has pronounced against this people.”
8And Baruch the son of Neri'ah did all that Jeremi'ah the prophet ordered
him about reading from the scroll the words of the LORD in the LORD’s
house.
9 In the fifth year of Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king of Judah, in the
ninth month, all the people in Jerusalem and all the people who came from
the cities of Judah to Jerusalem proclaimed a fast before the LORD. 10Then,
in the hearing of all the people, Baruch read the words of Jeremi'ah from the
scroll, in the house of the LORD, in the chamber of Gemari'ah the son of
Sha'phan the secretary, which was in the upper court, at the entry of the
New Gate of the LORD’s house.
11 When Micai'ah the son of Gemari'ah, son of Sha'phan, heard all the
words of the LORD from the scroll, 12he went down to the king’s house, into
the secretary’s chamber; and all the princes were sitting there: Elish'ama the
secretary, Delai'ah the son of Shemai'ah, Elna'than the son of Achbor,
Gemari'ah the son of Sha'phan, Zedeki'ah the son of Hanani'ah, and all the
princes. 13And Micai'ah told them all the words that he had heard, when
Baruch read the scroll in the hearing of the people. 14Then all the princes
sent Jehu'di the son of Nethani'ah, son of Shelemi'ah, son of Cu'shi, to say
to Baruch, “Take in your hand the scroll that you read in the hearing of the
people, and come.” So Baruch the son of Neri'ah took the scroll in his hand
and came to them. 15And they said to him, “Sit down and read it.” So
Baruch read it to them. 16When they heard all the words, they turned one to
another in fear; and they said to Baruch, “We must report all these words to
the king.” 17Then they asked Baruch, “Tell us, how did you write all these
words? Was it at his dictation?” 18Baruch answered them, “He dictated all
these words to me, while I wrote them with ink on the scroll.” 19Then the
princes said to Baruch, “Go and hide, you and Jeremi'ah, and let no one
know where you are.”
King Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll
20 So they went into the court to the king, having put the scroll in the
chamber of Elish'ama the secretary; and they reported all the words to the
king. 21Then the king sent Jehu'di to get the scroll, and he took it from the
chamber of Elish'ama the secretary; and Jehudi read it to the king and all
the princes who stood beside the king. 22It was the ninth month, and the
king was sitting in the winter house and there was a fire burning in the
brazier before him. 23As Jehu'di read three or four columns, the king would
cut them off with a penknife and throw them into the fire in the brazier,
until the entire scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier. 24Yet
neither the king, nor any of his servants who heard all these words, was
afraid, nor did they tear their garments. 25Even when Elna'than and Delai'ah
and Gemari'ah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to
them. 26And the king commanded Jerah'meel the king’s son and Serai'ah the
son of Az'ri-el and Shelemi'ah the son of Abde'el to seize Baruch the
secretary and Jeremi'ah the prophet, but the LORD hid them.
Jeremiah Dictates Another Scroll
27 Now, after the king had burned the scroll with the words which
Baruch wrote at Jeremi'ah’s dictation, the word of the LORD came to
Jeremiah: 28“Take another scroll and write on it all the former words that
were in the first scroll, which Jehoi'akim the king of Judah has burned.
29And concerning Jehoi'akim king of Judah you shall say, ‘Thus says the
LORD, You have burned this scroll, saying, “Why have you written in it that
the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land, and will cut
off from it man and beast?” 30Therefore thus says the LORD concerning
Jehoi'akim king of Judah, He shall have none to sit upon the throne of
David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat by day and the frost
by night. 31And I will punish him and his offspring and his servants for their
iniquity; I will bring upon them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and
upon the men of Judah, all the evil that I have pronounced against them, but
they would not hear.’ ”
32 Then Jeremi'ah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe,
the son of Neri'ah, who wrote on it at the dictation of Jeremi'ah all the
words of the scroll which Jehoi'akim king of Judah had burned in the fire;
and many similar words were added to them.
Zedekiah Asks Jeremiah’s Prayers
37 Zedeki'ah the son of Josi'ah, whom Nebu- chadrez'zar king of
Babylon made king in the land of Judah, reigned instead of Coni'ah the son
of Jehoi'akim. 2But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land
listened to the words of the LORD which he spoke through Jeremi'ah the
prophet.
3 King Zedeki'ah sent Jehu'cal the son of Shelemi'ah, and Zephani'ah the
priest, the son of Ma-asei'ah, to Jeremi'ah the prophet, saying, “Pray for us
to the LORD our God.” 4Now Jeremi'ah was still going in and out among the
people, for he had not yet been put in prison. 5The army of Pharaoh had
come out of Egypt; and when the Chalde'ans who were besieging Jerusalem
heard news of them, they withdrew from Jerusalem.
6 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah the prophet: 7 “Thus says
the LORD, God of Israel: Thus shall you say to the king of Judah who sent
you to me to inquire of me, ‘Behold, Pharaoh’s army which came to help
you is about to return to Egypt, to its own land. 8And the Chalde'ans shall
come back and fight against this city; they shall take it and burn it with fire.
9Thus says the LORD, Do not deceive yourselves, saying, “The Chalde'ans
will surely stay away from us,” for they will not stay away. 10For even if
you should defeat the whole army of Chalde'ans who are fighting against
you, and there remained of them only wounded men, every man in his tent,
they would rise up and burn this city with fire.’ ”
Jeremiah Is Imprisoned
11 Now when the Chalde'an army had withdrawn from Jerusalem at the
approach of Pharaoh’s army, 12Jeremi'ah set out from Jerusalem to go to the
land of Benjamin to receive his portionn there among the people. 13When he
was at the Benjamin Gate, a sentry there named Iri'jah the son of
Shelemi'ah, son of Hanani'ah, seized Jeremi'ah the prophet, saying, “You
are deserting to the Chalde'ans.” 14And Jeremi'ah said, “It is false; I am not
deserting to the Chalde'ans.” But Iri'jah would not listen to him, and seized
Jeremiah and brought him to the princes. 15And the princes were enraged at
Jeremi'ah, and they beat him and imprisoned him in the house of Jonathan
the secretary, for it had been made a prison.
16 When Jeremi'ah had come to the dungeon cells, and remained there
many days, 17King Zedeki'ah sent for him, and received him. The king
questioned him secretly in his house, and said, “Is there any word from the
LORD?” Jeremi'ah said, “There is.” Then he said, “You shall be delivered
into the hand of the king of Babylon.” 18Jeremi'ah also said to King
Zedeki'ah, “What wrong have I done to you or your servants or this people,
that you have put me in prison? 19Where are your prophets who prophesied
to you, saying, ‘The king of Babylon will not come against you and against
this land’? 20Now hear, I beg you, O my lord the king: let my humble plea
come before you, and do not send me back to the house of Jonathan the
secretary, lest I die there.” 21So King Zedeki'ah gave orders, and they
committed Jeremi'ah to the court of the guard; and a loaf of bread was given
him daily from the bakers’ street, until all the bread of the city was gone. So
Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.
Jeremiah in the Cistern
38 Now Shephati'ah the son of Mattan, Gedali'ah the son of Pashhur,
Ju'cal the son of Shelemi'ah, and Pashhur the son of Malchi'ah heard the
words that Jeremi'ah was saying to all the people, 2“Thus says the LORD, He
who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence;
but he who goes out to the Chalde'ans shall live; he shall have his life as a
prize of war, and live. 3Thus says the LORD, This city shall surely be given
into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon and be taken.” 4Then the
princes said to the king, “Let this man be put to death, for he is weakening
the hands of the soldiers who are left in this city, and the hands of all the
people, by speaking such words to them. For this man is not seeking the
welfare of this people, but their harm.” 5King Zedeki'ah said, “Behold, he is
in your hands; for the king can do nothing against you.” 6So they took
Jeremi'ah and cast him into the cistern of Malchi'ah, the king’s son, which
was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. And there
was no water in the cistern, but only mire, and Jeremiah sank in the mire.
Ebed-melech rescues Jeremiah
7 When E'bed-mel'ech the Ethiopian, a eunuch, who was in the king’s
house, heard that they had put Jeremi'ah into the cistern—the king was
sitting in the Benjamin Gate— 8E'bed-mel'ech went from the king’s house
and said to the king, 9“My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that
they did to Jeremi'ah the prophet by casting him into the cistern; and he will
die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.” 10Then the king
commanded E'bed-mel'ech, the Ethiopian, “Take three men with you from
here, and lift Jeremi'ah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” 11So
E'bed-mel'ech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a
wardrobe ofo the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out
clothes, which he let down to Jeremi'ah in the cistern by ropes. 12Then
E'bed-mel'ech the Ethiopian said to Jeremi'ah, “Put the rags and clothes
between your armpits and the ropes.” Jeremi'ah did so. 13Then they drew
Jeremi'ah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah
remained in the court of the guard.
14 King Zedeki'ah sent for Jeremi'ah the prophet and received him at the
third entrance of the temple of the LORD. The king said to Jeremi'ah, “I will
ask you a question; hide nothing from me.” 15Jeremi'ah said to Zedeki'ah,
“If I tell you, will you not be sure to put me to death? And if I give you
counsel, you will not listen to me.” 16Then King Zedeki'ah swore secretly to
Jeremi'ah, “As the LORD lives, who made our souls, I will not put you to
death or deliver you into the hand of these men who seek your life.”
17 Then Jeremi'ah said to Zedeki'ah, “Thus says the LORD, the God of
hosts, the God of Israel, If you will surrender to the princes of the king of
Babylon, then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not be burned
with fire, and you and your house shall live. 18But if you do not surrender to
the princes of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the
hand of the Chalde'ans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not
escape from their hand.” 19King Zedeki'ah said to Jeremi'ah, “I am afraid of
the Jews who have deserted to the Chalde'ans, lest I be handed over to them
and they abuse me.” 20Jeremi'ah said, “You shall not be given to them.
Obey now the voice of the LORD in what I say to you, and it shall be well
with you, and your life shall be spared. 21But if you refuse to surrender, this
is the vision which the LORD has shown to me: 22Behold, all the women left
in the house of the king of Judah were being led out to the princes of the
king of Babylon and were saying,
‘Your trusted friends have deceived you
and prevailed against you;
now that your feet are sunk in the mire,
they turn away from you.’
23All your wives and your sons shall be led out to the Chalde'ans, and
you yourself shall not escape from their hand, but shall be seized by the
king of Babylon; and this city shall be burned with fire.”
24 Then Zedeki'ah said to Jeremi'ah, “Let no one know of these words
and you shall not die. 25If the princes hear that I have spoken with you and
come to you and say to you, ‘Tell us what you said to the king and what the
king said to you; hide nothing from us and we will not put you to death,’
26then you shall say to them, ‘I made a humble plea to the king that he
would not send me back to the house of Jonathan to die there.’ ” 27Then all
the princes came to Jeremi'ah and asked him, and he answered them as the
king had instructed him. So they left off speaking with him, for the
conversation had not been overheard. 28And Jeremi'ah remained in the court
of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken.
39 In the ninth year of Zedeki'ah king of Judah, in the tenth month,

Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem
and besieged it; 2in the eleventh year of Zedeki'ah, in the fourth month, on
the ninth day of the month, a breach was made in the city. 3When Jerusalem
was taken,p all the princes of the king of Babylon came and sat in the
middle gate: Ner'gal-share'zer, Sam'gar-ne'bo, Sar'sechim the Rab'saris,
Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, with all the rest of the officers of the king of
Babylon. 4When Zedeki'ah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them,
they fled, going out of the city at night by way of the king’s garden through
the gate between the two walls; and they went toward the Ar'abah. 5But the
army of the Chalde'ans pursued them, and overtook Zedeki'ah in the plains
of Jericho; and when they had taken him, they brought him up to
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon, at Riblah, in the land of Ha'math; and he
passed sentence upon him. 6The king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedeki'ah
at Riblah before his eyes; and the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of
Judah. 7He put out the eyes of Zedeki'ah, and bound him in chains to take
him to Babylon. 8The Chalde'ans burned the king’s house and the house of
the people, and broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 9Then Nebu'zarad'an,
the captain of the guard, carried into exile to Babylon the rest of the people
who were left in the city, those who had deserted to him, and the people
who remained. 10Nebu'zarad'an, the captain of the guard, left in the land of
Judah some of the poor people who owned nothing, and gave them
vineyards and fields at the same time.
Jeremiah Is Sent to Ebed-melech
11 Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon gave command concerning
Jeremi'ah through Nebu'zarad'an, the captain of the guard, saying, 12“Take
him, look after him well and do him no harm, but deal with him as he tells
you.” 13So Nebu'zarad'an the captain of the guard, Nebushaz'ban the
Rab'saris, Ner'gal-share'zer the Rabmag, and all the chief officers of the
king of Babylon 14sent and took Jeremi'ah from the court of the guard. They
entrusted him to Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam, son of Sha'phan, that he
should take him home. So he dwelt among the people.
15 The word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah while he was shut up in the
court of the guard: 16“Go, and say to E'bed-mel'ech the Ethiopian, ‘Thus
says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will fulfil my words
against this city for evil and not for good, and they shall be accomplished
before you on that day. 17But I will deliver you on that day, says the LORD,
and you shall not be given into the hand of the men of whom you are afraid.
18For I will surely save you, and you shall not fall by the sword; but you
shall have your life as a prize of war, because you have put your trust in me,
says the LORD.’ ”
Jeremiah with Gedaliah the Governor
40 The word that came to Jeremi'ah from the LORD after Nebu'zarad'an
the captain of the guard had let him go from Ra'mah, when he took him
bound in chains along with all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah who
were being exiled to Babylon. 2The captain of the guard took Jeremi'ah and
said to him, “The LORD your God pronounced this evil against this place;
3the LORD has brought it about, and has done as he said. Because you
sinned against the LORD, and did not obey his voice, this thing has come
upon you. 4Now, behold, I release you today from the chains on your hands.
If it seems good to you to come with me to Babylon, come, and I will look
after you well; but if it seems wrong to you to come with me to Babylon, do
not come. See, the whole land is before you; go wherever you think it good
and right to go. 5If you remain,q then return to Gedali'ah the son of
Ahi'kam, son of Sha'phan, whom the king of Babylon appointed governor
of the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people; or go wherever
you think it right to go.” So the captain of the guard gave him an allowance
of food and a present, and let him go. 6Then Jeremi'ah went to Gedali'ah the
son of Ahi'kam, at Mizpah, and dwelt with him among the people who were
left in the land.
7 When all the captains of the forces in the open country and their men
heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam
governor in the land, and had committed to him men, women, and children,
those of the poorest of the land who had not been taken into exile to
Babylon, 8they went to Gedali'ah at Mizpah—Ish'mael the son of
Nethani'ah, Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah, Serai'ah the son of Tan'humeth, the
sons of E'phai the Netoph'athite, Jezani'ah the son of the Ma-ac'athite, they
and their men. 9Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam, son of Sha'phan, swore to
them and their men, saying, “Do not be afraid to serve the Chalde'ans.
Dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with
you. 10As for me, I will dwell at Mizpah, to stand for you before the
Chalde'ans who will come to us; but as for you, gather wine and summer
fruits and oil, and store them in your vessels, and dwell in your cities that
you have taken.” 11Likewise, when all the Jews who were in Moab and
among the Am'monites and in E'dom and in other lands heard that the king
of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah and had appointed Gedali'ah the son
of Ahi'kam, son of Sha'phan, as governor over them, 12then all the Jews
returned from all the places to which they had been driven and came to the
land of Judah, to Gedali'ah at Mizpah; and they gathered wine and summer
fruits in great abundance.
13 Now Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the leaders of the forces in
the open country came to Gedali'ah at Mizpah 14and said to him, “Do you
know that Ba'alis the king of the Am'monites has sent Ish'mael the son of
Nethani'ah to take your life?” But Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam would not
believe them. 15Then Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah spoke secretly to
Gedali'ah at Mizpah, “Let me go and slay Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah,
and no one will know it. Why should he take your life, so that all the Jews
who are gathered about you would be scattered, and the remnant of Judah
would perish?” 16But Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam said to Joha'nan the son
of Kare'ah, “You shall not do this thing, for you are speaking falsely of
Ish'mael.”
Insurrection against Gedaliah
41 In the seventh month, Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah, son of
Elish'ama, of the royal family, one of the chief officers of the king, came
with ten men to Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam, at Mizpah. As they ate bread
together there at Mizpah, 2Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah and the ten men
with him rose up and struck down Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam, son of
Sha'phan, with the sword, and killed him, whom the king of Babylon had
appointed governor in the land. 3Ish'mael also slew all the Jews who were
with Gedali'ah at Mizpah, and the Chalde'an soldiers who happened to be
there.
4 On the day after the murder of Gedali'ah, before any one knew of it,
5eighty men arrived from She'chem and Shiloh and Samar'ia, with their
beards shaved and their clothes torn, and their bodies gashed, bringing
cereal offerings and incense to present at the temple of the LORD. 6And
Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah came out from Mizpah to meet them,
weeping as he came. As he met them, he said to them, “Come in to
Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam.” 7When they came into the city, Ish'mael the
son of Nethani'ah and the men with him slew them, and cast them into a
cistern. 8But there were ten men among them who said to Ish'mael, “Do not
kill us, for we have stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey hidden in the
fields.” So he refrained and did not kill them with their companions.
9 Now the cistern into which Ish'mael cast all the bodies of the men
whom he had slain was the large cisternr which King Asa had made for
defense against Ba'asha king of Israel; Ishmael the son of Nethani'ah filled
it with the slain. 10Then Ish'mael took captive all the rest of the people who
were in Mizpah, the king’s daughters and all the people who were left at
Mizpah whom Nebu'zarad'an, the captain of the guard, had committed to
Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam. Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah took them
captive and set out to cross over to the Am'monites.
Johanan and Ishmael
11 But when Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the leaders of the forces
with him heard of all the evil which Ish'mael the son of Nethani'ah had
done, 12they took all their men and went to fight against Ish'mael the son of
Nethani'ah. They came upon him at the great pool which is in Gib'eon.
13And when all the people who were with Ish'mael saw Joha'nan the son of
Kare'ah and all the leaders of the forces with him, they rejoiced. 14So all the
people whom Ish'mael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned about
and came back, and went to Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah. 15But Ish'mael the
son of Nethani'ah escaped from Joha'nan with eight men, and went to the
Am'monites. Then Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the leaders of the
forces with him took all the rest of the people whom Ish'mael the son of
Nethani'ah had carried away captives from Mizpah after he had slain
Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam—soldiers, women, children, and eunuchs,
whom Johanan brought back from Gib'eon. 17And they went and stayed at
Ge'ruth Chimham near Bethlehem, intending to go to Egypt 18because of
the Chalde'ans; for they were afraid of them, because Ish'mael the son of
Nethani'ah had slain Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam, whom the king of
Babylon had made governor over the land.
Jeremiah Advises Survivors Not to Go to Egypt
42 Then all the commanders of the forces, and Joha'nan the son of
Kare'ah and Azari'aht the son of Hoshai'ah, and all the people from the least
to the greatest, came near 2and said to Jeremi'ah the prophet, “Let our
supplication come before you, and pray to the LORD your God for us, for all
this remnant (for we are left but a few of many, as your eyes see us), 3that
the LORD your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing that
we should do.” 4Jeremi'ah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you;
behold, I will pray to the LORD your God according to your request, and
whatever the LORD answers you I will tell you; I will keep nothing back
from you.” 5Then they said to Jeremi'ah, “May the LORD be a true and
faithful witness against us if we do not act according to all the word with
which the LORD your God sends you to us. 6Whether it is good or evil, we
will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, that
it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.”
7 At the end of ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah. 8Then
he summoned Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the commanders of the
forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest,
9and said to them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you
sent me to present your supplication before him: 10If you will remain in this
land, then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant you, and
not pluck you up; for I repent of the evil which I did to you. 11Do not fear
the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; do not fear him, says the
LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand. 12I
will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and let you remain in
your own land. 13But if you say, ‘We will not remain in this land,’
disobeying the voice of the LORD your God 14and saying, ‘No, we will go to
the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war, or hear the sound of the
trumpet, or be hungry for bread, and we will dwell there,’ 15then hear the
word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the
God of Israel: If you set your faces to enter Egypt and go to live there,
16then the sword which you fear shall overtake you there in the land of
Egypt; and the famine of which you are afraid shall follow hard after you to
Egypt; and there you shall die. 17All the men who set their faces to go to
Egypt to live there shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence;
they shall have no remnant or survivor from the evil which I will bring
upon them.
18 “For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: As my anger and
my wrath were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will
be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You shall become an
execration, a horror, a curse, and a taunt. You shall see this place no more.
19The LORD has said to you, O remnant of Judah, ‘Do not go to Egypt.’
Know for a certainty that I have warned you this day 20that you have gone
astray at the cost of your lives. For you sent me to the LORD your God,
saying, ‘Pray for us to the LORD our God, and whatever the LORD our God
says declare to us and we will do it.’ 21And I have this day declared it to
you, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in anything
that he sent me to tell you. 22Now therefore know for a certainty that you
shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place where you
desire to go to live.”
Jeremiah Warns of Judgment
43 When Jeremi'ah finished speaking to all the people all these words of
the LORD their God, with which the LORD their God had sent him to them,
2Azari'ah the son of Hoshai'ah and Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the
insolent men said to Jeremi'ah, “You are telling a lie. The LORD our God did
not send you to say, ‘Do not go to Egypt to live there’; 3but Baruch the son
of Neri'ah has set you against us, to deliver us into the hand of the
Chalde'ans, that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon.” 4So
Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the commanders of the forces and all the
people did not obey the voice of the LORD, to remain in the land of Judah.
5But Joha'nan the son of Kare'ah and all the commanders of the forces took
all the remnant of Judah who had returned to live in the land of Judah from
all the nations to which they had been driven— 6the men, the women, the
children, the princesses, and every person whom Nebu'zarad'an the captain
of the guard had left with Gedali'ah the son of Ahi'kam, son of Sha'phan;
also Jeremi'ah the prophet and Baruch the son of Neri'ah. 7And they came
into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD. And
they arrived at Tah'panhes.
8 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremi'ah in Tah'panhes: 9“Take in
your hands large stones, and hide them in the mortar in the pavement which
is at the entrance to Pharaoh’s palace in Tah'panhes, in the sight of the men
of Judah, 10and say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrez'zar the king of Babylon,
my servant, and heu will set his throne above these stones which I have hid,
and he will spread his royal canopy over them. 11He shall come and strike
the land of Egypt, giving to the pestilence those who are doomed to the
pestilence, to captivity those who are doomed to captivity, and to the sword
those who are doomed to the sword. 12Hev shall kindle a fire in the temples
of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them and carry them away captive;
and he shall clean the land of Egypt, as a shepherd cleans his cloak of
vermin; and he shall go away from there in peace. 13He shall break the
obelisks of He''liop'olis which is in the land of Egypt; and the temples of the
gods of Egypt he shall burn with fire.’ ”
Denunciation of Idolatry in Egypt
44 The word that came to Jeremi'ah concerning all the Jews that dwelt
in the land of Egypt, at Migdol, at Tah'panhes, at Memphis, and in the land
of Path'ros, 2“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen
all the evil that I brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah.
Behold, this day they are a desolation, and no one dwells in them, 3because
of the wickedness which they committed, provoking me to anger, in that
they went to burn incense and serve other gods that they knew not, neither
they, nor you, nor your fathers. 4Yet I persistently sent to you all my
servants the prophets, saying, ‘Oh, do not do this abominable thing that I
hate!’ 5But they did not listen or incline their ear, to turn from their
wickedness and burn no incense to other gods. 6Therefore my wrath and my
anger were poured forth and kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets
of Jerusalem; and they became a waste and a desolation, as at this day. 7And
now thus says the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel: Why do you
commit this great evil against yourselves, to cut off from you man and
woman, infant and child, from the midst of Judah, leaving you no remnant?
8Why do you provoke me to anger with the works of your hands, burning
incense to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have come to live, that
you may be cut off and become a curse and a taunt among all the nations of
the earth? 9Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, the
wickedness of the kings of Judah, the wickedness of theirw wives, your own
wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which they committed in
the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 10They have not humbled
themselves even to this day, nor have they feared, nor walked in my law
and my statutes which I set before you and before your fathers.
11 “Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I
will set my face against you for evil, to cut off all Judah. 12I will take the
remnant of Judah who have set their faces to come to the land of Egypt to
live, and they shall all be consumed; in the land of Egypt they shall fall; by
the sword and by famine they shall be consumed; from the least to the
greatest, they shall die by the sword and by famine; and they shall become
an execration, a horror, a curse, and a taunt. 13I will punish those who dwell
in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, with the sword, with
famine, and with pestilence, 14so that none of the remnant of Judah who
have come to live in the land of Egypt shall escape or survive or return to
the land of Judah, to which they desire to return to dwell there; for they
shall not return, except some fugitives.”
15 Then all the men who knew that their wives had offered incense to
other gods, and all the women who stood by, a great assembly, all the
people who dwelt in Path'ros in the land of Egypt, answered Jeremi'ah:
16“As for the word which you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD,
we will not listen to you. 17But we will do everything that we have vowed,
burn incense to the queen of heaven and pour out libations to her, as we did,
both we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah
and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then we had plenty of food, and
prospered, and saw no evil. 18But since we left off burning incense to the
queen of heaven and pouring out libations to her, we have lacked everything
and have been consumed by the sword and by famine.” 19And the women
said,x “When we burned incense to the queen of heaven and poured out
libations to her, was it without our husbands’ approval that we made cakes
for her bearing her image and poured out libations to her?”
20 Then Jeremi'ah said to all the people, men and women, all the people
who had given him this answer: 21“As for the incense that you burned in the
cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your
kings and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the LORD
remember it? y Did it not come into his mind? 22The LORD could no longer
bear your evil doings and the abominations which you committed; therefore
your land has become a desolation and a waste and a curse, without
inhabitant, as it is this day. 23It is because you burned incense, and because
you sinned against the LORD and did not obey the voice of the LORD or walk
in his law and in his statutes and in his testimonies, that this evil has
befallen you, as at this day.”
24 Jeremi'ah said to all the people and all the women, “Hear the word of
the LORD, all you of Judah who are in the land of Egypt, 25Thus says the
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You and your wives have declared with
your mouths, and have fulfilled it with your hands, saying, ‘We will surely
perform our vows that we have made, to burn incense to the queen of
heaven and to pour out libations to her.’ Then confirm your vows and
perform your vows! 26Therefore hear the word of the LORD, all you of
Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by my great
name, says the LORD, that my name shall no more be invoked by the mouth
of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, ‘As the Lord GOD
lives.’ 27Behold, I am watching over them for evil and not for good; all the
men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword
and by famine, until there is an end of them. 28And those who escape the
sword shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, few in
number; and all the remnant of Judah, who came to the land of Egypt to
live, shall know whose word will stand, mine or theirs. 29This shall be the
sign to you, says the LORD, that I will punish you in this place, in order that
you may know that my words will surely stand against you for evil: 30Thus
says the LORD, Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hoph'ra king of Egypt into the
hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek his life, as I gave
Zedeki'ah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon,
who was his enemy and sought his life.”
A Word of Comfort to Baruch
45 The word that Jeremi'ah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of
Neri'ah, when he wrote these words in a book at the dictation of Jeremiah,
in the fourth year of Jehoi'akim the son of Josi'ah, king of Judah: 2“Thus
says the LORD, the God of Israel, to you, O Baruch: 3You said, ‘Woe is me!
for the LORD has added sorrow to my pain; I am weary with my groaning,
and I find no rest.’ 4Thus shall you say to him, Thus says the LORD: Behold,
what I have built I am breaking down, and what I have planted I am
plucking up—that is, the whole land. 5And do you seek great things for
yourself? Seek them not; for behold, I am bringing evil upon all flesh, says
the LORD; but I will give you your life as a prize of war in all places to
which you may go.”
Judgment against Egypt
46 The word of the LORD which came to Jeremi'ah the prophet
concerning the nations.
2 About Egypt. Concerning the army of Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt,
which was by the river Euphra'tes at Car'chemish and which
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon defeated in the fourth year of Jehoi'akim
the son of Josi'ah, king of Judah:
3“Prepare buckler and shield,
and advance for battle!

4Harness the horses;
mount, O horsemen!
Take your stations with your helmets,
polish your spears,
put on your coats of mail!
5Why have I seen it?
They are dismayed

and have turned backward.
Their warriors are beaten down,
and have fled in haste;
they look not back—
terror on every side!
says the LORD.
6The swift cannot flee away,
nor the warrior escape;

in the north by the river Euphra'tes
they have stumbled and fallen.
7“Who is this, rising like the Nile,
like rivers whose waters surge?

8Egypt rises like the Nile,
like rivers whose waters surge.

He said, I will rise, I will cover the earth,
I will destroy cities and their inhabitants.
9Advance, O horses,
and rage, O chariots!
Let the warriors go forth:
men of Ethiopia and Put who handle the shield,
men of Lud, skilled in handling the bow.
10That day is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts,
a day of vengeance,
to avenge himself on his foes.
The sword shall devour and be sated,
and drink its fill of their blood.
For the Lord GOD of hosts holds a sacrifice
in the north country by the river Euphra'tes.
11Go up to Gilead, and take balm,
O virgin daughter of Egypt!

In vain you have used many medicines;
there is no healing for you.
12The nations have heard of your shame,
and the earth is full of your cry;

for warrior has stumbled against warrior;
they have both fallen together.”
13 The word which the LORD spoke to Jeremi'ah the prophet about the
coming of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:
14“Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in Migdol;
proclaim in Memphis and Tah'panhes;

Say, ‘Stand ready and be prepared,
for the sword shall devour round about you.’
15Why has A'pis fled? z
Why did not your bull stand?

Because the LORD thrust him down.
16Your multitude stumbleda and fell,
and they said one to another,

Arise, and let us go back to our own people
and to the land of our birth,
because of the sword of the oppressor.’
17Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
‘Noisy one who lets the hour go by.’
18“As I live, says the King,
whose name is the LORD of hosts,
like Ta'bor among the mountains,
and like Carmel by the sea, shall one come.
19Prepare yourselves baggage for exile,
O inhabitants of Egypt!
For Memphis shall become a waste,
a ruin, without inhabitant.
20“A beautiful heifer is Egypt,
but a gadfly from the north has come upon her.

21Even her hired soldiers in her midst
are like fatted calves;

yes, they have turned and fled together,
they did not stand;
for the day of their calamity has come upon them,
the time of their punishment.
22“She makes a sound like a serpent gliding away;
for her enemies march in force,

and come against her with axes,
like those who fell trees.
23They shall cut down her forest,
says the LORD,

though it is impenetrable,
because they are more numerous than locusts;
they are without number.
24The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame,
she shall be delivered into the hand of a people from the north.”
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25 The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, said: “Behold, I am bringing
punishment upon A'mon of Thebes, and Pharaoh, and Egypt and her gods
and her kings, upon Pharaoh and those who trust in him. 26I will deliver
them into the hand of those who seek their life, into the hand of
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon and his officers. Afterward Egypt shall be
inhabited as in the days of old, says the LORD.
27“But fear not, O Jacob my servant,
nor be dismayed, O Israel;
for behold, I will save you from afar,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
28Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
says the LORD,

for I am with you.
I will make a full end of all the nations
to which I have driven you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
I will chasten you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.”
Judgment against the Philistines
47 The word of the LORD that came to Jere- mi'ah the prophet
concerning the Philis'tines, before Pharaoh struck Gaza.
Behold, waters are rising out of the north,

and shall become an overflowing torrent;
they shall overflow the land and all that fills it,
the city and those who dwell in it.
Men shall cry out,
and every inhabitant of the land shall wail.
3At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his stallions,
at the rushing of his chariots, at the rumbling of their wheels,

the fathers look not back to their children,
so feeble are their hands,
4because of the day that is coming to destroy
all the Philis'tines,
to cut off from Tyre and Si'don
every helper that remains.
For the LORD is destroying the Philistines,
the remnant of the coastland of Caphtor.
5Baldness has come upon Gaza,
Ash'kelon has perished.

O remnant of the An'akim,b
how long will you gash yourselves?
6Ah, sword of the LORD!
How long till you are quiet?

Put yourself into your scabbard,
rest and be still!
7How can itc be quiet,
when the LORD has given it a charge?
Against Ash'kelon and against the seashore
he has appointed it.”
Judgment against Moab
48 Concerning Moab.
Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
“Woe to Nebo, for it is laid waste!
Kir''iatha'im is put to shame, it is taken;
the fortress is put to shame and broken down;
2 the renown of Moab is no more.
In Heshbon they planned evil against her:

‘Come, let us cut her off from being a nation!’
You also, O Madmen, shall be brought to silence;
the sword shall pursue you.
3“Listen! a cry from Horona'im,
‘Desolation and great destruction!’
4Moab is destroyed;
a cry is heard as far as Zoar.d

5For at the ascent of Lu'hith
they go up weeping;e
for at the descent of Horona'im
they have heard the cryf of destruction.
6Flee! Save yourselves!
Be like a wild donkeyg in the desert!

7For, because you trusted in your strongholdsh and your treasures,
you also shall be taken;
and Che'mosh shall go forth into exile,
with his priests and his princes.
8The destroyer shall come upon every city,
and no city shall escape;
the valley shall perish,
and the plain shall be destroyed,
as the LORD has spoken.
9“Give wings to Moab,
for she would fly away;

her cities shall become a desolation,
with no inhabitant in them.
10 “Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD with slackness; and
cursed is he who keeps back his sword from bloodshed.
11“Moab has been at ease from his youth
and has settled on his dregs;
he has not been emptied from vessel to vessel,
nor has he gone into exile;
so his taste remains in him,
and his scent is not changed.
12 “Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I shall
send to him tilters who will tilt him, and empty his vessels, and break hisi
jars in pieces. 13Then Moab shall be ashamed of Che'mosh, as the house of
Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence.
14“How do you say, ‘We are heroes
and mighty men of war’?
15The destroyer of Moab and his cities has come up,
and the choicest of his young men have gone down to slaughter,
says the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.
16The calamity of Moab is near at hand
and his affliction hastens apace.
17Bemoan him, all you who are round about him,
and all who know his name;
say, ‘How the mighty scepter is broken,
the glorious staff.’
18“Come down from your glory,
and sit on the parched ground,
O inhabitant of Di'bon!
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you;
he has destroyed your strongholds.
19Stand by the way and watch,
O inhabitant of Aro'er!
Ask him who flees and her who escapes;
say, ‘What has happened?’
20Moab is put to shame, for it is broken;
wail and cry!

Tell it by the Arnon,
that Moab is laid waste.
21 “Judgment has come upon the tableland, upon Ho'lon, and Jah'zah, and
Meph'a-ath, 22and Di'bon, and Nebo, and Beth''-diblatha'im, 23and
Kir''iatha'im, and Beth-ga'mul, and Beth-me'on, 24and Ker'ioth, and Bozrah,
and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25The horn of Moab is
cut off, and his arm is broken, says the LORD.
26 “Make him drunk, because he magnified himself against the LORD; so
that Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he too shall be held in derision.
27Was not Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves, that
whenever you spoke of him you wagged your head?
28“Leave the cities, and dwell in the rock,
O inhabitants of Moab!
Be like the dove that nests
in the sides of the mouth of a gorge.
29We have heard of the pride of Moab—
he is very proud—
of his loftiness, his pride, and his arrogance,
and the haughtiness of his heart.
30I know his insolence, says the LORD;
his boasts are false,
his deeds are false.
31Therefore I wail for Moab;
I cry out for all Moab;
for the men of Kir-he'res I mourn.
32More than for Ja'zer I weep for you,
O vine of Sibmah!
Your branches passed over the sea,
reached as far as Jazer,j
upon your summer fruits and your vintage
the destroyer has fallen.
33Gladness and joy have been taken away
from the fruitful land of Moab;

I have made the wine cease from the wine presses;
no one treads them with shouts of joy;
the shouting is not the shout of joy.
34 “Heshbon and Ele-a'leh cry out;k as far as Ja'haz they utter their voice,
from Zoar to Horona'im and Eg'lath-shelish'iyah. For the waters of Nimrim
also have become desolate. 35And I will bring to an end in Moab, says the
LORD, him who offers sacrifice in the high place and burns incense to his
god. 36Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans
like a flute for the men of Kir-he'res; therefore the riches they gained have
perished.
37 “For every head is shaved and every beard cut off; upon all the hands
are gashes, and on the loins is sackcloth. 38On all the housetops of Moab
and in the squares there is nothing but lamentation; for I have broken Moab
like a vessel for which no one cares, says the LORD. 39How it is broken!
How they wail! How Moab has turned his back in shame! So Moab has
become a derision and a horror to all that are round about him.”
“Behold, one shall fly swiftly like an eagle,

and spread his wings against Moab;
41the cities shall be taken
and the strongholds seized.
The heart of the warriors of Moab shall be in that day
like the heart of a woman with her labor pains;
42Moab shall be destroyed and be no longer a people,
because he magnified himself against the LORD.
43Terror, pit, and snare
are before you, O inhabitant of Moab!

says the LORD.
44He who flees from the terror
shall fall into the pit,

and he who climbs out of the pit
shall be caught in the snare.
For I will bring these thingsl upon Moab
in the year of their punishment,
says the LORD.
45“In the shadow of Heshbon
fugitives stop without strength;

for a fire has gone forth from Heshbon,
a flame from the house of Si'hon;
it has destroyed the forehead of Moab,
the crown of the sons of tumult.
46Woe to you, O Moab!
The people of Che'mosh is undone;

for your sons have been taken captive,
and your daughters into captivity.
47Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab
in the latter days, says the LORD.”
Thus far is the judgment on Moab.
Judgment against the Ammonites
49 Concerning the Am'monites.
Thus says the LORD:
“Has Israel no sons?
Has he no heir?
Why then has Milcom dispossessed Gad,
and his people settled in its cities?
2Therefore, behold, the days are coming,
says the LORD,

when I will cause the battle cry to be heard
against Rabbah of the Am'monites;
it shall become a desolate mound,
and its villages shall be burned with fire;
then Israel shall dispossess those who dispossessed him,
says the LORD.
3“Wail, O Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste!
Cry, O daughters of Rabbah!

Clothe yourselves with sackcloth,
lament, and run to and fro among the hedges!
For Milcom shall go into exile,
with his priests and his princes.
4Why do you boast of your valleys,m
O faithless daughter,
who trusted in her treasures, saying,
‘Who will come against me?’
5Behold, I will bring terror upon you,
says the Lord GOD of hosts,

from all who are round about you,
and you shall be driven out, every man straight before him,
with none to gather the fugitives.
6 But afterward I will restore the fortunes of the Am'monites, says the
LORD.”
Judgment against Edom
7 Concerning E'dom.
Thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Is wisdom no more in Te'man?
Has counsel perished from the prudent?
Has their wisdom vanished?
8Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of De'dan!
For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him,
the time when I punish him.
9If grape-gatherers came to you,
would they not leave gleanings?

If thieves came by night,
would they not destroy only enough for themselves?
10But I have stripped Esau bare,
I have uncovered his hiding places,
and he is not able to conceal himself.
His children are destroyed, and his brothers,
and his neighbors; and he is no more.
11Leave your fatherless children, I will keep them alive;
and let your widows trust in me.”

12 For thus says the LORD: “If those who did not deserve to drink the cup
must drink it, will you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but
you must drink. 13For I have sworn by myself, says the LORD, that Bozrah
shall become a horror, a taunt, a waste, and a curse; and all her cities shall
be perpetual wastes.”
14I have heard tidings from the LORD,
and a messenger has been sent among the nations:

“Gather yourselves together and come against her,
and rise up for battle!”
15For behold, I will make you small among the nations,
despised among men.
16The horror you inspire has deceived you,
and the pride of your heart,

you who live in the clefts of the rock,n
who hold the height of the hill.
Though you make your nest as high as the eagle’s,
I will bring you down from there,
says the LORD.
17 “E'dom shall become a horror; every one who passes by it will be
horrified and will hiss because of all its disasters. 18As when Sodom and
Gomor'rah and their neighbor cities were overthrown, says the LORD, no
man shall dwell there, no man shall sojourn in her. 19Behold, like a lion
coming up from the jungle of the Jordan against a strong sheepfold, I will
suddenly make themo run away from her; and I will appoint over her
whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What
shepherd can stand before me? 20Therefore hear the plan which the LORD
has made against E'dom and the purposes which he has formed against the
inhabitants of Te'man: Even the little ones of the flock shall be dragged
away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 21At the sound of their
fall the earth shall tremble; the sound of their cry shall be heard at the Red
Sea. 22Behold, one shall mount up and fly swiftly like an eagle, and spread
his wings against Bozrah, and the heart of the warriors of E'dom shall be in
that day like the heart of a woman with her labor pains.”
Judgment against Damascus
23 Concerning Damascus.
“Ha'math and Arpad are confounded,
for they have heard evil tidings;
they melt in fear, they are troubled like the seap
which cannot be quiet.
24Damascus has become feeble, she turned to flee,
and panic seized her;
anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her,
as of a woman with labor pains.
25How the famous city is forsaken,q
the joyful city! r

26Therefore her young men shall fall in her squares,
and all her soldiers shall be destroyed in that day,

27And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Benha'dad.”

Judgment against Kedar and Hazor
28 Concerning Ke'dar and the kingdoms of Ha'zor which
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon struck.
Thus says the LORD:
“Rise up, advance against Kedar!
Destroy the people of the east!
29Their tents and their flocks shall be taken,
their curtains and all their goods;

their camels shall be borne away from them,
and men shall cry to them: ‘Terror on every side!’
30Flee, wander far away, dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of Ha'zor!
says the LORD.
For Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon
has made a plan against you,
and formed a purpose against you.
31“Rise up, advance against a nation at ease,
that dwells securely,
says the LORD,
that has no gates or bars,
that dwells alone.
32Their camels shall become booty,
their herds of cattle a spoil.

I will scatter to every wind
those who cut the corners of their hair,
and I will bring their calamity
from every side of them,
says the LORD.
33Ha'zor shall become a haunt of jackals,
an everlasting waste;
no man shall dwell there,
no man shall sojourn in her.”
Judgment against Elam
34 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremi'ah the prophet concerning
E'lam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedeki'ah king of Judah.
35 Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will break the bow of E'lam,
the mainstay of their might; 36and I will bring upon E'lam the four winds
from the four quarters of heaven; and I will scatter them to all those winds,
and there shall be no nation to which those driven out of Elam shall not
come. 37I will terrify E'lam before their enemies, and before those who seek
their life; I will bring evil upon them, my fierce anger, says the LORD. I will
send the sword after them, until I have consumed them; 38and I will set my
throne in E'lam, and destroy their king and princes, says the LORD.
39 “But in the latter days I will restore the fortunes of E'lam, says the
LORD.”
Judgment against Babylon
50 The word which the LORD spoke concerning Babylon, concerning
the land of the Chalde'ans, by Jeremi'ah the prophet:
2“Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,

conceal it not, and say:
‘Babylon is taken,
Bel is put to shame,
Mer'odach is dismayed.
Her images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.’
3 “For out of the north a nation has come up against her, which shall
make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; both man and beast
shall flee away.
4 “In those days and in that time, says the LORD, the people of Israel and
the people of Judah shall come together, weeping as they come; and they
shall seek the LORD their God. 5They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces
turned toward it, saying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the LORD in an
everlasting covenant which will never be forgotten.’
6 “My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray,
turning them away on the mountains; from mountain to hill they have gone,
they have forgotten their fold. 7All who found them have devoured them,
and their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for they have sinned against
the LORD, their true habitation, the LORD, the hope of their fathers.’
8 “Flee from the midst of Babylon, and go out of the land of the
Chalde'ans, and be as he-goats before the flock. 9For behold, I am stirring
up and bringing against Babylon a company of great nations, from the north
country; and they shall array themselves against her; from there she shall be
taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-
handed. 10Chalde'a shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated,
says the LORD.
11“Though you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you are wanton as a heifer at grass,
and neigh like stallions,
12your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.

Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,
a wilderness dry and desert.
13Because of the wrath of the LORD she shall not be inhabited,
but shall be an utter desolation;
every one who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,
and hiss because of all her wounds.
14Set yourselves in array against Babylon round about,
all you that bend the bow;

shoot at her, spare no arrows,
for she has sinned against the LORD.
15Raise a shout against her round about,
she has surrendered;

her bulwarks have fallen,
her walls are thrown down.
For this is the vengeance of the LORD:
take vengeance on her,
do to her as she has done.
16Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;

because of the sword of the oppressor,
every one shall turn to his own people,
and every one shall flee to his own land.
17 “Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria
devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon has
gnawed his bones. 18Therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel: Behold, I am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his
land, as I punished the king of Assyria. 19I will restore Israel to his pasture,
and he shall feed on Car'mel and in Ba'shan, and his desire shall be satisfied
on the hills of E'phraim and in Gilead. 20In those days and in that time, says
the LORD, iniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none; and sin
in Judah, and none shall be found; for I will pardon those whom I leave as a
remnant.
21“Go up against the land of Meratha'im,s
and against the inhabitants of Pe'kod.t

Slay, and utterly destroy after them, says the LORD,
and do all that I have commanded you.
22The noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23How the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
How Babylon has become
a horror among the nations!
24I set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,
and you did not know it;

you were found and caught,
because you strove against the LORD.
25The LORD has opened his armory,
and brought out the weapons of his wrath,

for the Lord GOD of hosts has a work to do
in the land of the Chalde'ans.
26Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
pile her up like heaps of grain, and destroy her utterly;
let nothing be left of her.
27Slay all her bulls,
let them go down to the slaughter.

Woe to them, for their day has come,
the time of their punishment.
28 “Listen! they flee and escape from the land of Babylon, to declare in
Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God, vengeance for his temple.
29 “Summon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow.
Encamp round about her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her
deeds, do to her according to all that she has done; for she has proudly
defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. 30Therefore her young men shall
fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, says
the LORD.
31“Behold, I am against you, O proud one,
says the Lord GOD of hosts;

for your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32The proud one shall stumble and fall,
with none to raise him up,

and I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour all that is round about him.
33 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: The people of Israel are oppressed, and
the people of Judah with them; all who took them captive have held them
fast, they refuse to let them go. 34Their Redeemer is strong; the LORD of
hosts is his name. He will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to
the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35“A sword upon the Chalde'ans, says the LORD,
and upon the inhabitants of Babylon,
and upon her princes and her wise men!
36A sword upon the diviners,
that they may become fools!

A sword upon her warriors,
that they may be destroyed!
37A sword upon her horses and upon her chariots,
and upon all the foreign troops in her midst,

that they may become women!
A sword upon all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38A drought upon her waters,
that they may be dried up!

For it is a land of images,
and they are mad over idols.
39 “Therefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon, and
ostriches shall dwell in her; she shall be peopled no more for ever, nor
inhabited for all generations. 40As when God overthrew Sodom and
Gomor'rah and their neighbor cities, says the LORD, so no man shall dwell
there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.
41“Behold, a people comes from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42They lay hold of bow and spear;
they are cruel, and have no mercy.

The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;
they ride upon horses,
clothed as a man for battle
against you, O daughter of Babylon!
43“The king of Babylon heard the report of them,
and his hands fell helpless;

anguish seized him,
pain as of a woman in labor.
44 “Behold, like a lion coming up from the jungle of the Jordan against a
strong sheepfold, I will suddenly make them run away from her; and I will
appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will
summon me? What shepherd can stand before me? 45Therefore hear the
plan which the LORD has made against Babylon, and the purposes which he
has formed against the land of the Chalde'ans: Surely the little ones of their
flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate.
46At the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry
shall be heard among the nations.”

Behold, I will stir up the spirit of a destroyer against Babylon,
against the inhabitants of Chalde'a;u
2and I will send to Babylon winnowers,
and they shall winnow her,

and they shall empty her land,
when they come against her from every side
on the day of trouble.
3Let not the archer bend his bow,
and let him not stand up in his coat of mail.
Spare not her young men;
utterly destroy all her host.
4They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chalde'ans,
and wounded in her streets.

5For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the LORD of hosts;

but the land of the Chalde'ansv is full of guilt
against the Holy One of Israel.
6“Flee from the midst of Babylon,
let every man save his life!
Be not cut off in her punishment,
for this is the time of the LORD’s vengeance,
the repayment he is rendering her.
7Babylon was a golden cup in the LORD’s hand,
making all the earth drunken;

the nations drank of her wine,
therefore the nations went mad.
8Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken;
wail for her!

Take balm for her pain;
perhaps she may be healed.
9We would have healed Babylon,
but she was not healed.

Forsake her, and let us go
each to his own country;
for her judgment has reached up to heaven
and has been lifted up even to the skies.
10The LORD has brought forth our vindication;
come, let us declare in Zion

the work of the LORD our God.
11“Sharpen the arrows!
Take up the shields!

The LORD has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because his
purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, for that is the vengeance of the
LORD, the vengeance for his temple.
12Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon;
make the watch strong;

set up watchmen;
prepare the ambushes;
for the LORD has both planned and done
what he spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
13O you who dwell by many waters,
rich in treasures,
your end has come,
the thread of your life is cut.
14The LORD of hosts has sworn by himself:
Surely I will fill you with men, as many as locusts,
and they shall raise the shout of victory over you.
15“It is he who made the earth by his power,
who established the world by his wisdom,

and by his understanding
stretched out the heavens.
16When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
17Every man is stupid and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols;

for his images are false,
and there is no breath in them.
18They are worthless, a work of delusion;
at the time of their punishment they shall perish.

19Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,
for he is the one who formed all things,

and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
20“You are my hammer and weapon of war:
with you I break nations in pieces;

with you I destroy kingdoms;
21with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider;
with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;

22with you I break in pieces man and woman;
with you I break in pieces the old man and the youth;
with you I break in pieces the young man and the maiden;
23 with you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock;
with you I break in pieces the farmer and his team;

with you I break in pieces governors and commanders.
The Doom of Babylon
24 “I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chalde'a before your
very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, says the LORD.
25“Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain,
says the LORD,
which destroys the whole earth;
I will stretch out my hand against you,
and roll you down from the crags,
and make you a burnt mountain.
26No stone shall be taken from you for a corner
and no stone for a foundation,

but you shall be a perpetual waste,
says the LORD.
27“Set up a standard on the earth,
blow the trumpet among the nations;

prepare the nations for war against her,
summon against her the kingdoms,
Ar'arat, Minni, and Ash'kenaz;
appoint a marshal against her,
bring up horses like bristling locusts.
28Prepare the nations for war against her,
the kings of the Medes, with their governors and deputies,

and every land under their dominion.
29The land trembles and writhes in pain,
for the LORD’s purposes against Babylon stand,

to make the land of Babylon a desolation,
without inhabitant.
30The warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting,
they remain in their strongholds;
their strength has failed,
they have become women;
her dwellings are on fire,
her bars are broken.
31One runner runs to meet another,
and one messenger to meet another,

to tell the king of Babylon
that his city is taken on every side;
32the fords have been seized,
the bulwarks are burned with fire,

and the soldiers are in panic.
33For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor
at the time when it is trodden;
yet a little while
and the time of her harvest will come.”
34“Nebuchadrez'zar the king of Babylon has devoured me,
he has crushed me;

he has made me an empty vessel,
he has swallowed me like a monster;
he has filled his belly with my delicacies,
he has rinsed me out.
35The violence done to me and to my kinsmen be upon Babylon,”
let the inhabitant of Zion say.

“My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chalde'a,”
let Jerusalem say.
“Behold, I will plead your cause

and take vengeance for you.
I will dry up her sea
and make her fountain dry;
37and Babylon shall become a heap of ruins,
the haunt of jackals,

a horror and a hissing,
without inhabitant.
38“They shall roar together like lions;
they shall growl like lions’ whelps.

39While they are inflamed I will prepare them a feast
and make them drunk, till they swoon awayw

and sleep a perpetual sleep
and not wake, says the LORD.
40I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter,
like rams and he-goats.

41“How Babylonx is taken,
the praise of the whole earth seized!

How Babylon has become
a horror among the nations!
42The sea has come up on Babylon;
she is covered with its tumultuous waves.

43Her cities have become a horror,
a land of drought and a desert,

a land in which no one dwells,
and through which no son of man passes.
44And I will punish Bel in Babylon,
and take out of his mouth what he has swallowed.

The nations shall no longer flow to him;
the wall of Babylon has fallen.
45“Go out of the midst of her, my people!
Let every man save his life

from the fierce anger of the LORD!
46Let not your heart faint, and be not fearful
at the report heard in the land,

when a report comes in one year
and afterward a report in another year,
and violence is in the land,
and ruler is against ruler.
47“Therefore, behold, the days are coming
when I will punish the images of Babylon;

her whole land shall be put to shame,
and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.
48Then the heavens and the earth,
and all that is in them,

shall sing for joy over Babylon;
for the destroyers shall come against them out of the north,
says the LORD.
49Babylon must fall for the slain of Israel,
as for Babylon have fallen the slain of all the earth.

50“You that have escaped from the sword,
go, stand not still!

Remember the LORD from afar,
and let Jerusalem come into your mind:
51‘We are put to shame, for we have heard reproach;
dishonor has covered our face,
for aliens have come
into the holy places of the LORD’s house.’
52“Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will execute judgment upon her images,

and through all her land
the wounded shall groan.
53Though Babylon should mount up to heaven,
and though she should fortify her strong height,

yet destroyers would come from me upon her,
says the LORD.
54“Listen! a cry from Babylon!
The noise of great destruction from the land of the Chalde'ans!

55For the LORD is laying Babylon waste,
and stilling her mighty voice.

Their waves roar like many waters,
the noise of their voice is raised;
56for a destroyer has come upon her,
upon Babylon;
her warriors are taken,
their bows are broken in pieces;
for the LORD is a God of recompense,
he will surely repay.
57I will make drunk her princes and her wise men,
her governors, her commanders, and her warriors;

they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake,
says the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.
58“Thus says the LORD of hosts:
The broad wall of Babylon

shall be leveled to the ground
and her high gates
shall be burned with fire.
The peoples labor for nothing,
and the nations weary themselves only for fire.”
Jeremiah’s Command to Seraiah
59 The word which Jeremi'ah the prophet commanded Serai'ah the son of
Neri'ah, son of Mahsei'ah, when he went with Zedeki'ah king of Judah to
Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster.
60Jeremi'ah wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, all
these words that are written concerning Babylon. 61And Jeremi'ah said to
Serai'ah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words,
62and say, ‘O LORD, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it
off, so that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be
desolate for ever.’ 63When you finish reading this book, bind a stone to it,
and cast it into the midst of the Euphra'tes, 64and say, ‘Thus shall Babylon
sink, to rise no more, because of the evil that I am bringing upon her.’ ” y
Thus far are the words of Jeremi'ah.
Zedekiah Is Captured
52 * Zedeki'ah was twenty-one years old when he became king; and he
reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamu'tal the
the LORD, according to all that Jehoi'akim had done. 3Surely because of the
anger of the LORD things came to such a pass in Jerusalem and Judah that
he cast them out from his presence.
And Zedeki'ah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 4And in the ninth
year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month,
Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem,
and they laid siege to it and built siegeworks against it round about. 5So the
city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedeki'ah. 6On the ninth
day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city, that there was
no food for the people of the land. 7Then a breach was made in the city; and
all the men of war fled and went out from the city by night by the way of a
gate between the two walls, by the king’s garden, while the Chalde'ans were
round about the city. And they went in the direction of the Ar'abah. 8But the
army of the Chalde'ans pursued the king, and overtook Zedeki'ah in the
plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. 9Then they
captured the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in
the land of Ha'math, and he passed sentence upon him. 10The king of
Babylon slew the sons of Zedeki'ah before his eyes, and also slew all the
princes of Judah at Riblah. 11He put out the eyes of Zedeki'ah, and bound
him in chains, and the king of Babylon took him to Babylon, and put him in
prison till the day of his death.
Jerusalem Is Plundered and Burned
12 In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month—which was the
nineteenth year of King Nebuchadrez'zar, king of Babylon—Nebu'zarad'an
the captain of the bodyguard who served the king of Babylon, entered
Jerusalem. 13And he burned the house of the LORD, and the king’s house
and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. 14And
all the army of the Chalde'ans, who were with the captain of the guard,
broke down all the walls round about Jerusalem. 15And Nebu'zarad'an the
captain of the guard carried away captive some of the poorest of the people
and the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who
had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the artisans.
16But Nebu'zarad'an the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the
land to be vinedressers and plowmen.

17 And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the
stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the LORD, the Chalde'ans
broke in pieces, and carried all the bronze to Babylon. 18And they took
away the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the
dishes for incense, and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service;
19also the small bowls, and the firepans, and the basins, and the pots, and
the lampstands, and the dishes for incense, and the bowls for libation. What
was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of
silver, as silver. 20As for the two pillars, the one sea, the twelve bronze bulls
which were under the sea,z and the stands, which Solomon the king had
made for the house of the LORD, the bronze of all these things was beyond
weight. 21As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits,
its circumference was twelve cubits, and its thickness was four fingers, and
it was hollow. 22Upon it was a capital of bronze; the height of the one
capital was five cubits; a network and pomegranates, all of bronze, were
upon the capital round about. And the second pillar had the like, with
pomegranates. 23There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; all the
pomegranates were a hundred upon the network round about.
24 And the captain of the guard took Serai'ah the chief priest, and
Zephani'ah the second priest, and the three keepers of the threshold; 25and
from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of
war, and seven men of the king’s council, who were found in the city; and
the secretary of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the
land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the midst
of the city. 26And Nebu'zarad'an the captain of the guard took them, and
brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 27And the king of Babylon
struck them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Ha'math. So
Judah was carried captive out of its land.
The Captives Taken to Babylon
28 This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadrez'zar carried away
captive: in the seventh year, three thousand and twenty-three Jews; 29in the
eighteenth year of Nebuchadrez'zar he carried away captive from Jerusalem
eight hundred and thirty-two persons; 30in the twenty-third year of
Nebuchadrez'zar, Nebu'zarad'an the captain of the guard carried away
captive of the Jews seven hundred and forty-five persons; all the persons
were four thousand and six hundred.
Jehoiachin Favored in Captivity
31 And in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoi'achin king of
Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, E'vil-
mer'odach king of Babylon, in the year that he became king, lifted up the
head of Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison; 32and he
spoke kindly to him, and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who
were with him in Babylon. 33So Jehoi'achin put off his prison garments.
And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table; 34as for his
allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king according to his
daily need, until the day of his death as long as he lived.
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Lamentations
Chapters
12345
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THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH
The Deserted City
1 *How lonely sits the city
that was full of people!
How like a widow has she become,
she that was great among the nations!
She that was a princess among the cities
has become a vassal.
2She weeps bitterly in the night,
tears on her cheeks;

among all her lovers
she has none to comfort her;
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her,
they have become her enemies.
3Judah has gone into exile because of affliction
and hard servitude;

she dwells now among the nations,
but finds no resting place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
in the midst of her distress.
4The roads to Zion mourn,
for none come to the appointed feasts;
all her gates are desolate,
her priests groan;
her maidens have been dragged away, a
and she herself suffers bitterly.
5Her foes have become the head,
her enemies prosper,

because the LORD has made her suffer
for the multitude of her transgressions;
her children have gone away,
captives before the foe.
6From the daughter of Zion has departed
all her majesty.
Her princes have become like deer
that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
before the pursuer.
7Jerusalem remembers
in the days of her affliction and bitterness b

all the precious things
that were hers from days of old.
When her people fell into the hand of the foe,
and there was none to help her,
the foe gloated over her,
mocking at her downfall.
8Jerusalem sinned grievously,
therefore she became filthy;

all who honored her despise her,
for they have seen her nakedness;
yes, she herself groans,
and turns her face away.
9Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
she took no thought of her doom;

therefore her fall is terrible,
she has no comforter.
“O LORD, behold my affliction,
for the enemy has triumphed!”
10The enemy has stretched out his hands
over all her precious things;
yes, she has seen the nations
invade her sanctuary,
those whom you forbade
to enter your congregation.
11All her people groan
as they search for bread;
they trade their treasures for food
to revive their strength.
“Look, O LORD, and behold,
for I am despised.”
12“Is it nothing to you, c all you who pass by?
Look and see
if there is any sorrow like my sorrow
which was brought upon me,
which the LORD inflicted
on the day of his fierce anger.
13“From on high he sent fire;
into my bones d he made it descend;

he spread a net for my feet;
he turned me back;
he has left me stunned,
faint all the day long.
14“My transgressions were bound e into a yoke;
by his hand they were fastened together;

they were set upon my neck;
he caused my strength to fail;
the Lord gave me into the hands
of those whom I cannot withstand.
15“The LORD flouted all my mighty men
in the midst of me;
he summoned an assembly against me
to crush my young men;
the Lord has trodden as in a wine press
the virgin daughter of Judah.
16“For these things I weep;
my eyes flow with tears;
for a comforter is far from me,
one to revive my courage;
my children are desolate,
for the enemy has prevailed.”
17Zion stretches out her hands,
but there is none to comfort her;
the LORD has commanded against Jacob
that his neighbors should be his foes;
Jerusalem has become
a filthy thing among them.
18“The LORD is in the right,
for I have rebelled against his word;
but hear, all you peoples,
and behold my suffering;
my maidens and my young men
have gone into captivity.
19“I called to my lovers
but they deceived me;
my priests and elders
perished in the city,
while they sought food
to revive their strength.
20“Behold, O LORD, for I am in distress,
my soul is in tumult,
my heart is wrung within me,
because I have been very rebellious.
In the street the sword bereaves;
in the house it is like death.
21“Hear f how I groan;
there is none to comfort me.

All my enemies have heard of my trouble;
they are glad that you have done it.
Bringg the day you have announced,
and let them be as I am.
22“Let all their evil-doing come before you;
and deal with them

as you have dealt with me
because of all my transgressions;
for my groans are many
and my heart is faint.”
God’s Warnings Are Fulfilled
2 How the Lord in his anger
has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud!
He has cast down from heaven to earth
the splendor of Israel;
he has not remembered his footstool
in the day of his anger.
2The Lord has destroyed without mercy
all the habitations of Jacob;

in his wrath he has broken down
the strongholds of the daughter of Judah;
he has brought down to the ground in dishonor
the kingdom and its rulers.
3He has cut down in fierce anger
all the might of Israel;

he has withdrawn from them his right hand
in the face of the enemy;
he has burned like a flaming fire in Jacob,
consuming all around.
4He has bent his bow like an enemy,
with his right hand set like a foe;
and he has slain all the pride of our eyes
in the tent of the daughter of Zion;
he has poured out his fury like fire.
5The Lord has become like an enemy,
he has destroyed Israel;

he has destroyed all its palaces,
laid in ruins its strongholds;
and he has multiplied in the daughter of Judah
mourning and lamentation.
6He has broken down his booth like that of a garden,
laid in ruins the place of his appointed feasts;

the LORD has brought to an end in Zion
appointed feast and sabbath,
and in his fierce indignation has spurned
king and priest.
7The Lord has scorned his altar,
disowned his sanctuary;

he has delivered into the hand of the enemy
the walls of her palaces;
a clamor was raised in the house of the LORD
as on the day of an appointed feast.
8The LORD determined to lay in ruins
the wall of the daughter of Zion;

he marked it off by the line;
he restrained not his hand from destroying;
he caused rampart and wall to lament,
they languish together.
9Her gates have sunk into the ground;
he has ruined and broken her bars;
her king and princes are among the nations;
the law is no more,
and her prophets obtain
no vision from the LORD.
10The elders of the daughter of Zion
sit on the ground in silence;

they have cast dust on their heads
and put on sackcloth;
the maidens of Jerusalem
have bowed their heads to the ground.
11My eyes are spent with weeping;
my soul is in tumult;
my heart is poured out in grief h
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people,
because infants and babies faint
in the streets of the city.
12They cry to their mothers,
“Where is bread and wine?”

as they faint like wounded men
in the streets of the city,
as their life is poured out
on their mothers’ bosom.
13What can I say for you, to what compare you,
O daughter of Jerusalem?
What can I liken to you, that I may comfort you,
O virgin daughter of Zion?
For vast as the sea is your ruin;
who can restore you?
14Your prophets have seen for you
false and deceptive visions;
they have not exposed your iniquity
to restore your fortunes,
but have seen for you oracles
false and misleading.
15All who pass along the way
clap their hands at you;

they hiss and wag their heads
at the daughter of Jerusalem;
“Is this the city which was called
the perfection of beauty,
the joy of all the earth?”
16All your enemies
rail against you;

they hiss, they gnash their teeth,
they cry: “We have destroyed her!
Ah, this is the day we longed for;
now we have it; we see it!”
17The LORD has done what he planned,
has carried out his threat;

as he ordained long ago,
he has demolished without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you,
and exalted the might of your foes.
18Cry aloud i to the Lord!
O j daughter of Zion!
Let tears stream down like a torrent
day and night!
Give yourself no rest,
your eyes no respite!
19Arise, cry out in the night,
at the beginning of the watches!

Pour out your heart like water
before the presence of the Lord!
Lift your hands to him
for the lives of your children,
who faint for hunger
at the head of every street.
20Look, O LORD, and see!
With whom have you dealt thus?

Should women eat their offspring,
the children of their tender care?
Should priest and prophet be slain
in the sanctuary of the Lord?
21In the dust of the streets
lie the young and the old;

my maidens and my young men
have fallen by the sword;
in the day of your anger you have slain them,
slaughtering without mercy.
22You invited as to the day of an appointed feast
my terrors on every side;

and on the day of the anger of the LORD
none escaped or survived;
those whom I dandled and reared
my enemy destroyed.
God’s Merciful Love Endures
3 I am the man who has seen affliction
under the rod of his wrath;
2he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
3surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.

4He has made my flesh and my skin waste away,
and broken my bones;
5he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;

6he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
7He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has put heavy chains on me;

8though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;

9he has blocked my ways with hewn stones,
he has made my paths crooked.

10He is to me like a bear lying in wait,
like a lion in hiding;
11he led me off my way and tore me to pieces;
he has made me desolate;

12he bent his bow and set me
as a mark for his arrow.

13He drove into my heart
the arrows of his quiver;

14I have become the laughingstock of all peoples,
the burden of their songs all day long.

15He has filled me with bitterness,
he has sated me with wormwood.

16He has made my teeth grind on gravel,
and made me cower in ashes;

17my soul is bereft of peace,
I have forgotten what happiness is;

18so I say, “Gone is my glory,
and my expectation from the LORD.”

19Remember my affliction and my bitterness, k
the wormwood and the gall!
20My soul continually thinks of it
and is bowed down within me.

21But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:

22The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, l
his mercies never come to an end;

23they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

24“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
25The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul that seeks him.

26It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the LORD.
27It is good for a man that he bear
the yoke in his youth.

28Let him sit alone in silence
when he has laid it on him;

29let him put his mouth in the dust—
there may yet be hope;

30let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him,
and be filled with insults.

31For the Lord will not
cast off for ever,

32but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;

33for he does not willingly afflict
or grieve the sons of men.
34To crush under foot
all the prisoners of the earth,

35to turn aside the right of a man
in the presence of the Most High,

36to subvert a man in his cause,
the Lord does not approve.

37Who has commanded and it came to pass,
unless the Lord has ordained it?

38Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that good and evil come?

39Why should a living man complain,
a man, about the punishment of his sins?

40Let us test and examine our ways,
and return to the LORD!
41Let us lift up our hearts and hands
to God in heaven:
42“We have transgressed and rebelled,
and you have not forgiven.
43“You have wrapped yourself with anger and pursued us,
slaying without pity;

44you have wrapped yourself with a cloud
so that no prayer can pass through.

45You have made us offscouring and refuse
among the peoples.

46“All our enemies
rail against us;

47panic and pitfall have come upon us,
devastation and destruction;
48my eyes flow with rivers of tears
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.

49“My eyes will flow without ceasing,
without respite,
50until the LORD from heaven
looks down and sees;

51my eyes cause me grief
at the fate of all the maidens of my city.

52“I have been hunted like a bird
by those who were my enemies without cause;

53they flung me alive into the pit
and cast stones on me;

54water closed over my head;
I said, ‘I am lost.’
55“I called on your name, O LORD,
from the depths of the pit;

56you heard my plea, ‘Do not close
your ear to my cry for help!’ m

57You came near when I called on you;
you said, ‘Do not fear!’

58“You have taken up my cause, O Lord,
you have redeemed my life.

59You have seen the wrong done to me, O LORD;
do judge my cause.
60You have seen all their vengeance,
all their devices against me.
61“You have heard their taunts, O LORD,
all their devices against me.
62The lips and thoughts of my assailants
are against me all the day long.

63Behold their sitting and their rising;
I am the burden of their songs.
64“You will repay them, O LORD,
according to the work of their hands.
65You will give them dullness of heart;
your curse will be on them.
66You will pursue them in anger and destroy them
from under your heavens, O LORD.” n

The Punishment and Distress of Zion
4 How the gold has grown dim,
how the pure gold is changed!
The holy stones lie scattered
at the head of every street.
2The precious sons of Zion,
worth their weight in fine gold,
how they are reckoned as earthen pots,
the work of a potter’s hands!
3Even the jackals give the breast
and suckle their young,
but the daughter of my people has become cruel,
like the ostriches in the wilderness.
4The tongue of the infant clings
to the roof of its mouth for thirst;
the children beg for food,
but no one gives to them.
5Those who feasted on dainties
perish in the streets;
those who were brought up in purple
lie on ash heaps.
6For the chastisement o of the daughter of my people has been greater
than the punishment p of Sodom,

which was overthrown in a moment,
no hand being laid on it. q
7Her princes were purer than snow,
whiter than milk;

their bodies were more ruddy than coral,
the beauty of their form r was like sapphire. s
8Now their visage is blacker than soot,
they are not recognized in the streets;
their skin has shriveled upon their bones,
it has become as dry as wood.
9Happier were the victims of the sword
than the victims of hunger,

who pined away, stricken
by want of the fruits of the field.
10The hands of compassionate women
have boiled their own children;

they became their food
in the destruction of the daughter of my people.
11The LORD gave full vent to his wrath,
he poured out his hot anger;

and he kindled a fire in Zion,
which consumed its foundations.
12The kings of the earth did not believe,
or any of the inhabitants of the world,

that foe or enemy could enter
the gates of Jerusalem.
13This was for the sins of her prophets
and the iniquities of her priests,

who shed in the midst of her
the blood of the righteous.
14They wandered, blind, through the streets,
so defiled with blood
that none could touch
their garments.
15“Away! Unclean!” men cried at them;
“Away! Away! Touch not!”

So they became fugitives and wanderers;
men said among the nations,
“They shall stay with us no longer.”
16The LORD himself has scattered them,
he will regard them no more;

no honor was shown to the priests,
no favor to the elders.
17Our eyes failed, ever watching
vainly for help;

in our watching t we watched
for a nation which could not save.
18Men dogged our steps
so that we could not walk in our streets;

our end drew near; our days were numbered;
for our end had come.
19Our pursuers were swifter
than the vultures in the heavens;

they chased us on the mountains,
they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
20The breath of our nostrils, the LORD’s anointed,
was taken in their pits,

he of whom we said, “Under his shadow
we shall live among the nations.”
21Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of E'dom,
dweller in the land of Uz;

but to you also the cup shall pass;
you shall become drunk and strip yourself bare.
22The punishment of your iniquity,
O daughter of Zion, is accomplished,

he will keep you in exile no longer;
but your iniquity, O daughter of E'dom, he will punish,
he will uncover your sins.
A Prayer for Mercy
5 Remember, O LORD, what has befallen us;
behold, and see our disgrace!
2Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers,
our homes to aliens.
3We have become orphans, fatherless;
our mothers are like widows.

4We must pay for the water we drink,
the wood we get must be bought.

5With a yoke u on our necks we are hard driven;
we are weary, we are given no rest.

6We have given the hand to Egypt,
and to Assyria, to get bread enough.

7Our fathers sinned, and are no more;
and we bear their iniquities.

8Slaves rule over us;
there is none to deliver us from their hand.

9We get our bread at the peril of our lives,
because of the sword in the wilderness.

10Our skin is hot as an oven
with the burning heat of famine.

11Women are ravished in Zion,
virgins in the towns of Judah.

12Princes are hung up by their hands;
no respect is shown to the elders.

13Young men are compelled to grind at the mill;
and boys stagger under loads of wood.

14The old men have quit the city gate,
the young men their music.

15The joy of our hearts has ceased;
our dancing has been turned to mourning.

16The crown has fallen from our head;
woe to us, for we have sinned!

17For this our heart has become sick,
for these things our eyes have grown dim,
18for Mount Zion which lies desolate;
jackals prowl over it.

19But you, O LORD, reign for ever;
your throne endures to all generations.

20Why do you forget us for ever,
why do you so long forsake us?

21Restore us to yourself, O LORD, that we may be restored!
Renew our days as of old!
22Or have you utterly rejected us?
Are you exceedingly angry with us?
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Baruch
Chapters
123456
OceanofPDF.com
THE BOOK OF BARUCH
Baruch and the Jews of Babylon
1*These are the words of the book which Baruch the son of Nerai'ah,
son of Mah'seiah, son of Zedeki'ah, son of Hasadi'ah, son of Hilki'ah, wrote
in Babylon, 2in the fifth year, on the seventh day of the month, at the time
when the Chalde'ans took Jerusalem and burned it with fire. 3And Baruch
read the words of this book in the hearing of Jeconi'ah the son of
Jehoi'akim, king of Judah, and in the hearing of all the people who came to
hear the book, 4and in the hearing of the mighty men and the princes, and in
the hearing of the elders, and in the hearing of all the people, small and
great, all who dwelt in Babylon by the river Sud.
5 Then they wept, and fasted, and prayed before the Lord; 6and they
collected money, each giving what he could; 7and they sent it to Jerusalem
to Jehoi'akim the high priest,a the son of Hilki'ah, son of Shallum, and to
the priests, and to all the people who were present with him in Jerusalem.
8At the same time, on the tenth day of Si'van, Baruch b took the vessels of
the house of the Lord, which had been carried away from the temple, to
return them to the land of Judah—the silver vessels which Zedeki'ah the son
of Josi'ah, king of Judah, had made, 9after Nebuchadnez'zar king of
Babylon had carried away from Jerusalem Jeconi'ah and the princes and the
prisoners and the mighty men and the people of the land, and brought them
to Babylon.
A Letter to Jerusalem
10 And they said: “Herewith we send you money; so buy with the money
burnt offerings and sin offerings and incense, and prepare a cereal offering,
and offer them upon the altar of the Lord our God; 11and pray for the life of
Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon, and for the life of Belshaz'zar his son,
that their days on earth may be like the days of heaven. 12And the Lord will
give us strength, and he will give light to our eyes, and we shall live under
the protection c of Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon, and under the
protection c of Belshaz'zar his son, and we shall serve them many days and
find favor in their sight. 13And pray for us to the Lord our God, for we have
sinned against the Lord our God, and to this day the anger of the Lord and
his wrath have not turned away from us. 14And you shall read this book
which we are sending you, to make your confession in the house of the
Lord on the days of the feasts and at appointed seasons.
Confession of Sins
15 “And you shall say: ‘Righteousness belongs to the Lord our God, but
confusion of face, as at this day, to us, to the men of Judah, to the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, 16and to our kings and our princes and our priests
and our prophets and our fathers, 17because we have sinned before the Lord,
18and have disobeyed him, and have not heeded the voice of the Lord our
God, to walk in the statutes of the Lord which he set before us. 19From the
day when the Lord brought our fathers out of the land of Egypt until today,
we have been disobedient to the Lord our God, and we have been negligent,
in not heeding his voice. 20So to this day there have clung to us the
calamities and the curse which the Lord declared through Moses his servant
at the time when he brought our fathers out of the land of Egypt to give to
us a land flowing with milk and honey. 21We did not heed the voice of the
Lord our God in all the words of the prophets whom he sent to us, but we
each followed the intent of his own wicked heart by serving other gods and
doing what is evil in the sight of the Lord our God.
2 “ ‘So the Lord confirmed his word, which he spoke against us, and
against our judges who judged Israel, and against our kings and against our
princes and against the men of Israel and Judah. 2Under the whole heaven
there has not been done the like of what he has done in Jerusalem, in
accordance with what is written in the law of Moses, 3that we should eat,
one the flesh of his son and another the flesh of his daughter. 4And he gave
them into subjection to all the kingdoms around us, to be a reproach and a
desolation among all the surrounding peoples, where the Lord has scattered
them. 5They were brought low and not raised up, because we sinned against
the Lord our God, in not heeding his voice.
6 “ ‘Righteousness belongs to the Lord our God, but confusion of face to
us and our fathers, as at this day. 7All those calamities with which the Lord
threatened us have come upon us. 8Yet we have not entreated the favor of
the Lord by turning away, each of us, from the thoughts of his wicked heart.
9And the Lord has kept the calamities ready, and the Lord has brought them
upon us, for the Lord is righteous in all his works which he has commanded
us to do. 10Yet we have not obeyed his voice, to walk in the statutes of the
Lord which he set before us.
Prayer for Deliverance
11 “ ‘And now, O Lord God of Israel, who brought your people out of the
land of Egypt with a mighty hand and with signs and wonders and with
great power and outstretched arm, and have made you a name, as at this
day, 12we have sinned, we have been ungodly, we have done wrong, O Lord
our God, against all your ordinances. 13Let your anger turn away from us,
for we are left, few in number, among the nations where you have scattered
us. 14Hear, O Lord, our prayer and our supplication, and for your own sake
deliver us, and grant us favor in the sight of those who have carried us into
exile; 15that all the earth may know that you are the Lord our God, for Israel
and his descendants are called by your name. 16O Lord, look down from
your holy habitation, and consider us. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear;
17open your eyes, O Lord, and see; for the dead who are in Hades, whose
spirit has been taken from their bodies, will not ascribe glory or justice to
the Lord, 18but the person that is greatly distressed, d that goes about bent
over and feeble, and the eyes that are failing, and the person that hungers,
will ascribe to you glory and righteousness, O Lord. 19For it is not because
of any righteous deeds of our fathers or our kings that we bring before you
our prayer for mercy, O Lord our God. 20For you have sent your anger and
your wrath upon us, as you declared by your servants the prophets, saying:
21 “Thus says the Lord: Bend your shoulders and serve the king of Babylon,
and you will remain in the land which I gave to your fathers. 22But if you
will not obey the voice of the Lord and will not serve the king of Babylon,
23I will make to cease from the cities of Judah and from the region about
Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the
bridegroom and the voice of the bride, and the whole land will be a
desolation without inhabitants.”
24 “ ‘But we did not obey your voice, to serve the king of Babylon; and
you have confirmed your words, which you spoke by your servants the
prophets, that the bones of our kings and the bones of our fathers would be
brought out of their graves; e 25and behold, they have been cast out to the
heat of day and the frost of night. They perished in great misery, by famine
and sword and pestilence. 26And the house which is called by your name
you have made as it is today, because of the wickedness of the house of
Israel and the house of Judah.
God’s Covenant Recalled
27 “ ‘Yet you have dealt with us, O Lord our God, in all your kindness
and in all your great compassion, 28as you spoke by your servant Moses on
the day when you commanded him to write your law in the presence of the
people of Israel, saying, 29“If you will not obey my voice, this very great
multitude will surely turn into a small number among the nations, where I
will scatter them. 30For I know that they will not obey me, for they are a
stiff-necked people. But in the land of their exile they will come to
themselves, 31and they will know that I am the Lord their God. I will give
them a heart that obeys and ears that hear; 32and they will praise me in the
land of their exile, and will remember my name, 33and will turn from their
stubbornness and their wicked deeds; for they will remember the ways of
their fathers, who sinned before the Lord. 34I will bring them again into the
land which I swore to give to their fathers, to Abraham and to Isaac and to
Jacob, and they will rule over it; and I will increase them, and they will not
be diminished. 35I will make an everlasting covenant with them to be their
God and they shall be my people; and I will never again remove my people
Israel from the land which I have given them.”
In Praise of Wisdom
3 “ ‘O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, the soul in anguish and the wearied
spirit cry out to you. 2Hear, O Lord, and have mercy, for we have sinned
before you. 3For you are enthroned for ever, and we are perishing for ever.
4O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, hear now the prayer of the dead of Israel
and of the sons of those who sinned before you, who did not heed the voice
of the Lord their God, so that calamities have clung to us. 5Remember not
the iniquities of our fathers, but in this crisis remember your power and
your name. 6For you are the Lord our God, and you, O Lord, will we praise.
7For you have put the fear of you in our hearts in order that we should call
upon your name; and we will praise you in our exile, for we have put away
from our hearts all the iniquity of our fathers who sinned before you.
8Behold, we are today in our exile where you have scattered us, to be
reproached and cursed and punished for all the iniquities of our fathers who
forsook the Lord our God.’ ”
9Hear the commandments of life, O Israel;
give ear, and learn wisdom!
10Why is it, O Israel, why is it that you are in the land of your enemies,
that you are growing old in a foreign country,
that you are defiled with the dead,
11 that you are counted among those in Hades?
12You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom.
13If you had walked in the way of God,
you would be dwelling in peace for ever.

14Learn where there is wisdom,
where there is strength,

where there is understanding,
that you may at the same time discern
where there is length of days, and life,
where there is light for the eyes, and peace.
15Who has found her place?
And who has entered her storehouses?
16Where are the princes of the nations,
and those who rule over the beasts on the earth;

17those who have sport with the birds of the air,
and who hoard up silver and gold,

in which men trust,
and there is no end to their getting;
18those who scheme to get silver, and are anxious,
whose labors are beyond measure?

19They have vanished and gone down to Hades,
and others have arisen in their place.

20Young men have seen the light of day,
and have dwelt upon the earth;
but they have not learned the way to knowledge,
nor understood her paths,
nor laid hold of her.
21Their sons have strayed far from her f way.
22She has not been heard of in Canaan,
nor seen in Te'man;

23the sons of Hagar, who seek for understanding on the earth,
the merchants of Merran and Te'man,
the story-tellers and the seekers for understanding,
have not learned the way to wisdom,
nor given thought to her paths.
24O Israel, how great is the house of God!
And how vast the territory that he possesses!

25It is great and has no bounds;
it is high and immeasurable.
26The giants were born there, who were famous of old,
great in stature, expert in war.
27God did not choose them,
nor give them the way to knowledge;

28so they perished because they had no wisdom,
they perished through their folly.

29Who has gone up into heaven, and taken her,
and brought her down from the clouds?

30Who has gone over the sea, and found her,
and will buy her for pure gold?

31No one knows the way to her,
or is concerned about the path to her.

32But he who knows all things knows her,
he found her by his understanding.
He who prepared the earth for all time
filled it with four-footed creatures;
33he who sends forth the light, and it goes,
called it, and it obeyed him in fear;

34the stars shone in their watches, and were glad;
he called them, and they said, “Here we are!”

They shone with gladness for him who made them.
35This is our God;
no other can be compared to him!

36He found the whole way to knowledge,
and gave her to Jacob his servant

and to Israel whom he loved.
37Afterward she appeared upon earth and lived among men.
Encouragement for Israel
4 She is the book of the commandments of God,
and the law that endures for ever.
All who hold her fast will live,
and those who forsake her will die.
2Turn, O Jacob, and take her;
walk toward the shining of her light.
3Do not give your glory to another,
or your advantages to an alien people.
4Happy are we, O Israel,
for we know what is pleasing to God.

5Take courage, my people,
O memorial of Israel!
6It was not for destruction
that you were sold to the nations,
but you were handed over to your enemies
because you angered God.
7For you provoked him who made you,
by sacrificing to demons and not to God.

8You forgot the everlasting God, who brought you up,
and you grieved Jerusalem, who reared you.

9For she saw the wrath that came upon you from God,
and she said:

“Listen, you neighbors of Zion,
God has brought great sorrow upon me;
10for I have seen the captivity of my sons and daughters,
which the Everlasting brought upon them.

11With joy I nurtured them,
but I sent them away with weeping and sorrow.
12Let no one rejoice over me, a widow
and bereaved of many;

I was left desolate because of the sins of my children,
because they turned away from the law of God.
13They had no regard for his statutes;
they did not walk in the ways of God’s commandments,

nor tread the paths of discipline in his righteousness.
14Let the neighbors of Zion come;
remember the capture of my sons and daughters,
which the Everlasting brought upon them.
15For he brought against them a nation from afar,
a shameless nation, of a strange language,
who had no respect for an old man,
and had no pity for a child.
16They led away the widow’s beloved sons,
and bereaved the lonely woman of her daughters.

17“But I, how can I help you?
18For he who brought these calamities upon you
will deliver you from the hand of your enemies.

19Go, my children, go;
for I have been left desolate.

20I have taken off the robe of peace
and put on the sackcloth of my supplication;

I will cry to the Everlasting all my days.
21“Take courage, my children, cry to God,
and he will deliver you from the power and hand of the enemy.
22For I have put my hope in the Everlasting to save you,
and joy has come to me from the Holy One,

because of the mercy which soon will come to you
from your everlasting Savior. g
23For I sent you out with sorrow and weeping,
but God will give you back to me with joy and gladness for ever.
24For as the neighbors of Zion have now seen your capture,
so they soon will see your salvation by God,

which will come to you with great glory
and with the splendor of the Everlasting.
25My children, endure with patience the wrath that has come upon you
from God.
Your enemy has overtaken you,
but you will soon see their destruction
and will tread upon their necks.
26My tender sons have traveled rough roads;
they were taken away like a flock carried off by the enemy.
27“Take courage, my children, and cry to God,
for you will be remembered by him who brought this upon you.
28For just as you planned to go astray from God,
return with tenfold zeal to seek him.

29For he who brought these calamities upon you
will bring you everlasting joy with your salvation.”

30Take courage, O Jerusalem,
for he who named you will comfort you.

31Wretched will be those who afflicted you
and rejoiced at your fall.
32Wretched will be the cities which your children served as slaves;
wretched will be the city which received your sons.

33For just as she rejoiced at your fall
and was glad for your ruin,

so she will be grieved at her own desolation.
34And I will take away her pride in her great population,
and her insolence will be turned to grief.

35For fire will come upon her from the Everlasting for many days,
and for a long time she will be inhabited by demons.

36Look toward the east, O Jerusalem,
and see the joy that is coming to you from God!

37Behold, your sons are coming, whom you sent away;
they are coming, gathered from east and west,

at the word of the Holy One,
rejoicing in the glory of God.
Encouragement for Jerusalem
5 Take off the garment of your sorrow and affliction, O Jerusalem,
and put on for ever the beauty of the glory from God.
2Put on the robe of the righteousness from God;
put on your head the diadem of the glory of the Everlasting.

3For God will show your splendor everywhere under heaven.
4For your name will for ever be called by God,
“Peace of righteousness and glory of godliness.”

5Arise, O Jerusalem, stand upon the height
and look toward the east,
and see your children gathered from west and east,
at the word of the Holy One,
rejoicing that God has remembered them.
6For they went forth from you on foot,
led away by their enemies;

but God will bring them back to you,
carried in glory, as on a royal throne.
7For God has ordered that every high mountain and the everlasting hills
be made low
and the valleys filled up, to make level ground,
so that Israel may walk safely in the glory of God.
8The woods and every fragrant tree
have shaded Israel at God’s command.

9For God will lead Israel with joy,
in the light of his glory,

with the mercy and righteousness that come from him.
A Letter of Jeremiah to the Captives
6 h A copy of a letter which Jeremi'ah sent to those who were to be taken
to Babylon as captives by the king of the Babylonians, to give them the
message which God had commanded him.
2 Because of the sins which you have committed before God, you will be
taken to Babylon as captives by Nebuchadnez'zar, king of the Babylonians.
3Therefore when you have come to Babylon you will remain there for many
years, for a long time, up to seven generations; after that I will bring you
away from there in peace. 4Now in Babylon you will see gods made of
silver and gold and wood, which are carried on men’s shoulders and inspire
fear in the heathen. 5So take care not to become at all like the foreigners or
to let fear for these gods i possess you, when you see the multitude before
and behind them worshiping them. 6But say in your heart, “It is you, O
Lord, whom we must worship.” 7For my angel is with you, and he is
watching your lives.
The Futility of Idols and Idolatry
8 Their tongues are smoothed by the craftsman, and they themselves are
overlaid with gold and silver; but they are false and cannot speak. 9People j
take gold and make crowns for the heads of their gods, as they would for a
girl who loves ornaments; 10and sometimes the priests secretly take gold
and silver from their gods and spend it upon themselves, 11and even give
some of it to the harlots in the brothel. They deck their gods k out with
garments like men—these gods of silver and gold and wood, 12which
cannot save themselves from rust and corrosion. When they have been
dressed in purple robes, 13their faces are wiped because of the dust from the
temple, which is thick upon them. 14Like a local ruler the god l holds a
scepter, though unable to destroy any one who offends it. 15It has a dagger
in its right hand, and has an axe; but it cannot save itself from war and
robbers. 16Therefore they evidently are not gods; so do not fear them.
17 For just as one’s dish is useless when it is broken, so are the gods of the
heathen, m when they have been set up in the temples. Their eyes are full of
the dust raised by the feet of those who enter. 18And just as the gates are
shut on every side upon a man who has offended a king, as though he were
sentenced to death, so the priests make their temples secure with doors and
locks and bars, in order that they may not be plundered by robbers. 19They
light lamps, even more than they light for themselves, though their gods n
can see none of them. 20They are o just like a beam of the temple, but men
say their hearts have melted, when worms from the earth devour them and
their robes. They do not notice 21when their faces have been blackened by
the smoke of the temple. 22Bats, swallows, and birds light on their bodies
and heads; and so do cats. 23From this you will know that they are not gods;
so do not fear them.
24 As for the gold which they wear for beauty—they will not shine
unless some one wipes off the rust; for even when they were being cast,
they had no feeling. 25They are bought at any cost, but there is no breath in
them. 26Having no feet, they are carried on men’s shoulders, revealing to
mankind their worthlessness. 27And those who serve them are ashamed
because through them these gods n are made to stand, lest they fall to the
ground. If any one sets one of them upright, it cannot move of itself; and if
it is tipped over, it cannot straighten itself; but gifts are placed before them
just as before the dead. 28The priests sell the sacrifices that are offered to
these gods p and use the money; and likewise their wives preserve some
with salt, but give none to the poor or helpless. 29Sacrifices to them may be
touched by women in menstruation or at childbirth. Since you know by
these things that they are not gods, do not fear them.
30 For why should they be called gods? Women serve meals for gods of
silver and gold and wood; 31and in their temples the priests sit with their
clothes torn, their heads and beards shaved, and their heads uncovered.
32They howl and shout before their gods as some do at a funeral feast for a
man who has died. 33The priests take some of the clothing of their gods q to
clothe their wives and children. 34Whether one does evil to them or good,
they will not be able to repay it. They cannot set up a king or depose one.
35Likewise they are not able to give either wealth or money; if one makes a
vow to them and does not keep it, they will not require it. 36They cannot
save a man from death or rescue the weak from the strong. 37They cannot
restore sight to a blind man; they cannot rescue a man who is in distress.
38They cannot take pity on a widow or do good to an orphan. 39These things
that are made of wood and overlaid with gold and silver are like stones
from the mountain, and those who serve them will be put to shame. 40Why
then must any one think that they are gods, or call them gods?
Besides, even the Chalde'ans themselves dishonor them; 41for when they
see a mute man, who cannot speak, they bring him and pray Bel r that the
man may speak, as though Bel s were able to understand. 42Yet they
themselves cannot perceive this and abandon them, for they have no sense.
43And the women, with cords about them, sit along the passageways,
burning bran for incense; and when one of them is led off by one of the
passers-by and is lain with, she derides the woman next to her, because she
was not as attractive as herself and her cord was not broken. 44Whatever is
done for them is false. Why then must any one think that they are gods, or
call them gods?
45 They are made by carpenters and goldsmiths; they can be nothing but
what the craftsmen wish them to be. 46The men that make them will
certainly not live very long themselves; how then can the things that are
made by them be gods? 47They have left only lies and reproach for those
who come after. 48For when war or calamity comes upon them, the priests
consult together as to where they can hide themselves and their gods. t
49How then can one fail to see that these are not gods, for they cannot save
themselves from war or calamity? 50Since they are made of wood and
overlaid with gold and silver, it will afterward be known that they are false.
51It will be manifest to all the nations and kings that they are not gods but
the work of men’s hands, and that there is no work of God in them. 52Who
then can fail to know that they are not gods? u
53 For they cannot set up a king over a country or give rain to men.
54They cannot judge their own cause or deliver one who is wronged, for
they have no power; they are like crows between heaven and earth. 55When
fire breaks out in a temple of wooden gods overlaid with gold or silver, their
priests will flee and escape, but the gods v will be burned in two like beams.
56Besides, they can offer no resistance to a king or any enemies. Why then
must any one admit or think that they are gods?
57 Gods made of wood and overlaid with silver and gold are not able to
save themselves from thieves and robbers. 58Strong men will strip them of
their gold and silver and of the robes they wear, and go off with this booty,
and they will not be able to help themselves. 59So it is better to be a king
who shows his courage, or a household utensil that serves its owner’s need,
than to be these false gods; better even the door of a house that protects its
contents, than these false gods; better also a wooden pillar in a palace, than
these false gods.
60 For sun and moon and stars, shining and sent forth for service, are
obedient. 61So also the lightning, when it flashes, is widely seen; and the
wind likewise blows in every land. 62When God commands the clouds to go
over the whole world, they carry out his command. 63And the fire sent from
above to consume mountains and woods does what it is ordered. But these
idols w are not to be compared with them in appearance or power.
64Therefore one must not think that they are gods nor call them gods, for
they are not able either to decide a case or to do good to men. 65Since you
know then that they are not gods, do not fear them.
66 For they can neither curse nor bless kings; 67they cannot show signs in
the heavens and x among the nations, or shine like the sun or give light like
the moon. 68The wild beasts are better than they are, for they can flee to
cover and help themselves. 69So we have no evidence whatever that they
are gods; therefore do not fear them.
70 Like a scarecrow in a cucumber bed, that guards nothing, so are their
gods of wood, overlaid with gold and silver. 71In the same way, their gods
of wood, overlaid with gold and silver, are like a thorn bush in a garden, on
which every bird sits; or like a dead body cast out in the darkness. 72By the
purple and linen y that rot upon them you will know that they are not gods;
and they will finally themselves be consumed, and be a reproach in the
land. 73Better therefore is a just man who has no idols, for he will be far
from reproach.
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Ezekiel
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48
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THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL
The Vision of the Four Living Creatures
1 *In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the
month, as I was among the exiles by the river Che'bar, the heavens were
opened, and I saw visions of God. 2On the fifth day of the month (it was the
fifth year of the exile of King Jehoi'achin), 3the word of the LORD came to
Ezek'iel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chalde'ans by the river
Che'bar; and the hand of the LORD was upon him there.
4 As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great
cloud, with brightness round about it, and fire flashing forth continually,
and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming bronze. 5And from the
midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures.* And this was their
appearance: they had the form of men, 6but each had four faces, and each of
them had four wings. 7Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet
were like the sole of a calf’s foot; and they sparkled like burnished bronze.
8Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. And the four
had their faces and their wings thus: 9their wings touched one another; they
went every one straight forward, without turning as they went. 10As for the
likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man in front; a the four had the
face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left
side, and the four had the face of an eagle at the back. b 11Such were their
faces. And their wings were spread out above; each creature had two wings,
each of which touched the wing of another, while two covered their bodies.
12And each went straight forward; wherever the spirit would go, they went,
without turning as they went. 13In the midst c of the living creatures there
was something that looked like burning coals of fire, like torches moving
back and forth among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out
of the fire went forth lightning. 14And the living creatures darted back and
forth, like a flash of lightning.
15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel upon the earth
beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them. d 16As for the
appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like
the gleaming of a chrysolite; and the four had the same likeness, their
construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. 17When they went,
they went in any of their four directions e without turning as they went.
18The four wheels had rims and they had spokes; f and their rims were full
of eyes round about. 19And when the living creatures went, the wheels went
beside them; and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels
rose. 20Wherever the spirit would go, they went, and the wheels rose along
with them; for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. 21When
those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those
rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them; for the spirit of the
living creatures was in the wheels.
22 Over the heads of the living creatures there was the likeness of a
firmament, shining like crystal, g spread out above their heads. 23And under
the firmament their wings were stretched out straight, one toward another;
and each creature had two wings covering its body.* 24And when they went,
I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters, like the
thunder of the Almighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of a host; when
they stood still, they let down their wings. 25And there came a voice from
above the firmament over their heads; when they stood still, they let down
their wings.
The Glory of the Lord
26 And above the firmament over their heads there was the likeness of a
throne, in appearance like sapphire; h and seated above the likeness of a
throne was a likeness as it were of a human form. 27And upward from what
had the appearance of his loins I saw as it were gleaming bronze, like the
appearance of fire enclosed round about; and downward from what had the
appearance of his loins I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there
was brightness round about him. i 28Like the appearance of the bow that is
in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness
round about.
Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. * And
when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
2 And he said to me, “Son of man, stand upon your feet, and I will speak
with you.” 2And when he spoke to me, the Spirit entered into me and set me
upon my feet; and I heard him speaking to me. 3And he said to me, “Son of
man, I send you to the sons of Israel, to a nation j of rebels, who have
rebelled against me; they and their fathers have transgressed against me to
this very day. 4The people also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to
them; and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD.’ 5And whether
they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know
that there has been a prophet among them. 6And you, son of man, be not
afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are
with you and you sit upon scorpions; be not afraid of their words, nor be
dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. 7And you shall
speak my words to them, whether they hear or refuse to hear; for they are a
rebellious house.
The Vision of the Scroll
8 “But you, son of man, hear what I say to you; be not rebellious like that
rebellious house; open your mouth, and eat what I give you.” 9And when I
looked, behold, a hand was stretched out to me, and behold, a written scroll
was in it; 10and he spread it before me; and it had writing on the front and
on the back, and there were written on it words of lamentation and
mourning and woe.
3 1And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is offered to you; eat this
scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” 2So I opened my mouth, and he
gave me the scroll to eat. 3And he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll
that I give you and fill your stomach with it.” Then I ate it; and it was in my
mouth as sweet as honey.
4 And he said to me, “Son of man, go, get you to the house of Israel, and
speak with my words to them. 5For you are not sent to a people of foreign
speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel— 6not to many
peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot
understand. Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you. 7But the
house of Israel will not listen to you; for they are not willing to listen to me;
because all the house of Israel are of a hard forehead and of a stubborn
heart. 8Behold, I have made your face hard against their faces, and your
forehead hard against their foreheads. 9Like adamant harder than flint have
I made your forehead; fear them not, nor be dismayed at their looks, for
they are a rebellious house.” 10Moreover he said to me, “Son of man, all my
words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your
ears. 11And go, get you to the exiles, to your people, and say to them, ‘Thus
says the Lord GOD’; whether they hear or refuse to hear.”
Ezekiel at the River Chebar
12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and as the glory of the LORD arose k from
its place, I heard behind me the sound of a great earthquake; 13it was the
sound of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and
the sound of the wheels beside them, that sounded like a great earthquake.
14The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the
heat of my spirit, the hand of the LORD being strong upon me; 15and I came
to the exiles at Tela'bib, who dwelt by the river Che'bar. l And I sat there
overwhelmed among them seven days.
16 And at the end of seven days, the word of the LORD came to me:
17“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel;
whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning
from me. 18If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him
no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to
save his life, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will
require at your hand. 19But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn
from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity;
but you will have saved your life. 20Again, if a righteous man turns from his
righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him,
he shall die; because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and
his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his
blood I will require at your hand. 21Nevertheless if you warn the righteous
man not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took
warning; and you will have saved your life.”
Ezekiel Bound and Silenced
22 And the hand of the LORD was there upon me; and he said to me,
“Arise, go forth into the plain, m and there I will speak with you.” 23So I
arose and went forth into the plain; m and behold, the glory of the LORD
stood there, like the glory which I had seen by the river Che'bar; and I fell
on my face. 24But the Spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet; and
he spoke with me and said to me, “Go, shut yourself within your house.
25And you, O son of man, behold, cords will be placed upon you, and you
shall be bound with them, so that you cannot go out among the people;
26and I will make your tongue cleave to the roof of your mouth, so that you
shall be mute and unable to reprove them; for they are a rebellious house.
27But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to
them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD’; he that will hear, let him hear; and he that
will refuse to hear, let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.
A Brick: The Siege of Jerusalem Portrayed
4 “And you, O son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and
portray upon it a city, even Jerusalem; 2and put siegeworks against it, and
build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it; set camps also
against it, and plant battering rams against it round about. 3And take an iron
plate, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your
face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it.
This is a sign for the house of Israel.
4 “Then lie upon your left side, and I will lay the punishment of the
house of Israel upon you; n for the number of the days that you lie upon it,
you shall bear their punishment. 5For I assign to you a number of days,
three hundred and ninety days, equal to the number of the years of their
punishment; so long shall you bear the punishment of the house of Israel.
6And when you have completed these, you shall lie down a second time, but
on your right side, and bear the punishment of the house of Judah; forty
days I assign you, a day for each year. 7And you shall set your face toward
the siege of Jerusalem, with your arm bared; and you shall prophesy against
the city. 8And behold, I will put cords upon you, so that you cannot turn
from one side to the other, till you have completed the days of your siege.
9 “And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt,
and put them into a single vessel, and make bread of them. During the
number of days that you lie upon your side, three hundred and ninety days,
you shall eat it. 10And the food which you eat shall be by weight, twenty
shekels a day; once a day you shall eat it. 11And water you shall drink by
measure, the sixth part of a hin; once a day you shall drink. 12And you shall
eat it as a barley cake, baking it in their sight on human dung.” 13And the
LORD said, “Thus shall the people of Israel eat their bread unclean, among
the nations where I will drive them.” 14Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD!
behold, I have never defiled myself; from my youth up till now I have never
eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has foul flesh come into
my mouth.” 15Then he said to me, “See, I will let you have cow’s dung
instead of human dung, on which you may prepare your bread.” 16Moreover
he said to me, “Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in
Jerusalem; they shall eat bread by weight and with fearfulness; and they
shall drink water by measure and in dismay. 17I will do this that they may
lack bread and water, and look at one another in dismay, and waste away
under their punishment.
A Sharp Sword
5 “And you, O son of man, take a sharp sword; use it as a barber’s razor
and pass it over your head and your beard; then take balances for weighing,
and divide the hair. 2A third part you shall burn in the fire in the midst of
the city, when the days of the siege are completed; and a third part you shall
take and strike with the sword round about the city; and a third part you
shall scatter to the wind, and I will unsheathe the sword after them. 3And
you shall take from these a small number, and bind them in the skirts of
your robe. 4And of these again you shall take some, and cast them into the
fire, and burn them in the fire; from there a fire will come forth into all the
house of Israel. 5Thus says the Lord GOD: This is Jerusalem; I have set her
in the center of the nations, with countries round about her. 6And she has
wickedly rebelled against my ordinances o more than the nations, and
against my statutes more than the countries round about her, by rejecting
my ordinances and not walking in my statutes. 7Therefore thus says the
Lord GOD: Because you are more turbulent than the nations that are round
about you, and have not walked in my statutes or kept my ordinances, but
have acted p according to the ordinances of the nations that are round about
you; 8therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, even I, am against you;
and I will execute judgments in the midst of you in the sight of the nations.
9And because of all your abominations I will do with you what I have never
yet done, and the like of which I will never do again. 10Therefore fathers
shall eat their sons in the midst of you, and sons shall eat their fathers; and I
will execute judgments on you, and any of you who survive I will scatter to
all the winds. 11Wherefore, as I live, says the Lord GOD, surely, because
you have defiled my sanctuary with all your detestable things and with all
your abominations, therefore I will cut you down; q my eye will not spare,
and I will have no pity. 12A third part of you shall die of pestilence and be
consumed with famine in the midst of you; a third part shall fall by the
sword round about you; and a third part I will scatter to all the winds and
will unsheathe the sword after them.
13 “Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them
and satisfy myself; and they shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken in my
jealousy, when I spend my fury upon them. 14Moreover I will make you a
desolation and an object of reproach among the nations round about you
and in the sight of all that pass by. 15You shall be r a reproach and a taunt, a
warning and a horror, to the nations round about you, when I execute
judgments on you in anger and fury, and with furious chastisements—I, the
LORD, have spoken— 16when I loose against you s my deadly arrows of
famine, arrows for destruction, which I will loose to destroy you, and when
I bring more and more famine upon you, and break your staff of bread. 17I
will send famine and wild beasts against you, and they will rob you of your
children; pestilence and blood shall pass through you; and I will bring the
sword upon you. I, the LORD, have spoken.”
Judgment against Idolatrous Israel
6 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, set your face toward
the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them, 3and say, You
mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD! Thus says the Lord
GOD to the mountains and the hills, to the ravines and the valleys: Behold,
I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places.
4Your altars shall become desolate, and your incense altars shall be broken;
and I will cast down your slain before your idols. 5And I will lay the dead
bodies of the people of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your
bones round about your altars. 6Wherever you dwell your cities shall be
waste and your high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and
ruined, t your idols broken and destroyed, your incense altars cut down, and
your works wiped out. 7And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and you
shall know that I am the LORD.
8 “Yet I will leave some of you alive. When you have among the nations
some who escape the sword, and when you are scattered through the
countries, 9then those of you who escape will remember me among the
nations where they are carried captive, when I have broken u their wanton
heart which has departed from me, and blinded their eyes which turn
wantonly after their idols; and they will be loathsome in their own sight for
the evils which they have committed, for all their abominations. 10And they
shall know that I am the LORD; I have not said in vain that I would do this
evil to them.”
11 Thus says the Lord GOD: “Clap your hands, and stamp your foot, and
say, Alas! because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel; for
they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. 12He that is far
off shall die of pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he
that is left and is preserved shall die of famine. Thus I will spend my fury
upon them. 13And you shall know that I am the LORD, when their slain lie
among their idols round about their altars, upon every high hill, on all the
mountain tops, under every green tree, and under every leafy oak, wherever
they offered pleasing odor to all their idols. 14And I will stretch out my
hand against them, and make the land desolate and waste, throughout all
their habitations, from the wilderness to Riblah. v Then they will know that
I am the LORD.”
Impending Doom
7 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“And you, O son of man, thus
says the Lord GOD to the land of Israel: An end! The end has come upon
the four corners of the land. 3Now the end is upon you, and I will let loose
my anger upon you, and will judge you according to your ways; and I will
punish you for all your abominations. 4And my eye will not spare you, nor
will I have pity; but I will punish you for your ways, while your
abominations are in your midst. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
5 “Thus says the Lord GOD: Disaster after disaster! Behold, it comes.
6An end has come, the end has come; it has awakened against you. Behold,
it comes. 7Your doom w has come to you, O inhabitant of the land; the time
has come, the day is near, a day of tumult, and not of joyful shouting upon
the mountains. 8Now I will soon pour out my wrath upon you, and spend
my anger against you, and judge you according to your ways; and I will
punish you for all your abominations. 9And my eye will not spare, nor will I
have pity; I will punish you according to your ways, while your
abominations are in your midst. Then you will know that I am the LORD,
who strike.
10 “Behold, the day! Behold, it comes! Your doom w has come, injustice
x has blossomed, pride has budded. 11Violence has grown up into a rod of
wickedness; none of them shall remain, nor their abundance, nor their
wealth; neither shall there be preeminence among them. y 12The time has
come, the day draws near. Let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn,
for wrath z is upon all their multitude. 13For the seller shall not return to
what he has sold, while they live. For wrath is upon all their multitude; it
shall not turn back; and because of his iniquity, none can maintain his life. a
14 “They have blown the trumpet and made all ready; but none goes to
battle, for my wrath is upon all their multitude. 15The sword is without,
pestilence and famine are within; he that is in the field dies by the sword;
and him that is in the city famine and pestilence devour. 16And if any
survivors escape, they will be on the mountains, like doves of the valleys,
all of them moaning, every one over his iniquity. 17All hands are feeble, and
all knees weak as water. 18They clothe themselves with sackcloth, and
horror covers them; shame is upon all faces, and baldness on all their heads.
19They cast their silver into the streets, and their gold is like an unclean
thing; their silver and gold are not able to deliver them in the day of the
wrath of the LORD; they cannot satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs
with it. For it was the stumbling block of their iniquity. 20Their b beautiful
ornament they used for vainglory, and they made their abominable images
and their detestable things of it; therefore I will make it an unclean thing to
them. 21And I will give it into the hands of foreigners for a prey, and to the
wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall profane it. 22I will turn my
face from them, that they may profane my precious c place; robbers shall
enter and profane it, 23and make a desolation. d
“Because the land is full of bloody crimes and the city is full of violence,
24I will bring the worst of the nations to take possession of their houses; I
will put an end to their proud might, and their holy places shall be profaned.
25When anguish comes, they will seek peace, but there shall be none.
26Disaster comes upon disaster, rumor follows rumor; they seek a vision
from the prophet, but the law perishes from the priest, and counsel from the
elders. 27The king mourns, the prince is wrapped in despair, and the hands
of the people of the land are palsied by terror. According to their way I will
do to them, and according to their own judgments I will judge them; and
they shall know that I am the LORD.”
Vision of Abominations in the Temple
8 In the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I
sat in my house, with the elders of Judah sitting before me, the hand of the
Lord GOD fell there upon me. 2Then I beheld a form that had the
appearance of a man; e below what appeared to be his loins it was fire, and
above his loins it was like the appearance of brightness, like gleaming
bronze. 3He put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head;
and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in
visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the gateway of the inner
court that faces north, where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which
provokes to jealousy. 4And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there,
like the vision that I saw in the plain.
5 Then he said to me, “Son of man, lift up your eyes now in the direction
of the north.” So I lifted up my eyes toward the north, and behold, north of
the altar gate, in the entrance, was this image of jealousy. 6And he said to
me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations
that the house of Israel are committing here, to drive me far from my
sanctuary? But you will see still greater abominations.”
7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold,
there was a hole in the wall. 8Then said he to me, “Son of man, dig in the
wall”; and when I dug in the wall, behold, there was a door. 9And he said to
me, “Go in, and see the vile abominations that they are committing here.”
10So I went in and saw; and there, portrayed upon the wall round about,
were all kinds of creeping things, and loathsome beasts, and all the idols of
the house of Israel. 11And before them stood seventy men of the elders of
the house of Israel, with Ja-azani'ah the son of Sha'phan standing among
them. Each had his censer in his hand, and the smoke of the cloud of
incense went up. 12Then he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what
the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, every man in his
room f of pictures? For they say, ‘The LORD does not see us, the LORD has
forsaken the land.’ ” 13He said also to me, “You will see still greater
abominations which they commit.”
14 Then he brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of
the LORD; and behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.* 15Then he
said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? You will see still greater
abominations than these.”
16 And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the LORD; and
behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the
altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs to the temple of the
LORD, and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east.
17Then he said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it too slight a
thing for the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they
commit here, that they should fill the land with violence, and provoke me
further to anger? Behold, they put the branch to their nose. 18Therefore I
will deal in wrath; my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity; and though
they cry in my ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.”
Vision of the Executioners
9 Then he cried in my ears with a loud voice, saying, “Draw near, you
executioners of the city, each with his destroying weapon in his hand.”
2And behold, six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which
faces north, every man with his weapon for slaughter in his hand, and with
them was a man clothed in linen, with a writing case at his side. And they
went in and stood beside the bronze altar.
3 Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherubim on
which it rested to the threshold of the house; and he called to the man
clothed in linen, who had the writing case at his side. 4And the LORD said to
him, “Go through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark upon the
foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are
committed in it.” 5And to the others he said in my hearing, “Pass through
the city after him, and kill; your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no
pity; 6slay old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and
women, but touch no one upon whom is the mark. And begin at my
sanctuary.” So they began with the elders who were before the house. 7Then
he said to them, “Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain. Go
forth.” So they went forth, and killed in the city. 8And while they were
killing, and I was left alone, I fell upon my face, and cried, “Ah, Lord
GOD! will you destroy all that remains of Israel in the outpouring of your
wrath upon Jerusalem?”
9 Then he said to me, “The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is
exceedingly great; the land is full of blood, and the city full of injustice; for
they say, ‘The LORD has forsaken the land, and the LORD does not see.’ 10As
for me, my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity, but I will repay their
deeds upon their heads.”
11 And behold, the man clothed in linen, with the writing case at his side,
brought back word, saying, “I have done as you commanded me.”
Divine Glory over the Cherubim
10 Then I looked, and behold, on the firmament that was over the
heads of the cherubim there appeared above them something like a
sapphire, in form resembling a throne. 2And he said to the man clothed in
linen, “Go in among the whirling wheels underneath the cherubim; fill your
hands with burning coals from between the cherubim, and scatter them over
the city.”
And he went in before my eyes. 3Now the cherubim were standing on the
south side of the house, when the man went in; and a cloud filled the inner
court. 4And the glory of the LORD went up from the cherubim to the
threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the
court was full of the brightness of the glory of the LORD. 5And the sound of
the wings of the cherubim was heard as far as the outer court, like the voice
of God Almighty when he speaks.
6 And when he commanded the man clothed in linen, “Take fire from
between the whirling wheels, from between the cherubim,” he went in and
stood beside a wheel. 7And a cherub stretched forth his hand from between
the cherubim to the fire that was between the cherubim, and took some of it,
and put it into the hands of the man clothed in linen, who took it and went
out. 8The cherubim appeared to have the form of a human hand under their
wings.
9 And I looked, and behold, there were four wheels beside the cherubim,
one beside each cherub; and the appearance of the wheels was like
sparkling chrysolite. 10And as for their appearance, the four had the same
likeness, as if a wheel were within a wheel. 11When they went, they went in
any of their four directions g without turning as they went, but in whatever
direction the front wheel faced the others followed without turning as they
went. 12And h their rims, and their spokes, i and the wheels were full of eyes
round about—the wheels that the four of them had. 13As for the wheels,
they were called in my hearing the whirling wheels. 14And every one had
four faces: the first face was the face of the cherub, and the second face was
the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of
an eagle.
15 And the cherubim mounted up. These were the living creatures that I
saw by the river Che'bar. 16And when the cherubim went, the wheels went
beside them; and when the cherubim lifted up their wings to mount up from
the earth, the wheels did not turn from beside them. 17When they stood still,
these stood still, and when they mounted up, these mounted up with them;
for the spirit of the living creatures j was in them.
18 Then the glory of the LORD went forth from the threshold of the
house, and stood over the cherubim. 19And the cherubim lifted up their
wings and mounted up from the earth in my sight as they went forth, with
the wheels beside them; and they stood at the door of the east gate of the
house of the LORD; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them.
20 These were the living creatures that I saw underneath the God of Israel
by the river Che'bar; and I knew that they were cherubim. 21Each had four
faces, and each four wings, and underneath their wings the semblance of
human hands. 22And as for the likeness of their faces, they were the very
faces whose appearance I had seen by the river Che'bar. They went every
one straight forward.
Judgment against the Wicked Counselors
11 The Spirit lifted me up, and brought me to the east gate of the house
of the LORD, which faces east. And behold, at the door of the gateway there
were twenty-five men; and I saw among them Ja-azani'ah the son of Azzur,
and Pelati'ah the son of Bena'iah, princes of the people. 2And he said to me,
“Son of man, these are the men who devise iniquity and who give wicked
counsel in this city; 13who say, ‘The time is not near k to build houses; this
city is the caldron, and we are the flesh.’ 4Therefore prophesy against them,
prophesy, O son of man.”
5 And the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and he said to me, “Say, Thus
says the LORD: So you think, O house of Israel; for I know the things that
come into your mind. 6You have multiplied your slain in this city, and have
filled its streets with the slain. 7Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Your
slain whom you have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and this city
is the caldron; but you shall be brought forth out of the midst of it. 8You
have feared the sword; and I will bring the sword upon you, says the Lord
GOD. 9And I will bring you forth out of the midst of it, and give you into
the hands of foreigners, and execute judgments upon you. 10You shall fall
by the sword; I will judge you at the border of Israel; and you shall know
that I am the LORD. 11This city shall not be your caldron, nor shall you be
the flesh in the midst of it; I will judge you at the border of Israel; 12and you
shall know that I am the LORD; for you have not walked in my statutes, nor
executed my ordinances, but have acted according to the ordinances of the
nations that are round about you.”
13 And it came to pass, while I was prophesying, that Pelati'ah the son of
Bena'iah died. Then I fell down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice,
and said, “Ah, Lord GOD! will you make a full end of the remnant of
Israel?”
14 And the word of the LORD came to me: 15“Son of man, your brethren,
even your brethren, your fellow exiles, l the whole house of Israel, all of
them, are those of whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘They have
gone far from the LORD; to us this land is given for a possession.’
16Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Though I removed them far off
among the nations, and though I scattered them among the countries, yet I
have been a sanctuary to them for a while m in the countries where they
have gone.’ 17Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: I will gather you
from the peoples, and assemble you out of the countries where you have
been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.’ 18And when they
come there, they will remove from it all its detestable things and all its
abominations. 19And I will give them one n heart, and put a new spirit
within them; I will take the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a
heart of flesh, 20that they may walk in my statutes and keep my ordinances
and obey them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. 21But
as for those o whose heart goes after their detestable things and their
abominations, I will repay their deeds upon their own heads, says the Lord
GOD.”
22 Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, with the wheels beside them;
and the glory of the God of Israel was over them. 23And the glory of the
LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain
which is on the east side of the city. 24And the Spirit lifted me up and
brought me in the vision by the Spirit of God into Chalde'a, to the exiles.
Then the vision that I had seen went up from me. 25And I told the exiles all
the things that the LORD had showed me.
Judah’s Captivity Portrayed
12 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, you dwell in the
midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see, but see not, who have
ears to hear, but hear not; 3for they are a rebellious house. Therefore, son of
man, prepare for yourself an exile’s baggage, and go into exile by day in
their sight; you shall go like an exile from your place to another place in
their sight. Perhaps they will understand, though p they are a rebellious
house. 4You shall bring out your baggage by day in their sight, as baggage
for exile; and you shall go forth yourself at evening in their sight, as men do
who must go into exile. 5Dig through the wall in their sight, and go q out
through it. 6In their sight you shall lift the baggage upon your shoulder, and
carry it out in the dark; you shall cover your face, that you may not see the
land; for I have made you a sign for the house of Israel.”
7 And I did as I was commanded. I brought out my baggage by day, as
baggage for exile, and in the evening I dug through the wall with my own
hands; I went forth in the dark, carrying my outfit upon my shoulder in their
sight.
8 In the morning the word of the LORD came to me: 9“Son of man, has not
the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said to you, ‘What are you doing?’
10Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: This oracle concerns the prince in
Jerusalem and all the house of Israel who are in it.’ r 11Say, ‘I am a sign for
you: as I have done, so shall it be done to them; they shall go into exile, into
captivity.’ 12And the prince who is among them shall lift his baggage upon
his shoulder in the dark, and shall go forth; he s shall dig through the wall
and go t out through it; he shall cover his face, that he may not see the land
with his eyes. 13And I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in
my snare; and I will bring him to Babylon in the land of the Chalde'ans, yet
he shall not see it; and he shall die there. 14And I will scatter toward every
wind all who are round about him, his helpers u and all his troops; and I will
unsheathe the sword after them. 15And they shall know that I am the LORD,
when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them through the
countries. 16But I will let a few of them escape from the sword, from famine
and pestilence, that they may confess all their abominations among the
nations where they go, and may know that I am the LORD.”
Judgment Will Not Be Delayed
17 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me: 18“Son of man, eat your
bread with quaking, and drink water with trembling and with fearfulness;
19and say of the people of the land, Thus says the Lord GOD concerning the
inhabitants of Jerusalem in the land of Israel: They shall eat their bread with
fearfulness, and drink water in dismay, because their land will be stripped
of all it contains, on account of the violence of all those who dwell in it.
20And the inhabited cities shall be laid waste, and the land shall become a
desolation; and you shall know that I am the LORD.”

21 And the word of the LORD came to me: 22“Son of man, what is this
proverb that you have about the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days grow long,
and every vision comes to nothing’? 23Tell them therefore, ‘Thus says the
Lord GOD: I will put an end to this proverb, and they shall no more use it
as a proverb in Israel.’ But say to them, The days are at hand, and the
fulfilment v of every vision. 24For there shall be no more any false vision or
flattering divination within the house of Israel. 25But I the LORD will speak
the word which I will speak, and it will be performed. It will no longer be
delayed, but in your days, O rebellious house, I will speak the word and
perform it, says the Lord GOD.”
26 Again the word of the LORD came to me: 27“Son of man, behold, they
of the house of Israel say, ‘The vision that he sees is for many days hence,
and he prophesies of times far off.’ 28Therefore say to them, Thus says the
Lord GOD: None of my words will be delayed any longer, but the word
which I speak will be performed, says the Lord GOD.”
False Prophets Condemned
13 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, prophesy against
the prophets of Israel, prophesy w and say to those who prophesy out of
their own minds: ‘Hear the word of the LORD!’ 3Thus says the Lord GOD,
Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen
nothing! 4Your prophets have been like foxes among ruins, O Israel. 5You
have not gone up into the breaches, or built up a wall for the house of Israel,
that it might stand in battle in the day of the LORD. 6They have spoken
falsehood and divined a lie; they say, ‘Says the LORD,’ when the LORD has
not sent them, and yet they expect him to fulfil their word. 7Have you not
seen a delusive vision, and uttered a lying divination, whenever you have
said, ‘Says the LORD,’ although I have not spoken?”
8 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have uttered delusions
and seen lies, therefore behold, I am against you, says the Lord GOD. 9My
hand will be against the prophets who see delusive visions and who give
lying divinations; they shall not be in the council of my people, nor be
enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of
Israel; and you shall know that I am the Lord GOD. 10Because, yes, because
they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace; and
because, when the people build a wall, these prophets daub it with
whitewash; 11say to those who daub it with whitewash that it shall fall!
There will be a deluge of rain, x great hailstones will fall, and a stormy wind
break out; 12and when the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the
daubing with which you daubed it?’ 13Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: I
will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath; and there shall be a deluge
of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to destroy it. 14And I will
break down the wall that you have daubed with whitewash, and bring it
down to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare; when it falls,
you shall perish in the midst of it; and you shall know that I am the LORD.
15Thus will I spend my wrath upon the wall, and upon those who have
daubed it with whitewash; and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor
those who daubed it, 16the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning
Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her, when there was no peace, says
the Lord GOD.
17 “And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your
people, who prophesy out of their own minds; prophesy against them 18and
say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the women who sew magic bands
upon all wrists, and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature, in
the hunt for souls! Will you hunt down souls belonging to my people, and
keep other souls alive for your profit? 19You have profaned me among my
people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, putting to death
persons who should not die and keeping alive persons who should not live,
by your lies to my people, who listen to lies.
20 “Wherefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against your magic
bands with which you hunt the souls, y and I will tear them from your arms;
and I will let the souls that you hunt go free z like birds. 21Your veils also I
will tear off, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no
more in your hand as prey; and you shall know that I am the LORD.
22Because you have disheartened the righteous falsely, although I have not
disheartened him, and you have encouraged the wicked, that he should not
turn from his wicked way to save his life; 23therefore you shall no more see
delusive visions nor practice divination; I will deliver my people out of
your hand. Then you will know that I am the LORD.”
Idolatry Condemned
14 Then came certain of the elders of Israel to me; and sat before me.
2And the word of the LORD came to me: 3“Son of man, these men have
taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their
iniquity before their faces; should I let myself be inquired of at all by them?
4Therefore speak to them, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Any
man of the house of Israel who takes his idols into his heart and sets the
stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet comes to the
prophet, I the LORD will answer him myself a because of the multitude of
his idols, 5that I may lay hold of the hearts of the house of Israel, who are
all estranged from me through their idols.
6 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: Repent
and turn away from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your
abominations. 7For any one of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that
sojourn in Israel, who separates himself from me, taking his idols into his
heart and putting the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet
comes to a prophet to inquire for himself of me, I the LORD will answer him
myself; 8and I will set my face against that man, I will make him a sign and
a byword and cut him off from the midst of my people; and you shall know
that I am the LORD. 9And if the prophet be deceived and speak a word, I, the
LORD, have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against
him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel. 10And they
shall bear their punishment—the punishment of the prophet and the
punishment of the inquirer shall be alike— 11that the house of Israel may go
no more astray from me, nor defile themselves any more with all their
transgressions, but that they may be my people and I may be their God, says
the Lord GOD.”
12 *And the word of the LORD came to me: 13“Son of man, when a land
sins against me by acting faithlessly, and I stretch out my hand against it,
and break its staff of bread and send famine upon it, and cut off from it man
and beast, 14even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, * and Job, were in it,
they would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness, says the Lord
GOD. 15If I cause wild beasts to pass through the land, and they ravage it,
and it be made desolate, so that no man may pass through because of the
beasts; 16even if these three men were in it, as I live, says the Lord GOD,
they would deliver neither sons nor daughters; they alone would be
delivered, but the land would be desolate. 17Or if I bring a sword upon that
land, and say, Let a sword go through the land; and I cut off from it man
and beast; 18though these three men were in it, as I live, says the Lord
GOD, they would deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they alone would
be delivered. 19Or if I send a pestilence into that land, and pour out my
wrath upon it with blood, to cut off from it man and beast; 20even if Noah,
Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live, says the Lord GOD, they would deliver
neither son nor daughter; they would deliver but their own lives by their
righteousness.
21 “For thus says the Lord GOD: How much more when I send upon
Jerusalem my four sore acts of judgment, sword, famine, evil beasts, and
pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast! 22Yet, if there should be left in
it any survivors to lead out sons and daughters, when they come forth to
you, and you see their ways and their doings, you will be consoled for the
evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, for all that I have brought upon it.
23They will console you, when you see their ways and their doings; and you
shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, says
the Lord GOD.”
The Useless Vine
15 And the word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, how does the
wood of the vine surpass any wood, the vine branch which is among the
trees of the forest? 3Is wood taken from it to make anything? Do men take a
peg from it to hang any vessel on? 4Behold, it is given to the fire for fuel;
when the fire has consumed both ends of it, and the middle of it is charred,
is it useful for anything? 5Behold, when it was whole, it was used for
nothing; how much less, when the fire has consumed it and it is charred,
can it ever be used for anything! 6Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Like
the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the
fire for fuel, so will I give up the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 7And I will set
my face against them; though they escape from the fire, the fire shall yet
consume them; and you will know that I am the LORD, when I set my face
against them. 8And I will make the land desolate, because they have acted
faithlessly, says the Lord GOD.”
God’s Unfaithful Bride
16 Again the word of the LORD came to me: 2 “Son of man, make known
to Jerusalem her abominations, 3and say, Thus says the Lord GOD to
Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth are of the land of the Canaanites;
your father was an Am'orite, and your mother a Hittite. 4And as for your
birth, on the day you were born your navel string was not cut, nor were you
washed with water to cleanse you, nor rubbed with salt, nor swathed with
bands. 5No eye pitied you, to do any of these things to you out of
compassion for you; but you were cast out on the open field, for you were
abhorred, on the day that you were born.
6 “And when I passed by you, and saw you weltering in your blood, I
said to you in your blood, ‘Live, 7and grow up b like a plant of the field.’
And you grew up and became tall and arrived at full maidenhood; c your
breasts were formed, and your hair had grown; yet you were naked and
bare.
8 “When I passed by you again and looked upon you, behold, you were at
the age for love; and I spread my skirt over you, and covered your
nakedness: yes, I pledged myself to you and entered into a covenant with
you, says the Lord GOD, and you became mine. 9Then I bathed you with
water and washed off your blood from you, and anointed you with oil. 10I
clothed you also with embroidered cloth and shod you with leather, I
wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk. 11And I decked you
with ornaments, and put bracelets on your arms, and a chain on your neck.
12And I put a ring on your nose, and earrings in your ears, and a beautiful
crown upon your head. 13Thus you were decked with gold and silver; and
your clothing was of fine linen, and silk, and embroidered cloth; you ate
fine flour and honey and oil. You grew exceedingly beautiful, and came to
regal estate. 14And your renown went forth among the nations because of
your beauty, for it was perfect through the splendor which I had bestowed
upon you, says the Lord GOD.
15 “But you trusted in your beauty, and played the harlot because of your
renown, and lavished your harlotries on any passer-by. 16You took some of
your garments, and made for yourself gaily decked shrines, and on them
played the harlot; the like has never been, nor ever shall be. 17You also took
your fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given you, and
made for yourself images of men, and with them played the harlot; 18and
you took your embroidered garments to cover them, and set my oil and my
incense before them. 19Also my bread which I gave you—I fed you with
fine flour and oil and honey—you set before them for a pleasing odor, says
the Lord GOD. d 20And you took your sons and your daughters, whom you
had borne to me, and these you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were
your harlotries so small a matter 21that you slaughtered my children and
delivered them up as an offering by fire to them? 22And in all your
abominations and your harlotries you did not remember the days of your
youth, when you were naked and bare, weltering in your blood.
23 “And after all your wickedness (woe, woe to you! says the Lord
GOD), 24you built yourself a vaulted chamber, and made yourself a lofty
place in every square; 25at the head of every street you built your lofty place
and prostituted your beauty, offering yourself to any passer-by, and
multiplying your harlotry. 26You also played the harlot with the Egyptians,
your lustful neighbors, multiplying your harlotry, to provoke me to anger.
27Behold, therefore, I stretched out my hand against you, and diminished
your allotted portion, and delivered you to the greed of your enemies, the
daughters of the Philis'tines, who were ashamed of your lewd behavior.
28You played the harlot also with the Assyrians, because you were
insatiable; yes, you played the harlot with them, and still you were not
satisfied. 29You multiplied your harlotry also with the trading land of
Chalde'a; and even with this you were not satisfied.
30 “How lovesick is your heart, says the Lord GOD, seeing you did all
these things, the deeds of a brazen harlot; 31building your vaulted chamber
at the head of every street, and making your lofty place in every square. Yet
you were not like a harlot, because you scorned hire. 32Adulterous wife,
who receives strangers instead of her husband! 33Men give gifts to all
harlots; but you gave your gifts to all your lovers, bribing them to come to
you from every side for your harlotries. 34So you were different from other
women in your harlotries: none solicited you to play the harlot; and you
gave hire, while no hire was given to you; therefore you were different.
35 “Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the LORD: 36Thus says the
Lord GOD, Because your shame was laid bare and your nakedness
uncovered in your harlotries with your lovers, and because of all your idols,
and because of the blood of your children that you gave to them,
37therefore, behold, I will gather all your lovers, with whom you took
pleasure, all those you loved and all those you loathed; I will gather them
against you from every side, and will uncover your nakedness to them, that
they may see all your nakedness. 38And I will judge you as women who
break wedlock and shed blood are judged, and bring upon you the blood of
wrath and jealousy. 39And I will give you into the hand of your lovers, and
they shall throw down your vaulted chamber and break down your lofty
places; they shall strip you of your clothes and take your fair jewels, and
leave you naked and bare. 40They shall bring up a host against you, and
they shall stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords. 41And they
shall burn your houses and execute judgments upon you in the sight of
many women; I will make you stop playing the harlot, and you shall also
give hire no more. 42So will I satisfy my fury on you, and my jealousy shall
depart from you; I will be calm, and will no more be angry. 43Because you
have not remembered the days of your youth, but have enraged me with all
these things; therefore, behold, I will repay your deeds upon your head, says
the Lord GOD.
“Have you not committed lewdness in addition to all your abominations?
44Behold, every one who uses proverbs will use this proverb about you,
‘Like mother, like daughter.’ 45You are the daughter of your mother, who
loathed her husband and her children; and you are the sister of your sisters,
who loathed their husbands and their children. Your mother was a Hit'tite
and your father an Am'orite. 46And your elder sister is Samar'ia, who lived
with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who lived
to the south of you, is Sodom with her daughters. 47Yet you were not
content to walk in their ways, or do according to their abominations; within
a very little time you were more corrupt than they in all your ways. 48As I
live, says the Lord GOD, your sister Sodom and her daughters have not
done as you and your daughters have done. 49Behold, this was the guilt of
your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, surfeit of food, and
prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. 50They were haughty,
and did abominable things before me; therefore I removed them, when I
saw it. 51Samar'ia has not committed half your sins; you have committed
more abominations than they, and have made your sisters appear righteous
by all the abominations which you have committed. 52Bear your disgrace,
you also, for you have made judgment favorable to your sisters; because of
your sins in which you acted more abominably than they, they are more in
the right than you. So be ashamed, you also, and bear your disgrace, for you
have made your sisters appear righteous.
53 “I will restore their fortunes, both the fortunes of Sodom and her
daughters, and the fortunes of Samar'ia and her daughters, and I will restore
your own fortunes in the midst of them, 54that you may bear your disgrace
and be ashamed of all that you have done, becoming a consolation to them.
55As for your sisters, Sodom and her daughters shall return to their former
estate, and Samar'ia and her daughters shall return to their former estate;
and you and your daughters shall return to your former estate. 56Was not
your sister Sodom a byword in your mouth in the day of your pride,
57before your wickedness was uncovered? Now you have become like her e
an object of reproach for the daughters of E'dom f and all her neighbors, and
for the daughters of the Philis'tines, those round about who despise you.
58You bear the penalty of your lewdness and your abominations, says the
LORD.
The Everlasting Covenant
59 “Yes, thus says the Lord GOD: I will deal with you as you have done,
who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant, 60yet I will remember
my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish with
you an everlasting covenant. 61Then you will remember your ways, and be
ashamed when I g take your sisters, both your elder and your younger, and
give them to you as daughters, but not on account of the covenant with you.
62I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the
LORD, 63that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your
mouth again because of your shame, when I forgive you all that you have
done, says the Lord GOD.”
Two Eagles and the Vine
17 The word of the LORD came to me: * 2“Son of man, propound a
riddle, and speak an allegory to the house of Israel; 3say, Thus says the Lord
GOD: A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, rich in plumage of
many colors, came to Lebanon and took the top of the cedar; 4he broke off
the topmost of its young twigs and carried it to a land of trade, and set it in a
city of merchants. 5Then he took of the seed of the land and planted it in
fertile soil; he placed it beside abundant waters. He set it like a willow twig,
6and it sprouted and became a low spreading vine, and its branches turned
toward him, and its roots remained where it stood. So it became a vine, and
brought forth branches and put forth foliage.
7 “But there was another great eagle with great wings and much
plumage; and behold, this vine bent its roots toward him, and shot forth its
branches toward him that he might water it. From the bed where it was
planted 8he transplanted it h to good soil by abundant waters, that it might
bring forth branches, and bear fruit, and become a noble vine. 9Say, Thus
says the Lord GOD: Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off
its branches, i so that all its fresh sprouting leaves wither? It will not take a
strong arm or many people to pull it from its roots. 10Behold, when it is
transplanted, will it thrive? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind
strikes it—wither away on the bed where it grew?”
11 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 12“Say now to the rebellious
house, Do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, Behold, the
king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took her king and her princes and
brought them to him to Babylon. 13And he took one of the royal offspring
and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. (The chief men of
the land he had taken away, 14that the kingdom might be humble and not lift
itself up, and that by keeping his covenant it might stand.) 15But he rebelled
against him by sending ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him
horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Can a man escape who does such
things? Can he break the covenant and yet escape? 16As I live, says the
Lord GOD, surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king,
whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon
he shall die. 17Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not
help him in war, when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off
many lives. 18Because he despised the oath and broke the covenant, because
he gave his hand and yet did all these things, he shall not escape.
19Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: As I live, surely my oath which he
despised, and my covenant which he broke, I will repay upon his head. 20I
will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will
bring him to Babylon and enter into judgment with him there for the treason
he has committed against me. 21And all the pick j of his troops shall fall by
the sword, and the survivors shall be scattered to every wind; and you shall
know that I, the LORD, have spoken.”
22 Thus says the Lord GOD: “I myself will take a sprig from the lofty
top of the cedar, and will set it out; I will break off from the topmost of its
young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it upon a high and lofty
mountain; 23on the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bring
forth boughs and bear fruit, and become a noble cedar; and under it will
dwell all kinds of beasts; k in the shade of its branches birds of every sort
will nest. 24And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD bring
low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and
make the dry tree flourish. I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.”
Each Will Be Judged by His Own Conduct
18 The word of the LORD came to me again: 2“What do you mean by
repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ‘The fathers have eaten
sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3As I live, says the
Lord GOD, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. 4Behold, all
souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine:
the soul that sins shall die.
5 “If a man is righteous and does what is lawful and right— 6if he does
not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of
Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman in her time
of impurity, 7does not oppress any one, but restores to the debtor his pledge,
commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked
with a garment, 8does not lend at interest or take any increase, withholds his
hand from iniquity, executes true justice between man and man, 9walks in
my statutes, and is careful to observe my ordinances l—he is righteous, he
shall surely live, says the Lord GOD.
10 “If he begets a son who is a robber, a shedder of blood, m 11who does
none of these duties, but eats upon the mountains, defiles his neighbor’s
wife, 12oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, does not restore the
pledge, lifts up his eyes to the idols, commits abomination, 13lends at
interest, and takes increase; shall he then live? He shall not live. He has
done all these abominable things; he shall surely die; his blood shall be
upon himself.
14 “But if this man begets a son who sees all the sins which his father has
done, and fears, and does not do likewise, 15who does not eat upon the
mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not
defile his neighbor’s wife, 16does not wrong any one, exacts no pledge,
commits no robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked
with a garment, 17withholds his hand from iniquity, n takes no interest or
increase, observes my ordinances, and walks in my statutes; he shall not die
for his father’s iniquity; he shall surely live. 18As for his father, because he
practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what is not good among his
people, behold, he shall die for his iniquity.
19 “Yet you say, ‘Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the
father?’ When the son has done what is lawful and right, and has been
careful to observe all my statutes, he shall surely live. 20The soul that sins
shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father
suffer for the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be
upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
21 “But if a wicked man turns away from all his sins which he has
committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is lawful and right, he
shall surely live; he shall not die. 22None of the transgressions which he has
committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness which he
has done he shall live. 23Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked,
says the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and
live? 24But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and
commits iniquity and does the same abominable things that the wicked man
does, shall he live? None of the righteous deeds which he has done shall be
remembered; for the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has
committed, he shall die.
25 “Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear now, O house of
Israel: Is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just? 26When a
righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he
shall die for it; for the iniquity which he has committed he shall die.
27Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness he has
committed and does what is lawful and right, he shall save his life.
28Because he considered and turned away from all the transgressions which
he had committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 29Yet the house of
Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, are my
ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?
30 “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to
his ways, says the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions,
lest iniquity be your ruin. o 31Cast away from you all the transgressions
which you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and
a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32For I have no pleasure
in the death of any one, says the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.”
A Lamentation for Israel
19 And you, take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, 2and say:
What a lioness was your mother
among lions!
She lurked in the midst of young lions,
rearing her whelps.
3And she brought up one of her whelps;
he became a young lion,

and he learned to catch prey;
he devoured men.
4The nations sounded an alarm against him;
he was taken in their pit;

and they brought him with hooks
to the land of Egypt.
5When she saw that she was baffled, p
that her hope was lost,

she took another of her whelps
and made him a young lion.
6He prowled among the lions;
he became a young lion,

and he learned to catch prey;
he devoured men.
7And he ravaged their strongholds, q
and laid waste their cities;
and the land was appalled and all who were in it
at the sound of his roaring.
8Then the nations set against him
snares r on every side;

they spread their net over him;
he was taken in their pit.
9With hooks they put him in a cage,
and brought him to the king of Babylon;

they brought him into custody,
that his voice should no more be heard
upon the mountains of Israel.
10Your mother was like a vine in a vineyard s
transplanted by the water,

fruitful and full of branches
by reason of abundant water.
11Its strongest stem became
a ruler’s scepter;
it towered aloft
among the thick boughs;
it was seen in its height
with the mass of its branches.
12But the vine was plucked up in fury,
cast down to the ground;

the east wind dried it up;
its fruit was stripped off,
its strong stem was withered;
the fire consumed it.
13Now it is transplanted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty land.

14And fire has gone out from its stem,
has consumed its branches and fruit,

so that there remains in it no strong stem,
no scepter for a ruler.
This is a lamentation, and has become a lamentation.
Israel’s Continuing Rebellion
20 In the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month,
certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and sat before
me. 2And the word of the LORD came to me: 3“Son of man, speak to the
elders of Israel, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD, Is it to inquire of
me that you come? As I live, says the Lord GOD, I will not be inquired of
by you. 4Will you judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Then let
them know the abominations of their fathers, 5and say to them, Thus says
the Lord GOD: On the day when I chose Israel, I swore to the seed of the
house of Jacob, making myself known to them in the land of Egypt, I swore
to them, saying, I am the LORD your God. 6On that day I swore to them that
I would bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched
out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most glorious of all
lands. 7And I said to them, Cast away the detestable things your eyes feast
on, every one of you, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I
am the LORD your God. 8But they rebelled against me and would not listen
to me; they did not every man cast away the detestable things their eyes
feasted on, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt.
“Then I thought I would pour out my wrath upon them and spend my
anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. 9But I acted for the
sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations
among whom they dwelt, in whose sight I made myself known to them in
bringing them out of the land of Egypt. 10So I led them out of the land of
Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. 11I gave them my statutes and
showed them my ordinances, by whose observance man shall live.
12Moreover I gave them my sabbaths, as a sign between me and them, that
they might know that I the LORD sanctify them. 13But the house of Israel
rebelled against me in the wilderness; they did not walk in my statutes but
rejected my ordinances, by whose observance man shall live; and my
sabbaths they greatly profaned.
“Then I thought I would pour out my wrath upon them in the wilderness,
to make a full end of them. 14But I acted for the sake of my name, that it
should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, in whose sight I had
brought them out. 15Moreover I swore to them in the wilderness that I
would not bring them into the land which I had given them, a land flowing
with milk and honey, the most glorious of all lands, 16because they rejected
my ordinances and did not walk in my statutes, and profaned my sabbaths;
for their heart went after their idols. 17Nevertheless my eye spared them,
and I did not destroy them or make a full end of them in the wilderness.
18 “And I said to their children in the wilderness, Do not walk in the
statutes of your fathers, nor observe their ordinances, nor defile yourselves
with their idols. 19I the LORD am your God; walk in my statutes, and be
careful to observe my ordinances, 20and hallow my sabbaths that they may
be a sign between me and you, that you may know that I the LORD am your
God. 21But the children rebelled against me; they did not walk in my
statutes, and were not careful to observe my ordinances, by whose
observance man shall live; they profaned my sabbaths.
“Then I thought I would pour out my wrath upon them and spend my
anger against them in the wilderness. 22But I withheld my hand, and acted
for the sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the
nations, in whose sight I had brought them out. 23Moreover I swore to them
in the wilderness that I would scatter them among the nations and disperse
them through the countries, 24because they had not executed my ordinances,
but had rejected my statutes and profaned my sabbaths, and their eyes were
set on their fathers’ idols. 25Moreover I gave them statutes that were not
good and ordinances by which they could not have life; 26and I defiled them
through their very gifts in making them offer by fire all their first-born, that
I might horrify them; I did it that they might know that I am the LORD.
27 “Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them,
Thus says the Lord GOD: In this again your fathers blasphemed me, by
dealing treacherously with me. 28For when I had brought them into the land
which I swore to give them, then wherever they saw any high hill or any
leafy tree, there they offered their sacrifices and presented the provocation
of their offering; there they sent up their soothing odors, and there they
poured out their drink offerings. 29(I said to them, What is the high place to
which you go? So its name is called Ba'mah t to this day.) 30Wherefore say
to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: Will you defile yourselves
after the manner of your fathers and go astray after their detestable things?
31When you offer your gifts and sacrifice your sons by fire, you defile
yourselves with all your idols to this day. And shall I be inquired of by you,
O house of Israel? As I live, says the Lord GOD, I will not be inquired of
by you.
32 “What is in your mind shall never happen—the thought, ‘Let us be
like the nations, like the tribes of the countries, and worship wood and
stone.’
33 “As I live, says the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand and an
outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out, I will be king over you. 34I
will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries
where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and
with wrath poured out; 35and I will bring you into the wilderness of the
peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. 36As I
entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of
Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you, says the Lord GOD. 37I will
make you pass under the rod, and I will let you go in by number. u 38I will
purge out the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against me;
I will bring them out of the land where they sojourn, but they shall not enter
the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
39 “As for you, O house of Israel, thus says the Lord GOD: Go serve
every one of you his idols, now and hereafter, if you will not listen to me;
but my holy name you shall no more profane with your gifts and your idols.
40 “For on my holy mountain, the mountain height of Israel, says the
Lord GOD, there all the house of Israel, all of them, shall serve me in the
land; there I will accept them, and there I will require your contributions
and the choicest of your gifts, with all your sacred offerings. 41As a pleasing
odor I will accept you, when I bring you out from the peoples, and gather
you out of the countries where you have been scattered; and I will manifest
my holiness among you in the sight of the nations. 42And you shall know
that I am the LORD, when I bring you into the land of Israel, the country
which I swore to give to your fathers. 43And there you shall remember your
ways and all the doings with which you have polluted yourselves; and you
shall loathe yourselves for all the evils that you have committed. 44And you
shall know that I am the LORD, when I deal with you for my name’s sake,
not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O
house of Israel, says the Lord GOD.”
A Prophecy against the Negeb
45 v And the word of the LORD came to me: 46“Son of man, set your face
toward the south, preach against the south, and prophesy against the forest
land in the Neg'eb; 47say to the forest of the Neg'eb, Hear the word of the
LORD: Thus says the Lord GOD, Behold, I will kindle a fire in you, and it
shall devour every green tree in you and every dry tree; the blazing flame
shall not be quenched, and all faces from south to north shall be scorched
by it. 48All flesh shall see that I the LORD have kindled it; it shall not be
quenched.” 49Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! they are saying of me, ‘Is he not
a maker of allegories?’ ”
The Sharpened Sword Unsheathed
21 w The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, set your face
toward Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the
land of Israel 3and say to the land of Israel, Thus says the LORD: Behold, I
am against you, and will draw forth my sword out of its sheath, and will cut
off from you both righteous and wicked. 4Because I will cut off from you
both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword shall go out of its sheath
against all flesh from south to north; 5and all flesh shall know that I the
LORD have drawn my sword out of its sheath; it shall not be sheathed again.
6Sigh therefore, son of man; sigh with breaking heart and bitter grief before
their eyes. 7And when they say to you, ‘Why do you sigh?’ you shall say,
‘Because of the tidings. When it comes, every heart will melt and all hands
will be feeble, every spirit will faint and all knees will be weak as water.
Behold, it comes and it will be fulfilled,’ ” says the Lord GOD.
8 And the word of the LORD came to me: 9“Son of man, prophesy and
say, Thus says the Lord, Say:
A sword, a sword is sharpened
and also polished,
10sharpened for slaughter,
polished to flash like lightning!

Or do we make mirth? You have despised the rod, my son, with
everything of wood. 11So the sword is given to be polished, that it may be
handled; it is sharpened and polished to be given into the hand of the slayer.
12Cry and wail, son of man, for it is against my people; it is against all the
princes of Israel; they are delivered over to the sword with my people.
Strike therefore upon your thigh. 13For it will not be a testing—what could
it do if you despise the rod?” says the Lord GOD.
14 “Prophesy therefore, son of man; clap your hands and let the sword
come down twice, yes, thrice, the sword for those to be slain; it is the sword
for the great slaughter, which encompasses them, 15that their hearts may
melt, and many fall at all their gates. I have given the glittering sword; ah! it
is made like lightning, it is polished x for slaughter. 16Cut sharply to right y
and left where your edge is directed. 17I also will clap my hands, and I will
satisfy my fury; I the LORD have spoken.”
18 The word of the LORD came to me again: 19“Son of man, mark two
ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to come; both of them shall
come forth from the same land. And make a signpost, make it at the head of
the way to a city; 20mark a way for the sword to come to Rabbah of the
Am'monites and to Judah and to z Jerusalem the fortified. 21For the king of
Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use
divination; he shakes the arrows, he consults the teraphim, he looks at the
liver. 22Into his right hand comes the lot for Jerusalem, a to open the mouth
with a cry, b to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against
the gates, to cast up mounds, to build siege towers. 23But to them it will
seem like a false divination; they have sworn solemn oaths; but he brings
their guilt to remembrance, that they may be captured.
24 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because you have made your
guilt to be remembered, in that your transgressions are uncovered, so that in
all your doings your sins appear—because you have come to remembrance,
you shall be taken in them. c 25And you, O unhallowed wicked one, prince
of Israel, whose day has come, the time of your final punishment, 26thus
says the Lord GOD: Remove the turban, and take off the crown; things shall
not remain as they are; exalt that which is low, and abase that which is high.
27A ruin, ruin, ruin I will make it; there shall not be even a trace d of it until
he comes whose right it is; and to him I will give it.

28 “And you, son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD
concerning the Am'monites, and concerning their reproach; say, A sword, a
sword is drawn for the slaughter, it is polished to glitter e and to flash like
lightning— 29while they see for you false visions, while they make up lies
for you—to be laid on the necks of the unhallowed wicked, whose day has
come, the time of their final punishment. 30Return it to its sheath. In the
place where you were created, in the land of your origin, I will judge you.
31And I will pour out my indignation upon you; I will blow upon you with
the fire of my wrath; and I will deliver you into the hands of brutal men,
skilful to destroy. 32You shall be fuel for the fire; your blood shall be in the
midst of the land; you shall be no more remembered; for I the LORD have
spoken.”
The Sins of Jerusalem
22 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2“And you, son
of man, will you judge, will you judge the bloody city? Then declare to her
all her abominable deeds. 3You shall say, Thus says the Lord GOD: A city
that sheds blood in the midst of her, that her time may come, and that makes
idols to defile herself! 4You have become guilty by the blood which you
have shed, and defiled by the idols which you have made; and you have
brought your day near, the appointed time f of your years has come.
Therefore I have made you a reproach to the nations, and a mocking to all
the countries. 5Those who are near and those who are far from you will
mock you, you infamous one, full of tumult.
6 “Behold, the princes of Israel in you, every one according to his power,
have been bent on shedding blood. 7Father and mother are treated with
contempt in you; the sojourner suffers extortion in your midst; the fatherless
and the widow are wronged in you. 8You have despised my holy things, and
profaned my sabbaths. 9There are men in you who slander to shed blood,
and men in you who eat upon the mountains; men commit lewdness in your
midst. 10In you men uncover their fathers’ nakedness; in you they humble
women who are unclean in their impurity. 11One commits abomination with
his neighbor’s wife; another lewdly defiles his daughter-in-law; another in
you defiles his sister, his father’s daughter. 12In you men take bribes to shed
blood; you take interest and increase and make gain of your neighbors by
extortion; and you have forgotten me, says the Lord GOD.
13 “Behold, therefore, I strike my hands together at the dishonest gain
which you have made, and at the blood which has been in the midst of you.
14Can your courage endure, or can your hands be strong, in the days that I
shall deal with you? I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it. 15I will scatter
you among the nations and disperse you through the countries, and I will
consume your filthiness out of you. 16And I g shall be profaned through you
in the sight of the nations; and you shall know that I am the LORD.”
17 And the word of the LORD came to me: 18“Son of man, the house of
Israel has become dross to me; all of them, silver h and bronze and tin and
iron and lead in the furnace, have become dross. 19Therefore thus says the
Lord GOD: Because you have all become dross, therefore, behold, I will
gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20As men gather silver and bronze
and iron and lead and tin into a furnace, to blow the fire upon it in order to
melt it; so I will gather you in my anger and in my wrath, and I will put you
in and melt you. 21I will gather you and blow upon you with the fire of my
wrath, and you shall be melted in the midst of it. 22As silver is melted in a
furnace, so you shall be melted in the midst of it; and you shall know that I
the LORD have poured out my wrath upon you.”
23 And the word of the LORD came to me: 24“Son of man, say to her, You
are a land that is not cleansed, or rained upon in the day of indignation.
25Her princes i in the midst of her are like a roaring lion tearing the prey;
they have devoured human lives; they have taken treasure and precious
things; they have made many widows in the midst of her. 26Her priests have
done violence to my law and have profaned my holy things; they have made
no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they taught
the difference between the unclean and the clean, and they have disregarded
my sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them. 27Her princes in the midst
of her are like wolves tearing the prey, shedding blood, destroying lives to
get dishonest gain. 28And her prophets have daubed for them with
whitewash, seeing false visions and making up lies for them, saying, ‘Thus
says the Lord GOD,’ when the LORD has not spoken. 29The people of the
land have practiced extortion and committed robbery; they have oppressed
the poor and needy, and have extorted from the sojourner without redress.
30And I sought for a man among them who should build up the wall and
stand in the breach before me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I
found none. 31Therefore I have poured out my indignation upon them; I
have consumed them with the fire of my wrath; their way have I repaid
upon their heads, says the Lord GOD.”
Oholah and Oholibah
23 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, there were two
women, the daughters of one mother; 3they played the harlot in Egypt; they
played the harlot in their youth; there their breasts were pressed and their
virgin bosoms handled. 4Oho'lah was the name of the elder and Ohol'ibah
the name of her sister. They became mine, and they bore sons and
daughters. As for their names, Oholah is Samar'ia, and Oholibah is
Jerusalem.
5 “Oho'lah played the harlot while she was mine; and she doted on her
lovers the Assyrians, 6warriors clothed in purple, governors and
commanders, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding on horses.
7She bestowed her harlotries upon them, the choicest men of Assyria all of
them; and she defiled herself with all the idols of every one on whom she
doted. 8She did not give up her harlotry which she had practiced since her
days in Egypt; for in her youth men had lain with her and handled her virgin
bosom and poured out their lust upon her. 9Therefore I delivered her into
the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians, upon whom she
doted. 10These uncovered her nakedness; they seized her sons and her
daughters; and her they slew with the sword; and she became a byword
among women, when judgment had been executed upon her.
11 “Her sister Ohol'ibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt than she in her
doting and in her harlotry, which was worse than that of her sister. 12She
doted upon the Assyrians, governors and commanders, warriors clothed in
full armor, horsemen riding on horses, all of them desirable young men.
13And I saw that she was defiled; they both took the same way. 14But she
carried her harlotry further; she saw men portrayed upon the wall, the
images of the Chalde'ans portrayed in vermilion, 15with belts around their
waists, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like
officers, a picture of Babylonians whose native land was Chalde'a. 16When
she saw them she doted upon them, and sent messengers to them in
Chalde'a. 17And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they
defiled her with their lust; and after she was polluted by them, she turned
from them in disgust. 18When she carried on her harlotry so openly and
flaunted her nakedness, I turned in disgust from her, as I had turned from
her sister. 19Yet she increased her harlotry, remembering the days of her
youth, when she played the harlot in the land of Egypt 20and doted upon her
paramours there, whose members were like those of donkeys, and whose
issue was like that of horses. 21Thus you longed for the lewdness of your
youth, when the Egyptians j handled your bosom and pressed k your young
breasts.”
22 Therefore, O Ohol'ibah, thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I will rouse
against you your lovers from whom you turned in disgust, and I will bring
them against you from every side: 23the Babylonians and all the Chalde'ans,
Pe'kod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, desirable young
men, governors and commanders all of them, officers and warriors, l all of
them riding on horses. 24And they shall come against you from the north m
with chariots and wagons and a host of peoples; they shall set themselves
against you on every side with buckler, shield, and helmet, and I will
commit the judgment to them, and they shall judge you according to their
judgments. 25And I will direct my indignation against you, that they may
deal with you in fury. They shall cut off your nose and your ears, and your
survivors shall fall by the sword. They shall seize your sons and your
daughters, and your survivors shall be devoured by fire. 26They shall also
strip you of your clothes and take away your fine jewels. 27Thus I will put
an end to your lewdness and your harlotry brought from the land of Egypt;
so that you shall not lift up your eyes to the Egyptians or remember them
any more. 28For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will deliver you into the
hands of those whom you hate, into the hands of those from whom you
turned in disgust; 29and they shall deal with you in hatred, and take away all
the fruit of your labor, and leave you naked and bare, and the nakedness of
your harlotry shall be uncovered. Your lewdness and your harlotry 30have
brought this upon you, because you played the harlot with the nations, and
polluted yourself with their idols. 31You have gone the way of your sister;
therefore I will give her cup into your hand. 32Thus says the Lord GOD:
“You shall drink your sister’s cup
which is deep and large;
you shall be laughed at and held in derision,
for it contains much;
33you will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow.
A cup of horror and desolation,

is the cup of your sister Samar'ia;
34you shall drink it and drain it out,
and pluck out your hair, n
and tear your breasts;
for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD. 35Therefore thus says the Lord
GOD: Because you have forgotten me and cast me behind your back,
therefore bear the consequences of your lewdness and harlotry.”
36 The LORD said to me: “Son of man, will you judge Oho'lah and
Ohol'ibah? Then declare to them their abominable deeds. 37For they have
committed adultery, and blood is upon their hands; with their idols they
have committed adultery; and they have even offered up to them for food
the sons whom they had borne to me. 38Moreover this they have done to
me: they have defiled my sanctuary on the same day and profaned my
sabbaths. 39For when they had slaughtered their children in sacrifice to their
idols, on the same day they came into my sanctuary to profane it. And
behold, this is what they did in my house. 40They even sent for men to
come from far, to whom a messenger was sent, and behold, they came. For
them you bathed yourself, painted your eyes, and decked yourself with
ornaments; 41you sat upon a stately couch, with a table spread before it on
which you had placed my incense and my oil. 42The sound of a carefree
multitude was with her; and with men of the common sort drunkards o were
brought from the wilderness; and they put bracelets upon the hands of the
women, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.
43 “Then I said, Do not men now commit adultery p when they practice
harlotry with her? 44For they have gone in to her, as men go in to a harlot.
Thus they went in to Oho'lah and to Ohol'ibah to commit lewdness. q 45But
righteous men shall pass judgment on them with the sentence of
adulteresses, and with the sentence of women that shed blood; because they
are adulteresses, and blood is upon their hands.”
46 For thus says the Lord GOD: “Bring up a host against them, and make
them an object of terror and a spoil. 47And the host shall stone them and
dispatch them with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their
daughters, and burn up their houses. 48Thus will I put an end to lewdness in
the land, that all women may take warning and not commit lewdness as you
have done. 49And your lewdness shall be repaid upon you, and you shall
bear the penalty for your sinful idolatry; and you shall know that I am the
Lord GOD.”
The Boiling Pot
24 In the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month,
the word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, write down the name of
this day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this
very day. 3And utter an allegory to the rebellious house and say to them,
Thus says the Lord GOD:
Set on the pot, set it on,
pour in water also;
4put in it the pieces of flesh,
all the good pieces, the thigh and the shoulder;

fill it with choice bones.
5Take the choicest one of the flock,
pile the logs r under it;

boil its pieces, s
seethe t also its bones in it.
6 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city, to the pot
whose rust is in it, and whose rust has not gone out of it! Take out of it
piece after piece, without making any choice. u 7For the blood she has shed
is still in the midst of her; she put it on the bare rock, she did not pour it
upon the ground to cover it with dust. 8To rouse my wrath, to take
vengeance, I have set on the bare rock the blood she has shed, that it may
not be covered. 9Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody
city! I also will make the pile great. 10Heap on the logs, kindle the fire, boil
well the flesh, and empty out the broth, v and let the bones be burned up.
11Then set it empty upon the coals, that it may become hot, and its copper
may burn, that its filthiness may be melted in it, its rust consumed. 12In vain
I have wearied myself; w its thick rust does not go out of it by fire. 13Its rust
is your filthy lewdness. Because I would have cleansed you and you were
not cleansed from your filthiness, you shall not be cleansed any more till I
have satisfied my fury upon you. 14I the LORD have spoken; it shall come to
pass, I will do it; I will not go back, I will not spare, I will not repent;
according to your ways and your doings I will judge you, says the Lord
GOD.”
Ezekiel’s Wife Dies
15 Also the word of the LORD came to me: 16“Son of man, behold, I am
about to take the delight of your eyes away from you at a stroke; yet you
shall not mourn or weep nor shall your tears run down. 17Sigh, but not
aloud; make no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban, and put your
shoes on your feet; do not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of mourners.” x
18So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died.
And on the next morning I did as I was commanded.

19 And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things
mean for us, that you are acting thus?” 20Then I said to them, “The word of
the LORD came to me: 21‘Say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord
GOD: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the
delight of your eyes, and the desire of your soul; and your sons and your
daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword. 22And you shall do
as I have done; you shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of mourners.
x 23Your turbans shall be on your heads and your shoes on your feet; you
shall not mourn or weep, but you shall pine away in your iniquities and
groan to one another. 24Thus shall Ezek'iel be to you a sign; according to all
that he has done you shall do. When this comes, then you will know that I
am the Lord GOD.’
25 “And you, son of man, on the day when I take from them their
stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes and their heart’s
desire, and also their sons and daughters, 26on that day a fugitive will come
to you to report to you the news. 27On that day your mouth will be opened
to the fugitive, and you shall speak and be no longer mute. So you will be a
sign to them; and they will know that I am the LORD.”
Prophecy against the Ammonites
25 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, set your face
toward the Am'monites, and prophesy against them. 3Say to the
Am'monites, Hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus says the Lord GOD,
Because you said, ‘Aha!’ over my sanctuary when it was profaned, and
over the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and over the house of
Judah when it went into exile; 4therefore I am handing you over to the
people of the East for a possession, and they shall set their encampments
among you and make their dwellings in your midst; they shall eat your fruit,
and they shall drink your milk. 5I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels
and the cities of the Am'monites y a fold for flocks. Then you will know that
I am the LORD. 6For thus says the Lord GOD: Because you have clapped
your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the malice within
you against the land of Israel, 7therefore, behold, I have stretched out my
hand against you, and will hand you over as spoil to the nations; and I will
cut you off from the peoples and will make you perish out of the countries;
I will destroy you. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
Prophecy against Moab
8 “Thus says the Lord GOD: Because Moab z said, Behold, the house of
Judah is like all the other nations, 9therefore I will lay open the flank of
Moab from the cities a on its frontier, the glory of the country, Beth-
jesh'imoth, Ba'al-me'on, and Kir''iatha'im. 10I will give it along with the
Am'monites to the people of the East as a possession, that it b may be
remembered no more among the nations, 11and I will execute judgments
upon Moab. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
Prophecy against Edom
12 “Thus says the Lord GOD: Because E'dom acted revengefully against
the house of Judah and has grievously offended in taking vengeance upon
them, 13therefore thus says the Lord GOD, I will stretch out my hand
against E'dom, and cut off from it man and beast; and I will make it
desolate; from Te'man even to De'dan they shall fall by the sword. 14And I
will lay my vengeance upon E'dom by the hand of my people Israel; and
they shall do in Edom according to my anger and according to my wrath;
and they shall know my vengeance, says the Lord GOD.
Prophecy against the Philistines
15 “Thus says the Lord GOD: Because the Philis'tines acted revengefully
and took vengeance with malice of heart to destroy in never-ending enmity;
16therefore thus says the Lord GOD, Behold, I will stretch out my hand
against the Philis'tines, and I will cut off the Cher'ethites, and destroy the
rest of the seacoast. 17I will execute great vengeance upon them with
wrathful chastisements. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I lay
my vengeance upon them.”
Prophecy against Tyre
26 * In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month, the word of the
LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, because Tyre said concerning Jerusalem,
‘Aha, the gate of the peoples is broken, it has swung open to me; I shall be
replenished, now that she is laid waste,’ 3therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will bring up many nations against
you, as the sea brings up its waves. 4They shall destroy the walls of Tyre,
and break down her towers; and I will scrape her soil from her, and make
her a bare rock. 5She shall be in the midst of the sea a place for the
spreading of nets; for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD; and she shall
become a spoil to the nations; 6and her daughters on the mainland shall be
slain by the sword. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
7 “For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring upon Tyre from the
north Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and
chariots, and with horsemen and a host of many soldiers. 8He will slay with
the sword your daughters on the mainland; he will set up a siege wall
against you, and throw up a mound against you, and raise a roof of shields
against you. 9He will direct the shock of his battering rams against your
walls, and with his axes he will break down your towers. 10His horses will
be so many that their dust will cover you; your walls will shake at the noise
of the horsemen and wagons and chariots, when he enters your gates as one
enters a city which has been breached. 11With the hoofs of his horses he will
trample all your streets; he will slay your people with the sword; and your
mighty pillars will fall to the ground. 12They will make a spoil of your
riches and a prey of your merchandise; they will break down your walls and
destroy your pleasant houses; your stones and timber and soil they will cast
into the midst of the waters. 13And I will stop the music of your songs, and
the sound of your lyres shall be heard no more. 14I will make you a bare
rock; you shall be a place for the spreading of nets; you shall never be
rebuilt; for I the LORD have spoken, says the Lord GOD.
15 “Thus says the Lord GOD to Tyre: Will not the islands shake at the
sound of your fall, when the wounded groan, when slaughter is made in the
midst of you? 16Then all the princes of the sea will step down from their
thrones, and remove their robes, and strip off their embroidered garments;
they will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit upon the ground
and tremble every moment, and be appalled at you. 17And they will raise a
lamentation over you, and say to you,
‘How you have vanished c from the seas,
O city renowned,
that was mighty on the sea,
you and your inhabitants,
who imposed your terror
on all the mainland! d
18Now the isles tremble
on the day of your fall;

yes, the isles that are in the sea
are dismayed at your passing.’
19 “For thus says the Lord GOD: When I make you a city laid waste, like
the cities that are not inhabited, when I bring up the deep over you, and the
great waters cover you, 20then I will thrust you down with those who
descend into the Pit, to the people of old, and I will make you to dwell in
the nether world, among primeval ruins, with those who go down to the Pit,
so that you will not be inhabited or have a place e in the land of the living.
21I will bring you to a dreadful end, and you shall be no more; though you
be sought for, you will never be found again, says the Lord GOD.”
Lamentation over Tyre
27 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 “Now you, son of man, raise a
lamentation over Tyre, 3and say to Tyre, who dwells at the entrance to the
sea, merchant of the peoples on many islands, thus says the Lord GOD:
“O Tyre, you have said,
‘I am perfect in beauty.’
4Your borders are in the heart of the seas;
your builders made perfect your beauty.

5They made all your planks
of fir trees from Se'nir;

they took a cedar from Lebanon
to make a mast for you.
6Of oaks of Ba'shan
they made your oars;

they made your deck of pines
from the coasts of Cyprus,
inlaid with ivory.
7Of fine embroidered linen from Egypt
was your sail,

serving as your ensign;
blue and purple from the coasts of Eli'shah
was your awning.
8The inhabitants of Si'don and Arvad
were your rowers;
skilled men of Ze'mer f were in you,
they were your pilots.
9The elders of Ge'bal and her skilled men were in you,
caulking your seams;

all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in you,
to barter for your wares.
10 “Persia and Lud and Put were in your army as your men of war; they
hung the shield and helmet in you; they gave you splendor. 11The men of
Arvad and He'lech g were upon your walls round about, and men of Ga'mad
were in your towers; they hung their shields upon your walls round about;
they made perfect your beauty.
12 “Tar'shish trafficked with you because of your great wealth of every
kind; silver, iron, tin, and lead they exchanged for your wares. 13Ja'van,
Tu'bal, and Me'shech traded with you; they exchanged the persons of men
and vessels of bronze for your merchandise. 14Beth''-togar'mah exchanged
for your wares horses, war horses, and mules. 15The men of Rhodes h traded
with you; many islands were your own special markets, they brought you in
payment ivory tusks and ebony. 16E'dom i trafficked with you because of
your abundant goods; they exchanged for your wares emeralds, purple,
embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and agate. 17Judah and the land of
Israel traded with you; they exchanged for your merchandise wheat, olives
and early figs, j honey, oil, and balm. 18Damascus trafficked with you for
your abundant goods, because of your great wealth of every kind; wine of
Helbon, and white wool, 19and wine k from U'zal they exchanged for your
wares; wrought iron, cassia, and calamus were bartered for your
merchandise. 20De'dan traded with you in saddlecloths for riding. 21Arabia
and all the princes of Ke'dar were your favored dealers in lambs, rams, and
goats; in these they trafficked with you. 22The traders of Sheba and
Ra'amah traded with you; they exchanged for your wares the best of all
kinds of spices, and all precious stones, and gold. 23Haran, Canneh, Eden, l
Asshur, and Chil'mad traded with you. 24These traded with you in choice
garments, in clothes of blue and embroidered work, and in carpets of
colored stuff, bound with cords and made secure; in these they traded with
you. m 25The ships of Tar'shish traveled for you with your merchandise. n
“So you were filled and heavily laden
in the heart of the seas.
26Your rowers have brought you out
into the high seas.

The east wind has wrecked you
27Your riches, your wares, your merchandise,
your mariners and your pilots,

your caulkers, your dealers in merchandise,
and all your men of war who are in you,
with all your company
that is in your midst,
sink into the heart of the seas
on the day of your ruin.
28At the sound of the cry of your pilots
the countryside shakes,
29and down from their ships
come all that handle the oar.

The mariners and all the pilots of the sea
stand on the shore
30and wail aloud over you,
and cry bitterly.

They cast dust on their heads
and wallow in ashes;
31they make themselves bald for you,
and put on sackcloth,

and they weep over you in bitterness of soul,
with bitter mourning.
32In their wailing they raise a lamentation for you,
and lament over you:
‘Who was ever destroyed o like Tyre
in the midst of the sea?
33When your wares came from the seas,
you satisfied many peoples;

with your abundant wealth and merchandise
you enriched the kings of the earth.
34Now you are wrecked by the seas,
in the depths of the waters;

your merchandise and all your crew
have sunk with you.
35All the inhabitants of the islands
are appalled at you;

and their kings are horribly afraid,
their faces are convulsed.
36The merchants among the peoples hiss at you;
you have come to a dreadful end

and shall be no more for ever.’”
Ruin of Tyre Foretold
28 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, say to the prince of
Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD:
“Because your heart is proud,
and you have said, ‘I am a god,
I sit in the seat of the gods,
in the heart of the seas,’
yet you are but a man, and no god,
though you consider yourself as wise as a god—
3you are indeed wiser than Daniel;
no secret is hidden from you;

4by your wisdom and your understanding
you have gotten wealth for yourself,

and have gathered gold and silver
into your treasuries;
5by your great wisdom in trade
you have increased your wealth,

and your heart has become proud in your wealth—
6therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
“Because you consider yourself

as wise as a god,
7therefore, behold, I will bring strangers upon you,
the most terrible of the nations;
and they shall draw their swords
against the beauty of your wisdom
and defile your splendor.
8They shall thrust you down into the Pit,
and you shall die the death of the slain

9Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’
in the presence of those who slay you,

though you are but a man, and no god,
in the hands of those who wound you?
10You shall die the death of the uncircumcised
OceanofPDF.com
by the hand of foreigners;
for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD.”
Lamentation over the King of Tyre
11 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me: 12“Son of man, raise a
lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord
GOD:
“You were the signet of perfection, p
full of wisdom
and perfect in beauty.
13You were in Eden, the garden of God;
every precious stone was your covering,
carnelian, topaz, and jasper,
chrysolite, beryl, and onyx,
sapphire, q carbuncle, and emerald;
and wrought in gold were your settings
and your engravings. r
On the day that you were created
they were prepared.
14With an anointed guardian cherub I placed you; s
you were on the holy mountain of God;
in the midst of the stones of fire you walked.
15You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created,

till iniquity was found in you.
16In the abundance of your trade
you were filled with violence, and you sinned;

so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God,
and the guardian cherub drove you out
from the midst of the stones of fire.
17Your heart was proud because of your beauty;
you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.

I cast you to the ground;
I exposed you before kings,
to feast their eyes on you.
18By the multitude of your iniquities,
in the unrighteousness of your trade

you profaned your sanctuaries;
so I brought forth fire from the midst of you;
it consumed you,
and I turned you to ashes upon the earth
in the sight of all who saw you.
19All who know you among the peoples
are appalled at you;

you have come to a dreadful end
and shall be no more for ever.”
Prophecy against Sidon
toward Si'don, and prophesy against her 22and say, Thus says the Lord
GOD:
“Behold, I am against you, O Si'don,
and I will manifest my glory in the midst of you.
And they shall know that I am the LORD
when I execute judgments in her,
and manifest my holiness in her;
23for I will send pestilence into her,
and blood into her streets;

and the slain shall fall in the midst of her,
by the sword that is against her on every side.
Then they will know that I am the LORD.
24 “And for the house of Israel there shall be no more a brier to prick or a
thorn to hurt them among all their neighbors who have treated them with
contempt. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD.
Future Blessings for Israel
25 “Thus says the Lord GOD: When I gather the house of Israel from the
peoples among whom they are scattered, and manifest my holiness in them
in the sight of the nations, then they shall dwell in their own land which I
gave to my servant Jacob. 26And they shall dwell securely in it, and they
shall build houses and plant vineyards. They shall dwell securely, when I
execute judgments upon all their neighbors who have treated them with
contempt. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God.”
Prophecy against Egypt
29 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month,
the word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, set your face against
Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt;
3speak, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD:
“Behold, I am against you,

Pharaoh king of Egypt,
the great dragon that lies
in the midst of his streams,
that says, ‘My Nile is my own;
I made it.’ t
4I will put hooks in your jaws,
and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales;

and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams,
with all the fish of your streams
which stick to your scales.
5And I will cast you forth into the wilderness,
you and all the fish of your streams;
you shall fall upon the open field,
and not be gathered and buried.
To the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the air
I have given you as food.
6 “Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the LORD.
Because you u have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel; 7when they
grasped you with the hand, you broke, and tore all their shoulders; and
when they leaned upon you, you broke, and made all their loins to shake; v
8therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring a sword upon you,
and will cut off from you man and beast; 9and the land of Egypt shall be a
desolation and a waste. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
“Because you w said, ‘The Nile is mine, and I made it,’ 10therefore,
behold, I am against you, and against your streams, and I will make the land
of Egypt an utter waste and desolation, from Migdol to Sye'ne, as far as the
border of Ethiopia. 11No foot of man shall pass through it, and no foot of
beast shall pass through it; it shall be uninhabited forty years. 12And I will
make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries; and
her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I
will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among the
countries.
13 “For thus says the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years I will gather
the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered; 14and I
will restore the fortunes of Egypt, and bring them back to the land of
Path'ros, the land of their origin; and there they shall be a lowly kingdom.
15It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself
above the nations; and I will make them so small that they will never again
rule over the nations. 16And it shall never again be the reliance of the house
of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they
will know that I am the Lord GOD.”
17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the
month, the word of the LORD came to me: 18“Son of man, Nebuchadrez'zar
king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre; every head was
made bald and every shoulder was rubbed bare; yet neither he nor his army
got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against it.
19Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt
to Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth x and
despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army. 20I have
given him the land of Egypt as his recompense for which he labored,
because they worked for me, says the Lord GOD.
21 “On that day I will cause a horn to spring forth to the house of Israel,
and I will open your lips among them. Then they will know that I am the
LORD.”
Lamentation for Egypt
30 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, prophesy, and say,
Thus says the Lord GOD:
“Wail, ‘Alas for the day!’
3 For the day is near,
the day of the LORD is near;
it will be a day of clouds,
a time of doom for the nations.
4A sword shall come upon Egypt,
and anguish shall be in Ethiopia,

when the slain fall in Egypt,
and her wealth is carried away,
and her foundations are torn down.
5Ethiopia, and Put, and Lud, and all Arabia, and Libya, y and the people
of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword.
Those who support Egypt shall fall,

and her proud might shall come down;
from Migdol to Sye'ne
they shall fall within her by the sword,
says the Lord GOD.
7And she z shall be desolated in the midst of desolated countries
and her cities shall be in the midst of cities that are laid waste.
8Then they will know that I am the LORD,
when I have set fire to Egypt,

and all her helpers are broken.
9 “On that day swift a messengers shall go forth from me to terrify the
unsuspecting Ethiopians; and anguish shall come upon them on the day of
Egypt’s doom; for behold, it comes!
10 “Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will put an end to the wealth b of Egypt,
by the hand of Nebuchadrez'zar king of Babylon.
11He and his people with him, the most terrible of the nations,
shall be brought in to destroy the land;
and they shall draw their swords against Egypt,
and fill the land with the slain.
12And I will dry up the Nile,
and will sell the land into the hand of evil men;
I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it,
by the hand of foreigners;
I, the LORD, have spoken.
13 “Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will destroy the idols,
and put an end to the images, in Memphis;
there shall no longer be a prince in the land of Egypt;
so I will put fear in the land of Egypt.
14I will make Path'ros a desolation,
and will set fire to Zoan,
and will execute acts of judgment upon Thebes.
15And I will pour my wrath upon Pelu'sium,
the stronghold of Egypt,

and cut off the multitude of Thebes.
16And I will set fire to Egypt;
Pelu'sium shall be in great agony;

Thebes shall be breached,
and its walls broken down. c
17The young men of On and of Pibe'seth shall fall by the sword;
and the women shall go into captivity.

18At Tehaph'nehes the day shall be dark,
when I break there the dominion of Egypt,

and her proud might shall come to an end;
she shall be covered by a cloud,
and her daughters shall go into captivity.
19Thus I will execute acts of judgment upon Egypt.
Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

Prophecy against Pharaoh
20 In the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the
month, the word of the LORD came to me: 21“Son of man, I have broken the
arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and behold, it has not been bound up, to heal
it by binding it with a bandage, so that it may become strong to wield the
sword. 22Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against Pharaoh
king of Egypt, and will break his arms, both the strong arm and the one that
was broken; and I will make the sword fall from his hand. 23I will scatter
the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them throughout the lands.
24And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put my sword
in his hand; but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan before
him like a man mortally wounded. 25I will strengthen the arms of the king
of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh shall fall; and they shall know that I
am the LORD. When I put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon,
he shall stretch it out against the land of Egypt; 26and I will scatter the
Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries.
Then they will know that I am the LORD.”
The Towering Cedar
31 In the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month,
the word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of
Egypt and to his multitude:
“Whom are you like in your greatness?
3 Behold, I will liken you d to a cedar in Lebanon,
with fair branches and forest shade,

and of great height,
its top among the clouds. e
4The waters nourished it,
the deep made it grow tall,

making its rivers flow f
round the place of its planting,
sending forth its streams
to all the trees of the forest.
5So it towered high
above all the trees of the forest;

its boughs grew large
and its branches long,
from abundant water in its shoots.
6All the birds of the air
made their nests in its boughs;

under its branches all the beasts of the field
brought forth their young;
and under its shadow
dwelt all great nations.
7It was beautiful in its greatness,
in the length of its branches;

for its roots went down
to abundant waters.
8The cedars in the garden of God could not rival it,
nor the fir trees equal its boughs;

the plane trees were as nothing
compared with its branches;
no tree in the garden of God
was like it in beauty.
9I made it beautiful
in the mass of its branches,
and all the trees of Eden envied it,
that were in the garden of God.
10 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because it g towered high and set
its top among the clouds, h and its heart was proud of its height, 11I will give
it into the hand of a mighty one of the nations; he shall surely deal with it as
its wickedness deserves. I have cast it out. 12Foreigners, the most terrible of
the nations, will cut it down and leave it. On the mountains and in all the
valleys its branches will fall, and its boughs will lie broken in all the
watercourses of the land; and all the peoples of the earth will go from its
shadow and leave it. 13Upon its ruin will dwell all the birds of the air, and
upon its branches will be all the beasts of the field. 14All this is in order that
no trees by the waters may grow to lofty height or set their tops among the
clouds, h and that no trees that drink water may reach up to them in height;
for they are all given over to death, to the nether world among mortal men,
with those who go down to the Pit.
15 “Thus says the Lord GOD: When it goes down to Sheol I will make
the deep mourn for i it, and restrain its rivers, and many waters shall be
stopped; I will clothe Lebanon in gloom for it, and all the trees of the field
shall faint because of it. 16I will make the nations quake at the sound of its
fall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who go down to the Pit; and all
the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, will
be comforted in the nether world. 17They also shall go down to Sheol with
it, to those who are slain by the sword; yes, those who dwelt under its
shadow among the nations shall perish. j 18Whom are you thus like in glory
and in greatness among the trees of Eden? You shall be brought down with
the trees of Eden to the nether world; you shall lie among the
uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword.
“This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord GOD.”
Lamentation over Pharaoh
32 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first day of the
month, the word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, raise a lamentation
over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him:
“You consider yourself a lion among the nations,
but you are like a dragon in the seas;
you burst forth in your rivers,
trouble the waters with your feet,
and foul their rivers.
3Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will throw my net over you

with a host of many peoples;
and I k will haul you up in my dragnet.
4And I will cast you on the ground,
on the open field I will fling you,
and will cause all the birds of the air to settle on you,
and I will gorge the beasts of the whole earth with you.
5I will strew your flesh upon the mountains,
and fill the valleys with your carcass. l

6I will drench the land even to the mountains
with your flowing blood;

and the watercourses will be full of you.
7When I blot you out, I will cover the heavens,
and make their stars dark;

I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon shall not give its light.
8All the bright lights of heaven
will I make dark over you,

and put darkness upon your land,
says the Lord GOD.
9 “I will trouble the hearts of many peoples, when I carry you captive m
among the nations, into the countries which you have not known. 10I will
make many peoples appalled at you, and their kings shall shudder because
of you, when I brandish my sword before them; they shall tremble every
moment, every one for his own life, on the day of your downfall. 11For thus
says the Lord GOD: The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon
you. 12I will cause your multitude to fall by the swords of mighty ones, all
of them most terrible among the nations.
“They shall bring to nothing the pride of Egypt,
and all its multitude shall perish.
13I will destroy all its beasts
from beside many waters;
and no foot of man shall trouble them any more,
nor shall the hoofs of beasts trouble them.
14Then I will make their waters clear,
and cause their rivers to run like oil,
says the Lord GOD.
15When I make the land of Egypt desolate
and when the land is stripped of all that fills it,

when I strike all who dwell in it,
then they will know that I am the LORD.
16This is a lamentation which shall be chanted; the daughters of the
nations shall chant it; over Egypt, and over all her multitude, shall they
chant it, says the Lord GOD.”
17 In the twelfth year, in the first month, n on the fifteenth day of the
month, the word of the LORD came to me: 18“Son of man, wail over the
multitude of Egypt, and send them down, her and the daughters of majestic
nations, to the nether world, to those who have gone down to the Pit:
19‘Whom do you surpass in beauty?
Go down, and be laid with the uncircumcised.’

20 They shall fall amid those who are slain by the sword, o and with her
shall lie all her multitudes. p 21The mighty chiefs shall speak of them, with
their helpers, out of the midst of Sheol: ‘They have come down, they lie
still, the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.’
22 “Assyria is there, and all her company, their graves round about her,
all of them slain, fallen by the sword; 23whose graves are set in the
uttermost parts of the Pit, and her company is round about her grave; all of
them slain, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living.
24 “E'lam is there, and all her multitude about her grave; all of them
slain, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised into the nether
world, who spread terror in the land of the living, and they bear their shame
with those who go down to the Pit. 25They have made her a bed among the
slain with all her multitude, their graves round about her, all of them
uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for terror of them was spread in the land
of the living, and they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit;
they are placed among the slain.
26 “Me'shech and Tu'bal are there, and all their multitude, their graves
round about them, all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; for they
spread terror in the land of the living. 27And they do not lie with the fallen
mighty men of old q who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war,
whose swords were laid under their heads, and whose shields r are upon
their bones; for the terror of the mighty men was in the land of the living.
28So you shall be broken and lie among the uncircumcised, with those who
are slain by the sword.

29 “E'dom is there, her kings and all her princes, who for all their might
are laid with those who are slain by the sword; they lie with the
uncircumcised, with those who go down to the Pit.
30 “The princes of the north are there, all of them, and all the Sidonians,
who have gone down in shame with the slain, for all the terror which they
caused by their might; they lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by
the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit.
31 “When Pharaoh sees them, he will comfort himself for all his
multitude, Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, says the Lord
GOD. 32For he s spread terror in the land of the living; therefore he shall be
laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword,
Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord GOD.”
The Watchman’s Duty
33 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, speak to your
people and say to them, If I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of
the land take a man from among them, and make him their watchman; 3and
if he sees the sword coming upon the land and blows the trumpet and warns
the people; 4then if any one who hears the sound of the trumpet does not
take warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be
upon his own head. 5He heard the sound of the trumpet, and did not take
warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But if he had taken warning, he
would have saved his life. 6But if the watchman sees the sword coming and
does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword
comes, and takes any one of them; that man is taken away in his iniquity,
but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.
7 “So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel;
whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning
from me. 8If I say to the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely die, and
you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked man
shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. 9But if you
warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way;
he shall die in his iniquity, but you will have saved your life.
10 “And you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, Thus have you said:
‘Our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we waste away because of
them; how then can we live?’ 11Say to them, As I live, says the Lord GOD,
I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from
his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will
you die, O house of Israel? 12And you, son of man, say to your people, The
righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him when he transgresses;
and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall by it when he
turns from his wickedness; and the righteous shall not be able to live by his
righteousness t when he sins. 13Though I say to the righteous that he shall
surely live, yet if he trusts in his righteousness and commits iniquity, none
of his righteous deeds shall be remembered; but in the iniquity that he has
committed he shall die. 14Again, though I say to the wicked, ‘You shall
surely die,’ yet if he turns from his sin and does what is lawful and right,
15if the wicked restores the pledge, gives back what he has taken by
robbery, and walks in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity; he shall

surely live, he shall not die. 16None of the sins that he has committed shall
be remembered against him; he has done what is lawful and right, he shall
surely live.
17 “Yet your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just’; when it is
their own way that is not just. 18When the righteous turns from his
righteousness, and commits iniquity, he shall die for it. 19And when the
wicked turns from his wickedness, and does what is lawful and right, he
shall live by it. 20Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of
Israel, I will judge each of you according to his ways.”
21 In the twelfth year of our exile, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of
the month, a man who had escaped from Jerusalem came to me and said,
“The city has fallen.” 22Now the hand of the LORD had been upon me the
evening before the fugitive came; and he had opened my mouth by the time
the man came to me in the morning; so my mouth was opened, and I was no
longer mute.
The Survivors in Judah
23 The word of the LORD came to me: 24“Son of man, the inhabitants of
these waste places in the land of Israel keep saying, ‘Abraham was only one
man, yet he got possession of the land; but we are many; the land is surely
given us to possess.’ 25Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD:
You eat flesh with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed
blood; shall you then possess the land? 26You resort to the sword, you
commit abominations and each of you defiles his neighbor’s wife; shall you
then possess the land? 27Say this to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: As I
live, surely those who are in the waste places shall fall by the sword; and
him that is in the open field I will give to the beasts to be devoured; and
those who are in strongholds and in caves shall die by pestilence. 28And I
will make the land a desolation and a waste; and her proud might shall
come to an end; and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that none
will pass through. 29Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have
made the land a desolation and a waste because of all their abominations
which they have committed.
30 “As for you, son of man, your people who talk together about you by
the walls and at the doors of the houses, say to one another, each to his
brother, ‘Come, and hear what the word is that comes forth from the LORD.’
31And they come to you as people come, and they sit before you as my
people, and they hear what you say but they will not do it; for with their lips
they show much love, but their heart is set on their gain. 32And behold, you
are to them like one who sings love songs u with a beautiful voice and plays
well on an instrument, for they hear what you say, but they will not do it.
33When this comes— and come it will! —then they will know that a prophet
has been among them.”

Israel’s False Shepherds
34 The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, prophesy against
the shepherds of Israel,* prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds,
Thus says the Lord GOD: Ho, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding
yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? 3You eat the fat, you
clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not
feed the sheep. 4The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not
healed, the crippled you have not bound up, the strayed you have not
brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness
you have ruled them. 5So they were scattered, because there was no
shepherd; and they became food for all the wild beasts. 6My sheep were
scattered, they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill; my
sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or
seek for them.
7 “Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8As I live, says
the Lord GOD, because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have
become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd; and
because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds
have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep; 9therefore, you shepherds,
hear the word of the LORD: 10Thus says the Lord GOD, Behold, I am
against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and put a
stop to their feeding the sheep; no longer shall the shepherds feed
themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be
food for them.
God, the True Shepherd
11 “For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my
sheep, and will seek them out. 12As a shepherd seeks out his flock when
some of his sheep v have been scattered abroad, so will I seek out my sheep;
and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a
day of clouds and thick darkness. 13And I will bring them out from the
peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their
own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the fountains,
and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14I will feed them with good
pasture, and upon the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there
they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on fat pasture they shall feed
on the mountains of Israel. 15I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and
I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD. 16I will seek the lost, and I
will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the crippled, and I will
strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will watch over; w I will
feed them in justice.
17 “As for you, my flock, thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I judge
between sheep and sheep, rams and he-goats. 18Is it not enough for you to
feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest
of your pasture; and to drink of clear water, that you must foul the rest with
your feet? 19And must my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet,
and drink what you have fouled with your feet?
20 “Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: Behold, I, I myself will
judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21Because you push with
side and shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns, till you have
scattered them abroad, 22I will save my flock, they shall no longer be a
prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.* 23And I will set up over
them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed
them and be their shepherd. 24And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my
servant David shall be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken.
25 “I will make with them a covenant of peace and banish wild beasts
from the land, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep
in the woods. 26And I will make them and the places round about my hill a
blessing; and I will send down the showers in their season; they shall be
showers of blessing. 27And the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and
the earth shall yield its increase, and they shall be secure in their land; and
they shall know that I am the LORD, when I break the bars of their yoke, and
deliver them from the hand of those who enslaved them. 28They shall no
more be a prey to the nations, nor shall the beasts of the land devour them;
they shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid. 29And I will
provide for them prosperous x plantations so that they shall no more be
consumed with hunger in the land, and no longer suffer the reproach of the
nations. 30And they shall know that I, the LORD their God, am with them,
and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, says the Lord GOD. 31And
you are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, y and I am your God, says the
Lord GOD.”
Prophecy against Mount Seir
against Mount Se'ir, and prophesy against it, 3and say to it, Thus says the
Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, Mount Se'ir, and I will stretch out my
hand against you, and I will make you a desolation and a waste. 4I will lay
your cities waste, and you shall become a desolation; and you shall know
that I am the LORD. 5Because you cherished perpetual enmity, and gave
over the people of Israel to the power of the sword at the time of their
calamity, at the time of their final punishment; 6therefore, as I live, says the
Lord GOD, I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you;
because you are guilty of blood, z therefore blood shall pursue you. 7I will
make Mount Se'ir a waste and a desolation; and I will cut off from it all
who come and go. 8And I will fill your mountains with the slain; on your
hills and in your valleys and in all your ravines those slain with the sword
shall fall. 9I will make you a perpetual desolation, and your cities shall not
be inhabited. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
10 “Because you said, ‘These two nations and these two countries shall
be mine, and we will take possession of them,’—although the LORD was
there— 11therefore, as I live, says the Lord GOD, I will deal with you
according to the anger and envy which you showed because of your hatred
against them; and I will make myself known among you, a when I judge
you. 12And you shall know that I, the LORD, have heard all the revilings
which you uttered against the mountains of Israel, saying, ‘They are laid
desolate, they are given us to devour.’ 13And you magnified yourselves
against me with your mouth, and multiplied your words against me; I heard
it. 14Thus says the Lord GOD: For the rejoicing of the whole earth I will
make you desolate. 15As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of
Israel, because it was desolate, so I will deal with you; you shall be
desolate, Mount Se'ir, and all E'dom, all of it. Then they will know that I am
the LORD.
Blessings on Israel
36 “And you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel, and say,
O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD. 2Thus says the Lord
GOD: Because the enemy said of you, ‘Aha!’ and, ‘The ancient heights
have become our possession,’ 3therefore prophesy, and say, Thus says the
Lord GOD: Because, yes, because they made you desolate, and crushed you
from all sides, so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations,
and you became the talk and evil gossip of the people; 4therefore, O
mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus says the Lord
GOD to the mountains and the hills, the ravines and the valleys, the
desolate wastes and the deserted cities, which have become a prey and
derision to the rest of the nations round about; 5therefore thus says the Lord
GOD: I speak in my hot jealousy against the rest of the nations, and against
all E'dom, who gave my land to themselves as a possession with
wholehearted joy and utter contempt, that they might possess b it and
plunder it. 6Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, and say to the
mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, Thus says the Lord GOD:
Behold, I speak in my jealous wrath, because you have suffered the
reproach of the nations; 7therefore thus says the Lord GOD: I swear that the
nations that are round about you shall themselves suffer reproach.
8 “But you, O mountains of Israel, shall shoot forth your branches, and
yield your fruit to my people Israel; for they will soon come home. 9For,
behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and
sown; 10and I will multiply men upon you, the whole house of Israel, all of
it; the cities shall be inhabited and the waste places rebuilt; 11and I will
multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and be fruitful;
and I will cause you to be inhabited as in your former times, and will do
more good to you than ever before. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
12Yes, I will let men walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall
possess you, and you shall be their inheritance, and you shall no longer
bereave them of children. 13Thus says the Lord GOD: Because men say to
you, ‘You devour men, and you bereave your nation of children,’
14therefore you shall no longer devour men and no longer bereave your
nation of children, says the Lord GOD; 15and I will not let you hear any
more the reproach of the nations, and you shall no longer bear the disgrace
of the peoples and no longer cause your nation to stumble, says the Lord
GOD.”
A New Heart and New Spirit
16 The word of the LORD came to me: 17“Son of man, when the house of
Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their ways and their doings;
their conduct before me was like the uncleanness of a woman in her
impurity. 18So I poured out my wrath upon them for the blood which they
had shed in the land, for the idols with which they had defiled it. 19I
scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the
countries; in accordance with their conduct and their deeds I judged them.
20But when they came to the nations, wherever they came, they profaned
my holy name, in that men said of them, ‘These are the people of the LORD,
and yet they had to go out of his land.’ 21But I had concern for my holy
name, which the house of Israel caused to be profaned among the nations to
which they came.
22 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is
not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake
of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you
came. 23And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been
profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them;
and the nations will know that I am the LORD, says the Lord GOD, when
through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. 24For I will take you
from the nations, and gather you from all the countries, and bring you into
your own land. 25I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be
clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse
you. 26A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you;
and I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of
flesh. 27And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my
statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances. 28You shall dwell in the
land which I gave to your fathers; and you shall be my people, and I will be
your God. 29And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses; and I will
summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you. 30I
will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that
you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations.
31Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not
good; and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your
abominable deeds. 32It is not for your sake that I will act, says the Lord
GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways,
O house of Israel.
33 “Thus says the Lord GOD: On the day that I cleanse you from all your
iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall
be rebuilt. 34And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being
the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by. 35And they will
say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and
the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now inhabited and fortified.’
36Then the nations that are left round about you shall know that I, the LORD,
have rebuilt the ruined places, and replanted that which was desolate; I, the
LORD, have spoken, and I will do it.
37 “Thus says the Lord GOD: This also I will let the house of Israel ask
me to do for them: to increase their men like a flock. 38Like the flock for
sacrifices, c like the flock at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts, so shall
the waste cities be filled with flocks of men. Then they will know that I am
the LORD.”
The Valley of Dry Bones
37 The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the
Spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley; d it was full
of bones.* 2And he led me round among them; and behold, there were very
many upon the valley; d and behold, they were very dry. 3And he said to
me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord GOD,
you know.” 4Again he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to
them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. 5Thus says the Lord GOD to
these bones: Behold, I will cause breath e to enter you, and you shall live.
6And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you,
and cover you with skin, and put breath e in you, and you shall live; and you
shall know that I am the LORD.”
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a
noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
8And as I looked, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon
them, and skin had covered them; but there was no spirit in them. 9Then he
said to me, “Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man, and say to the
spirit, f Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O spirit, f and
breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” 10So I prophesied as he
commanded me, and the spirit came into them, and they lived, and stood
upon their feet, an exceedingly great host.
11 Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of
Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we
are clean cut off.’ 12Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the
Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves, and raise you from your
graves, O my people; and I will bring you home into the land of Israel.
13And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and
raise you from your graves, O my people. 14And I will put my Spirit within
you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land; then you
shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken, and I have done it, says the
LORD.”
The Two Sticks
15 The word of the LORD came to me: 16“Son of man, take a stick and
write on it, ‘For Judah, and the children of Israel associated with him’; then
take another stick and write upon it, ‘For Joseph (the stick of E'phraim) and
all the house of Israel associated with him’; 17and join them together into
one stick, that they may become one in your hand. 18And when your people
say to you, ‘Will you not show us what you mean by these?’ 19say to them,
Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am about to take the stick of Joseph
(which is in the hand of E'phraim) and the tribes of Israel associated with
him; and I will join g with it the stick of Judah, and make them one stick,
that they may be one in my hand. 20When the sticks on which you write are
in your hand before their eyes, 21then say to them, Thus says the Lord
GOD: Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from the nations among which
they have gone, and will gather them from all sides, and bring them to their
own land; 22and I will make them one nation in the land, upon the
mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all; and they shall
be no longer two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms. 23They
shall not defile themselves any more with their idols and their detestable
things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will save them from all the
backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; and they
shall be my people, and I will be their God.
24 “My servant David shall be king over them; and they shall all have
one shepherd. They shall follow my ordinances and be careful to observe
my statutes. 25They shall dwell in the land where your fathers dwelt that I
gave to my servant Jacob; they and their children and their children’s
children shall dwell there for ever; and David my servant shall be their
prince for ever. 26I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an
everlasting covenant with them; and I will bless h them and multiply them,
and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. 27My dwelling
place shall be with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my
people. 28Then the nations will know that I the LORD sanctify Israel, when
my sanctuary is in the midst of them for evermore.”
Prophecy against Gog
38 * The word of the LORD came to me: 2“Son of man, set your face
toward Gog, of the land of Ma'gog, the chief prince of Me'shech and Tu'bal,
and prophesy against him 3and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am
against you, O Gog, chief prince of Me'shech and Tu'bal; 4and I will turn
you about, and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you forth, and all
your army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed in full armor, a great
company, all of them with buckler and shield, wielding swords; 5Persia,
Cush, and Put are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; 6Gomer
and all his hordes; Beth''-togar'mah from the uttermost parts of the north
with all his hordes—many peoples are with you.
7 “Be ready and keep ready, you and all the hosts that are assembled
about you, and be a guard for them. 8After many days you will be mustered;
in the latter years you will go against the land that is restored from war, the
land where people were gathered from many nations upon the mountains of
Israel, which had been a continual waste; its people were brought out from
the nations and now dwell securely, all of them. 9You will advance, coming
on like a storm, you will be like a cloud covering the land, you and all your
hordes, and many peoples with you.
10 “Thus says the Lord GOD: On that day thoughts will come into your
mind, and you will devise an evil scheme 11and say, ‘I will go up against the
land of unwalled villages; I will fall upon the quiet people who dwell
securely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having no bars or gates’;
12to seize spoil and carry off plunder; to assail the waste places which are
now inhabited, and the people who were gathered from the nations, who
have gotten cattle and goods, who dwell at the center of the earth. 13Sheba
and De'dan and the merchants of Tar'shish and all its villages will say to
you, ‘Have you come to seize spoil? Have you assembled your hosts to
carry off plunder, to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and
goods, to seize great spoil?’
14 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy, and say to Gog, Thus says the Lord
GOD: On that day when my people Israel are dwelling securely, you will
bestir yourself i 15and come from your place out of the uttermost parts of the
north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great
host, a mighty army; 16you will come up against my people Israel, like a
cloud covering the land. In the latter days I will bring you against my land,
that the nations may know me, when through you, O Gog, I vindicate my
holiness before their eyes.
17 “Thus says the Lord GOD: Are you he of whom I spoke in former
days by my servants the prophets of Israel, who in those days prophesied
for years that I would bring you against them? 18But on that day, when Gog
shall come against the land of Israel, says the Lord GOD, my wrath will be
roused. 19For in my jealousy and in my blazing wrath I declare, On that day
there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; 20the fish of the sea, and
the birds of the air, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that
creep on the ground, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth,
shall quake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and
the cliffs shall fall, and every wall shall tumble to the ground. 21I will
summon every kind of terror j against Gog, k says the Lord GOD; every
man’s sword will be against his brother. 22With pestilence and bloodshed I
will enter into judgment with him; and I will rain upon him and his hordes
and the many peoples that are with him, torrential rains and hailstones, fire
and brimstone. 23So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make
myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am
the LORD.
The Fall of Gog
39 “And you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus says the
Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Me'shech and
Tu'bal; 2and I will turn you about and drive you forward, and bring you up
from the uttermost parts of the north, and lead you against the mountains of
Israel; 3then I will strike your bow from your left hand, and will make your
arrows drop out of your right hand. 4You shall fall upon the mountains of
Israel, you and all your hordes and the peoples that are with you; I will give
you to birds of prey of every sort and to the wild beasts to be devoured.
5You shall fall in the open field; for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD. 6I
will send fire on Magog and on those who dwell securely in the islands; and
they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 “And my holy name I will make known in the midst of my people
Israel; and I will not let my holy name be profaned any more; and the
nations shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. 8Behold, it is
coming and it will be brought about, says the Lord GOD. That is the day of
which I have spoken.
9 “Then those who dwell in the cities of Israel will go forth and make
fires of the weapons and burn them, shields and bucklers, bows and arrows,
handpikes and spears, and they will make fires of them for seven years; 10so
that they will not need to take wood out of the field or cut down any out of
the forests, for they will make their fires of the weapons; they will despoil
those who despoiled them, and plunder those who plundered them, says the
Lord GOD.
11 “On that day I will give to Gog a place for burial in Israel, the Valley
of the Travelers l east of the sea; it will block the travelers, for there Gog
and all his multitude will be buried; it will be called the Valley of Ha'mon-
gog. m 12For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them, in order
to cleanse the land. 13All the people of the land will bury them; and it will
redound to their honor on the day that I show my glory, says the Lord GOD.
14They will set apart men to pass through the land continually and bury n
those remaining upon the face of the land, so as to cleanse it; at the end of
seven months they will make their search. 15And when these pass through
the land and any one sees a man’s bone, then he shall set up a sign by it, till
the buriers have buried it in the Valley of Ha'mon-gog. 16(A city Hamo'nah o
is there also.) Thus shall they cleanse the land.
17 “As for you, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD: Speak to the birds
of every sort and to all beasts of the field, ‘Assemble and come, gather from
all sides to the sacrificial feast which I am preparing for you, a great
sacrificial feast upon the mountains of Israel, and you shall eat flesh and
drink blood. 18You shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of
the princes of the earth—of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bulls, all of
them fatlings of Bashan. 19And you shall eat fat till you are filled, and drink
blood till you are drunk, at the sacrificial feast which I am preparing for
you. 20And you shall be filled at my table with horses and riders, with
mighty men and all kinds of warriors,’ says the Lord GOD.
Israel to be Restored
21 “And I will set my glory among the nations; and all the nations shall
see my judgment which I have executed, and my hand which I have laid on
them. 22The house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God, from
that day forward. 23And the nations shall know that the house of Israel went
into captivity for their iniquity, because they dealt so treacherously with me
that I hid my face from them and gave them into the hand of their
adversaries, and they all fell by the sword. 24I dealt with them according to
their uncleanness and their transgressions, and hid my face from them.
25 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Now I will restore the fortunes of
Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous
for my holy name. 26They shall forget their shame, and all the treachery
they have practiced against me, when they dwell securely in their land with
none to make them afraid, 27when I have brought them back from the
peoples and gathered them from their enemies’ lands, and through them
have vindicated my holiness in the sight of many nations. 28Then they shall
know that I am the LORD their God because I sent them into exile among
the nations, and then gathered them into their own land. I will leave none of
them remaining among the nations any more; 29and I will not hide my face
any more from them, when I pour out my Spirit upon the house of Israel,
says the Lord GOD.”
The Vision of Measuring the Temple
40 * In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on
the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was
conquered, on that very day, the hand of the LORD was upon me, 2and
brought me in the visions of God into the land of Israel, and set me down
upon a very high mountain, on which was a structure like a city opposite
me. p 3When he brought me there, behold, there was a man, whose
appearance was like bronze, with a line of flax and a measuring reed in his
hand; and he was standing in the gateway. 4And the man said to me, “Son
of man, look with your eyes, and hear with your ears, and set your mind
upon all that I shall show you, for you were brought here in order that I
might show it to you; declare all that you see to the house of Israel.”
5 And behold, there was a wall all around the outside of the temple area,
and the length of the measuring reed in the man’s hand was six long cubits,
each being a cubit and a handbreadth in length; so he measured the
thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed. 6Then he went into
the gateway facing east, going up its steps, and measured the threshold of
the gate, one reed deep; q 7and the side rooms, one reed long, and one reed
broad; and the space between the side rooms, five cubits; and the threshold
of the gate by the vestibule of the gate at the inner end, one reed. 8Then he
measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits; 9and its jambs, two
cubits; and the vestibule of the gate was at the inner end. 10And there were
three side rooms on either side of the east gate; the three were of the same
size; and the jambs on either side were of the same size. 11Then he
measured the breadth of the opening of the gateway, ten cubits; and the
breadth of the gateway, thirteen cubits. 12There was a barrier before the side
rooms, one cubit on either side; and the side rooms were six cubits on either
side. 13Then he measured the gate from the back r of the one side room to
the back r of the other, a breadth of five and twenty cubits, from door to
door. 14He measured also the vestibule, twenty cubits; and round about the
vestibule of the gateway was the court. s 15From the front of the gate at the
entrance to the end of the inner vestibule of the gate was fifty cubits. 16And
the gateway had windows round about, narrowing inwards into their jambs
in the side rooms, and likewise the vestibule had windows round about
inside, and on the jambs were palm trees.
17 Then he brought me into the outer court; and behold, there were
chambers and a pavement, round about the court; thirty chambers fronted
on the pavement. 18And the pavement ran along the side of the gates,
corresponding to the length of the gates; this was the lower pavement.
19Then he measured the distance from the inner front of t the lower gate to
the outer front of the inner court, a hundred cubits.

Then he went before me to the north, 20and behold, there was a gate u
which faced toward the north, belonging to the outer court. He measured its
length and its breadth. 21Its side rooms, three on either side, and its jambs
and its vestibule were of the same size as those of the first gate; its length
was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 22And its windows, its
vestibule, and its palm trees were of the same size as those of the gate
which faced toward the east; and seven steps led up to it; and its vestibule
was on the inside. 23And opposite the gate on the north, as on the east, was
a gate to the inner court; and he measured from gate to gate, a hundred
cubits.
24 And he led me toward the south, and behold, there was a gate on the
south; and he measured its jambs and its vestibule; they had the same size
as the others. 25And there were windows round about in it and in its
vestibule, like the windows of the others; its length was fifty cubits, and its
breadth twenty-five cubits. 26And there were seven steps leading up to it,
and its vestibule was on the inside; and it had palm trees on its jambs, one
on either side. 27And there was a gate on the south of the inner court; and he
measured from gate to gate toward the south, a hundred cubits.
28 Then he brought me to the inner court by the south gate, and he
measured the south gate; it was of the same size as the others; 29Its side
rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others; and
there were windows round about in it and in its vestibule; its length was
fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 30And there were vestibules
round about, twenty-five cubits long and five cubits broad. 31Its vestibule
faced the outer court, and palm trees were on its jambs, and its stairway had
eight steps.
32 Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side, and he
measured the gate; it was of the same size as the others. 33Its side rooms, its
jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others; and there were
windows round about in it and in its vestibule; its length was fifty cubits,
and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 34Its vestibule faced the outer court, and
it had palm trees on its jambs, one on either side; and its stairway had eight
steps.
35 Then he brought me to the north gate, and he measured it; it had the
same size as the others. 36Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of
the same size as the others; v and it had windows round about; its length
was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 37Its vestibule w faced
the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, one on either side; and its
stairway had eight steps.
38 There was a chamber with its door in the vestibule of the gate, x where
the burnt offering was to be washed. 39And in the vestibule of the gate were
two tables on either side, on which the burnt offering and the sin offering
and the guilt offering were to be slaughtered. 40And on the outside of the
vestibule y at the entrance of the north gate were two tables; and on the
other side of the vestibule of the gate were two tables. 41Four tables were on
the inside, and four tables on the outside of the side of the gate, eight tables,
on which the sacrifices were to be slaughtered. 42And there were also four
tables of hewn stone for the burnt offering, a cubit and a half long, and a
cubit and a half broad, and one cubit high, on which the instruments were to
be laid with which the burnt offerings and the sacrifices were slaughtered.
43And hooks, a handbreadth long, were fastened round about within. And
on the tables the flesh of the offering was to be laid.

44 Then he brought me from without into the inner court, and behold,
there were two chambers z in the inner court, one a at the side of the north
gate facing south, the other at the side of the south b gate facing north.
45And he said to me, This chamber which faces south is for the priests who
have charge of the temple, 46and the chamber which faces north is for the
priests who have charge of the altar; these are the sons of Za'dok, who alone
among the sons of Levi may come near to the LORD to minister to him.
47And he measured the court, a hundred cubits long, and a hundred cubits
broad, foursquare; and the altar was in front of the temple.

48 Then he brought me to the vestibule of the temple and measured the
jambs of the vestibule, five cubits on either side; and the breadth of the gate
was fourteen cubits; and the sidewalls of the gate were three cubits c on
either side. 49The length of the vestibule was twenty cubits, and the breadth
twelve d cubits; and ten steps led up e to it; and there were pillars beside the
jambs on either side.
41 Then he brought me to the nave, and measured the jambs; on each
side six cubits was the breadth of the jambs. f 2And the breadth of the
entrance was ten cubits; and the sidewalls of the entrance were five cubits
on either side; and he measured the length of the nave forty cubits, and its
breadth, twenty cubits. 3Then he went into the inner room and measured the
jambs of the entrance, two cubits; and the breadth of the entrance, six
cubits; and the sidewalls g of the entrance, seven cubits. 4And he measured
the length of the room, twenty cubits, and its breadth, twenty cubits, beyond
the nave. And he said to me, “This is the most holy place.”
5 Then he measured the wall of the temple, six cubits thick; and the
breadth of the side chambers, four cubits, round about the temple. 6And the
side chambers were in three stories, one over another, thirty in each story.
There were offsets h all around the wall of the temple to serve as supports
for the side chambers, so that they should not be supported by the wall of
the temple. 7And the side chambers became broader as they rose i from
story to story, corresponding to the enlargement of the offset j from story to
story round about the temple; on the side of the temple a stairway led
upward, and thus one went up from the lowest story to the top story through
the middle story. 8I saw also that the temple had a raised platform round
about; the foundations of the side chambers measured a full reed of six long
cubits. 9The thickness of the outer wall of the side chambers was five
cubits; and the part of the platform which was left free was five cubits. k
Between the platform l of the temple and the 10chambers of the court was a
breadth of twenty cubits round about the temple on every side. 11And the
doors of the side chambers opened on the part of the platform that was left
free, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south; and the
breadth of the part that was left free was five cubits round about.
12 The building that was facing the temple yard on the west side was
seventy cubits broad; and the wall of the building was five cubits thick
round about, and its length ninety cubits.
13 Then he measured the temple, a hundred cubits long; and the yard and
the building with its walls, a hundred cubits long; 14also the breadth of the
east front of the temple and the yard, a hundred cubits.
15 Then he measured the length of the building facing the yard which
was at the west and its walls m on either side, a hundred cubits.
The nave of the temple and the inner room and the outer n vestibule
16were paneled o and round about all three had windows with recessed p
frames. Over against the threshold the temple was paneled with wood round
about, from the floor up to the windows (now the windows were covered),
17to the space above the door, even to the inner room, and on the outside.
And on all the walls round about in the inner room and the nave were
carved likenesses q 18of cherubim and palm trees, a palm tree between
cherub and cherub. Every cherub had two faces: 19the face of a man toward
the palm tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm
tree on the other side. They were carved on the whole temple round about;
20from the floor to above the door cherubim and palm trees were carved on
the wall. r
21 The doorposts of the nave were squared; and in front of the holy place
was something resembling 22an altar of wood, three cubits high, two cubits
long, and two cubits broad; s its corners, its base, t and its walls were of
wood. He said to me, “This is the table which is before the LORD.” 23The
nave and the holy place had each a double door. 24The doors had two leaves
apiece, two swinging leaves for each door. 25And on the doors of the nave
were carved cherubim and palm trees, such as were carved on the walls;
and there was a canopy of wood in front of the vestibule outside. 26And
there were recessed windows and palm trees on either side, on the sidewalls
of the vestibule. u
42 Then he led me out into the inner v court, toward the north, and he
brought me to the chambers which were opposite the temple yard and
opposite the building on the north. 2The length of the building which was
on the north side w was x a hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty cubits.
3Adjoining the twenty cubits which belonged to the inner court, and facing
the pavement which belonged to the outer court, was gallery y against
gallery y in three stories. 4And before the chambers was a passage inward,
ten cubits wide and a hundred cubits long, z and their doors were on the
north. 5Now the upper chambers were narrower, for the galleries y took
more away from them than from the lower and middle chambers in the
building. 6For they were in three stories, and they had no pillars like the
pillars of the outer a court; hence the upper chambers were set back from the
ground more than the lower and the middle ones. 7And there was a wall
outside parallel to the chambers, toward the outer court, opposite the
chambers, fifty cubits long. 8For the chambers on the outer court were fifty
cubits long, while those opposite the temple were a hundred cubits long.
9Below these chambers was an entrance on the east side, as one enters them
from the outer court, 10where the outside wall begins. b

On the south c also, opposite the yard and opposite the building, there
were chambers 11with a passage in front of them; they were similar to the
chambers on the north, of the same length and breadth, with the same exits d
and arrangements and doors. 12And below the south chambers was an
entrance on the east side, where one enters the passage, and opposite them
was a dividing wall. e
13 Then he said to me, “The north chambers and the south chambers
opposite the yard are the holy chambers, where the priests who approach
the LORD shall eat the most holy offerings; there they shall put the most
holy offerings—the cereal offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering,
for the place is holy. 14When the priests enter the holy place, they shall not
go out of it into the outer court without laying there the garments in which
they minister, for these are holy; they shall put on other garments before
they go near to that which is for the people.”
15 Now when he had finished measuring the interior of the temple area,
he led me out by the gate which faced east, and measured the temple area
round about. 16He measured the east side with the measuring reed, five
hundred cubits by the measuring reed. 17Then he turned and measured f the
north side, five hundred cubits by the measuring reed. 18Then he turned and
measured f the south side, five hundred cubits by the measuring reed.
19Then he turned to the west side and measured, five hundred cubits by the
measuring reed. 20He measured it on the four sides. It had a wall around it,
five hundred cubits long and five hundred cubits broad, to make a
separation between the holy and the common.
The Glory of the Lord Entering the Temple
43 Afterward he brought me to the gate, the gate facing east. 2And
behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the east; and the sound of
his coming was like the sound of many waters; and the earth shone with his
glory. 3And g the vision I saw was like the vision which I had seen when he
came to destroy the city, and h like the vision which I had seen by the river
Che'bar; and I fell upon my face. 4As the glory of the LORD entered the
temple by the gate facing east, 5the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me into
the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
6 While the man was standing beside me, I heard one speaking to me out
of the temple; 7and he said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of my
throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst
of the sons of Israel for ever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile
my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their harlotry, and by the
dead bodies i of their kings, 8by setting their threshold by my threshold and
their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and
them. They have defiled my holy name by their abominations which they
have committed, so I have consumed them in my anger. 9Now let them put
away their idolatry and the dead bodies i of their kings far from me, and I
will dwell in their midst for ever.
10 “And you, son of man, describe to the house of Israel the temple and
its appearance and plan, j that they may be ashamed of their iniquities.
11And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, portray k the temple,
its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, and its whole form; and make
known to them all its ordinances and all its laws; and write it down in their
sight, so that they may observe and perform all its laws l and all its
ordinances. 12This is the law of the temple: the whole territory round about
upon the top of the mountain shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of
the temple.
The Altar
13 “These are the dimensions of the altar by cubits (the cubit being a
cubit and a handbreadth): its base shall be one cubit high, m and one cubit
broad, with a rim of one span around its edge. And this shall be the height x
of the altar: 14from the base on the ground to the lower ledge, two cubits,
with a breadth of one cubit; and from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge,
four cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; 15and the altar hearth, four cubits;
and from the altar hearth projecting upward, four horns, one cubit high. n
16The altar hearth shall be square, twelve cubits long by twelve broad.
17The ledge also shall be square, fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad,
with a rim around it half a cubit broad, and its base one cubit round about.
The steps of the altar shall face east.”
18 And he said to me, “Son of man, thus says the Lord GOD: These are
the ordinances for the altar: On the day when it is erected for offering burnt
offerings upon it and for throwing blood against it, 19you shall give to the
Levitical priests of the family of Za'dok, who draw near to me to minister to
me, says the Lord GOD, a bull for a sin offering. 20And you shall take some
of its blood, and put it on the four horns of the altar, and on the four corners
of the ledge, and upon the rim round about; thus you shall cleanse the altar
and make atonement for it. 21You shall also take the bull of the sin offering,
and it shall be burnt in the appointed place belonging to the temple, outside
the sacred area. 22And on the second day you shall offer a he-goat without
blemish for a sin offering; and the altar shall be cleansed, as it was cleansed
with the bull. 23When you have finished cleansing it, you shall offer a bull
without blemish and a ram from the flock without blemish. 24You shall
present them before the LORD, and the priests shall sprinkle salt upon them
and offer them up as a burnt offering to the LORD. 25For seven days you
shall provide daily a goat for a sin offering; also a bull and a ram from the
flock, without blemish, shall be provided. 26Seven days shall they make
atonement for the altar and purify it, and so consecrate it. 27And when they
have completed these days, then from the eighth day onward the priests
shall offer upon the altar your burnt offerings and your peace offerings; and
I will accept you, says the Lord GOD.”
The Closed Gate
44 Then he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, which
faces east; and it was shut. 2And he o said to me, “This gate shall remain
shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it; for the LORD, the
God of Israel, has entered by it; therefore it shall remain shut. 3Only the
prince may sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by way of
the vestibule of the gate, and shall go out by the same way.”
Those Admitted to the Temple
4 Then he brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple;
and I looked, and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple of the
LORD; and I fell upon my face. 5And the LORD said to me, “Son of man,
mark well, see with your eyes, and hear with your ears all that I shall tell
you concerning all the ordinances of the temple of the LORD and all its laws;
and mark well those who may be admitted to p the temple and all those who
are to be excluded from the sanctuary. 6And say to the rebellious house, q to
the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: O house of Israel, let there be
an end to all your abominations, 7in admitting foreigners, uncircumcised in
heart and flesh, to be in my sanctuary, profaning it, r when you offer to me
my food, the fat and the blood. You s have broken my covenant, in addition
to all your abominations. 8And you have not kept charge of my holy things;
but you have set foreigners to keep my charge in my sanctuary.
9 “Therefore t thus says the Lord GOD: No foreigner, uncircumcised in
heart and flesh, of all the foreigners who are among the people of Israel,
shall enter my sanctuary. 10But the Levites who went far from me, going
astray from me after their idols when Israel went astray, shall bear their
punishment. 11They shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having oversight at
the gates of the temple, and serving in the temple; they shall slay the burnt
offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall attend on the people,
to serve them. 12Because they ministered to them before their idols and
became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, therefore I have
sworn concerning them, says the Lord GOD, that they shall bear their
punishment. 13They shall not come near to me, to serve me as priest, nor
come near any of my sacred things and the things that are most sacred; but
they shall bear their shame, because of the abominations which they have
committed. 14Yet I will appoint them to keep charge of the temple, to do all
its service and all that is to be done in it.
The Levitical Priests
15 “But the Levitical priests, the sons of Za'dok, who kept the charge of
my sanctuary when the people of Israel went astray from me, shall come
near to me to minister to me; and they shall attend on me to offer me the fat
and the blood, says the Lord GOD; 16they shall enter my sanctuary, and
they shall approach my table, to minister to me, and they shall keep my
charge. 17When they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall wear linen
garments; they shall have nothing of wool on them, while they minister at
the gates of the inner court, and within. 18They shall have linen turbans
upon their heads, and linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not clothe
themselves with anything that causes sweat. 19And when they go out into
the outer court to the people, they shall put off the garments in which they
have been ministering, and lay them in the holy chambers; and they shall
put on other garments, lest they communicate holiness to the people with
their garments. 20They shall not shave their heads or let their locks grow
long; they shall only trim the hair of their heads. 21No priest shall drink
wine, when he enters the inner court. 22They shall not marry a widow, or a
divorced woman, but only a virgin of the stock of the house of Israel, or a
widow who is the widow of a priest. 23They shall teach my people the
difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to
distinguish between the unclean and the clean. 24In a controversy they shall
act as judges, and they shall judge it according to my judgments. They shall
keep my laws and my statutes in all my appointed feasts, and they shall
keep my sabbaths holy. 25They shall not defile themselves by going near to
a dead person; however, for father or mother, for son or daughter, for
brother or unmarried sister they may defile themselves. 26After he is
defiled, u he shall count for himself seven days, and then he shall be clean. v
27And on the day that he goes into the holy place, into the inner court, to
minister in the holy place, he shall offer his sin offering, says the Lord
GOD.
28 “They shall have no w inheritance; I am their inheritance: and you
shall give them no possession in Israel; I am their possession. 29They shall
eat the cereal offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering; and every
devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30And the first of all the first fruits of
all kinds, and every offering of all kinds from all your offerings, shall
belong to the priests; you shall also give to the priests the first of your
coarse meal, that a blessing may rest on your house. 31The priests shall not
eat of anything, whether bird or beast, that has died of itself or is torn.
The Holy District
45 “When you allot the land as a possession, you shall set apart for the
LORD a portion of the land as a holy district, twenty-five thousand cubits
long and twenty x thousand cubits broad; it shall be holy throughout its
whole extent. 2Of this a square plot of five hundred by five hundred cubits
shall be for the sanctuary, with fifty cubits for an open space around it.
3And in the holy district you shall measure off a section twenty-five
thousand cubits long and ten thousand broad, in which shall be the
sanctuary, the most holy place. 4It shall be the holy portion of the land; it
shall be for the priests, who minister in the sanctuary and approach the
LORD to minister to him; and it shall be a place for their houses and a holy
place for the sanctuary. 5Another section, twenty-five thousand cubits long
and ten thousand cubits broad, shall be for the Levites who minister at the
temple, as their possession for cities to live in. y
6 “Alongside the portion set apart as the holy district you shall assign for
the possession of the city an area five thousand cubits broad, and twenty-
five thousand cubits long; it shall belong to the whole house of Israel.
7 “And to the prince shall belong the land on both sides of the holy
district and the property of the city, alongside the holy district and the
property of the city, on the west and on the east, corresponding in length to
one of the tribal portions, and extending from the western to the eastern
boundary of the land. 8It is to be his property in Israel. And my princes shall
no more oppress my people; but they shall let the house of Israel have the
land according to their tribes.
9 “Thus says the Lord GOD: Enough, O princes of Israel! Put away
violence and oppression, and execute justice and righteousness; cease your
evictions of my people, says the Lord GOD.
Just Weights and Measures
10 “You shall have just balances, a just ephah, and a just bath. 11The
ephah and the bath shall be of the same measure, the bath containing one
tenth of a homer, and the ephah one tenth of a homer; the homer shall be the
standard measure. 12The shekel shall be twenty gerahs; five shekels shall be
five shekels, and ten shekels shall be ten shekels, and your mina shall be
fifty shekels. z
Offerings
13 “This is the offering which you shall make: one sixth of an ephah
from each homer of wheat, and one sixth of an ephah from each homer of
barley, 14and as the fixed portion of oil, a one tenth of a bath from each cor
(the cor, b like the homer, contains ten baths); 15and one sheep from every
flock of two hundred, from the families c of Israel. This is the offering for
cereal offerings, burnt offerings, and peace offerings, to make atonement for
them, says the Lord GOD. 16All the people of the land shall give d this
offering to the prince in Israel. 17It shall be the prince’s duty to furnish the
burnt offerings, cereal offerings, and drink offerings, at the feasts, the new
moons, and the sabbaths, all the appointed feasts of the house of Israel: he
shall provide the sin offerings, cereal offerings, burnt offerings, and peace
offerings, to make atonement for the house of Israel.
Feasts
18 “Thus says the Lord GOD: In the first month, on the first day of the
month, you shall take a young bull without blemish, and cleanse the
sanctuary. 19The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering and
put it on the doorposts of the temple, the four corners of the ledge of the
altar, and the posts of the gate of the inner court. 20You shall do the same on
the seventh day of the month for any one who has sinned through error or
ignorance; so you shall make atonement for the temple.
21 “In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, you shall
celebrate the feast of the passover, and for seven days unleavened bread
shall be eaten. 22On that day the prince shall provide for himself and all the
people of the land a young bull for a sin offering. 23And on the seven days
of the festival he shall provide as a burnt offering to the LORD seven young
bulls and seven rams without blemish, on each of the seven days; and a he-
goat daily for a sin offering. 24And he shall provide as a cereal offering an
ephah for each bull, an ephah for each ram, and a hin of oil to each ephah.
25In the seventh month, on the fifteenth day of the month and for the seven
days of the feast, he shall make the same provision for sin offerings, burnt
offerings, and cereal offerings, and for the oil.
Other Ordinances of the Temple
46 “Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that faces east
shall be shut on the six working days; but on the sabbath day it shall be
opened and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened. 2The prince
shall enter by the vestibule of the gate from without, and shall take his stand
by the post of the gate. The priests shall offer his burnt offering and his
peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate. Then he
shall go out, but the gate shall not be shut until evening. 3The people of the
land shall worship at the entrance of that gate before the LORD on the
sabbaths and on the new moons. 4The burnt offering that the prince offers to
the LORD on the sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish and a ram
without blemish; 5and the cereal offering with the ram shall be an ephah,
and the cereal offering with the lambs shall be as much as he is able,
together with a hin of oil to each ephah. 6On the day of the new moon he
shall offer a young bull without blemish, and six lambs and a ram, which
shall be without blemish; 7as a cereal offering he shall provide an ephah
with the bull and an ephah with the ram, and with the lambs as much as he
is able, together with a hin of oil to each ephah. 8When the prince enters, he
shall go in by the vestibule of the gate, and he shall go out by the same way.
9 “When the people of the land come before the LORD at the appointed
feasts, he who enters by the north gate to worship shall go out by the south
gate; and he who enters by the south gate shall go out by the north gate: no
one shall return by way of the gate by which he entered, but each shall go
out straight ahead. 10When they go in, the prince shall go in with them; and
when they go out, he shall go out.
11 “At the feasts and the appointed seasons the cereal offering with a
young bull shall be an ephah, and with a ram an ephah, and with the lambs
as much as one is able to give, together with a hin of oil to an ephah.
12When the prince provides a freewill offering, either a burnt offering or
peace offerings as a freewill offering to the LORD, the gate facing east shall
be opened for him; and he shall offer his burnt offering or his peace
offerings as he does on the sabbath day. Then he shall go out, and after he
has gone out the gate shall be shut.
13 “He shall provide a lamb a year old without blemish for a burnt
offering to the LORD daily; morning by morning he shall provide it. 14And
he shall provide a cereal offering with it morning by morning, one sixth of
an ephah, and one third of a hin of oil to moisten the flour, as a cereal
offering to the LORD; this is the ordinance for the continual burnt offering. e
15Thus the lamb and the meal offering and the oil shall be provided,
morning by morning, for a continual burnt offering.

16 “Thus says the Lord GOD: If the prince makes a gift to any of his
sons out of f his inheritance, it shall belong to his sons, it is their property by
inheritance. 17But if he makes a gift out of his inheritance to one of his
servants, it shall be his to the year of liberty; then it shall revert to the
prince; only his sons may keep a gift from his inheritance. 18The prince
shall not take any of the inheritance of the people, thrusting them out of
their property; he shall give his sons their inheritance out of his own
property, so that none of my people shall be dispossessed of his property.”
19 Then he brought me through the entrance, which was at the side of the
gate, to the north row of the holy chambers for the priests; and there I saw a
place at the extreme western end of them. 20And he said to me, “This is the
place where the priests shall boil the guilt offering and the sin offering, and
where they shall bake the cereal offering, in order not to bring them out into
the outer court and so communicate holiness to the people.”
21 Then he brought me forth to the outer court, and led me to the four
corners of the court; and in each corner of the court there was a court— 22in
the four corners of the court were small g courts, forty cubits long and thirty
broad; the four were of the same size. 23On the inside, around each of the
four courts was a row of masonry, with hearths made at the bottom of the
rows round about. 24Then he said to me, “These are the kitchens where
those who minister at the temple shall boil the sacrifices of the people.”
Water Flowing from the Temple
47 Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and behold,
water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east
(for the temple faced east); and the water was flowing down from below the
right side of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. 2Then he brought
me out by way of the north gate, and led me round on the outside to the
outer gate, that faces toward the east; h and the water was coming out on the
right side.
3 Going on eastward with a line in his hand, the man measured a
thousand cubits, and then led me through the water; and it was ankle-deep.
4Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water; and it was
knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water;

and it was up to the loins. 5Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river
that I could not pass through, for the water had risen; it was deep enough to
swim in, a river that could not be passed through. 6And he said to me, “Son
of man, have you seen this?”
Then he led me back along the bank of the river. 7As I went back, I saw
upon the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other.
8And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes
down into the Ar'abah; and when it enters the stagnant waters of the sea, i
the water will become fresh. 9And wherever the river j goes every living
creature which swarms will live, and there will be very many fish; for this
water goes there, that the waters of the sea k may become fresh; so
everything will live where the river goes. 10Fishermen will stand beside the
sea; from En-ge'di to En-eg'laim it will be a place for the spreading of nets;
its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. 11But its
swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt.
12And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of
trees for food. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will
bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the
sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”
New Boundaries of the Land
13 Thus says the Lord GOD: “These are the boundaries by which you
shall divide the land for inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel.
Joseph shall have two portions. 14And you shall divide it equally; I swore to
give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance.
15 “This shall be the boundary of the land: On the north side, from the
Great Sea by way of Heth'lon to the entrance of Ha'math, and on to Ze'dad, l
16Bero'thah, Sib'raim (which lies on the border between Damascus and
Ha'math), as far as Hazer-hat'ticon, which is on the border of Hau'ran. 17So

the boundary shall run from the sea to Ha'zar-e'non, which is on the
northern border of Damascus, with the border of Ha'math to the north. m
This shall be the north side.
18 “On the east side, the boundary shall run from Ha'zar-e'non n between
Hau'ran and Damascus; along the Jordan between Gilead and the land of
Israel; to the eastern sea and as far as Ta'mar. o This shall be the east side.
19 “On the south side, it shall run from Ta'mar as far as the waters of
Meribath'-ka'desh, thence along the Brook of Egypt to the Great Sea. This
shall be the south side.
20 “On the west side, the Great Sea shall be the boundary to a point
opposite the entrance of Ha'math. This shall be the west side.
21 “So you shall divide this land among you according to the tribes of
Israel. 22You shall allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the aliens
who reside among you and have begotten children among you. They shall
be to you as native-born sons of Israel; with you they shall be allotted an
inheritance among the tribes of Israel. 23In whatever tribe the alien resides,
there you shall assign him his inheritance, says the Lord GOD.
The Tribal Portions
48 “These are the names of the tribes: Beginning at the northern border,
from the sea by way p of Heth'lon to the entrance of Ha'math, as far as
Ha'zar-e'non (which is on the northern border of Damascus over against
Hamath), and q extending from the east side to the west, r Dan, one portion.
2Adjoining the territory of Dan, from the east side to the west, Asher, one
portion. 3Adjoining the territory of Asher, from the east side to the west,
Naph'tali, one portion. 4Adjoining the territory of Naph'tali, from the east
side to the west, Manas'seh, one portion. 5Adjoining the territory of
Manas'seh, from the east side to the west, E'phraim, one portion. 6Adjoining
the territory of E'phraim, from the east side to the west, Reuben, one
portion. 7Adjoining the territory of Reuben, from the east side to the west,
Judah, one portion.
8 “Adjoining the territory of Judah, from the east side to the west, shall
be the portion which you shall set apart, twenty-five thousand cubits in
breadth, and in length equal to one of the tribal portions, from the east side
to the west, with the sanctuary in the midst of it. 9The portion which you
shall set apart for the LORD shall be twenty-five thousand cubits in length,
and twenty s thousand in breadth. 10These shall be the allotments of the holy
portion: the priests shall have an allotment measuring twenty-five thousand
cubits on the northern side, ten thousand cubits in breadth on the western
side, ten thousand in breadth on the eastern side, and twenty-five thousand
in length on the southern side, with the sanctuary of the LORD in the midst
of it. 11This shall be for the consecrated priests, the sons t of Za'dok, who
kept my charge, who did not go astray when the people of Israel went
astray, as the Levites did. 12And it shall belong to them as a special portion
from the holy portion of the land, a most holy place, adjoining the territory
of the Levites. 13And alongside the territory of the priests, the Levites shall
have an allotment twenty-five thousand cubits in length and ten thousand in
breadth. The whole length shall be twenty-five thousand cubits and the
breadth twenty u thousand. 14They shall not sell or exchange any of it; they
shall not alienate this choice portion of the land, for it is holy to the LORD.
15 “The remainder, five thousand cubits in breadth and twenty-five
thousand in length, shall be for ordinary use for the city, for dwellings and
for open country. In the midst of it shall be the city; 16and these shall be its
dimensions: the north side four thousand five hundred cubits, the south side
four thousand five hundred, the east side four thousand five hundred, and
the west side four thousand five hundred. 17And the city shall have open
land: on the north two hundred and fifty cubits, on the south two hundred
and fifty, on the east two hundred and fifty, and on the west two hundred
and fifty. 18The remainder of the length alongside the holy portion shall be
ten thousand cubits to the east, and ten thousand to the west, and it shall be
alongside the holy portion. Its produce shall be food for the workers of the
city. 19And the workers of the city, from all the tribes of Israel, shall till it.
20The whole portion which you shall set apart shall be twenty-five thousand
cubits square, that is, the holy portion together with the property of the city.
21 “What remains on both sides of the holy portion and of the property of
the city shall belong to the prince. Extending from the twenty-five thousand
cubits of the holy portion to the east border, and westward from the twenty-
five thousand cubits to the west border, parallel to the tribal portions, it
shall belong to the prince. The holy portion with the sanctuary of the temple
in its midst, 22and the property of the Levites and the property of the city, v
shall be in the midst of that which belongs to the prince. The portion of the
prince shall lie between the territory of Judah and the territory of Benjamin.
23 “As for the rest of the tribes: from the east side to the west, Benjamin,
one portion. 24Adjoining the territory of Benjamin, from the east side to the
west, Simeon, one portion. 25Adjoining the territory of Simeon, from the
east side to the west, Is'sachar, one portion. 26Adjoining the territory of
Is'sachar, from the east side to the west, Zeb'ulun, one portion. 27Adjoining
the territory of Zeb'ulun, from the east side to the west, Gad, one portion.
28And adjoining the territory of Gad to the south, the boundary shall run
from Ta'mar to the waters of Meribath'-ka'desh, thence along the Brook of

Egypt to the Great Sea. 29This is the land which you shall allot as an
inheritance among the tribes of Israel, and these are their several portions,
says the Lord GOD.
30 “These shall be the exits of the city: On the north side, which is to be
four thousand five hundred cubits by measure, 31three gates, the gate of
Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi, the gates of the city being
named after the tribes of Israel. 32On the east side, which is to be four
thousand five hundred cubits, three gates, the gate of Joseph, the gate of
Benjamin, and the gate of Dan. 33On the south side, which is to be four
thousand five hundred cubits by measure, three gates, the gate of Simeon,
the gate of Is'sachar, and the gate of Zeb'ulun. 34On the west side, which is
to be four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates, w the gate of Gad, the
gate of Asher, and the gate of Naph'tali. 35The circumference of the city
shall be eighteen thousand cubits. And the name of the city henceforth shall
be, The LORD is there.”
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Daniel
Chapters
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THE BOOK OF DANIEL
Four Young Israelites at the Babylonian Court
1 *In the third year of the reign of Jehoi'akim king of Judah,

Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2And
the Lord gave Jehoi'akim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the
vessels of the house of God; and he brought them to the land of Shi'nar, to
the house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god.
3Then the king commanded Ash'penaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of
the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility, 4youths
without blemish, handsome and skilful in all wisdom, endowed with
knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to serve in the king’s
palace, and to teach them the letters and language of the Chalde'ans. 5The
king assigned them a daily portion of the rich food which the king ate, and
of the wine which he drank. They were to be educated for three years, and
at the end of that time they were to stand before the king. 6Among these
were Daniel, Hanani'ah, Mish'a-el, and Azari'ah of the tribe of Judah. 7And
the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he called Belteshaz'zar,
Hanani'ah he called Shad'rach, Mish'a-el he called Me'shach, and Azari'ah
he called Abed'nego.
8 But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself * with the king’s
rich food, or with the wine which he drank; therefore he asked the chief of
the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself. 9And God gave Daniel favor
and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs; 10and the chief of
the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I fear lest my lord the king, who appointed
your food and your drink, should see that you were in poorer condition than
the youths who are of your own age. So you would endanger my head with
the king.” 11Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs
had appointed over Daniel, Hanani'ah, Mish'a-el, and Azari'ah; 12“Test your
servants for ten days; let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink.
13Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat the
king’s rich food be observed by you, and according to what you see deal
with your servants.” 14So he listened to them in this matter, and tested them
for ten days. 15At the end of ten days it was seen that they were better in
appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king’s rich
food. 16So the steward took away their rich food and the wine they were to
drink, and gave them vegetables.
17 As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all
letters and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.
18At the end of the time, when the king had commanded that they should be
brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before

Nebuchadnez'zar. 19And the king spoke with them, and among them all
none was found like Daniel, Hanani'ah, Mish'a-el, and Azari'ah; therefore
they stood before the king. 20And in every matter of wisdom and
understanding concerning which the king inquired of them, he found them
ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his
kingdom. 21And Daniel continued until the first year of King Cyrus.
2 In the second year of the reign of Nebuchad- nez'zar, Nebuchadnezzar
had dreams; and his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him. 2Then the
king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the
Chalde'ans be summoned, to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and
stood before the king. 3And the king said to them, “I had a dream, and my
spirit is troubled to know the dream.” 4Then the Chalde'ans said to the king,
a “O king, live for ever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the
interpretation.” 5The king answered the Chalde'ans, “The word from me is

sure: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you
shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins. 6But if
you show the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts
and rewards and great honor. Therefore show me the dream and its
interpretation.” 7They answered a second time, “Let the king tell his
servants the dream, and we will show its interpretation.” 8The king
answered, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time, because
you see that the word from me is sure 9that if you do not make the dream
known to me, there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak
lying and corrupt words before me till the times change. Therefore tell me
the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation.” 10The
Chalde'ans answered the king, “There is not a man on earth who can meet
the king’s demand; for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of
any magician or enchanter or Chalde'an. 11The thing that the king asks is
difficult, and none can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling
is not with flesh.”
12 Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded
that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. 13So the decree went forth
that the wise men were to be slain, and they sought Daniel and his
companions, to slay them. 14Then Daniel replied with prudence and
discretion to Ar'ioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to
slay the wise men of Babylon; 15he said to Ar'ioch, the king’s captain,
“Why is the decree of the king so severe?” Then Arioch made the matter
known to Daniel. 16And Daniel went in and besought the king to appoint
him a time, that he might show to the king the interpretation.
God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
17 Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to
Hanani'ah, Mish'a-el, and Azari'ah, his companions, 18and told them to seek
mercy of the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his
companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
19Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then
Daniel blessed the God of heaven. 20Daniel said:

“Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever.
to whom belong wisdom and might.
21He changes times and seasons;
he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding;
22he reveals deep and mysterious things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and the light dwells with him.
23To you, O God of my fathers,
I give thanks and praise,
for you have given me wisdom and strength,
and have now made known to me what we asked of you,
for you have made known to us the king’s matter.”
Daniel Interprets the Dream
24 Therefore Daniel went in to Ar'ioch, whom the king had appointed to
destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and said thus to him, “Do not
destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will
show the king the interpretation.”
25 Then Ar'ioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus
to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who can make
known to the king the interpretation.” 26The king said to Daniel, whose
name was Belteshaz'zar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream that
I have seen and its interpretation?” 27Daniel answered the king, “No wise
men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery
which the king has asked, 28but there is a God in heaven who reveals
mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnez'zar what will be in
the latter days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed
are these: 29To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would
be hereafter, and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to
be. 30But as for me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the
living has this mystery been revealed to me, but in order that the
interpretation may be made known to the king, and that you may know the
thoughts of your mind.
31 “You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and
of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was
frightening. 32The head of this image was of fine gold, its breast and arms
of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33its legs of iron, its feet partly of
iron and partly of clay. 34As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human
hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in
pieces; 35then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all
together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer
threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them
could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great
mountain and filled the whole earth.
36 “This was the dream; now we will tell the king its interpretation.
37You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the
kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory, 38and into whose hand he
has given, wherever they dwell, the sons of men, the beasts of the field, and
the birds of the air, making you rule over them all—you are the head of
gold. 39After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you, and yet a third
kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. 40And there shall be
a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters
all things; and like iron which crushes, it shall break and crush all these.
41And as you saw the feet and toes partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron,
it shall be a divided kingdom; but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it,
just as you saw iron mixed with the miry clay. 42And as the toes of the feet
were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and
partly brittle. 43As you saw the iron mixed with miry clay, so they will mix
with one another in marriage, b but they will not hold together, just as iron
does not mix with clay. 44And in the days of those kings the God of heaven
will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its
sovereignty be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these
kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand for ever; 45just as you
saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it
broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A
great God has made known to the king what shall be hereafter. The dream is
certain, and its interpretation sure.”
Daniel and His Friends Promoted
46 Then King Nebuchadnez'zar fell upon his face, and did homage to
Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him.
47The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of
kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this
mystery.” 48Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts,
and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief prefect
over all the wise men of Babylon. 49Daniel made request of the king, and he
appointed Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego over the affairs of the
province of Babylon; but Daniel remained at the king’s court.
The Golden Image
3 King Nebuchadnez'zar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty
cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the
province of Babylon. 2Then King Nebuchadnez'zar sent to assemble the
satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the
justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the
dedication of the image which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 3Then the
satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the
justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces, were
assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnez'zar had
set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
4And the herald proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O peoples,
nations, and languages, 5that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe,
lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down
and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnez'zar has set up; 6and
whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a
burning fiery furnace.” 7Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the
sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of
music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the
golden image which King Nebuchadnez'zar had set up.
8 Therefore at that time certain Chalde'ans came forward and maliciously
accused the Jews. 9They said to King Nebuchadnez'zar, “O king, live for
ever! 10You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the
sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of
music, shall fall down and worship the golden image; 11and whoever does
not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. 12There
are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province
of Babylon: Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego. These men, O king, pay
no heed to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image
which you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnez'zar in furious rage commanded that Shad'rach,
Me'shach, and Abed'nego be brought. Then they brought these men before
the king. 14Nebuchadnez'zar said to them, “Is it true, O Shad'rach,
Me'shach, and Abed'nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the
golden image which I have set up? 15Now if you are ready when you hear
the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of
music, to fall down and worship the image which I have made, well and
good; but if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a
burning fiery furnace; and who is the god that will deliver you out of my
hands?”
16 Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego answered the king, “O
Nebuchadnez'zar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17If it be
so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery
furnace; and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. c 18But if not, be it
known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the
golden image which you have set up.”
The Fiery Furnace
19 Then Nebuchadnez'zar was full of fury, and the expression of his face
was changed against Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego. He ordered the
furnace heated seven times more than it was accustomed to be heated.
20And he ordered certain mighty men of his army to bind Shad'rach,
Me'shach, and Abed'nego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.
21Then these men were bound in their mantles, d their tunics, d their hats,
and their other garments, and they were cast into the burning fiery furnace.
22Because the king’s order was strict and the furnace very hot, the flame of
the fire slew those men who took up Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego.
23And these three men, Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego, fell bound
into the burning fiery furnace. *

The Prayer of Azariah in the Furnace
1 And they walked about in the midst of the flames, singing hymns to God
and blessing the Lord. 2Then Azariah stood and offered this prayer; in the
midst of the fire he opened his mouth and said:
3“Blessed are you, O Lord, God of our fathers, and worthy of praise;
and your name is glorified for ever.

4For you are just in all that you have done to us,
and all your works are true and your ways right,
and all your judgments are truth.
5You have executed true judgments in all that you have brought upon us
and upon Jerusalem, the holy city of our fathers,

for in truth and justice you have brought all this upon us because of
our sins.
6For we have sinfully and lawlessly departed from you,
and have sinned in all things and have not obeyed your
commandments;
7we have not observed them or done them,
as you have commanded us that it might go well with us.

8So all that you have brought upon us,
and all that you have done to us,

you have done in true judgment.
9You have given us into the hands of lawless enemies, most hateful
rebels,
and to an unjust king, the most wicked in all the world.
10And now we cannot open our mouths;
shame and disgrace have befallen your servants and worshipers.
11For your name’s sake do not give us up utterly,
and do not break your covenant,
12 and do not withdraw your mercy from us,
for the sake of Abraham your beloved

and for the sake of Isaac your servant
and Israel your holy one,
13to whom you promised
to make their descendants as many as the stars of heaven

and as the sand on the shore of the sea.
14For we, O Lord, have become fewer than any nation,
and are brought low this day in all the world because of our sins.
15And at this time there is no prince, or prophet, or leader,
no burnt offering, or sacrifice, or oblation, or incense,

no place to make an offering before you or to find mercy.
16Yet with a contrite heart and a humble spirit may we be accepted,
as though it were with burnt offerings of rams and bulls,

and with tens of thousands of fat lambs;
17 such may our sacrifice be in your sight this day,
and may we wholly follow you,

for there will be no shame for those who trust in you.
18And now with all our heart we follow you,
we fear you and seek your face.

19Do not put us to shame,
but deal with us in your forbearance

and in your abundant mercy.
20Deliver us in accordance with your marvelous works,
and give glory to your name, O Lord!

Let all who do harm to your servants be put to shame;
21let them be disgraced and deprived of all power and dominion,
and let their strength be broken.

22Let them know that you are the Lord, the only God,
glorious over the whole world.”
23 Now the king’s servants who threw them in did not cease feeding the
furnace fires with naphtha, pitch, tow, and brush. 24And the flame streamed
out above the furnace forty-nine cubits, 25and it broke through and burned
those of the Chaldeans whom it caught about the furnace. 26But the angel of
the Lord came down into the furnace to be with Azariah and his
companions, and drove the fiery flame out of the furnace, 27and made the
midst of the furnace like a moist whistling wind, so that the fire did not
touch them at all or hurt or trouble them.
The Song of the Three Young Men
28 Then the three, as with one mouth, praised and glorified and blessed
God in the furnace, saying:
29“Blessed are you, O Lord, God of our fathers,
and to be praised and highly exalted for ever;

30And blessed is your glorious, holy name
and to be highly praised and highly exalted for ever;
31Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory
and to be extolled and highly glorified for ever.

32Blessed are you, who sit upon cherubim and look upon the deeps,
and to be praised and highly exalted for ever.

33Blessed are you upon the throne of your kingdom
and to be extolled and highly exalted for ever.

34Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven
and to be sung and glorified for ever.

35“Bless the Lord, all works of the Lord,
sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever.

36Bless the Lord, you heavens,

37Bless the Lord, you angels of the Lord,
38Bless the Lord, all waters above the heaven,

39Bless the Lord, all powers,

40Bless the Lord, sun and moon,

41Bless the Lord, stars of heaven,

42Bless the Lord, all rain and dew,
43Bless the Lord, all winds,
44Bless the Lord, fire and heat,

45Bless the Lord, winter cold and summer heat,
46Bless the Lord, dews and snows,

47Bless the Lord, nights and days,

48Bless the Lord, light and darkness,

49Bless the Lord, ice and cold,

50Bless the Lord, frosts and snows,

51Bless the Lord, lightnings and clouds,

52Let the earth bless the Lord;
let it sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever.
53Bless the Lord, mountains and hills,

54Bless the Lord, all things that grow on the earth,

55Bless the Lord, you springs,

56Bless the Lord, seas and rivers,

57Bless the Lord, you whales and all creatures that move in the waters,

58Bless the Lord, all birds of the air,

59Bless the Lord, all beasts and cattle,
60Bless the Lord, you sons of men,
61Bless the Lord, O Israel,
62Bless the Lord, you priests of the Lord,

63Bless the Lord, you servants of the Lord,

64Bless the Lord, spirits and souls of the righteous,

65Bless the Lord, you who are holy and humble in heart,

66Bless the Lord, Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael,
sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever;
for he has rescued us from Hades and saved us from the hand of death,
and delivered us from the midst of the burning fiery furnace;
from the midst of the fire he has delivered us.
67Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

68Bless him, all who worship the Lord, the God of gods,
sing praise to him and give thanks to him,

for his mercy endures for ever.” *
24 Then King Nebuchadnez'zar was astonished and rose up in haste. He
said to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?”
They answered the king, “True, O king.” 25He answered, “But I see four
men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the
appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
The Three Men Are Taken Out of the Furnace
26 Then Nebuchadnez'zar came near to the door of the burning fiery
furnace and said, “Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego, servants of the
Most High God, come forth, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego came out from the fire. 27And the satraps, the prefects, the
governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire
had not had any power over the bodies of those men; the hair of their heads
was not singed, their mantles d were not harmed, and no smell of fire had
come upon them. 28Nebuchadnez'zar said, “Blessed be the God of
Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego, who has sent his angel and delivered
his servants, who trusted in him, and set at nothing the king’s command,
and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except
their own God. 29Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or
language that speaks anything against the God of Shad'rach, Me'shach, and
Abed'nego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins; for
there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way.” 30Then the king
promoted Shad'rach, Me'shach, and Abed'nego in the province of Babylon.
Nebuchadnezzar’s Second Dream
4 e * King Nebuchadnez'zar to all peoples, nations, and languages, that

dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you! 2It has seemed good to
me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has wrought
toward me.
3How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!

His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and his dominion is from generation to generation.
f
4 I, Nebuchadnez'zar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my
palace. 5I had a dream which made me afraid; as I lay in bed the fancies and
the visions of my head alarmed me. 6Therefore I made a decree that all the
wise men of Babylon should be brought before me, that they might make
known to me the interpretation of the dream. 7Then the magicians, the
enchanters, the Chalde'ans, and the astrologers came in; and I told them the
dream, but they could not make known to me its interpretation. 8At last
Daniel came in before me—he who was named Belteshaz'zar* after the
name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods g —and I told
him the dream, saying, 9“O Belteshaz'zar, chief of the magicians, because I
know that the spirit of the holy gods g is in you and that no mystery is
difficult for you, here is h the dream which I saw; tell me its interpretation.
10The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these: I saw, and behold, a
tree in the midst of the earth; and its height was great. 11The tree grew and
became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end
of the whole earth. 12Its leaves were fair and its fruit abundant, and in it was
food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, and the birds of
the air dwelt in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it.
13 “I saw in the visions of my head as I lay in bed, and behold, a watcher,
a holy one,* came down from heaven. 14He cried aloud and said thus, ‘Hew
down the tree and cut off its branches, strip off its leaves and scatter its
fruit; let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches. 15But
leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and
bronze, amid the tender grass of the field. Let him be wet with the dew of
heaven; let his lot be with the beasts in the grass of the earth; 16let his mind
be changed from a man’s, and let a beast’s mind be given to him; and let
seven times pass over him. 17The sentence is by the decree of the watchers,
the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may
know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom
he will, and sets over it the lowliest of men.’ 18This dream I, King
Nebuchadnez'zar, saw. And you, O Belteshaz'zar, declare the interpretation,
because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me
the interpretation, but you are able, for the spirit of the holy gods i is in
you.”
Daniel Interprets the Second Dream
19 Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshaz'zar, was dismayed for a
moment, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king said, “Belteshaz'zar, let
not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered, “My
lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for
your enemies! 20The tree you saw, which grew and became strong, so that
its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth;
21whose leaves were fair and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for
all; under which beasts of the field found shade, and in whose branches the
birds of the air dwelt— 22it is you, O king, who have grown and become
strong. Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, and your dominion
to the ends of the earth. 23And whereas the king saw a watcher, a holy one,
coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Hew down the tree and destroy it,
but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and
bronze, in the tender grass of the field; and let him be wet with the dew of
heaven; and let his lot be with the beasts of the field, till seven times pass
over him’; 24this is the interpretation, O king: It is a decree of the Most
High, which has come upon my lord the king, 25that you shall be driven
from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field;
you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew
of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most
High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom he will. 26And as it
was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom
shall be sure for you from the time that you know that Heaven rules.
27Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you; break off your
sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to
the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your tranquillity.”
28 All this came upon King Nebuchadnez'zar. 29At the end of twelve
months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30and
the king said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty
power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” 31While the
words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O
King Nebuchadnez'zar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from
you, 32and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be
with the beasts of the field; and you shall be made to eat grass like an ox;
and seven times shall pass over you, until you have learned that the Most
High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.”
33Immediately the word was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnez'zar. He was driven
from among men, and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the
dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails
were like birds’ claws.
Nebuchadnezzar Praises God
34 At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnez'zar, lifted my eyes to heaven,
and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and
honored him who lives for ever;
for his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;
35all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing;
and he does according to his will in the host of heaven

and among the inhabitants of the earth;
and none can stay his hand
or say to him, “What have you done?”
36At the same time my reason returned to me; and for the glory of my
kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me. My counselors and my

lords sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more
greatness was added to me. 37Now I, Nebuchadnez'zar, praise and extol and
honor the King of heaven; for all his works are right and his ways are just;
and those who walk in pride he is able to abase.
Belshazzar’s Feast
5 King Belshaz'zar * made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and
drank wine in front of the thousand.
2 Belshaz'zar, when he tasted the wine, commanded that the vessels of
gold and of silver which Nebuchadnez'zar his father had taken out of the
temple in Jerusalem be brought, that the king and his lords, his wives, and
his concubines might drink from them. 3Then they brought in the golden
and silver vessels j which had been taken out of the temple, the house of
God in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines
drank from them. 4They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and
silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
The Handwriting on the Wall
5 Immediately the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote on the
plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, opposite the lampstand; and the king
saw the hand as it wrote. 6Then the king’s color changed, and his thoughts
alarmed him; his limbs gave way, and his knees knocked together. 7The
king cried aloud to bring in the enchanters, the Chalde'ans, and the
astrologers. The king said to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this
writing, and shows me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple, and
have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the
kingdom.” 8Then all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read
the writing or make known to the king the interpretation. 9Then King
Belshaz'zar was greatly alarmed, and his color changed; and his lords were
perplexed.
10 The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came into
the banqueting hall; and the queen said, “O king, live for ever! Let not your
thoughts alarm you or your color change. 11There is in your kingdom a man
in whom is the spirit of the holy gods. k In the days of your father light and
understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, were found in him,
and King Nebuchadnez'zar, your father, made him chief of the magicians,
enchanters, Chalde'ans, and astrologers, l 12because an excellent spirit,
knowledge, and understanding to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and
solve problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named
Belteshaz'zar. Now let Daniel be called, and he will show the
interpretation.”
Daniel Interprets the Writing on the Wall
13 Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king said to Daniel,
“You are that Daniel, one of the exiles of Judah, whom the king my father
brought from Judah. 14I have heard of you that the spirit of the holy gods k
is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found
in you. 15Now the wise men, the enchanters, have been brought in before
me to read this writing and make known to me its interpretation; but they
could not show the interpretation of the matter. 16But I have heard that you
can give interpretations and solve problems. Now if you can read the
writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with
purple, and have a chain of gold about your neck, and shall be the third
ruler in the kingdom.
17 Then Daniel answered before the king, “Let your gifts be for yourself,
and give your rewards to another; nevertheless I will read the writing to the
king and make known to him the interpretation. 18O king, the Most High
God gave Nebuchadnez'zar your father kingship and greatness and glory
and majesty; 19and because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples,
nations, and languages trembled and feared before him; whom he would he
slew, and whom he would he kept alive; whom he would he raised up, and
whom he would he put down. 20But when his heart was lifted up and his
spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was deposed from his
kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him; 21he was driven from
among men, and his mind was made like that of a beast, and his dwelling
was with the wild donkeys; he was fed grass like an ox, and his body was
wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the
kingdom of men, and sets over it whom he will. 22And you his son,
Belshaz'zar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this, 23but
you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven; and the vessels of
his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your
wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them; and you have
praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which
do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and
whose are all your ways, you have not honored.
24 “Then from his presence the hand was sent, and this writing was
inscribed. 25And this is the writing that was inscribed: mene, mene, tekel,
and parsin. 26This is the interpretation of the matter: mene, God has
numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; 27tekel, you
have been weighed in the balances and found wanting; 28peres, your
kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
29 Then Belshaz'zar commanded, and Daniel was clothed with purple, a
chain of gold was put about his neck, and proclamation was made
concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.
30 That very night Belshaz'zar the Chalde'an king was slain. 31And
Dari'us the Mede * received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old.
A Plot against Daniel
6 It pleased Dari'us to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty
satraps, to be throughout the whole kingdom; 2and over them three
presidents, of whom Daniel was one, to whom these satraps should give
account, so that the king might suffer no loss. 3Then this Daniel became
distinguished above all the other presidents and satraps, because an
excellent spirit was in him; and the king planned to set him over the whole
kingdom. 4Then the presidents and the satraps sought to find a ground for
complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom; but they could find no
ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or
fault was found in him. 5Then these men said, “We shall not find any
ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection
with the law of his God.”
6 Then these presidents and satraps came by agreement m to the king and
said to him, “O King Dari'us, live for ever! 7All the presidents of the
kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the counselors and the governors are
agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce an interdict,
that whoever makes petition to any god or man for thirty days, except to
you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions. 8Now, O king, establish the
interdict and sign the document, so that it cannot be changed, according to
the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked.”
9Therefore King Dari'us signed the document and interdict.
Daniel in the Den of Lions

10 When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his
house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem;
and he got down upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave
thanks before his God, as he had done previously. 11Then these men came
by agreement m and found Daniel making petition and supplication before
his God. 12Then they came near and said before the king, concerning the
interdict, “O king! Did you not sign an interdict, that any man who makes
petition to any god or man within thirty days except to you, O king, shall be
cast into the den of lions?” The king answered, “The thing stands fast,
according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be revoked.”
13Then they answered before the king, “That Daniel, who is one of the
exiles from Judah, pays no heed to you, O king, or the interdict you have
signed, but makes his petition three times a day.”
14 Then the king, when he heard these words, was much distressed, and
set his mind to deliver Daniel; and he labored till the sun went down to
rescue him. 15Then these men came by agreement m to the king, and said to
the king, “Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no
interdict or ordinance which the king establishes can be changed.”
16 Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the
den of lions. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve
continually, deliver you!” 17And a stone was brought and laid upon the
mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the
signet of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.
18Then the king went to his palace, and spent the night fasting; no
diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him.

God Saves Daniel from the Lions
19 Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of
lions. 20When he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a
tone of anguish and said to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God,
has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from
the lions?” 21Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live for ever! 22My God
sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me,
because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I
have done no wrong.” 23Then the king was exceedingly glad, and
commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up
out of the den, and no kind of hurt was found upon him, because he had
trusted in his God. 24And the king commanded, and those men who had
accused Daniel were brought and cast into the den of lions—they, their
children, and their wives; and before they reached the bottom of the den the
lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces.
25 Then King Dari'us wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages
that dwell in all the earth: “Peace be multiplied to you. 26I make a decree,
that in all my royal dominion men tremble and fear before the God of
Daniel,
for he is the living God,
enduring for ever;
his kingdom shall never be destroyed,
and his dominion shall be to the end.
27He delivers and rescues,
he works signs and wonders

in heaven and on earth,
he who has saved Daniel
from the power of the lions.”
28 So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Dari'us and the reign of
Cyrus the Persian.
Visions of the Four Beasts and the Ancient of Days
7 In the first year of Belshaz'zar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream
and visions of his head as he lay in his bed. Then he wrote down the dream,
and told the sum of the matter. 2Daniel said, “I saw in my vision by night,
and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. 3And
four great beasts came up out of the sea, different from one another. 4The
first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings. Then as I looked its wings were
plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand upon
two feet like a man; and the mind of a man was given to it. 5And behold,
another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side; it had
three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise, devour
much flesh.’ 6After this I looked, and behold, another, like a leopard, with
four wings of a bird on its back; and the beast had four heads; and dominion
was given to it. 7After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth
beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong; and it had great iron
teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with its feet.
It was different from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.
8I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another
horn, a little one, * before which three of the first horns were plucked up by
the roots; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a
mouth speaking great things. 9As I looked,
thrones were placed
and one that was ancient of days took his seat;
his clothing was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames,
its wheels were burning fire.
10A stream of fire issued
and came forth from before him;

a thousand thousands served him,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him;
the court sat in judgment,
and the books were opened.
11I looked then because of the sound of the great words which the horn
was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was slain, and its body destroyed
and given over to be burned with fire. 12As for the rest of the beasts, their
dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a
time. 13I saw in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man, *
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
14And to him was given dominion
and glory and kingdom,

that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed.
Daniel’s Visions Interpreted
15 “As for me, Daniel, my spirit within me was anxious and the visions of
my head alarmed me. 16I approached one of those who stood there and
asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me, and made known to
me the interpretation of the things. 17‘These four great beasts are four kings
who shall arise out of the earth. 18But the saints of the Most High shall
receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, for ever and ever.’
19 “Then I desired to know the truth concerning the fourth beast, which
was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron
and claws of bronze; and which devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped
the residue with its feet; 20and concerning the ten horns that were on its
head, and the other horn which came up and before which three of them
fell, the horn which had eyes and a mouth that spoke great things, and
which seemed greater than its fellows. 21As I looked, this horn made war
with the saints, and prevailed over them, 22until the Ancient of Days came,
and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came
when the saints received the kingdom.
23“Thus he said: ‘As for the fourth beast,
there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth,

which shall be different from all the kingdoms,
and it shall devour the whole earth,
and trample it down, and break it to pieces.
24As for the ten horns,
out of this kingdom

ten kings shall arise,
and another shall arise after them;
he shall be different from the former ones,
and shall put down three kings.
25He shall speak words against the Most High,
and shall wear out the saints of the Most High,

and shall think to change the times and the law;
and they shall be given into his hand
for a time, two times, and half a time.
26But the court shall sit in judgment,
and his dominion shall be taken away,

to be consumed and destroyed to the end.
27And the kingdom and the dominion
and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven
shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High;
their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom,
and all dominions shall serve and obey them.’
28 “Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly
alarmed me, and my color changed; but I kept the matter in my mind.”
Vision of a Ram and a Goat
8 In the third year of the reign of King Bel- shaz'zar a vision appeared to
me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. 2And I saw in the
vision; and when I saw, I was in Susa the capital, which is in the province
of E'lam; and I saw in the vision, and I was at the river U'lai. 3I raised my
eyes and saw, and behold, a ram standing on the bank of the river. It had
two horns; and both horns were high, but one was higher than the other, and
the higher one came up last. 4I saw the ram charging westward and
northward and southward; no beast could stand before him, and there was
no one who could rescue from his power; he did as he pleased and
magnified himself.
5 As I was considering, behold, a he-goat came from the west across the
face of the whole earth, without touching the ground; and the goat had a
conspicuous horn between his eyes. 6He came to the ram with the two
horns, which I had seen standing on the bank of the river, and he ran at him
in his mighty wrath. 7I saw him come close to the ram, and he was enraged
against him and struck the ram and broke his two horns; and the ram had no
power to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground and
trampled upon him; and there was no one who could rescue the ram from
his power. 8Then the he-goat magnified himself exceedingly; but when he
was strong, the great horn was broken, and instead of it there came up four
conspicuous horns toward the four winds of heaven.
9 Out of one of them came forth a little horn, which grew exceedingly
great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the glorious land. 10It
grew great, even to the host of heaven; and some of the host of the stars it
cast down to the ground, and trampled upon them. 11It magnified itself,
even up to the Prince of the host; and the continual burnt offering was taken
away from him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown. 12And the
host was given over to it together with the continual burnt offering through
transgression; n and truth was cast down to the ground, and the horn acted
and prospered. 13Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one
said to the one that spoke, “For how long is the vision concerning the
continual burnt offering, the transgression that makes desolate, and the
giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled under foot?” o 14And
he said to him, p “For two thousand and three hundred evenings and
mornings; then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.”
Gabriel Interprets the Vision
15 When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I sought to understand it; and
behold, there stood before me one having the appearance of a man. 16And I
heard a man’s voice between the banks of the U'lai, and it called, “Gabriel,
make this man understand the vision.” 17So he came near where I stood;
and when he came, I was frightened and fell upon my face. But he said to
me, “Understand, O son of man, that the vision is for the time of the end.”
18 As he was speaking to me, I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the
ground; but he touched me and set me on my feet. 19He said, “Behold, I will
make known to you what shall be at the latter end of the indignation; for it
pertains to the appointed time of the end. 20As for the ram which you saw
with the two horns, these are the kings of Me'dia and Persia. 21And the he-
goat q is the king of Greece; and the great horn between his eyes is the first
king. 22As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose,
four kingdoms shall arise from his r nation, but not with his power. 23And at
the latter end of their rule, when the transgressors have reached their full
measure, a king of bold countenance, one who understands riddles, shall
arise. 24His power shall be great, s and he shall cause fearful destruction,
and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy mighty men and the people
of the saints. 25By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand,
and in his own mind he shall magnify himself. Without warning he shall
destroy many; and he shall even rise up against the Prince of princes; but,
by no human hand, he shall be broken. 26The vision of the evenings and the
mornings which has been told is true; but seal up the vision, for it pertains
to many days hence.”
27 And I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days; then I rose
and went about the king’s business; but I was appalled by the vision and did
not understand it.
Daniel’s Prayer for the People
9 In the first year of Dari'us the son of Ahas'uerus, by birth a Mede, who
became king over the realm of the Chalde'ans— 2in the first year of his
reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years which,
according to the word of the LORD to Jeremi'ah the prophet, must pass
before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.
3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and
supplications with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4I prayed to the LORD
my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome
God, who keeps covenant and merciful love with those who love him and
keep his commandments, 5we have sinned and done wrong and acted
wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and
ordinances; 6we have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke
in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people
of the land. 7To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us confusion of
face, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and
to all Israel, those that are near and those that are far away, in all the lands
to which you have driven them, because of the treachery which they have
committed against you. 8To us, O Lord, belongs confusion of face, to our
kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against
you. 9To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness; because we have
rebelled against him, 10and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God
by following his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.
11All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey
your voice. And the curse and oath which are written in the law of Moses
the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned
against him. 12He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and
against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity; for
under the whole heaven there has not been done the like of what has been
done against Jerusalem. 13As it is written in the law of Moses, all this
calamity has come upon us, yet we have not entreated the favor of the LORD
our God, turning from our iniquities and giving heed to your truth.
14Therefore the LORD has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon
us; for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works which he has done,
and we have not obeyed his voice. 15And now, O Lord our God, who
brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have
made you a name, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
16O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your
wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill; because for our
sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have
become a byword among all who are round about us. 17Now therefore, O
our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his supplications, and
for your own sake, O Lord, t cause your face to shine upon your sanctuary,
which is desolate. 18O my God, incline your ear and hear; open your eyes
and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by your name; for
we do not present our supplications before you on the ground of our
righteousness, but on the ground of your great mercy. 19O LORD, hear; O
LORD, forgive; O LORD, give heed and act; delay not, for your own sake, O
my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”
The Seventy Weeks
20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of
my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God
for the holy hill of my God; 21while I was speaking in prayer, the man
Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift
flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. 22He came u and he said to me,
“O Daniel, I have now come out to give you wisdom and understanding.
23At the beginning of your supplications a word went forth, and I have
come to tell it to you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the
word and understand the vision.
24 * “Seventy weeks of years are decreed concerning your people and
your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone
for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and
prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. v 25Know therefore and understand
that from the going forth of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the
coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for
sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a
troubled time. 26And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut
off, and shall have nothing; and the people of the prince who is to come
shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its w end shall come with a flood,
and to the end there shall be war; desolations are decreed. 27And he shall
make a strong covenant with many for one week; and for half of the week
he shall cause sacrifice and offering to cease; and upon the wing of
abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is
poured out on the desolator.”
Daniel’s Vision “for Days Yet to Come”
10 * In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a word was revealed to
Daniel, who was named Belteshaz'zar. And the word was true, and it was a
great conflict. And he understood the word and had understanding of the
vision.
2 In those days I, Daniel, was mourning for three weeks. 3I ate no
delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at
all, for the full three weeks. 4On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as
I was standing on the bank of the great river, that is, the Tigris, 5I lifted up
my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, whose loins were
belted with gold of U'phaz. 6His body was like beryl, his face like the
appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs
like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the
noise of a multitude. 7And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who
were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them,
and they fled to hide themselves. 8So I was left alone and saw this great
vision, and no strength was left in me; my radiant appearance was fearfully
changed, and I retained no strength. 9Then I heard the sound of his words;
and when I heard the sound of his words, I fell on my face in a deep sleep
with my face to the ground.
10 And behold, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands
and knees. 11And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved, give heed
to the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent
to you.” While he was speaking this word to me, I stood up trembling.
12Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set
your mind to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your
words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. 13The
prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but
Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, so I left him there with
the prince of the kingdom of Persia x 14and came to make you understand
what is to befall your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet
to come.”
15 When he had spoken to me according to these words, I turned my face
toward the ground and was speechless. 16And behold, one in the likeness of
the sons of men touched my lips; then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said
to him who stood before me, “O my lord, by reason of the vision pains have
come upon me, and I retain no strength. 17How can my lord’s servant talk
with my lord? For now no strength remains in me, and no breath is left in
me.”
18 Again one having the appearance of a man touched me and
strengthened me. 19And he said, “O man greatly beloved, fear not, peace be
with you; be strong and of good courage.” And when he spoke to me, I was
strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”
20Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will
return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I am through with him,
behold, the prince of Greece will come. 21But I will tell you what is
inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side
against these except Michael, your prince.
11 And as for me, in the first year of Dari'us the Mede, I stood up to
confirm and strengthen him.
Coming Conflict of the Nations
2 “And now I will show you the truth. Behold, three more kings shall
arise in Persia; and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them; and when he
has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the
kingdom of Greece. 3Then a mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with
great dominion and do according to his will. 4And when he has arisen, his
kingdom shall be broken and divided toward the four winds of heaven, but
not to his posterity, nor according to the dominion with which he ruled; for
his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.
5 “Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall
be stronger than he and his dominion shall be a great dominion. 6After some
years they shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south
shall come to the king of the north to make peace; but she shall not retain
the strength of her arm, and he and his offspring shall not endure; but she
shall be given up, and her attendants, her child, and he who got possession
of y her.
“In those times a branch z from her roots shall arise in his place; he shall
come against the army and enter the fortress of the king of the north, and he
shall deal with them and shall prevail. 8He shall also carry off to Egypt their
gods with their molten images and with their precious vessels of silver and
of gold; and for some years he shall refrain from attacking the king of the
north. 9Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but
shall return into his own land.
10 “His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces,
which shall come on and overflow and pass through, and again shall carry
the war as far as his fortress. 11Then the king of the south, moved with
anger, shall come out and fight with the king of the north; and he shall raise
a great multitude, but it shall be given into his hand. 12And when the
multitude is taken, his heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of
thousands, but he shall not prevail. 13For the king of the north shall again
raise a multitude, greater than the former; and after some years a he shall
come on with a great army and abundant supplies.
14 “In those times many shall rise against the king of the south; and the
men of violence among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to
fulfil the vision; but they shall fail. 15Then the king of the north shall come
and throw up siegeworks, and take a well-fortified city. And the forces of
the south shall not stand, or even his picked troops, for there shall be no
strength to stand. 16But he who comes against him shall do according to his
own will, and none shall stand before him; and he shall stand in the glorious
land, and all of it shall be in his power. 17He shall set his face to come with
the strength of his whole kingdom, and he shall bring terms of peace b and
perform them. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy the
kingdom; c but it shall not stand or be to his advantage. 18Afterward he shall
turn his face to the islands, and shall take many of them; but a commander
shall put an end to his insolence; indeed d he shall turn his insolence back
upon him. 19Then he shall turn his face back toward the fortresses of his
own land; but he shall stumble and fall, and shall not be found.
20 “Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an exactor of tribute
through the glory of the kingdom; but within a few days he shall be broken,
neither in anger nor in battle. 21In his place shall arise a contemptible
person to whom royal majesty has not been given; he shall come in without
warning and obtain the kingdom by flatteries. 22Armies shall be utterly
swept away before him and broken, and the prince of the covenant also.
23And from the time that an alliance is made with him he shall act
deceitfully; and he shall become strong with a small people. 24Without

warning he shall come into the richest parts e of the province; and he shall
do what neither his fathers nor his fathers’ fathers have done, scattering
among them plunder, spoil, and goods. He shall devise plans against
strongholds, but only for a time. 25And he shall stir up his power and his
courage against the king of the south with a great army; and the king of the
south shall wage war with an exceedingly great and mighty army; but he
shall not stand, for plots shall be devised against him. 26Even those who eat
his rich food shall be his undoing; his army shall be swept away, and many
shall fall down slain. 27And as for the two kings, their minds shall be bent
on mischief; they shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail; for the
end is yet to be at the time appointed. 28And he shall return to his land with
great substance, but his heart shall be set against the holy covenant. And he
shall work his will, and return to his own land.
29 “At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south; but it
shall not be this time as it was before. 30For ships of Kittim shall come
against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw, and shall turn back and be
enraged and take action against the holy covenant. He shall turn back and
give heed to those who forsake the holy covenant. 31Forces from him shall
appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the
continual burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes
desolate. 32He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant; but
the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. 33And
those among the people who are wise shall make many understand, though
they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder, for some days.
34When they fall, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join
themselves to them with flattery; 35and some of those who are wise shall
fall, to refine and to cleanse them f and to make them white, until the time
of the end, for it is yet for the time appointed.
36 “And the king shall do according to his will; he shall exalt himself and
magnify himself above every god, and shall speak astonishing things
against the God of gods. He shall prosper till the indignation is
accomplished; for what is determined shall be done. 37He shall give no heed
to the gods of his fathers, or to the one beloved by women; he shall not give
heed to any other god, for he shall magnify himself above all. 38He shall
honor the god of fortresses instead of these; a god whom his fathers did not
know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly
gifts. 39He shall deal with the strongest fortresses by the help of a foreign
god; those who acknowledge him he shall magnify with honor. He shall
make them rulers over many and shall divide the land for a price.
The Time of the End
40 “At the time of the end the king of the south shall attack g him; but the
king of the north shall rush upon him like a whirlwind, with chariots and
horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall come into countries and shall
overflow and pass through. 41He shall come into the glorious land. And tens
of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: E'dom
and Moab and the main part of the Am'monites. 42He shall stretch out his
hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 43He
shall become ruler of the treasures of gold and of silver, and all the precious
things of Egypt; and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall follow in his
train. 44But tidings from the east and the north shall alarm him, and he shall
go forth with great fury to exterminate and utterly destroy many. 45And he
shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain;
yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him.
The Resurrection of the Dead
12 “At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of
your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been
since there was a nation till that time; but at that time your people shall be
delivered, every one whose name shall be found written in the book. 2And
many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to
everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3And those
who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament; and those
who turn many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. 4But you,
Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, until the time of the end.
Many shall run back and forth, and knowledge shall increase.”
5 Then I Daniel looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this bank of
the stream and one on that bank of the stream. 6And I h said to the man
clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, “How long shall
it be till the end of these wonders?” 7The man clothed in linen, who was
above the waters of the stream, raised his right hand and his left hand
toward heaven; and I heard him swear by him who lives for ever that it
would be for a time, two times, and half a time; and that when the shattering
of the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things would be
accomplished. 8I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, “O my lord,
what shall be the issue of these things?” 9He said, “Go your way, Daniel,
for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end. 10Many shall
purify themselves, and make themselves white, and be refined; but the
wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but
those who are wise shall understand. 11And from the time that the continual
burnt offering is taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate is set
up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12Blessed is he
who waits and comes to the thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.
13But go your way till the end; and you shall rest, and shall stand in your
allotted place at the end of the days.”

Two Elders’ Lust for Susanna
13 * There was a man living in Babylon whose name was Jo'akim. 2And
he took a wife named Susanna, the daughter of Hilki'ah, a very beautiful
woman and one who feared the Lord. 3Her parents were righteous, and had
taught their daughter according to the law of Moses. 4Jo'akim was very rich,
and had a spacious garden adjoining his house; and the Jews used to come
to him because he was the most honored of them all.
5 In that year two elders from the people were appointed as judges.
Concerning them the Lord had said: “Iniquity came forth from Babylon,
from elders who were judges, who were supposed to govern the people.”
6These men were frequently at Jo'akim’s house, and all who had suits at law
came to them.
7 When the people departed at noon, Susanna would go into her
husband’s garden to walk. 8The two elders used to see her every day, going
in and walking about, and they began to desire her. 9And they perverted
their minds and turned away their eyes from looking to Heaven or
remembering righteous judgments. 10Both were overwhelmed with passion
for her, but they did not tell each other of their distress, 11for they were
ashamed to disclose their lustful desire to possess her. 12And they watched
eagerly, day after day, to see her.
13 They said to each other, “Let us go home, for it is mealtime.” 14And
when they went out, they parted from each other. But turning back, they
met again; and when each pressed the other for the reason, they confessed
their lust. And then together they arranged for a time when they could find
her alone.
The Elders Attempt to Seduce Susanna
15 Once, while they were watching for an opportune day, she went in as
before with only two maids, and wished to bathe in the garden, for it was
very hot. 16And no one was there except the two elders, who had hid
themselves and were watching her. 17She said to her maids, “Bring me oil
and ointments, and shut the garden doors so that I may bathe.” 18They did
as she said, shut the garden doors, and went out by the side doors to bring
what they had been commanded; and they did not see the elders, because
they were hidden.
19 When the maids had gone out, the two elders rose and ran to her, and
said: 20“Look, the garden doors are shut, no one sees us, and we are in love
with you; so give your consent, and lie with us. 21If you refuse, we will
testify against you that a young man was with you, and this was why you
sent your maids away.”
22 Susanna sighed deeply, and said, “I am hemmed in on every side. For if
I do this thing, it is death for me; and if I do not, I shall not escape your
hands. 23I choose not to do it and to fall into your hands, rather than to sin
in the sight of the Lord.”
24 Then Susanna cried out with a loud voice, and the two elders shouted
against her. 25And one of them ran and opened the garden doors. 26When
the household servants heard the shouting in the garden, they rushed in at
the side door to see what had happened to her. 27And when the elders told
their tale, the servants were greatly ashamed, for nothing like this had ever
been said about Susanna.
The Elders Testify against Susanna
28 The next day, when the people gathered at the house of her husband
Jo'akim, the two elders came, full of their wicked plot to have Susanna put
to death. 29They said before the people, “Send for Susanna, the daughter of
Hilki'ah, who is the wife of Jo'akim.” 30So they sent for her. And she came,
with her parents, her children, and all her kindred.
31 Now Susanna was a woman of great refinement, and beautiful in
appearance. 32As she was veiled, the wicked men ordered her to be
unveiled, that they might feed upon her beauty. 33But her family and friends
and all who saw her wept.
34 Then the two elders stood up in the midst of the people, and laid their
hands upon her head. 35And she, weeping, looked up toward heaven, for her
heart trusted in the Lord. 36The elders said, “As we were walking in the
garden alone, this woman came in with two maids, shut the garden doors,
and dismissed the maids. 37Then a young man, who had been hidden, came
to her and lay with her. 38We were in a corner of the garden, and when we
saw this wickedness we ran to them. 39We saw them embracing, but we
could not hold the man, for he was too strong for us, and he opened the
doors and dashed out. 40So we seized this woman and asked her who the
young man was, but she would not tell us. These things we testify.”
41 The assembly believed them, because they were elders of the people
and judges; and they condemned her to death.
42 Then Susanna cried out with a loud voice, and said, “O eternal God,
who discern what is secret, who are aware of all things before they come to
be, 43you know that these men have borne false witness against me. And
now I am to die! Yet I have done none of the things that they have wickedly
invented against me!”
Daniel Rescues Susanna
44 The Lord heard her cry. 45And as she was being led away to be put to
death, God aroused the holy spirit of a young lad named Daniel; 46and he
cried with a loud voice, “I am innocent of the blood of this woman.”
47 All the people turned to him, and said, “What is this that you have
said?” 48Taking his stand in the midst of them, he said, “Are you such fools,
you sons of Israel? Have you condemned a daughter of Israel without
examination and without learning the facts? 49Return to the place of
judgment. For these men have borne false witness against her.”
50 Then all the people returned in haste. And the elders said to him,
“Come, sit among us and inform us, for God has given you that right.”
51And Daniel said to them, “Separate them far from each other, and I will
examine them.”
52 When they were separated from each other, he summoned one of them
and said to him, “You old relic of wicked days, your sins have now come
home, which you have committed in the past, 53pronouncing unjust
judgments, condemning the innocent and letting the guilty go free, though
the Lord said, ‘Do not put to death an innocent and righteous person.’
54Now then, if you really saw her, tell me this: Under what tree did you see
them being intimate with each other?” He answered, “Under a mastic tree.”
a 55And Daniel said, “Very well! You have lied against your own head, for
the angel of God has received the sentence from God and will immediately
cut a you in two.”
56 Then he put him aside, and commanded them to bring the other. And
he said to him, “You offspring of Canaan and not of Judah, beauty has
deceived you and lust has perverted your heart. 57This is how you both have
been dealing with the daughters of Israel, and they were intimate with you
through fear; but a daughter of Judah would not endure your wickedness.
58Now then, tell me: Under what tree did you catch them being intimate
with each other?” He answered, “Under an evergreen oak.” b 59And Daniel

said to him, “Very well! You also have lied against your own head, for the
angel of God is waiting with his sword to saw b you in two, that he may
destroy you both.”
60 Then all the assembly shouted loudly and blessed God, who saves
those who hope in him. 61And they rose against the two elders, for out of
their own mouths Daniel had convicted them of bearing false witness; 62and
they did to them as they had wickedly planned to do to their neighbor;
acting in accordance with the law of Moses, they put them to death. Thus
innocent blood was saved that day.
63 And Hilki'ah and his wife praised God for their daughter Susanna, and
so did Jo'akim her husband and all her kindred, because nothing shameful
was found in her. 64And from that day onward Daniel had a great reputation
among the people.
Daniel and the Priests of Bel
14 * When King Asty'ages was laid with his fathers, Cyrus the Persian
received his kingdom. 2And Daniel was a companion of the king, and was
the most honored of his friends.
3 Now the Babylonians had an idol called Bel, and every day they spent
on it twelve bushels of fine flour and forty sheep and fifty gallons of wine.
4The king revered it and went every day to worship it. But Daniel
worshiped his own God.

5 And the king said to him, “Why do you not worship Bel?” He
answered, “Because I do not revere man-made idols, but the living God,
who created heaven and earth and has dominion over all flesh.”
6 The king said to him, “Do you not think that Bel is a living God? Do
you not see how much he eats and drinks every day?” 7Then Daniel
laughed, and said, “Do not be deceived, O king; for this is but clay inside
and brass outside, and it never ate or drank anything.”
8 Then the king was angry, and he called his priests and said to them, “If
you do not tell me who is eating these provisions, you shall die. 9But if you
prove that Bel is eating them, Daniel shall die, because he blasphemed
against Bel.” And Daniel said to the king, “Let it be done as you have said.”
10 Now there were seventy priests of Bel, besides their wives and
children. And the king went with Daniel into the temple of Bel. 11And the
priests of Bel said, “Behold, we are going outside; you yourself, O king,
shall set forth the food and mix and place the wine, and shut the door and
seal it with your signet. 12And when you return in the morning, if you do
not find that Bel has eaten it all, we will die; or else Daniel will, who is
telling lies about us.” 13They were unconcerned, for beneath the table they
had made a hidden entrance, through which they used to go in regularly and
consume the provisions. 14When they had gone out, the king set forth the
food for Bel. Then Daniel ordered his servants to bring ashes and they
sifted them throughout the whole temple in the presence of the king alone.
Then they went out, shut the door and sealed it with the king’s signet, and
departed. 15In the night the priests came with their wives and children, as
they were accustomed to do, and ate and drank everything.
16 Early in the morning the king rose and came, and Daniel with him.
17And the king said, “Are the seals unbroken, Daniel?” He answered, “They
are unbroken, O king.” 18As soon as the doors were opened, the king looked
at the table, and shouted in a loud voice, “You are great, O Bel; and with
you there is no deceit, none at all.”
19 Then Daniel laughed, and restrained the king from going in, and said,
“Look at the floor, and notice whose footsteps these are.” 20The king said,
“I see the footsteps of men and women and children.”
21 Then the king was enraged, and he seized the priests and their wives
and children; and they showed him the secret doors through which they
were accustomed to enter and devour what was on the table. 22Therefore the
king put them to death, and gave Bel over to Daniel, who destroyed it and
its temple.
Daniel Kills a Dragon
23 There was also a great dragon, which the Babylonians revered. 24And
the king said to Daniel, “You cannot deny that this is a living god; so
worship him.” 25Daniel said, “I will worship the Lord my God, for he is the
living God. 26But if you, O king, will give me permission, I will slay the
dragon without sword or club.” The king said, “I give you permission.”
27 Then Daniel took pitch, fat, and hair, and boiled them together and
made cakes, which he fed to the dragon. The dragon ate them, and burst
open. And Daniel said, “See what you have been worshiping!”
28 When the Babylonians heard it, they were very indignant and
conspired against the king, saying, “The king has become a Jew; he has
destroyed Bel, and slain the dragon, and slaughtered the priests.” 29Going to
the king, they said, “Hand Daniel over to us, or else we will kill you and
your household.” 30The king saw that they were pressing him hard, and
under compulsion he handed Daniel over to them.
Daniel in the Lions’ Den
31 They threw Daniel into the lions’ den, and he was there for six days.
32There were seven lions in the den, and every day they had been given two
human bodies and two sheep; but these were not given to them now, so that
they might devour Daniel.
33 Now the prophet Habak'kuk was in Jude'a. He had boiled pottage and
had broken bread into a bowl, and was going into the field to take it to the
reapers. 34But the angel of the Lord said to Habak'kuk, “Take the dinner
which you have to Babylon, to Daniel, in the lions’ den.” 35Habak'kuk said,
“Sir, I have never seen Babylon, and I know nothing about the den.” 36Then
the angel of the Lord took him by the crown of his head, and lifted him by
his hair and set him down in Babylon, right over the den, with the rushing
sound of the wind itself.
37 Then Habak'kuk shouted, “Daniel, Daniel! Take the dinner which God
has sent you.” 38And Daniel said, “You have remembered me, O God, and
have not forsaken those who love you.” 39So Daniel arose and ate. And the
angel of God immediately returned Habak'kuk to his own place.
40 On the seventh day the king came to mourn for Daniel. When he came
to the den he looked in, and there sat Daniel. 41And the king shouted with a
loud voice, “You are great, O Lord God of Daniel, and there is no other
besides you.” 42And he pulled Daniel a out, and threw into the den the men
who had attempted his destruction, and they were devoured immediately
before his eyes.
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Hosea
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
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THE BOOK OF HOSEA
1 *The word of the LORD that came to Hose'a the son of Bee'ri, in the
days of Uzzi'ah, Jo'tham, A'haz, and Hezeki'ah, kings of Judah, and in the
days of Jerobo'am the son of Jo'ash, king of Israel.
Hosea Marries a Harlot and Has Children
2 When the LORD first spoke through Hose'a, the LORD said to Hosea,
“Go, take to yourself a wife of harlotry and have children of harlotry, for the
land commits great harlotry by forsaking the LORD.” 3So he went and took
Gomer the daughter of Dibla'im, and she conceived and bore him a son.
4 And the LORD said to him, “Call his name Jezre'el; for yet a little while,
and I will punish the house of Je'hu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put
an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5And on that day, I will break
the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezre'el.”
6 She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the LORD said to him,
“Call her name Not pitied, for I will no more have pity on the house of
Israel, to forgive them at all. 7But I will have pity on the house of Judah,
and I will deliver them by the LORD their God; I will not deliver them by
bow, nor by sword, nor by war, nor by horses, nor by horsemen.”
8 When she had weaned Not pitied, she conceived and bore a son. 9And
the LORD said, “Call his name Not my people, for you are not my people
and I am not your God.” a
Israel’s Restoration
10 b Yet the number of the people of Israel shall be like the sand of the
sea, which can be neither measured nor numbered; and in the place where it
was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Sons
of the living God.” 11And the people of Judah and the people of Israel shall
be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head; and
they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezre'el.
Israel’s Infidelity, Punishment, and Redemption
2 c Say to your brother, d “My people,” and to your sister, e “She has
obtained pity.”
2“Plead with your mother, plead—
for she is not my wife,

and I am not her husband—
that she put away her harlotry from her face,
and her adultery from between her breasts;
3lest I strip her naked
and make her as in the day she was born,
and make her like a wilderness,
and set her like a parched land,
and slay her with thirst.
4Upon her children also I will have no pity,
because they are children of harlotry.
5For their mother has played the harlot;
she that conceived them has acted shamefully.

For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers,
who give me my bread and my water,
my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.’
6Therefore I will hedge up her f way with thorns;
and I will build a wall against her,

so that she cannot find her paths.
7She shall pursue her lovers,
but not overtake them;

and she shall seek them,
but shall not find them.
Then she shall say, ‘I will go
and return to my first husband,
for it was better with me then than now.’
8And she did not know
that it was I who gave her

the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and who lavished upon her silver
and gold which they used for Ba'al.
9Therefore I will take back
my grain in its time,

and my wine in its season;
and I will take away my wool and my flax,
which were to cover her nakedness.
10Now I will uncover her lewdness
in the sight of her lovers,
and no one shall rescue her out of my hand.
11And I will put an end to all her mirth,
her feasts, her new moons, her sabbaths,
and all her appointed feasts.
12And I will lay waste her vines and her fig trees,
of which she said,
‘These are my hire,
which my lovers have given me.’
I will make them a forest,
and the beasts of the field shall devour them.
13And I will punish her for the feast days of the Ba'als
when she burned incense to them
and decked herself with her ring and jewelry,
and went after her lovers,
and forgot me, says the LORD.
14“Therefore, behold, I will allure her,
and bring her into the wilderness,

and speak tenderly to her.
15And there I will give her her vineyards,
and make the Valley of A'chor a door of hope.
And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth,
as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt.
16 “And in that day, says the LORD, you will call me, ‘My husband,’ and
no longer will you call me, ‘My Ba'al.’ 17For I will remove the names of the
Ba'als from her mouth, and they shall be mentioned by name no more.
18And I will make for you g a covenant on that day with the beasts of the
field, the birds of the air, and the creeping things of the ground; and I will
abolish h the bow, the sword, and war from the land; and I will make you lie
down in safety. 19And I will espouse you for ever; I will espouse you in
righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love, and in mercy. 20I will espouse
you in faithfulness; and you shall know the LORD.
21“And in that day, says the LORD,
I will answer the heavens

and they shall answer the earth;
22and the earth shall answer the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and they shall answer Jezre'el; i

23 and I will sow him j for myself in the land.
And I will have pity on Not pitied,
and I will say to Not my people, ‘You are my people’;
and he shall say ‘You are my God.’ ”
The Lord’s Love for His Unfaithful People
3 And the LORD said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is beloved of
a paramour and is an adulteress; even as the LORD loves the people of
Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.” 2So I
bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley.
3And I said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many days; you shall not
play the harlot, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you.” 4For the
children of Israel shall dwell many days without king or prince, without
sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or teraphim. 5Afterward the children of
Israel shall return and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and
they shall come in fear to the LORD and to his goodness in the latter days.
God Accuses Israel
4 Hear the word of the LORD, O people of Israel;
for the LORD has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land.
There is no faithfulness or kindness,
and no knowledge of God in the land;
2there is swearing, lying, killing, stealing, and committing adultery;
they break all bounds and murder follows murder.

3Therefore the land mourns,
and all who dwell in it languish,

and also the beasts of the field,
and the birds of the air;
and even the fish of the sea are taken away.
4Yet let no one contend,
and let none accuse,

for with you is my contention, O priest. k
5You shall stumble by day,
the prophet also shall stumble with you by night;
and I will destroy your mother.
6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge;
because you have rejected knowledge,
I reject you from being a priest to me.
And since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.
7The more they increased,
the more they sinned against me;
I will change their glory into shame.
8They feed on the sin of my people;
they are greedy for their iniquity.

9And it shall be like people, like priest;
I will punish them for their ways,

and repay them for their deeds.
10They shall eat, but not be satisfied;
they shall play the harlot, but not multiply;

because they have forsaken the LORD
to cherish harlotry.
11Wine and new wine
take away the understanding.
12My people inquire of a thing of wood,
and their staff gives them oracles.
For a spirit of harlotry has led them astray,
and they have left their God to play the harlot.
13They sacrifice on the tops of the mountains,
and make offerings upon the hills,

under oak, poplar, and terebinth,
because their shade is good.
Therefore your daughters play the harlot,
and your brides commit adultery.
14I will not punish your daughters when they play the harlot,
nor your brides when they commit adultery;

for the men themselves go aside with harlots,
and sacrifice with cult prostitutes,
and a people without understanding shall come to ruin.
15Though you play the harlot, O Israel,
let not Judah become guilty.
Enter not into Gilgal,
nor go up to Beth-a'ven,
and swear not, “As the LORD lives.”
16Like a stubborn heifer,
Israel is stubborn;
can the LORD now feed them
like a lamb in a broad pasture?
17E'phraim is joined to idols,
let him alone.

18A band l of drunkards, they give themselves to harlotry;
they love shame more than their glory. m

19A wind has wrapped them n in its wings,
and they shall be ashamed because of their altars. o

Impending Judgment on Israel and Judah; and a Call to Repentance
5 Hear this, O priests!
Give heed, O house of Israel!
Listen, O house of the king!
For the judgment pertains to you;
for you have been a snare at Mizpah,
and a net spread upon Ta'bor.
2And they have made deep the pit of Shittim; p
but I will chastise all of them.

3I know E'phraim,
and Israel is not hidden from me;

for now, O Ephraim, you have played the harlot,
Israel is defiled.
4Their deeds do not permit them
to return to their God.

For the spirit of harlotry is within them,
and they know not the LORD.
5The pride of Israel testifies to his face;
E'phraim q shall stumble in his guilt;

Judah also shall stumble with them.
6With their flocks and herds they shall go
to seek the LORD,

but they will not find him;
he has withdrawn from them.
7They have dealt faithlessly with the LORD;
for they have borne alien children.
Now the new moon shall devour them with their fields.
8Blow the horn in Gib'e-ah,
the trumpet in Ra'mah.
Sound the alarm at Beth-a'ven;
tremble, r O Benjamin!
9E'phraim shall become a desolation
in the day of punishment;

among the tribes of Israel
I declare what is sure.
10The princes of Judah have become
like those who remove the landmark;
upon them I will pour out
my wrath like water.
11E'phraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment,
because he was determined to go after vanity. s

12Therefore I am like a moth to E'phraim,
and like dry rot to the house of Judah.

13When E'phraim saw his sickness,
and Judah his wound,

then Ephraim went to Assyria,
and sent to the great king. t
But he is not able to cure you
or heal your wound.
14For I will be like a lion to E'phraim,
and like a young lion to the house of Judah.

I, even I, will tear and go away,
I will carry off, and none shall rescue.
15I will return again to my place,
until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face,

and in their distress they seek me, saying,
6 “Come, let us return to the LORD;
for he has torn, that he may heal us;
he has stricken, and he will bind us up.
2After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will raise us up,
that we may live before him.
3Let us know, let us press on to know the LORD;
his going forth is sure as the dawn;

he will come to us as the showers,
as the spring rains that water the earth.”
4What shall I do with you, O E'phraim?
What shall I do with you, O Judah?

Your love is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes early away.
5Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets,
I have slain them by the words of my mouth,

and my judgment goes forth as the light. u
6For I desire mercy and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God, rather than burnt offerings.

7But at v Adam they transgressed the covenant;
there they dealt faithlessly with me.

8Gilead is a city of evildoers,
tracked with blood.
9As robbers lie in wait w for a man,
so the priests are banded together; x

they murder on the way to She'chem,
yes, they commit villainy.
10In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing;
E'phraim’s harlotry is there, Israel is defiled.

11For you also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed.
When I would restore the fortunes of my people,

7 1when I would heal Israel,
the corruption of E'phraim is revealed,
and the wicked deeds of Samar'ia;
for they deal falsely,
the thief breaks in,
and the bandits raid without.
2But they do not consider
that I remember all their evil works.

Now their deeds encompass them,
they are before my face.
3By their wickedness they make the king glad,
and the princes by their treachery.

4They are all adulterers;
they are like a heated oven,

whose baker ceases to stir the fire,
from the kneading of the dough until it is leavened.
5On the day of our king the princes
became sick with the heat of wine;
he stretched out his hand with mockers.
6For like an oven their hearts burn y with intrigue;
all night their anger smolders;

in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.
7All of them are hot as an oven,
and they devour their rulers.

All their kings have fallen;
and none of them calls upon me.
8E'phraim mixes himself with the peoples;
Ephraim is a cake not turned.

9Aliens devour his strength,
and he knows it not;

gray hairs are sprinkled upon him,
and he knows it not.
10The pride of Israel witnesses against him;
yet they do not return to the LORD their God,
nor seek him, for all this.
11E'phraim is like a dove,
silly and without sense,

calling to Egypt, going to Assyria.
12As they go, I will spread over them my net;
I will bring them down like birds of the air;

I will chastise them for their wicked deeds. z
13Woe to them, for they have strayed from me!
Destruction to them, for they have rebelled against me!

I would redeem them,
but they speak lies against me.
14They do not cry to me from the heart,
but they wail upon their beds;
for grain and wine they gash themselves,
they rebel against me.
15Although I trained and strengthened their arms,
yet they devise evil against me.
16They turn to Ba'al; a
they are like a treacherous bow,

their princes shall fall by the sword
because of the insolence of their tongue.
This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.
Israel’s Apostasy
8 Set the trumpet to your lips,
for b a vulture is over the house of the LORD,
because they have broken my covenant,
and transgressed my law.
2To me they cry,
My God, we Israel know you.

3Israel has spurned the good;
the enemy shall pursue him.

4They made kings, but not through me.
They set up princes, but without my knowledge.

With their silver and gold they made idols
for their own destruction.
5I have c spurned your calf, O Samar'ia.
My anger burns against them.

How long will it be
till they are pure 6in Israel? d
A workman made it;
it is not God.
The calf of Samar'ia
shall be broken to pieces. e
7For they sow the wind,
and they shall reap the whirlwind.

The standing grain has no heads,
it shall yield no meal;
if it were to yield,
aliens would devour it.
8Israel is swallowed up;
already they are among the nations

as a useless vessel.
9For they have gone up to Assyria,
a wild donkey wandering alone;

E'phraim has hired lovers.
10Though they hire allies among the nations,
I will soon gather them up.

And they shall cease f for a little while
from anointing g king and princes.
11Because E'phraim has multiplied altars for sinning,
they have become to him altars for sinning.

12Were I to write for him my laws by ten thousands,
they would be regarded as a strange thing.

13They love sacrifice; h
they sacrifice flesh and eat it;

but the LORD has no delight in them.
Now he will remember their iniquity,
and punish their sins;
they shall return to Egypt.
14For Israel has forgotten his Maker,
and built palaces;

and Judah has multiplied fortified cities;
but I will send a fire upon his cities,
and it shall devour his strongholds.
Punishment for Israel’s Sin
9 Rejoice not, O Israel!
Exult not i like the peoples;
for you have played the harlot, forsaking your God.
You have loved a harlot’s hire
upon all threshing floors.
2Threshing floor and winevat shall not feed them,
and the new wine shall fail them.
3They shall not remain in the land of the LORD;
but E'phraim shall return to Egypt,
and they shall eat unclean food in Assyria.
4They shall not pour libations of wine to the LORD;
and they shall not please him with their sacrifices.

Their bread j shall be like mourners’ bread;
all who eat of it shall be defiled;
for their bread shall be for their hunger only;
it shall not come to the house of the LORD.
5What will you do on the day of appointed festival,
and on the day of the feast of the LORD?

6For behold, they are going to Assyria; k
Egypt shall gather them,

Memphis shall bury them.
Nettles shall possess their precious things of silver;
thorns shall be in their tents.
7The days of punishment have come,
the days of recompense have come;

Israel shall know it.
The prophet is a fool,
the man of the spirit is mad,
because of your great iniquity
and great hatred.
8The prophet is the watchman of E'phraim,
the people of my God,

yet a fowler’s snare is on all his ways,
and hatred in the house of his God.
9They have deeply corrupted themselves
as in the days of Gib'e-ah:

he will remember their iniquity,
he will punish their sins.
10Like grapes in the wilderness,
I found Israel.
Like the first fruit on the fig tree,
in its first season,
I saw your fathers.
But they came to Ba'al-pe'or,
and consecrated themselves to Ba'al, l
and became detestable like the thing they loved.
11E'phraim’s glory shall fly away like a bird—
no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!

12Even if they bring up children,
I will bereave them till none is left.

Woe to them
when I depart from them!
13E'phraim’s sons, as I have seen, are destined for a prey; m
Ephraim must lead forth his sons to slaughter.

14Give them, O LORD—
what will you give?
Give them a miscarrying womb
and dry breasts.
15Every evil of theirs is in Gilgal;
there I began to hate them.

Because of the wickedness of their deeds
I will drive them out of my house.
I will love them no more;
all their princes are rebels.
16E'phraim is stricken,
their root is dried up,

they shall bear no fruit.
Even though they bring forth,
I will slay their beloved children.
17My God will cast them off,
because they have not listened to him;

they shall be wanderers among the nations.
Israel’s Sin and Captivity
10 Israel is a luxuriant vine
that yields its fruit.
The more his fruit increased
the more altars he built;
as his country improved
he improved his pillars.
2Their heart is false;
now they must bear their guilt.

The LORD n will break down their altars,
and destroy their pillars.
3For now they will say:
“We have no king,

for we fear not the LORD,
and a king, what could he do for us?”
4They utter mere words;
with empty oaths they make covenants;

so judgment springs up like poisonous weeds
in the furrows of the field.
5The inhabitants of Samar'ia tremble
for the calf o of Beth-a'ven.

Its people shall mourn for it,
and its idolatrous priests shall wail p over it,
over its glory which has departed from it.
6Yes, the thing itself shall be carried to Assyria,
as tribute to the great king. q

E'phraim shall be put to shame,
and Israel shall be ashamed of his idol. r
7Samar'ia’s king shall perish,
like a chip on the face of the waters.

8The high places of A'ven, the sin of Israel,
shall be destroyed.
Thorn and thistle shall grow up
on their altars;
and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us,
and to the hills, Fall upon us.
9From the days of Gib'e-ah, you have sinned, O Israel;
there they have continued.
Shall not war overtake them in Gibe-ah?
10I will come s against the wayward people to chastise them;
and nations shall be gathered against them
when they are chastised t for their double iniquity.
11E'phraim was a trained heifer
that loved to thresh,

and I spared her fair neck;
but I will put Ephraim to the yoke,
Judah must plow,
Jacob must harrow for himself.
12Sow for yourselves righteousness,
reap the fruit u of mercy;

break up your fallow ground,
for it is the time to seek the LORD,
that he may come and rain salvation upon you.
13You have plowed iniquity,
you have reaped injustice,

you have eaten the fruit of lies.
Because you have trusted in your chariots v
and in the multitude of your warriors,
14therefore the tumult of war shall arise among your people,
and all your fortresses shall be destroyed,

as Shal'man destroyed Beth-ar'bel on the day of battle;
mothers were dashed in pieces with their children.
15Thus it shall be done to you, O house of Israel, w
because of your great wickedness.

In the storm x the king of Israel
shall be utterly cut off.
God’s Compassion Despite Israel’s Unfaithfulness
11 When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
2The more I y called them,
the more they went from me; z
they kept sacrificing to the Ba'als,
and burning incense to idols.
3Yet it was I who taught E'phraim to walk,
I took them up in my a arms;
but they did not know that I healed them.
4I led them with cords of compassion, b
with the bands of love,

and I became to them as one
who raises an infant to his cheeks,
and I bent down to them and fed them.
5They shall return to the land of Egypt,
and Assyria shall be their king,

because they have refused to return to me.
6The sword shall rage against their cities,
consume the bars of their gates,

and devour them in their fortresses. c
7My people are bent on turning away from me; d
so they are appointed to the yoke,

and none shall remove it.
8How can I give you up, O E'phraim!
How can I hand you over, O Israel!

How can I make you like Admah!
How can I treat you like Zeboi'im!
My heart recoils within me,
my compassion grows warm and tender.
9I will not execute my fierce anger,
I will not again destroy E'phraim;

for I am God and not man,
the Holy One in your midst,
and I will not come to destroy. e
10They shall go after the LORD,
he will roar like a lion;

yes, he will roar,
and his sons shall come trembling from the west;
11they shall come trembling like birds from Egypt,
and like doves from the land of Assyria;

and I will return them to their homes, says the LORD.
12 f E'phraim has encompassed me with lies,
and the house of Israel with deceit;

but Judah is still known by g God,
and is faithful to the Holy One.
The Long History of Israel’s Rebellion
12 E'phraim herds the wind,
and pursues the east wind all day long;
they multiply falsehood and violence;
they make a bargain with Assyria,
and oil is carried to Egypt.
2The LORD has an indictment against Judah,
and will punish Jacob according to his ways,

and repay him according to his deeds.
3In the womb he took his brother by the heel,
and in his manhood he strove with God.

4He strove with the angel and prevailed,
he wept and sought his favor.

He met God at Bethel,
and there God spoke with him h—
5the LORD the God of hosts,
the LORD is his name:

6“So you, by the help of your God, return,
hold fast to love and justice,

and wait continually for your God.”
7A trader, in whose hands are false balances,
he loves to oppress.
8E'phraim has said, “Ah, but I am rich,
I have gained wealth for myself”;

but all his riches can never offset i
the guilt he has incurred.
9I am the LORD your God
from the land of Egypt;

I will again make you dwell in tents,
as in the days of the appointed feast.
10I spoke to the prophets;
it was I who multiplied visions,

and through the prophets gave parables.
11If there is iniquity in Gilead
they shall surely come to nothing;
if in Gilgal they sacrifice bulls,
their altars also shall be like stone heaps
on the furrows of the field.
12( Jacob fled to the land of Ar'am,
there Israel did service for a wife,

and for a wife he herded sheep.)
13By a prophet the LORD brought Israel up from Egypt,
and by a prophet he was preserved.
14E'phraim has given bitter provocation;
so his LORD will leave his bloodguilt upon him,

and will turn back upon him his reproaches.
God the Savior and Judge of Israel
13 When E'phraim spoke, men trembled;
he was exalted in Israel;
but he incurred guilt through Ba'al and died.
2And now they sin more and more,
and make for themselves molten images,

idols skilfully made of their silver,
all of them the work of craftsmen.
Sacrifice to these, they say. j
Men kiss calves!
3Therefore they shall be like the morning mist
or like the dew that goes early away,

like the chaff that swirls from the threshing floor
or like smoke from a window.
4I am the LORD your God
from the land of Egypt;

you know no God but me,
and besides me there is no savior.
5It was I who knew you in the wilderness,
in the land of drought;

6but when they had fed k to the full,
they were filled, and their heart was lifted up;

therefore they forgot me.
7So I will be to them like a lion,
like a leopard I will lurk beside the way.
8I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs,
I will tear open their breast,

and there I will devour them like a lion,
as a wild beast would tear them.
9I will destroy you, O Israel;
who l can help you?

10Where m now is your king, to save you;
where are all n your princes, o to defend you p—

those of whom you said,
“Give me a king and princes”?
11I have given you kings in my anger,
and I have taken them away in my wrath.

12The iniquity of E'phraim is bound up,
his sin is kept in store.

13The pangs of childbirth come for him,
but he is an unwise son;

for now he does not present himself
at the mouth of the womb.
14Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol?
Shall I redeem them from Death?

O Death, where q are your plagues?
O Sheol, where q is your destruction?
Compassion is hidden from my eyes.
15Though he may flourish as the reed plant, r
the east wind, the wind of the LORD, shall come,

rising from the wilderness;
and his fountain shall dry up,
his spring shall be parched;
it shall strip his treasury
of every precious thing.
16 s Samar'ia shall bear her guilt,
because she has rebelled against her God;

they shall fall by the sword,
their little ones shall be dashed in pieces,
and their pregnant women ripped open.
A Plea for Repentance and a Promise
14 Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God,
for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
2Take with you words
and return to the LORD;
say to him,
“Take away all iniquity;
accept that which is good
and we will render
the fruit t of our lips.
3Assyria shall not save us,
we will not ride upon horses;

and we will say no more, ‘Our God,’
to the work of our hands.
In you the orphan finds mercy.”
4I will heal their faithlessness;
I will love them freely,

for my anger has turned from them.
5I will be as the dew to Israel;
he shall blossom as the lily,

he shall strike root as the poplar; u
6his shoots shall spread out;
his beauty shall be like the olive,

and his fragrance like Lebanon.
7They shall return and dwell beneath my v shadow,
they shall flourish as a garden; w

they shall blossom as the vine,
their fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
8O E'phraim, what have I to do with idols?
It is I who answer and look after you. x

I am like an evergreen cypress,
from me comes your fruit.
9Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;
whoever is discerning, let him know them;
for the ways of the LORD are right,
and the upright walk in them,
but transgressors stumble in them.
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Joel
Chapters
123
OceanofPDF.com
THE BOOK OF JOEL
Lament and Call to Repentance
1 *The word of the LORD that came to Joel, the son of Pethu'el:
2Hear this, you aged men,
give ear, all inhabitants of the land!
Has such a thing happened in your days,
or in the days of your fathers?
3Tell your children of it,
and let your children tell their children,

and their children another generation.
4What the cutting locust left,
the swarming locust has eaten.
What the swarming locust left,
the hopping locust has eaten,
and what the hopping locust left,
the destroying locust has eaten.
5Awake, you drunkards, and weep;
and wail, all you drinkers of wine,
because of the sweet wine,
for it is cut off from your mouth.
6For a nation has come up against my land,
powerful and without number;
its teeth are lions’ teeth,
and it has the fangs of a lioness.
7It has laid waste my vines,
and splintered my fig trees;

it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down;
their branches are made white.
8Lament like a virgin clothed with sackcloth
for the bridegroom of her youth.
9The cereal offering and the drink offering are cut off
from the house of the LORD.

The priests mourn,
the ministers of the LORD.
10The fields are laid waste,
the ground mourns;
because the grain is destroyed,
the wine fails,
the oil languishes.
11Be confounded, O tillers of the soil,
wail, O vinedressers,
for the wheat and the barley;
because the harvest of the field has perished.
12The vine withers,
the fig tree languishes.

Pomegranate, palm, and apple,
all the trees of the field are withered;
and gladness fails
from the sons of men.
13Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests,
wail, O ministers of the altar.
Go in, pass the night in sackcloth,
O ministers of my God!
Because cereal offering and drink offering
are withheld from the house of your God.
14Sanctify a fast,
call a solemn assembly.

Gather the elders
and all the inhabitants of the land
to the house of the LORD your God;
and cry to the LORD.
15Alas for the day!
For the day of the LORD is near,

and as destruction from the Almighty it comes.
16Is not the food cut off
before our eyes,

joy and gladness
from the house of our God?
17The seed shrivels under the clods, a
the storehouses are desolate;
the granaries are ruined
because the grain has failed.
18How the beasts groan!
The herds of cattle are perplexed
because there is no pasture for them;
even the flocks of sheep are dismayed.
19Unto you, O LORD, I cry.
For fire has devoured

the pastures of the wilderness,
and flame has burned
all the trees of the field.
20Even the wild beasts cry to you
because the water brooks are dried up,
and fire has devoured
the pastures of the wilderness.
The Day of the Lord Is Coming
2 Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the LORD is coming, it is near,
2a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!

Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains
a great and powerful people;
their like has never been from of old,
nor will be again after them
through the years of all generations.
3Fire devours before them,
and behind them a flame burns.

The land is like the garden of Eden before them,
but after them a desolate wilderness,
and nothing escapes them.
4Their appearance is like the appearance of horses,
and like war horses they run.
5As with the rumbling of chariots,
they leap on the tops of the mountains,

like the crackling of a flame of fire
devouring the stubble,
like a powerful army
drawn up for battle.
6Before them peoples are in anguish,
all faces grow pale.
7Like warriors they charge,
like soldiers they scale the wall.
They march each on his way,
they do not swerve b from their paths.
8They do not jostle one another,
each marches in his path;

they burst through the weapons
and are not halted.
9They leap upon the city,
they run upon the walls;

they climb up into the houses,
they enter through the windows like a thief.
10The earth quakes before them,
the heavens tremble.

The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
11The LORD utters his voice
before his army,
for his host is exceedingly great;
he that executes his word is powerful.
For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome;
who can endure it?
12“Yet even now,” says the LORD,
“return to me with all your heart,

with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
13 and tear your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the LORD, your God,

for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in mercy,
and repents of evil.
14Who knows whether he will not turn and repent,
and leave a blessing behind him,
a cereal offering and a drink offering
for the LORD, your God?
15Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sanctify a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
16 gather the people.
Sanctify the congregation;

assemble the elders;
gather the children,
even nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her chamber.
17Between the vestibule and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep
and say, “Spare your people, O LORD,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
a byword among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’ ”
18Then the LORD became jealous for his land,
and had pity on his people.

19The LORD answered and said to his people,
“Behold, I am sending to you

grain, wine, and oil,
and you will be satisfied;
and I will no more make you
a reproach among the nations.
20“I will remove the northerner far from you,
and drive him into a parched and desolate land,
his front into the eastern sea,
and his rear into the western sea;
the stench and foul smell of him will rise,
for he has done great things.
21“Fear not, O land;
be glad and rejoice,
for the LORD has done great things!
22Fear not, you beasts of the field,
for the pastures of the wilderness are green;

the tree bears its fruit,
the fig tree and vine give their full yield.
23“Be glad, O sons of Zion,
and rejoice in the LORD, your God;
for he has given the early rain for your vindication,
he has poured down for you abundant rain,
the early and the latter rain, as before.
24“The threshing floors shall be full of grain,
the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
25I will restore to you the years
which the swarming locust has eaten,

the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
my great army, which I sent among you.
26“You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the LORD your God,

who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.
27You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I, the LORD, am your God and there is none else.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.
28 c “And it shall come to pass afterward,
that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.
29Even upon the menservants and maidservants
in those days, I will pour out my spirit.

Portents in Heaven and Judgment of the Nations
30 “And I will give signs in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire
and columns of smoke. 31The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon
to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 32And it
shall come to pass that all who call upon the name of the LORD shall be
delivered; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who
escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom
the LORD calls.
3 d “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the
fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2I will gather all the nations and bring
them down to the valley of Jehosh’aphat, and I will enter into judgment
with them there, on account of my people and my heritage Israel, because
they have scattered them among the nations, and have divided up my land,
3and have cast lots for my people, and have given a boy for a harlot, and
have sold a girl for wine, and have drunk it.
4 “What are you to me, O Tyre and Si'don, and all the regions of
Philis'tia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me
back, I will repay your deed upon your own head swiftly and speedily. 5For
you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures
into your temples. e 6You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to
the Greeks, removing them far from their own border. 7But now I will stir
them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will repay your
deed upon your own head. 8I will sell your sons and your daughters into the
hand of the sons of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabe'ans, to a
nation far off; for the LORD has spoken.”
9Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare war,
stir up the mighty men.
Let all the men of war draw near,
let them come up.
10Beat your plowshares into swords,
and your pruning hooks into spears;

let the weak say, “I am a warrior.”
11Hasten and come,
all you nations round about,

gather yourselves there.
Bring down your warriors, O LORD.
12Let the nations bestir themselves,
and come up to the valley of Jehosh'aphat;
for there I will sit to judge
all the nations round about.
13Put in the sickle,
for the harvest is ripe.

Go in, tread,
for the wine press is full.
The vats overflow,
for their wickedness is great.
14Multitudes, multitudes,
in the valley of decision!

For the day of the LORD is near
in the valley of decision.
15The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
16And the LORD roars from Zion,
and utters his voice from Jerusalem,

and the heavens and the earth shake.
But the LORD is a refuge to his people,
a stronghold to the people of Israel.
17“So you shall know that I am the LORD your God,
who dwell in Zion, my holy mountain.

And Jerusalem shall be holy
and strangers shall never again pass through it.
18“And in that day
the mountains shall drip sweet wine,

and the hills shall flow with milk,
and all the stream beds of Judah
shall flow with water;
and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the LORD
and water the valley of Shittim.
19“Egypt shall become a desolation
and E'dom a desolate wilderness,

for the violence done to the people of Judah,
because they have shed innocent blood in their land.
20But Judah shall be inhabited for ever,
and Jerusalem to all generations.

21I will avenge their blood, and I will not clear the guilty, g
for the LORD dwells in Zion.”
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Amos
Chapters
123456789
OceanofPDF.com
THE BOOK OF AMOS
Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors
1 *The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Teko'a, which
he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzzi'ah king of Judah and in the
days of Jerobo'am the son of Jo'ash, king of Israel, two years a before the
earthquake. 2And he said:
“The LORD roars from Zion,
and utters his voice from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds mourn,
and the top of Carmel withers.”
“For three transgressions of Damascus,

and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; b
because they have threshed Gilead
with threshing sledges of iron.
4So I will send a fire upon the house of Haz'ael,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Benha'dad.

5I will break the bar of Damascus,
and cut off the inhabitants from the Valley of A'ven, c

and him that holds the scepter from Beth-e'den;
and the people of Syria shall go into exile to Kir,”
says the LORD.
“For three transgressions of Gaza,

because they carried into exile a whole people
to deliver them up to E'dom.
7So I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza,
and it shall devour her strongholds.

8I will cut off the inhabitants from Ash'dod,
and him that holds the scepter from Ash'kelon;

I will turn my hand against Ek'ron;
and the remnant of the Philis'tines shall perish,”
says the Lord GOD.
“For three transgressions of Tyre,
because they delivered up a whole people to E'dom,
and did not remember the covenant of brotherhood.
10So I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre,
and it shall devour her strongholds.”

“For three transgressions of E'dom,

because he pursued his brother with the sword,
and cast off all pity,
and his anger tore perpetually,
and he kept his wrath d for ever.
12So I will send a fire upon Te'man,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Bozrah.”

“For three transgressions of the Am'monites,

because they have ripped up women with child in Gilead,
that they might enlarge their border.
14So I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah,
and it shall devour her strongholds,
with shouting in the day of battle,
with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind;
15and their king shall go into exile,
he and his princes together,”

says the LORD.
Judgment on Israel, Judah, and the Nations
“For three transgressions of Moab,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; e
because he burned to lime
the bones of the king of E'dom.
2So I will send a fire upon Moab,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Ker'ioth,
and Moab shall die amid uproar,
amid shouting and the sound of the trumpet;
3I will cut off the ruler from its midst,
and will slay all its princes with him,”
says the LORD.
“For three transgressions of Judah,

because they have rejected the law of the LORD,
and have not kept his statutes,
but their lies have led them astray,
after which their fathers walked.
5So I will send a fire upon Judah,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem.”

“For three transgressions of Israel,

because they sell the righteous for silver,
and the needy for a pair of shoes—
7they that trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth,
and turn aside the way of the afflicted;

a man and his father go in to the same maiden,
so that my holy name is profaned;
8they lay themselves down beside every altar
upon garments taken in pledge;
and in the house of their God they drink
the wine of those who have been fined.
9“Yet I destroyed the Am'orite before them,
whose height was like the height of the cedars,

and who was as strong as the oaks;
I destroyed his fruit above,
and his roots beneath.
10Also I brought you up out of the land of Egypt,
and led you forty years in the wilderness,
to possess the land of the Am'orite.
11And I raised up some of your sons for prophets,
and some of your young men for Naz'irites.
Is it not indeed so, O people of Israel?”
says the LORD.
12“But you made the Naz'irites drink wine,
and commanded the prophets,
saying, ‘You shall not prophesy.’
13“Behold, I will press you down in your place,
as a cart full of sheaves presses down.
14Flight shall perish from the swift,
and the strong shall not retain his strength,
nor shall the mighty save his life;
15he who handles the bow shall not stand,
and he who is swift of foot shall not save himself,

nor shall he who rides the horse save his life;
16and he who is stout of heart among the mighty
shall flee away naked in that day,”

says the LORD.
Israel’s Transgression and Punishment
3 Hear this word that the LORD has spoken against you, O sons of Israel,
against the whole family which I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2“You only have I known
of all the families of the earth;

therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities.
3“Do two walk together,
unless they have made an appointment?

4Does a lion roar in the forest,
when he has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from his den,
if he has taken nothing?
5Does a bird fall in a snare on the earth,
when there is no trap for it?

Does a snare spring up from the ground,
when it has taken nothing?
6Isa trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does evil befall a city,
unless the LORD has done it?
7Surely the Lord GOD does nothing,
without revealing his secret

to his servants the prophets.
8The lion has roared;
who will not fear?

The Lord GOD has spoken;
who can but prophesy?”
9Proclaim to the strongholds in Assyria, f
and to the strongholds in the land of Egypt,

and say, “Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samar'ia,
and see the great tumults within her,
and the oppressions in her midst.”
10“They do not know how to do right,” says the LORD,
“those who store up violence and robbery in their strongholds.”
11Therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
“An adversary shall surround the land,

and bring down your defenses from you,
and your strongholds shall be plundered.”
12 Thus says the LORD: “As the shepherd rescues from the mouth of the
lion two legs, or a piece of an ear, so shall the people of Israel who dwell in
Samar'ia be rescued, with the corner of a couch and part g of a bed.”
13“Hear, and testify against the house of Jacob,”
says the Lord GOD, the God of hosts,

14“that on the day I punish Israel for his transgressions,
I will punish the altars of Bethel,

and the horns of the altar shall be cut off
and fall to the ground.
15I will strike the winter house with the summer house;
and the houses of ivory shall perish,
and the great houses h shall come to an end,”
says the LORD.
Punishments of Israel
4 “Hear this word, you cows of Bashan,
who are in the mountain of Samar'ia,
who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,
who say to their husbands, ‘Bring, that we may drink!’
2The Lord GOD has sworn by his holiness
that, behold, the days are coming upon you,

when they shall take you away with hooks,
even the last of you with fishhooks.
3And you shall go out through the breaches,
every one straight before her;

and you shall be cast forth into Har'mon,”
says the LORD.
4“Come to Bethel, and transgress;
to Gilgal, and multiply transgression;
bring your sacrifices every morning,
your tithes every three days;
5offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened,
and proclaim freewill offerings, publish them;

for so you love to do, O people of Israel!”
says the Lord GOD.
6“I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities,
and lack of bread in all your places,

yet you did not return to me,”
says the LORD.
7“And I also withheld the rain from you
when there were yet three months to the harvest;

I would send rain upon one city,
and send no rain upon another city;
one field would be rained upon,
and the field on which it did not rain withered;
8so two or three cities wandered to one city
to drink water, and were not satisfied;

says the LORD.
9“I struck you with blight and mildew;
I laid waste i your gardens and your vineyards;
your fig trees and your olive trees the locust devoured;
says the LORD.
10“I sent among you a pestilence after the manner of Egypt;
I slew your young men with the sword;

I carried away your horses; j
and I made the stench of your camp go up into your nostrils;
says the LORD.
11“I overthrew some of you,
as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomor'rah,

and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning;
says the LORD.
12“Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel;
because I will do this to you,

prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”
13For behold, he who forms the mountains, and creates the wind,
and declares to man what is his thought;

who makes the morning darkness,
and treads on the heights of the earth—
the LORD, the God of hosts, is his name!
A Lamentation for Israel’s Sins
5 Hear this word which I take up over you in lamentation, O house of
Israel:
2“Fallen, no more to rise,
is the virgin Israel;
forsaken on her land,
with none to raise her up.”
3For thus says the Lord GOD:
“The city that went forth a thousand

shall have a hundred left,
and that which went forth a hundred
shall have ten left
to the house of Israel.”
4For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel:
“Seek me and live;

5 but do not seek Bethel,
and do not enter into Gilgal

or cross over to Be'er-she'ba;
for Gilgal shall surely go into exile,
and Bethel shall come to nothing.”
6Seek the LORD and live,
lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph,

and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel,
7O you who turn justice to wormwood,
and cast down righteousness to the earth!

8He who made the Pleiades and Orion,
and turns deep darkness into the morning,

and darkens the day into night,
who calls for the waters of the sea,
and pours them out upon the surface of the earth,
the LORD is his name,
9who makes destruction flash forth against the strong,
so that destruction comes upon the fortress.

10They hate him who reproves in the gate,
and they abhor him who speaks the truth.

11Therefore because you trample upon the poor
and take from him exactions of wheat,

you have built houses of hewn stone,
but you shall not dwell in them;
you have planted pleasant vineyards,
but you shall not drink their wine.
12For I know how many are your transgressions,
and how great are your sins—
you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe,
and turn aside the needy in the gate.
13Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time;
for it is an evil time.

14Seek good, and not evil,
that you may live;
and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you,
as you have said.
15Hate evil, and love good,
and establish justice in the gate;

it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts,
will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
16Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord:
“In all the squares there shall be wailing;

and in all the streets they shall say, ‘Alas! alas!’
They shall call the farmers to mourning
and to wailing those who are skilled in lamentation,
17and in all vineyards there shall be wailing,
for I will pass through the midst of you,”

says the LORD.
18Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD!
Why would you have the day of the LORD?
It is darkness, and not light;
19 as if a man fled from a lion,
and a bear met him;

or went into the house and leaned with his hand against the wall,
and a serpent bit him.
20Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light,
and gloom with no brightness in it?

21“Ihate, I despise your feasts,
and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
22Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and cereal offerings,
I will not accept them,

and the peace offerings of your fatted beasts
I will not look upon.
23Take away from me the noise of your songs;
to the melody of your harps I will not listen.

24But let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

25 “Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings the forty years in the
wilderness, O house of Israel? 26You shall take up Sakkuth your king, and
Kai'wan your star-god, your images, k which you made for yourselves;
27therefore I will take you into exile beyond Damascus,” says the LORD,
whose name is the God of hosts.
Punishment of Complacency and Pride
6 “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion,
and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samar'ia,
the notable men of the first of the nations,
to whom the house of Israel come!
2Pass over to Cal'neh, and see;
and from there go to Ha'math the great;

then go down to Gath of the Philis'tines.
Are they better than these kingdoms?
Or is their territory greater than your territory,
3O you who put far away the evil day,
and bring near the seat of violence?

4“Woe to those who lie upon beds of ivory,
and stretch themselves upon their couches,

and eat lambs from the flock,
and calves from the midst of the stall;
5who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp,
and like David invent for themselves instruments of music;
6who drink wine in bowls,
and anoint themselves with the finest oils,

but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!
7Therefore they shall now be the first of those to go into exile,
and the revelry of those who stretch themselves shall pass away.”
8The Lord GOD has sworn by himself
(says the LORD, the God of hosts):

“I abhor the pride of Jacob,
and hate his strongholds;
and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.”
Oppression and Devastation to Come
9 And if ten men remain in one house, they shall die. 10And when a
man’s kinsman, he who burns him, l shall take him up to bring the bones out
of the house, and shall say to him who is in the innermost parts of the
house, “Is there still any one with you?” he shall say, “No”; and he shall
say, “Hush! We must not mention the name of the LORD.”
11For behold, the LORD commands,
and the great house shall be struck down into fragments,

and the little house into bits.
12Do horses run upon rocks?
Does one plow the sea with oxen?

But you have turned justice into poison
and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood—
13you who rejoice in Lo-de'bar, n
who say, “Have we not by our own strength
taken Karna'im o for ourselves?”
14“For behold, I will raise up against you a nation,
O house of Israel,” says the LORD, the God of hosts;

“and they shall oppress you from the entrance of Ha'math
to the Brook of the Ar'abah.”
Locusts and Fire
7 Thus the Lord GOD showed me: behold, he was forming locusts in the
beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and behold, it was the
latter growth after the king’s mowings. 2When they had finished eating the
grass of the land, I said,
“O Lord GOD, forgive, I beg you!
How can Jacob stand?
He is so small!”
3The LORD repented concerning this;
“It shall not be,” said the LORD.

4 Thus the Lord GOD showed me: behold, the Lord GOD was calling for
a judgment by fire, and it devoured the great deep and was eating up the
land. 5Then I said,
“O Lord GOD, cease, I beg you!
How can Jacob stand?
He is so small!”
6The LORD repented concerning this;
“This also shall not be,” said the Lord GOD.
The Plumb Line
7 He showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with
a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. 8And the LORD said to me,
“Amos, what do you see?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said,
“Behold, I am setting a plumb line
in the midst of my people Israel;
I will never again pass by them;
9the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,

and I will rise against the house of Jerobo'am with the sword.”
Amaziah’s Complaint
10 Then Amazi'ah the priest of Bethel sent to Jerobo'am king of Israel,
saying, “Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel;
the land is not able to bear all his words. 11For thus Amos has said,
‘Jerobo'am shall die by the sword,
and Israel must go into exile away from his land.’ ”
12And Amazi'ah said to Amos, “O seer, go, flee away to the land of
Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there; 13but never again prophesy
at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom.”
Amos’ Reply
14 Then Amos answered Amazi'ah, “I am no prophet, nor a prophet’s
son; p but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, 15and the LORD
took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy
to my people Israel.’
16“Now therefore hear the word of the LORD.
You say, ‘Do not prophesy against Israel,

and do not preach against the house of Isaac.’
‘Your wife shall be a harlot in the city,

and your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword,
and your land shall be parceled out by line;
you yourself shall die in an unclean land,
and Israel shall surely go into exile away from its land.’ ”
The Basket of Summer Fruit
8 Thus the Lord GOD showed me: behold, a basket of summer fruit. q
2And he said, “Amos, what do you see?” And I said, “A basket of summer
fruit.” q Then the LORD said to me,
“The end r has come upon my people Israel;
I will never again pass by them.
3The songs of the temple s shall become wailings in that day,”
says the Lord GOD;

“the dead bodies shall be many;
in every place they shall be cast out in silence.” t
4Hear this, you who trample upon the needy,
and bring the poor of the land to an end,

5saying, “When will the new moon be over,
that we may sell grain?

And the sabbath,
that we may offer wheat for sale,
that we may make the ephah small and the shekel great,
and deal deceitfully with false balances,
6that we may buy the poor for silver
and the needy for a pair of sandals,

and sell the refuse of the wheat?”
7The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
“Surely I will never forget any of their deeds.

8Shall not the land tremble on this account,
and every one mourn who dwells in it,

and all of it rise like the Nile,
and be tossed about and sink again, like the Nile of Egypt?”
9“And on that day,” says the Lord GOD,
“I will make the sun go down at noon,

and darken the earth in broad daylight.
10I will turn your feasts into mourning,
and all your songs into lamentation;

I will bring sackcloth upon all loins,
and baldness on every head;
I will make it like the mourning for an only son,
and the end of it like a bitter day.
11“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord GOD,
“when I will send a famine on the land;
not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water,
but of hearing the words of the LORD.
12They shall wander from sea to sea,
and from north to east;

they shall run back and forth, to seek the word of the LORD,
but they shall not find it.
13“In that day the fair virgins and the young men
shall faint for thirst.
14Those who swear by Ash'imah of Samar'ia,
and say, ‘As your god lives, O Dan,’

and, ‘As the way of Be'er-she'ba lives,’
they shall fall, and never rise again.”
Destruction, Captivity, and Restoration
9 I saw the LORD standing beside u the altar, and he said:
“Strike the capitals until the thresholds shake,
and shatter them on the heads of all the people; v
and what are left of them I will slay with the sword;
not one of them shall flee away,
not one of them shall escape.
2“Though they dig into Sheol,
from there shall my hand take them;
though they climb up to heaven,
from there I will bring them down.
3Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel,
from there I will search out and take them;

and though they hide from my sight at the bottom of the sea,
there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them.
4And though they go into captivity before their enemies,
there I will command the sword, and it shall slay them;
and I will set my eyes upon them for evil and not for good.”
5TheLord, GOD of hosts,
he who touches the earth and it melts,
and all who dwell in it mourn,
and all of it rises like the Nile,
and sinks again, like the Nile of Egypt;
6who builds his upper chambers in the heavens,
and founds his vault upon the earth;

who calls for the waters of the sea,
and pours them out upon the surface of the earth—
the LORD is his name.
7“Are you not like the Ethiopians to me,
O people of Israel?” says the LORD.

“Did I not bring up Israel from the land of Egypt,
and the Philis'tines from Caphtor and the Syrians from Kir?
8Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom,
and I will destroy it from the surface of the ground;

except that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,”
says the LORD.
9“For behold, I will command,
and shake the house of Israel among all the nations

as one shakes with a sieve,
but no pebble shall fall upon the earth.
10All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword,
who say, ‘Evil shall not overtake or meet us.’

11“In that day I will raise up
the booth of David that is fallen

and repair its breaches,
and raise up its ruins,
and rebuild it as in the days of old;
12that they may possess the remnant of E'dom
and all the nations who are called by my name,”

says the LORD who does this.
13“Behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD,
“when the plowman shall overtake the reaper

and the treader of grapes him who sows the seed;
the mountains shall drip sweet wine,
and all the hills shall flow with it.
14I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel,
and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine,
and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit.
15I will plant them upon their land,
and they shall never again be plucked up

out of the land which I have given them,”
says the LORD your God.
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THE BOOK OF OBADIAH
Edom Will Be Brought Low and Israel Triumph
1*The vision of Obadi'ah.
Thus says the Lord GOD concerning E'dom:
We have heard tidings from the LORD,
and a messenger has been sent among the nations:
“Rise up! let us rise against her for battle!”
2Behold, I will make you small among the nations,
you shall be utterly despised.

3The pride of your heart has deceived you,
you who live in the clefts of the rock, a

whose dwelling is high,
who say in your heart,
“Who will bring me down to the ground?”
4Though you soar aloft like the eagle,
though your nest is set among the stars,

from there I will bring you down,
says the LORD.
5If thieves came to you,
if plunderers by night—
how you have been destroyed!—
would they not steal only enough for themselves?
If grape gatherers came to you,
would they not leave gleanings?
6How Esau has been pillaged,
his treasures sought out!

7All your allies have deceived you,
they have driven you to the border;

your confederates have prevailed against you;
your trusted friends have set a trap under you—
there is no understanding of it.
8Will I not on that day, says the LORD,
destroy the wise men out of E'dom,

and understanding out of Mount Esau?
9And your mighty men shall be dismayed, O Te'man,
so that every man from Mount Esau will be cut off by slaughter.
10For the violence done to your brother Jacob,
shame shall cover you,
and you shall be cut off for ever.
11On the day that you stood aloof,
on the day that strangers carried off his wealth,

and foreigners entered his gates
and cast lots for Jerusalem,
you were like one of them.
12But you should not have gloated over the day of your brother
in the day of his misfortune;

you should not have rejoiced over the people of Judah
in the day of their ruin;
you should not have boasted
in the day of distress.
13You should not have entered the gate of my people
in the day of his calamity;

you should not have gloated over his disaster
in the day of his calamity;
you should not have looted his goods
in the day of his calamity.
14You should not have stood at the parting of the ways
to cut off his fugitives;

you should not have delivered up his survivors
in the day of distress.
15For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations.
As you have done, it shall be done to you,

your deeds shall return on your own head.
16For as you have drunk upon my holy mountain,
all the nations round about shall drink;

they shall drink, and stagger, b
and shall be as though they had not been.
17But in Mount Zion there shall be those that escape,
and it shall be holy;
and the house of Jacob shall possess their own possessions.
18The house of Jacob shall be a fire,
and the house of Joseph a flame,

and the house of Esau stubble;
they shall burn them and consume them,
and there shall be no survivor to the house of Esau;
19Those of the Neg'eb shall possess Mount Esau,
and those of the Shephe'lah the land of the Philis'tines;
they shall possess the land of E'phraim and the land of Samar'ia
and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
20The exiles in Ha'lah c who are of the people of Israel
shall possess d Phoeni'cia as far as Zar'ephath;

and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sephar'ad
shall possess the cities of the Neg'eb.
21Saviors shall go up to Mount Zion
to rule Mount Esau;

and the kingdom shall be the LORD’s.
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Jonah
Chapters
1234
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THE BOOK OF JONAH
Jonah Tries to Flee God
1 Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amit'tai, saying,
2 “Arise, go to Nin'eveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their
wickedness has come up before me.” 3But Jonah rose to flee to Tar'shish
from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship
going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went on board, to go with them to
Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD.
4 But the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty
tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5Then the
mariners were afraid, and each cried to his god; and they threw the wares
that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone
down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down, and was fast asleep.
6So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper?
Arise, call upon your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we
do not perish.”
7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may
know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and
the lot fell upon Jonah. 8Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account
this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And from where do
you come? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9And he
said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who
made the sea and the dry land.” 10Then the men were exceedingly afraid,
and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that
he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
Jonah Is Thrown into the Sea and Swallowed
11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may
quiet down for us?” For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12He
said to them, “Take me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet
down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has
come upon you.” 13Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring the ship back
to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous
against them. 14Therefore they cried to the LORD, “We beg you, O LORD, let
us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not on us innocent blood; for you,
O LORD, have done as it pleased you.” 15So they took up Jonah and threw
him into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging. 16Then the men feared
the LORD exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made
vows.
17 a And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah
was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah’s Prayer and Deliverance
2 Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the belly of the fish,
2saying,
“I called to the LORD, out of my distress,

and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
and you heard my voice.
3For you cast me into the deep,
into the heart of the seas,

and the flood was round about me;
all your waves and your billows
passed over me.
4Then I said, ‘I am cast out
from your presence;

how shall I again look
upon your holy temple?’
5The waters closed in over me,
the deep was round about me;

weeds were wrapped about my head
6 at the roots of the mountains.
I went down to the land

whose bars closed upon me for ever;
yet you brought up my life from the Pit,
O LORD my God.
7When my soul fainted within me,
I remembered the LORD;
and my prayer came to you,
into your holy temple.
8Those who pay regard to vain idols
forsake their true loyalty.

9But I with the voice of thanksgiving
will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
Deliverance belongs to the LORD!”
10And the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry
land.
Nineveh Repents
3 Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying,
2“Arise, go to Nin'eveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I
tell you.” 3So Jonah arose and went to Nin'eveh, according to the word of
the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days’ journey
in breadth. 4Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he
cried, “Yet forty days, and Nin'eveh shall be overthrown!” 5And the people
of Nin'eveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth,
from the greatest of them to the least of them.
6 Then tidings reached the king of Nin'eveh, and he arose from his
throne, removed his robe, and covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in
ashes. 7And he made proclamation and published through Nin'eveh, “By the
decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock,
taste anything; let them not feed, or drink water, 8but let man and beast be
covered with sackcloth, and let them cry mightily to God; yes, let every one
turn from his evil way and from the violence which is in his hands. 9Who
knows, God may yet repent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we perish
not?”
10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way,
God repented of the evil which he had said he would do to them; and he did
not do it.
Jonah’s Anger
4 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed
to the LORD and said, “I pray you, LORD, is not this what I said when I was
yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tar'shish; for I knew
that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in
mercy, and that you repent of evil. 3Therefore now, O LORD, take my life
from me, I beg you, for it is better for me to die than to live.” 4And the
LORD said, “Do you do well to be angry?” 5Then Jonah went out of the city
and sat to the east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat
under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city.
God Reproves Jonah
6 And the LORD God appointed a plant, b and made it come up over
Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his
discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. b 7But
when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm which attacked
the plant, b so that it withered. 8When the sun rose, God appointed a sultry
east wind, and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah so that he was faint; and
he asked that he might die, and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
9But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” b And
he said, “I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” 10And the LORD said,
“You pity the plant, b for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow,
which came into being in a night, and perished in a night. 11And should not
I pity Nin'eveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and
twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left,
and also much cattle?”
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Micah
Chapters
1234567
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THE BOOK OF MICAH
Prophecy concerning Samaria and Judah
1 *The word of the LORD that came to Mi'cah of Mo'resheth in the days
of Jo'tham, A'haz, and Hezeki'ah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning
Samar'ia and Jerusalem.
2Hear, you peoples, all of you;
listen, O earth, and all that is in it;
and let the Lord GOD be a witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.
3For behold, the LORD is coming forth out of his place,
and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.
4And the mountains will melt under him
and the valleys will be cleft,

like wax before the fire,
like waters poured down a steep place.
5All this is for the transgression of Jacob
and for the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the transgression of Jacob?
Is it not Samar'ia?
And what is the sin of the house a of Judah?
Is it not Jerusalem?
6Therefore I will make Samar'ia a heap in the open country,
a place for planting vineyards;

and I will pour down her stones into the valley,
and uncover her foundations.
7All her images shall be beaten to pieces,
all her hires shall be burned with fire,

and all her idols I will lay waste;
for from the hire of a harlot she gathered them,
and to the hire of a harlot they shall return.
8For this I will lament and wail;
I will go stripped and naked;

I will make lamentation like the jackals,
and mourning like the ostriches.
9For her wound b is incurable;
and it has come to Judah,
it has reached to the gate of my people,
to Jerusalem.
10Tell it not in Gath,
weep not at all;

in Beth''-le-aph'rah
roll yourselves in the dust.
11Pass on your way,
inhabitants of Sha'phir,
in nakedness and shame;
the inhabitants of Za'anan
do not come forth;
the wailing of Beth-e'zel
shall take away from you its standing place.
12For the inhabitants of Ma'roth
wait anxiously for good,

because evil has come down from the LORD
to the gate of Jerusalem.
13Harness the steeds to the chariots,
inhabitants of La'chish;
you were c the beginning of sin
to the daughter of Zion,
for in you were found
the transgressions of Israel.
14Therefore you shall give parting gifts
to Mo'resheth-gath;
the houses of Ach'zib shall be a deceitful thing
to the kings of Israel.
15I will again bring a conqueror upon you,
inhabitants of Mare'shah;
the glory of Israel
shall come to Adul'lam.
16Make yourselves bald and cut off your hair,
for the children of your delight;
make yourselves as bald as the eagle,
for they shall go from you into exile.
Evils of the People Denounced but a Remnant Will Be Gathered
2 Woe to those who devise wickedness
and work evil upon their beds!
When the morning dawns, they perform it,
because it is in the power of their hand.
2They covet fields, and seize them;
and houses, and take them away;
they oppress a man and his house,
a man and his inheritance.
Behold, against this family I am devising evil,

from which you cannot remove your necks;
and you shall not walk haughtily,
for it will be an evil time.
4In that day they shall take up a taunt song against you,
and wail with bitter lamentation,
and say, “We are utterly ruined;
he changes the portion of my people;
how he removes it from me!
Among our captors d he divides our fields.”
5Therefore you will have none to cast the line by lot
in the assembly of the LORD.
6"Do not preach”—thus they preach—
“one should not preach of such things;
disgrace will not overtake us.”
7Should this be said, O house of Jacob?
Is the Spirit of the LORD impatient?

Are these his doings?
Do not my words do good
to him who walks uprightly?
8But you rise against my people e as an enemy;
you strip the robe from the peaceful, f

from those who pass by trustingly
with no thought of war.
9The women of my people you drive out
from their pleasant houses;
from their young children you take away
my glory for ever.
10Arise and go,
for this is no place to rest;
because of uncleanness that destroys
with a grievous destruction.
11If a man should go about and utter wind and lies,
saying, “I will preach to you of wine and strong drink,”
he would be the preacher for this people!
12I will surely gather all of you, O Jacob,
I will gather the remnant of Israel;

I will set them together
like sheep in a fold,
like a flock in its pasture,
a noisy multitude of men.
13He who opens the breach will go up before them;
they will break through and pass the gate,

going out by it.
Their king will pass on before them,
the LORD at their head.
Evil Rulers and Prophets
3 And I said:
Hear, you heads of Jacob
and rulers of the house of Israel!
Is it not for you to know justice?—
2 you who hate the good and love the evil,
who tear the skin from off my people,

and their flesh from off their bones;
3who eat the flesh of my people,
and flay their skin from off them,

and break their bones in pieces,
and chop them up like meat g in a kettle,
like flesh in a caldron.
4Then they will cry to the LORD,
but he will not answer them;
he will hide his face from them at that time,
because they have made their deeds evil.
5Thus says the LORD concerning the prophets
who lead my people astray,

who cry “Peace”
when they have something to eat,
but declare war against him
who puts nothing into their mouths.
6Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision,
and darkness to you, without divination.

The sun shall go down upon the prophets,
and the day shall be black over them;
7the seers shall be disgraced,
and the diviners put to shame;
they shall all cover their lips,
for there is no answer from God.
8But as for me, I am filled with power,
with the Spirit of the LORD,

and with justice and might,
to declare to Jacob his transgression
and to Israel his sin.
9Hear this, you heads of the house of Jacob
and rulers of the house of Israel,

who abhor justice
and pervert all equity,
10who build Zion with blood
and Jerusalem with wrong.

11Its heads give judgment for a bribe,
its priests teach for hire,
its prophets divine for money;
yet they lean upon the LORD and say,
“Is not the LORD in the midst of us?
No evil shall come upon us.”
12Therefore because of you
Zion shall be plowed as a field;

Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins,
and the mountain of the house a wooded height.
Prophecy of Restoration of Zion
4 It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the LORD
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised up above the hills;
and peoples shall flow to it,
2 and many nations shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,

to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
3He shall judge between many peoples,
and shall decide for strong nations afar off;

and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more;
4but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree,
and none shall make them afraid;

for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.
5For all the peoples walk
each in the name of its god,

but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God
for ever and ever.
6In that day, says the LORD,
I will assemble the lame
and gather those who have been driven away,
and those whom I have afflicted;
7and the lame I will make the remnant;
and those who were cast off, a strong nation;

and the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion
8And you, O tower of the flock,
hill of the daughter of Zion,
to you shall it come,
the former dominion shall come,
the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.
9Now why do you cry aloud?
Is there no king in you?

Has your counselor perished,
that pangs have seized you like a woman in labor?
10Writhe and groan, h O daughter of Zion,
like a woman with labor pains;

for now you shall go forth from the city
and dwell in the open country;
you shall go to Babylon.
There you shall be rescued,
there the LORD will redeem you
from the hand of your enemies.
11Now many nations
are assembled against you,

saying, “Let her be profaned,
and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”
12But they do not know
the thoughts of the LORD,

they do not understand his plan,
that he has gathered them as sheaves to the threshing floor.
13Arise and thresh,
O daughter of Zion,
for I will make your horn iron
and your hoofs bronze;
you shall beat in pieces many peoples,
and shall i devote their gain to the LORD,
their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth.
A Ruler from Bethlehem
5 j Now you are walled about with a wall; k
siege is laid against us;
with a rod they strike upon the cheek
the ruler of Israel.
2 l But you, O Bethlehem Eph'rathah,
who are little to be among the clans of Judah,

from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose origin is from of old,
from ancient days.
3Therefore he shall give them up until the time
when she who has labor pains has brought forth;

then the rest of his brethren shall return
to the sons of Israel.
4And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD,
in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.

And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth.
5And this shall be peace,
when the Assyrian comes into our land

and treads upon our soil, m
that we will raise against him seven shepherds
and eight princes of men;
6they shall rule the land of Assyria with the sword,
and the land of Nimrod with the drawn sword; n

and they o shall deliver us from the Assyrian
when he comes into our land
and treads within our border.
7Then the remnant of Jacob shall be
in the midst of many peoples

like dew from the LORD,
like showers upon the grass,
which do not depend upon men
nor wait for the sons of men.
8And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations,
in the midst of many peoples,

like a lion among the beasts of the forest,
like a young lion among the flocks of sheep,
which, when it goes through, treads down
and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver.
9Your hand shall be lifted up over your adversaries,
and all your enemies shall be cut off.

10And in that day, says the LORD,
I will cut off your horses from among you

and will destroy your chariots;
11and I will cut off the cities of your land
and throw down all your strongholds;

12and I will cut off sorceries from your hand,
and you shall have no more soothsayers;

13and I will cut off your images
and your pillars from among you,
and you shall bow down no more
to the work of your hands;
14and I will root out your Ashe'rim from among you
and destroy your cities.

15And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance
upon the nations that did not obey.

What the Lord Requires
6 Hear what the LORD says:
Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
and let the hills hear your voice.
2Hear, you mountains, the controversy of the LORD,
and you enduring foundations of the earth;

for the LORD has a controversy with his people,
and he will contend with Israel.
3“O my people, what have I done to you?
In what have I wearied you? Answer me!

4For I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
and redeemed you from the house of bondage;
and I sent before you Moses,
Aaron, and Miriam.
5O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised,
and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him,

and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the saving acts of the LORD.”
6“With what shall I come before the LORD,
and bow myself before God on high?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my first-born for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
8He has showed you, O man, what is good;
and what does the LORD require of you

but to do justice, and to love kindness, p
and to walk humbly with your God?
9The voice of the LORD cries to the city—
and it is sound wisdom to fear your name:

“Hear, O tribe and assembly of the city! q
10 Can I forget r the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked,
and the scant measure that is accursed?

11Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales
and with a bag of deceitful weights?
12Your s rich men are full of violence;
your s inhabitants speak lies,

and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
13Therefore I have begun t to strike you,
making you desolate because of your sins.

14You shall eat, but not be satisfied,
and there shall be hunger in your inward parts;

you shall put away, but not save,
and what you save I will give to the sword.
15You shall sow, but not reap;
you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil;
you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.
16For you have kept the statutes of Omri, u
and all the works of the house of A'hab;

and you have walked in their counsels;
that I may make you a desolation, and your v inhabitants a hissing;
so you shall bear the scorn of the peoples.” w
Corruption, Repentance, and God’s Compassion and Love
7 Woe is me! For I have become
as when the summer fruit has been gathered,
as when the vintage has been gleaned:
there is no cluster to eat,
no first-ripe fig which my soul desires.
2The godly man has perished from the earth,
and there is none upright among men;

they all lie in wait for blood,
and each hunts his brother with a net.
3Their hands are upon what is evil, to do it diligently;
the prince and the judge ask for a bribe,

and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul;
thus they weave it together.
4The best of them is like a brier,
the most upright of them a thorn hedge.

The day of their x watchmen, of their x punishment, has come;
now their confusion is at hand.
5Put no trust in a neighbor,
have no confidence in a friend;

guard the doors of your mouth
from her who lies in your bosom;
6for the son treats the father with contempt,
the daughter rises up against her mother,

the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
a man’s enemies are the men of his own house.
7But as for me, I will look to the LORD,
I will wait for the God of my salvation;

my God will hear me.
8Rejoice not over me, O my enemy;
when I fall, I shall rise;

when I sit in darkness,
the LORD will be a light to me.
9I will bear the indignation of the LORD
because I have sinned against him,
until he pleads my cause
and executes judgment for me.
He will bring me forth to the light;
I shall behold his deliverance.
10Then my enemy will see,
and shame will cover her who said to me,

“Where is the LORD your God?”
My eyes will gloat over her;
now she will be trodden down
like the mire of the streets.
11A day for the building of your walls!
In that day the boundary shall be far extended.

12In that day they will come to you,
from Assyria to y Egypt,

and from Egypt to the River,
from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.
13But the earth will be desolate
because of its inhabitants,

for the fruit of their doings.
14Shepherd your people with your staff,
the flock of your inheritance,

who dwell alone in a forest
in the midst of a garden land;
let them feed in Bashan and Gilead
as in the days of old.
15As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt
I will show them z marvelous things.

16The nations shall see and be ashamed
of all their might;

they shall lay their hands on their mouths;
their ears shall be deaf;
17they shall lick the dust like a serpent,
like the crawling things of the earth;

they shall come trembling out of their strongholds,
they shall turn in dread to the LORD our God,
and they shall fear because of you.
18Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity
and passing over transgression
for the remnant of his inheritance?
He does not retain his anger for ever
because he delights in mercy.
19He will again have compassion upon us,
he will tread our iniquities under foot.

You will cast all our a sins
into the depths of the sea.
20You will show faithfulness to Jacob
and mercy to Abraham,

as you have sworn to our fathers
from the days of old.
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Nahum
Chapters
123
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THE BOOK OF NAHUM
God’s Wrath toward Nineveh and Peace for Judah
1 *An oracle concerning Nin'eveh. The book of the vision of Na'hum of
El'kosh.
2The LORD is a jealous God and avenging,
the LORD is avenging and wrathful;

the LORD takes vengeance on his adversaries
and keeps wrath for his enemies.
3The LORD is slow to anger and of great might,
and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty.

His way is in whirlwind and storm,
and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
4He rebukes the sea and makes it dry,
he dries up all the rivers;

Bashan and Carmel wither,
the bloom of Lebanon fades.
5The mountains quake before him,
the hills melt;

the earth is laid waste before him,
the world and all that dwell therein.
6Who can stand before his indignation?
Who can endure the heat of his anger?

His wrath is poured out like fire,
and the rocks are broken asunder by him.
7The LORD is good,
a stronghold in the day of trouble;

he knows those who take refuge in him.
8But with an overflowing flood
he will make a full end of his adversaries, a

and will pursue his enemies into darkness.
9What do you plot against the LORD?
He will make a full end;

he will not take vengeance b twice on his foes. c
10Like entangled thorns they are consumed, d
like dry stubble.

11Did one not e come out from you,
who plotted evil against the LORD,
and counseled villainy?
“Though they be strong and many, f

they will be cut off and pass away.
Though I have afflicted you,
I will afflict you no more.
13And now I will break his yoke from off you
and will burst your bonds asunder.”

14The LORD has given commandment about you:
“No more shall your name be perpetuated;

from the house of your gods I will cut off
the graven image and the molten image.
I will make your grave, for you are vile.”
15 g Behold, on the mountains the feet of him
who brings good tidings,

who proclaims peace!
Keep your feasts, O Judah,
fulfil your vows,
for never again shall the wicked come against you,
he is utterly cut off.
The Overthrow of Nineveh
2 The shatterer has come up against you.
Man the ramparts;
watch the road;
gird your loins;
collect all your strength.
2(For the LORD is restoring the majesty of Jacob
as the majesty of Israel,
for plunderers have stripped them
and ruined their branches.)
3The shield of his mighty men is red,
his soldiers are clothed in scarlet.
The chariots flash like flame h
when mustered in array;
the chargers i prance.
4The chariots rage in the streets,
they rush back and forth through the squares;
they gleam like torches,
they dart like lightning.
5The officers are summoned,
they stumble as they go,

they hasten to the wall,
the mantelet is set up.
6The river gates are opened,
the palace is in dismay;
7its mistress j is stripped, she is carried off,
her maidens lamenting,
moaning like doves,
and beating their breasts.
8Nin'eveh is like a pool
whose waters k run away.

“Halt! Halt!” they cry;
but none turns back.
9Plunder the silver,
plunder the gold!
There is no end of treasure,
or wealth of every precious thing.
10Desolate! Desolation and ruin!
Hearts faint and knees tremble,

anguish is on all loins,
all faces grow pale!
11Where is the lions’ den,
the cave l of the young lions,

where the lion brought his prey,
where his cubs were, with none to disturb?
12The lion tore enough for his whelps
and strangled prey for his lionesses;

he filled his caves with prey
and his dens with torn flesh.
Utter Ruin of the Evil City
13 Behold, I am against you, says the LORD of hosts, and I will burn your
m chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions; I will cut
off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers shall no
more be heard.
3 Woe to the bloody city,
all full of lies and booty—
no end to the plunder!
2The crack of whip, and rumble of wheel,
galloping horse and bounding chariot!

3Horsemen charging,
flashing sword and glittering spear,

hosts of slain,
heaps of corpses,
dead bodies without end—
they stumble over the bodies!
4And all for the countless harlotries of the harlot,
graceful and of deadly charms,
who betrays nations with her harlotries,
and peoples with her charms.
5Behold, I am against you,
says the LORD of hosts,

and will lift up your skirts over your face;
and I will let nations look on your nakedness
and kingdoms on your shame.
6I will throw filth at you
and treat you with contempt,

and make you an object of scorn.
7And all who look on you will shrink from you and say,
Wasted is Nin'eveh; who will moan over her?

from where shall I seek comforters for her? n
8Are you better than Thebes o
that sat by the Nile,
with water around her,
her rampart a sea,
and water her wall?
9Ethiopia was her strength,
Egypt too, and that without limit;
Put and the Libyans were her p helpers.
10Yet she was carried away,
she went into captivity;
her little ones were dashed in pieces
at the head of every street;
for her honored men lots were cast,
and all her great men were bound in chains.
11You also will be drunken,
you will be dazed;

you will seek
a refuge from the enemy.
12All your fortresses are like fig trees
with first-ripe figs—

if shaken they fall
into the mouth of the eater.
13Behold, your troops
are women in your midst.
The gates of your land
are wide open to your foes;
fire has devoured your bars.
14Draw water for the siege,
strengthen your forts;

go into the clay,
tread the mortar,
take hold of the brick mold!
15There will the fire devour you,
the sword will cut you off.

It will devour you like the locust.
Multiply yourselves like the locust,
multiply like the grasshopper!
16You increased your merchants
more than the stars of the heavens.

The locust spreads its wings and flies away.
17Your princes are like grasshoppers,
your scribes q like clouds of locusts

settling on the fences
in a day of cold—
when the sun rises, they fly away;
no one knows where they are.
18Your shepherds are asleep,
O king of Assyria;
your nobles slumber.
Your people are scattered on the mountains
with none to gather them.
19There is no assuaging your hurt,
your wound is grievous.
All who hear the news of you
clap their hands over you.
For upon whom has not come
your unceasing evil?
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Habakkuk
Chapters
123
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THE BOOK OF HABAKKUK
The Prophet’s Complaint
1 *The oracle of God which Habak'kuk the prophet saw.
2O LORD, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?
3Why do you make me see wrongs
and look upon trouble?
Destruction and violence are before me;
strife and contention arise.
4So the law is slacked
and justice never goes forth.

For the wicked surround the righteous,
so justice goes forth perverted.
5Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.

For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
6For behold, I am rousing the Chalde'ans,
that bitter and hasty nation,

who march through the breadth of the earth,
to seize habitations not their own.
7Dread and fearsome are they;
their justice and dignity proceed from themselves.
8Their horses are swifter than leopards,
more fierce than the evening wolves;

their horsemen press proudly on.
Yes, their horsemen come from afar;
they fly like an eagle swift to devour.
9They all come for violence;
terror a of them goes before them.

They gather captives like sand.
10At kings they scoff,
and of rulers they make sport.

They laugh at every fortress,
for they heap up earth and take it.
11Then they sweep by like the wind and go on,
guilty men, whose own might is their god!
12Are you not from everlasting,
O LORD my God, my Holy One?

We shall not die.
O LORD, you have ordained them as a judgment;
and you, O Rock, have established them for chastisement.
13You who are of purer eyes than to behold evil
and cannot look on wrong,

why do you look on faithless men,
and are silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he?
14For you make men like the fish of the sea,
like crawling things that have no ruler.

15He brings all of them up with a hook,
he drags them out with his net,
he gathers them in his seine;
so he rejoices and exults.
16Therefore he sacrifices to his net
and burns incense to his seine;

for by them he lives in luxury, b
and his food is rich.
17Is he then to keep on emptying his net,
and mercilessly slaying nations for ever?

God’s Reply
2 I will take my stand to watch,
and station myself on the tower,
and look forth to see what he will say to me,
and what I will answer concerning my complaint.
2And the LORD answered me:
“Write the vision;

make it plain upon tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3For still the vision awaits its time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seem slow, wait for it;
it will surely come, it will not delay.
4Behold, he whose soul is not upright in him shall fail, c
but the righteous shall live by his faith. d

5Moreover, wine is treacherous;
the arrogant man shall not abide. e

His greed is as wide as Sheol;
like death he has never enough.
He gathers for himself all nations,
and collects as his own all peoples.”
6Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, in scoffing derision of
him, and say,
“Woe to him who heaps up what is not his own—
for how long?—
and loads himself with pledges!”
7Will not your debtors suddenly arise,
and those awake who will make you tremble?

Then you will be booty for them.
8Because you have plundered many nations,
all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you,
for the blood of men and violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell therein.
9Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house,
to set his nest on high,

to be safe from the reach of harm!
10You have devised shame to your house
by cutting off many peoples;

you have forfeited your life.
11For the stone will cry out from the wall,
and the beam from the woodwork respond.
12Woe to him who builds a town with blood,
and founds a city on iniquity!

13Behold, is it not from the LORD of hosts
that peoples labor only for fire,

and nations weary themselves for nothing?
14For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD,
as the waters cover the sea.
15Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink
of the cup of his wrath, f and makes them drunk,

to gaze on their shame!
16You will be sated with contempt instead of glory.
Drink, yourself, and stagger! g

The cup in the LORD’s right hand
will come around to you,
and shame will come upon your glory!
17The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you;
the destruction of the beasts will terrify you, h

for the blood of men and violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell therein.
18What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,

a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For the workman trusts in his own creation
when he makes dumb idols!
19Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a mute stone, Arise!

Can this give revelation?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20But the LORD is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.
Habakkuk’s Prayer
3 A prayer of Habak'kuk the prophet, according to Shigion'oth.
2O LORD, I have heard the report of you,
and your work, O LORD, I fear.
In the midst of the years renew it;
in the midst of the years make it known;
in wrath remember mercy.
3God came from Te'man,
and the Holy One from Mount Par'an.

His glory covered the heavens,
and the earth was full of his praise. Selah
4His brightness was like the light,
rays flashed from his hand;
and there he veiled his power.
5Before him went pestilence,
and plague followed close behind.

6He stood and measured the earth;
he looked and shook the nations;

Then the eternal mountains were scattered,
the everlasting hills sank low.
His ways were as of old.
7I saw the tents of Cush'an in affliction;
the curtains of the land of Mid'ian trembled.

8Was your wrath against the rivers, O LORD?
Was your anger against the rivers,

or your indignation against the sea,
when you rode upon your horses,
upon your chariot of victory?
9You stripped the sheath from your bow,
and put the arrows to the string. i Selah

You split the earth with rivers.
10The mountains saw you, and writhed;
the raging waters swept on;

the deep gave forth its voice,
it lifted its hands on high.
11The sun and moon stood still in their habitation j
at the light of your arrows as they sped,

at the flash of your glittering spear.
12You bestrode the earth in fury,
you trampled the nations in anger.

13You went forth for the salvation of your people,
for the salvation of your anointed.

You crushed the head of the wicked, k
laying him bare from thigh to neck. l Selah
14You pierced with your m shafts the head of his warriors, n
who came like a whirlwind to scatter me,
rejoicing as if to devour the poor in secret.
15You trampled the sea with your horses,
the surging of mighty waters.
16I hear, and my body trembles,
my lips quiver at the sound;

rottenness enters into my bones,
my steps totter o beneath me.
I will quietly wait for the day of trouble
to come upon people who invade us.
17Though the fig tree does not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
18yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.

19GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like deer’s feet,

he makes me tread upon my high places.
To the choirmaster: with stringed p instruments.
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Zephaniah
Chapters
123
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THE BOOK OF ZEPHANIAH
The Day of the Lord
1 *The word of the LORD which came to Zephani'ah the son of Cu'shi,
son of Gedali'ah, son of Amari'ah, son of Hezeki'ah, in the days of Josi'ah
the son of A'mon, king of Judah.
2“I will utterly sweep away everything
from the face of the earth,” says the LORD.
3“I will sweep away man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds of the air
and the fish of the sea.
I will overthrow a the wicked;
I will cut off mankind
from the face of the earth,” says the LORD.
4“I will stretch out my hand against Judah,
and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem;
and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Ba'al
and the name of the idolatrous priests; b
5those who bow down on the roofs
to the host of the heavens;
those who bow down and swear to the LORD
and yet swear by Milcom;
6those who have turned back from following the LORD,
who do not seek the LORD or inquire of him.”

7Be silent before the Lord GOD!
For the day of the LORD is at hand;

the LORD has prepared a sacrifice
and consecrated his guests.
8And on the day of the LORD’s sacrifice—
“I will punish the officials and the king’s sons
and all who clothe themselves in foreign attire.
9On that day I will punish
every one who leaps over the threshold,

and those who fill their master’s house
with violence and fraud.”
10“On that day,” says the LORD,
“a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate,

a wail from the Second Quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
11Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the traders are no more;

all who weigh out silver are cut off.
12At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men

who are thickening on their dregs,
those who say in their hearts,
‘The LORD will not do good,
nor will he do ill.’
13Their goods shall be plundered,
and their houses laid waste.

Though they build houses,
they shall not inhabit them;
though they plant vineyards,
they shall not drink wine from them.”
14The great day of the LORD is near,
near and hastening fast;

the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter,
the mighty man cries aloud there.
15A day of wrath is that day,
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of ruin and devastation,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
against the fortified cities

and against the lofty battlements.
17I will bring distress on men,
so that they shall walk like the blind,
because they have sinned against the LORD;
their blood shall be poured out like dust,
and their flesh like dung.
18Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them

on the day of the wrath of the LORD.
In the fire of his jealous wrath,
all the earth shall be consumed;
for a full, yes, sudden end
he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.
Judgment on Israel’s Enemies
2 Come together and hold assembly,
O shameless nation,
2before you are driven away
like the drifting chaff, c
before there comes upon you
the fierce anger of the LORD,
before there comes upon you
the day of the wrath of the LORD.
3Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land,
who do his commands;

seek righteousness, seek humility;
perhaps you may be hidden
on the day of the wrath of the LORD.
4For Gaza shall be deserted,
and Ash'kelon shall become a desolation;
Ash'dod’s people shall be driven out at noon,
and Ek'ron shall be uprooted.
5Woe to you inhabitants of the seacoast,
you nation of the Cher'ethites!

The word of the LORD is against you,
O Canaan, land of the Philis'tines;
and I will destroy you till no inhabitant is left.
6And you, O seacoast, shall be pastures,
meadows for shepherds
and folds for flocks.
7The seacoast shall become the possession
of the remnant of the house of Judah,

on which they shall pasture,
and in the houses of Ash'kelon
they shall lie down at evening.
For the LORD their God will be mindful of them
and restore their fortunes.
8“I have heard the taunts of Moab
and the revilings of the Am'monites,
how they have taunted my people
and made boasts against their territory.
9Therefore, as I live,” says the LORD of hosts,
the God of Israel,
“Moab shall become like Sodom,
and the Am'monites like Gomor'rah,
a land possessed by nettles and salt pits,
and a waste for ever.
The remnant of my people shall plunder them,
and the survivors of my nation shall possess them.”
10This shall be their lot in return for their pride,
because they scoffed and boasted

against the people of the LORD of hosts.
11The LORD will be terrifying against them;
yes, he will famish all the gods of the earth,

and to him shall bow down,
each in its place,
all the lands of the nations.
12You also, O Ethiopians,
shall be slain by my sword.

13And he will stretch out his hand against the north,
and destroy Assyria;

and he will make Nin'eveh a desolation,
a dry waste like the desert.
14Herds shall lie down in the midst of her,
all the beasts of the field; d

the vulture e and the hedgehog
shall lodge in her capitals;
the owl f shall hoot in the window,
the raven g croak on the threshold;
for her cedar work will be laid bare.
15This is the exultant city
that dwelt secure,
that said to herself,
“I am and there is none else.”
What a desolation she has become,
a lair for wild beasts!
Every one who passes by her
hisses and shakes his fist.
Wickedness of the Nations
3 Woe to her that is rebellious and defiled,
the oppressing city!
2She listens to no voice,
she accepts no correction.
She does not trust in the LORD,
she does not draw near to her God.
3Her officials within her
are roaring lions;

her judges are evening wolves
that leave nothing till the morning.
4Her prophets are wanton,
faithless men;
her priests profane what is sacred,
they do violence to the law.
5The LORD within her is righteous,
he does no wrong;
every morning he shows forth his justice,
each dawn he does not fail;
but the unjust knows no shame.
6“I have cut off nations;
their battlements are in ruins;

I have laid waste their streets
so that none walks in them;
their cities have been made desolate,
without a man, without an inhabitant.
7I said, ‘Surely she will fear me,
she will accept correction;

she will not lose sight h
of all that I have enjoined upon her.’
But all the more they were eager
to make all their deeds corrupt.”
8“Therefore wait for me,” says the LORD,
“for the day when I arise as a witness.

For my decision is to gather nations,
to assemble kingdoms,
to pour out upon them my indignation,
all the heat of my anger;
for in the fire of my jealous wrath
all the earth shall be consumed.
Restoration of Israel
9“Yes, at that time I will change the speech of the peoples
to a pure speech,
that all of them may call on the name of the LORD
and serve him with one accord.
10From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia
my suppliants, the daughter of my dispersed ones,

shall bring my offering.
11“On that day you shall not be put to shame
because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me;

for then I will remove from your midst
your proudly exultant ones,
and you shall no longer be haughty
in my holy mountain.
12For I will leave in the midst of you
a people humble and lowly.

They shall seek refuge in the name of the LORD,
13 those who are left in Israel;
they shall do no wrong
and utter no lies,
nor shall there be found in their mouth
a deceitful tongue.
For they shall pasture and lie down,
and none shall make them afraid.”
14Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15The LORD has taken away the judgments against you,
he has cast out your enemies.
The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst;
you shall fear evil no more.
16On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Do not fear, O Zion;

let not your hands grow weak.
17The LORD, your God, is in your midst,
a warrior who gives victory;

he will rejoice over you with gladness,
he will renew you i in his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing
18as on a day of festival. j
“I will remove disaster k from you,

so that you will not bear reproach for it.
19Behold, at that time I will deal
with all your oppressors.

And I will save the lame
and gather the outcast,
and I will change their shame into praise
and renown in all the earth.
20At that time I will bring you home,
at the time when I gather you together;

yes, I will make you renowned and praised
among all the peoples of the earth,
when I restore your fortunes
before your eyes,” says the LORD.
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Haggai
Chapters
12
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THE BOOK OF HAGGAI
The Command to Rebuild the Temple
1 *In the second year of Dari'us the king, in the sixth month, on the first
day of the month, the word of the LORD came by Hag'gai the prophet to
Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son
of Jehoz'adak, the high priest, 2“Thus says the LORD of hosts: This people
say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD.” 3Then the
word of the LORD came by Hag'gai the prophet, 4“Is it a time for you
yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?
5Now therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider how you have fared.
6You have sown much, and harvested little; you eat, but you never have
enough; you drink, but you never have your fill; you clothe yourselves, but
no one is warm; and he who earns wages earns wages to put them into a bag
with holes.
7 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider how you have fared. 8Go up to
the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it
and that I may appear in my glory, says the LORD. 9You have looked for
much, and behold, it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it
away. Why? says the LORD of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins,
while you busy yourselves each with his own house. 10Therefore the
heavens above you have withheld the dew, and the earth has withheld its
produce. 11And I have called for a drought upon the land and the hills, upon
the grain, the new wine, the oil, upon what the ground brings forth, upon
men and cattle, and upon all their labors.”
The People Obey
12 Then Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el, and Joshua the son of
Jehoz'adak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the
voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Hag'gai the prophet, as the
LORD their God had sent him; and the people feared before the LORD.
13Then Hag'gai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke to the people with the
LORD’s message, “I am with you, says the LORD.” 14And the LORD stirred
up the spirit of Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el, governor of Judah, and
the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehoz'adak, the high priest, and the spirit of
all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of
the LORD of hosts, their God, 15on the twenty-fourth day of the month, in
the sixth month.
The Splendor of the Temple
2 In the second year of Dari'us the king, 1in the seventh month, on the
twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by Hag'gai the
prophet, 2“Speak now to Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el, governor of
Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehoz'adak, the high priest, and to all the
remnant of the people, and say, 3‘Who is left among you that saw this house
in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not in your sight as
nothing? 4Yet now take courage, O Zerub'babel, says the LORD; take
courage, O Joshua, son of Jehoz'adak, the high priest; take courage, all you
people of the land, says the LORD; work, for I am with you, says the LORD
of hosts, 5according to the promise that I made you when you came out of
Egypt. My Spirit abides among you; fear not. 6For thus says the LORD of
hosts: Once again, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth
and the sea and the dry land; 7and I will shake all nations, so that the
treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with
splendor, says the LORD of hosts. 8The silver is mine, and the gold is mine,
says the LORD of hosts. 9The latter splendor of this house shall be greater
than the former, says the LORD of hosts; and in this place I will give
prosperity, says the LORD of hosts.’ ”
A Rebuke and a Promise
10 On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of
Dari'us, the word of the LORD came by Hag'gai the prophet, 11“Thus says
the LORD of hosts: Ask the priests to decide this question, 12‘If one carries
holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and touches with his skirt bread, or
pottage, or wine, or oil, or any kind of food, does it become holy?’ ” The
priests answered, “No.” 13Then said Hag'gai, “If one who is unclean by
contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?”
The priests answered, “It does become unclean.” 14Then Hag'gai said, “So
is it with this people, and with this nation before me, says the LORD; and so
with every work of their hands; and what they offer there is unclean.
15Please now, consider what will come to pass from this day onward.
Before a stone was placed upon a stone in the temple of the LORD, 16how
did you fare? a When one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were
but ten; when one came to the winevat to draw fifty measures, there were
but twenty. 17I struck you and all the products of your toil with blight and
mildew and hail; yet you did not return to me, says the LORD. 18Consider
from this day onward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Since
the day that the foundation of the LORD’s temple was laid, consider: 19Is
the seed yet in the barn? Do the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the
olive tree still yield nothing? From this day on I will bless you.”
God’s Promise to Zerubbabel
20 The word of the LORD came a second time to Hag'gai on the twenty-
fourth day of the month, 21“Speak to Zerub'babel, governor of Judah,
saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, 22and to overthrow
the throne of kingdoms; I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms
of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders; and the horses
and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his fellow. 23On
that day, says the LORD of hosts, I will take you, O Zerub'babel my servant,
the son of She-al'ti-el, says the LORD, and make you like a signet ring; for I
have chosen you, says the LORD of hosts.”
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Zechariah
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
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THE BOOK OF ZECHARIAH
Israel Urged to Repent
1 *In the eighth month, in the second year of Dari'us, the word of the
LORD came to Zechari'ah the son of Berechi'ah, son of Iddo, the prophet,
saying, 2“The LORD was very angry with your fathers. 3Therefore say to
them, Thus says the LORD of hosts: Return to me, says the LORD of hosts,
and I will return to you, says the LORD of hosts. 4Be not like your fathers, to
whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return
from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or
heed me, says the LORD. 5Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets,
do they live for ever? 6But my words and my statutes, which I commanded
my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? So they
repented and said, As the LORD of hosts purposed to deal with us for our
ways and deeds, so has he dealt with us.”
First Vision: The Horsemen
7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month which is the month of
Shebat', in the second year of Dari'us, the word of the LORD came to
Zechari'ah the son of Berechi'ah, son of Iddo, the prophet; and Zechariah
said, 8“I saw in the night, and behold, a man riding upon a red horse! He
was standing among the myrtle trees in the glen; and behind him were red,
sorrel, and white horses. 9Then I said, ‘What are these, my lord?’ The angel
who talked with me said to me, ‘I will show you what they are.’ 10So the
man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered, ‘These are they
whom the LORD has sent to patrol the earth.’ 11And they answered the angel
of the LORD who was standing among the myrtle trees, ‘We have patrolled
the earth, and behold, all the earth remains at rest.’ 12Then the angel of the
LORD said, ‘O LORD of hosts, how long will you have no mercy on
Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, against which you have had indignation
these seventy years?’ 13And the LORD answered gracious and comforting
words to the angel who talked with me. 14So the angel who talked with me
said to me, ‘Cry out, Thus says the LORD of hosts: I am exceedingly jealous
for Jerusalem and for Zion. 15And I am very angry with the nations that are
at ease; for while I was only a little angry they furthered the disaster.
16Therefore, thus says the LORD, I have returned to Jerusalem with
compassion; my house shall be built in it, says the LORD of hosts, and the
measuring line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem. 17Cry again, Thus
says the LORD of hosts: My cities shall again overflow with prosperity, and
the LORD will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.’ ”
Second Vision: Four Horns and Four Smiths
18 a And I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, four horns! 19And I said
to the angel who talked with me, “What are these?” And he answered me,
“These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
20Then the LORD showed me four smiths. 21And I said, “What are these
coming to do?” He answered, “These are the horns which scattered Judah,
so that no man raised his head; and these have come to terrify them, to cast
down the horns of the nations who lifted up their horns against the land of
Judah to scatter it.”
Third Vision: The Man with a Measuring Line
2 b And I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a man with a measuring
line in his hand! 2Then I said, “Where are you going?” And he said to me,
“To measure Jerusalem, to see what is its breadth and what is its length.”
3And behold, the angel who talked with me came forward, and another
angel came forward to meet him, 4and said to him, “Run, say to that young
man, ‘Jerusalem shall be inhabited as villages without walls, because of the
multitude of men and cattle in it. 5For I will be to her a wall of fire round
about, says the LORD, and I will be the glory within her.’ ”
6 Ho! ho! Flee from the land of the north, says the LORD; for I have
spread you abroad as the four winds of the heavens, says the LORD. 7Ho!
Escape to Zion, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon. 8For thus said
the LORD of hosts, after his glory sent me to the nations who plundered you,
for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye: 9“Behold, I will shake
my hand over them, and they shall become plunder for those who served
them. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me. 10Sing and
rejoice, O daughter of Zion; for behold, I come and I will dwell in the midst
of you, says the LORD. 11And many nations shall join themselves to the
LORD in that day, and shall be my people; and I will dwell in the midst of
you, and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you. 12And
the LORD will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land, and will again
choose Jerusalem.”
13 Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD; for he has roused himself from
his holy dwelling.
Fourth Vision: Joshua and Satan
3 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of
the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. 2And the
LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has
chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?”
3Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments.
4And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the
filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your
iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with rich apparel.” 5And I
said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban
on his head and clothed him with garments; and the angel of the LORD was
standing by.
6 And the angel of the LORD enjoined Joshua, 7“Thus says the LORD of
hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule
my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of
access among those who are standing here. 8Hear now, O Joshua the high
priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men of good
omen: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch. 9For behold, upon the
stone which I have set before Joshua, upon a single stone with seven facets,
I will engrave its inscription, says the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the
guilt of this land in a single day. 10In that day, says the LORD of hosts, every
one of you will invite his neighbor under his vine and under his fig tree.”
Fifth Vision: The Lampstand and Olive Trees
4 And the angel who talked with me came again, and waked me, like a
man that is wakened out of his sleep. 2And he said to me, “What do you
see?” I said, “I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the
top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps which
are on the top of it. 3And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of
the bowl and the other on its left.” 4And I said to the angel who talked with
me, “What are these, my lord?” 5Then the angel who talked with me
answered me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.”
6Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerub'babel: Not by
might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts. 7What are
you, O great mountain? Before Zerub'babel you shall become a plain; and
he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’ ”
8Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 9“The hands of
Zerub'babel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also
complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
10For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall
see the plummet in the hand of Zerub'babel.
“These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range through the whole
earth.” 11Then I said to him, “What are these two olive trees on the right
and the left of the lampstand?” 12And a second time I said to him, “What
are these two branches of the olive trees, which are beside the two golden
pipes from which the oil c is poured out?” 13He said to me, “Do you not
know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” 14Then he said, “These are the
two anointed who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”
Sixth Vision: The Flying Scroll
5 Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! 2And he
said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll; its length
is twenty cubits, and its breadth ten cubits.” 3Then he said to me, “This is
the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land; for every one who
steals shall be cut off henceforth according to it, and every one who swears
falsely shall be cut off henceforth according to it. 4I will send it forth, says
the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of
him who swears falsely by my name; and it shall abide in his house and
consume it, both timber and stones.”
Seventh Vision: The Woman in an Ephah
5 Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, “Lift
your eyes, and see what this is that goes forth.” 6And I said, “What is it?”
He said, “This is the ephah that goes forth.” And he said, “This is their
iniquity d in all the land.” 7And behold, the leaden cover was lifted, and
there was a woman sitting in the ephah! 8And he said, “This is
Wickedness.” And he thrust her back into the ephah, and thrust down the
leaden weight upon its mouth. 9Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold,
two women coming forward! The wind was in their wings; they had wings
like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the ephah between earth and
heaven. 10Then I said to the angel who talked with me, “Where are they
taking the ephah?” 11He said to me, “To the land of Shi'nar, to build a house
for it; and when this is prepared, they will set the ephah down there on its
base.”
Eighth Vision: Four Chariots
6 And again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, four chariots came out
from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of bronze.
2The first chariot had red horses, the second black horses, 3the third white
horses, and the fourth chariot dappled gray e horses. 4Then I said to the
angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” 5And the angel
answered me, “These are going forth to the four winds of heaven, after
presenting themselves before the LORD of all the earth. 6The chariot with
the black horses goes toward the north country, the white ones go toward
the west country, f and the dappled ones go toward the south country.”
7When the steeds came out, they were impatient to get off and patrol the
earth. And he said, “Go, patrol the earth.” So they patrolled the earth. 8Then
he cried to me, “Behold, those who go toward the north country have set
my Spirit at rest in the north country.”
The Crown and the Branch
9 And the word of the LORD came to me: 10“Take from the exiles Hel'dai,
Tobi'jah, and Jedai'ah, who have arrived from Babylon; and go the same
day to the house of Josi'ah, the son of Zephani'ah. 11Take from them silver
and gold, and make a crown, g and set it upon the head of Joshua, the son of
Jehoz'adak, the high priest; 12and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts,
“Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall grow up in his
place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD. 13It is he who shall build
the temple of the LORD, and shall bear royal honor, and shall sit and rule
upon his throne. And there shall be a priest by his throne, and peaceful
understanding shall be between them both.” ’ 14And the crown h shall be in
the temple of the LORD as a reminder to Hel'dai, i Tobi'jah, Jedai'ah, and
Josi'ah j the son of Zephani'ah.
15 “And those who are far off shall come and help to build the temple of
the LORD; and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
And this shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey the voice of the
LORD your God.”
Hypocritical Fasting Condemned
7 In the fourth year of King Dari'us, the word of the LORD came to
Zechari'ah in the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chis'lev. 2Now the
people of Bethel had sent Share'zer and Reg'em-mel'ech and their men, to
entreat the favor of the LORD, 3and to ask the priests of the house of the
LORD of hosts and the prophets, “Should I mourn and fast in the fifth
month, as I have done for so many years?” 4Then the word of the LORD of
hosts came to me: 5“Say to all the people of the land and the priests, When
you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these
seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? 6And when you eat and when
you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? 7When
Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, with her cities round about her,
and the South and the lowland were inhabited, were not these the words
which the LORD proclaimed by the former prophets?”
Punishment for Rejecting God’s Commands
8 And the word of the LORD came to Zechari'ah, saying, 9“Thus says the
LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy each to his
brother, 10do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the
poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart.”
11But they refused to listen, and turned a stubborn shoulder, and stopped
their ears that they might not hear. 12They made their hearts like adamant
lest they should hear the law and the words which the LORD of hosts had
sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great wrath came
from the LORD of hosts. 13“As I called, and they would not hear, so they
called, and I would not hear,” says the LORD of hosts, 14“and I scattered
them with a whirlwind among all the nations which they had not known.
Thus the land they left was desolate, so that no one went back and forth,
and the pleasant land was made desolate.”
God’s Promise to Zion
8 And the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying, 2“Thus says
the LORD of hosts: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am
jealous for her with great wrath. 3Thus says the LORD: I will return to Zion,
and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem shall be called the
faithful city, and the mountain of the LORD of hosts, the holy mountain.
4Thus says the LORD of hosts: Old men and old women shall again sit in the
streets of Jerusalem, each with staff in hand for very age. 5And the streets of
the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets. 6Thus says the
LORD of hosts: If it is marvelous in the sight of the remnant of this people in
these days, should it also be marvelous in my sight, says the LORD of hosts?
7Thus says the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will save my people from the east
country and from the west country; 8and I will bring them to dwell in the
midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be my people and I will be their God, in
faithfulness and in righteousness.”
9 Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Let your hands be strong, you who in
these days have been hearing these words from the mouth of the prophets,
since the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid,
that the temple might be built. 10For before those days there was no wage
for man or any wage for beast, neither was there any safety from the foe for
him who went out or came in; for I set every man against his fellow. 11But
now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as in the former days,
says the LORD of hosts. 12For there shall be a sowing of peace; the vine
shall yield its fruit, and the ground shall give its increase, and the heavens
shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess
all these things. 13And as you have been a byword of cursing among the
nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you and you
shall be a blessing. Fear not, but let your hands be strong.”
14 For thus says the LORD of hosts: “As I planned to do evil to you, when
your fathers provoked me to wrath, and I did not relent, says the LORD of
hosts, 15so again I have planned in these days to do good to Jerusalem and
to the house of Judah; fear not. 16These are the things that you shall do:
Speak the truth to one another, render in your gates judgments that are true
and make for peace, 17do not devise evil in your hearts against one another,
and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, says the LORD.”
Joyful Fasting
18 And the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying, 19“Thus says
the LORD of hosts: The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and
the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of
Judah seasons of joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love truth
and peace.
Many Peoples Will Be Drawn to Jerusalem
20 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Peoples shall yet come, even the
inhabitants of many cities; 21the inhabitants of one city shall go to another,
saying, ‘Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the LORD, and to seek the
LORD of hosts; I am going.’ 22Many peoples and strong nations shall come
to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favor of the LORD.
23Thus says the LORD of hosts: In those days ten men from the nations of
every tongue shall take hold of the robe of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with
you, for we have heard that God is with you.’”
Judgment on Israel’s Enemies
9 An Oracle
The word of the LORD is against the land of Had'rach
and will rest upon Damascus.
For to the LORD belong the cities of Ar'am, k
even as all the tribes of Israel;
2Hamath also, which borders thereon,
Tyre and Si'don, though they are very wise.

3Tyre has built herself a rampart,
and heaped up silver like dust,
and gold like the dirt of the streets.
4But behold, the Lord will strip her of her possessions
and hurl her wealth into the sea,

and she shall be devoured by fire.
5Ash'kelon shall see it, and be afraid;
Gaza too, and shall writhe in anguish;

Ek'ron also, because its hopes are confounded.
The king shall perish from Gaza;
Ashkelon shall be uninhabited;
6a mongrel people shall dwell in Ash'dod;
and I will make an end of the pride of Philis'tia.

7I will take away its blood from its mouth,
and its abominations from between its teeth;

it too shall be a remnant for our God;
it shall be like a clan in Judah,
and Ek'ron shall be like the Jeb'usites.
8Then I will encamp at my house as a guard,
so that none shall march back and forth;
no oppressor shall again overrun them, for now I see with my own eyes.
The Coming of Israel’s King
9Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king comes to you;
triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt the foal of a donkey.
10I will cut off the chariot from E'phraim
and the war horse from Jerusalem;

and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall command peace to the nations;
his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
11As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your captives free from the waterless pit.
12Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.

13For I have bent Judah as my bow;
I have made E'phraim its arrow.

I will brandish your sons, O Zion,
over your sons, O Greece,
and wield you like a warrior’s sword.
14Then the LORD will appear over them,
and his arrow go forth like lightning;

the Lord GOD will sound the trumpet,
and march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.
15The LORD of hosts will protect them,
and they shall devour and tread down the slingers; l

and they shall drink their blood m like wine,
and be full like a bowl,
drenched like the corners of the altar.
16On that day the LORD their God will save them
for they are the flock of his people;

for like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land.
17Yes,how good and how fair it shall be!
Grain shall make the young men flourish,
and new wine the maidens.
Restoration of Judah and Israel
10 Ask rain from the LORD
in the season of the spring rain,
from the LORD who makes the storm clouds,
who gives men showers of rain,
to every one the vegetation in the field.
2For the teraphim utter nonsense,
and the diviners see lies;

the dreamers tell false dreams,
and give empty consolation.
Therefore the people wander like sheep;
they are afflicted for want of a shepherd.
3“My anger is hot against the shepherds,
and I will punish the leaders; n

for the LORD of hosts cares for his flock, the house of Judah,
and will make them like his proud steed in battle.
4Out of them shall come the cornerstone,
out of them the tent peg,

out of them the battle bow,
out of them every ruler.
5Together they shall be like mighty men in battle,
trampling the foe in the mud of the streets;
they shall fight because the LORD is with them,
and they shall confound the riders on horses.
6“I will strengthen the house of Judah,
and I will save the house of Joseph.

I will bring them back because I have compassion on them,
and they shall be as though I had not rejected them;
for I am the LORD their God and I will answer them.
7Then E'phraim shall become like a mighty warrior,
and their hearts shall be glad as with wine.

Their children shall see it and rejoice,
their hearts shall exult in the LORD.
8“I will signal for them and gather them in,
for I have redeemed them,

and they shall be as many as of old.
9Though I scattered them among the nations,
yet in far countries they shall remember me,

and with their children they shall live and return.
10I will bring them home from the land of Egypt,
and gather them from Assyria;

and I will bring them to the land of Gilead and to Lebanon,
till there is no room for them.
11They shall pass through the sea of Egypt, o
and the waves of the sea shall be struck down,
and all the depths of the Nile dried up.
The pride of Assyria shall be laid low,
and the scepter of Egypt shall depart.
12I will make them strong in the LORD
and they shall glory p in his name,” says the LORD.

11 Open your doors, O Lebanon,
that the fire may devour your cedars!
2Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen,
for the glorious trees are ruined!

Wail, oaks of Ba'shan,
for the thick forest has been felled!
3Listen, the wail of the shepherds,
for their glory is despoiled!

Listen, the roar of the lions,
for the jungle of the Jordan is laid waste!
Two Kinds of Shepherd
4 Thus said the LORD my God: “Become shepherd of the flock doomed to
slaughter. 5Those who buy them slay them and go unpunished; and those
who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the LORD, I have become rich’; and their
own shepherds have no pity on them. 6For I will no longer have pity on the
inhabitants of this land, says the LORD. Behold, I will cause men to fall each
into the hand of his shepherd, and each into the hand of his king; and they
shall crush the earth, and I will deliver none from their hand.”
7 So I became the shepherd of the flock doomed to be slain for those who
trafficked in the sheep. And I took two staffs; one I named Grace, the other
I named Union. And I tended the sheep. 8In one month I destroyed the three
shepherds. But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me.
9So I said, “I will not be your shepherd. What is to die, let it die; what is to
be destroyed, let it be destroyed; and let those that are left devour the flesh
of one another.” 10And I took my staff Grace, and I broke it, annulling the
covenant which I had made with all the peoples. 11So it was annulled on
that day, and the traffickers in the sheep, who were watching me, knew that
it was the word of the LORD. 12Then I said to them, “If it seems right to you,
give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” And they weighed out as my
wages thirty shekels of silver. 13Then the LORD said to me, “Cast it into the
treasury” q —the lordly price at which I was paid off by them. So I took the
thirty shekels of silver and cast them into the treasury q in the house of the
LORD. 14Then I broke my second staff Union, annulling the brotherhood
between Judah and Israel.
15 Then the LORD said to me, “Take once more the implements of a
worthless shepherd. 16For behold, I am raising up in the land a shepherd
who does not care for the perishing, or seek the wandering, r or heal the
maimed, or nourish the sound, but devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing
off even their hoofs.
17Woe to my worthless shepherd,
who deserts the flock!

May the sword strike his arm
and his right eye!
Let his arm be wholly withered,
his right eye utterly blinded!”
Jerusalem’s Victory
12 An Oracle
The word of the LORD concerning Israel: Thus says the LORD, who
stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of
man within him: 2“Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of reeling
to all the peoples round about; it will be against Judah also in the siege
against Jerusalem. 3On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all
the peoples; all who lift it shall grievously hurt themselves. And all the
nations of the earth will come together against it. 4On that day, says the
LORD, I will strike every horse with panic, and its rider with madness. But
upon the house of Judah I will open my eyes, when I strike every horse of
the peoples with blindness. 5Then the clans of Judah shall say to
themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the LORD
of hosts, their God.’
6 “On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a blazing pot in the
midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves; and they shall devour
to the right and to the left all the peoples round about, while Jerusalem shall
still be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.
7 “And the LORD will give victory to the tents of Judah first, that the
glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem
may not be exalted over that of Judah. 8On that day the LORD will put a
shield about the inhabitants of Jerusalem so that the feeblest among them on
that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like
the angel of the LORD, at their head. 9And on that day I will seek to destroy
all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
Mourning for the Pierced One
10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem a spirit of compassion and supplication, so that, when they look
on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns
for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-
born. 11On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the
mourning for Ha'dadrim'mon in the plain of Megid'do. 12The land shall
mourn, each family by itself; the family of the house of David by itself, and
their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and
their wives by themselves; 13the family of the house of Levi by itself, and
their wives by themselves; the family of the Shime'ites by itself, and their
wives by themselves; 14and all the families that are left, each by itself, and
their wives by themselves.
13 On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.
The Wounded Prophet
2 “And on that day, says the LORD of hosts, I will cut off the names of the
idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more; and also I
will remove from the land the prophets and the unclean spirit. 3And if any
one again appears as a prophet, his father and mother who bore him will say
to him, ‘You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the LORD’;
and his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he
prophesies. 4On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when
he prophesies; he will not put on a hairy mantle in order to deceive, 5but he
will say, ‘I am no prophet, I am a tiller of the soil; for the land has been my
possession t since my youth.’ 6And if one asks him, ‘What are these
wounds on your back?’ he will say, ‘The wounds I received in the house of
my friends.’ ”
7“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd,
against the man who stands next to me,”

“Strike the shepherd, that the sheep may be scattered;
I will turn my hand against the little ones.
8In the whole land, says the LORD,
two thirds shall be cut off and perish,

and one third shall be left alive.
9And I will put this third into the fire,
and refine them as one refines silver,

and test them as gold is tested.
They will call on my name,
and I will answer them.
I will say, ‘They are my people’;
and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’ ”
The Day of the Lord Is Coming
14 Behold, a day of the LORD is coming, when the spoil taken from you
will be divided in the midst of you. 2For I will gather all the nations against
Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and
the women ravished; half of the city shall go into exile, but the rest of the
people shall not be cut off from the city. 3Then the LORD will go forth and
fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. 4On that day
his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives which lies before Jerusalem on
the east; and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a
very wide valley; so that one half of the Mount shall withdraw northward,
and the other half southward. 5And the valley of my mountains shall be
stopped up, for the valley of the mountains shall touch the side of it; and
you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzzi'ah king of
Judah. Then the LORD your u God will come, and all the holy ones with
him. v
6 On that day there shall be neither cold nor frost. w 7And there shall be
continuous day (it is known to the LORD), not day and not night, for at
evening time there shall be light.
8 On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to
the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea; it shall continue in
summer as in winter.
9 And the LORD will become king over all the earth; on that day the LORD
will be one and his name one.
10The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Ge'ba to Rimmon
south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft upon its site from the
Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and
from the Tower of Hanan'el to the king’s wine presses. 11And it shall be
inhabited, for there shall be no more curse; x Jerusalem shall dwell in
security.
12 And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the
peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh shall rot while they are
still on their feet, their eyes shall rot in their sockets, and their tongues shall
rot in their mouths. 13And on that day a great panic from the LORD shall fall
on them, so that each will lay hold on the hand of his fellow, and the hand
of the one will be raised against the hand of the other; 14even Judah will
fight against Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the nations round about shall
be collected, gold, silver, and garments in great abundance. 15And a plague
like this plague shall fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, the donkeys,
and whatever beasts may be in those camps.
Survivors of the Nations Will Come to Jerusalem
16 Then every one that survives of all the nations that have come against
Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of
hosts, and to keep the feast of booths. 17And if any of the families of the
earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts,
there will be no rain upon them. 18And if the family of Egypt do not go up
and present themselves, then upon them shall y come the plague with which
the LORD afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the feast of booths.
19This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment to all the
nations that do not go up to keep the feast of booths.
20 And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses,
“Holy to the LORD.” And the pots in the house of the LORD shall be as the
bowls before the altar; 21and every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be
sacred to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of
them and boil the flesh of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be
a trader in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day.
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Malachi
Chapters
1234
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THE BOOK OF MALACHI
Israel Preferred to Edom
1 * The oracle of the word of the LORD to Israel by Mal'achi. a
2 “I have loved you,” says the LORD. But you say, “How have you loved
us?” “Is not Esau Jacob’s brother?” says the LORD. “Yet I have loved Jacob
3but I have hated Esau; I have laid waste his hill country and left his
heritage to jackals of the desert.” 4If E'dom says, “We are shattered but we
will rebuild the ruins,” the LORD of hosts says, “They may build, but I will
tear down, till they are called the wicked country, the people with whom the
LORD is angry for ever.” 5Your own eyes shall see this, and you shall say,
“Great is the LORD, beyond the border of Israel!”
Corruption of the Priesthood
6 “A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father,
where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the LORD
of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. You say, ‘How have we
despised your name?’ 7By offering polluted food upon my altar. And you
say, ‘How have we polluted it?’ b By thinking that the LORD’s table may
be despised. 8When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that no evil? And
when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that no evil? Present that to
your governor; will he be pleased with you or show you favor? says the
LORD of hosts. 9And now entreat the favor of God, that he may be gracious
to us. With such a gift from your hand, will he show favor to any of you?
says the LORD of hosts. 10Oh, that there were one among you who would
shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire upon my altar in vain! I have
no pleasure in you, says the LORD of hosts, and I will not accept an offering
from your hand. 11 For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name is
great among the nations, and in every place incense is offered to my name,
and a pure offering; for my name is great among the nations, says the LORD
of hosts. 12But you profane it when you say that the LORD’s table is
polluted, and the food for it c may be despised. 13‘What a weariness this is,’
you say, and you sniff at me, d says the LORD of hosts. You bring what has
been taken by violence or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your
offering! Shall I accept that from your hand? says the LORD. 14Cursed be the
cheat who has a male in his flock, and vows it, and yet sacrifices to the
Lord what is blemished; for I am a great King, says the LORD of hosts, and
my name is feared among the nations.
2 “And now, O priests, this command is for you. 2If you will not listen, if
you will not lay it to heart to give glory to my name, says the LORD of hosts,
then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings; indeed I
have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart. 3Behold, I will
rebuke your offspring, and spread dung upon your faces, the dung of your
offerings, and I will put you out of my presence. e 4So shall you know that I
have sent this command to you, that my covenant with Levi may hold, says
the LORD of hosts. 5My covenant with him was a covenant of life and peace,
and I gave them to him, that he might fear; and he feared me, he stood in
awe of my name. 6True instruction f was in his mouth, and no wrong was
found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and he
turned many from iniquity. 7For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge,
and men should seek instruction f from his mouth, for he is the messenger
of the LORD of hosts. 8But you have turned aside from the way; you have
caused many to stumble by your instruction; f you have corrupted the
covenant of Levi, says the LORD of hosts, 9and so I make you despised and
abased before all the people, inasmuch as you have not kept my ways but
have shown partiality in your instruction.” f
The Covenant Profaned by Judah
10 Have we not all one father? Has not one God created us? Why then
are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers? 11
Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and
in Jerusalem; for Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the LORD, which he
loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. 12May the LORD cut
off from the tents of Jacob, for the man who does this, any to witness g or
answer, or to bring an offering to the LORD of hosts!
13 And this again you do. You cover the LORD’s altar with tears, with
weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts
it with favor at your hand. 14You ask, “Why does he not?” Because the
LORD was witness to the covenant between you and the wife of your youth,
to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your
wife by covenant. 15Has not the one God made h and sustained for us the
spirit of life? And what does he desire? i Godly offspring. So take heed to
yourselves, and let none be faithless to the wife of his youth. 16“For I hate j
divorce, says the LORD the God of Israel, and covering one’s garment with
violence, says the LORD of hosts. So take heed to yourselves and do not be
faithless.”
17 You have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet you say, “How have
we wearied him?” By saying, “Every one who does evil is good in the sight
of the LORD, and he delights in them.” Or by asking, “Where is the God of
justice?”
The Coming Messenger
3 “Behold, I send my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the
Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; the messenger of
the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of
hosts. 2But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when
he appears?
“For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; 3he will sit as a
refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine
them like gold and silver, till they present right offerings to the LORD. 4Then
the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the
days of old and as in former years.
5 “Then I will draw near to you for judgment; I will be a swift witness
against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely,
against those who oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow and the
orphan, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me,
God Must Not Be Robbed
6 “For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not
consumed. 7From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my
statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says
the LORD of hosts. But you say, ‘How shall we return?’ 8Will man rob God?
Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How are we robbing you?’ In your
tithes and offerings. 9You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me;
the whole nation of you. 10Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that
there may be food in my house; and thereby put me to the test, says the
LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour
down for you an overflowing blessing. 11I will rebuke the devourer k for
you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil; and your vine in the
field shall not fail to bear, says the LORD of hosts. 12Then all nations will
call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the LORD of hosts.
13 “Your words have been stout against me, says the LORD. Yet you say,
‘How have we spoken against you?’ 14You have said, ‘It is vain to serve
God. What is the good of our keeping his charge or of walking as in
mourning before the LORD of hosts? 15Henceforth we deem the arrogant
blessed; evildoers not only prosper but when they put God to the test they
escape.’ ”
The Reward of Those Who Fear the Lord
16 Then those who feared the LORD spoke with one another; the LORD
heeded and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him
of those who feared the LORD and thought on his name. 17“They shall be
mine, says the LORD of hosts, my special possession on the day when I act,
and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. 18Then once
more you shall distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between
one who serves God and one who does not serve him.
The Great Day of the Lord
4 l “For behold, the day comes, burning like an oven, when all the
arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn
them up, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor
branch. 2But for you who fear my name the sun of righteousness shall rise,
with healing in its wings. You shall go forth leaping like calves from the
stall. 3And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the
soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts.
4 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances
that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.
5 “Behold, I will send you Eli'jah the prophet before the great and
awesome day of the LORD comes. 6And he will turn the hearts of fathers to
their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and
strike the land with a curse.” m
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1 Maccabees
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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THE FIRST BOOK OF MACCABEES
Alexander the Great
1 * After Alexander son of Philip, the Mace- donian, who came from
the land of Kittim, had defeated a Dari'us, king of the Persians and the
Medes, he succeeded him as king. (He had previously become king of
Greece.) 2He fought many battles, conquered strongholds, and put to death
the kings of the earth. 3He advanced to the ends of the earth, and plundered
many nations. When the earth became quiet before him, he was exalted, and
his heart was lifted up. 4He gathered a very strong army and ruled over
countries, nations, and princes, and they became tributary to him.
5 After this he fell sick and perceived that he was dying. 6So he
summoned his most honored officers, who had been brought up with him
from youth, and divided his kingdom among them while he was still alive.
7And after Alexander had reigned twelve years, he died.
8 Then his officers began to rule, each in his own place. 9They all put on
crowns after his death, and so did their sons after them for many years; and
they caused many evils on the earth.
Antiochus Epiphanes and Renegade Jews
10 From them came forth a sinful root, Anti'ochus Epiph'anes, son of
Anti'ochus the king; he had been a hostage in Rome. He began to reign in
the one hundred and thirty-seventh year of the kingdom of the Greeks. b
11 In those days lawless men came forth from Israel, and misled many,
saying, “Let us go and make a covenant with the Gentiles round about us,
for since we separated from them many evils have come upon us.” 12This
proposal pleased them, 13and some of the people eagerly went to the king.
He authorized them to observe the ordinances of the Gentiles. 14So they
built a gymnasium in Jerusalem, according to Gentile custom, 15and
removed the marks of circumcision, and abandoned the holy covenant.
They joined with the Gentiles and sold themselves to do evil.
Antiochus in Egypt
16 When Anti'ochus saw that his kingdom was established, he
determined to become king of the land of Egypt, that he might reign over
both kingdoms. 17So he invaded Egypt with a strong force, with chariots
and elephants and cavalry and with a large fleet. 18He engaged Ptol'emy
king of Egypt in battle, and Ptolemy turned and fled before him, and many
were wounded and fell. 19And they captured the fortified cities in the land
of Egypt, and he plundered the land of Egypt.
Persecution of the Jews
20 After subduing Egypt, Anti'ochus returned in the one hundred and
forty-third year. c He went up against Israel and came to Jerusalem with a
strong force. 21He arrogantly entered the sanctuary and took the golden
altar, the lampstand for the light, and all its utensils. 22He took also the table
for the bread of the Presence, the cups for drink offerings, the bowls, the
golden censers, the curtain, the crowns, and the gold decoration on the front
of the temple; he stripped it all off. 23He took the silver and the gold, and
the costly vessels; he took also the hidden treasures which he found.
24Taking them all, he departed to his own land.
He committed deeds of murder,

and spoke with great arrogance.
25Israel mourned deeply in every community,
26 rulers and elders groaned,
maidens and young men became faint,

the beauty of women faded.
27Every bridegroom took up the lament;
she who sat in the bridal chamber was mourning.

28Even the land shook for its inhabitants,
and all the house of Jacob was clothed with shame.

Occupation of Jerusalem
29 Two years later the king sent to the cities of Judah a chief collector of
tribute, and he came to Jerusalem with a large force. 30Deceitfully he spoke
peaceable words to them, and they believed him; but he suddenly fell upon
the city, dealt it a severe blow, and destroyed many people of Israel. 31He
plundered the city, burned it with fire, and tore down its houses and its
surrounding walls. 32And they took captive the women and children, and
seized the cattle. 33Then they fortified the city of David with a great strong
wall and strong towers, and it became their citadel. 34And they stationed
there a sinful people, lawless men. These strengthened their position; 35they
stored up arms and food, and collecting the spoils of Jerusalem they stored
them there, and became a great snare.
36It became an ambush against the sanctuary,
an evil adversary of Israel continually.

37On every side of the sanctuary they shed innocent blood;
they even defiled the sanctuary.
38Because of them the residents of Jerusalem fled;
she became a dwelling of strangers;
she became strange to her offspring,
and her children forsook her.
39Her sanctuary became desolate as a desert;
her feasts were turned into mourning,

her sabbaths into a reproach,
her honor into contempt.
40Her dishonor now grew as great as her glory;
her exaltation was turned into mourning.
Installation of Gentile Cults
41 Then the king wrote to his whole kingdom that all should be one
people, 42and that each should give up his customs. 43All the Gentiles
accepted the command of the king. Many even from Israel gladly adopted
his religion; they sacrificed to idols and profaned the sabbath. 44And the
king sent letters by messengers to Jerusalem and the cities of Judah; he
directed them to follow customs strange to the land, 45to forbid burnt
offerings and sacrifices and drink offerings in the sanctuary, to profane
sabbaths and feasts, 46to defile the sanctuary and the priests, 47to build
altars and sacred precincts and shrines for idols, to sacrifice swine and
unclean animals, 48and to leave their sons uncircumcised. They were to
make themselves abominable by everything unclean and profane, 49so that
they should forget the law and change all the ordinances. 50“And whoever
does not obey the command of the king shall die.”
51 In such words he wrote to his whole kingdom. And he appointed
inspectors over all the people and commanded the cities of Judah to offer
sacrifice, city by city. 52Many of the people, every one who forsook the law,
joined them, and they did evil in the land; 53they drove Israel into hiding in
every place of refuge they had.
54 Now on the fifteenth day of Chis'lev, in the one hundred and forty-
fifth year, d they erected a desolating sacrilege upon the altar of burnt
offering. They also built altars in the surrounding cities of Judah, 55and
burned incense at the doors of the houses and in the streets. 56The books of
the law which they found they tore to pieces and burned with fire. 57Where
the book of the covenant was found in the possession of any one, or if any
one adhered to the law, the decree of the king condemned him to death.
58They kept using violence against Israel, against those found month after
month in the cities. 59And on the twenty-fifth day of the month they offered
sacrifice on the altar which was upon the altar of burnt offering.
60According to the decree, they put to death the women who had their
children circumcised, 61and their families and those who circumcised them;
and they hung the infants from their mothers’ necks.
62 But many in Israel stood firm and were resolved in their hearts not to
eat unclean food. 63They chose to die rather than to be defiled by food or to
profane the holy covenant; and they did die. 64And very great wrath came
upon Israel.
Mattathias and His Sons
2 In those days Mattathi'as the son of John, son of Simeon, a priest of the
sons of Jo'arib, moved from Jerusalem and settled in Mo'dein. 2He had five
sons, John surnamed Gaddi, 3Simon called Thassi, 4Judas called
Mac''cabe'us, 5Elea'zar called Av'aran, and Jonathan called Ap'phus. 6He
saw the blasphemies being committed in Judah and Jerusalem, 7and said,
“Alas! Why was I born to see this,
the ruin of my people, the ruin of the holy city,
and to dwell there when it was given over to the enemy,
the sanctuary given over to aliens?
8Her temple has become like a man without honor; e
9 her glorious vessels have been carried into captivity.
Her infants have been killed in her streets,

her youths by the sword of the foe.
10What nation has not inherited her palaces f
and has not seized her spoils?
11All her adornment has been taken away;
no longer free, she has become a slave.

12And behold, our holy place, our beauty,
and our glory have been laid waste;

the Gentiles have profaned it.
13 Why should we live any longer?”
14 And Mattathi'as and his sons tore their clothes, put on sackcloth, and
mourned greatly.
Pagan Worship Refused
15 Then the king’s officers who were enforcing the apostasy came to the
city of Mo'dein to make them offer sacrifice. 16Many from Israel came to
them; and Mattathi'as and his sons were assembled. 17Then the king’s
officers spoke to Mattathi'as as follows: “You are a leader, honored and
great in this city, and supported by sons and brothers. 18Now be the first to
come and do what the king commands, as all the Gentiles and the men of
Judah and those that are left in Jerusalem have done. Then you and your
sons will be numbered among the friends of the king, and you and your
sons will be honored with silver and gold and many gifts.”
19 But Mattathi'as answered and said in a loud voice: “Even if all the
nations that live under the rule of the king obey him, and have chosen to do
his commandments, departing each one from the religion of his fathers,
20yet I and my sons and my brothers will live by the covenant of our
fathers. 21Far be it from us to desert the law and the ordinances. 22We will
not obey the king’s words by turning aside from our religion to the right
hand or to the left.”
23 When he had finished speaking these words, a Jew came forward in
the sight of all to offer sacrifice upon the altar in Mo'dein, according to the
king’s command. 24When Mattathi'as saw it, he burned with zeal and his
heart was stirred. He gave vent to righteous anger; he ran and killed him
upon the altar. 25At the same time he killed the king’s officer who was
forcing them to sacrifice, and he tore down the altar. 26Thus he burned with
zeal for the law, as Phin'ehas did against Zimri the son of Sa'lu.
27 Then Mattathi'as cried out in the city with a loud voice, saying: “Let
every one who is zealous for the law and supports the covenant come out
with me!” 28And he and his sons fled to the hills and left all that they had in
the city.
29 Then many who were seeking righteousness and justice went down to
the wilderness to dwell there, 30they, their sons, their wives, and their cattle,
because evils pressed heavily upon them. 31And it was reported to the
king’s officers, and to the troops in Jerusalem the city of David, that men
who had rejected the king’s command had gone down to the hiding places
in the wilderness. 32Many pursued them, and overtook them; they
encamped opposite them and prepared for battle against them on the
sabbath day. 33And they said to them, “Enough of this! Come out and do
what the king commands, and you will live.” 34But they said, “We will not
come out, nor will we do what the king commands and so profane the
sabbath day.” 35Then the enemy g hastened to attack them. 36But they did
not answer them or hurl a stone at them or block up their hiding places,
37for they said, “Let us all die in our innocence; heaven and earth testify for
us that you are killing us unjustly.” 38So they attacked them on the sabbath,
and they died, with their wives and children and cattle, to the number of a
thousand persons.
39 When Mattathi'as and his friends learned of it, they mourned for them
deeply. 40And each said to his neighbor: “If we all do as our brethren have
done and refuse to fight with the Gentiles for our lives and for our
ordinances, they will quickly destroy us from the earth.” 41So they made
this decision that day: “Let us fight against every man who comes to attack
us on the sabbath day; let us not all die as our brethren died in their hiding
places.”
Counterattack
42 Then there united with them a company of Hasid'eans, mighty
warriors of Israel, every one who offered himself willingly for the law.
43And all who became fugitives to escape their troubles joined them and
reinforced them. 44They organized an army, and struck down sinners in

their anger and lawless men in their wrath; the survivors fled to the Gentiles
for safety. 45And Mattathi'as and his friends went about and tore down the
altars; 46they forcibly circumcised all the uncircumcised boys that they
found within the borders of Israel. 47They hunted down the arrogant men,
and the work prospered in their hands. 48They rescued the law out of the
hands of the Gentiles and kings, and they never let the sinner gain the upper
hand.
Last Words of Mattathias
49 Now the days drew near for Mattathi'as to die, and he said to his sons:
“Arrogance and reproach have now become strong; it is a time of ruin and
furious anger. 50Now, my children, show zeal for the law, and give your
lives for the covenant of our fathers.
51 “Remember the deeds of the fathers, which they did in their
generations; and receive great honor and an everlasting name. 52Was not
Abraham found faithful when tested, and it was reckoned to him as
righteousness? 53Joseph in the time of his distress kept the commandment,
and became lord of Egypt. 54Phin'ehas our father, because he was deeply
zealous, received the covenant of everlasting priesthood. 55Joshua, because
he fulfilled the command, became a judge in Israel. 56Caleb, because he
testified in the assembly, received an inheritance in the land. 57David,
because he was merciful, inherited the throne of the kingdom for ever.
58Eli'jah because of great zeal for the law was taken up into heaven.
59Hanani'ah, Azari'ah, and Mish'a-el believed and were saved from the
flame. 60Daniel because of his innocence was delivered from the mouth of
the lions.
61 “And so observe, from generation to generation, that none who put
their trust in him will lack strength. 62Do not fear the words of a sinner, for
his splendor will turn into dung and worms. 63Today he will be exalted, but
tomorrow he will not be found, because he has returned to the dust, and his
plans will perish. 64My children, be courageous and grow strong in the law,
for by it you will gain honor.
65 “Now behold, I know that Simeon your brother is wise in counsel;
always listen to him; he shall be your father. 66Judas Mac''cabe'us has been
a mighty warrior from his youth; he shall command the army for you and
fight the battle against the peoples. h 67You shall rally about you all who
observe the law, and avenge the wrong done to your people. 68Pay back the
Gentiles in full, and heed what the law commands.”
69 Then he blessed them, and was gathered to his fathers. 70He died in
the one hundred and forty-sixth year i and was buried in the tomb of his
fathers at Mo'dein. And all Israel mourned for him with great lamentation.
Early Victories of Judas Maccabeus
3 Then Judas his son, who was called Mac''- cabe'us, took command in
his place. 2All his brothers and all who had joined his father helped him;
they gladly fought for Israel.
3He extended the glory of his people.
Like a giant he put on his breastplate;

he belted on his armor of war and waged battles,
protecting the host by his sword.
4He was like a lion in his deeds,
like a lion’s cub roaring for prey.
5He searched out and pursued the lawless;
he burned those who troubled his people.
6Lawless men shrank back for fear of him;
all the evildoers were confounded;
and deliverance prospered by his hand.
7He embittered many kings,
but he made Jacob glad by his deeds,

and his memory is blessed for ever.
8He went through the cities of Judah;
he destroyed the ungodly out of the land; j

thus he turned away wrath from Israel.
9He was renowned to the ends of the earth;
he gathered in those who were perishing.

10 But Apollo'nius gathered together Gentiles and a large force from
Samar'ia to fight against Israel. 11When Judas learned of it, he went out to
meet him, and he defeated and killed him. Many were wounded and fell,
and the rest fled. 12Then they seized their spoils; and Judas took the sword
of Apollo'nius, and used it in battle the rest of his life.
13 Now when Se'ron, the commander of the Syrian army, heard that
Judas had gathered a large company, including a body of faithful men who
stayed with him and went out to battle, 14he said, “I will make a name for
myself and win honor in the kingdom. I will make war on Judas and his
companions, who scorn the king’s command.” 15And again a strong army of
ungodly men went up with him to help him, to take vengeance on the sons
of Israel.
16 When he approached the ascent of Beth-ho'ron, Judas went out to
meet him with a small company. 17But when they saw the army coming to
meet them, they said to Judas, “How can we, few as we are, fight against so
great and strong a multitude? And we are faint, for we have eaten nothing
today.” 18Judas replied, “It is easy for many to be hemmed in by few, for in
the sight of Heaven there is no difference between saving by many or by
few. 19It is not on the size of the army that victory in battle depends, but
strength comes from Heaven. 20They come against us in great pride and
lawlessness to destroy us and our wives and our children, and to despoil us;
21but we fight for our lives and our laws. 22He himself will crush them
before us; as for you, do not be afraid of them.”
23 When he finished speaking, he rushed suddenly against Se'ron and his
army, and they were crushed before him. 24They pursued them k down the
descent of Beth-ho'ron to the plain; eight hundred of them fell, and the rest
fled into the land of the Philis'tines. 25Then Judas and his brothers began to
be feared, and terror fell upon the Gentiles round about them. 26His fame
reached the king, and the Gentiles talked of the battles of Judas.
The Policy of Antiochus
27 When king Anti'ochus heard these reports, he was greatly angered;
and he sent and gathered all the forces of his kingdom, a very strong army.
28And he opened his coffers and gave a year’s pay to his forces, and ordered
them to be ready for any need. 29Then he saw that the money in the treasury
was exhausted, and that the revenues from the country were small because
of the dissension and disaster which he had caused in the land by abolishing
the laws that had existed from the earliest days. 30He feared that he might
not have such funds as he had before for his expenses and for the gifts
which he used to give more lavishly than preceding kings. 31He was greatly
perplexed in mind, and determined to go to Persia and collect the revenues
from those regions and raise a large fund.
32 He left Lys'ias, a distinguished man of royal lineage, in charge of the
king’s affairs from the river Euphra'tes to the borders of Egypt. 33Lys'ias
was also to take care of Anti'ochus his son until he returned. 34And he
turned over to Lys'ias l half of his troops and the elephants, and gave him
orders about all that he wanted done. As for the residents of Judea and
Jerusalem, 35Lys'ias was to send a force against them to wipe out and
destroy the strength of Israel and the remnant of Jerusalem; he was to
banish the memory of them from the place, 36settle aliens in all their
territory, and distribute their land. 37Then the king took the remaining half
of his troops and departed from Antioch his capital in the one hundred and
forty-seventh year. m He crossed the Euphra'tes river and went through the
upper provinces.
Preparations for Battle
38 Lys'ias chose Ptol'emy the son of Dorym'enes, and Nica'nor and
Gor'gias, mighty men among the friends of the king, 39and sent with them
forty thousand infantry and seven thousand cavalry to go into the land of
Judah and destroy it, as the king had commanded. 40So they departed with
their entire force, and when they arrived they encamped near Emma'us in
the plain. 41When the traders of the region heard what was said of them,
they took silver and gold in immense amounts, and shackles, n and went to
the camp to get the sons of Israel for slaves. And forces from Syria and the
land of the Philis'tines joined with them.
42 Now Judas and his brothers saw that misfortunes had increased and
that the forces were encamped in their territory. They also learned what the
king had commanded to do to the people to cause their final destruction.
43But they said to one another, “Let us repair the destruction of our people,
and fight for our people and the sanctuary.” 44And the congregation
assembled to be ready for battle, and to pray and ask for mercy and
compassion.
45Jerusalem was uninhabited like a wilderness;
not one of her children went in or out.

The sanctuary was trampled down,
and the sons of aliens held the citadel;
it was a lodging place for the Gentiles.
Joy was taken from Jacob;
the flute and the harp ceased to play.
46 So they assembled and went to Mizpah, opposite Jerusalem, because
Israel formerly had a place of prayer in Mizpah. 47They fasted that day, put
on sackcloth and sprinkled ashes on their heads, and tore their clothes.
48And they opened the book of the law to inquire into those matters about
which the Gentiles were consulting the images of their idols. 49They also
brought the garments of the priesthood and the first fruits and the tithes, and
they stirred up the Naz'irites who had completed their days; 50and they cried
aloud to Heaven, saying,
“What shall we do with these?
Where shall we take them?
51Your sanctuary is trampled down and profaned,
and your priests mourn in humiliation.

52And behold, the Gentiles are assembled against us to destroy us;
you know what they plot against us.

53How will we be able to withstand them,
if you do not help us?”
54 Then they sounded the trumpets and gave a loud shout. 55After this
Judas appointed leaders of the people, in charge of thousands and hundreds
and fifties and tens. 56And he said to those who were building houses, or
were betrothed, or were planting vineyards, or were fainthearted, that each
should return to his home, according to the law. 57Then the army marched
out and encamped to the south of Emma'us.
58 And Judas said, “Gird yourselves and be valiant. Be ready early in the
morning to fight with these Gentiles who have assembled against us to
destroy us and our sanctuary. 59It is better for us to die in battle than to see
the misfortunes of our nation and of the sanctuary. 60But as his will in
heaven may be, so he will do.”
The Battle at Emmaus
4 Now Gor'gias took five thousand infantry and a thousand picked

cavalry, and this division moved out by night 2to fall upon the camp of the
Jews and attack them suddenly. Men from the citadel were his guides. 3But
Judas heard of it, and he and his mighty men moved out to attack the king’s
force in Emma'us 4while the division was still absent from the camp. 5When
Gor'gias entered the camp of Judas by night, he found no one there, so he
looked for them in the hills, because he said, “These men are fleeing from
us.”
6 At daybreak Judas appeared in the plain with three thousand men, but
they did not have armor and swords such as they desired. 7And they saw the
camp of the Gentiles, strong and fortified, with cavalry round about it; and
these men were trained in war. 8But Judas said to the men who were with
him, “Do not fear their numbers or be afraid when they charge. 9Remember
how our fathers were saved at the Red Sea, when Pharaoh with his forces
pursued them. 10And now let us cry to Heaven, to see whether he will favor
us and remember his covenant with our fathers and crush this army before
us today. 11Then all the Gentiles will know that there is one who redeems
and saves Israel.”
12 When the foreigners looked up and saw them coming against them,
13they went forth from their camp to battle. Then the men with Judas blew
their trumpets 14and engaged in battle. The Gentiles were crushed and fled
into the plain, 15and all those in the rear fell by the sword. They pursued
them to Gaza'ra, and to the plains of Idume'a, and to Azo'tus and Jam'nia;
and three thousand of them fell. 16Then Judas and his force turned back
from pursuing them, 17and he said to the people, “Do not be greedy for
plunder, for there is a battle before us; 18Gor'gias and his force are near us
in the hills. But stand now against our enemies and fight them, and
afterward seize the plunder boldly.”
19 Just as Judas was finishing this speech, a detachment appeared, coming
out of the hills. 20They saw that their army o had been put to flight, and that
the Jews o were burning the camp, for the smoke that was seen showed
what had happened. 21When they perceived this they were greatly
frightened, and when they also saw the army of Judas drawn up in the plain
for battle, 22they all fled into the land of the Philis'tines. 23Then Judas
returned to plunder the camp, and they seized much gold and silver, and
cloth dyed blue and sea purple, and great riches. 24On their return they sang
hymns and praises to Heaven, for he is good, for his mercy endures for ever.
25Thus Israel had a great deliverance that day.
First Campaign of Lysias

26 Those of the foreigners who escaped went and reported to Lys'ias all
that had happened. 27When he heard it, he was perplexed and discouraged,
for things had not happened to Israel as he had intended, nor had they
turned out as the king had commanded him. 28But the next year he mustered
sixty thousand picked infantrymen and five thousand cavalry to subdue
them. 29They came into Idume'a and encamped at Beth-zur, * and Judas met
them with ten thousand men.
30 When he saw that the army was strong, he prayed, saying, “Blessed
are you, O Savior of Israel, who did crush the attack of the mighty warrior
by the hand of your servant David, and did give the camp of the Philis'tines
into the hands of Jonathan, the son of Saul, and of the man who carried his
armor. 31So do you hem in this army by the hand of your people Israel, and
let them be ashamed of their troops and their cavalry. 32Fill them with
cowardice; melt the boldness of their strength; let them tremble in their
destruction. 33Strike them down with the sword of those who love you, and
let all who know your name praise you with hymns.”
34 Then both sides attacked, and there fell of the army of Lys'ias five
thousand men; they fell in action. p 35And when Lys'ias saw the rout of his
troops and observed the boldness which inspired those of Judas, and how
ready they were either to live or to die nobly, he departed to Antioch and
enlisted mercenaries, to invade Judea again with an even larger army.
Cleansing and Dedication of the Temple
36 Then said Judas and his brothers, “Behold, our enemies are crushed;
let us go up to cleanse the sanctuary and dedicate it.” 37So all the army
assembled and they went up to Mount Zion. 38And they saw the sanctuary
desolate, the altar profaned, and the gates burned. In the courts they saw
bushes sprung up as in a thicket, or as on one of the mountains. They saw
also the chambers of the priests in ruins. 39Then they tore their clothes, and
mourned with great lamentation, and sprinkled themselves with ashes.
40They fell face down on the ground, and sounded the signal on the
trumpets, and cried out to Heaven. 41Then Judas detailed men to fight
against those in the citadel until he had cleansed the sanctuary.
42 He chose blameless priests devoted to the law, 43and they cleansed the
sanctuary and removed the defiled stones to an unclean place. 44They
deliberated what to do about the altar of burnt offering, which had been
profaned. 45And they thought it best to tear it down, lest it bring reproach
upon them, for the Gentiles had defiled it. So they tore down the altar, 46and
stored the stones in a convenient place on the temple hill until there should
come a prophet to tell what to do with them. 47Then they took unhewn q
stones, as the law directs, and built a new altar like the former one. 48They
also rebuilt the sanctuary and the interior of the temple, and consecrated the
courts. 49They made new holy vessels, and brought the lampstand, the altar
of incense, and the table into the temple. 50Then they burned incense on the
altar and lighted the lamps on the lampstand, and these gave light in the
temple. 51They placed the bread on the table and hung up the curtains. Thus
they finished all the work they had undertaken.
52 Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month,
which is the month of Chis'lev, in the one hundred and forty-eighth year, r
53they rose and offered sacrifice, as the law directs, on the new altar of
burnt offering which they had built. 54At the very season and on the very
day that the Gentiles had profaned it, it was dedicated with songs and harps
and lutes and cymbals. 55All the people fell on their faces and worshiped
and blessed Heaven, who had prospered them. 56So they celebrated the
dedication of the altar for eight days, and offered burnt offerings with
gladness; they offered a sacrifice of deliverance and praise. 57They
decorated the front of the temple with golden crowns and small shields;
they restored the gates and the chambers for the priests, and furnished them
with doors. 58There was very great gladness among the people, and the
reproach of the Gentiles was removed.
59 Then Judas and his brothers and all the assembly of Israel determined
that every year at that season the days of the dedication of the altar should
be observed with gladness and joy for eight days, beginning with the
twenty-fifth day of the month of Chis'lev.
60 At that time they fortified Mount Zion with high walls and strong
towers round about, to keep the Gentiles from coming and trampling them
down as they had done before. 61And he stationed a garrison there to hold
it. He also s fortified Beth-zur, so that the people might have a stronghold
that faced Idume'a.
Wars with Neighboring Peoples
5 When the Gentiles round about heard that the altar had been built and
the sanctuary dedicated as it was before, they became very angry, 2and they
determined to destroy the descendants of Jacob who lived among them. So
they began to kill and destroy among the people. 3But Judas made war on
the sons of Esau in Idume'a, at Ak''rabatte'ne, because they kept lying in
wait for Israel. He dealt them a heavy blow and humbled them and
despoiled them. 4He also remembered the wickedness of the sons of Bae'an,
who were a trap and a snare to the people and ambushed them on the
highways. 5They were shut up by him in their towers; and he encamped
against them, vowed their complete destruction, and burned with fire their t
towers and all who were in them. 6Then he crossed over to attack the
Am'monites, where he found a strong band and many people with Timothy
as their leader. 7He engaged in many battles with them and they were
crushed before him; he struck them down. 8He also took Ja'zer and its
villages; then he returned to Judea.
Liberation of Galilean Jews
9 Now the Gentiles in Gilead gathered together against the Israelites who
lived in their territory, and planned to destroy them. But they fled to the
stronghold of Dath'ema, 10and sent to Judas and his brothers a letter which
said, “The Gentiles around us have gathered together against us to destroy
us. 11They are preparing to come and capture the stronghold to which we
have fled, and Timothy is leading their forces. 12Now then come and rescue
us from their hands, for many of us have fallen, 13and all our brethren who
were in the land of Tob have been killed; the enemy u have captured their
wives and children and goods, and have destroyed about a thousand men
there.”
14 While the letter was still being read, behold, other messengers, with
their garments torn, came from Galilee and made a similar report; 15they
said that against them had gathered together men of Ptolema'is and Tyre and
Si'don, and all Galilee of the Gentiles, v “to annihilate us.” 16When Judas
and the people heard these messages, a great assembly was called to
determine what they should do for their brethren who were in distress and
were being attacked by enemies. w 17Then Judas said to Simon his brother,
“Choose your men and go and rescue your brethren in Galilee; I and
Jonathan my brother will go to Gilead.” 18But he left Joseph, the son of
Zechari'ah, and Azari'ah, a leader of the people, with the rest of the forces,
in Judea to guard it; 19and he gave them this command, “Take charge of this
people, but do not engage in battle with the Gentiles until we return.”
20Then three thousand men were assigned to Simon to go to Galilee, and
eight thousand to Judas for Gilead.

21 So Simon went to Galilee and fought many battles against the Gentiles,
and the Gentiles were crushed before him. 22He pursued them to the gate of
Ptolema'is, and as many as three thousand of the Gentiles fell, and he
despoiled them. 23Then he took the Jews x of Galilee and Ar'batta, with
their wives and children, and all they possessed, and led them to Judea with
great rejoicing.
Judas and Jonathan in Gilead
24 Judas Mac''cabe'us and Jonathan his brother crossed the Jordan and
went three days’ journey into the wilderness. 25They encountered the
Nab''ate'ans, who met them peaceably and told them all that had happened
to their brethren in Gilead: 26“Many of them have been shut up in Bozrah
and Bo'sor, in Al'ema and Chas'pho, Ma'ked and Carna'im”—all these cities
were strong and large—27“and some have been shut up in the other cities of
Gilead; the enemy y are getting ready to attack the strongholds tomorrow
and take and destroy all these men in one day.”
28 Then Judas and his army quickly turned back by the wilderness road to
Bozrah; and he took the city, and killed every male by the edge of the
sword; then he seized all its spoils and burned it with fire. 29He departed
from there at night, and they went all the way to the stronghold of
Dath'ema. z 30At dawn they looked up, and behold, a large company, that
could not be counted, carrying ladders and engines of war to capture the
stronghold, and attacking the Jews within. a 31So Judas saw that the battle
had begun and that the cry of the city went up to Heaven with trumpets and
loud shouts, 32and he said to the men of his forces, “Fight today for your
brethren!” 33Then he came up behind them in three companies, who
sounded their trumpets and cried aloud in prayer. 34And when the army of
Timothy realized that it was Mac''cabe'us, they fled before him, and he dealt
them a heavy blow. As many as eight thousand of them fell that day.
35 Next he turned aside to Al'ema, b * and fought against it and took it;
and he killed every male in it, plundered it, and burned it with fire. 36From
there he marched on and took Chas'pho, Ma'ked, and Bo'sor, and the other
cities of Gilead.
37 After these things Timothy gathered another army and encamped
opposite Ra'phon on the other side of the stream. 38Judas sent men to spy
out the camp, and they reported to him, “All the Gentiles around us have
gathered to him; it is a very large force. 39They also have hired Arabs to
help them, and they are encamped across the stream, ready to come and
fight against you.” And Judas went to meet them.
40 Now as Judas and his army drew near to the stream of water, Timothy
said to the officers of his forces, “If he crosses over to us first, we will not
be able to resist him, for he will surely defeat us. 41But if he shows fear and
camps on the other side of the river, we will cross over to him and defeat
him.” 42When Judas approached the stream of water, he stationed the
scribes of the people at the stream and gave them this command, “Permit no
man to encamp, but make them all enter the battle.” 43Then he crossed over
against them first, and the whole army followed him. All the Gentiles were
defeated before him, and they threw away their arms and fled into the
sacred precincts at Carna'im. 44But he took the city and burned the sacred
precincts with fire, together with all who were in them. Thus Carna'im was
conquered; they could stand before Judas no longer.
The Return to Jerusalem
45 Then Judas gathered together all the Israelites in Gilead, the small and
the great, with their wives and children and goods, a very large company, to
go to the land of Judah. 46So they came to E'phron. This was a large and
very strong city on the road, and they could not go round it to the right or to
the left; they had to go through it. 47But the men of the city shut them out
and blocked up the gates with stones. 48And Judas sent them this friendly
message, “Let us pass through your land to get to our land. No one will do
you harm; we will simply pass by on foot.” But they refused to open to him.
49Then Judas ordered proclamation to be made to the army that each should
encamp where he was. 50So the men of the forces encamped, and he fought
against the city all that day and all the night, and the city was delivered into
his hands. 51He destroyed every male by the edge of the sword, and razed
and plundered the city. Then he passed through the city over the slain.
52 And they crossed the Jordan into the large plain before Beth-shan.
53And Judas kept rallying the laggards and encouraging the people all the
way till he came to the land of Judah. 54So they went up to Mount Zion
with gladness and joy, and offered burnt offerings, because not one of them
had fallen before they returned in safety.
55 Now while Judas and Jonathan were in Gilead and Simon his brother
was in Galilee before Ptolema'is, 56Joseph, the son of Zechari'ah, and
Azari'ah, the commanders of the forces, heard of their brave deeds and of
the heroic war they had fought. 57So they said, “Let us also make a name
for ourselves; let us go and make war on the Gentiles around us.” 58And
they issued orders to the men of the forces that were with them, and they
marched against Jam'nia. 59And Gor'gias and his men came out of the city
to meet them in battle. 60Then Joseph and Azari'ah were routed, and were
pursued to the borders of Judea; as many as two thousand of the people of
Israel fell that day. 61Thus the people suffered a great rout because, thinking
to do a brave deed, they did not listen to Judas and his brothers. 62But they
did not belong to the family of those men through whom deliverance was
given to Israel.
63 The man Judas and his brothers were greatly honored in all Israel and
among all the Gentiles, wherever their name was heard. 64Men gathered to
them and praised them.
Success at Hebron and Philistia
65 Then Judas and his brothers went forth and fought the sons of Esau in
the land to the south. He struck He'bron and its villages and tore down its
strongholds and burned its towers round about. 66Then he marched off to go
into the land of the Philis'tines, and passed through Mar'isa. c * 67On that
day some priests, who wished to do a brave deed, fell in battle, for they
went out to battle unwisely. 68But Judas turned aside to Azo'tus in the land
of the Philis'tines; * he tore down their altars, and the graven images of their
gods he burned with fire; he plundered the cities and returned to the land of
Judah.
The Last Days of Antiochus Epiphanes
6 King Anti'ochus was going through the upper provinces when he heard
that Elyma'is in Persia was a city famed for its wealth in silver and gold.
2Its temple was very rich, containing golden shields, breastplates, and
weapons left there by Alexander, the son of Philip, the Macedonian king
who first reigned over the Greeks. 3So he came and tried to take the city and
plunder it, but he could not, because his plan became known to the men of
the city 4and they withstood him in battle. So he fled and in great grief
departed from there to return to Babylon.
5 Then some one came to him in Persia and reported that the armies
which had gone into the land of Judah had been routed; 6that Lys'ias had
gone first with a strong force, but had turned and fled before the Jews; d that
the Jews e had grown strong from the arms, supplies, and abundant spoils
which they had taken from the armies they had cut down; 7that they had
torn down the abomination which he had erected upon the altar in
Jerusalem; and that they had surrounded the sanctuary with high walls as
before, and also Beth-zur, his city.
8 When the king heard this news, he was astounded and badly shaken. He
took to his bed and became sick from grief, because things had not turned
out for him as he had planned. 9He lay there for many days, because deep
grief continually gripped him, and he concluded that he was dying. 10So he
called all his friends and said to them, “Sleep departs from my eyes and I
am downhearted with worry. 11I said to myself, ‘To what distress I have
come! And into what a great flood I now am plunged! For I was kind and
beloved in my power.’ 12But now I remember the evils I did in Jerusalem. I
seized all her vessels of silver and gold; and I sent to destroy the inhabitants
of Judah without good reason. 13I know that it is because of this that these
evils have come upon me; and behold, I am perishing of deep grief in a
strange land.”
14 Then he called for Philip, one of his friends, and made him ruler over
all his kingdom. 15He gave him the crown and his robe and the signet, that
he might guide Anti'ochus his son and bring him up to be king. 16Thus
Anti'ochus the king died there in the one hundred and forty-ninth year. f
17And when Lys'ias learned that the king was dead, he set up Anti'ochus the
king’s g son to reign. Lysias h had brought him up as a boy, and he named
him Eu'pator.
Renewed Attacks from Syria
18 Now the men in the citadel kept hemming Israel in around the
sanctuary. They were trying in every way to harm them and strengthen the
Gentiles. 19So Judas decided to destroy them, and assembled all the people
to besiege them. 20They gathered together and besieged the citadel i in the
one hundred and fiftieth year; j and he built siege towers and other engines
of war. 21But some of the garrison escaped from the siege and some of the
ungodly Israelites joined them. 22They went to the king and said, “How
long will you fail to do justice and to avenge our brethren? 23We were
happy to serve your father, to live by what he said and to follow his
commands. 24For this reason the sons of our people besieged the citadel k
and became hostile to us; moreover, they have put to death as many of us as
they have caught, and they have seized our inheritances. 25And not against
us alone have they stretched out their hands, but also against all the lands on
their borders. 26And behold, today they have encamped against the citadel
in Jerusalem to take it; they have fortified both the sanctuary and Beth-zur;
27and unless you quickly prevent them, they will do still greater things, and
you will not be able to stop them.”

28 The king was enraged when he heard this. He assembled all his
friends, the commanders of his forces and those in authority. l 29And
mercenary forces came to him from other kingdoms and from islands of the
seas. 30The number of his forces was a hundred thousand foot soldiers,
twenty thousand horsemen, and thirty-two elephants accustomed to war.
31They came through Idume'a and encamped against Beth-zur, and for
many days they fought and built engines of war; but the Jews m sallied out
and burned these with fire, and fought manfully.
The Battle at Beth-zechariah
32 Then Judas marched away from the citadel and encamped at Beth-
zech''ari'ah, opposite the camp of the king. 33Early in the morning the king
rose and took his army by a forced march along the road to Beth-
zech''ari'ah, and his troops made ready for battle and sounded their
trumpets. 34They showed the elephants the juice of grapes and mulberries,
to arouse them for battle. 35And they distributed the beasts among the
phalanxes; with each elephant they stationed a thousand men armed with
coats of mail, and with brass helmets on their heads; and five hundred
picked horsemen were assigned to each beast. 36These took their position
beforehand wherever the beast was; wherever it went they went with it, and
they never left it. 37And upon the elephants n were wooden towers, strong
and covered; they were fastened upon each beast by special harness, and
upon each were four o armed men who fought from there, and also its
Indian driver. 38The rest of the horsemen were stationed on either side, on
the two flanks of the army, to harass the enemy while being themselves
protected by the phalanxes. 39When the sun shone upon the shields of gold
and brass, the hills were ablaze with them and gleamed like flaming
torches.
40 Now a part of the king’s army was spread out on the high hills, and
some troops were on the plain, and they advanced steadily and in good
order. 41All who heard the noise made by their multitude, by the marching
of the multitude and the clanking of their arms, trembled, for the army was
very large and strong. 42But Judas and his army advanced to the battle, and
six hundred men of the king’s army fell. 43And Elea'zar, called Av'aran, saw
that one of the beasts was equipped with royal armor. It was taller than all
the others, and he supposed that the king was upon it. 44So he gave his life
to save his people and to win for himself an everlasting name. 45He
courageously ran into the midst of the phalanx to reach it; he killed men
right and left, and they parted before him on both sides. 46He got under the
elephant, stabbed it from beneath, and killed it; but it fell to the ground
upon him and there he died. 47And when the Jews p saw the royal might and
the fierce attack of the forces, they turned away in flight.
48 The soldiers of the king’s army went up to Jerusalem against them,
and the king encamped in Judea and at Mount Zion. 49He made peace with
the men of Beth-zur, and they evacuated the city, because they had no
provisions there to withstand a siege, since it was a sabbatical year for the
land. 50So the king took Beth-zur and stationed a guard there to hold it.
51Then he encamped before the sanctuary for many days. He set up siege
towers, engines of war to throw fire and stones, machines to shoot arrows,
and catapults. 52The Jews q also made engines of war to match theirs, and
fought for many days. >53But they had no food in storage, r because it was
the seventh year; those who found safety in Judea from the Gentiles had
consumed the last of the stores. 54Few men were left in the sanctuary,
because famine had prevailed over the rest and they had been scattered,
each to his own place.
Syria Offers Terms
55 Then Lys'ias heard that Philip, whom King Anti'ochus while still
living had appointed to bring up Antiochus his son to be king, 56had
returned from Persia and Med'ia with the forces that had gone with the king,
and that he was trying to seize control of the government. 57So he quickly
gave orders to depart, and said to the king, to the commanders of the forces,
and to the men, “We daily grow weaker, our food supply is scant, the place
against which we are fighting is strong, and the affairs of the kingdom press
urgently upon us. 58Now then let us come to terms with these men, and
make peace with them and with all their nation, 59and agree to let them live
by their laws as they did before; for it was on account of their laws which
we abolished that they became angry and did all these things.”
60 The speech pleased the king and the commanders, and he sent to the
Jews s an offer of peace, and they accepted it. 61So the king and the
commanders gave them their oath. On these conditions the Jews t evacuated
the stronghold. 62But when the king entered Mount Zion and saw what a
strong fortress the place was, he broke the oath he had sworn and gave
orders to tear down the wall all around. 63Then he departed with haste and
returned to Antioch. He found Philip in control of the city, but he fought
against him, and took the city by force.
Expedition of Bacchides and Alcimun
7 In the one hundred and fifty-first year u Deme'trius the son of Seleu'cus
set forth from Rome, sailed with a few men to a city by the sea, and there
began to reign. 2As he was entering the royal palace of his fathers, the army
seized Anti'ochus and Lys'ias to bring them to him. 3But when this act
became known to him, he said, “Do not let me see their faces!” 4So the
army killed them, and Deme'trius took his seat upon the throne of his
kingdom.
5 Then there came to him all the lawless and ungodly men of Israel; they
were led by Al'cimus, who wanted to be high priest. 6And they brought to
the king this accusation against the people: “Judas and his brothers have
destroyed all your friends, and have driven us out of our land. 7Now then
send a man whom you trust; let him go and see all the ruin which Judas v
has brought upon us and upon the land of the king, and let him punish them
and all who help them.”
8 So the king chose Bacchi'des, one of the king’s friends, governor of the
province Beyond the River; he was a great man in the kingdom and was
faithful to the king. 9And he sent him, and with him the ungodly Al'cimus,
whom he made high priest; and he commanded him to take vengeance on
the sons of Israel. 10So they marched away and came with a large force into
the land of Judah; and he sent messengers to Judas and his brothers with
peaceable but treacherous words. 11But they paid no attention to their
words, for they saw that they had come with a large force.
12 Then a group of scribes appeared in a body before Al'cimus and
Bacchi'des to ask for just terms. 13The Hasid'eans were first among the sons
of Israel to seek peace from them, 14for they said, “A priest of the line of
Aaron has come with the army, and he will not harm us.” 15And he spoke
peaceable words to them and swore this oath to them, “We will not seek to
injure you or your friends.” 16So they trusted him; but he seized sixty of
them and killed them in one day, in accordance with the word which was
written,
17“The flesh of your saints and their blood
they poured out round about Jerusalem,

and there was none to bury them.”
18Then the fear and dread of them fell upon all the people, for they said,
“There is no truth or justice in them, for they have violated the agreement
and the oath which they swore.”
19 Then Bacchi'des departed from Jerusalem and encamped in Beth-
za'ith. And he sent and seized many of the men who had deserted to him, w
and some of the people, and killed them and threw them into the great pit.
20He placed Al'cimus in charge of the country and left with him a force to
help him; then Bacchi'des went back to the king.
21 Al'cimus strove for the high priesthood, 22and all who were troubling
their people joined him. They gained control of the land of Judah and did
great damage in Israel. 23And Judas saw all the evil that Al'cimus and those
with him had done among the sons of Israel; it was more than the Gentiles
had done. 24So Judas x went out into all the surrounding parts of Judea, and
took vengeance on the men who had deserted, and he prevented those in the
city y from going out into the country. 25When Al'cimus saw that Judas and
those with him had grown strong, and realized that he could not withstand
them, he returned to the king and brought wicked charges against them.
Nicanor in Judea
26 Then the king sent Nica'nor, one of his honored princes, who hated
and detested Israel, and he commanded him to destroy the people. 27So
Nica'nor came to Jerusalem with a large force, and treacherously sent to
Judas and his brothers this peaceable message, 28“Let there be no fighting
between me and you; I shall come with a few men to see you face to face in
peace.” 29So he came to Judas, and they greeted one another peaceably. But
the enemy were ready to seize Judas. 30It became known to Judas that
Nica'nor x had come to him with treacherous intent, and he was afraid of
him and would not meet him again. 31When Nica'nor learned that his plan
had been disclosed, he went out to meet Judas in battle near
Caph''arsal'ama. 32About five hundred men of the army of Nica'nor fell, and
the rest z fled into the city of David.
Nicanor Threatens the Temple
33 After these events Nica'nor went up to Mount Zion. Some of the
priests came out of the sanctuary, and some of the elders of the people, to
greet him peaceably and to show him the burnt offering that was being
offered for the king. 34But he mocked them and derided them and defiled
them and spoke arrogantly, 35and in anger he swore this oath, “Unless Judas
and his army are delivered into my hands this time, then if I return safely I
will burn up this house.” And he went out in great anger. 36Then the priests
went in and stood before the altar and the temple, and they wept and said,
37“You chose this house to be called by your name,
and to be for your people a house of prayer and supplication.

38Take vengeance on this man and on his army,
and let them fall by the sword;

remember their blasphemies,
and let them live no longer.”
The Death of Nicanor
39 Now Nica'nor went out from Jerusalem and encamped in Beth-ho'ron,
and the Syrian army joined him. 40And Judas encamped in Ad'asa with
three thousand men. Then Judas prayed and said, 41“When the messengers
from the king spoke blasphemy, your angel went forth and struck down one
hundred and eighty-five thousand of the Assyrians. a >42So also crush this
army before us today; let the rest learn that Nica'nor b has spoken wickedly
against your sanctuary, and judge him according to this wickedness.” 43So
the armies met in battle on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar'. The
army of Nica'nor was crushed, and he himself was the first to fall in the
battle. 44When his army saw that Nica'nor had fallen, they threw down their
arms and fled. 45The Jews c pursued them a day’s journey, from Ad'asa as
far as Gaza'ra, and as they followed kept sounding the battle call on the
trumpets. 46And men came out of all the villages of Judea round about, and
they outflanked the enemy d and drove them back to their pursuers, e so that
they all fell by the sword; not even one of them was left. 47Then the Jews f
seized the spoils and the plunder, and they cut off Nica'nor’s head and the
right hand which he so arrogantly stretched out, and brought them and
displayed them just outside Jerusalem. 48The people rejoiced greatly and
celebrated that day as a day of great gladness. 49And they decreed that this
day should be celebrated each year on the thirteenth day of Adar'. 50So the
land of Judah had rest for a few days.
An Eulogy of the Romans
8 Now Judas heard of the fame of the Romans, that they were very
strong and were well-disposed toward all who made an alliance with them,
that they pledged friendship to those who came to them, 2and that they were
very strong. Men told him of their wars and of the brave deeds which they
were doing among the Gauls, how they had defeated them and forced them
to pay tribute, 3and what they had done in the land of Spain to get control of
the silver and gold mines there, 4and how they had gained control of the
whole region by their planning and patience, even though the place was far
distant from them. They also subdued the kings who came against them
from the ends of the earth, until they crushed them and inflicted great
disaster upon them; the rest paid them tribute every year. 5Philip, and
Per'seus king of the Macedonians, g and the others who rose up against
them, they crushed in battle and conquered. 6They also defeated Anti'ochus
the Great, king of Asia, who went to fight against them with a hundred and
twenty elephants and with cavalry and chariots and a very large army. He
was crushed by them; 7they took him alive and decreed that he and those
who should reign after him should pay a heavy tribute and give hostages
and surrender some of their best provinces, 8the country of India and Med'ia
and Lyd'ia. These they took from him and gave to Eu'menes the king. 9The
Greeks planned to come and destroy them, 10but this became known to
them, and they sent a general against the Greeks h and attacked them. Many
of them were wounded and fell, and the Romans i took captive their wives
and children; they plundered them, conquered the land, tore down their
strongholds, and enslaved them to this day. 11The remaining kingdoms and
islands, as many as ever opposed them, they destroyed and enslaved; 12but
with their friends and those who rely on them they have kept friendship.
They have subdued kings far and near, and as many as have heard of their
fame have feared them. 13Those whom they wish to help and to make kings,
they make kings, and those whom they wish they depose; and they have
been greatly exalted. 14Yet for all this not one of them has put on a crown or
worn purple as a mark of pride, 15but they have built for themselves a
senate chamber, and every day three hundred and twenty senators
constantly deliberate concerning the people, to govern them well. 16They
trust one man each year to rule over them and to control all their land; they
all heed the one man, and there is no envy or jealousy among them.
An Alliance with Rome
17 So Judas chose Eupol'emus the son of John, son of Ac'cos, and Jason
the son of Elea'zar, and sent them to Rome to establish friendship and
alliance, 18and to free themselves from the yoke; for they saw that the
kingdom of the Greeks was completely enslaving Israel. 19They went to
Rome, a very long journey; and they entered the senate chamber and spoke
as follows: 20“Judas, who is also called Mac''cabe'us, and his brothers and
the people of the Jews have sent us to you to establish alliance and peace
with you, that we may be enrolled as your allies and friends.” 21The
proposal pleased them, 22and this is a copy of the letter which they wrote in
reply, on bronze tablets, and sent to Jerusalem to remain with them there as
a memorial of peace and alliance:
23 “May all go well with the Romans and with the nation of the Jews at
sea and on land for ever, and may sword and enemy be far from them. 24If
war comes first to Rome or to any of their allies in all their dominion, 25the
nation of the Jews shall act as their allies wholeheartedly, as the occasion
may indicate to them. 26And to the enemy who makes war they shall not
give or supply grain, arms, money, or ships, as Rome has decided; and they
shall keep their obligations without receiving any return. 27In the same way,
if war comes first to the nation of the Jews, the Romans shall willingly act
as their allies, as the occasion may indicate to them. 28And to the enemy
allies shall be given no grain, arms, money, or ships, as Rome has decided;
and they shall keep these obligations and do so without deceit. 29Thus on
these terms the Romans make a treaty with the Jewish people. 30If after
these terms are in effect both parties shall determine to add or delete
anything, they shall do so at their discretion, and any addition or deletion
that they may make shall be valid.
31 “And concerning the wrongs which King Deme'trius is doing to them
we have written to him as follows, ‘Why have you made your yoke heavy
upon our friends and allies the Jews? 32If now they appeal again for help
against you, we will defend their rights and fight you on sea and on land.’ ”
Bacchides Returns to Judea
9 When Deme'trius heard that Nica'nor and his army had fallen in battle,
he sent Bacchi'des and Al'cimus into the land of Judah a second time, and
with them the right wing of the army. 2They went by the road which leads
to Gilgal and encamped against Mes'aloth in Arbe'la, and they took it and
killed many people. 3In the first month of the one hundred and fifty-second
year j they encamped against Jerusalem; 4then they marched off and went to
Bere'a with twenty thousand foot soldiers and two thousand cavalry.
5 Now Judas was encamped in El'asa, and with him were three thousand
picked men. 6When they saw the huge number of the enemy forces, they
were greatly frightened, and many slipped away from the camp, until no
more than eight hundred of them were left.
7 When Judas saw that his army had slipped away and the battle was
imminent, he was crushed in spirit, for he had no time to assemble them.
8He became faint, but he said to those who were left, “Let us rise and go up
against our enemies. We may be able to fight them.” 9But they tried to
dissuade him, saying, “We are not able. Let us rather save our own lives
now, and let us come back with our brethren and fight them; we are too
few.” 10But Judas said, “Far be it from us to do such a thing as to flee from
them. If our time has come, let us die bravely for our brethren, and leave no
cause to question our honor.”
The Last Battle of Judas
11 Then the army of Bacchi'des k marched out from the camp and took its
stand for the encounter. The cavalry was divided into two companies, and
the slingers and the archers went ahead of the army, as did all the chief
warriors. 12Bacchi'des was on the right wing. Flanked by the two
companies, the phalanx advanced to the sound of the trumpets; and the men
with Judas also blew their trumpets. 13The earth was shaken by the noise of
the armies, and the battle raged from morning till evening.
14 Judas saw that Bacchi'des and the strength of his army were on the
right; then all the stouthearted men went with him, 15and they crushed the
right wing, and he pursued them as far as Mount Azo'tus. 16When those on
the left wing saw that the right wing was crushed, they turned and followed
close behind Judas and his men. 17The battle became desperate, and many
on both sides were wounded and fell. 18Judas also fell, and the rest fled.
19 Then Jonathan and Simon took Judas their brother and buried him in
the tomb of their fathers at Mo'dein, 20and wept for him. And all Israel
made great lamentation for him; they mourned many days and said,
21“How is the mighty fallen,
the savior of Israel!”

22Now the rest of the acts of Judas, and his wars and the brave deeds that
he did, and his greatness, have not been recorded, for they were very many.
Jonathan Succeeds Judas
23 After the death of Judas, the lawless emerged in all parts of Israel; all
the doers of injustice appeared. 24In those days a very great famine
occurred, and the country deserted with them to the enemy. 25And
Bacchi'des chose the ungodly and put them in charge of the country. 26They
sought and searched for the friends of Judas, and brought them to
Bacchi'des, and he took vengeance on them and made sport of them. 27Thus
there was great distress in Israel, such as had not been since the time that
prophets ceased to appear among them.
28 Then all the friends of Judas assembled and said to Jonathan, 29
“Since the death of your brother Judas there has been no one like him to go
against our enemies and Bacchi'des, and to deal with those of our nation
who hate us. 30So now we have chosen you today to take his place as our
ruler and leader, to fight our battle.” 31And Jonathan at that time accepted
the leadership and took the place of Judas his brother.
The Campaigns of Jonathan
32 When Bacchi'des learned of this, he tried to kill him. 33But Jonathan
and Simon his brother and all who were with him heard of it, and they fled
into the wilderness of Teko'a and camped by the water of the pool of
As'phar. 34Bacchi'des found this out on the sabbath day, and he with all his
army crossed the Jordan.
35 And Jonathan l sent his brother as leader of the multitude and begged
the Nab''ate'ans, who were his friends, for permission to store with them the
great amount of baggage which they had. 36But the sons of Jam'bri from
Med'eba came out and seized John and all that he had, and departed with it.
After these things it was reported to Jonathan and Simon his brother, “The
sons of Jam'bri are celebrating a great wedding, and are conducting the
bride, a daughter of one of the great nobles of Canaan, from Nad'abath*
with a large escort.” 38And they remembered the blood of John their
brother, and went up and hid under cover of the mountain. 39They raised
their eyes and looked, and saw a tumultuous procession with much
baggage; and the bridegroom came out with his friends and his brothers to
meet them with tambourines and musicians and many weapons. 40Then
they rushed upon them from the ambush and began killing them. Many
were wounded and fell, and the rest fled to the mountain; and they took all
their goods. 41Thus the wedding was turned into mourning and the voice of
their musicians into a funeral dirge. 42And when they had fully avenged the
blood of their brother, they returned to the marshes of the Jordan.
43 When Bacchi'des heard of this, he came with a large force on the
sabbath day to the banks of the Jordan. 44And Jonathan said to those with
him, “Let us rise up now and fight for our lives, for today things are not as
they were before. 45For look! the battle is in front of us and behind us; the
water of the Jordan is on this side and on that, with marsh and thicket; there
is no place to turn. 46Cry out now to Heaven that you may be delivered
from the hands of our enemies.” 47So the battle began, and Jonathan
stretched out his hand to strike Bacchi'des, but he eluded him and went to
the rear. 48Then Jonathan and the men with him leaped into the Jordan and
swam across to the other side, and the enemy m did not cross the Jordan to
attack them. 49And about one thousand of Bacchi'des’ men fell that day.
Bacchides Builds Fortifications
n
50 Bacchi'des then returned to Jerusalem and built strong cities in
Judea: the fortress in Jericho, and Emma'us, and Beth-ho'ron, and Beth'el,
and Tim'nath, and o Phar'athon, and Teph'on, with high walls and gates and
bars. 51And he placed garrisons in them to harass Israel. 52He also fortified
the city of Beth-zur, and Gaza'ra, and the citadel, and in them he put troops
and stores of food. 53And he took the sons of the leading men of the land as
hostages and put them under guard in the citadel at Jerusalem.
54 In the one hundred and fifty-third year, p in the second month, Al'cimus
gave orders to tear down the wall of the inner court of the sanctuary. He tore
down the work of the prophets! 55But he only began to tear it down, for at
that time Al'cimus was stricken and his work was hindered; his mouth was
stopped and he was paralyzed, so that he could no longer say a word or give
commands concerning his house. 56And Al'cimus died at that time in great
agony. 57When Bacchi'des saw that Al'cimus was dead, he returned to the
king, and the land of Judah had rest for two years.
The End of the War
58 Then all the lawless plotted and said, “See! Jonathan and his men are
living in quiet and confidence. So now let us bring Bacchi'des back, and he
will capture them all in one night.” 59And they went and consulted with
him. 60He started to come with a large force, and secretly sent letters to all
his allies in Judea, telling them to seize Jonathan and his men; but they were
unable to do it, because their plan became known. 61And Jonathan’s men q
seized about fifty of the men of the country who were leaders in this
treachery, and killed them.
62 Then Jonathan with his men, and Simon, withdrew to Beth-ba'si in the
wilderness; he rebuilt the parts of it that had been demolished, and they
fortified it. 63When Bacchi'des learned of this, he assembled all his forces,
and sent orders to the men of Judea. 64Then he came and encamped against
Beth-ba'si; he fought against it for many days and made machines of war.
65 But Jonathan left Simon his brother in the city, while he went out into
the country; and he went with only a few men. 66He struck down Odomer'a
and his brothers and the sons of Pha'siron in their tents. 67Then he r began
to attack and went into battle with his forces; and Simon and his men sallied
out from the city and set fire to the machines of war. 68They fought with
Bacchi'des, and he was crushed by them. They distressed him greatly, for
his plan and his expedition had been in vain. 69So he was greatly enraged at
the lawless men who had counseled him to come into the country, and he
killed many of them. Then he decided to depart to his own land.
70 When Jonathan learned of this, he sent ambassadors to him to make
peace with him and obtain release of the captives. 71He agreed, and did as
he said; and he swore to Jonathan s that he would not try to harm him as
long as he lived. 72He restored to him the captives whom he had formerly
taken from the land of Judah; then he turned and departed to his own land,
and came no more into their territory. 73Thus the sword ceased from Israel.
And Jonathan dwelt in Mich'mash. And Jonathan began to judge the people,
and he destroyed the ungodly out of Israel.
Revolt of Alexander Epiphanes
10 In the one hundred and sixtieth year t Alexander Epiph'anes, the son
of Anti'ochus, landed and occupied Ptolema'is. They welcomed him, and
there he began to reign. 2When Deme'trius the king heard of it, he
assembled a very large army and marched out to meet him in battle. 3And
Deme'trius sent Jonathan a letter in peaceable words to honor him; 4for he
said, “Let us act first to make peace with him u before he makes peace with
Alexander against us, 5for he will remember all the wrongs which we did to
him and to his brothers and his nation.” 6So Deme'trius v gave him authority
to recruit troops, to equip them with arms, and to become his ally; and he
commanded that the hostages in the citadel should be released to him.
7 Then Jonathan came to Jerusalem and read the letter in the hearing of
all the people and of the men in the citadel. 8They were greatly alarmed
when they heard that the king had given him authority to recruit troops.
9But the men in the citadel released the hostages to Jonathan, and he
returned them to their parents.

10 And Jonathan dwelt in Jerusalem and began to rebuild and restore the
city. 11He directed those who were doing the work to build the walls and
encircle Mount Zion with squared stones, for better fortification; and they
did so.
12 Then the foreigners who were in the strongholds that Bacchi'des had
built fled; 13each left his place and departed to his own land. 14Only in
Beth-zur did some remain who had forsaken the law and the
commandments, for it served as a place of refuge.
15 Now Alexander the king heard of all the promises which Deme'trius
had sent to Jonathan, and men told him of the battles that Jonathan w and
his brothers had fought, of the brave deeds that they had done, and of the
troubles that they had endured. 16So he said, “Shall we find another such
man? Come now, we will make him our friend and ally.” 17And he wrote a
letter and sent it to him, in the following words:
Jonathan Becomes High Priest
18 “King Alexander to his brother Jonathan, greeting. 19We have heard
about you, that you are a mighty warrior and worthy to be our friend. 20And
so we have appointed you today to be the high priest of your nation; you are
to be called the king’s friend” (and he sent him a purple robe and a golden
crown) “and you are to take our side and keep friendship with us.”
Demetrius Writes to Jonathan
21 So Jonathan put on the holy garments in the seventh month of the one
hundred and sixtieth year, x at the feast of tabernacles, and he recruited
troops and equipped them with arms in abundance. 22When Deme'trius
heard of these things he was grieved and said, 23“What is this that we have
done? Alexander has gotten ahead of us in forming a friendship with the
Jews to strengthen himself. 24I also will write them words of
encouragement and promise them honor and gifts, that I may have their
help.” 25So he sent a message to them in the following words:
“King Deme'trius to the nation of the Jews, greeting. 26Since you have
kept your agreement with us and have continued your friendship with us,
and have not sided with our enemies, we have heard of it and rejoiced.
27And now continue still to keep faith with us, and we will repay you with
good for what you do for us. 28We will grant you many immunities and give
you gifts.
29 “And now I free you and exempt all the Jews from payment of tribute
and salt tax and crown levies, 30and instead of collecting the third of the
grain and the half of the fruit of the trees that I should receive, I release
them from this day and henceforth. I will not collect them from the land of
Judah or from the three districts added to it from Samar'ia and Galilee, from
this day and for all time. 31And let Jerusalem and her environs, her tithes
and her revenues, be holy and free from tax. 32I release also my control of
the citadel in Jerusalem and give it to the high priest, that he may station in
it men of his own choice to guard it. 33And every one of the Jews taken as a
captive from the land of Judah into any part of my kingdom, I set free
without payment; and let all officials cancel also the taxes on their cattle.
34 “And all the feasts and sabbaths and new moons and appointed days,
and the three days before a feast and the three after a feast—let them all be
days of immunity and release for all the Jews who are in my kingdom. 35No
one shall have authority to exact anything from them or annoy any of them
about any matter.
36 “Let Jews be enrolled in the king’s forces to the number of thirty
thousand men, and let the maintenance be given them that is due to all the
forces of the king. 37Let some of them be stationed in the great strongholds
of the king, and let some of them be put in positions of trust in the kingdom.
Let their officers and leaders be of their own number, and let them live by
their own laws, just as the king has commanded in the land of Judah.
38 “As for the three districts that have been added to Judea from the
country of Samar'ia, let them be so annexed to Judea that they are
considered to be under one ruler and obey no other authority but the high
priest. 39Ptolema'is and the land adjoining it I have given as a gift to the
sanctuary in Jerusalem, to meet the necessary expenses of the sanctuary. 40I
also grant fifteen thousand shekels of silver yearly out of the king’s
revenues from appropriate places. 41And all the additional funds which the
government officials have not paid as they did in the first years, y they shall
give from now on for the service of the temple. z 42Moreover, the five
thousand shekels of silver which my officials a have received every year
from the income of the services of the temple, this too is canceled, because
it belongs to the priests who minister there. 43And whoever takes refuge at
the temple in Jerusalem, or in any of its precincts, because he owes money
to the king or has any debt, let him be released and receive back all his
property in my kingdom.
44 “Let the cost of rebuilding and restoring the structures of the
sanctuary be paid from the revenues of the king. 45And let the cost of
rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and fortifying it round about, and the cost
of rebuilding the walls in Judea, also be paid from the revenues of the
king.”
Death of Demetrius
46 When Jonathan and the people heard these words, they did not believe
or accept them, because they remembered the great wrongs which
Deme'trius b had done in Israel and how he had greatly oppressed them.
47They favored Alexander, because he had been the first to speak peaceable
words to them, and they remained his allies all his days.
48 Now Alexander the king assembled large forces and encamped
opposite Deme'trius. 49The two kings met in battle, and the army of
Deme'trius fled, and Alexander c pursued him and defeated them. 50He
pressed the battle strongly until the sun set, and Deme'trius fell on that day.
Treaty of Ptolemy and Alexander
51 Then Alexander sent ambassadors to Ptol'emy king of Egypt with the
following message: 52“Since I have returned to my kingdom and have taken
my seat on the throne of my fathers, and established my rule—for I crushed
Deme'trius and gained control of our country; 53I met him in battle, and he
and his army were crushed by us, and we have taken our seat on the throne
of his kingdom—54now therefore let us establish friendship with one
another; give me now your daughter as my wife, and I will become your
son-in-law, and will make gifts to you and to her in keeping with your
position.”
55 Ptol'emy the king replied and said, “Happy was the day on which you
returned to the land of your fathers and took your seat on the throne of their
kingdom. 56And now I will do for you as you wrote, but meet me at
Ptolema'is, so that we may see one another, and I will become your father-
in-law, as you have said.”
57 So Ptol'emy set out from Egypt, he and Cleopa'tra his daughter, and
came to Ptolema'is in the one hundred and sixty-second year. d 58Alexander
the king met him, and Ptol'emy e gave him Cleopa'tra his daughter in
marriage, and celebrated her wedding at Ptolema'is with great pomp, as
kings do.
59 Then Alexander the king wrote to Jonathan to come to meet him. 60So
he went with pomp to Ptolema'is and met the two kings; he gave them and
their friends silver and gold and many gifts, and found favor with them. 61A
group of pestilent men from Israel, lawless men, gathered together against
him to accuse him; but the king paid no attention to them. 62The king gave
orders to take off Jonathan’s garments and to clothe him in purple, and they
did so. 63The king also seated him at his side; and he said to his officers,
“Go forth with him into the middle of the city and proclaim that no one is to
bring charges against him about any matter, and let no one annoy him for
any reason.” 64And when his accusers saw the honor that was paid him, in
accordance with the proclamation, and saw him clothed in purple, they all
fled. 65Thus the king honored him and enrolled him among his chief
friends, and made him general and governor of the province. 66And
Jonathan returned to Jerusalem in peace and gladness.
Apollonius Is Defeated by Jonathan
67 In the one hundred and sixty-fifth year f Deme'trius the son of
Demetrius came from Crete to the land of his fathers. 68When Alexander
the king heard of it, he was greatly grieved and returned to Antioch. 69And
Deme'trius appointed Apollo'nius the governor of Coe'le-syr'ia, and he
assembled a large force and encamped against Jam'nia. Then he sent the
following message to Jonathan the high priest:
70 “You are the only one to rise up against us, and I have become a
laughingstock and reproach because of you. Why do you assume authority
against us in the hill country? 71If you now have confidence in your forces,
come down to the plain to meet us, and let us match strength with each
other there, for I have with me the power of the cities. 72Ask and learn who
I am and who the others are that are helping us. Men will tell you that you
cannot stand before us, for your fathers were twice put to flight in their own
land. 73And now you will not be able to withstand my cavalry and such an
army in the plain, where there is no stone or pebble, or place to flee.”
74 When Jonathan heard the words of Apollo'nius, his spirit was aroused.
He chose ten thousand men and set out from Jerusalem, and Simon his
brother met him to help him. 75He encamped before Joppa, but the men of
the city closed its gates, for Apollo'nius had a garrison in Joppa. 76So they
fought against it, and the men of the city became afraid and opened the
gates, and Jonathan gained possession of Joppa.
77 When Apollo'nius heard of it, he mustered three thousand cavalry and
a large army, and went to Azo'tus as though he were going farther. At the
same time he advanced into the plain, for he had a large troop of cavalry
and put confidence in it. 78Jonathan g pursued him to Azo'tus, and the
armies engaged in battle. 79Now Apollo'nius had secretly left a thousand
cavalry behind them. 80Jonathan learned that there was an ambush behind
him, for they surrounded his army and shot arrows at his men from early
morning till late afternoon. 81But his men stood fast, as Jonathan
commanded, and the enemy’s h horses grew tired.
82 Then Simon brought forward his force and engaged the phalanx in
battle (for the cavalry was exhausted); they were overwhelmed by him and
fled, 83and the cavalry was dispersed in the plain. They fled to Azo'tus and
entered Beth-da'gon, the temple of their idol, for safety. 84But Jonathan
burned Azo'tus and the surrounding towns and plundered them; and the
temple of Da'gon, and those who had taken refuge in it he burned with fire.
85The number of those who fell by the sword, with those burned alive, came
to eight thousand men.

86 Then Jonathan departed from there and encamped against Aska'lon,
and the men of the city came out to meet him with great pomp. 87And
Jonathan and those with him returned to Jerusalem with much booty.
88When Alexander the king heard of these things, he honored Jonathan still
more; 89and he sent to him a golden buckle, such as it is the custom to give
to the kinsmen of kings. He also gave him Ek'ron and all its environs as his
possession.
Ptolemy Invades Syria
11 Then the king of Egypt gathered great forces, like the sand by the
seashore, and many ships; and he tried to get possession of Alexander’s
kingdom by trickery and add it to his own kingdom. 2He set out for Syria
with peaceable words, and the people of the cities opened their gates to him
and went to meet him, for Alexander the king had commanded them to
meet him, since he was Alexander’s i father-in-law. 3But when Ptol'emy
entered the cities he stationed forces as a garrison in each city.
4 When he j approached Azo'tus, they showed him the temple of Da'gon
burned down, and Azotus and its suburbs destroyed, and the corpses lying
about, and the charred bodies of those whom Jonathan k had burned in the
war, for they had piled them in heaps along his route. 5They also told the
king what Jonathan had done, to throw blame on him; but the king kept
silent. 6Jonathan met the king at Joppa with pomp, and they greeted one
another and spent the night there. 7And Jonathan went with the king as far
as the river called Eleu'therus; then he returned to Jerusalem.
8 So King Ptol'emy gained control of the coastal cities as far as Seleu'cia
by the sea, and he kept devising evil designs against Alexander. 9He sent
envoys to Deme'trius the king, saying, “Come, let us make a covenant with
each other, and I will give you in marriage my daughter who was
Alexander’s wife, and you shall reign over your father’s kingdom. 10For I
now regret that I gave him my daughter, for he has tried to kill me.” 11He
threw blame on Alexander l because he coveted his kingdom. 12So he took
his daughter away from him and gave her to Deme'trius. He was estranged
from Alexander, and their enmity became manifest.
13 Then Ptol'emy entered Antioch and put on the crown of Asia. Thus he
put two crowns upon his head, the crown of Egypt and that of Asia. 14Now
Alexander the king was in Cili'cia at that time, because the people of that
region were in revolt. 15And Alexander heard of it and came against him in
battle. Ptol'emy marched out and met him with a strong force, and put him
to flight. 16So Alexander fled into Arabia to find protection there, and King
Ptol'emy was exalted. 17And Zab'diel the Arab cut off the head of
Alexander and sent it to Ptol'emy. 18But King Ptol'emy died three days later,
and his troops in the strongholds were killed by the inhabitants of the
strongholds. 19So Deme'trius became king in the one hundred and sixty-
seventh year. m
Jonathan’s Diplomacy
20 In those days Jonathan assembled the men of Judea to attack the citadel
in Jerusalem, and he built many engines of war to use against it. 21But
certain lawless men who hated their nation went to the king and reported to
him that Jonathan was besieging the citadel. 22When he heard this he was
angry, and as soon as he heard it he set out and came to Ptolema'is; and he
wrote Jonathan not to continue the siege, but to meet him for a conference
at Ptolemais as quickly as possible.
23 When Jonathan heard this, he gave orders to continue the siege; and he
chose some of the elders of Israel and some of the priests, and put himself
in danger, 24for he went to the king at Ptolema'is, taking silver and gold and
clothing and numerous other gifts. And he won his favor. 25Although
certain lawless men of his nation kept making complaints against him, 26the
king treated him as his predecessors had treated him; he exalted him in the
presence of all his friends. 27He confirmed him in the high priesthood and
in as many other honors as he had formerly had, and made him to be
regarded as one of his chief friends. 28Then Jonathan asked the king to free
Judea and the three districts of Samar'ia n from tribute, and promised him
three hundred talents. 29The king consented, and wrote a letter to Jonathan
about all these things; its contents were as follows:
30 “King Deme'trius to Jonathan his brother and to the nation of the
Jews, greeting. 31This copy of the letter which we wrote concerning you to
Las'thenes our kinsman we have written to you also, so that you may know
what it says. 32‘King Deme'trius to Las'thenes his father, greeting. 33To the
nation of the Jews, who are our friends and fulfil their obligations to us, we
have determined to do good, because of the good will they show toward us.
34We have confirmed as their possession both the territory of Judea and the
three districts of Aphai'rema and Lydda and Rath'amin; the latter, with all
the region bordering them, were added to Judea from Samar'ia. To all those
who offer sacrifice in Jerusalem, we have granted release from o the royal
taxes which the king formerly received from them each year, from the crops
of the land and the fruit of the trees. 35And the other payments henceforth
due to us of the tithes, and the taxes due to us, and the salt pits and the
crown taxes due to us—from all these we shall grant them release. 36And
not one of these grants shall be canceled from this time forth for ever.
37Now therefore take care to make a copy of this, and let it be given to
Jonathan and put up in a conspicuous place on the holy mountain.”

The Intrigue of Trypho
38 Now when Deme'trius the king saw that the land was quiet before him
and that there was no opposition to him, he dismissed all his troops, each
man to his own place, except the foreign troops which he had recruited
from the islands of the nations. So all the troops who had served his fathers
hated him. 39Now Try'pho had formerly been one of Alexander’s
supporters. He saw that all the troops were murmuring against Deme'trius.
So he went to Imal'kue the Arab, who was bringing up Anti'ochus, the
young son of Alexander, 40and insistently urged him to hand Anti'ochus p
over to him, to become king in place of his father. He also reported to
Imal'kue p what Deme'trius had done and told of the hatred which the troops
of Demetrius had for him; and he stayed there many days.
41 Now Jonathan sent to Deme'trius the king the request that he remove
the troops of the citadel from Jerusalem, and the troops in the strongholds;
for they kept fighting against Israel. 42And Deme'trius sent this message to
Jonathan, “Not only will I do these things for you and your nation, but I will
confer great honor on you and your nation, if I find an opportunity. 43Now
then you will do well to send me men who will help me, for all my troops
have revolted.” 44So Jonathan sent three thousand stalwart men to him at
Antioch, and when they came to the king, the king rejoiced at their arrival.
45 Then the men of the city assembled within the city, to the number of a
hundred and twenty thousand, and they wanted to kill the king. 46But the
king fled into the palace. Then the men of the city seized the main streets of
the city and began to fight. 47So the king called the Jews to his aid, and they
all rallied about him and then spread out through the city; and they killed on
that day as many as a hundred thousand men. 48They set fire to the city and
seized much spoil on that day, and they saved the king. 49When the men of
the city saw that the Jews had gained control of the city as they pleased,
their courage failed and they cried out to the king with this entreaty,
50“Grant us peace, and make the Jews stop fighting against us and our city.”
51And they threw down their arms and made peace. So the Jews gained
glory in the eyes of the king and of all the people in his kingdom, and they
returned to Jerusalem with much spoil.
52 So Deme'trius the king sat on the throne of his kingdom, and the land
was quiet before him. 53But he broke his word about all that he had
promised; and he became estranged from Jonathan and did not repay the
favors which Jonathan q had done him, but oppressed him greatly.
Trypho Seizes Power
54 After this Try'pho returned, and with him the young boy Anti'ochus
who began to reign and put on the crown. 55All the troops that Deme'trius
had cast off gathered around him, and they fought against Demetrius, r and
he fled and was routed. 56And Try'pho captured the elephants s and gained
control of Antioch. 57Then the young Anti'ochus wrote to Jonathan, saying,
“I confirm you in the high priesthood and set you over the four districts and
make you one of the friends of the king.” 58And he sent him gold plate and
a table service, and granted him the right to drink from gold cups and dress
in purple and wear a gold buckle. 59Simon his brother he made governor
from the Ladder of Tyre to the borders of Egypt.
Campaigns of Jonathan and Simon
60 Then Jonathan set forth and traveled beyond the river and among the
cities, and all the army of Syria gathered to him as allies. When he came to
Aska'lon, the people of the city met him and paid him honor. 61From there
he departed to Gaza, but the men of Gaza shut him out. So he beseiged it
and burned its suburbs with fire and plundered them. 62Then the people of
Gaza pleaded with Jonathan, and he made peace with them, and took the
sons of their rulers as hostages and sent them to Jerusalem. And he passed
through the country as far as Damascus.
63 Then Jonathan heard that the officers of Deme'trius had come to
Ka'desh in Galilee with a large army, intending to remove him from office.
64He went to meet them, but left his brother Simon in the country. 65Simon
encamped before Beth-zur and fought against it for many days and hemmed
it in. 66Then they asked him to grant them terms of peace, and he did so. He
removed them from there, took possession of the city, and set a garrison
over it.
67 Jonathan and his army encamped by the waters of Gennes'aret. Early
in the morning they marched to the plain of Ha'zor, 68and behold, the army
of the foreigners met him in the plain; they had set an ambush against him
in the mountains, but they themselves met him face to face. 69Then the men
in ambush emerged from their places and joined battle. 70All the men with
Jonathan fled; not one of them was left except Mattathi'as the son of
Ab'salom and Judas the son of Chal'phi, commanders of the forces of the
army. 71Jonathan tore his garments and put dust on his head, and prayed.
72Then he turned back to the battle against the enemy t and routed them,
and they fled. 73When his men who were fleeing saw this, they returned to
him and joined him in the pursuit as far as Ka'desh, to their camp, and there
they encamped. 74As many as three thousand of the foreigners fell that day.
And Jonathan returned to Jerusalem.
Alliances with Rome and Sparta
12 Now when Jonathan saw that the time was favorable for him, he
chose men and sent them to Rome to confirm and renew the friendship with
them. 2He also sent letters to the same effect to the Spartans and to other
places. 3So they went to Rome and entered the senate chamber and said,
“Jonathan the high priest and the Jewish nation have sent us to renew the
former friendship and alliance with them.” 4And the Romans u gave them
letters to the people in every place, asking them to provide for the envoys v
safe conduct to the land of Judah.
5 This is a copy of the letter which Jonathan wrote to the Spartans:
6“Jonathan the high priest, the senate of the nation, the priests, and the rest
of the Jewish people to their brethren the Spartans, greeting. 7Already in

time past a letter was sent to Oni'as the high priest from A'rius, w who was
king among you, stating that you are our brethren, as the appended copy
shows. 8Oni'as welcomed the envoy with honor, and received the letter,
which contained a clear declaration of alliance and friendship. 9Therefore,
though we have no need of these things, since we have as encouragement
the holy books which are in our hands, 10we have undertaken to send to
renew our brotherhood and friendship with you, so that we may not become
estranged from you, for considerable time has passed since you sent your
letter to us. 11We therefore remember you constantly on every occasion,
both in our feasts and on other appropriate days, at the sacrifices which we
offer and in our prayers, as it is right and proper to remember brethren.
12And we rejoice in your glory. 13But as for ourselves, many afflictions and
many wars have encircled us; the kings round about us have waged war
against us. 14We were unwilling to annoy you and our other allies and
friends with these wars, 15for we have the help which comes from Heaven
for our aid; and we were delivered from our enemies and our enemies were
humbled. 16We therefore have chosen Nume'nius the son of Anti'ochus and
Antip'ater the son of Jason, and have sent them to Rome to renew our
former friendship and alliance with them. 17We have commanded them to
go also to you and greet you and deliver to you this letter from us
concerning the renewal of our brotherhood. 18And now please send us a
reply to this.”
19 This is a copy of the letter which they sent to Oni'as: 20 “A'rius, king
of the Spartans, to Oni'as the high priest, greeting. 21It has been found in
writing concerning the Spartans and the Jews that they are brethren and are
of the family of Abraham. 22And now that we have learned this, please
write us concerning your welfare; 23we on our part write to you that your
cattle and your property belong to us, and ours belong to you. We therefore
command that our envoys x report to you accordingly.”
Further Campaigns of Jonathan and Simon
24 Now Jonathan heard that the commanders of Deme'trius had returned,
with a larger force than before, to wage war against him. 25So he marched
away from Jerusalem and met them in the region of Ha'math, for he gave
them no opportunity to invade his own country. 26He sent spies to their
camp, and they returned and reported to him that the enemy y were being
drawn up in formation to fall upon the Jews z by night. 27So when the sun
set, Jonathan commanded his men to be alert and to keep their arms at hand
so as to be ready all night for battle, and he stationed outposts around the
camp. 28When the enemy heard that Jonathan and his men were prepared
for battle, they were afraid and were terrified at heart; so they kindled fires
in their camp and withdrew. a 29But Jonathan and his men did not know it
until morning, for they saw the fires burning. 30Then Jonathan pursued
them, but he did not overtake them, for they had crossed the Eleu'therus
river. 31So Jonathan turned aside against the Arabs who are called
Zabade'ans and he crushed them and plundered them. 32Then he broke
camp and went to Damascus, and marched through all that region.
33 Simon also went forth and marched through the country as far as
Aska'lon and the neighboring strongholds. He turned aside to Joppa and
took it by surprise, 34for he had heard that they were ready to hand over the
stronghold to the men whom Deme'trius had sent. And he stationed a
garrison there to guard it.
35 When Jonathan returned he convened the elders of the people and
planned with them to build strongholds in Judea, 36to build the walls of
Jerusalem still higher, and to erect a high barrier between the citadel and the
city to separate it from the city, in order to isolate it so that its garrison b
could neither buy nor sell. 37So they gathered together to build up the city;
part of the wall on the valley to the east had fallen, and he repaired the
section called Chaphen'atha. 38And Simon built Ad'ida in the Shephe'lah; he
fortified it and installed gates with bolts.
Trypho Captures Jonathan
39 Then Try'pho attempted to become king of Asia and put on the crown,
and to raise his hand against Anti'ochus the king. 40He feared that Jonathan
might not permit him to do so, but might make war on him, so he kept
seeking to seize and kill him, and he marched forth and came to Beth-shan.
41Jonathan went out to meet him with forty thousand picked fighting men,
and he came to Beth-shan. 42When Try'pho saw that he had come with a
large army, he was afraid to raise his hand against him. 43So he received
him with honor and commended him to all his friends, and he gave him
gifts and commanded his friends and his troops to obey him as they would
himself. 44Then he said to Jonathan, “Why have you wearied all these
people when we are not at war? 45Dismiss them now to their homes and
choose for yourself a few men to stay with you, and come with me to
Ptolema'is. I will hand it over to you as well as the other strongholds and
the remaining troops and all the officials, and will turn round and go home.
For that is why I am here.”
46 Jonathan c trusted him and did as he said; he sent away the troops, and
they returned to the land of Judah. 47He kept with himself three thousand
men, two thousand of whom he left in Galilee, while a thousand
accompanied him. 48But when Jonathan entered Ptolema'is, the men of
Ptolemais closed the gates and seized him, and all who had entered with
him they killed with the sword.
49 Then Try'pho sent troops and cavalry into Galilee and the Great Plain
to destroy all Jonathan’s soldiers. 50But they realized that Jonathan c had
been seized and had perished along with his men, and they encouraged one
another and kept marching in close formation, ready for battle. 51When
their pursuers saw that they would fight for their lives, they turned back.
52So they all reached the land of Judah safely, and they mourned for
Jonathan and his companions and were in great fear; and all Israel mourned
deeply. 53And all the nations round about them tried to destroy them, for
they said, “They have no leader or helper. Now therefore let us make war
on them and blot out the memory of them from among men.”
Simon Takes Command
13 Simon heard that Try'pho had assembled a large army to invade the
land of Judah and destroy it, 2and he saw that the people were trembling
and fearful. So he went up to Jerusalem, and gathering the people together
3he encouraged them, saying to them, “You yourselves know what great
things I and my brothers and the house of my father have done for the laws
and the sanctuary; you know also the wars and the difficulties which we
have seen. 4By reason of this all my brothers have perished for the sake of
Israel, and I alone am left. 5And now, far be it from me to spare my life in
any time of distress, for I am not better than my brothers. 6But I will avenge
my nation and the sanctuary and your wives and children, for all the nations
have gathered together out of hatred to destroy us.”
7 The spirit of the people was rekindled when they heard these words,
8and they answered in a loud voice, “You are our leader in place of Judas
and Jonathan your brother. 9Fight our battles, and all that you say to us we
will do.” 10So he assembled all the warriors and hastened to complete the
walls of Jerusalem, and he fortified it on every side. 11He sent Jonathan the
son of Ab'salom to Joppa, and with him a considerable army; he drove out
its occupants and remained there.
Deceit and Treachery of Trypho
12 Then Try'pho departed from Ptolema'is with a large army to invade the
land of Judah, and Jonathan was with him under guard. 13And Simon
encamped in Ad'ida, facing the plain. 14Try'pho learned that Simon had
risen up in place of Jonathan his brother, and that he was about to join battle
with him, so he sent envoys to him and said, 15“It is for the money that
Jonathan your brother owed the royal treasury, in connection with the
offices he held, that we are detaining him. 16Send now a hundred talents of
silver and two of his sons as hostages, so that when released he will not
revolt against us, and we will release him.”
17 Simon knew that they were speaking deceitfully to him, but he sent to
get the money and the sons, lest he arouse great hostility among the people,
who might say, 18 “Because Simon d did not send him the money and the
sons, he perished.” 19So he sent the sons and the hundred talents, but
Try'pho e broke his word and did not release Jonathan.
20 After this Try'pho came to invade the country and destroy it, and he
circled around by the way to Ado'ra. But Simon and his army kept
marching along opposite him to every place he went. 21Now the men in the
citadel kept sending envoys to Try'pho urging him to come to them by way
of the wilderness and to send them food. 22So Try'pho got all his cavalry
ready to go, but that night a very heavy snow fell, and he did not go because
of the snow. He marched off and went into the land of Gilead. 23When he
approached Bas'kama, he killed Jonathan, and he was buried there. 24Then
Try'pho turned back and departed to his own land.
Jonathan’s Tomb
25 And Simon sent and took the bones of Jonathan his brother, and
buried him in Mo'dein, the city of his fathers. 26All Israel bewailed him
with great lamentation, and mourned for him many days. 27And Simon built
a monument over the tomb of his father and his brothers; he made it high
that it might be seen, with polished stone at the front and back. 28He also
erected seven pyramids, opposite one another, for his father and mother and
four brothers. 29And for the pyramids f he devised an elaborate setting,
erecting about them great columns, and upon the columns he put suits of
armor for a permanent memorial, and beside the suits of armor carved
ships, so that they could be seen by all who sail the sea. 30This is the tomb
which he built in Mo'dein; it remains to this day.
Judea Gains Independence
31 Try'pho dealt treacherously with the young king Anti'ochus; he killed
him 32and became king in his place, putting on the crown of Asia; and he
brought great calamity upon the land. 33But Simon built up the strongholds
of Judea and walled them all around, with high towers and great walls and
gates and bolts, and he stored food in the strongholds. 34Simon also chose
men and sent them to Deme'trius the king with a request to grant relief to
the country, for all that Try'pho did was to plunder. 35Deme'trius the king
sent him a favorable reply to this request, and wrote him a letter as follows,
36“King Deme'trius to Simon, the high priest and friend of kings, and to the
elders and nation of the Jews, greeting. 37We have received the gold crown
and the palm branch which you g sent, and we are ready to make a general
peace with you and to write to our officials to grant you release from
tribute. 38All the grants that we have made to you remain valid, and let the
strongholds that you have built be your possession. 39We pardon any errors
and offenses committed to this day, and cancel the crown tax which you
owe; and whatever other tax has been collected in Jerusalem shall be
collected no longer. 40And if any of you are qualified to be enrolled in our
bodyguard, h let them be enrolled, and let there be peace between us.”
41 In the one hundred and seventieth year i the yoke of the Gentiles was
removed from Israel, 42and the people began to write in their documents
and contracts, “In the first year of Simon the great high priest and
commander and leader of the Jews.”
The Capture of Gazara by Simon
43 In those days Simon j encamped against Gaza'ra k and surrounded it
with troops. He made a siege engine, brought it up to the city, and battered
and captured one tower. 44The men in the siege engine leaped out into the
city, and a great tumult arose in the city. 45The men in the city, with their
wives and children, went up on the wall with their clothes torn, and they
cried out with a loud voice, asking Simon to make peace with them; 46they
said, “Do not treat us according to our wicked acts but according to your
mercy.” 47So Simon reached an agreement with them and stopped fighting
against them. But he expelled them from the city and cleansed the houses in
which the idols were, and then entered it with hymns and praise. 48He cast
out of it all uncleanness, and settled in it men who observed the law. He
also strengthened its fortifications and built in it a house for himself.
Simon Regains the Citadel
49 The men in the citadel at Jerusalem were prevented from going out to
the country and back to buy and sell. So they were very hungry, and many
of them perished from famine. 50Then they cried to Simon to make peace
with them, and he did so. But he expelled them from there and cleansed the
citadel from its pollutions. 51On the twenty-third day of the second month,
in the one hundred and seventy-first year, l the Jews m entered it with praise
and palm branches, and with harps and cymbals and stringed instruments,
and with hymns and songs, because a great enemy had been crushed and
removed from Israel. And Simon n decreed that every year they should
celebrate this day with rejoicing. He strengthened the fortifications of the
temple hill alongside the citadel, and he and his men dwelt there. 53And
Simon saw that John his son had reached manhood, so he made him
commander of all the forces, and he dwelt in Gaza'ra.
Capture of Demetrius; and the Eulogy of Simon
14 In the one hundred and seventy-second year o Deme'trius the king
assembled his forces and marched into Med'ia to secure help, so that he
could make war against Try'pho. 2When Ar'saces the king of Persia and
Med'ia heard that Deme'trius had invaded his territory, he sent one of his
commanders to take him alive. 3And he went and defeated the army of
Deme'trius, and seized him and took him to Ar'saces, who put him under
guard.
4The land p had rest all the days of Simon.
He sought the good of his nation;

his rule was pleasing to them,
as was the honor shown him, all his days.
5To crown all his honors he took Joppa for a harbor,
and opened a way to the isles of the sea.

6He extended the borders of his nation,
and gained full control of the country.

7He gathered a host of captives;
he ruled over Gaza'ra and Beth-zur and the citadel,

and he removed its uncleanness from it;
and there was none to oppose him.
8They tilled their land in peace;
the ground gave its increase,

and the trees of the plains their fruit.
9Old men sat in the streets;
they all talked together of good things;

and the youths donned the glories and garments of war.
10He supplied the cities with food,
and furnished them with the means of defense,

till his renown spread to the ends of the earth.
11He established peace in the land,
and Israel rejoiced with great joy.
12Each man sat under his vine and his fig tree,
and there was none to make them afraid.

13No one was left in the land to fight them,
and the kings were crushed in those days.
14He strengthened all the humble of his people;
he sought out the law,
and did away with every lawless and wicked man.
15He made the sanctuary glorious,
and added to the vessels of the sanctuary.

Diplomacy with Rome and Sparta
16 It was heard in Rome, and as far away as Sparta, that Jonathan had
died, and they were deeply grieved. 17When they heard that Simon his
brother had become high priest in his place, and that he was ruling over the
country and the cities in it, 18they wrote to him on bronze tablets to renew
with him the friendship and alliance which they had established with Judas
and Jonathan his brothers. 19And these were read before the assembly in
Jerusalem.
20 This is a copy of the letter which the Spartans sent: “The rulers and the
city of the Spartans to Simon the high priest and to the elders and the priests
and the rest of the Jewish people, our brethren, greeting. 21The envoys who
were sent to our people have told us about your glory and honor, and we
rejoiced at their coming. 22And what they said we have recorded in our
public decrees, as follows, ‘Nume'nius the son of Anti'ochus and Antip'ater
the son of Jason, envoys of the Jews, have come to us to renew their
friendship with us. 23It has pleased our people to receive these men with
honor and to put a copy of their words in the public archives, so that the
people of the Spartans may have a record of them. And they have sent a
copy of this to Simon the high priest.’ ”
24 After this Simon sent Nume'nius to Rome with a large gold shield
weighing a thousand minas, to confirm the alliance with the Romans. q
Official Honors for Simon
25 When the people heard these things they said, “How shall we thank
Simon and his sons? 26For he and his brothers and the house of his father
have stood firm; they have fought and repulsed Israel’s enemies and
established its freedom.” 27So they made a record on bronze tablets and put
it upon pillars on Mount Zion.
This is a copy of what they wrote: “On the eighteenth day of E'lul, in the
one hundred and seventy-second year, r which is the third year of Simon the
great high priest, 28in Asar'amel, s in the great assembly of the priests and
the people and the rulers of the nation and the elders of the country, the
following was proclaimed to us:
29 “Since wars often occurred in the country, Simon the son of
Mattathi'as, a priest of the sons t of Jo'arib, and his brothers, exposed
themselves to danger and resisted the enemies of their nation, in order that
their sanctuary and the law might be perserved; and they brought great
glory to their nation. 30Jonathan rallied the u nation, and became their high
priest, and was gathered to his people. 31And when their enemies decided to
invade their country and lay hands on their sanctuary, 32then Simon rose up
and fought for his nation. He spent great sums of his own money; he armed
the men of his nation’s forces and paid them wages. 33He fortified the cities
of Judea, and Beth-zur on the borders of Judea, where formerly the arms of
the enemy had been stored, and he placed there a garrison of Jews. 34He
also fortified Joppa, which is by the sea, and Gaza'ra, which is on the
borders of Azo'tus, where the enemy formerly dwelt. He settled Jews there,
and provided in those cities v whatever was necessary for their restoration.
35 “The people saw Simon’s faithfulness w and the glory which he had
resolved to win for his nation, and they made him their leader and high
priest, because he had done all these things and because of the justice and
loyalty which he had maintained toward his nation. He sought in every way
to exalt his people. 36And in his days things prospered in his hands, so that
the Gentiles were put out of the x country, as were also the men in the city
of David in Jerusalem, who had built themselves a citadel from which they
used to sally forth and defile the environs of the sanctuary and do great
damage to its purity. 37He settled Jews in it, and fortified it for the safety of
the country and of the city, and built the walls of Jerusalem higher.
38 “In view of these things King Deme'trius confirmed him in the high
priesthood, 39and he made him one of the king’s y friends and paid him high
honors. 40For he had heard that the Jews were addressed by the Romans as
friends and allies and brethren, and that the Romans z had received the
envoys of Simon with honor.
41 “And a the Jews and their priests decided that Simon should be their
leader and high priest for ever, until a trustworthy prophet should arise,
42and that he should be governor over them and that he should take charge
of the sanctuary and appoint men over its tasks and over the country and the
weapons and the strongholds, and that he should take charge of the
sanctuary, 43and that he should be obeyed by all, and that all contracts in the
country should be written in his name, and that he should be clothed in
purple and wear gold.
44 “And none of the people or priests shall be permitted to nullify any of
these decisions or to oppose what he says, or to convene an assembly in the
country without his permission, or to be clothed in purple or put on a gold
buckle. 45Whoever acts contrary to these decisions or nullifies any of them
shall be liable to punishment.”
46 And all the people agreed to grant Simon the right to act in accord
with these decisions. 47So Simon accepted and agreed to be high priest, to
be commander and ethnarch of the Jews and priests, and to be protector of
them all. b 48And they gave orders to inscribe this decree upon bronze
tablets, to put them up in a conspicuous place in the precincts of the
sanctuary, 49and to deposit copies of them in the treasury, so that Simon and
his sons might have them.
Letter of Antiochus VII
15 Anti'ochus, the son of Deme'trius the king, sent a letter from the
islands of the sea to Simon, the priest and ethnarch of the Jews, and to all
the nation; 2its contents were as follows: “King Anti'ochus to Simon the
high priest and ethnarch and to the nation of the Jews, greeting. 3Whereas
certain pestilent men have gained control of the kingdom of our fathers, and
I intend to lay claim to the kingdom so that I may restore it as it formerly
was, and have recruited a host of mercenary troops and have equipped
warships, 4and intend to make a landing in the country so that I may
proceed against those who have destroyed our country and those who have
devastated many cities in my kingdom, 5now therefore I confirm to you all
the tax remissions that the kings before me have granted you, and release
from all the other payments from which they have released you. 6I permit
you to mint your own coinage as money for your country, 7and I grant
freedom to Jerusalem and the sanctuary. All the weapons which you have
prepared and the strongholds which you have built and now hold shall
remain yours. 8Every debt you owe to the royal treasury and any such future
debts shall be canceled for you from now on and for all time. 9When we
gain control of our kingdom, we will bestow great honor upon you and your
nation and the temple, so that your glory will become manifest in all the
earth.”
10 In the one hundred and seventy-fourth year c Anti'ochus set out and
invaded the land of his fathers. All the troops rallied to him, so that there
were few with Try'pho. 11Anti'ochus pursued him, and he came in his flight
to Dor, which is by the sea; 12for he knew that troubles had converged upon
him, and his troops had deserted him. 13So Anti'ochus encamped against
Dor, and with him were a hundred and twenty thousand warriors and eight
thousand cavalry. 14He surrounded the city, and the ships joined battle from
the sea; he pressed the city hard from land and sea, and permitted no one to
leave or enter it.
Rome Supports the Jews
15 Then Nume'nius and his companions arrived from Rome, with letters
to the kings and countries, in which the following was written: 16“Lucius,
consul of the Romans, to King Ptol'emy, greeting. 17The envoys of the Jews
have come to us as our friends and allies to renew our ancient friendship
and alliance. They had been sent by Simon the high priest and by the people
of the Jews, 18and have brought a gold shield weighing a thousand minas.
19We therefore have decided to write to the kings and countries that they
should not seek their harm or make war against them and their cities and
their country, or make alliance with those who war against them. 20And it
has seemed good to us to accept the shield from them. 21Therefore if any
pestilent men have fled to you from their country, hand them over to Simon
the high priest, that he may punish them according to their law.”
22 The consul d wrote the same thing to Deme'trius the king and to
At'talus and A''riara'thes and Ar'saces, 23and to all the countries, and to
Samp'sames, e and to the Spartans, and to De'los, and to Myn'dos, and to
Sic'yon, and to Ca'ria, and to Sa'mos, and to Pamphyl'ia, and to Ly'cia, and
to Hal''icarnas'sus, and to Rhodes, and to Phase'lis, and to Cos, and to Si'de,
and to Ar'adus and Gorty'na and Cni'dus and Cyprus and Cyre'ne. 24They
also sent a copy of these things to Simon the high priest.
Antiochus VII Threatens Simon
25 Anti'ochus the king besieged Dor anew, f continually throwing his
forces against it and making engines of war; and he shut Try'pho up and
kept him from going out or in. 26And Simon sent to Anti'ochus g two
thousand picked men, to fight for him, and silver and gold and much
military equipment. 27But he refused to receive them, and he broke all the
agreements he formerly had made with Simon, g and became estranged
from him. 28He sent to him Ath''eno'bius, one of his friends, to confer with
him, saying, “You hold control of Joppa and Gaza'ra and the citadel in
Jerusalem; they are cities of my kingdom. 29You have devastated their
territory, you have done great damage in the land, and you have taken
possession of many places in my kingdom. 30Now then, hand over the cities
which you have seized and the tribute money of the places which you have
conquered outside the borders of Judea; 31or else give me for them five
hundred talents of silver, and for the destruction that you have caused and
the tribute money of the cities, five hundred talents more. Otherwise we
will come and conquer you.”
32 So Ath''eno'bius the friend of the king came to Jerusalem, and when
he saw the splendor of Simon, and the sideboard with its gold and silver
plate, and his great magnificence, he was amazed. He reported to him the
words of the king, 33but Simon gave him this reply: “We have neither taken
foreign land nor seized foreign property, but only the inheritance of our
fathers, which at one time had been unjustly taken by our enemies. 34Now
that we have the opportunity, we are firmly holding the inheritance of our
fathers. 35As for Joppa and Gaza'ra, which you demand, they were causing
great damage among the people and to our land; for them we will give you
a hundred talents.” Ath''eno'bius h did not answer him a word, 36but
returned in wrath to the king and reported to him these words and the
splendor of Simon and all that he had seen. And the king was greatly
angered.
Victory over Cendebeus
37 Now Try'pho embarked on a ship and escaped to Orthosi'a. 38Then the
king made Cendebe'us commander-in-chief of the coastal country, and gave
him troops of infantry and cavalry. 39He commanded him to encamp against
Judea, and commanded him to build up Ked'ron and fortify its gates, and to
make war on the people; but the king pursued Try'pho. 40So Cendebe'us
came to Jam'nia and began to provoke the people and invade Judea and take
the people captive and kill them. 41He built up Ked'ron and stationed there
horsemen and troops, so that they might go out and make raids along the
highways of Judea, as the king had ordered him.
16 John went up from Gaza'ra and reported to Simon his father what
Cendebe'us had done. 2And Simon called in his two older sons Judas and
John, and said to them: “I and my brothers and the house of my father have
fought the wars of Israel from our youth until this day, and things have
prospered in our hands so that we have delivered Israel many times. 3But
now I have grown old, and you by His mercy are mature in years. Take my
place and my brother’s, and go out and fight for our nation, and may the
help which comes from Heaven be with you.”
4 So John i chose out of the country twenty thousand warriors and
horsemen, and they marched against Cendebe'us and camped for the night
in Mo'dein. 5Early in the morning they arose and marched into the plain,
and behold, a large force of infantry and horsemen was coming to meet
them; and a stream lay between them. 6Then he and his army lined up
against them. And he saw that the soldiers were afraid to cross the stream,
so he crossed over first; and when his men saw him, they crossed over after
him. 7Then he divided the army and placed the horsemen in the midst of the
infantry, for the cavalry of the enemy were very numerous. 8And they
sounded the trumpets, and Cendebe'us and his army were put to flight, and
many of them were wounded and fell; the rest fled into the stronghold. 9At
that time Judas the brother of John was wounded, but John pursued them
until Cendebe'us j reached Ked'ron, which he had built. 10They also fled
into the towers that were in the fields of Azo'tus, and John j burned it with
fire, and about two thousand of them fell. And he returned to Judea safely.
Murder of Simon and His Sons
11 Now Ptol'emy the son of Abu'bus had been appointed governor over
the plain of Jericho, and he had much silver and gold, 12for he was son-in-
law of the high priest. 13His heart was lifted up; he determined to get
control of the country, and made treacherous plans against Simon and his
sons, to do away with them. 14Now Simon was visiting the cities of the
country and attending to their needs, and he went down to Jericho with
Mattathi'as and Judas his sons, in the one hundred and seventy-seventh
year, k in the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat'. 15The son of
Abu'bus received them treacherously in the little stronghold called Dok,
which he had built; he gave them a great banquet, and hid men there.
16When Simon and his sons were drunk, Ptol'emy and his men rose up, took
their weapons, and rushed in against Simon in the banquet hall, and they
killed him and his two sons and some of his servants. 17So he committed an
act of great treachery and returned evil for good.
John Succeeds Simon
18 Then Ptol'emy wrote a report about these things and sent it to the king,
asking him to send troops to aid him and to turn over to him the cities and
the country. 19He sent other men to Gaza'ra to do away with John; he sent
letters to the captains asking them to come to him so that he might give
them silver and gold and gifts; 20and he sent other men to take possession of
Jerusalem and the temple hill. 21But some one ran ahead and reported to
John at Gaza'ra that his father and brothers had perished, and that “he has
sent men to kill you also.” 22When he heard this, he was greatly shocked;
and he seized the men who came to destroy him and killed them, for he had
found out that they were seeking to destroy him.
23 The rest of the acts of John and his wars and the brave deeds which he
did, and the building of the walls which he built, and his achievements,
24behold, they are written in the chronicles of his high priesthood, from the
time that he became high priest after his father.
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2 Maccabees
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
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THE SECOND BOOK OF MACCABEES
A Letter to the Jews in Egypt
1 The Jewish brethren in Jerusalem and those in the land of Judea,
To their Jewish brethren in Egypt,
Greeting, and good peace.
2 May God do good to you, and may he remember his covenant with
Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, his faithful servants. 3May he give you all a
heart to worship him and to do his will with a strong heart and a willing
spirit. 4May he open your heart to his law and his commandments, and may
he bring peace. 5May he hear your prayers and be reconciled to you, and
may he not forsake you in time of evil. 6We are now praying for you here.
7 In the reign of Deme'trius, in the one hundred and sixty-ninth year, a we
Jews wrote to you, in the critical distress which came upon us in those years
after Jason and his company revolted from the holy land and the kingdom
8and burned the gate and shed innocent blood. We begged the Lord and we
were heard, and we offered sacrifice and cereal offering, and we lighted the
lamps and we set out the loaves. 9And now see that you keep the feast of
booths in the month of Chis'lev, in the one hundred and eighty-eighth year.
b
A Letter to Aristobulus
10 Those in Jerusalem and those in Judea and the senate and Judas,
To Aristob'ulus, who is of the family of the anointed priests, teacher of
Ptol'emy the king, and to the Jews in Egypt,
Greeting, and good health.
11 Having been saved by God out of grave dangers we thank him greatly
for taking our side against the king. c 12For he drove out those who fought
against the holy city. 13For when the leader reached Persia with a force that
seemed irresistible, they were cut to pieces in the temple of Nane'a by a
deception employed by the priests of Nanea. 14For under pretext of
intending to marry her, Anti'ochus came to the place together with his
friends, to secure most of its treasures as a dowry. 15When the priests of the
temple of Nane'a had set out the treasures and Anti'ochus had come with a
few men inside the wall of the sacred precinct, they closed the temple as
soon as he entered it. 16Opening the secret door in the ceiling, they threw
stones and struck down the leader and his men, and dismembered them and
cut off their heads and threw them to the people outside. 17Blessed in every
way be our God, who has brought judgment upon those who have behaved
impiously.
Fire Consumes Nehemiah’s Sacrifice
18 Since on the twenty-fifth day of Chis'lev we shall celebrate the
purification of the temple, we thought it necessary to notify you, in order
that you also may celebrate the feast of booths and the feast of the fire given
when Nehemi'ah, who built the temple and the altar, offered sacrifices.
19 For when our fathers were being led captive to Persia, the pious priests
of that time took some of the fire of the altar and secretly hid it in the
hollow of a dry cistern, where they took such precautions that the place was
unknown to any one. 20But after many years had passed, when it pleased
God, Nehemi'ah, having been commissioned by the king of Persia, sent the
descendants of the priests who had hidden the fire to get it. And when they
reported to us that they had not found fire but thick liquid, he ordered them
to dip it out and bring it. 21And when the materials for the sacrifices were
presented, Nehemi'ah ordered the priests to sprinkle the liquid on the wood
and what was laid upon it. 22When this was done and some time had passed
and the sun, which had been clouded over, shone out, a great fire blazed up,
so that all marveled. 23And while the sacrifice was being consumed, the
priests offered prayer—the priests and every one. Jonathan led, and the rest
responded, as did Nehemi'ah. 24The prayer was to this effect:
“O Lord, Lord God, Creator of all things, who are awe-inspiring and
strong and just and merciful, who alone are King and are kind, 25who alone
are bountiful, who alone are just and almighty and eternal, who rescue
Israel from every evil, who chose the fathers and consecrated them,
26accept this sacrifice on behalf of all your people Israel and preserve your
portion and make it holy. 27Gather together our scattered people, set free
those who are slaves among the Gentiles, look upon those who are rejected
and despised, and let the Gentiles know that you are our God. 28Afflict
those who oppress and are insolent with pride. 29Plant your people in your
holy place, as Moses said.”
30 Then the priests sang the hymns. 31And when the materials of the
sacrifice were consumed, Nehemi'ah ordered that the liquid that was left
should be poured upon large stones. 32When this was done, a flame blazed
up; but when the light from the altar shone back, it went out. 33When this
matter became known, and it was reported to the king of the Persians that,
in the place where the exiled priests had hidden the fire, the liquid had
appeared with which Nehemi'ah and his associates had burned the materials
of the sacrifice, 34the king investigated the matter, and enclosed the place
and made it sacred. 35And with those persons whom the king favored he
exchanged many excellent gifts. 36Nehemi'ah and his associates called this
“nephthar,” which means purification, but by most people it is called
naphtha. d
Jeremiah Hides the Tent, Ark, and Altar
2 One finds in the records that Jeremi'ah the prophet ordered those who
were being deported to take some of the fire, as has been told, 2and that the
prophet after giving them the law instructed those who were being deported
not to forget the commandments of the Lord, nor to be led astray in their
thoughts upon seeing the gold and silver statues and their adornment. 3And
with other similar words he exhorted them that the law should not depart
from their hearts.
4 It was also in the writing that the prophet, having received an oracle,
ordered that the tent and the ark should follow with him, and that he went
out to the mountain where Moses had gone up and had seen the inheritance
of God. 5And Jeremi'ah came and found a cave, and he brought there the
tent and the ark and the altar of incense, and he sealed up the entrance.
6Some of those who followed him came up to mark the way, but could not
find it. 7When Jeremi'ah learned of it, he rebuked them and declared: “The
place shall be unknown until God gathers his people together again and
shows his mercy. 8And then the Lord will disclose these things, and the
glory of the Lord and the cloud will appear, as they were shown in the case
of Moses, and as Solomon asked that the place should be specially
consecrated.”
9 It was also made clear that being possessed of wisdom Solomon e
offered sacrifice for the dedication and completion of the temple. 10Just as
Moses prayed to the Lord, and fire came down from heaven and devoured
the sacrifices, so also Solomon prayed, and the fire came down and
consumed the whole burnt offerings. 11And Moses said, “They were
consumed because the sin offering had not been eaten.” 12Likewise
Solomon also kept the eight days.
13 The same things are reported in the records and in the memoirs of
Nehemi'ah, and also that he founded a library and collected the books about
the kings and prophets, and the writings of David, and letters of kings about
votive offerings. 14In the same way Judas also collected all the books that
had been lost on account of the war which had come upon us, and they are
in our possession. 15So if you have need of them, send people to get them
for you.
16 Since, therefore, we are about to celebrate the purification, we write to
you. Will you therefore please keep the days? 17It is God who has saved all
his people, and has returned the inheritance to all, and the kingship and
priesthood and consecration, 18as he promised through the law. For we have
hope in God that he will soon have mercy upon us and will gather us from
everywhere under heaven into his holy place, for he has rescued us from
great evils and has purified the place.
The Compiler’s Preface
19 The story of Judas Mac''cabe'us and his brothers, and the purification
of the great temple, and the dedication of the altar, 20and further the wars
against Anti'ochus Epiph'anes and his son Eu'pator, 21and the appearances
which came from heaven to those who strove zealously on behalf of
Judaism, so that though few in number they seized the whole land and
pursued the barbarian hordes, 22and recovered the temple famous
throughout the world and freed the city and restored the laws that were
about to be abolished, while the Lord with great kindness became gracious
to them—23all this, which has been set forth by Jason of Cyre'ne in five
volumes, we shall attempt to condense into a single book. 24For considering
the flood of numbers involved and the difficulty there is for those who wish
to enter upon the narratives of history because of the mass of material, 25we
have aimed to please those who wish to read, to make it easy for those who
are inclined to memorize, and to profit all readers. 26For us who have
undertaken the toil of abbreviating, it is no light matter but calls for sweat
and loss of sleep, 27just as it is not easy for one who prepares a banquet and
seeks the benefit of others. However, to secure the gratitude of many we
will gladly endure the uncomfortable toil, 28leaving the responsibility for
exact details to the compiler, while devoting our effort to arriving at the
outlines of the condensation. 29For as the master builder of a new house
must be concerned with the whole construction, while the one who
undertakes its painting and decoration has to consider only what is suitable
for its adornment, such in my judgment is the case with us. 30It is the duty
of the original historian to occupy the ground and to discuss matters from
every side and to take trouble with details, 31but the one who recasts the
narrative should be allowed to strive for brevity of expression and to forego
exhaustive treatment. 32At this point therefore let us begin our narrative,
adding only so much to what has already been said; for it is foolish to
lengthen the preface while cutting short the history itself.
Arrival of Heliodorus in Jerusalem
3 While the holy city was inhabited in unbroken peace and the laws
were very well observed because of the piety of the high priest Oni'as and
his hatred of wickedness, 2it came about that the kings themselves honored
the place and glorified the temple with the finest presents, 3so that even
Seleu'cus, the king of Asia, defrayed from his own revenues all the
expenses connected with the service of the sacrifices. 4But a man named
Simon, of the tribe of Benjamin, who had been made captain of the temple,
had a disagreement with the high priest about the administration of the city
market; 5and when he could not prevail over Oni'as he went to Apollo'nius
of Tarsus, f who at that time was governor of Coe'le-syr'ia and Phoeni'cia.
6He reported to him that the treasury in Jerusalem was full of untold sums
of money, so that the amount of the funds could not be reckoned, and that
they did not belong to the account of the sacrifices, but that it was possible
for them to fall under the control of the king. 7When Apollo'nius met the
king, he told him of the money about which he had been informed. The
king g chose He''liodo'rus, who was in charge of his affairs, and sent him
with commands to effect the removal of the aforesaid money. 8He''liodo'rus
at once set out on his journey, ostensibly to make a tour of inspection of the
cities of Coe'le-syr'ia and Phoeni'cia, but in fact to carry out the king’s
purpose.
9 When he had arrived at Jerusalem and had been kindly welcomed by
the high priest of h the city, he told about the disclosure that had been made
and stated why he had come, and he inquired whether this really was the
situation. 10The high priest explained that there were some deposits
belonging to widows and orphans, 11and also some money of Hyrca'nus,
son of Tobi'as, a man of very prominent position, and that it totaled in all
four hundred talents of silver and two hundred of gold. To such an extent
the impious Simon had misrepresented the facts. 12And he said that it was
utterly impossible that wrong should be done to those people who had
trusted in the holiness of the place and in the sanctity and inviolability of
the temple which is honored throughout the whole world. 13But
He''liodo'rus, because of the king’s commands which he had, said that this
money must in any case be confiscated for the king’s treasury. 14So he set a
day and went in to direct the inspection of these funds.
There was no little distress throughout the whole city. 15The priests
prostrated themselves before the altar in their priestly garments and called
toward heaven upon him who had given the law about deposits, that he
should keep them safe for those who had deposited them. 16To see the
appearance of the high priest was to be wounded at heart, for his face and
the change in his color disclosed the anguish of his soul. 17For terror and
bodily trembling had come over the man, which plainly showed to those
who looked at him the pain lodged in his heart. 18People also hurried out of
their houses in crowds to make a general supplication because the holy
place was about to be brought into contempt. 19Women, clothed with
sackcloth under their breasts, thronged the streets. Some of the maidens
who were kept indoors ran together to the gates, and some to the walls,
while others peered out of the windows. 20And holding up their hands to
heaven, they all made entreaty. 21There was something pitiable in the
prostration of the whole populace and the anxiety of the high priest in his
great anguish.
The Lord Protects His Temple
22 While they were calling upon the Almighty Lord that he would keep
what had been entrusted safe and secure for those who had entrusted it,
23He''liodo'rus went on with what had been decided. 24But when he arrived
at the treasury with his bodyguard, then and there the Sovereign of spirits
and of all authority caused so great a manifestation that all who had been so
bold as to accompany him were astounded by the power of God, and
became faint with terror. 25For there appeared to them a magnificently
caparisoned horse, with a rider of frightening mien, and it rushed furiously
at He''liodo'rus and struck at him with its front hoofs. Its rider was seen to
have armor and weapons of gold. 26Two young men also appeared to him,
remarkably strong, gloriously beautiful and splendidly dressed, who stood
on each side of him and scourged him continuously, inflicting many blows
on him. 27When he suddenly fell to the ground and deep darkness came
over him, his men took him up and put him on a stretcher 28and carried him
away, this man who had just entered the aforesaid treasury with a great
retinue and all his bodyguard but was now unable to help himself; and they
recognized clearly the sovereign power of God. 29While he lay prostrate,
speechless because of the divine intervention and deprived of any hope of
recovery, 30they praised the Lord who had acted marvelously for his own
place. And the temple, which a little while before was full of fear and
disturbance, was filled with joy and gladness, now that the Almighty Lord
had appeared.
Onias Prays for Heliodorus
31 Quickly some of He''liodo'rus’ friends asked Oni'as to call upon the
Most High and to grant life to one who was lying quite at his last breath.
32And the high priest, fearing that the king might get the notion that some
foul play had been perpetrated by the Jews with regard to He''liodo'rus,
offered sacrifice for the man’s recovery. 33While the high priest was making
the offering of atonement, the same young men appeared again to
He''liodo'rus dressed in the same clothing, and they stood and said, “Be very
grateful to Oni'as the high priest, since for his sake the Lord has granted you
your life. 34And see that you, who have been scourged by heaven, report to
all men the majestic power of God.” Having said this they vanished.
The Conversion of Heliodorus
35 Then He''liodo'rus offered sacrifice to the Lord and made very great
vows to the Savior of his life, and having bidden Oni'as farewell, he
marched off with his forces to the king. 36And he bore testimony to all men
of the deeds of the supreme God, which he had seen with his own eyes.
37When the king asked He''liodo'rus what sort of person would be suitable
to send on another mission to Jerusalem, he replied, 38“If you have any

enemy or plotter against your government, send him there, for you will get
him back thoroughly scourged, if he escapes at all, for there certainly is
about the place some power of God. 39For he who has his dwelling in
heaven watches over that place himself and brings it aid, and he strikes and
destroys those who come to do it injury.” 40This was the outcome of the
episode of He''liodo'rus and the protection of the treasury.
Simon Accuses Onias
4 The previously mentioned Simon, who had informed about the money
against i his own country, slandered Oni'as, saying that it was he who had
incited He''liodo'rus and had been the real cause of the misfortune. 2He
dared to designate as a plotter against the government the man who was the
benefactor of the city, the protector of his fellow countrymen, and a zealot
for the laws. 3When his hatred progressed to such a degree that even
murders were committed by one of Simon’s approved agents, 4Oni'as
recognized that the rivalry was serious and that Apollo'nius, the son of
Menes'theus j and governor of Coe'le-syr'ia and Phoeni'cia, was intensifying
the malice of Simon. 5So he betook himself to the king, not accusing his
fellow citizens but having in view the welfare, both public and private, of
all the people. 6For he saw that without the king’s attention public affairs
could not again reach a peaceful settlement, and that Simon would not stop
his folly.
Jason’s Reforms
7 When Seleu'cus died and Anti'ochus who was called Epiph'anes
succeeded to the kingdom, Jason the brother of Oni'as obtained the high
priesthood by corruption, 8promising the king at an interview k three
hundred and sixty talents of silver and, from another source of revenue,
eighty talents. 9In addition to this he promised to pay one hundred and fifty
more if permission were given to establish by his authority a gymnasium
and a body of youth for it, and to enroll the men of Jerusalem as citizens of
Antioch. 10When the king assented and Jason l came to office, he at once
shifted his countrymen over to the Greek way of life. 11He set aside the
existing royal concessions to the Jews, secured through John the father of
Eupol'emus, who went on the mission to establish friendship and alliance
with the Romans; and he destroyed the lawful ways of living and
introduced new customs contrary to the law. 12For with alacrity he founded
a gymnasium right under the citadel, and he induced the noblest of the
young men m to wear the Greek hat. 13There was such an extreme of
Hellenization and increase in the adoption of foreign ways because of the
surpassing wickedness of Jason, who was ungodly and no high priest, 14that
the priests were no longer intent upon their service at the altar. Despising
the sanctuary and neglecting the sacrifices, they hastened to take part in the
unlawful proceedings in the wrestling arena after the call to the discus,
15disdaining the honors prized by their fathers and putting the highest value
upon Greek forms of prestige. 16For this reason heavy disaster overtook
them, and those whose ways of living they admired and wished to imitate
completely became their enemies and punished them. 17For it is no light
thing to show irreverence to the divine laws—a fact which later events will
make clear.
Jason Introduces Greek Customs
18 When the quadrennial games were being held at Tyre and the king
was present, 19the vile Jason sent envoys, chosen as being An''tio'chian
citizens from Jerusalem, to carry three hundred silver drachmas for the
sacrifice to Hercules. Those who carried the money, however, thought best
not to use it for sacrifice, because that was inappropriate, but to expend it
for another purpose. 20So this money was intended by the sender for the
sacrifice to Hercules, but by the decision of its carriers it was applied to the
construction of triremes.
21 When Apollo'nius the son of Menes'theus was sent to Egypt for the
coronation n of Phil''ome'tor as king, Anti'ochus learned that Philometor o
had become hostile to his government, and he took measures for his own
security. Therefore upon arriving at Joppa he proceeded to Jerusalem. 22He
was welcomed magnificently by Jason and the city, and ushered in with a
blaze of torches and with shouts. Then he marched into Phoeni'cia.
Menelaus Becomes High Priest
23 After a period of three years Jason sent Menela'us, the brother of the
previously mentioned Simon, to carry the money to the king and to
complete the records of essential business. 24But he, when presented to the
king, extolled him with an air of authority, and secured the high priesthood
for himself, outbidding Jason by three hundred talents of silver. 25After
receiving the king’s orders he returned, possessing no qualification for the
high priesthood, but having the hot temper of a cruel tyrant and the rage of
a savage wild beast. 26So Jason, who after supplanting his own brother was
supplanted by another man, was driven as a fugitive into the land of
Am'mon. 27And Menela'us held the office, but he did not pay regularly any
of the money promised to the king. 28When Sos'tratus the captain of the
citadel kept requesting payment, for the collection of the revenue was his
responsibility, the two of them were summoned by the king on account of
this issue. 29Menela'us left his own brother Lysim'achus as deputy in the
high priesthood, while Sos'tratus left Cra'tes, the commander of the Cyprian
troops. *
The Murder of Onias; and the Punishment of Andronicus
30 While such was the state of affairs, it happened that the people of
Tarsus and of Mallus revolted because their cities had been given as a
present to Anti'ochis, the king’s concubine. 31So the king went hastily to
settle the trouble, leaving Andron'icus, a man of high rank, to act as his
deputy. 32But Menela'us, thinking he had obtained a suitable opportunity,
stole some of the gold vessels of the temple and gave them to Andron'icus;
other vessels, as it happened, he had sold to Tyre and the neighboring cities.
33When Oni'as became fully aware of these acts he publicly exposed them,
having first withdrawn to a place of sanctuary at Daphne near Antioch.

34Therefore Menela'us, taking Andron'icus aside, urged him to kill Oni'as.
Andronicus p came to Onias, and resorting to treachery offered him sworn

pledges and gave him his right hand, and in spite of his suspicion persuaded
Onias q to come out from the place of sanctuary; then, with no regard for
justice, he immediately put him out of the way. * 35For this reason not only
Jews, but many also of other nations, were grieved and displeased at the
unjust murder of the man. 36When the king returned from the region of
Cili'cia, the Jews in the city r appealed to him with regard to the
unreasonable murder of Oni'as, and the Greeks shared their hatred of the
crime. 37Therefore Anti'ochus was grieved at heart and filled with pity, and
wept because of the moderation and good conduct of the deceased; 38and
inflamed with anger, he immediately stripped off the purple robe from
Andron'icus, tore off his garments, and led him about the whole city to that
very place where he had committed the outrage against Oni'as, and there he
dispatched the bloodthirsty fellow. The Lord thus repaid him with the
punishment he deserved.
Unpopularity of Lysimachus and Menelaus
39 When many acts of sacrilege had been committed in the city by
Lysim'achus with the connivance of Menela'us, and when report of them
had spread abroad, the populace gathered against Lysimachus, because
many of the gold vessels had already been stolen. 40And since the crowds
were becoming aroused and filled with anger, Lysim'achus armed about
three thousand men and launched an unjust attack, under the leadership of a
certain Aura'nus,* a man advanced in years and no less advanced in folly.
41But when the Jews s became aware of Lysim'achus’ attack, some picked
up stones, some blocks of wood, and others took handfuls of the ashes that
were lying about, and threw them in wild confusion at Lysimachus and his
men. 42As a result, they wounded many of them, and killed some, and put
them all to flight; and the temple robber himself they killed close by the
treasury.
43 Charges were brought against Menela'us about this incident. 44When
the king came to Tyre, three men sent by the senate presented the case
before him. 45But Menela'us, already as good as beaten, promised a
substantial bribe to Ptol'emy son of Dorym'enes to win over the king.
46Therefore Ptol'emy, taking the king aside into a colonnade as if for
refreshment, induced the king to change his mind. 47Menela'us, the cause of
all the evil, he acquitted of the charges against him, while he sentenced to
death those unfortunate men, who would have been freed uncondemned if
they had pleaded even before Scyth'ians. 48And so those who had spoken
for the city and the villages t and the holy vessels quickly suffered the
unjust penalty. 49Therefore even the Ty'rians, showing their hatred of the
crime, provided magnificently for their funeral. 50But Menela'us, because of
the cupidity of those in power, remained in office, growing in wickedness,
having become the chief plotter against his fellow citizens.
Jason Tries to Regain Control
5 About this time Anti'ochus made his second invasion of Egypt. 2And it
happened that over all the city, for almost forty days, there appeared golden-
clad horsemen charging through the air, in companies fully armed with
lances and drawn swords—3troops of horsemen drawn up, attacks and
counterattacks made on this side and on that, brandishing of shields,
massing of spears, hurling of missiles, the flash of golden trappings, and
armor of all sorts. 4Therefore all men prayed that the apparition might prove
to have been a good omen.
5 When a false rumor arose that Anti'ochus was dead, Jason took no less
than a thousand men and suddenly made an assault upon the city. When the
troops upon the wall had been forced back and at last the city was being
taken, Menela'us took refuge in the citadel. 6But Jason kept relentlessly
slaughtering his fellow citizens, not realizing that success at the cost of
one’s kindred is the greatest misfortune, but imagining that he was setting
up trophies of victory over enemies and not over fellow countrymen. 7He
did not gain control of the government, however; and in the end got only
disgrace from his conspiracy, and fled again into the country of the
Am'monites. 8Finally he met a miserable end. Accused u before Ar'etas the
ruler of the Arabs, fleeing from city to city, pursued by all men, hated as a
rebel against the laws, and abhorred as the executioner of his country and
his fellow citizens, he was cast ashore in Egypt; 9and he who had driven
many from their own country into exile died in exile, having embarked to
go to the Lac''edaemo'nians in hope of finding protection because of their
kinship. 10He who had cast out many to lie unburied had no one to mourn
for him; he had no funeral of any sort and no place in the tomb of his
fathers.
11 When news of what had happened reached the king, he took it to mean
that Judea was in revolt. So, raging inwardly, he left Egypt and took the city
by storm. 12And he commanded his soldiers to cut down relentlessly every
one they met and to slay those who went into the houses. 13Then there was
killing of young and old, destruction of boys, women, and children, and
slaughter of virgins and infants. 14Within the total of three days eighty
thousand were destroyed, forty thousand in hand-to-hand fighting; and as
many were sold into slavery as were slain.
Pillage of the Temple
15 Not content with this, Anti'ochus v dared to enter the most holy temple
in all the world, guided by Menela'us, who had become a traitor both to the
laws and to his country. 16He took the holy vessels with his polluted hands,
and swept away with profane hands the votive offerings which other kings
had made to enhance the glory and honor of the place. 17Anti'ochus was
elated in spirit, and did not perceive that the Lord was angered for a little
while because of the sins of those who dwelt in the city, and that therefore
he was disregarding the holy place. 18But if it had not happened that they
were involved in many sins, this man would have been scourged and turned
back from his rash act as soon as he came forward, just as He''liodo'rus was,
whom Seleu'cus the king sent to inspect the treasury. 19But the Lord did not
choose the nation for the sake of the holy place, but the place for the sake of
the nation. 20Therefore the place itself shared in the misfortunes that befell
the nation and afterward participated in its benefits; and what was forsaken
in the wrath of the Almighty was restored again in all its glory when the
great Lord became reconciled.
21 So Anti'ochus carried off eighteen hundred talents from the temple,
and hurried away to Antioch, thinking in his arrogance that he could sail on
the land and walk on the sea, because his mind was elated. 22And he left
governors to afflict the people: at Jerusalem, Philip, by birth a Phryg'ian and
in character more barbarous than the man who appointed him; 23and at
Ger'izim, Andron'icus; and besides these Menela'us, who lorded it over his
fellow citizens worse than the others did. In his malice toward the Jewish
citizens, w 24Anti'ochus x sent Apollo'nius, the captain of the Mysians, with
an army of twenty-two thousand, and commanded him to slay all the grown
men and to sell the women and boys as slaves. 25When this man arrived in
Jerusalem, he pretended to be peaceably disposed and waited until the holy
sabbath day; then, finding the Jews not at work, he ordered his men to
parade under arms. 26He put to the sword all those who came out to see
them, then rushed into the city with his armed men and killed great numbers
of people.
27 But Judas Mac''cabe'us, with about nine others, got away to the
wilderness, and kept himself and his companions alive in the mountains as
wild animals do; they continued to live on what grew wild, so that they
might not share in the defilement.
The Suppression of Judaism
6 Not long after this, the king sent an Athe- nian y senator z to compel
the Jews to forsake the laws of their fathers and cease to live by the laws of
God, 2and also to pollute the temple in Jerusalem and call it the temple of
Olympian Zeus, and to call the one in Ger'izim the temple of Zeus the
Friend of Strangers, as did the people who dwelt in that place.
3 Harsh and utterly grievous was the onslaught of evil. 4For the temple
was filled with debauchery and reveling by the Gentiles, who dallied with
harlots and had intercourse with women within the sacred precincts, and
besides brought in things for sacrifice that were unfit. 5The altar was
covered with abominable offerings which were forbidden by the laws. 6A
man could neither keep the sabbath, nor observe the feasts of his fathers,
nor so much as confess himself to be a Jew.
7 On the monthly celebration of the king’s birthday, the Jews a were
taken, under bitter constraint, to partake of the sacrifices; and when the
feast of Diony'sus came, they were compelled to walk in the procession in
honor of Dionysus, wearing wreaths of ivy. 8At the suggestion of Ptol'emy a
decree was issued to the neighboring Greek cities, that they should adopt
the same policy toward the Jews and make them partake of the sacrifices,
9and should slay those who did not choose to change over to Greek
customs. One could see, therefore, the misery that had come upon them.
10For example, two women were brought in for having circumcised their
children. These women they publicly paraded about the city, with their
babies hung at their breasts, then hurled them down headlong from the wall.
11Others who had assembled in the caves near by, to observe the seventh
day secretly, were betrayed to Philip and were all burned together, because
their piety kept them from defending themselves, in view of their regard for
that most holy day.
Providential Significance of the Persecution
12 Now I urge those who read this book not to be depressed by such
calamities, but to recognize that these punishments were designed not to
destroy but to discipline our people. 13In fact, not to let the impious alone
for long, but to punish them immediately, is a sign of great kindness. 14For
in the case of the other nations the Lord waits patiently to punish them until
they have reached the full measure of their sins; but he does not deal in this
way with us, 15in order that he may not take vengeance on us afterward
when our sins have reached their height. 16Therefore he never withdraws
his mercy from us. Though he disciplines us with calamities, he does not
forsake his own people. 17Let what we have said serve as a reminder; we
must go on briefly with the story.
The Martyrdom of Eleazar
18 Elea'zar, one of the scribes in high position, a man now advanced in
age and of noble presence, was being forced to open his mouth to eat
swine’s flesh. 19But he, welcoming death with honor rather than life with
pollution, went up to the rack of his own accord, spitting out the flesh, 20as
men ought to go who have the courage to refuse things that it is not right to
taste, even for the natural love of life.
21 Those who were in charge of that unlawful sacrifice took the man
aside, because of their long acquaintance with him, and privately urged him
to bring meat of his own providing, proper for him to use, and pretend that
he was eating the flesh of the sacrificial meal which had been commanded
by the king, 22so that by doing this he might be saved from death, and be
treated kindly on account of his old friendship with them. 23But making a
high resolve, worthy of his years and the dignity of his old age and the gray
hairs which he had reached with distinction and his excellent life even from
childhood, and moreover according to the holy God-given law, he declared
himself quickly, telling them to send him to Hades.
24 “Such pretense is not worthy of our time of life,” he said, “lest many
of the young should suppose that Elea'zar in his ninetieth year has gone
over to an alien religion, 25and through my pretense, for the sake of living a
brief moment longer, they should be led astray because of me, while I defile
and disgrace my old age. 26For even if for the present I should avoid the
punishment of men, yet whether I live or die I shall not escape the hands of
the Almighty. 27Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will show
myself worthy of my old age 28and leave to the young a noble example of
how to die a good death willingly and nobly for the revered and holy laws.”
When he had said this, he went b at once to the rack. 29And those who a
little before had acted toward him with good will now changed to ill will,
because the words he had uttered were in their opinion sheer madness. c
30When he was about to die under the blows, he groaned aloud and said: “It
is clear to the Lord in his holy knowledge that, though I might have been
saved from death, I am enduring terrible sufferings in my body under this
beating, but in my soul I am glad to suffer these things because I fear him.”
31 So in this way he died, leaving in his death an example of nobility and
a memorial of courage, not only to the young but to the great body of his
nation.
The Martyrdom of the Seven Brothers
7 It happened also that seven brothers and their mother were arrested and
were being compelled by the king, under torture with whips and cords, to
partake of unlawful swine’s flesh. 2One of them, acting as their spokesman,
said, “What do you intend to ask and learn from us? For we are ready to die
rather than transgress the laws of our fathers.”
3 The king fell into a rage, and gave orders that pans and caldrons be
heated. 4These were heated immediately, and he commanded that the
tongue of their spokesman be cut out and that they scalp him and cut off his
hands and feet, while the rest of the brothers and the mother looked on.
5When he was utterly helpless, the king d ordered them to take him to the
fire, still breathing, and to fry him in a pan. The smoke from the pan spread
widely, but the brothers e and their mother encouraged one another to die
nobly, saying, 6“The Lord God is watching over us and in truth has
compassion on us, as Moses declared in his song which bore witness
against the people to their faces, when he said, ‘And he will have
compassion on his servants.’”
7 After the first brother had died in this way, they brought forward the
second for their sport. They tore off the skin of his head with the hair, and
asked him, “Will you eat rather than have your body punished limb by
limb?” 8He replied in the language of his fathers, and said to them, “No.”
Therefore he in turn underwent tortures as the first brother had done. 9And
when he was at his last breath, he said, “You accursed wretch, you dismiss
us from this present life, but the King of the universe will raise us up to an
everlasting renewal of life, * because we have died for his laws.”
10 After him, the third was the victim of their sport. When it was
demanded, he quickly put out his tongue and courageously stretched forth
his hands, 11and said nobly, “I got these from Heaven, and because of his
laws I disdain them, and from him I hope to get them back again.” 12As a
result the king himself and those with him were astonished at the young
man’s spirit, for he regarded his sufferings as nothing.
13 When he too had died, they maltreated and tortured the fourth in the
same way. 14And when he was near death, he said, “One cannot but choose
to die at the hands of men and to cherish the hope that God gives of being
raised again by him. But for you there will be no resurrection to life!”
15 Next they brought forward the fifth and maltreated him. 16But he
looked at the king, f and said, “Because you have authority among men,
mortal though you are, you do what you please. But do not think that God
has forsaken our people. 17Keep on, and see how his mighty power will
torture you and your descendants!”
18 After him they brought forward the sixth. And when he was about to
die, he said, “Do not deceive yourself in vain. For we are suffering these
things on our own account, because of our sins against our own God.
Therefore g astounding things have happened. 19But do not think that you
will go unpunished for having tried to fight against God!”
20 The mother was especially admirable and worthy of honorable
memory. Though she saw her seven sons perish within a single day, she
bore it with good courage because of her hope in the Lord. 21She
encouraged each of them in the language of their fathers. Filled with a
noble spirit, she fired her woman’s reasoning with a man’s courage, and
said to them, 22“I do not know how you came into being in my womb. It
was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in order the elements
within each of you. 23Therefore the Creator of the world, who shaped the
beginning of man and devised the origin of all things, will in his mercy give
life and breath back to you again, since you now forget yourselves for the
sake of his laws.”
24 Anti'ochus felt that he was being treated with contempt, and he was
suspicious of her reproachful tone. The youngest brother being still alive,
Antiochus h not only appealed to him in words, but promised with oaths
that he would make him rich and enviable if he would turn from the ways of
his fathers, and that he would take him for his friend and entrust him with
public affairs. 25Since the young man would not listen to him at all, the king
called the mother to him and urged her to advise the youth to save himself.
26After much urging on his part, she undertook to persuade her son. 27But,
leaning close to him, she spoke in their native tongue as follows, deriding
the cruel tyrant: “My son, have pity on me. I carried you nine months in my
womb, and nursed you for three years, and have reared you and brought you
up to this point in your life, and have taken care of you. i 28I beg you, my
child, to look at the heaven and the earth and see everything that is in them,
and recognize that God did not make them out of things that existed. j Thus
also mankind comes into being. 29Do not fear this butcher, but prove
worthy of your brothers. Accept death, so that in God’s mercy I may get
you back again with your brothers.”
30 While she was still speaking, the young man said, “What are you k
waiting for? I will not obey the king’s command, but I obey the command
of the law that was given to our fathers through Moses. 31But you, l who
have contrived all sorts of evil against the Hebrews, will certainly not
escape the hands of God. 32For we are suffering because of our own sins.
33And if our living Lord is angry for a little while, to rebuke and discipline
us, he will again be reconciled with his own servants. 34But you, unholy
wretch, you most defiled of all men, do not be elated in vain and puffed up
by uncertain hopes, when you raise your hand against the children of
heaven. 35You have not yet escaped the judgment of the almighty, all-seeing
God. 36For our brothers after enduring a brief suffering have drunk m of
everflowing life under God’s covenant; but you, by the judgment of God,
will receive just punishment for your arrogance. 37I, like my brothers, give
up body and life for the laws of our fathers, appealing to God to show
mercy soon to our nation and by afflictions and plagues to make you
confess that he alone is God, 38and through me and my brothers to bring to
an end the wrath of the Almighty which has justly fallen on our whole
nation.”
39 The king fell into a rage, and handled him worse than the others,
being exasperated at his scorn. 40So he died in his integrity, putting his
whole trust in the Lord.
41 Last of all, the mother died, after her sons.
42 Let this be enough, then, about the eating of sacrifices and the extreme
tortures.
The Revolt of Judas Maccabeus
8 But Judas, who was also called Mac''cabe'us, and his companions
secretly entered the villages and summoned their kinsmen and enlisted
those who had continued in the Jewish faith, and so they gathered about six
thousand men. 2They begged the Lord to look upon the people who were
oppressed by all, and to have pity on the temple which had been profaned
by ungodly men, 3and to have mercy on the city which was being destroyed
and about to be leveled to the ground, and to heed the blood that cried out to
him, 4and to remember also the lawless destruction of the innocent babies
and the blasphemies committed against his name, and to show his hatred of
evil.
5 As soon as Mac''cabe'us got his army organized, the Gentiles could not
withstand him, for the wrath of the Lord had turned to mercy. 6Coming
without warning, he would set fire to towns and villages. He captured
strategic positions and put to flight not a few of the enemy. 7He found the
nights most advantageous for such attacks. And talk of his valor spread
everywhere.
8 When Philip saw that the man was gaining ground little by little, and
that he was pushing ahead with more frequent successes, he wrote to
Ptol'emy, the governor of Coe'le-syr'ia and Phoeni'cia, for aid to the king’s
government. 9And Ptol'emy n promptly appointed Nica'nor the son of
Patro'clus, one of the king’s chief friends, and sent him, in command of no
fewer than twenty thousand Gentiles of all nations, to wipe out the whole
race of Judea. He associated with him Gor'gias, a general and a man of
experience in military service. 10Nica'nor determined to make up for the
king the tribute due to the Romans, two thousand talents, by selling the
captured Jews into slavery. 11And he immediately sent to the cities on the
seacoast, inviting them to buy Jewish slaves and promising to hand over
ninety slaves for a talent, not expecting the judgment from the Almighty
that was about to overtake him.
Preparation for Battle
12 Word came to Judas concerning Nica'nor’s invasion; and when he told
his companions of the arrival of the army, 13those who were cowardly and
distrustful of God’s justice ran off and got away. 14Others sold all their
remaining property, and at the same time begged the Lord to rescue those
who had been sold by the ungodly Nica'nor before he ever met them, 15if
not for their own sake, yet for the sake of the covenants made with their
fathers, and because he had called them by his holy and glorious name.
16But Mac''cabe'us gathered his men together, to the number of six
thousand, and exhorted them not to be frightened by the enemy and not to
fear the great multitude of Gentiles who were wickedly coming against
them, but to fight nobly, 17keeping before their eyes the lawless outrage
which the Gentiles o had committed against the holy place, and the torture
of the derided city, and besides, the overthrow of their ancestral way of life.
18“For they trust to arms and acts of daring,” he said, “but we trust in the
Almighty God, who is able with a single nod to strike down those who are
coming against us and even the whole world.”
19 Moreover, he told them of the times when help came to their
ancestors; both the time of Sennach'erib, when one hundred and eighty-five
thousand perished, 20and the time of the battle with the Galatians that took
place in Babylonia, when eight thousand in all went into the affair, with
four thousand Macedonians; and when the Macedonians were hard pressed,
the eight thousand, by the help that came to them from heaven, destroyed
one hundred and twenty thousand and took much booty.
Judas Defeats Nicanor
21 With these words he filled them with good courage and made them
ready to die for their laws and their country; then he divided his army into
four parts. 22He appointed his brothers also, Simon and Joseph and
Jonathan, each to command a division, putting fifteen hundred men under
each. 23Besides, he appointed Elea'zar to read aloud p from the holy book,
and gave the watchword, “God’s help”; then, leading the first division
himself, he joined battle with Nica'nor.
24 With the Almighty as their ally, they slew more than nine thousand of
the enemy, and wounded and disabled most of Nica'nor’s army, and forced
them all to flee. 25They captured the money of those who had come to buy
them as slaves. After pursuing them for some distance, they were obliged to
return because the hour was late. 26For it was the day before the sabbath,
and for that reason they did not continue their pursuit. 27And when they had
collected the arms of the enemy and stripped them of their spoils, they kept
the sabbath, giving great praise and thanks to the Lord, who had preserved
them for that day and allotted it to them as the beginning of mercy. 28After
the sabbath they gave some of the spoils to those who had been tortured and
to the widows and orphans, and distributed the rest among themselves and
their children. 29When they had done this, they made common supplication
and begged the merciful Lord to be wholly reconciled with his servants.
30 In encounters with the forces of Timothy and Bacchi'des they killed
more than twenty thousand of them and got possession of some exceedingly
high strongholds, and they divided very much plunder, giving to those who
had been tortured and to the orphans and widows, and also to the aged,
shares equal to their own. 31Collecting the arms of the enemy, q they stored
them all carefully in strategic places, and carried the rest of the spoils to
Jerusalem. 32They killed the commander of Timothy’s forces, a most
unholy man, and one who had greatly troubled the Jews. 33While they were
celebrating the victory in the city of their fathers, they burned those who
had set fire to the sacred gates, Callis'thenes and some others, who had fled
into one little house; so these received the proper recompense for their
impiety. r
34 The thrice-accursed Nica'nor, who had brought the thousand merchants
to buy the Jews, 35having been humbled with the help of the Lord by
opponents whom he regarded as of the least account, took off his splendid
uniform and made his way alone like a runaway slave across the country till
he reached Antioch, having succeeded chiefly in the destruction of his own
army! 36Thus he who had undertaken to secure tribute for the Romans by
the capture of the people of Jerusalem proclaimed that the Jews had a
Defender, and that therefore the Jews were invulnerable, because they
followed the laws ordained by him.
The Last Campaign of Antiochus Ephiphanes
9 About that time, as it happened, Anti'ochus had retreated in disorder
from the region of Persia. 2For he had entered the city called Persep'olis,
and attempted to rob the temples and control the city. Therefore the people
rushed to the rescue with arms, and Anti'ochus and his men were defeated, s
with the result that Antiochus was put to flight by the inhabitants and beat a
shameful retreat. 3While he was in Ecbat'ana, news came to him of what
had happened to Nica'nor and the forces of Timothy. 4Transported with
rage, he conceived the idea of turning upon the Jews the injury done by
those who had put him to flight; so he ordered his charioteer to drive
without stopping until he completed the journey. But the judgment of
heaven rode with him! For in his arrogance he said, “When I get there I will
make Jerusalem a cemetery of Jews.”
5 But the all-seeing Lord, the God of Israel, struck him an incurable and
unseen blow. As soon as he ceased speaking he was seized with a pain in
his bowels for which there was no relief and with sharp internal tortures—
6and that very justly, for he had tortured the bowels of others with many and
strange inflictions. 7Yet he did not in any way stop his insolence, but was
even more filled with arrogance, breathing fire in his rage against the Jews,
and giving orders to hasten the journey. And so it came about that he fell
out of his chariot as it was rushing along, and the fall was so hard as to
torture every limb of his body. 8Thus he who had just been thinking that he
could command the waves of the sea, in his superhuman arrogance, and
imagining that he could weigh the high mountains in a balance, was brought
down to earth and carried in a litter, making the power of God manifest to
all. 9And so the ungodly man’s body swarmed with worms, and while he
was still living in anguish and pain, his flesh rotted away, and because of
his stench the whole army felt revulsion at his decay. 10Because of his
intolerable stench no one was able to carry the man who a little while
before had thought that he could touch the stars of heaven. 11Then it was
that, broken in spirit, he began to lose much of his arrogance and to come to
his senses under the scourge of God, for he was tortured with pain every
moment. 12And when he could not endure his own stench, he uttered these
words: “It is right to be subject to God, and no mortal should think that he is
equal to God.” t
Antiochus Makes a Promise to God
13 Then the abominable fellow made a vow to the Lord, who would no
longer have mercy on him, stating 14that the holy city, which he was
hastening to level to the ground and to make a cemetery, he was now
declaring to be free; 15and the Jews, whom he had not considered worth
burying but had planned to throw out with their children to the beasts, for
the birds to pick, he would make, all of them, equal to citizens of Athens;
16and the holy sanctuary, which he had formerly plundered, he would adorn
with the finest offerings; and the holy vessels he would give back, all of
them, many times over; and the expenses incurred for the sacrifices he
would provide from his own revenues; 17and in addition to all this he also
would become a Jew and would visit every inhabited place to proclaim the
power of God. 18But when his sufferings did not in any way abate, for the
judgment of God had justly come upon him, he gave up all hope for himself
and wrote to the Jews the following letter, in the form of a supplication.
This was its content:
Antiochus’ Letter and Death
19 “To his worthy Jewish citizens, Anti'ochus their king and general sends
hearty greetings and good wishes for their health and prosperity. 20If you
and your children are well and your affairs are as you wish, I am glad. As
my hope is in heaven, 21I remember with affection your esteem and good
will. On my way back from the region of Persia I suffered an annoying
illness, and I have deemed it necessary to take thought for the general
security of all. 22I do not despair of my condition, for I have good hope of
recovering from my illness, 23but I observed that my father, on the
occasions when he made expeditions into the upper country, appointed his
successor, 24so that, if anything unexpected happened or any unwelcome
news came, the people throughout the realm would not be troubled, for they
would know to whom the government was left. 25Moreover, I understand
how the princes along the borders and the neighbors to my kingdom keep
watching for opportunities and waiting to see what will happen. So I have
appointed my son Anti'ochus to be king, whom I have often entrusted and
commended to most of you when I hastened off to the upper provinces; and
I have written to him what is written here. 26I therefore urge and beg you to
remember the public and private services rendered to you and to maintain
your present good will, each of you, toward me and my son. 27For I am sure
that he will follow my policy and will treat you with moderation and
kindness.”
28 So the murderer and blasphemer, having endured the more intense
suffering, such as he had inflicted on others, came to the end of his life by a
most pitiable fate, among the mountains in a strange land. 29And Philip, one
of his courtiers, took his body home; then, fearing the son of Anti'ochus, he
betook himself to Ptol'emy Phil''ome'tor in Egypt.
The Purification of the Temple
10 Now Mac''cabe'us and his followers, the Lord leading them on,
recovered the temple and the city; 2and they tore down the altars which had
been built in the public square by the foreigners, and also destroyed the
sacred precincts. 3They purified the sanctuary, and made another altar of
sacrifice; then, striking fire out of flint, they offered sacrifices, after a lapse
of two years, and they burned incense and lighted lamps and set out the
bread of the Presence. 4And when they had done this, they fell prostrate and
begged the Lord that they might never again fall into such misfortunes, but
that, if they should ever sin, they might be disciplined by him with
forbearance and not be handed over to blasphemous and barbarous nations.
5It happened that on the same day on which the sanctuary had been
profaned by the foreigners, the purification of the sanctuary took place, that
is, on the twenty-fifth day of the same month, which was Chis'lev. 6And
they celebrated it for eight days with rejoicing, in the manner of the feast of
booths, remembering how not long before, during the feast of booths, they
had been wandering in the mountains and caves like wild animals.
7Therefore bearing ivy-wreathed wands and beautiful branches and also
fronds of palm, they offered hymns of thanksgiving to him who had given
success to the purifying of his own holy place. 8They decreed by public
ordinance and vote that the whole nation of the Jews should observe these
days every year.
9 Such then was the end of Anti'ochus, who was called Epiph'anes.
10 Now we will tell what took place under Anti'ochus Eu'pator, who was
the son of that ungodly man, and will give a brief summary of the principal
calamities of the wars. 11This man, when he succeeded to the kingdom,
appointed one Lys'ias to have charge of the government and to be chief
governor of Coe'le-syr'ia and Phoeni'cia. 12Ptol'emy, who was called
Ma'cron, took the lead in showing justice to the Jews because of the wrong
that had been done to them, and attempted to maintain peaceful relations
with them. 13As a result he was accused before Eu'pator by the king’s
friends. He heard himself called a traitor at every turn, because he had
abandoned Cyprus, which Phil''ome'tor had entrusted to him, and had gone
over to Anti'ochus Epiph'anes. Unable to command the respect due his
office, u he took poison and ended his life.
Campaign in Idumea
14 When Gor'gias became governor of the region, he maintained a force
of mercenaries, and at every turn kept on warring against the Jews.
15Besides this, the Idume'ans, who had control of important strongholds,
were harassing the Jews; they received those who were banished from
Jerusalem, and endeavored to keep up the war. 16But Mac''cabe'us and his
men, after making solemn supplication and begging God to fight on their
side, rushed to the strongholds of the Idume'ans. 17Attacking them
vigorously, they gained possession of the places, and beat off all who fought
upon the wall, and slew those whom they encountered, killing no fewer
than twenty thousand.
18 When no less than nine thousand took refuge in two very strong
towers well equipped to withstand a siege, 19Mac''cabe'us left Simon and
Joseph, and also Zacchae'us and his men, a force sufficient to besiege them;
and he himself set off for places where he was more urgently needed. 20But
the men with Simon, who were money-hungry, were bribed by some of
those who were in the towers, and on receiving seventy thousand drachmas
let some of them slip away. 21When word of what had happened came to
Mac''cabe'us, he gathered the leaders of the people, and accused these men
of having sold their brethren for money by setting their enemies free to fight
against them. 22Then he slew these men who had turned traitor, and
immediately captured the two towers. 23Having success at arms in
everything he undertook, he destroyed more than twenty thousand in the
two strongholds.
Judas Defeats Timothy
24 Now Timothy, who had been defeated by the Jews before, gathered a
tremendous force of mercenaries and collected the cavalry from Asia in no
small number. He came on, intending to take Judea by storm. 25As he drew
near, Mac''cabe'us and his men sprinkled dust upon their heads and put on
sackcloth, in supplication to God. 26Falling upon the steps before the altar,
they begged him to be gracious to them and to be an enemy to their enemies
and an adversary to their adversaries, as the law declares. 27And rising from
their prayer they took up their arms and advanced a considerable distance
from the city; and when they came near to the enemy they halted. 28Just as
dawn was breaking, the two armies joined battle, the one having as pledge
of success and victory not only their valor but their reliance upon the Lord,
while the other made rage their leader in the fight.
29 When the battle became fierce, there appeared to the enemy from
heaven five resplendent men on horses with golden bridles, and they were
leading the Jews. 30Surrounding Mac''cabe'us and protecting him with their
own armor and weapons, they kept him from being wounded. And they
showered arrows and thunderbolts upon the enemy, so that, confused and
blinded, they were thrown into disorder and cut to pieces. 31Twenty
thousand five hundred were slaughtered, besides six hundred horsemen.
32 Timothy himself fled to a stronghold called Gaza'ra, especially well
garrisoned, where Chae'reas was commander. 33Then Mac''cabe'us and his
men were glad, and they besieged the fort for four days. 34The men within,
relying on the strength of the place, blasphemed terribly and hurled out
wicked words. 35But at dawn of the fifth day, twenty young men in the
army of Mac''cabe'us, fired with anger because of the blasphemies, bravely
stormed the wall and with savage fury cut down every one they met.
36Others who came up in the same way wheeled around against the
defenders and set fire to the towers; they kindled fires and burned the
blasphemers alive. Others broke open the gates and let in the rest of the
force, and they occupied the city. 37They killed Timothy, who was hidden in
a cistern, and his brother Chae'reas, and Apolloph'anes. 38When they had
accomplished these things, with hymns and thanksgivings they blessed the
Lord who shows great kindness to Israel and gives them the victory.
Lysias Besieges Beth-zur
11 Very soon after this, Lys'ias, the king’s guardian and kinsman, who
was in charge of the government, being vexed at what had happened,
2gathered about eighty thousand men and all his cavalry and came against
the Jews. He intended to make the city a home for Greeks, 3and to levy
tribute on the temple as he did on the sacred places of the other nations, and
to put up the high priesthood for sale every year. 4He took no account
whatever of the power of God, but was elated with his ten thousands of
infantry, and his thousands of cavalry, and his eighty elephants. 5Invading
Judea, he approached Beth-zur, which was a fortified place about five
leagues v from Jerusalem, and pressed it hard.
6 When Mac''cabe'us and his men got word that Lys'ias w was besieging
the strongholds, they and all the people, with lamentations and tears,
begged the Lord to send a good angel to save Israel. 7Mac''cabe'us himself
was the first to take up arms, and he urged the others to risk their lives with
him to aid their brethren. Then they eagerly rushed off together. 8And there,
while they were still near Jerusalem, a horseman appeared at their head,
clothed in white and brandishing weapons of gold. 9And they all together
praised the merciful God, and were strengthened in heart, ready to assail not
only men but the wildest beasts or walls of iron. 10They advanced in battle
order, having their heavenly ally, for the Lord had mercy on them. 11They
hurled themselves like lions against the enemy, and slew eleven thousand of
them and sixteen hundred horsemen, and forced all the rest to flee. 12Most
of them got away stripped and wounded, and Lys'ias himself escaped by
disgraceful flight. 13And as he was not without intelligence, he pondered
over the defeat which had befallen him, and realized that the Hebrews were
invincible because the mighty God fought on their side. So he sent to them
14and persuaded them to settle everything on just terms, promising that he
would persuade the king, constraining him to be their friend. x

15Mac''cabe'us, having regard for the common good, agreed to all that
Lys'ias urged. For the king granted every request in behalf of the Jews
which Maccabeus delivered to Lysias in writing.
16 The letter written to the Jews by Lys'ias was to this effect:
“Lysias to the people of the Jews, greeting. 17John and Ab'salom, who
were sent by you, have delivered your signed communication and have
asked about the matters indicated therein. 18I have informed the king of
everything that needed to be brought before him, and he has agreed to what
was possible. 19If you will maintain your good will toward the government,
I will endeavor for the future to help promote your welfare. 20And
concerning these matters and their details, I have ordered these men and my
representatives to confer with you. 21Farewell. The one hundred and forty-
eighth year, y Di''oscorin'thius twenty-fourth.”
22 The king’s letter ran thus:
“King Anti'ochus to his brother Lys'ias, greeting. 23Now that our father
has gone on to the gods, we desire that the subjects of the kingdom be
undisturbed in caring for their own affairs. 24We have heard that the Jews
do not consent to our father’s change to Greek customs but prefer their own
way of living and ask that their own customs be allowed them.
25Accordingly, since we choose that this nation also be free from
disturbance, our decision is that their temple be restored to them and that
they live according to the customs of their ancestors. 26You will do well,
therefore, to send word to them and give them pledges of friendship, so that
they may know our policy and be of good cheer and go on happily in the
conduct of their own affairs.”
27 To the nation the king’s letter was as follows:
“King Anti'ochus to the senate of the Jews and to the other Jews,
greeting. 28If you are well, it is as we desire. We also are in good health.
29Menela'us has informed us that you wish to return home and look after
your own affairs. 30Therefore those who go home by the thirtieth day of
Xan'thicus will have our pledge of friendship and full permission 31for the
Jews to enjoy their own food and laws, just as formerly, and none of them
shall be molested in any way for what he may have done in ignorance.
32And I have also sent Menela'us to encourage you. 33Farewell. The one
hundred and forty-eighth year, z Xan'thicus fifteenth.”

34 The Romans also sent them a letter, which read thus:
“Quint'us Mem'mius and Titus Ma'nius, envoys of the Romans, to the
people of the Jews, greeting. 35With regard to what Lys'ias the kinsman of
the king has granted you, we also give consent. 36But as to the matters
which he decided are to be referred to the king, as soon as you have
considered them, send some one promptly, so that we may make proposals
appropriate for you. For we are on our way to Antioch. 37Therefore make
haste and send some men, so that we may have your judgment. 38Farewell.
The one hundred and forty-eighth year, a Xan'thicus fifteenth.”
Incidents at Joppa and Jamnia
12 When this agreement had been reached, Lys'ias returned to the king,
and the Jews went about their farming.
2 But some of the governors in various places, Timothy and Apollo'nius
the son of Gennae'us, as well as Hi''eron'ymus and Dem'ophon, and in
addition to these Nica'nor the governor of Cyprus, would not let them live
quietly and in peace. 3And some men of Joppa did so ungodly a deed as
this: they invited the Jews who lived among them to embark, with their
wives and children, on boats which they had provided, as though there were
no ill will to the Jews; b 4and this was done by public vote of the city. And
when they accepted, because they wished to live peaceably and suspected
nothing, the men of Joppa c took them out to sea and drowned them, not
less than two hundred. 5When Judas heard of the cruelty visited on his
countrymen, he gave orders to his men 6and, calling upon God the righteous
Judge, attacked the murderers of his brethren. He set fire to the harbor by
night, and burned the boats, and massacred those who had taken refuge
there. 7Then, because the city’s gates were closed, he withdrew, intending to
come again and root out the whole community of Joppa. 8But learning that
the men in Jam'nia meant in the same way to wipe out the Jews who were
living among them, 9he attacked the people of Jam'nia by night and set fire
to the harbor and the fleet, so that the glow of the light was seen in
Jerusalem, thirty miles d distant.
The Campaign in Gilead
10 When they had gone more than a mile e from there, on their march
against Timothy, not less than five thousand Arabs with five hundred
horsemen attacked them. 11After a hard fight Judas and his men won the
victory, by the help of God. The defeated nomads begged Judas to grant
them pledges of friendship, promising to give him cattle and to help his
people f in all other ways. 12Judas, thinking that they might really be useful
in many ways, agreed to make peace with them; and after receiving his
pledges they departed to their tents.
13 He also attacked a certain city which was strongly fortified with
earthworks g and walls, and inhabited by all sorts of Gentiles. Its name was
Cas'pin. 14And those who were within, relying on the strength of the walls
and on their supply of provisions, behaved most insolently toward Judas
and his men, railing at them and even blaspheming and saying unholy
things. 15But Judas and his men, calling upon the great Sovereign of the
world, who without battering-rams or engines of war overthrew Jericho in
the days of Joshua, rushed furiously upon the walls. 16They took the city by
the will of God, and slaughtered untold numbers, so that the adjoining lake,
a quarter of a mile h wide, appeared to be running over with blood.
Judas Defeats Timothy’s Army
17 When they had gone ninety-five miles i from there, they came to
Cha'rax, to the Jews who are called Tou''bia'ni. 18They did not find Timothy
in that region, for he had by then departed from the region without
accomplishing anything, though in one place he had left a very strong
garrison. 19Dosith'eus and Sosip'ater, who were captains under Mac''cabe'us,
marched out and destroyed those whom Timothy had left in the stronghold,
more than ten thousand men. 20But Mac''cabe'us arranged his army in
divisions, set men j in command of the divisions, and hastened after
Timothy, who had with him a hundred and twenty thousand infantry and
two thousand five hundred cavalry. 21When Timothy learned of the
approach of Judas, he sent off the women and the children and also the
baggage to a place called Carna'im; for that place was hard to besiege and
difficult of access because of the narrowness of all the approaches. 22But
when Judas’ first division appeared, terror and fear came over the enemy at
the manifestation to them of him who sees all things; and they rushed off in
flight and were swept on, this way and that, so that often they were injured
by their own men and pierced by the points of their swords. 23And Judas
pressed the pursuit with the utmost vigor, putting the sinners to the sword,
and destroyed as many as thirty thousand men.
24 Timothy himself fell into the hands of Dosith'eus and Sosip'ater and
their men. With great guile he begged them to let him go in safety, because
he held the parents of most of them and the brothers of some and no
consideration would be shown them. 25And when with many words he had
confirmed his solemn promise to restore them unharmed, they let him go,
for the sake of saving their brethren.
Judas Wins Other Victories
k
26 Then Judas marched against Carna'im and the temple of Atar'gatis,
and slaughtered twenty-five thousand people. 27After the rout and
destruction of these, he marched also against E'phron, a fortified city where
Lys'ias dwelt with multitudes of people of all nationalities. l Stalwart young
men took their stand before the walls and made a vigorous defense; and
great stores of war engines and missiles were there. 28But the Jews m called
upon the Sovereign who with power shatters the might of his enemies, and
they got the city into their hands, and killed as many as twenty-five
thousand of those who were within it.
29 Setting out from there, they hastened to Scythop'olis, which is
seventy-five miles n from Jerusalem. 30But when the Jews who dwelt there
bore witness to the good will which the people of Scythop'olis had shown
them and their kind treatment of them in times of misfortune, 31they
thanked them and exhorted them to be well disposed to their race in the
future also. Then they went up to Jerusalem, as the feast of weeks was close
at hand.
Judas Defeats Gorgias
32 After the feast called Pentecost, they hastened against Gor'gias, the
governor of Idume'a. 33And he came out with three thousand infantry and
four hundred cavalry. 34When they joined battle, it happened that a few of
the Jews fell. 35But a certain Dosith'eus, one of Bace'nor’s men, who was on
horseback and was a strong man, caught hold of Gor'gias, and grasping his
cloak was dragging him off by main strength, wishing to take the accursed
man alive, when one of the Thracian horsemen bore down upon him and cut
off his arm; so Gorgias escaped and reached Mar'isa.
36 As Es'dris and his men had been fighting for a long time and were
weary, Judas called upon the Lord to show himself their ally and leader in
the battle. 37In the language of their fathers he raised the battle cry, with
hymns; then he charged against Gor'gias’ men when they were not
expecting it, and put them to flight.
Prayers for Those Killed in Battle
38 Then Judas assembled his army and went to the city of Adul'lam. As
the seventh day was coming on, they purified themselves according to the
custom, and they kept the sabbath there.
39 On the next day, as by that time it had become necessary, Judas and
his men went to take up the bodies of the fallen and to bring them back to
lie with their kinsmen in the sepulchres of their fathers. 40Then under the
tunic of every one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of
Jam'nia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. And it became clear to all
that this was why these men had fallen. 41So they all blessed the ways of the
Lord, the righteous Judge, who reveals the things that are hidden; 42and
they turned to prayer, begging that the sin which had been committed might
be wholly blotted out. And the noble Judas exhorted the people to keep
themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had
happened because of the sin of those who had fallen. 43He also took up a
collection, man by man, to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver,
and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering. In doing this he acted
very well and honorably, taking account of the resurrection. 44For if he were
not expecting that those who had fallen would rise again, it would have
been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. 45But if he was looking to
the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it
was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead,
that they might be delivered from their sin.*
Menelaus I Put to Death
13 In the one hundred and forty-ninth year o word came to Judas and his
men that Anti'ochus Eu'pator was coming with a great army against Judea,
2and with him Lys'ias, his guardian, who had charge of the government.
Each of them had a Greek force of one hundred and ten thousand infantry,
five thousand three hundred cavalry, twenty-two elephants, and three
hundred chariots armed with scythes.
3 Menela'us also joined them and with utter hypocrisy urged Anti'ochus
on, not for the sake of his country’s welfare, but because he thought that he
would be established in office. 4But the King of kings aroused the anger of
Anti'ochus against the scoundrel; and when Lys'ias informed him that this
man was to blame for all the trouble, he ordered them to take him to Beroe'a
and to put him to death by the method which is the custom in that place.
5For there is a tower in that place, fifty cubits high, full of ashes, and it has
a rim running around it which on all sides inclines precipitously into the
ashes. 6There they all push to destruction any man guilty of sacrilege or
notorious for other crimes. 7By such a fate it came about that Menela'us the
lawbreaker died, without even burial in the earth. 8And this was eminently
just; because he had committed many sins against the altar whose fire and
ashes were holy, he met his death in ashes.
A Battle Near Modein
9 The king with barbarous arrogance was coming to show the Jews
things far worse than those that had been done p in his father’s time. 10But
when Judas heard of this, he ordered the people to call upon the Lord day
and night, now if ever to help those who were on the point of being
deprived of the law and their country and the holy temple, 11and not to let
the people who had just begun to revive fall into the hands of the
blasphemous Gentiles. 12When they had all joined in the same petition and
had begged the merciful Lord with weeping and fasting and lying prostrate
for three days without ceasing, Judas exhorted them and ordered them to
stand ready.
13 After consulting privately with the elders, he determined to march out
and decide the matter by the help of God before the king’s army could enter
Judea and get possession of the city. 14So, committing the decision to the
Creator of the world and exhorting his men to fight nobly to the death for
the laws, temple, city, country, and commonwealth, he pitched his camp
near Mo'dein. 15He gave his men the watchword, “God’s victory,” and with
a picked force of the bravest young men, he attacked the king’s pavilion at
night and slew as many as two thousand men in the camp. He stabbed q the
leading elephant and its rider. 16In the end they filled the camp with terror
and confusion and withdrew in triumph. 17This happened, just as day was
dawning, because the Lord’s help protected him.
Antiochus Makes a Treaty with the Jews
18 The king, having had a taste of the daring of the Jews, tried strategy in
attacking their positions. 19He advanced against Beth-zur, a strong fortress
of the Jews, was turned back, attacked again, r and was defeated. 20Judas
sent in to the garrison whatever was necessary. 21But Rhod'ocus, a man
from the ranks of the Jews, gave secret information to the enemy; he was
sought for, caught, and put in prison. 22The king negotiated a second time
with the people in Beth-zur, gave pledges, received theirs, withdrew,
attacked Judas and his men, was defeated; 23he got word that Philip, who
had been left in charge of the government, had revolted in Antioch; he was
dismayed, called in the Jews, yielded and swore to observe all their rights,
settled with them and offered sacrifice, honored the sanctuary and showed
generosity to the holy place. 24He received Mac''cabe'us, left Hegemon'ides
as governor from Ptolema'is to Ge'rar, 25and went to Ptolemais. The people
of Ptolema'is were indignant over the treaty; in fact they were so angry that
they wanted to annul its terms. s 26Lys'ias took the public platform, made
the best possible defense, convinced them, appeased them, gained their
good will, and set out for Antioch. This is how the king’s attack and
withdrawal turned out.
Alcimus Speaks against Judas
14 Three years later, word came to Judas and his men that Deme'trius,
the son of Seleu'cus, had sailed into the harbor of Trip'olis with a strong
army and a fleet, 2and had taken possession of the country, having made
away with Anti'ochus and his guardian Lys'ias.
3 Now a certain Al'cimus, who had formerly been high priest but had
wilfully defiled himself in the times of separation, realized that there was no
way for him to be safe or to have access again to the holy altar, 4and went to
King Deme'trius in about the one hundred and fifty-first year, t presenting to
him a crown of gold and a palm, and besides these some of the customary
olive branches from the temple. During that day he kept quiet. 5But he
found an opportunity that furthered his mad purpose when he was invited
by Deme'trius to a meeting of the council and was asked about the
disposition and intentions of the Jews. He answered:
6 “Those of the Jews who are called Hasid'eans, whose leader is Judas
Mac''cabe'us, are keeping up war and stirring up sedition, and will not let
the kingdom attain tranquillity. 7Therefore I have laid aside my ancestral
glory—I mean the high priesthood—and have now come here, 8first
because I am genuinely concerned for the interests of the king, and second
because I have regard also for my fellow citizens. For through the folly of
those whom I have mentioned our whole nation is now in no small
misfortune. 9Since you are acquainted, O king, with the details of this
matter, deign to take thought for our country and our hard-pressed nation
with the gracious kindness which you show to all. 10For as long as Judas
lives, it is impossible for the government to find peace.”
11 When he had said this, the rest of the king’s friends, who were hostile
to Judas, quickly inflamed Deme'trius still more. 12And he immediately
chose Nica'nor, who had been in command of the elephants, appointed him
governor of Judea, and sent him off 13with orders to kill Judas and scatter
his men, and to set up Al'cimus as high priest of the greatest temple. 14And
the Gentiles throughout Judea, who had fled before u Judas, flocked to join
Nica'nor, thinking that the misfortunes and calamities of the Jews would
mean prosperity for themselves.
Nicanor Makes Friends with Judas
15 When the Jews v heard of Nica'nor’s coming and the gathering of the
Gentiles, they sprinkled dust upon their heads and prayed to him who
established his own people for ever and always upholds his own heritage by
manifesting himself. 16At the command of the leader, they w set out from
there immediately and engaged them in battle at a village called Des'sau. x
17Simon, the brother of Judas, had encountered Nica'nor, but had been
temporarily y checked because of the sudden consternation created by the

enemy.
18 Nevertheless Nica'nor, hearing of the valor of Judas and his men and
their courage in battle for their country, shrank from deciding the issue by
bloodshed. 19Therefore he sent Pos''ido'nius and Theod'otus and Mattathi'as
to give and receive pledges of friendship. 20When the terms had been fully
considered, and the leader had informed the people, and it had appeared that
they were of one mind, they agreed to the covenant. 21And the leaders z set
a day on which to meet by themselves. A chariot came forward from each
army; seats of honor were set in place; 22Judas posted armed men in
readiness at key places to prevent sudden treachery on the part of the
enemy; they held the proper conference.
23 Nica'nor stayed on in Jerusalem and did nothing out of the way, but
dismissed the flocks of people that had gathered. 24And he kept Judas
always in his presence; he was warmly attached to the man. 25And he urged
him to marry and have children; so he married, settled down, and shared the
common life.
Nicanor Turns against Judas
26 But when Al'cimus noticed their good will for one another, he took the
covenant that had been made and went to Deme'trius. He told him that
Nica'nor was disloyal to the government, for he had appointed that
conspirator against the kingdom, Judas, to be his successor. 27The king
became excited and, provoked by the false accusations of that depraved
man, wrote to Nica'nor, stating that he was displeased with the covenant and
commanding him to send Mac''cabe'us to Antioch as a prisoner without
delay.
28 When this message came to Nica'nor, he was troubled and grieved that
he had to annul their agreement when the man had done no wrong. 29Since
it was not possible to oppose the king, he watched for an opportunity to
accomplish this by a stratagem. 30But Mac''cabe'us, noticing that Nica'nor
was more austere in his dealings with him and was meeting him more
rudely than had been his custom, concluded that this austerity did not spring
from the best motives. So he gathered not a few of his men, and went into
hiding from Nicanor.
31 When the latter became aware that he had been cleverly outwitted by
the man, he went to the great a and holy temple while the priests were
offering the customary sacrifices, and commanded them to hand the man
over. 32And when they declared on oath that they did not know where the
man was whom he sought, 33he stretched out his right hand toward the
sanctuary, and swore this oath: “If you do not hand Judas over to me as a
prisoner, I will level this precinct of God to the ground and tear down the
altar, and I will build here a splendid temple to Diony'sus.”
34 Having said this, he went away. Then the priests stretched forth their
hands toward heaven and called upon the constant Defender of our nation,
in these words: 35“O Lord of all, who have need of nothing, you were
pleased that there be a temple for your habitation among us; 36so now, O
holy One, Lord of all holiness, keep undefiled for ever this house that has
been so recently purified.”
Razis Dies for His Country
37 A certain Ra'zis, one of the elders of Jerusalem, was denounced to
Nica'nor as a man who loved his fellow citizens and was very well thought
of and for his good will was called father of the Jews. 38For in former times,
when there was no mingling with the Gentiles, he had been accused of
Judaism, and for Judaism he had with all zeal risked body and life.
39Nica'nor, wishing to exhibit the enmity which he had for the Jews, sent
more than five hundred soldiers to arrest him; 40for he thought that by
arresting b him he would do them an injury. 41When the troops were about
to capture the tower and were forcing the door of the courtyard, they
ordered that fire be brought and the doors burned. Being surrounded, Ra'zis
c fell upon his own sword, 42preferring to die nobly rather than to fall into
the hands of sinners and suffer outrages unworthy of his noble birth. 43But
in the heat of the struggle he did not hit exactly, and the crowd was now
rushing in through the doors. He bravely ran up on the wall, and manfully
threw himself down into the crowd. 44But as they quickly drew back, a
space opened and he fell in the middle of the empty space. 45Still alive and
aflame with anger, he rose, and though his blood gushed forth and his
wounds were severe he ran through the crowd; and standing upon a steep
rock, 46with his blood now completely drained from him, he tore out his
entrails, took them with both hands and hurled them at the crowd, calling
upon the Lord of life and spirit to give them back to him again. This was the
manner of his death.
Nicanor’s Arrogance
15 When Nica'nor heard that Judas and his men were in the region of
Samar'ia, he made plans to attack them with complete safety on the day of
rest. 2And when the Jews who were compelled to follow him said, “Do not
destroy so savagely and barbarously, but show respect for the day which he
who sees all things has honored and hallowed above other days,” 3the
thrice-accursed wretch asked if there were a sovereign in heaven who had
commanded the keeping of the sabbath day. 4And when they declared, “It is
the living Lord himself, the Sovereign in heaven, who ordered us to observe
the seventh day,” 5he replied, “And I am a sovereign also, on earth, and I
command you to take up arms and finish the king’s business.” Nevertheless,
he did not succeed in carrying out his abominable design.
Judas Prepares the Jews for Battle
6 This Nica'nor in his utter boastfulness and arrogance had determined to
erect a public monument of victory over Judas and his men. 7But
Mac''cabe'us did not cease to trust with all confidence that he would get
help from the Lord. 8And he exhorted his men not to fear the attack of the
Gentiles, but to keep in mind the former times when help had come to them
from heaven, and now to look for the victory which the Almighty would
give them. 9Encouraging them from the law and the prophets, and
reminding them also of the struggles they had won, he made them the more
eager. 10And when he had aroused their courage, he gave his orders, at the
same time pointing out the perfidy of the Gentiles and their violation of
oaths. 11He armed each of them not so much with confidence in shields and
spears as with the inspiration of brave words, and he cheered them all by
relating a dream, a sort of vision, d which was worthy of belief.
12 What he saw was this: Oni'as, who had been high priest, a noble and
good man, of modest bearing and gentle manner, one who spoke fittingly
and had been trained from childhood in all that belongs to excellence, was
praying with outstretched hands for the whole body of the Jews. 13Then
likewise a man appeared, distinguished by his gray hair and dignity, and of
marvelous majesty and authority. 14And Oni'as spoke, saying, “This is a
man who loves the brethren and prays much for the people and the holy
city, Jeremi'ah, the prophet of God.” 15Jeremi'ah stretched out his right hand
and gave to Judas a golden sword, and as he gave it he addressed him thus:
16“Take this holy sword, a gift from God, with which you will strike down
your adversaries.”
17 Encouraged by the words of Judas, so noble and so effective in
arousing valor and awaking manliness in the souls of the young, they
determined not to carry on a campaign but to attack bravely, and to decide
the matter, by fighting hand to hand with all courage, because the city and
the sanctuary and the temple were in danger. 18Their concern for wives and
children, and also for brethren and relatives, lay upon them less heavily;
their greatest and first fear was for the consecrated sanctuary. 19And those
who had to remain in the city were in no little distress, being anxious over
the encounter in the open country.
The Defeat and Death of Nicanor
20 When all were now looking forward to the coming decision, and the
enemy was already close at hand with their army drawn up for battle, the
elephants e strategically stationed and the cavalry deployed on the flanks,
21Mac''cabe'us, perceiving the hosts that were before him and the varied
supply of arms and the savagery of the elephants, e stretched out his hands
toward heaven and called upon the Lord who works wonders; for he knew
that it is not by arms, but as the Lord f decides, that he gains the victory for
those who deserve it. 22And he called upon him in these words: “O Lord,
you sent your angel in the time of Hezeki'ah king of Judea, and he slew
fully a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the camp of Sennach'erib. 23So
now, O Sovereign of the heavens, send a good angel to carry terror and
trembling before us. 24By the might of your arm may these blasphemers
who come against your holy people be struck down.” With these words he
ended his prayer.
25 Nica'nor and his men advanced with trumpets and battle songs; 26and
Judas and his men met the enemy in battle with invocation to God and
prayers. 27So, fighting with their hands and praying to God in their hearts,
they laid low no less than thirty-five thousand men, and were greatly
gladdened by God’s manifestation.
28 When the action was over and they were returning with joy, they
recognized Nica'nor, lying dead, in full armor. 29Then there was shouting
and tumult, and they blessed the Sovereign Lord in the language of their
fathers. 30And the man who was ever in body and soul the defender of his
fellow citizens, the man who maintained his youthful good will toward his
countrymen, ordered them to cut off Nica'nor’s head and arm and carry
them to Jerusalem. 31And when he arrived there and had called his
countrymen together and stationed the priests before the altar, he sent for
those who were in the citadel. 32He showed them the vile Nica'nor’s head
and that profane man’s arm, which had been boastfully stretched out against
the holy house of the Almighty; 33and he cut out the tongue of the ungodly
Nica'nor and said that he would give it piecemeal to the birds and hang up
these rewards of his folly opposite the sanctuary. 34And they all, looking to
heaven, blessed the Lord who had manifested himself, saying, “Blessed is
he who has kept his own place undefiled.” 35And he hung Nica'nor’s head
from the citadel, a clear and conspicuous sign to every one of the help of
the Lord. 36And they all decreed by public vote never to let this day go
unobserved, but to celebrate the thirteenth day of the twelfth month—which
is called Adar' in the Syrian language—the day before Mor'decai’s day.
The Compiler’s Epilogue
37 This, then, is how matters turned out with Nica'nor. And from that
time the city has been in the possession of the Hebrews. So I too will here
end my story. 38If it is well told and to the point, that is what I myself
desired; if it is poorly done and mediocre, that was the best I could do.
39For just as it is harmful to drink wine alone, or, again, to drink water
alone, while wine mixed with water is sweet and delicious and enhances
one’s enjoyment, so also the style of the story delights the ears of those who
read the work. And here will be the end.
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THE NEW TESTAMENT
OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST
TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK

REVISED A.D. 1881 AND A.D. 1901

WAS PREPARED BY THE

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Matthew
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
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THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of
Abraham. *
2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3and Judah the father of Per'ez
and Ze'rah by Ta'mar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father
of Ram, a 4and Ram a the father of Ammin'adab, and Amminadab the father
of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5and Salmon the father of
Boaz by Ra'hab, and Boaz the father of O'bed by Ruth, and Obed the father
of Jesse, 6and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uri'ah, 7and
Solomon the father of Rehobo'am, and Rehoboam the father of Abi'jah, and
Abijah the father of Asa, b 8and Asa b the father of Jehosh'aphat, and
Jehoshaphat the father of Jo'ram, and Joram the father of Uzzi'ah, 9and
Uzzi'ah the father of Jo'tham, and Jotham the father of A'haz, and Ahaz the
father of Hezeki'ah, 10and Hezeki'ah the father of Manas'seh, and Manasseh
the father of Amos, c and Amos c the father of Josi'ah, 11and Josi'ah the
father of Jechoni'ah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to
Babylon.
12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoni'ah was the father of She-
al'ti-el, d and She-alti-el d the father of Zerub'babel, 13and Zerub'babel the
father of Abi'ud, and Abiud the father of Eli'akim, and Eliakim the father of
A'zor, 14and A'zor the father of Za'dok, and Zadok the father of A'chim, and
Achim the father of Eli'ud, 15and Eli'ud the father of Elea'zar, and Eleazar
the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16and Jacob the
father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is
called Christ. *
17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen
generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen
generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen
generations.
The Birth of Jesus Christ
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ f took place in this way. When his mother
Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was
found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; 19and her husband Joseph, being a
just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away
quietly. 20But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared
to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary
your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; 21she will
bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people
from their sins.” 22All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by
the prophet:
23“Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and his name shall be called Emmanuel”

(which means, God with us). 24When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as
the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, 25but knew her not
until she had borne a son; * and he called his name Jesus.
The Visit of the Wise Men
2 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod
the king, behold, Wise Men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying,
2“Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his
star in the East, and have come to worship him.” 3When Herod the king
heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4and assembling all
the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the
Christ was to be born. 5They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it is
written by the prophet:
6 ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;

for from you shall come a ruler
who will govern my people Israel.' "
7 Then Herod summoned the Wise Men secretly and ascertained from
them what time the star appeared; 8and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying,
“Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him bring
me word, that I too may come and worship him.” 9When they had heard the
king they went their way; and behold, the star which they had seen in the
East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child
was. 10When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy;
11and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and
they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they
offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12And being warned in
a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by
another way.
The Escape to Egypt
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to
Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to
Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the
child, to destroy him.” 14And he rose and took the child and his mother by
night, and departed to Egypt, 15and remained there until the death of Herod.
This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt
have I called my son.”
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the Wise Men,
was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in
Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under,
according to the time which he had ascertained from the Wise Men. 17Then
was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:
18“A voice was heard in Ra'mah,
wailing and loud lamentation,

Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled,
because they were no more.”
The Return from Egypt
19 But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a
dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, 20“Rise, take the child and his mother,
and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.”
21And he rose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of
Israel. 22But when he heard that Archela'us reigned over Judea in place of
his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he
withdrew to the district of Galilee. 23And he went and dwelt in a city called
Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled. “He
shall be called a Nazarene.”
The Preaching of John the Baptist
3 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of
Judea, 2“Repent, * for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” 3For this is he
who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.”
4Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair, and a leather belt around his
waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5Then went out to him
Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan, 6and they were
baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. *
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sad'ducees coming for
baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee
from the wrath to come? 8Bear fruit that befits repentance, 9and do not
presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father’; for I tell
you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 10Even
now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not
bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after
me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry; he will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12His winnowing fork is in
his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the
granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The Baptism of Jesus
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by
him. 14John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by
you, and do you come to me?” 15But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so
now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfil all righteousness.” Then he
consented. * 16And when Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from
the water, and behold, the heavens were opened g and he saw the Spirit of
God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; 17and behold, a voice
from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, h with whom I am well
pleased.”
The Temptation of Jesus
4 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted
by the devil. 2And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he
was hungry. 3And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of
God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4But he answered,
“It is written,
‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
5Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of
the temple, 6and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself
down; for it is written,
‘He will give his angels charge of you,’
and
‘On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.' "
7Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord
your God.' " 8Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and
showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; 9and he
said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship
me.” 10Then Jesus said to him, “Begone, Satan! for it is written,
‘You shall worship the Lord your God
and him only shall you serve.' "
11Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him.
Jesus Begins Preaching in Galilee

12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into
Galilee; 13and leaving Nazareth he went and dwelt in Caper'na-um by the
sea, in the territory of Zeb'ulun and Naph'tali, 14that what was spoken by the
prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15“The land of Zeb'ulun and the land of Naph'tali,
toward the sea, across the Jordan,

Galilee of the Gentiles—
16the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,

and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.”
17From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom
of heaven is at hand.”
Jesus Calls the First Disciples
18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is
called Peter and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were
fishermen. 19And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers
of men.” 20Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21And going
on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zeb'edee and
John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets,
and he called them. 22Immediately they left the boat and their father, and
followed him.
Jesus Ministers to Crowds of people
23 And he went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and
preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every
infirmity among the people. 24So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and
they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and
pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. 25And
great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decap'olis and Jerusalem
and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.
The Beatitudes
5 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat
down his disciples came to him. 2And he opened his mouth and taught
them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they
shall be satisfied.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all
kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12Rejoice and be glad, for
your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who
were before you.
Salt and Light
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its
saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown
out and trodden under foot by men.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it
gives light to all in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that
they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in
heaven.
The Fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I
have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them. * 18For truly, I say to you,
till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law
until all is accomplished. 19Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these
commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of
heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the
kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that
of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Concerning Anger
21 “You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not kill;
and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.’ 22But I say to you that every
one who is angry with his brother i shall be liable to judgment; whoever
insults j his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, ‘You
fool!’ shall be liable to the hell k of fire. 23So if you are offering your gift at
the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your
brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25Make friends quickly with
your accuser, while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand
you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison;
26truly, I say to you, you will never get out till you have paid the last penny.
Concerning Adultery
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’
28But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has
already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes
you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of
your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. k * 30And if
your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better
that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. k
Concerning Divorce
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a
certificate of divorce.’ 32But I say to you that every one who divorces his
wife, except on the ground of unchastity, * makes her an adulteress; and
whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Concerning Swearing Oaths
33 “Again you have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not
swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34But I
say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
35or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of
the great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one
hair white or black. 37Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything
more than this comes from the Evil One. l
Concerning Retaliation
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a
tooth.’ 39But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one
strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also; 40and if any one
would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak as well; 41and if
any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to him
who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you.
Love for Enemies
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and
hate your enemy.’ 44But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those
who persecute you, 45so that you may be sons of your Father who is in
heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends
rain on the just and on the unjust. 46For if you love those who love you,
what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47And
if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do
not even the Gentiles do the same? 48You, therefore, must be perfect, as
your heavenly Father is perfect.
Concerning Almsgiving
6 “Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by
them; for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
2 “Thus, when you give alms, sound no trumpet before you, as the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised
by men. Truly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3But when you give
alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that
your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward
you.
Concerning Prayer
5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites; for they love
to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may
be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6But when you
pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in
secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. *
7 “And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for
they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8Do not be like
them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9Pray then
like this:
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
10Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us this day our daily bread; m
12And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us;

13And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil. n

14For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will
forgive you; 15but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will
your Father forgive your trespasses.
Concerning Fasting
16 “And when you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they
disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men. Truly, I say to
you, they have their reward. 17But when you fast, anoint your head and
wash your face, 18that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your
Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Concerning Treasures
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust o
consume and where thieves break in and steal, 20but lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust o consumes and where
thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there will
your heart be also.
The Sound Eye
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is sound, your whole
body will be full of light; 23but if your eye is not sound, your whole body
will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the
darkness!
Serving Two Masters
24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love
the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot
serve God and mammon. *
Do Not Be Anxious
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall
eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is
not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the
birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet
your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
27And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of
life? p 28And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the
field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; 29yet I tell you, even
Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. 30But if God so
clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown
into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall
we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32For the Gentiles seek all these
things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33But seek
first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours
as well.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be
anxious for itself. Let the day’s own trouble be sufficient for the day.
Judging Others
7 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2For with the judgment you
pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the
measure you get. 3Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye,
but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4Or how can you say to
your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log
in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and
then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Profaning the Holy
6 “Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls before
swine, lest they trample them under foot and turn to attack you.
Ask, Seek, Knock
7 “Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it
will be opened to you. 8For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks
finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9Or what man of you, if his
son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will
give him a serpent? 11If you then, who are evil, know how to give good
gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven
give good things to those who ask him! 12So whatever you wish that men
would do to you, do so to them; for this is the law and the prophets.
The Narrow Gate
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, q
that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14For the gate
is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are
few.
False Prophets
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but
inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16You will know them by their fruits. Are
grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? 17So, every sound tree
bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. 18A sound tree cannot bear
evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear
good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus you will know them
by their fruits.
Concerning Self-Deception
21 “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom
of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22On
that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your
name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in
your name?’ 23And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart
from me, you evildoers.’
Hearers and Doers
24 “Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be
like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; 25and the rain fell, and
the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not
fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26And every one who hears
these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who
built his house upon the sand; 27and the rain fell, and the floods came, and
the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall
of it.”
28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at
his teaching, 29for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as their
scribes.
Jesus Cleanses a Leper
8 When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him;
2and behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if
you will, you can make me clean.” 3And he stretched out his hand and
touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was
cleansed. * 4And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to any one;
but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses
commanded, for a proof to the people.” r
Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant
5 As he entered Caper'na-um, a centurion came forward to him, begging
him 6and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible
distress.” 7And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8But the
centurion answered him, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under
my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9For I am a
man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he
goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and
he does it.” 10When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who
followed him, “Truly, I say to you, not even s in Israel have I found such
faith. 11I tell you, many will come from east and west and sit at table with
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12while the sons of
the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness; there men will weep
and gnash their teeth.” 13And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done
for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very
moment.
Jesus Heals Many at Peter’s House
14 And when Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying
sick with a fever; 15he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose
and served him. 16That evening they brought to him many who were
possessed with demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and healed
all who were sick. 17This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet
Isaiah, “He took our infirmities and bore our diseases.”
Would-be Followers of Jesus
18 Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him, he gave orders to go
over to the other side. 19And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I
will follow you wherever you go.” 20And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have
holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay
his head.” 21Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and
bury my father.” 22But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to
bury their own dead.”
Jesus Calms the Storm at Sea
23 And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24And
behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being
swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25And they went and woke him,
saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” 26And he said to them, “Why are
you afraid, O men of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and
the sea; and there was a great calm. 27And the men marveled, saying, “What
sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”
Jesus Heals the Gadarene Demoniacs
28 And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gad'arenes, t
two demoniacs met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one
could pass that way. 29And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do
with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the
time?” * 30Now a herd of many swine was feeding at some distance from
them. 31And the demons begged him, “If you cast us out, send us away into
the herd of swine.” 32And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and
went into the swine; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep
bank into the sea, and perished in the waters. 33The herdsmen fled, and
going into the city they told everything, and what had happened to the
demoniacs. 34And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus; and when
they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
9 And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city.
2And behold, they brought to him a paralytic, lying on his bed; and when
Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, my son; your sins
are forgiven.” 3And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This
man is blaspheming.” 4But Jesus, knowing u their thoughts, said, “Why do
you think evil in your hearts? 5For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are
forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 6But that you may know that the Son
of man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic
—“Rise, take up your bed and go home.” 7And he rose and went home.
8When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had
given such authority to men.

The Call of Matthew
9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at
the tax office; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed
him.
10 And as he sat at table v in the house, behold, many tax collectors and
sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples. 11And when the
Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat
with tax collectors and sinners?” 12But when he heard it, he said, “Those
who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13Go and
learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to
call the righteous, but sinners.”
The Question about Fasting
14 Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the
Pharisees fast, w but your disciples do not fast?” 15And Jesus said to them,
“Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?
The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and
then they will fast. 16And no one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old
garment, for the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is
made. 17Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; if it is, the skins burst,
and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into
fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.”
A Girl Restored to Life anda Woman Healed
18 While he was thus speaking to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt
before him, saying, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay your hand
on her, and she will live.” 19And Jesus rose and followed him, with his
disciples. 20And behold, a woman who had suffered from a hemorrhage for
twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment;
21for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I shall be made well.”
22Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has
made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. 23And when
Jesus came to the ruler’s house, and saw the flute players, and the crowd
making a tumult, 24he said, “Depart; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.”
And they laughed at him. 25But when the crowd had been put outside, he
went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26And the report of this
went through all that district.
Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
27 And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed him, crying
aloud, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” 28When he entered the house, the
blind men came to him; and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am
able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” 29Then he touched their
eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be done to you.” 30And their
eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly charged them, “See that no one knows
it.” 31But they went away and spread his fame through all that district.
Jesus Heals a Man Who Was Mute
32 As they were going away, behold, a mute demoniac was brought to
him. 33And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke; and the
crowds marveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.”
34But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”
The Harvest Is Plentiful,the Laborers Are Few

35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their
synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every
disease and every infirmity. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion
for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a
shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the
laborers are few; 38pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out
laborers into his harvest.”
The Twelve Disciples
10 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority
over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every
infirmity. 2The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is
called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zeb'edee, and John
his brother; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax
collector; James the son of Alphae'us, and Thaddae'us; x 4Simon the
Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
The Mission of the Twelve
5 These Twelve Jesus sent out, charging them, “Go nowhere among the
Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, * 6but go rather to the lost
sheep of the house of Israel. 7And preach as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom
of heaven is at hand.’ 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out
demons. You received without pay, give without pay. 9Take no gold, nor
silver, nor copper in your belts, 10no bag for your journey, nor two tunics,
nor sandals, nor a staff; for the laborer deserves his food. 11And whatever
town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it, and stay with him
until you depart. 12As you enter the house, salute it. 13And if the house is
worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace
return to you. 14And if any one will not receive you or listen to your words,
shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. 15Truly, I
say to you, it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of
Sodom and Gomor'rah than for that town.
Coming Persecutions
16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as
serpents and innocent as doves. 17Beware of men; for they will deliver you
up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues, 18and you will be dragged
before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and
the Gentiles. 19When they deliver you up, do not be anxious about how you
are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to
you in that hour; 20for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father
speaking through you. 21Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the
father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to
death; 22and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But he who
endures to the end will be saved. 23When they persecute you in one town,
flee to the next; for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all
the towns of Israel, before the Son of man comes.
24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant y above his master;
25it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant y like his
master. If they have called the master of the house Be-el'zebul, how much
more will they malign those of his household.
Whom to Fear
26 “So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered that will not be
revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27What I tell you in the dark,
utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim upon the
housetops. 28And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the
soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. z 29Are not
two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground
without your Father’s will. 30But even the hairs of your head are all
numbered. 31Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
32So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge
before my Father who is in heaven; 33but whoever denies me before men, I

also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
Taking Up One’s Cross
34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not
come to bring peace, but a sword. 35For I have come to set a man against
his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against
her mother-in-law; 36and a man’s foes will be those of his own household.
37He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he
who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38and he who
does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39He who finds
his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it.
Rewards
40 “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives
him who sent me. 41He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall
receive a prophet’s reward, and he who receives a righteous man because he
is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 42And whoever
gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a
disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.”
11 And when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he
went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.
Messengers from John the Baptist
2 Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent
word by his disciples 3and said to him, “Are you he who is to come, or shall
we look for another?” * 4And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what
you hear and see: 5the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are
cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have
good news preached to them. 6And blessed is he who takes no offense at
me.”
Jesus Praises John the Baptist
7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John:
“What did you go out into the wilderness to behold? A reed shaken by the
wind? 8Why then did you go out? To see a man a dressed in soft robes?
Behold, those who wear soft robes are in kings’ houses. 9Why then did you
go out? To see a prophet? b Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10This
is he of whom it is written,
‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who shall prepare your way before you.’
11Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one
greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven
is greater than he. 12From the days of John the Baptist until now the
kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, c and men of violence take it by
force. 13For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John; 14and if you
are willing to accept it, he is Eli'jah who is to come. 15He who has ears to
hear, d let him hear.
16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting
in the market places and calling to their playmates,
17‘We piped to you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not mourn.’

18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a
demon’; 19the Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold,
a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom
is justified by her deeds.” e
Jesus Upbraids the Unrepentant Cities
20 Then he began to upbraid the cities where most of his mighty works
had been done, because they did not repent. 21“Woe to you, Chora'zin! woe
to you, Beth-sa'ida! for if the mighty works done in you had been done in
Tyre and Si'don, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
22But I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for Tyre
and Si'don than for you. 23And you, Caper'na-um, will you be exalted to
heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done
in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24But I tell you that it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the
land of Sodom than for you.”

Jesus Thanks His Father
25 At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and
earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding
and revealed them to infants; 26yes, Father, for such was your gracious
will. f 27All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one
knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the
Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. * 28Come to me,
all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke
upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you
will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Plucking Grain on the Sabbath
12 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the sabbath; his
disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.
2But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are
doing what is not lawful to do on the sabbath.” 3He said to them, “Have you
not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with
him: 4how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread, which it was
not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the
priests? 5Or have you not read in the law how on the sabbath the priests in
the temple profane the sabbath, and are guiltless? 6I tell you, something
greater than the temple is here. 7And if you had known what this means, ‘I
desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the
guiltless. 8For the Son of man is lord of the sabbath.”
The Man with a Withered Hand
9 And he went on from there, and entered their synagogue. 10And behold,
there was a man with a withered hand. And they asked him, “Is it lawful to
heal on the sabbath?” so that they might accuse him. 11He said to them,
“What man of you, if he has one sheep and it falls into a pit on the sabbath,
will not lay hold of it and lift it out? 12Of how much more value is a man
than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on the sabbath.” 13Then he said to
the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And the man stretched it out, and it was
restored, whole like the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and took
counsel against him, how to destroy him. *
God’s Chosen Servant
15 Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him,
and he healed them all, 16and ordered them not to make him known. 17This
was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:
18“Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.

I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19He will not wrangle or cry aloud,
nor will any one hear his voice in the streets;

20he will not break a bruised reed
or quench a smoldering wick,

till he brings justice to victory;
21 and in his name will the Gentiles hope.”
Jesus and Beelzebul

22 Then a blind and mute demoniac was brought to him, and he healed
him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23And all the people were
amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” 24But when the
Pharisees heard it they said, “It is only by Be-el'zebul, * the prince of
demons, that this man casts out demons.” 25Knowing their thoughts, he said
to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or
house divided against itself will stand; 26and if Satan casts out Satan, he is
divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27And if I cast
out demons by Be-el'zebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore
they shall be your judges. 28But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out
demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29Or how can one
enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the
strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house. 30He who is not with
me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. 31Therefore
I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy
against the Spirit will not be forgiven. * 32And whoever says a word against
the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit
will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
A Tree and Its Fruit
33 “Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree bad,
and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit. 34You brood of vipers!
how can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35The good man out of his good
treasure brings forth good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings
forth evil. 36I tell you, on the day of judgment men will render account for
every careless word they utter; 37for by your words you will be justified,
and by your words you will be condemned.”
The Sign of Jonah
38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, “Teacher, we wish
to see a sign from you.” 39But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous
generation seeks for a sign; but no sign shall be given to it except the sign
of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the
belly of the whale, so will the Son of man be three days and three nights in
the heart of the earth. 41The men of Nin'eveh will arise at the judgment with
this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah,
and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. 42The queen of the South
will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came
from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold,
something greater than Solomon is here.
The Return of the Unclean Spirit
43 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passes through
waterless places seeking rest, but he finds none. 44Then he says, ‘I will
return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes he finds it
empty, swept, and put in order. 45Then he goes and brings with him seven
other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the
last state of that man becomes worse than the first. So shall it be also with
this evil generation.”
The True Kindred of Jesus
46 While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his
brethren * stood outside, asking to speak to him. g 48But he replied to the
man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brethren?” *
49And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my
mother and my brethren! 50For whoever does the will of my Father in

heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother.”
The Parable of the Sower
13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.
2And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat
there; and the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3And he told them many
things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. 4And as he sowed,
some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.
5Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they had not much soil, and
immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6but when the
sun rose they were scorched; and since they had no root they withered
away. 7Other seeds fell upon thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked
them. 8Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a
hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9He who has ears, h let him hear.”
The Purpose of the Parables
10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them
in parables?” 11And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know
the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
12For to him who has will more be given, and he will have abundance; but
from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. * 13This is
why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and
hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14With them indeed is
fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah which says:
‘You shall indeed hear but never understand,
and you shall indeed see but never perceive.
15For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and their ears are heavy of hearing,
OceanofPDF.com
and their eyes they have closed,
lest they should perceive with their eyes,
and understand with their heart,
and turn for me to heal them.’
16But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.
17Truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what
you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
The Parable of the Sower Explained
18 “Hear then the parable of the sower. 19When any one hears the word of
the kingdom and does not understand it, the Evil One comes and snatches
away what is sown in his heart; this is what was sown along the path. 20As
for what was sown on rocky ground, this is he who hears the word and
immediately receives it with joy; 21yet he has no root in himself, but
endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account
of the word, immediately he falls away. i 22As for what was sown among
thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the
delight in riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23As for what was
sown on good soil, this is he who hears the word and understands it; he
indeed bears fruit, and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty,
and in another thirty.”
The Parable of Weeds among the Wheat
24 Another parable he put before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven
may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25but while
men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat,
and went away. 26So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the
weeds appeared also. 27And the servants j of the householder came and said
to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then has it
weeds?’ 28He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants j said to
him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29But he said, ‘No; lest
in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30Let both
grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers,
Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the
wheat into my barn.’ ”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
31 Another parable he put before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is
like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; 32it is
the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs
and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its
branches.”
The Parable of the Leaven
33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven
which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till it was all
leavened.”
Why Jesus Speaks in Parables
34 All this Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed he said nothing to
them without a parable. 35This was to fulfil what was spoken by the
prophet: k
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.”
Jesus Explains the Parable of the Weeds
36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples
came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”
37He answered, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of man; 38the field
is the world, and the good seed means the sons of the kingdom; the weeds
are the sons of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sowed them is the devil;
the harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40Just as the
weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age.
41The Son of man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his
kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, 42and throw them into the
furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then
the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who
has ears, let him hear.
Three Parables about the Kingdom
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man
found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and
buys that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine
pearls, 46who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he
had and bought it.
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the
sea and gathered fish of every kind; 48when it was full, men drew it ashore
and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad. 49So
it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the
evil from the righteous, 50and throw them into the furnace of fire, where
there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Treasures New and Old
51 “Have you understood all this?” They said to him, “Yes.” 52And he
said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom
of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new
and what is old.” *
The Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth
53 And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there,
54and coming to his own country he taught them in their synagogue, so that
they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and
these mighty works? 55Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother
called Mary? And are not his brethren * James and Joseph and Simon and
Judas? 56And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all
this?” 57And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is
not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” 58And
he did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.
The Death of John the Baptist
14 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus; 2and
he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he has been raised from
the dead; that is why these powers are at work in him.” 3For Herod had
seized John and bound him and put him in prison, for the sake of Hero'di-
as, his brother Philip’s wife; l 4because John said to him, “It is not lawful for
you to have her.” 5And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the
people, because they held him to be a prophet. 6But when Herod’s birthday
came, the daughter of Hero'di-as danced before the company, and pleased
Herod, 7so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might
ask. 8Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the
Baptist here on a platter.” 9And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths
and his guests he commanded it to be given; 10he sent and had John
beheaded in the prison, 11and his head was brought on a platter and given to
the girl, and she brought it to her mother. 12And his disciples came and took
the body and buried it; and they went and told Jesus.
Feeding the Five Thousand
13 Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a
lonely place apart. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot
from the towns. 14As he went ashore he saw a great throng; and he had
compassion on them, and healed their sick. 15When it was evening, the
disciples came to him and said, “This is a lonely place, and the day is now
over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for
themselves.” 16Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them
something to eat.” 17They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and
two fish.” 18And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19Then he ordered the
crowds to sit down on the grass; and taking the five loaves and the two fish
he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke and gave the loaves to the
disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20And they all ate and
were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces
left over. 21And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides
women and children.
Jesus Walks on the Sea
22 Then he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the
other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23And after he had dismissed the
crowds, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. When evening came,
he was there alone, 24but the boat by this time was many furlongs distant
from the land, m beaten by the waves; for the wind was against them. 25And
in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. 26But
when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying,
“It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. 27But immediately he spoke to
them, saying, “Take heart, it is I; have no fear.”
28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, bid me come to you on the
water.” 29He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the
water and came to Jesus; 30but when he saw the wind, n he was afraid, and
beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31Jesus immediately
reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “O you of little faith,
why did you doubt?” 32And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.
33And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of
God.” *
Jesus Heals the Sick in Gennesaret
34 And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennes'aret.
35And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent round to all
that region and brought to him all that were sick, 36and begged him that
they might only touch the fringe of his garment; and as many as touched it
were made well.
The Tradition of the Elders
15 Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said,
2“Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do
not wash their hands when they eat.” 3He answered them, “And why do you
transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4For
God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘He who
5
speaks evil of father or mother, let him surely die.’ But you say, ‘If any one
tells his father or his mother, What you would have gained from me is given
to God, o he need not honor his father.’ * 6So, for the sake of your tradition,
you have made void the word p of God. 7You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah
prophesy of you, when he said:
8
‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
9in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.' "

Things That Defile a Man
10 And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and
11
understand: not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes
out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” 12Then the disciples came and said to
him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this
13
saying?” He answered, “Every plant which my heavenly Father has not
14
planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if a
blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” 15But Peter said to
him, “Explain the parable to us.” 16And he said, “Are you also still without
understanding? 17Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes
into the stomach, and so passes on? q 18But what comes out of the mouth
19
proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a man. For out of the heart come
evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.
20These are what defile a man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not
defile a man.”
The Canaanite Woman’s Faith
21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre
and Si'don. 22And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out
and cried, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is
severely possessed by a demon.” 23But he did not answer her a word. And
his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is
24
crying after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the
25
house of Israel.” * But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help
me.” 26And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and
throw it to the dogs.” 27She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the
28
crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O
woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her
daughter was healed instantly.
Jesus Heals Many People
29 And Jesus went on from there and passed along the Sea of Galilee. And
he went up on the mountain, and sat down there. 30And great crowds came
to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and
many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31so that the
throng wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the
lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.
Feeding the Four Thousand
32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on
the crowd, because they have been with me now three days, and have
nothing to eat; and I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint
on the way.” 33And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get bread
enough in the desert to feed so great a crowd?” 34And Jesus said to them,
“How many loaves have you?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.”
35And commanding the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36he took the
seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave
them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37And they
all ate and were satisfied; and they took up seven baskets full of the broken
pieces left over. 38Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women
and children. 39And sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went
to the region of Mag'adan.
The Demand for a Sign
16
And the Pharisees and Sad'ducees came, and to test him they asked
2
him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, r “When it is
evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather; for the sky is red.’ 3And in the
morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You
know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret
the signs of the times. 4An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign,
but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them
and departed.
The Leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees
5 When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring
any bread. 6Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the
Pharisees and Sad'ducees.” 7And they discussed it among themselves,
saying, “We brought no bread.” 8But Jesus, aware of this, said, “O men of
little faith, why do you discuss among yourselves the fact that you have no
bread? 9Do you not yet perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves of
the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 10Or the seven
loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? 11How is
it that you fail to perceive that I did not speak about bread? Beware of the
leaven of the Pharisees and Sad'ducees.” 12Then they understood that he did
not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the
Pharisees and Sad'ducees.
Peter’s Declaration That Jesus Is the Christ
13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesare'a Philip'pi, he asked
his disciples, “Who do men say that the Son of man is?” 14And they said,
“Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one
of the prophets.” * 15He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” *
17And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh
and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.
18And I tell you, you are Peter, s and on this rock t I will build my Church,
and the gates of Hades u shall not prevail against it. * 19I will give you the
keys of the kingdom of heaven, * and whatever you bind on earth shall be
bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in
heaven.” 20Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was
the Christ.
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to
Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and
scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22And Peter took him
and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid, Lord! This shall never
happen to you.” 23But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan!
You are a hindrance v to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of
men.”
The Cross and Self-Denial
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any man would come after me, let him
deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever would
save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
26For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his
life? * Or what shall a man give in return for his life? * 27For the Son of
man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will
repay every man for what he has done. 28Truly, I say to you, there are some
standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of man
coming in his kingdom.”
The Transfiguration
17 And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John his
brother, and led them up a high mountain apart. 2And he was transfigured
before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became
white as light. 3And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Eli'jah,
talking with him. 4And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is well that we are here;
if you wish, I will make three booths here, one for you and one for Moses
and one for Eli'jah.” * 5He was still speaking, when behold, a bright cloud
overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved
Son, w with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” 6When the disciples
heard this, they fell on their faces, and were filled with awe. 7But Jesus
came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” 8And when they
lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.
9 And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them,
“Tell no one the vision, until the Son of man is raised from the dead.” 10And
the disciples asked him, “Then why do the scribes say that first Eli'jah must
come?” 11He replied, “Eli'jah does come, and he is to restore all things;
12but I tell you that Eli'jah has already come, and they did not know him,
but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of man will suffer at
their hands.” 13Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them
of John the Baptist.
Jesus Cures an Epileptic Boy
14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and kneeling
before him said, 15“Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and
he suffers terribly; for often he falls into the fire, and often into the water.
16And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” 17And
Jesus answered, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long am I to be

with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” 18And
Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured
instantly. 19Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could
we not cast it out?” 20He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For
truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say
to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing
will be impossible to you.” x
Jesus Again Foretells His Deathand Resurrection
22 As they were gathering y in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of
man is to be delivered into the hands of men, 23and they will kill him, and
he will be raised on the third day.” And they were greatly distressed.
Jesus and the Temple Tax
24 When they came to Caper'na-um, the collectors of the half-shekel tax
went up to Peter and said, “Does not your teacher pay the tax?” 25He said,
“Yes.” And when he came home, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do
you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute?
From their sons or from others?” 26And when he said, “From others,” Jesus
said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27However, not to give offense to
them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish that comes up,
and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel; take that and give it to
them for me and for yourself.”
True Greatness
18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest
in the kingdom of heaven?” 2And calling to him a child, he put him in the
midst of them, 3and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become
like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Whoever
humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Temptations to Sin
5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me; 6but
whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, z it would
be better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and to be
drowned in the depth of the sea.
7 “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! a For it is necessary that
temptations come, but woe to the man by whom the temptation comes!
8And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, z cut it off and throw it
from you; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than with two
hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9And if your eye causes
you to sin, z pluck it out and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter
life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell b * of fire.
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
10 “See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that
in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in
heaven. c 12What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of
them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go
in search of the one that went astray? 13And if he finds it, truly, I say to you,
he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray.
14So it is not the will of my d Father who is in heaven that one of these little
ones should perish.

Binding and Loosing of Sins
15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you
and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16But if
he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word
may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17If he refuses
to listen to them, tell it to the Church; and if he refuses to listen even to the
Church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18Truly, I say to
you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever
you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. * 19Again I say to you, if two
of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by
my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered in my name,
there am I in the midst of them.”
Repeated Forgiveness
21 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother
sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22Jesus said to
him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. e
The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant
23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who
wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24When he began the reckoning,
one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents; f 25and as he
could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children
and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26So the servant fell on his
knees, imploring him, ‘Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you
everything.’ 27And out of pity for him the lord of that servant released him
and forgave him the debt. 28But that same servant, as he went out, came
upon one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; g and
seizing him by the throat he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29So his fellow
servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will
pay you.’ 30He refused and went and put him in prison till he should pay the
debt. 31When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were
greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken
place. 32Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked
servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me; 33and
should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on
you?’ 34And in anger his lord delivered him to the jailers, h till he should
pay all his debt. 35So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you,
if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
Teachings about Divorce
19 Now when Jesus had finished these sayings, he went away from
Galilee and entered the region of Judea beyond the Jordan; 2and large
crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3 And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful to
divorce one’s wife for any cause?” 4He answered, “Have you not read that
he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, 5and
said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined
to his wife, and the two shall become one’? i 6So they are no longer two but
one. i What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder.”
7They said to him, “Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate
of divorce, and to put her away?” 8He said to them, “For your hardness of
heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it
was not so. 9And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for
unchastity, j and marries another, commits adultery; and he who marries a
divorced woman, commits adultery.” k *
10 The disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it
is not expedient to marry.” 11But he said to them, “Not all men can receive
this precept, but only those to whom it is given. 12For there are eunuchs
who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made
eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs
for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to receive this, let
him receive it.” *
Jesus Blesses the Children
13 Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them
and pray. The disciples rebuked the people; 14but Jesus said, “Let the
children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the
kingdom of heaven.” 15And he laid his hands on them and went away.
The Rich Young Man
16 And behold, one came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed
must I do, to have eternal life?” 17And he said to him, “Why do you ask me
about what is good? One there is who is good. If you would enter life, keep
the commandments.” 18He said to him, “Which?” And Jesus said, “You
shall not kill, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall
not bear false witness, 19Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love
your neighbor as yourself.” 20The young man said to him, “All these I have
observed; what do I still lack?” 21Jesus said to him, “If you would be
perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have
treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22When the young man heard
this he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions.
23 And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a
rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24Again I tell you, it is easier for a
camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the
kingdom of God.” 25When the disciples heard this they were greatly
astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” 26But Jesus looked at them
and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are
possible.” 27Then Peter said in reply, “Behold, we have left everything and
followed you. What then shall we have?” 28Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say
to you, in the new world, when the Son of man shall sit on his glorious
throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging
the twelve tribes of Israel. 29And every one who has left houses or brothers
or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will
receive a hundredfold, l and inherit eternal life. 30But many that are first will
be last, and the last first.
The Laborers in the Vineyard
20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who went out
early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2After agreeing with
the laborers for a denarius m a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3And
going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market
place; 4and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is
right I will give you.’ So they went. 5Going out again about the sixth hour
and the ninth hour, he did the same. 6And about the eleventh hour he went
out and found others standing; and he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here
idle all day?’ 7They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to
them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 8And when evening came, the owner
of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their
wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ 9And when those hired about
the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. 10Now when the
first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also
received a denarius. 11And on receiving it they grumbled at the householder,
12saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal
to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ 13But
he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not
agree with me for a denarius? 14Take what belongs to you, and go; I choose
to give to this last as I give to you. 15Am I not allowed to do what I choose
with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ n 16So the
last will be first, and the first last.”
A Third Time Jesus ForetellsHis Death and Resurrection
17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples
aside, and on the way he said to them, 18“Behold, we are going up to
Jerusalem; and the Son of man will be delivered to the chief priests and
scribes, and they will condemn him to death, 19and deliver him to the
Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified, and he will be raised on
the third day.”
The Request of the Motherof James and John
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zeb'edee came up to him, with her sons,
and kneeling before him she asked him for something. 21And he said to her,
“What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that these two sons of
mine may sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.”
22But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able
to drink the chalice that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”
23He said to them, “You will drink my chalice, but to sit at my right hand
and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been
prepared by my Father.” 24And when the Ten heard it, they were indignant
at the two brothers. 25But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know
that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise
authority over them. 26It shall not be so among you; but whoever would be
great among you must be your servant, 27and whoever would be first among
you must be your slave; 28even as the Son of man came not to be served but
to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
29 And as they went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed him. 30And
behold, two blind men sitting by the roadside, when they heard that Jesus
was passing by, cried out, o “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” 31The
crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent; but they cried out the more,
“Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” 32And Jesus stopped and called
them, saying, “What do you want me to do for you?” 33They said to him,
“Lord, let our eyes be opened.” 34And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and
immediately they received their sight and followed him.
Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem
21 And when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Beth'phage, to
the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go
into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied,
and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3If any one says
anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and he will
send them immediately.” 4This took place to fulfil what was spoken by the
prophet, saying,
5“Tell the daughter of Zion,
Behold, your king is coming to you,

humble, and mounted on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; 7they brought the
donkey and the colt, and put their garments on them, and he sat on them.
8Most of the crowd spread their garments on the road, and others cut
branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9And the crowds that
went before him and that followed him shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of
David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the
highest!” * 10And when he entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred,
saying, “Who is this?” 11And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus
from Nazareth of Galilee.”
Jesus Cleanses the Temple
12 And Jesus entered the temple of God p and drove out all who sold and
bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers
and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 13He said to them, “It is written,
‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you make it a den of
robbers.”
14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed
them. 15But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things
that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son
of David!” they were indignant; 16and they said to him, “Do you hear what
these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,
‘Out of the mouths of babies and infants
you have brought perfect praise’?”
17And leaving them, he went out of the city to Beth'any and lodged there.
Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

18 In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he was hungry. 19And
seeing a fig tree by the wayside he went to it, and found nothing on it but
leaves only. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!”
And the fig tree withered at once. 20When the disciples saw it they
marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” 21And Jesus
answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and never doubt, you
will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to
this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will be done. 22And
whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
The Authority of Jesus Questioned
23 And when he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the
people came up to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are
you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” * 24Jesus
answered them, “I also will ask you a question; and if you tell me the
answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25The
baptism of John, where was it from? From heaven or from men?” And they
argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why
then did you not believe him?’ 26But if we say, ‘From men,’ we are afraid
of the multitude; for all hold that John was a prophet.” 27So they answered
Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by
what authority I do these things.
The Parable of the Two Sons
28 “What do you think? A man had two sons; and he went to the first and
said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29And he answered, ‘I will
not’; but afterward he repented and went. 30And he went to the second and
said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but did not go. 31Which of the
two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them,
“Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the harlots go into the kingdom
of God before you. 32For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and
you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the harlots believed him;
and even when you saw it, you did not afterward repent and believe him.
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
33 “Hear another parable. * There was a householder who planted a
vineyard, and set a hedge around it, and dug a wine press in it, and built a
tower, and leased it to tenants, and went into another country. 34When the
season of fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants, to get his fruit;
35and the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned
another. 36Again he sent other servants, more than the first; and they did the
same to them. 37Afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will
respect my son.’ 38But when the tenants saw the son, they said to
themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.’
39And they took him and cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
40When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those
tenants?” 41They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable
death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in
their seasons.”
The Stone Which the Builders Rejected
42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
‘The very stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
this was the Lord’s doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
43Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you
and given to a nation producing the fruits of it. 44And he who falls on this
stone will be broken to pieces; but when it falls on any one, it will crush
him.” q
45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they
perceived that he was speaking about them. 46But when they tried to arrest
him, they feared the multitudes, because they held him to be a prophet.
The Parable of the Marriage Feast
22 And again Jesus spoke to them in para-bes, saying, 2“The kingdom
of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a marriage feast for his son,
3and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the marriage feast;
but they would not come. 4Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those
who are invited, Behold, I have made ready my dinner, my oxen and my fat
calves are killed, and everything is ready; come to the marriage feast.’ 5But
they made light of it and went off, one to his farm, another to his business,
6while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.
7The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers
and burned their city. 8Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready,
but those invited were not worthy. 9Go therefore to the streets, and invite to
the marriage feast as many as you find.’ 10And those servants went out into
the streets and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good; so the
wedding hall was filled with guests.
11 “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man
who had no wedding garment; * 12and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you
get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. 13Then the
king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into the
outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14For
many are called, but few are chosen.”
The Question about Paying Taxes
15 Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how to entangle him in his
talk. 16And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Hero'di-ans,
saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true, and teach the way of God
truthfully, and care for no man; for you do not regard the position of men.
17Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
18But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you
hypocrites? 19Show me the money for the tax.” And they brought him a
coin. r 20And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?”
21They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar
the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22When
they heard it, they marveled; and they left him and went away.
The Question about Man’s Resurrection
23 The same day Sad'ducees came to him, who say that there is no
resurrection; and they asked him a question, 24saying, “Teacher, Moses said,
‘If a man dies, having no children, his brother must marry the widow, and
raise up children for his brother.’ 25Now there were seven brothers among
us; the first married, and died, and having no children left his wife to his
brother. 26So too the second and third, down to the seventh. 27After them
all, the woman died. 28In the resurrection, therefore, to which of the seven
will she be wife? For they all had her.”
29 But Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, because you know neither
the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30For in the resurrection they neither
marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels s in heaven. 31And as
for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by
God, 32‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living.” 33And when the
crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.
The Greatest Commandment
34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sad'ducees, they
came together. 35And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, to test
him. 36“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” 37And he
said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with
all your soul, and with all your mind. 38This is the great and first
commandment. 39And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as
yourself. 40On these two commandments depend all the law and the
prophets.”
A Question about the Christ
41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a
question, 42saying, “What do you think of the Christ? Whose son is he?”
They said to him, “The son of David.” 43He said to them, “How is it then
that David, inspired by the Spirit, t calls him Lord, saying,
44‘The Lord said to my Lord,
Sit at my right hand,

till I put your enemies under your feet’?
45If David thus calls him Lord, how is he his son?” 46And no one was
able to answer him a word, nor from that day did any one dare to ask him
any more questions.
Jesus Denounces the Hypocrisyof the Scribes and Pharisees
23 Then said Jesus to the crowds and to his disciples, 2“The scribes and
the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; 3so practice and observe whatever they tell
you, but not what they do; for they preach, but do not practice. 4They bind
heavy burdens, hard to bear, u and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they
themselves will not move them with their finger. 5They do all their deeds to
be seen by men; for they make their phylacteries * broad and their fringes
long, 6and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the
synagogues, 7and salutations in the market places, and being called rabbi by
men. 8But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you
are all brethren. 9And call no man your father on earth, for you have one
Father, who is in heaven. * 10Neither be called masters, for you have one
master, the Christ. 11He who is greatest among you shall be your servant;
12whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself
will be exalted.
13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you shut
the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor
allow those who would enter to go in. v 15Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! for you traverse sea and land to make a single proselyte, and
when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell w
as yourselves.
16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If any one swears by the temple,
it is nothing; but if any one swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by
his oath.’ 17You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that
has made the gold sacred? 18And you say, ‘If any one swears by the altar, it
is nothing; but if any one swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound
by his oath.’ 19You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that
makes the gift sacred? 20So he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by
everything on it; 21and he who swears by the temple, swears by it and by
him who dwells in it; 22and he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne
of God and by him who sits upon it.
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you tithe mint and
dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law,
justice and mercy and faith; these you ought to have done, without
neglecting the others. 24You blind guides, straining out a gnat and
swallowing a camel!
25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you cleanse the
outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and
rapacity. 26You blind Pharisee! first cleanse the inside of the cup and of the
plate, that the outside also may be clean.
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like
whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are
full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28So you also outwardly
appear righteous to men, but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you build the tombs
of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30saying, ‘If we
had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them
in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31Thus you witness against
yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32Fill up,
then, the measure of your fathers. 33You serpents, you brood of vipers, how
are you to escape being sentenced to hell? w 34Therefore I send you
prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify,
and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from town to
town, 35that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from
the blood of innocent Abel to the blood of Zechari'ah the son of Barachi'ah,
whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. 36Truly, I say to
you, all this will come upon this generation.
The Lament over Jerusalem
37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who
are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together as
a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! 38Behold,
your house is forsaken and desolate. x 39For I tell you, you will not see me
again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' "
The Destruction of the Temple Foretold
24 Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came
to point out to him the buildings of the temple. * 2But he answered them,
“You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here
one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down.”
Signs of Jesus’ Coming and ofthe Close of the Age
3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately,
saying, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your
coming and of the close of the age?” 4And Jesus answered them, “Take
heed that no one leads you astray. 5For many will come in my name, saying,
‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6And you will hear of
wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take
place, but the end is not yet. 7For nation will rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in
various places: 8all this is but the beginning of the sufferings.
Persecutions Foretold
9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation, and put you to death; and
you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. 10And then many will
fall away, y and betray one another, and hate one another. 11And many false
prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12And because wickedness is
multiplied, most men’s love will grow cold. 13But he who endures to the
end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached
throughout the whole world, as a testimony to all nations; and then the end
will come.
The Desolating Sacrilege
15 “So when you see the desolating sacrilege spoken of by the prophet
Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16then let
those who are in Judea flee to the mountains; 17let him who is on the
housetop not go down to take what is in his house; 18and let him who is in
the field not turn back to get a coat. 19And alas for those who are with child
and for those who are nursing in those days! 20Pray that your flight may not
be in winter or on a sabbath. 21For then there will be great tribulation, such
as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never
will be. 22And if those days had not been shortened, no human being would
be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23Then
if any one says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not
believe it. 24For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great
signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25Behold,
I have told you beforehand. 26So, if they say to you, ‘Behold, he is in the
wilderness,’ do not go out; if they say, ‘Behold, he is in the inner rooms,’ do
not believe it. 27For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as
the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 28Wherever the body is,
there the eagles z will be gathered together.
The Coming of the Son of Man
29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be
darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from
heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken; 30then will appear
the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will
mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven
with power and great glory; 31and he will send out his angels with a loud
trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one
end of heaven to the other.
The Lesson of the Fig Tree
32 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender
and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33So also, when
you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 34Truly,
I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all these things take
place. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
The Necessity for Watchfulness
36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven,
nor the Son, a but the Father only. 37As were the days of Noah, so will be
the coming of the Son of man. 38For as in those days before the flood they
were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day
when Noah entered the ark, 39and they did not know until the flood came
and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 40Then
two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left. 41Two women will
be grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left. 42Watch therefore, for
you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43But know this, that if
the householder had known in what part of the night the thief was coming,
he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into.
44Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an
hour you do not expect.

The Faithful and the Unfaithful Servant
45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set
over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46Blessed is
that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing. 47Truly, I
say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 48But if that wicked
servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49and begins to beat his
fellow servants, and eats and drinks with the drunken, 50the master of that
servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he
does not know, 51and will punish b him, and put him with the hypocrites;
there men will weep and gnash their teeth.
The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Maidens
25 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall becompared to ten maidens who
took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. c 2Five of them were
foolish, and five were wise. 3For when the foolish took their lamps, they
took no oil with them; 4but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5As
the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. 6But at midnight
there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7Then all
those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps. 8And the foolish said to the
wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9But the wise
replied, ‘Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to
the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10And while they went to buy, the
bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the
marriage feast; and the door was shut. 11Afterward the other maidens came
also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12But he replied, ‘Truly, I say to you, I
do not know you.’ 13Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the
hour.
The Parable of the Talents
14 “For it will be as when a man going on a journey called his servants
and entrusted to them his property; 15to one he gave five talents, d to
another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went
away. 16He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with
them; and he made five talents more. 17So also, he who had the two talents
made two talents more. 18But he who had received the one talent went and
dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19Now after a long time the
master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20And he
who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more,
saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five
talents more.’ 21His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful
servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter
into the joy of your master.’ 22And he also who had the two talents came
forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made
two talents more.’ 23His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful
servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much; enter
into the joy of your master.’ 24He also who had received the one talent came
forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you
did not sow, and gathering where you did not winnow; 25so I was afraid,
and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’
26But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You
knew that I reap where I have not sowed, and gather where I have not
winnowed? 27Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers,
and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.
28So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has the ten talents.
29For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have
abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken
away. * 30And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness, where
there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
The Judgment of the Nations
31 “When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him,
then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32Before him will be gathered all the
nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates
the sheep from the goats, 33and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but
the goats at the left. 34Then the King will say to those at his right hand,
‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from
the foundation of the world; 35for I was hungry and you gave me food, I
was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
36I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in
prison and you came to me.’ 37Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord,
when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?
38And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and
clothe you? 39And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
40And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one
of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’ 41Then he will say to
those at his left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire
prepared for the devil and his angels; 42for I was hungry and you gave me
no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43I was a stranger and you
did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison
and you did not visit me.’ 44Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we
see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did
not minister to you?’ 45Then he will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as
you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me.’ 46And they
will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
The Conspiracy to Kill Jesus
26 When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples,
2“You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of man
will be delivered up to be crucified.”

3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace
of the high priest, who was called Cai'aphas, 4and took counsel together in
order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. 5But they said, “Not during the
feast, lest there be a tumult among the people.”
The Anointing at Bethany
6 Now when Jesus was at Beth'any in the house of Simon the leper, 7a
woman came up to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive ointment,
and she poured it on his head, as he sat at table. 8But when the disciples saw
it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? 9For this ointment might
have been sold for a large sum, and given to the poor.” 10But Jesus, aware
of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a
beautiful thing to me. 11For you always have the poor with you, but you
will not always have me. 12In pouring this ointment on my body she has
done it to prepare me for burial. 13Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel
is preached in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory
of her.”
Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus
14 Then one of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the
chief priests 15and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him to you?”
And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16And from that moment he
sought an opportunity to betray him.
The Passover with the Disciples
17 Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus,
saying, “Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?” *
18He said, “Go into the city to such a one, and say to him, ‘The Teacher
says, My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with my
disciples.' " 19And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they
prepared the Passover.
20 When it was evening, he sat at table with the twelve disciples; e 21and
as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray
me.” 22And they were very sorrowful, and began to say to him one after
another, “Is it I, Lord?” 23He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the
dish with me, will betray me. 24The Son of man goes as it is written of him,
but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! It would have
been better for that man if he had not been born.” 25Judas, who betrayed
him, said, “Is it I, Master?” f He said to him, “You have said so.”
The Institution of the Last Supper
26 Now as they were eating, * Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it,
and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27And he
took a chalice, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of it, all of you; 28for this is my blood of the g covenant, which is
poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29I tell you I shall not drink
again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in
my Father’s kingdom.”
Peter’s Denial Foretold
30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
31Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night;
for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will
be scattered.’ 32But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”
33Peter declared to him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will
never fall away.” 34Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you, this very night,
before the cock crows, you will deny me three times.” 35Peter said to him,
“Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And so said all the
disciples.
Jesus Prays in Gethsemane
36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsem'ane, and he said
to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” 37And taking
with him Peter and the two sons of Zeb'edee, he began to be sorrowful and
troubled. 38Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death;
remain here, and watch h with me.” 39And going a little farther he fell on his
face and prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me;
nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” 40And he came to the disciples
and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch h
with me one hour? 41Watch h and pray that you may not enter into
temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42Again, for
the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass
unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43And again he came and found them
sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44So, leaving them again, he went away
and prayed for the third time, saying the same words. 45Then he came to the
disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest?
Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands
of sinners. 46Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
47 While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the Twelve, and with
him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the
elders of the people. 48Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying,
“The one I shall kiss is the man; seize him.” 49And he came up to Jesus at
once and said, “Hail, Master!” i And he kissed him. 50Jesus said to him,
“Friend, why are you here?” j Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus
and seized him. 51And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched
out his hand and drew his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest, and
cut off his ear. * 52Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its
place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. 53Do you think
that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than
twelve legions of angels? 54But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled,
that it must be so?” 55At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you
come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day
after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. 56But all
this has taken place, that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.”
Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.
Jesus before the High Priest
57 Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Cai'aphas the high priest,
where the scribes and the elders had gathered. 58But Peter followed him at a
distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat
with the guards to see the end. 59Now the chief priests and the whole
council sought false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to
death, * 60but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward.
At last two came forward 61and said, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to
destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days.' " 62And the high
priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that
these men testify against you?” 63But Jesus was silent. And the high priest
said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the
Son of God.” * 64Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you,
hereafter you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of Power, and
coming on the clouds of heaven.” 65Then the high priest tore his robes, and
said, “He has uttered blasphemy. Why do we still need witnesses? You have
now heard his blasphemy. 66What is your judgment?” They answered, “He
deserves death.” 67Then they spat in his face, and struck him; and some
slapped him, 68saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck
you?”
Peter Denies Jesus
69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a maid came up to
him, and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70But he denied it
before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” 71And when he
went out to the porch, another maid saw him, and she said to the bystanders,
“This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72And again he denied it with an
oath, “I do not know the man.” 73After a little while the bystanders came up
and said to Peter, “Certainly you are also one of them, for your accent
betrays you.” 74Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I
do not know the man.” And immediately the cock crowed. 75And Peter
remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the cock crows, you will deny me
three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
Jesus Brought before Pilate
27 When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the
people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death; 2and they bound him
and led him away and delivered him to Pilate the governor.
Judas Hangs Himself
3 When Judas, his betrayer, saw that he was condemned, he repented and
brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders,
4saying, “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is
that to us? See to it yourself.” 5And throwing down the pieces of silver in
the temple, he departed; and he went and hanged himself. 6But the chief
priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the
treasury, since they are blood money.” 7So they took counsel, and bought
with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. 8Therefore that field has
been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9Then was fulfilled what had
been spoken by the prophet Jeremiah, saying, “And they took the thirty
pieces of silver, the price of him on whom a price had been set by some of
the sons of Israel, 10and they gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord
directed me.”
Pilate Questions Jesus
11 Now Jesus stood before the governor; and the governor asked him,
“Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said to him, “You have said so.”
12But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he made no
answer. 13Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they
testify against you?” 14But he gave him no answer, not even to a single
charge; so that the governor wondered greatly.
Barabbas or Jesus?
15 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd
any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16And they had then a notorious
prisoner, called Barab'bas. k 17So when they had gathered, Pilate said to
them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Barab'bas k or Jesus who
is called Christ?” 18For he knew that it was out of envy that they had
delivered him up. 19Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his
wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I
have suffered much over him today in a dream.” 20Now the chief priests
and the elders persuaded the people to ask for Barab'bas and destroy Jesus.
21The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to
release for you?” And they said, “Barab'bas.” 22Pilate said to them, “Then
what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Let him be
crucified.” 23And he said, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted
all the more, “Let him be crucified.”
Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified
24 So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot
was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd,
saying, “I am innocent of this righteous man’s blood; l see to it yourselves.”
25And all the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!”
26Then he released for them Barab'bas, and having scourged Jesus,
delivered him to be crucified.

The Soldiers Mock Jesus
27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the praetorium, and
they gathered the whole battalion before him. 28And they stripped him and
put a scarlet robe upon him, 29and plaiting a crown of thorns they put it on
his head, and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him they
mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30And they spat upon him,
and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31And when they had mocked
him, they stripped him of the robe, and put his own clothes on him, and led
him away to crucify him.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
32 As they were marching out, they came upon a man of Cyre'ne, Simon
by name; this man they compelled to carry his cross. 33And when they came
to a place called Gol'gotha (which means the place of a skull), 34they
offered him wine to drink, mingled with gall; but when he tasted it, he
would not drink it. 35And when they had crucified him, they divided his
garments among them by casting lots; 36then they sat down and kept watch
over him there. 37And over his head they put the charge against him, which
read, “This is Jesus the King of the Jews.” 38Then two robbers were
crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. 39And those who
passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40and saying, “You who would
destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the
Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41So also the chief priests, with
the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42“He saved others; he cannot
save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the
cross, and we will believe in him. 43He trusts in God; let God deliver him
now, if he desires him; for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.' " 44And the
robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
The Death of Jesus
45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land m until
the ninth hour. 46And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice,
“Eli, Eli, la'ma sabach'-tha'ni?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you
forsaken me?” * 47And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “This man is
calling Eli'jah.” 48And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it
with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave it to him to drink. 49But the
others said, “Wait, let us see whether Eli'jah will come to save him.” n
50And Jesus cried again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.
51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to
bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; 52the tombs also were
opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised,
53and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy
city and appeared to many. 54When the centurion and those who were with
him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place,
they were filled with awe, and said, “Truly this was the Son x of God!”
55 There were also many women there, looking on from afar, who had
followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him; 56among whom were Mary
Mag'dalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of
the sons of Zeb'edee.
The Burial of Jesus
57 When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathe'a, named
Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. 58He went to Pilate and asked for
the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. 59And Joseph
took the body, and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud, 60and laid it in his
own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock; and he rolled a great stone
to the door of the tomb, and departed. 61Mary Mag'dalene and the other
Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.
The Guard at the Tomb
62 Next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the
Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63and said, “Sir, we remember how that
impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise again.’
64Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his
disciples go and steal him away, and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the
dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” 65Pilate said to them,
“You have a guard o of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.” p 66So
they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a
guard. *
The Resurrection of Jesus
28 * Now after the sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the
week, Mary Mag'dalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2And
behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended
from heaven and came and rolled back the stone, and sat upon it. 3His
appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4And for fear
of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5But the angel said
to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you seek Jesus who was
crucified. 6He is not here; for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place
where he q lay. 7Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from
the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see
him. Behold, I have told you.” 8So they departed quickly from the tomb
with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9And behold, Jesus met
them and said, “Hail!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and
worshiped him. 10Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my
brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”
The Report of the Guard
11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city
and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12And when they had
assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sum of money to
the soldiers 13and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole
him away while we were asleep.’ 14And if this comes to the governor’s
ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15So they took the
money and did as they were directed; and this story has been spread among
the Jews to this day.
Jesus Commissions the Disciples
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which
Jesus had directed them. 17And when they saw him they worshiped him; but
some doubted. 18And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven
and on earth has been given to me. 19Go therefore and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and
behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age.”
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Mark
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. a
2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, b
“Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who shall prepare your way;
3the voice of one crying in the wilderness:

make his paths straight—”
4John the Baptist appeared c in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of
repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5And there went out to him all the
country of Judea, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were baptized
by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 6Now John was clothed
with camel’s hair, and had a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts
and wild honey. 7And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is
mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down
and untie. 8I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit.”
9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by
John in the Jordan. 10And when he came up out of the water, immediately
he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove;
11and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; d with you I am
well pleased.”
12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 13And he
was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the
wild beasts; and the angels ministered to him.
Jesus Preaches the Gospel in Galilee
14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the
gospel of God, 15and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God
is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel.”
16 And passing along by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew
the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.
17And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you become fishers
of men.” 18And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19And
going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zeb'edee and John his
brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20And immediately he
called them; and they left their father Zeb'edee in the boat with the hired
servants, and followed him.
The Man with an Unclean Spirit
21 And they went into Caper'na-um; and immediately on the sabbath he
entered the synagogue and taught. 22And they were astonished at his
teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the
scribes. 1And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an
unclean spirit; 24and he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of
Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One
of God.” 25But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of
him!” 26And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud
voice, came out of him. 27And they were all amazed, so that they
questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching! With
authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” 28And
at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region
of Galilee.
Healings at Simon’s House
29 And immediately he e left the synagogue, and entered the house of
Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30Now Simon’s mother-in-law
lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him of her. 31And he came
and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her; and she
served them.
32 That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or
possessed with demons. 33And the whole city was gathered together about
the door. 34And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and
cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak,
because they knew him. *
Jesus Preaches and Heals throughout Galilee
35 And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a
lonely place, and there he prayed. 36And Simon and those who were with
him followed him, 37and they found him and said to him, “Every one is
searching for you.” 38And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns,
that I may preach there also; for that is why I came out.” 39And he went
throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out
demons.
40 And a leper came to him begging him, and kneeling said to him, “If
you will, you can make me clean.” 41Moved with pity, he stretched out his
hand and touched him, and said to him, “I will; be clean.” 42And
immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43And he sternly
charged him, and sent him away at once, 44and said to him, “See that you
say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for
your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people.” f 45But
he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that
Jesus g could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and
people came to him from every quarter.
2 And when he returned to Caper'na-um after some days, it was reported
that he was at home. 2And many were gathered together, so that there was
no longer room for them, not even about the door; and he was preaching the
word to them. 3And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four
men. 4And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they
removed the roof above him; and when they had made an opening, they let
down the pallet on which the paralytic lay. 5And when Jesus saw their faith,
he said to the paralytic, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” 6Now some of the
scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7“Why does this man
speak like this? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
8And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they questioned like
this within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question like this in your
hearts? 9Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or
to say, ‘Rise, take up your pallet and walk’? 10But that you may know that
the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the
paralytic—11“I say to you, rise, take up your pallet and go home.” 12And he
rose, and immediately took up the pallet and went out before them all; so
that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw
anything like this!”
Jesus Calls Levi
13 He went out again beside the sea; and all the crowd gathered about
him, and he taught them. 14And as he passed on, he saw Levi * the son of
Alphae'us sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he
rose and followed him.
15 And as he sat at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners
were sitting with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed
him. 16And the scribes of h the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating
with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat i with
tax collectors and sinners?” 17And when Jesus heard it, he said to them,
“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I
came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came
and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees
fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 19And Jesus said to them, “Can the
wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they
have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20The days will come,
when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in
that day. 21No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; if he
does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is
made. 22And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; if he does, the wine
will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but new wine
is for fresh skins.” j
A Teaching about the Sabbath
23 One sabbath he was going through the grainfields; and as they made
their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24And the Pharisees
said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?”
25And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was
in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26how he entered
the house of God, when Abi'athar was high priest, and ate the showbread,
which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those
who were with him?” 27And he said to them, “The sabbath was made for
man, not man for the sabbath; 28so the Son of man is lord even of the
sabbath.”
3 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a
withered hand. 2And they watched him, to see whether he would heal him
on the sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3And he said to the man who
had the withered hand, “Come here.” 4And he said to them, “Is it lawful on
the sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were
silent. 5And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness
of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out,
and his hand was restored. 6The Pharisees went out, and immediately held
counsel with the Hero'dians against him, how to destroy him.
A Multitude by the Sea
7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from
Galilee followed; also from Judea 8and Jerusalem and Idume'a and from
beyond the Jordan and from about Tyre and Si'don a great multitude,
hearing all that he did, came to him. 9And he told his disciples to have a
boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they should crush him; 10for
he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch
him. 11And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before
him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12And he strictly ordered
them not to make him known.
Jesus Appoints the Twelve
13 And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those whom he
desired; and they came to him. 14And he appointed twelve, k to be with him,
and to be sent out to preach 15and have authority to cast out demons:
16Simon whom he surnamed Peter; 17James the son of Zeb'edee and John
the brother of James, whom he surnamed Bo-aner'ges, that is, sons of

thunder; 18Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and
Thomas, and James the son of Alphae'us, and Thaddae'us, and Simon the
Cananaean, 19and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
Jesus and Beelzebul
Then he went home; 20and the crowd came together again, so that they
could not even eat. 21And when his friends heard it, they went out to seize
him, for they said, “He is beside himself.” 22And the scribes who came
down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Be-el'zebul, and by the
prince of demons he casts out the demons.” 23And he called them to him,
and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24If a
kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25And if a
house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26And if
Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is
coming to an end. 27But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder
his goods, unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may plunder
his house.
28 “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and
whatever blasphemies they utter; 29but whoever blasphemes against the
Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—30for
they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
31 And his mother and his brethren * came; and standing outside they sent
to him and called him. 32And a crowd was sitting about him; and they said
to him, “Your mother and your brethren l are outside, asking for you.”
33And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brethren?” 34And looking
around on those who sat about him, he said, “Here are my mother and my
brethren! 35Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and
mother.”
4 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd
gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and
the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. 2And he taught them many
things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3“Listen! A sower
went out to sow. 4And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the
birds came and devoured it. 5Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it had
not much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil;
6and when the sun rose it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered
away. 7Other seed fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it,
and it yielded no grain. 8And other seeds fell into good soil and brought
forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold
and a hundredfold.” 9And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Explanation of the Parable
10 And when he was alone, those who were about him with the Twelve
asked him concerning the parables. 11And he said to them, “To you has
been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside
everything is in parables; 12so that * they may indeed see but not perceive,
and may indeed hear but not understand; lest they should turn again, and be
forgiven.” 13And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable?
How then will you understand all the parables? 14The sower sows the word.
15And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they
hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in
them. 16And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground,
who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; 17and they
have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or
persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. m
18And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the
word, 19but the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire
for other things, enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 20But
those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and
accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”
A Lamp Is Not Hidden
21 And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a bushel, or
under a bed, and not on a stand? 22For there is nothing hidden, except to be
made manifest; nor is anything secret, except to come to light. 23If any man
has ears to hear, let him hear.” 24And he said to them, “Take heed what you
hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and still more will
be given you. 25For to him who has will more be given; and from him who
has not, even what he has will be taken away.”
A Parable about Seeds
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed
upon the ground, 27and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed
should sprout and grow, he knows not how. 28The earth produces of itself,
first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29But when the
grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what
parable shall we use for it? 31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when
sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32yet when it
is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth
large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
The Use of Parables
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able
to hear it; 34he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his
own disciples he explained everything.
Jesus Calms a Storm on the Sea
35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go
across to the other side.” 36And leaving the crowd, they took him with
them, just as he was, in the boat. And other boats were with him. 37And a
great storm of wind arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat
was already filling. 38But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and
they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care if we perish?”
39And he awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be
still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40He said to them,
“Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” 41And they were filled with awe,
and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey
him?”
Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac
5 They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the
Ger'asenes. n 2And when he had come out of the boat, there met him out of
the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3who lived among the tombs; and
no one could bind him any more, even with a chain; 4for he had often been
bound with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the
shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him.
5Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always
crying out, and bruising himself with stones. 6And when he saw Jesus from
afar, he ran and worshiped him; 7and crying out with a loud voice, he said,
“What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure
you by God, do not torment me.” 8For he had said to him, “Come out of the
man, you unclean spirit!” 9And Jesus o asked him, “What is your name?”
He replied, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10And he begged him
eagerly not to send them out of the country. 11Now a great herd of swine
was feeding there on the hillside; 12and they begged him, “Send us to the
swine, let us enter them.” 13So he gave them leave. And the unclean spirits
came out, and entered the swine; and the herd, numbering about two
thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and were drowned in the
sea.
14 The herdsmen fled, and told it in the city and in the country. And
people came to see what it was that had happened. 15And they came to
Jesus, and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the
man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. 16And those who had
seen it told what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine. 17And
they began to beg Jesus p to depart from their neighborhood. 18And as he
was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons
begged him that he might be with him. 19But he refused, and said to him,
“Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for
you, and how he has had mercy on you.” 20And he went away and began to
proclaim in the Decap'olis how much Jesus had done for him; and all men
marveled.
A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed
21 And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great
crowd gathered about him; and he was beside the sea. 22Then came one of
the rulers of the synagogue, Ja'irus by name; and seeing him, he fell at his
feet, 23and begged him, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death.
Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.”
24And he went with him.
And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. 25And there was
a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years, 26and who had
suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and
was no better but rather grew worse. 27She had heard the reports about
Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 28For
she said, “If I touch even his garments, I shall be made well.” 29And
immediately the hemorrhage ceased; and she felt in her body that she was
healed of her disease. 30And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had
gone forth from him, immediately turned about in the crowd, and said,
“Who touched my garments?” 31And his disciples said to him, “You see the
crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?' " 32And he
looked around to see who had done it. 33But the woman, knowing what had
been done to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him, and
told him the whole truth. 34And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has
made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
35 While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler’s house some
who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”
36But ignoring q what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue,
“Do not fear, only believe.” 37And he allowed no one to follow him except
Peter and James and John the brother of James. 38When they came to the
house of the ruler of the synagogue, he saw a tumult, and people weeping
and wailing loudly. 39And when he had entered, he said to them, “Why do
you make a tumult and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.” 40And
they laughed at him. But he put them all outside, and took the child’s father
and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was.
41Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Tal'itha cu'mi”; which means,
“Little girl, I say to you, arise.” 42And immediately the girl got up and
walked; for she was twelve years old. And immediately they were
overcome with amazement. 43And he strictly charged them that no one
should know this, * and told them to give her something to eat.
6 He went away from there and came to his own country; and his
disciples followed him. 2And on the sabbath he began to teach in the
synagogue; and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did
this man get all this? What is the wisdom given to him? What mighty works
are wrought by his hands! 3Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and
brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here
with us?” And they took offense r at him. 4And Jesus said to them, “A
prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own
kin, and in his own house.” 5And he could do no mighty work there, except
that he laid his hands upon a few sick people and healed them. 6
And he went about among the villages teaching.
7 And he called to him the Twelve, and began to send them out two by
two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8He charged them to
take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in
their belts; 9but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. 10And he said to
them, “Where you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11And
if any place will not receive you and they refuse to hear you, when you
leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet for a testimony against them.”
12So they went out and preached that men should repent. 13And they cast
out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick and healed
them.
The Death of John the Baptist
14 King Herod heard of it; for Jesus’ s name had become known. Some t
said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead; that is why these
powers are at work in him.” 15But others said, “It is Eli'jah.” And others
said, “It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16But when Herod
heard of it he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” 17For Herod
had sent and seized John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Hero'di-
as, his brother Philip’s wife; because he had married her. 18For John said to
Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19And
Hero'di-as had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could
not, 20for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy
man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he was much perplexed; and
yet he heard him gladly. 21But an opportunity came when Herod on his
birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and the leading men
of Galilee. 22For when Hero'di-as’ daughter came in and danced, she
pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for
whatever you wish, and I will grant it.” 23And he vowed to her, “Whatever
you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” 24And she went out,
and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?” And she said, “The head of John
the Baptist.” 25And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and
asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist
on a platter.” 26And the king was exceedingly sorry; but because of his
oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. 27And
immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard and gave orders to bring his
head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28and brought his head on a
platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29When his
disciples heard of it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
30 The apostles returned to Jesus, and told him all that they had done and
taught. 31And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a lonely place,
and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no
leisure even to eat. 32And they went away in the boat to a lonely place by
themselves. 33Now many saw them going, and knew them, and they ran
there on foot from all the towns, and got there ahead of them. 34As he
landed he saw a great throng, and he had compassion on them, because they
were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many
things. 35And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is
a lonely place, and the hour is now late; 36send them away, to go into the
country and villages round about and buy themselves something to eat.”
37But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said
to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii u worth of bread, and
give it to them to eat?” 38And he said to them, “How many loaves have
you? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two
fish.” 39Then he commanded them all to sit down by companies upon the
green grass. 40So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties.
41And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and
blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before
the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. 42And they all ate
and were satisfied. 43And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces
and of the fish. 44And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him
to the other side, to Beth-sa'ida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46And after
he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. 47And
when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the
land. 48And he saw that they were distressed in rowing, for the wind was
against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them,
walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them, 49but when they saw him
walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried out; 50for they all
saw him, and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said,
“Take heart, it is I; have no fear.” 51And he got into the boat with them and
the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, 52for they did not
understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
Jesus Heals the Sick in Gennesaret
53 And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennes'aret, and
moored to the shore. 54And when they got out of the boat, immediately the
people recognized him, 55and ran about the whole neighborhood and began
to bring sick people on their pallets to any place where they heard he was.
56And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or country, they laid the sick in
the market places, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of
his garment; and as many as touched it were made well.
The Tradition of the Elders
7 Now when the Pharisees gathered together to him, with some of the
scribes, who had come from Jerusalem, 2they saw that some of his disciples
ate with hands defiled, that is, unwashed. 3(For the Pharisees, and all the
Jews, do not eat unless they wash their hands, v observing the tradition of
the elders; * 4and when they come from the market place, they do not eat
unless they purify w themselves; and there are many other traditions which
they observe, the washing of cups and pots and vessels of bronze. x) 5And
the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not live y
according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with hands defiled?” 6And he
said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,
‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
7in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’

8You leave the commandment of God, and hold fast the tradition of
men.”
9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the
commandment of God, in order to keep your tradition! 10For Moses said,
‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or
mother, let him surely die’; 11but you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his
mother, What you would have gained from me is Corban’ (that is, given to
God) z—12then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or
mother, 13thus making void the word of God through your tradition which
you hand on. And many such things you do.”
14 And he called the people to him again, and said to them, “Hear me, all
of you, and understand: 15there is nothing outside a man which by going
into him can defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what
defile him.” a 17And when he had entered the house, and left the people, his
disciples asked him about the parable. 18And he said to them, “Then are you
also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a man
from outside cannot defile him, 19since it enters, not his heart but his
stomach, and so passes on?” b (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20And he
said, “What comes out of a man is what defiles a man. 21For from within,
out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder,
adultery, 22coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander,
pride, foolishness. 23All these evil things come from within, and they defile
a man.”
The Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith
24 And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and
Sidon. c And he entered a house, and would not have any one know it; yet
he could not be hidden. 25But immediately a woman, whose little daughter
was possessed by an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell down at
his feet. 26Now the woman was a Greek, a Syrophoeni'cian by birth. And
she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27And he said to her,
“Let the children first be fed, for it is not right to take the children’s bread
and throw it to the dogs.” 28But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the
dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” 29And he said to her, “For
this saying you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” 30And
she went home, and found the child lying in bed, and the demon gone.
Jesus Cures a Deaf Man
31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went through Sidon to
the Sea of Galilee, through the region of the Decap'olis. 32And they brought
to him a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech; and they
begged him to lay his hand upon him. 33And taking him aside from the
multitude privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched
his tongue; 34and looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said to him,
“Eph'phatha,” that is, “Be opened.” 35And his ears were opened, his tongue
was released, and he spoke plainly. 36And he charged them to tell no one;
but the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37And
they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well;
he even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”
Feeding the Four Thousand
8 In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had
nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him, and said to them, 2“I have
compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days,
and have nothing to eat; 3and if I send them away hungry to their homes,
they will faint on the way; and some of them have come a long way.” 4And
his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these men with bread here
in the desert?” 5And he asked them, “How many loaves have you?” They
said, “Seven.” 6And he commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground;
and he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks he broke them and
gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before
the crowd. 7And they had a few small fish; and having blessed them, he
commanded that these also should be set before them. 8And they ate, and
were satisfied; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets
full. 9And there were about four thousand people. 10And he sent them away;
and immediately he got into the boat with his disciples, and went to the
district of Dalmanu'tha. d
The Demand for a Sign
11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a
sign from heaven, to test him. 12And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and said,
“Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign shall be
given to this generation.” 13And he left them, and getting into the boat again
he departed to the other side.
The Leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod
14 Now they had forgotten to bring bread; and they had only one loaf with
them in the boat. 15And he cautioned them, saying, “Take heed, beware of
the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” e 16And they discussed
it with one another, saying, “We have no bread.” 17And being aware of it,
Jesus said to them, “Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread?
Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?
18Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you
not remember? 19When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how
many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him,
“Twelve.” 20“And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of
broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” 21And he
said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”
Jesus Cures a Blind Man at Beth-saida
22 And they came to Beth-sa'ida. And some people brought to him a blind
man, and begged him to touch him. 23And he took the blind man by the
hand, and led him out of the village; and when he had spit on his eyes and
laid his hands upon him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” 24And he
looked up and said, “I see men; but they look like trees, walking.” 25Then
again he laid his hands upon his eyes; and he looked intently and was
restored, and saw everything clearly. 26And he sent him away to his home,
saying, “Do not even enter the village.”
Peter’s Declaration That Jesus Is the Christ
27 And Jesus went on with his disciples, to the villages of Caesare'a
Philip'pi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do men say that I
am?” 28And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Eli'jah; and
others one of the prophets.” 29And he asked them, “But who do you say that
I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” 30And he charged them to
tell no one about him.
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection
31 And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many
things, and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes,
and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32And he said this plainly.
And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. 33But turning and seeing his
disciples, he rebuked Peter, and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are
not on the side of God, but of men.”
34 And he called to him the multitude with his disciples, and said to them,
“If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his
cross and follow me. 35For whoever would save his life will lose it; and
whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36For what
does it profit a man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? * 37For
what can a man give in return for his life? 38For whoever is ashamed of me
and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the
Son of man also be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his
9 Father with the holy angels.” 1And he said to them, “Truly, I say to
you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see
the kingdom of God come with power.”
The Transfiguration
2 And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and
led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured
before them, 3and his garments became glistening, intensely white, as no
fuller on earth could bleach them. 4And there appeared to them Eli'jah with
Moses; and they were talking to Jesus. 5And Peter said to Jesus, “Master, f it
is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for
Moses and one for Eli'jah.” 6For he did not know what to say, for they were
exceedingly afraid. 7And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out
of the cloud, “This is my beloved Son; g listen to him.” 8And suddenly
looking around they no longer saw any one with them but Jesus only.
The Coming of Elijah
9 And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no
one what they had seen, until the Son of man should have risen from the
dead. 10So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what the rising
from the dead meant. 11And they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that
first Eli'jah must come?” 12And he said to them, “Eli'jah does come first to
restore all things; and how is it written of the Son of man, that he should
suffer many things and be treated with contempt? 13But I tell you that
Eli'jah has come, * and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is
written of him.”
The Healing of a Boy with a Mute Spirit
14 And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd about
them, and scribes arguing with them. 15And immediately all the crowd,
when they saw him, were greatly amazed, and ran up to him and greeted
him. 16And he asked them, “What are you discussing with them?” 17And
one of the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he
has a mute spirit; 18and wherever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he
foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to
cast it out, and they were not able.” 19And he answered them, “O faithless
generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?
Bring him to me.” 20And they brought the boy to him; and when the spirit
saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and
rolled about, foaming at the mouth. 21And Jesus h asked his father, “How
long has he had this?” And he said, “From childhood. 22And it has often
cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you can do
anything, have pity on us and help us.” 23And Jesus said to him, “If you
can! All things are possible to him who believes.” 24Immediately the father
of the child cried out i and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” 25And when
Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean
spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of
him, and never enter him again.” 26And after crying out and convulsing him
terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse; so that most of them
said, “He is dead.” 27But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and
he arose. 28And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him
privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29And he said to them, “This
kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting.” j
Jesus Again Foretells HisDeath and Resurrection
30 They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he would
not have any one know it; 31for he was teaching his disciples, saying to
them, “The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they
will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise.” 32But they
did not understand the saying, and they were afraid to ask him.
True Greatness
33 And they came to Caper'na-um; and when he was in the house he asked
them, “What were you discussing on the way?” 34But they were silent; for
on the way they had discussed with one another who was the greatest.
35And he sat down and called the Twelve and he said to them, “If any one
would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” 36And he took a
child, and put him in the midst of them; and taking him in his arms, he said
to them, 37“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me; and
whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”
Another Exorcist
38 John said to him, “Teacher, we saw a man casting out demons in your
name, k and we forbade him, because he was not following us.” 39But Jesus
said, “Do not forbid him; for no one who does a mighty work in my name
will be able soon after to speak evil of me. 40For he that is not against us is
for us. 41For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink
because you bear the name of Christ, will by no means lose his reward.
Temptations to Sin
42 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, l it
would be better for him if a great millstone were hung round his neck and
he were thrown into the sea. 43And if your hand causes you to sin, l cut it
off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to
hell, m to the unquenchable fire. n 45And if your foot causes you to sin, l cut
it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown
into hell. m, n 47And if your eye causes you to sin, l pluck it out; it is better
for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be
thrown into hell, m 48where their worm does not die, and the fire is not
quenched. 49For every one will be salted with fire. o 50Salt is good; but if
the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you season it? Have salt in
yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”
Teachings about Divorce
10 And he left there and went to the region of Judea and beyond the
Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again; and again, as his custom was, he
taught them.
2 And Pharisees came up and in order to test him asked, “Is it lawful for a
man to divorce his wife?” 3He answered them, “What did Moses command
you?” 4They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce,
and to put her away.” 5But Jesus said to them, “For your hardness of heart
he wrote you this commandment. 6But from the beginning of creation, ‘God
made them male and female.’ 7‘For this reason a man shall leave his father
and mother and be joined to his wife, p 8and the two shall become one
flesh.’ q So they are no longer two but one flesh. q 9What therefore God has
joined together, let not man put asunder.”
10 And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. 11And
he said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits
adultery against her; 12and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery.”
13 And they were bringing children to him, that he might touch them; and
the disciples rebuked them. 14But when Jesus saw it he was indignant, and
said to them, “Let the children come to me, do not hinder them; for to such
belongs the kingdom of God. 15Truly, I say to you, whoever does not
receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 16And he took
them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands upon them.
The Rich Man
17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before
him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but
God alone. 19You know the commandments: ‘Do not kill, Do not commit
adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor
your father and mother.' " 20And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have
observed from my youth.” 21And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and
said to him, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you have, and give to the
poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22At that
saying his countenance fell, and he went away sorrowful; for he had great
possessions.
23 And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be
for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” 24And the
disciples were amazed at his words. * But Jesus said to them again,
“Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches r to enter the kingdom
of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a
rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” 26And they were exceedingly
astonished, and said to him, s “Then who can be saved?” 27Jesus looked at
them and said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things
are possible with God.” 28Peter began to say to him, “Behold, we have left
everything and followed you.” 29Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no
one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children
or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30who will not receive a
hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers
and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal
life. * 31But many that are first will be last, and the last first.”
A Third Time Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection
32 And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was
walking ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed
were afraid. And taking the Twelve again, he began to tell them what was to
happen to him, 33saying, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the
Son of man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes, and they
will condemn him to death, and deliver him to the Gentiles; 34and they will
mock him, and spit upon him, and scourge him, and kill him; and after three
days he will rise.”
The Request of James and John
35 And James and John, the sons of Zeb'edee, came forward to him, and
said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”
36And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37And they
said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in
your glory.” 38But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are
asking. Are you able to drink the chalice that I drink, or to be baptized with
the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39And they said to him, “We are
able.” And Jesus said to them, “The chalice that I drink you will drink; and
with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; 40but to sit
at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for
whom it has been prepared.” 41And when the ten heard it, they began to be
indignant at James and John. 42And Jesus called them to him and said to
them, “You know that those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles lord
it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. 43But it shall
not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your
servant, 44and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45For
the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life
as a ransom for many.”
Bartimaeus Receives His Sight
46 And they came to Jericho; and as he was leaving Jericho with his
disciples and a great multitude, Bartimae'us, a blind beggar, the son of
Timae'us, was sitting by the roadside. 47And when he heard that it was Jesus
of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy
on me!” 48And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out
all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49And Jesus stopped and
said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart;
rise, he is calling you.” 50And throwing off his cloak he sprang up and came
to Jesus. 51And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
And the blind man said to him, “Master, t let me receive my sight.” 52And
Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And
immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.
11 And when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Beth'phage and Beth'any,
at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, 2and said to them, “Go
into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it you will find
a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat; untie it and bring it. 3If any one
says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and
will send it back here immediately.’ ” 4And they went away, and found a
colt tied at the door out in the open street; and they untied it. 5And those
who stood there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6And
they told them what Jesus had said; and they let them go. 7And they brought
the colt to Jesus, and threw their garments on it; and he sat upon it. 8And
many spread their garments on the road, and others spread leafy branches
which they had cut from the fields. 9And those who went before and those
who followed cried out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of
the Lord! 10Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is coming!
Hosanna in the highest!”
11 And he entered Jerusalem, and went into the temple; and when he had
looked round at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Beth'any
with the Twelve.
Jesus Curses the Fig Tree
12 On the following day, when they came from Beth'any, he was hungry.
13And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find
anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was
not the season for figs. 14And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from
you again.” And his disciples heard it.
15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to
drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he
overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold
pigeons; 16and he would not allow any one to carry anything through the
temple. 17And he taught, and said to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house
shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a
den of robbers.” 18And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and sought
a way to destroy him; for they feared him, because all the multitude was
astonished at his teaching. 19And when evening came they u went out of the
city.
The Lesson from the Withered Fig Tree
20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away
to its roots. 21And Peter remembered and said to him, “Master, v look! The
fig tree which you cursed has withered.” 22And Jesus answered them,
“Have faith in God. 23Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain,
‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but
believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.
24Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you receive
it, and you will. 25And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have
anything against any one; so that your Father also who is in heaven may
forgive you your trespasses.” w
Jesus’ Authority Is Questioned
27 And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the
temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, 28and
they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who
gave you this authority to do them?” 29Jesus said to them, “I will ask you a
question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.
30Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men? Answer me.” 31And
they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why
then did you not believe him?’ 32But shall we say, ‘From men’?”—they
were afraid of the people, for all held that John was a real prophet. 33So
they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither
will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
12 And he began to speak to them in paraales. “A man planted a
vineyard, and set a hedge around it, and dug a pit for the wine press, and
built a tower, and leased it to tenants, and went into another country. 2When
the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, to get from them some of the
fruit of the vineyard. 3And they took him and beat him, and sent him away
empty-handed. 4Again he sent to them another servant, and they wounded
him in the head, and treated him shamefully. 5And he sent another, and him
they killed; and so with many others, some they beat and some they killed.
6He had still one other, a beloved son; finally he sent him to them, saying,
‘They will respect my son.’ 7But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is
the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8And they
took him and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard. 9What will the
owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants, and give
the vineyard to others. 10Have you not read this Scripture:
has become the cornerstone;
11this was the Lord’s doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”

12 And they tried to arrest him, but feared the multitude, for they
perceived that he had told the parable against them; so they left him and
went away.
13 And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Hero'dians,
to entrap him in his talk. 14And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we
know that you are true, and care for no man; for you do not regard the
position of men, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to
Caesar, or not? 15Should we pay them, or should we not?” But knowing
their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a coin, x
and let me look at it.” 16And they brought one. And he said to them,
“Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.”
17Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to
God the things that are God’s.” And they were amazed at him.
18 And Sad'ducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection; and
they asked him a question, saying, 19“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a
man’s brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man y must
take the wife, and raise up children for his brother. 20There were seven
brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no children; 21and the
second took her, and died, leaving no children; and the third likewise; 22and
the seven left no children. Last of all the woman also died. 23In the
resurrection whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.”
24 Jesus said to them, “Is not this why you are wrong, that you know
neither the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25For when they rise from the
dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in
heaven. 26And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of
Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God
of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27He is not God
of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.”
The First Commandment
28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one
another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which
commandment is the first of all?” 29Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O
Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30and you shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind,
and with all your strength.’ 31The second is this, ‘You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
32And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have truly said
that he is one, and there is no other but he; 33and to love him with all the
heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love
one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and
sacrifices.” 34And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him,
“You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to
ask him any question.
A Question about the Christ
35 And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say
that the Christ is the son of David? 36David himself, inspired by z the Holy
Spirit, declared,
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
till I put your enemies under your feet.’
37David himself calls him Lord; so how is he his son?” And the great
throng heard him gladly.

Jesus Denounces the Hypocrisyof the Scribes
38 And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to go
about in long robes, and to have salutations in the market places 39and the
best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, 40who devour
widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the
greater condemnation.”
The Widow’s Offering
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the multitude
putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. 42And
a poor widow came, and put in two copper coins, which make a penny.
43And he called his disciples to him, and said to them, “Truly, I say to you,
this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the
treasury. 44For they all contributed out of their abundance; but she out of
her poverty has put in everything she had, her whole living.”
13 And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him,
“Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!”
2And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not
be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down.”
3 And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and
James and John and Andrew asked him privately, 4“Tell us, when will this
be, and what will be the sign when these things are all to be accomplished?”
5And Jesus began to say to them, “Take heed that no one leads you astray.
6Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many
astray. 7And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed;
this must take place, but the end is not yet. 8For nation will rise against
nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various
places, there will be famines; this is but the beginning of the sufferings.
Persecutions Foretold
9 “But take heed to yourselves; for they will deliver you up to councils;
and you will be beaten in synagogues; and you will stand before governors
and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them. 10And the gospel
must first be preached to all nations. 11And when they bring you to trial and
deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand about what you are to say; but
say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the
Holy Spirit. 12And brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father
his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death;
13and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But he who endures to
the end will be saved.

The Desolating Sacrilege
14 “But when you see the desolating sacrilege set up where it ought not to
be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the
mountains; 15let him who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his
house, to take anything away; 16and let him who is in the field not turn back
to get a coat. 17And alas for those who are with child and for those who are
nursing in those days! 18Pray that it may not happen in winter. 19For in
those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning
of the creation which God created until now, and never will be. 20And if the
Lord had not shortened the days, no human being would be saved; but for
the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days. 21And then if
any one says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do
not believe it. 22False Christs and false prophets will arise and show signs
and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23But take heed; I have
told you all things beforehand.
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and
the moon will not give its light, 25and the stars will be falling from heaven,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26And then they will see the
Son of man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27And then he
will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the
ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
28 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender
and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29So also, when
you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very
gates. 30Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away before all
these things take place. 31Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words
will not pass away.
The Necessity for Watchfulness
32 “But of that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in
heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33Take heed, watch and pray; a for
you do not know when the time will come. 34It is like a man going on a
journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his
work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. 35Watch therefore
—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the
evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning—36lest he come
suddenly and find you asleep. 37And what I say to you I say to all: Watch.”
14 It was now two days before the Passover and the feast of
Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how
to arrest him by stealth, and kill him; 2for they said, “Not during the feast,
lest there be a tumult of the people.”
The Anointing at Bethany
3 And while he was at Beth'any in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat
at table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of ointment of pure nard, very
costly, and she broke the jar and poured it over his head. 4But there were
some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment thus
wasted? 5For this ointment might have been sold for more than three
hundred denarii, b and given to the poor.” And they reproached her. 6But
Jesus said, “Let her alone; why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful
thing to me. 7For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you
will, you can do good to them; but you will not always have me. 8She has
done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burying.
9And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is preached in the whole
world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus
10 Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the Twelve, went to the chief
priests in order to betray him to them. 11And when they heard it they were
glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to
betray him.
The Passover with the Disciples
12 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the
Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and
prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 13And he sent two of his disciples, and
said to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet
you; follow him, * 14and wherever he enters, say to the householder, ‘The
Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I am to eat the Passover with
my disciples?’ 15And he will show you a large upper room furnished and
ready; there prepare for us.” 16And the disciples set out and went to the city,
and found it as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover.
17 And when it was evening he came with the Twelve. 18And as they were
at table eating, Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me,
one who is eating with me.” 19They began to be sorrowful, and to say to
him one after another, “Is it I?” 20He said to them, “It is one of the Twelve,
one who is dipping bread in the same dish with me. 21For the Son of man
goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is
betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”
The Institution of the Last Supper
22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and
gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” 23And he took a chalice,
and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it.
24And he said to them, “This is my blood of the c covenant, which is poured
out for many. 25Truly, I say to you, I shall not drink again of the fruit of the
vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
27And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away; for it is written, ‘I will
strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28But after I am raised
up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 29Peter said to him, “Even though they
all fall away, I will not.” 30And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you, this
very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.”
31But he said vehemently, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And
they all said the same.

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane
32 And they went to a place which was called Gethsem'ane; and he said to
his disciples, “Sit here, while I pray.” 33And he took with him Peter and
James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34And he
said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and
watch.” d 35And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that,
if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36And he said, “Abba,
Father, all things are possible to you; remove this chalice from me; yet not
what I will, but what you will.” 37And he came and found them sleeping,
and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch d one
hour? 38Watch d and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit
indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39And again he went away and
prayed, saying the same words. 40And again he came and found them
sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to
answer him. 41And he came the third time, and said to them, “Are you still
sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come; the Son of
man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42Rise, let us be going; see, my
betrayer is at hand.”
43 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the
Twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests
and the scribes and the elders. 44Now the betrayer had given them a sign,
saying, “The one I shall kiss is the man; seize him and lead him away
safely.” 45And when he came, he went up to him at once, and said,
“Master!” e And he kissed him. 46And they laid hands on him and seized
him. 47But one of those who stood by drew his sword, and struck the slave
of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48And Jesus said to them, “Have you
come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? 49Day
after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me.
But let the Scriptures be fulfilled.” 50And they all deserted him and fled.
51 And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about
his body; and they seized him, 52but he left the linen cloth and ran away
naked. *
Jesus before the Council
53 And they led Jesus to the high priest; and all the chief priests and the
elders and the scribes were assembled. 54And Peter had followed him at a
distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with
the guards, and warming himself at the fire. 55Now the chief priests and the
whole council sought testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they
found none. 56For many bore false witness against him, and their witness
did not agree. 57And some stood up and bore false witness against him,
saying, 58“We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with
hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.' " 59Yet
not even so did their testimony agree. 60And the high priest stood up in their
midst, and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these
men testify against you?” 61But he was silent and made no answer. Again
the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”
62And Jesus said, “I am; and you will see the Son of man sitting at the right
hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” 63And the high
priest tore his clothes, and said, “Why do we still need witnesses? 64You
have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they all condemned
him as deserving death. 65And some began to spit on him, and to cover his
face, and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received
him with blows.
Peter Denies Jesus
66 And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the maids of the high
priest came; 67and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him, and
said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” 68But he denied it, saying,
“I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the
gateway. f 69And the maid saw him, and began again to say to the
bystanders, “This man is one of them.” 70But again he denied it. And after a
little while again the bystanders said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of
them; for you are a Galilean.” 71But he began to invoke a curse on himself
and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” 72And
immediately the cock crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how
Jesus had said to him, “Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me
three times.” And he broke down and wept.
Jesus before Pilate
15 And as soon as it was morning the chief priests, with the elders and
scribes, and the whole council held a consultation; and they bound Jesus
and led him away and delivered him to Pilate. * 2And Pilate asked him,
“Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.”
3And the chief priests accused him of many things. 4And Pilate again asked
him, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring
against you.” 5But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate wondered.
Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified
6 Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they
asked. 7And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the
insurrection, there was a man called Barab'bas. 8And the crowd came up
and began to ask Pilate to do as he always did for them. 9And he answered
them, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” 10For he
perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up.
11But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them
Barab'bas instead. 12And Pilate again said to them, “Then what shall I do
with the man whom you call the King of the Jews?” 13And they cried out
again, “Crucify him.” 14And Pilate said to them, “Why, what evil has he
done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him.” 15So Pilate, wishing
to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barab'bas; and having scourged
Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
16 And the soldiers led him away inside the palace (that is, the
praetorium); and they called together the whole battalion. 17And they
clothed him in a purple cloak, and plaiting a crown of thorns they put it on
him. 18And they began to salute him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 19And they
struck his head with a reed, and spat upon him, and they knelt down in
homage to him. 20And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the
purple cloak, and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to
crucify him.
21 And they compelled a passer-by, Simon of Cyre'ne, who was coming in
from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.
22And they brought him to the place called Gol'gotha (which means the
place of a skull). 23And they offered him wine mingled with myrrh; but he
did not take it. 24And they crucified him, and divided his garments among
them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. 25And it was
the third hour, when they crucified him. 26And the inscription of the charge
against him read, “The King of the Jews.” 27And with him they crucified
two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. g 29And those who passed
by derided him, shaking their heads, and saying, “Aha! You who would
destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30save yourself, and come
down from the cross!” 31So also the chief priests mocked him to one
another with the scribes, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself.
32Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we
may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.
The Death of Jesus
33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole
land h until the ninth hour. 34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud
voice, “E'lo-i, Elo-i, la'ma sabach-tha'ni?” which means, “My God, my
God, why have you forsaken me?” 35And some of the bystanders hearing it
said, “Behold, he is calling Eli'jah.” 36And one ran and, filling a sponge full
of vinegar, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us
see whether Eli'jah will come to take him down.” 37And Jesus uttered a loud
cry, and breathed his last. 38And the curtain of the temple was torn in two,
from top to bottom. 39And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw
that he thus i breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son x of
God!”
40 There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary
Mag'dalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger * and of Joses, and
Salo'me, 41who, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered to
him; and also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.
The Burial of Jesus
42 And when evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation, that
is, the day before the sabbath, 43Joseph of Arimathe'a, a respected member
of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took
courage and went to Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. 44And Pilate
wondered if he were already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked
him whether he was already dead. j 45And when he learned from the
centurion that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph. 46And he bought
a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud, and
laid him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a
stone against the door of the tomb. 47Mary Mag'dalene and Mary the
mother of Joses saw where he was laid.
16 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Mag'dalene, and Mary the
mother of James, and Salo'me, bought spices, so that they might go and
anoint him. * 2And very early on the first day of the week they went to the
tomb when the sun had risen. 3And they were saying to one another, “Who
will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?” 4And looking
up, they saw that the stone was rolled back; for it was very large. 5And
entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in
a white robe; and they were amazed. 6And he said to them, “Do not be
amazed; you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen, he is
not here; see the place where they laid him. 7But go, tell his disciples and
Peter that he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him, as he
told you.” 8And they went out and fled from the tomb; for trembling and
astonishment had come upon them; and they said nothing to any one, for
they were afraid.
Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene
9 Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to
Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. 10She went
and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. 11But
when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not
believe it.
Jesus Appears to Two Disciples
12 After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were
walking into the country. 13And they went back and told the rest, but they
did not believe them.
Jesus Commissions the Disciples
14 Afterward he appeared to the Eleven themselves as they sat at table;
and he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because
they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. 15And he said
to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.
16He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not
believe will be condemned. 17And these signs will accompany those who
believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new
tongues; 18they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it
will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will
recover.”
The Ascension of Jesus
19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into
heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. 20And they went forth and
preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the
message by the signs that attended it. Amen. k *
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Luke
Chapters
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THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE
Dedication to Theophilus
1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things
which have been accomplished among us, 2just as they were delivered to us
by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the
word, 3it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closelya for
some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent
Theoph'ilus, * 4that you may know the truth concerning the things of which
you have been informed.
The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5 * In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named
Zechari'ah,b of the division of Abi'jah; and he had a wife of the daughters of
Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6And they were both righteous before
God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord
blamelessly. 7But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both
were advanced in years.
8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was
on duty, 9according to the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to
enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10And the whole multitude of
the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11And there
appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar
of incense. 12And Zechari'ah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell
upon him. 13But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechari'ah, for
your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you
shall call his name John.
14And you will have joy and gladness,
and many will rejoice at his birth;

15for he will be great before the Lord,
and he shall drink no wine nor strong drink,

and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit,
even from his mother’s womb.
16And he will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God,
17and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Eli'jah,
to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,

and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,
to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
18And Zechari'ah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an
old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19And the angel answered him,
“I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak to
you, and to bring you this good news. 20And behold, you will be silent and
unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass, because you
did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” 21And the
people were waiting for Zechari'ah, and they wondered at his delay in the
temple. 22And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they
perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he made signs to
them and remained mute. 23And when his time of service was ended, he
went to his home.
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she
hid herself, saying, 25“Thus the Lord has done to me in the days when he
looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.”
The Birth of Jesus Foretold
26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of
Galilee named Nazareth, 27to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was
Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28And he
came to her and said, “Hail, full of grace,b2 the Lord is with you!”c 29But
she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort
of greeting this might be. 30And the angel said to her, * “Do not be afraid,
Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31And behold, you will conceive
in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.
32He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High;
and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,
33and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever;
and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34And Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, * since I have no
husband?” 35And the angel said to her,

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you;
therefore the child to be bornd will be called holy,
the Son of God.
36And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also
conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.
37For with God nothing will be impossible.” 38And Mary said, “Behold, I
am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And
the angel departed from her.
Mary Visits Elizabeth; and Mary’s Song of Praise
39 In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a
city of Judah, 40and she entered the house of Zechari'ah and greeted
Elizabeth. 41And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child
leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42and she
exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is
the fruit of your womb! 43And why is this granted me, that the mother of
my Lord should come to me? 44For behold, when the voice of your greeting
came to my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. 45And blessed is she
who believed that there would bee a fulfilment of what was spoken to her
from the Lord.” 46And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden.
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed;

49for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.

50And his mercy is on those who fear him
from generation to generation.

51He has shown strength with his arm,
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts,

52he has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree;

53he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent empty away.

54He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,

55as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his posterity for ever.” *

56And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her
home.
The Birth of John the Baptist
57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to be delivered, and she gave birth to
a son. 58And her neighbors and kinsfolk heard that the Lord had shown
great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. 59And on the eighth day they
came to circumcise the child; and they would have named him Zechari'ah
after his father, 60but his mother said, “Not so; he shall be called John.”
61And they said to her, “None of your kindred is called by this name.”
62And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he would have him
called. 63And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, “His name is John.”
And they all marveled. 64And immediately his mouth was opened and his
tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65And fear came on all their
neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill
country of Judea; 66and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts,
saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with
him.
Zechariah’s Prophecy
67 And his father Zechari'ah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and
prophesied, saying,
68“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people,

69and has raised up a horn of salvation * for us
in the house of his servant David,

70as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71that we should be saved from our enemies,
and from the hand of all who hate us;

72to perform the mercy promised to our fathers,
and to remember his holy covenant,

73the oath which he swore to our father Abraham, 74to grant us
that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,

might serve him without fear,
75in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.
76And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,

77togive knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
78through the tender mercy of our God,
when the day shall dawn uponf us from on high

79to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

80And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the
wilderness till the day of his manifestation to Israel.

The Birth of Jesus
2 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the
world should be enrolled. 2This was the first enrollment, when Quirin'ius
was governor of Syria. 3And all went to be enrolled, each to his own city.
4And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea,
to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the

house and lineage of David, 5to be enrolled with Mary his betrothed, who
was with child. 6And while they were there, the time came for her to be
delivered. 7And she gave birth to her first-born * son and wrapped him in
swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for
them in the inn.
The Shepherds and the Angels
8 And in that region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch
over their flock by night. 9And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and
the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear.
10And the angel said to them, “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good
news of a great joy which will come to all the people; 11for to you is born
this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12And this
will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and
lying in a manger.” 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of
the heavenly host praising God and saying,
14“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!”g

15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said
to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has
happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16And they went with
haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. 17And
when they saw it they made known the saying which had been told them
concerning this child; 18and all who heard it wondered at what the
shepherds told them. 19But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in
her heart. 20And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all
they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Jesus Is Circumcised and Named
21 And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called
Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
Jesus Is Presented in the Temple
22 And when the time came for their purification according to the law of
Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it
is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be
called holy to the Lord”) 24and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said
in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” 25Now
there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was
righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy
Spirit was upon him. 26And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit
that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27And
inspired by the Spirith he came into the temple; and when the parents
brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the law,
28he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
29“Lord, now let your servant depart in peace,
according to your word;

30for my eyes have seen your salvation
31which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.”

33 And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him;
34and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother,
“Behold, this child is set for the fall * and rising of many in Israel,
and for a sign that is spoken against
35(and a sword will pierce through your own soul also),
that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.”

36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phan'uel, of the
tribe of Asher; she was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven
years from her virginity, 37and as a widow till she was eighty-four. She did
not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and
day. 38And coming up at that very hour she gave thanks to God, and spoke
of him to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
The Return to Nazareth
39 And when they had performed everything according to the law of the
Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth. 40And the child
grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was
upon him.
The Boy Jesus in the Temple
41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the
Passover. 42And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to
custom; 43and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy
Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, 44but
supposing him to be in the company they went a day’s journey, and they
sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances; 45and when they did
not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46After three days
they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them
and asking them questions; 47and all who heard him were amazed at his
understanding and his answers. 48And when they saw him they were
astonished; and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so?
Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously.” 49And he
said to them, “How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must
be in my Father’s house?” * 50And they did not understand the saying
which he spoke to them. 51And he went down with them and came to
Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in
her heart.
52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature,i and in favor with God
and man.
3 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tibe'rius Caesar, Pontius Pilate
being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his
brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Iturae'a and Trachoni'tis, and
Lysa'nias tetrarch of Abile'ne, 2in the high-priesthood of Annas and
Cai'aphas, * the word of God came to John the son of Zechari'ah in the
wilderness; 3and he went into all the region about the Jordan, preaching a
baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 4As it is written in the
book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
make his paths straight.
5Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be brought low,

and the crooked shall be made straight,
and the rough ways shall be made smooth;
6and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”
7 He said therefore to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him,

“You brood of vipers! * Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
8Bear fruits that befit repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We
have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to
raise up children to Abraham. 9Even now the axe is laid to the root of the
trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and
thrown into the fire.”
10 And the multitudes asked him, “What then shall we do?” 11And he
answered them, “He who has two coats, let him share with him who has
none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.” 12Tax collectors also came
to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13And he said
to them, “Collect no more than is appointed you.” 14Soldiers also asked
him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Rob no one by
violence or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
15 As the people were in expectation, and all men questioned in their
hearts concerning John, whether perhaps he were the Christ, 16John
answered them all, “I baptize you with water; but he who is mightier than I
is coming, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie; he will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 17His winnowing fork is in
his hand, to clear his threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into his
granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
18 So, with many other exhortations, he preached good news to the
people. 19But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for
Hero'di-as, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had
done, 20added this to them all, that he shut up John in prison.
21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been
baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, 22and the Holy Spirit
descended upon him in bodily form, as a dove, and a voice came from
heaven, “You are my beloved Son;j with you I am well pleased.”k
The Ancestry of Jesus
23 Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being
the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, * the son of He'li, 24the son of Matthat,
the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jan'na-i, the son of Joseph,
25the son of Mattathi'as, the son of Amos, the son of Na'hum, the son of
Es'li, the son of Nag'ga-i, 26the son of Ma'ath, the son of Mattathi'as, the son
of Sem'e-in, the son of Jo'sech, the son of Jo'da, 27the son of Jo-an'an, the
son of Rhesa, the son of Zerub'babel, the son of She-al'ti-el,l the son of
Ne'ri, 28the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Co'sam, the son of
Elma'dam, the son of Er, 29the son of Joshua, the son of Elie'zer, the son of
Jo'rim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, 30the son of Simeon, the son of
Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jo'nam, the son of Eli'akim, 31the son of
Me'le-a, the son of Menna, the son of Mat'tatha, the son of Nathan, the son
of David, 32the son of Jesse, the son of O'bed, the son of Boaz, the son of
Sa'la, the son of Nahshon, 33the son of Ammin'adab, the son of Admin, the
son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Per'ez, the son of Judah, 34the son
of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Te'rah, the son of
Na'hor, 35the son of Se'rug, the son of Re'u, the son of Pe'leg, the son of
E'ber, the son of She'lah, 36the son of Ca-i'nan, the son of Arpha'xad, the
son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of La'mech, 37the son of Methu'selah,
the son of E'noch, the son of Jar'ed, the son of Maha'lale''el, the son of Ca-
i'nan, 38the son of E'nos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
4 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was
led by the Spirit 2for forty days in the wilderness, tempted by the devil. And
he ate nothing in those days; and when they were ended, he was hungry.
3The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to
become bread.” 4And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live
by bread alone.’ ” 5And the devil took him up, and showed him all the
kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, 6and said to him, “To you I
will give all this authority and their glory; for it has been delivered to me,
and I give it to whom I will. 7If you, then, will worship me, it shall all be
yours.” 8And Jesus answered him, “It is written,
‘You shall worship the Lord your God,
and him only shall you serve.' "
9And he took him to Jerusalem, and set him on the pinnacle of the
temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down
from here; 10for it is written,
‘He will give his angels charge of you, to guard you,’
11and
‘On their hands they will bear you up,

lest you strike your foot against a stone.' "
12And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your
God.' " 13And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from
him until an opportune time.
Jesus Begins Preaching and Teaching in Galilee
14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee, and a report
concerning him went out through all the surrounding country. 15And he
taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he went
to the synagogue, as was his custom, on the sabbath day. * And he stood up
to read; 17and there was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah. He
opened the book and found the place where it was written,
18“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”
20And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat
down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21And he
began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your
hearing.” 22And all spoke well of him, and wondered at the gracious words
which proceeded out of his mouth; and they said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?”
23And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb,
‘Physician, heal yourself; what we have heard you did at Caper'na-um, do

here also in your own country.’ ” 24And he said, “Truly, I say to you, no
prophet is acceptable in his own country. 25But in truth, I tell you, there
were many widows in Israel in the days of Eli'jah, when the heaven was
shut up three years and six months, when there came a great famine over all
the land; 26and Eli'jah was sent to none of them but only to Zar'ephath, in
the land of Si'don, to a woman who was a widow. 27And there were many
lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Eli'sha; and none of them was
cleansed, but only Na'aman the Syrian.” 28When they heard this, all in the
synagogue were filled with wrath. 29And they rose up and put him out of
the city, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built,
that they might throw him down headlong. 30But passing through the midst
of them he went away.
The Man with an Unclean Spirit
31 And he went down to Caper'na-um, a city of Galilee. And he was
teaching them on the sabbath; 32and they were astonished at his teaching,
for his word was with authority. 33And in the synagogue there was a man
who had the spirit of an unclean demon; and he cried out with a loud voice,
34“Ah!m What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come
to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” 35But Jesus
rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” And when the
demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him, having
done him no harm. 36And they were all amazed and said to one another,
“What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the
unclean spirits, and they come out.” 37And reports of him went out into
every place in the surrounding region.
Healings at Simon’s House
38 And he arose and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s house. Now
Simon’s mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they asked him about
her. 39And he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her; and
immediately she rose and served them.
40 Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick
with various diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on every
one of them and healed them. 41And demons also came out of many, crying,
“You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them, and would not allow them
to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.
Jesus Preaches in the Synagogues of Judea
42 And when it was day he departed and went into a lonely place. And the
people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving
them; 43but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom
of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.” 44And he
was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.n
5 While the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he was
standing by the lake of Gennes'aret. 2And he saw two boats by the lake; but
the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3Getting
into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little
from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4And
when he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and
let down your nets for a catch.” 5And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled
all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” 6And
when they had done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish; and as their
nets were breaking, 7they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to
come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they
began to sink. 8But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees,
saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” 9For he was
astonished, and all that were with him, at the catch of fish which they had
taken; 10and so also were James and John, sons of Zeb'edee, who were
partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid;
henceforth you will be catching men.” 11And when they had brought their
boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
12 While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy; and
when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will,
you can make me clean.” 13And he stretched out his hand, and touched him,
saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. 14And he
charged him to tell no one; but “go and show yourself to the priest, and
make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to
the people.”o 15But so much the more the report went abroad concerning
him; and great multitudes gathered to hear and to be healed of their
infirmities. 16But he withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.
17 On one of those days, as he was teaching, there were Pharisees and
teachers of the law sitting by, who had come from every village of Galilee
and Judea and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was with him to
heal.p 18And behold, men were bringing on a bed a man who was
paralyzed, and they sought to bring him in and lay him before Jesus;q 19but
finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the
roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into their midst before
Jesus. 20And when he saw their faith he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven
you.” 21And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who
is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God only?”
22When Jesus perceived their questionings, he answered them, “Why do
you question in your hearts? 23Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are
forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 24But that you may know that the
Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who
was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, take up your bed and go home.” 25And
immediately he rose before them, and took up that on which he lay, and
went home, glorifying God. 26And amazement seized them all, and they
glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen strange
things today.”
Jesus Calls Levi
27 After this he went out, and saw a tax collector, named Levi, sitting at
the tax office; and he said to him, “Follow me.” 28And he left everything,
and rose and followed him.
29 And Levi made him a great feast in his house; and there was a large
company of tax collectors and others sitting at tabler with them. 30And the
Pharisees and their scribes murmured against his disciples, saying, “Why do
you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” 31And Jesus answered
them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are
sick; 32I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
33 And they said to him, “The disciples of John fast often and offer
prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.”
34And Jesus said to them, “Can you make wedding guests fast while the
bridegroom is with them? 35The days will come, when the bridegroom is
taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.” 36He told
them a parable also: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it
upon an old garment; if he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the
new will not match the old. 37And no one puts new wine into old wineskins;
if he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the
skins will be destroyed. 38But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.
39And no one after drinking old wine desires new; for he says, ‘The old is
good.' "s
A Teaching about the Sabbath
6 On a sabbath,t while he was going through the grainfields, his
disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands.
2But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to
do on the sabbath?” 3And Jesus answered, “Have you not read what David
did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4how he entered
the house of God, and took and ate the showbread, which it is not lawful for
any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” 5And he said
to them, “The Son of man is lord of the sabbath.”
6 On another sabbath, when he entered the synagogue and taught, a man
was there whose right hand was withered. 7And the scribes and the
Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the sabbath, so that
they might find an accusation against him. 8But he knew their thoughts, and
he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And
he rose and stood there. 9And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful on
the sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” 10And he
looked around on them all, and said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And
he did so, and his hand was restored. 11But they were filled with fury and
discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.
Jesus Chooses the Twelve Disciples
12 In these days he went out to the hills to pray; and all night he continued
in prayer to God. 13And when it was day, he called his disciples, and chose
from them twelve, whom he named apostles; 14Simon, whom he named
Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James and John, and Philip, and
Bartholomew, 15and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphae'us,
and Simon who was called the Zealot, 16and Judas the son of James, and
Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Jesus Teaches and Heals
17 And he came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great
crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and
Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Si'don, who came to hear him and to
be healed of their diseases; 18and those who were troubled with unclean
spirits were cured. 19And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power
came forth from him and healed them all.
Blessings and Woes
20 And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said: *
“Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
21 “Blessed are you that hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are you that weep now, for you shall laugh.
22 “Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you and
revile you, and cast out your name as evil, on account of the Son of man!
23Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in
heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.

24 “But woe to you that are rich, for you have received your consolation.
25 “Woe to you that are full now, for you shall hunger.
“Woe to you that laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.
26 “Woe to you, when all men speak well of you, for so their fathers did to
the false prophets.
Love for Enemies
27 “But I say to you that hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who
hate you, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. 29To
him who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from him who
takes away your cloak do not withhold your coat as well. 30Give to every
one who begs from you; and of him who takes away your goods do not ask
them again. 31And as you wish that men would do to you, do so to them.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even
sinners love those who love them. 33And if you do good to those who do
good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34And
if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to
you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. 35But love
your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return;v and your
reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for he is kind
to the ungrateful and the selfish. 36Be merciful, even as your Father is
merciful.
Judging Others
37 “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not
be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38give, and it will be
given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over,
will be put into your lap. For the measure you give will be the measure you
get back.”
39 He also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will
they not both fall into a pit? 40A disciple is not above his teacher, but every
one when he is fully taught will be like his teacher. 41Why do you see the
speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your
own eye? 42Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out
the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in
your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and
then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.
A Tree and Its Fruit
43 “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good
fruit; 44for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered
from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45The good man
out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil man out of
his evil treasure produces evil; for out of the abundance of the heart his
mouth speaks.
Hearers and Doers
46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? 47Every
one who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you
what he is like: 48he is like a man building a house, who dug deep, and laid
the foundation upon rock; and when a flood arose, the stream broke against
that house, and could not shake it, because it had been well built.w 49But he
who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the
ground without a foundation; against which the stream broke, and
immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”
Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Slave
7 After he had ended all his sayings in the hearing of the people he
entered Caper'na-um. 2Now a centurion had a slave who was dearx to him,
who was sick and at the point of death. 3When he heard of Jesus, he sent to
him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his slave. 4And when
they came to Jesus, they begged him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to
have you do this for him, 5for he loves our nation, and he built us our
synagogue.” 6And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the
house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying to him, “Lord, do not
trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof;
7therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my
servant be healed. 8For I am a man set under authority, with soldiers under
me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he
comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 9When Jesus heard this
he marveled at him, and turned and said to the multitude that followed him,
“I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” 10And when those
who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave well.
Jesus Raises a Widow’s Son at Nain
11 Soon afterwardy he went to a city called Na'in, and his disciples and a
great crowd went with him. 12As he drew near to the gate of the city,
behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his
mother, and she was a widow; and a large crowd from the city was with her.
13And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her,
“Do not weep.” 14And he came and touched the bier, and the bearers stood
still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15And the dead man sat
up, and began to speak. And he gave him to his mother. 16Fear seized them
all; and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!”
and “God has visited his people!” 17And this report concerning him spread
through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.
Messengers from John the Baptist
18 The disciples of John told him of all these things. 19And John, calling
to him two of his disciples, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you he who
is to come, or shall we look for another?” 20And when the men had come to
him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you he
who is to come, or shall we look for another?' " 21In that hour he cured
many of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many that were blind
he bestowed sight. 22And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you
have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are
cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news
preached to them. 23And blessed is he who takes no offense at me.”
24 When the messengers of John had gone, he began to speak to the
crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to
behold? A reed shaken by the wind? 25What then did you go out to see? A
man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, those who are gorgeously appareled
and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. 26What then did you go out to see? A
prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27This is he of whom it is
written,
‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who shall prepare your way before you.’
28I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John; yet he
who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” * 29(When they
heard this all the people and the tax collectors justified God, having been
baptized with the baptism of John; 30but the Pharisees and the lawyers
rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by
him.)
31 “To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are
they like? 32They are like children sitting in the market place and calling to
one another,
‘We piped to you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not weep.’
33For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine;
and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ 34The Son of man has come eating and
drinking; and you say, ‘Behold, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax
collectors and sinners!’ 35Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”
A Sinful Woman Forgiven
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the
Pharisee’s house, and sat at table. 37And behold, a woman of the city, who
was a sinner, when she learned that he was sitting at table in the Pharisee’s
house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38and standing behind him at
his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears, and wiped them
with the hair of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the
ointment. 39Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to
himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what
sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40And Jesus
answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he
answered, “What is it, Teacher?” 41“A certain creditor had two debtors; one
owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42When they could not pay,
he forgave them both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43Simon
answered, “The one, I suppose, to whom he forgave more.” And he said to
him, “You have judged rightly.” 44Then turning toward the woman he said
to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house, you gave me no
water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them
with her hair. 45You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has
not ceased to kiss my feet. 46You did not anoint my head with oil, but she
has anointed my feet with ointment. 47Therefore I tell you, her sins, which
are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little,
loves little.” * 48And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49Then those
who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this,
who even forgives sins?” 50And he said to the woman, “Your faith has
saved you; go in peace.”
Some Women Accompany Jesus
8 Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, preaching and
bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the Twelve were with
him, 2and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and
infirmities: Mary, called Mag'dalene, from whom seven demons had gone
out, 3and Jo-an'na, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and
many others, who provided for themz out of their means.
4 And when a great crowd came together and people from town after town
came to him, he said in a parable: 5“A sower went out to sow his seed; and
as he sowed, some fell along the path, and was trodden under foot, and the
birds of the air devoured it. 6And some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it
withered away, because it had no moisture. 7And some fell among thorns;
and the thorns grew with it and choked it. 8And some fell into good soil and
grew, and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “He who
has ears to hear, let him hear.”
The Explanation of the Parable
9 And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, 10he said,
“To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but
for others they are in parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing
they may not understand. 11Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of
God. 12The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil
comes and takes away the word from their hearts, that they may not believe
and be saved. 13And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the
word, receive it with joy; but these have no root, they believe for a while
and in time of temptation fall away. 14And as for what fell among the
thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked
by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
15And as for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word,
hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bring forth fruit with patience.
A Lamp Is Not Hidden
16 “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a vessel, or puts it under a
bed, but puts it on a stand, that those who enter may see the light. 17For
nothing is hidden that shall not be made manifest, nor anything secret that
shall not be known and come to light. 18Take heed then how you hear; for to
him who has will more be given, and from him who has not, even what he
thinks that he has will be taken away.”
19 Then his mother and his brethren * came to him, but they could not
reach him for the crowd. 20And he was told, “Your mother and your
brethren are standing outside, desiring to see you.” 21But he said to them,
“My mother and my brethren are those who hear the word of God and do
it.”
Jesus Calms a Storm on the Sea
22 One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let
us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they set out, 23and as they
sailed he fell asleep. And a storm of wind came down on the lake, and they
were filling with water, and were in danger. 24And they went and woke him,
saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he awoke and rebuked the
wind and the raging waves; and they ceased, and there was a calm. 25He
said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they
marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even
wind and water, and they obey him?”
Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac
26 Then they arrived at the country of the Ger'asenes,a which is opposite
Galilee. 27And as he stepped out on land, there met him a man from the city
who had demons; for a long time he had worn no clothes, and he lived not
in a house but among the tombs. 28When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell
down before him, and said with a loud voice, “What have you to do with
me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.” 29For
he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many a
time it had seized him; he was kept under guard, and bound with chains and
shackles, but he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the
desert.) 30Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” And he said,
“Legion”; for many demons had entered him. 31And they begged him not to
command them to depart into the abyss. 32Now a large herd of swine was
feeding there on the hillside; and they begged him to let them enter these.
So he gave them leave. 33Then the demons came out of the man and entered
the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were
drowned.
34 When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled, and told it in
the city and in the country. 35Then people went out to see what had
happened, and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the
demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind;
and they were afraid. 36And those who had seen it told them how he who
had been possessed with demons was healed. 37Then all the people of the
surrounding country of the Ger'asenesa asked him to depart from them; for
they were seized with great fear; so he got into the boat and returned. 38The
man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him;
but he sent him away, saying, 39“Return to your home, and declare how
much God has done for you.” And he went away, proclaiming throughout
the whole city how much Jesus had done for him. *
A Girl Restored to Life anda Woman Healed
40 Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all
waiting for him. 41And there came a man named Ja'irus, who was a ruler of
the synagogue; and falling at Jesus’ feet he begged him to come to his
house, 42for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she
was dying.
As he went, the people pressed round him. 43And a woman who had had a
flow of blood for twelve years and had spent all her living upon physiciansb
and could not be healed by any one, 44came up behind him, and touched the
fringe of his garment; and immediately her flow of blood ceased. 45And
Jesus said, “Who was it that touched me?” When all denied it, Peterc said,
“Master, the multitudes surround you and press upon you!” 46But Jesus
said, “Some one touched me; for I perceive that power has gone forth from
me.” 47And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came
trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the
people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately
healed. 48And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in
peace.”
49 While he was still speaking, a man from the ruler’s house came and
said, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more.” 50But
Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she
shall be well.” 51And when he came to the house, he permitted no one to
enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother
of the child. 52And all were weeping and bewailing her; but he said, “Do
not weep; for she is not dead but sleeping.” 53And they laughed at him,
knowing that she was dead. 54But taking her by the hand he called, saying,
“Child, arise.” 55And her spirit returned, and she got up at once; and he
directed that something should be given her to eat. 56And her parents were
amazed; but he charged them to tell no one what had happened.
9 And he called the Twelve together and gave them power and authority
over all demons and to cure diseases, 2and he sent them out to preach the
kingdom of God and to heal. 3And he said to them, “Take nothing for your
journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two
tunics. 4And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart.
5And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off
the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” 6And they departed
and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing
everywhere.
Herod’s Perplexity
7 Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done, and he was
perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the
dead, 8by some that Eli'jah had appeared, and by others that one of the old
prophets had risen. 9Herod said, “John I beheaded; but who is this about
whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him.
10 On their return the apostles told him what they had done. And he took
them and withdrew apart to a city called Beth-sa'ida. 11When the crowds
learned it, they followed him; and he welcomed them and spoke to them of
the kingdom of God, and cured those who had need of healing. 12Now the
day began to wear away; and the Twelve came and said to him, “Send the
crowd away, to go into the villages and country round about, to lodge and
get provisions; for we are here in a lonely place.” 13But he said to them,
“You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five
loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.”
14For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples,
“Make them sit down in companies, about fifty each.” 15And they did so,
and made them all sit down. 16And taking the five loaves and the two fish
he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the
disciples to set before the crowd. 17And all ate and were satisfied. And they
took up what was left over, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
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Peter’s Declaration That JesusIs the Christ
18 Now it happened that as he was praying alone the disciples were with
him; and he asked them, “Who do the people say that I am?” 19And they
answered, “John the Baptist; but others say, Eli'jah; and others, that one of
the old prophets has risen.” 20And he said to them, “But who do you say
that I am?” And Peter answered, “The Christ of God.” 21But he charged and
commanded them to tell this to no one, 22saying, “The Son of man must
suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and
scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
Taking Up One’s Cross
23 And he said to all, “If any man would come after me, let him deny
himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24For whoever would
save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save
it. 25For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or
forfeits himself? 26For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him
will the Son of man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory
of the Father and of the holy angels. 27But I tell you truly, there are some
standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.”
The Transfiguration
28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and
John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. 29And as he was
praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his clothing
became dazzling white. 30And behold, two men talked with him, Moses and
Eli'jah, 31who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus, which he was to
accomplish at Jerusalem. 32Now Peter and those who were with him were
heavy with sleep but kept awake, and they saw his glory and the two men
who stood with him. 33And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to
Jesus, “Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for
you and one for Moses and one for Eli'jah”—not knowing what he said.
34As he said this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were
afraid as they entered the cloud. 35And a voice came out of the cloud,
saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen;d listen to him!” 36And when the voice
had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silence and told no one
in those days anything of what they had seen.
Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon
37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great
crowd met him. 38And behold, a man from the crowd cried, “Teacher, I beg
you to look upon my son, for he is my only child; 39and behold, a spirit
seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him till he foams, and
shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40And I begged your disciples to
cast it out, but they could not.” 41Jesus answered, “O faithless and perverse
generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your
son here.” 42While he was coming, the demon tore him and convulsed him.
But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him back
to his father. 43And all were astonished at the majesty of God.
Jesus Again Foretells His Death
But while they were all marveling at everything he did, he said to his
disciples, 44“Let these words sink into your ears; for the Son of man is to be
delivered into the hands of men.” 45But they did not understand this saying,
and it was concealed from them, that they should not perceive it; and they
were afraid to ask him about this saying.
True Greatness
46 And an argument arose among them as to which of them was the
greatest. 47But when Jesus perceived the thought of their hearts, he took a
child and put him by his side, 48and said to them, “Whoever receives this
child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who
sent me; for he who is least among you all is the one who is great.”
Another Exorcist
49 John answered, “Master, we saw a man casting out demons in your
name, and we forbade him, because he does not follow with us.” 50But
Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him; for he that is not against you is for
you.”
A Samaritan Village Refusesto Receive Jesus
51 When the days drew near for him to be received up, * he set his face
to go to Jerusalem. * 52And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and
entered a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him; 53but the people
would not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. * 54And
when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us
to bid fire come down from heaven and consume them?”e 55But he turned
and rebuked them.f 56And they went on to another village.
Would-Be Followers of Jesus
57 As they were going along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow
you wherever you go.” 58And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and
birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.”
59To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and
bury my father.” 60But he said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own
dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61Another said,
“I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.”
62Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back
is fit for the kingdom of God.”

The Mission of the Seventy
10 After this the Lord appointed seventyg others, and sent them on
ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was
about to come. 2And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the
laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers
into his harvest. 3Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst
of wolves. 4Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and salute no one on the
road. 5Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ 6And if
a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon him; but if not, it shall
return to you. 7And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what
they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages; do not go from house to
house. 8Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set
before you; 9heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has
come near to you.’ 10But whenever you enter a town and they do not
receive you, go into its streets and say, 11‘Even the dust of your town that
clings to our feet, we wipe off against you; nevertheless know this, that the
kingdom of God has come near.’ 12I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on
that day for Sodom than for that town.
Woes to Unrepentant Cities
13 “Woe to you, Chora'zin! woe to you, Beth-sa'ida! for if the mighty
works done in you had been done in Tyre and Si'don, they would have
repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14But it shall be more
tolerable in the judgment for Tyre and Si'don than for you. 15And you,
Caper'na-um, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to
Hades.
16 “He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me, and
he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
The Return of the Seventy
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17 The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are
subject to us in your name!” 18And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like
lightning from heaven. * 19Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon
serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing
shall hurt you. 20Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are
subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
Jesus Rejoices and Thanks the Father
21 In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you,
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from
the wise and understanding and revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for
such was your gracious will.h 22All things have been delivered to me by my
Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the
Father is except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal
him.”
23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes
which see what you see! 24For I tell you that many prophets and kings
desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear,
and did not hear it.”
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher,
what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26He said to him, “What is written in
the law? What do you read there?” 27And he answered, “You shall love the
Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” 28And he
said to him, “You have answered right; do this, and you will live.”
29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my
neighbor?” 30Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to
Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him, and
departed, leaving him half dead. 31Now by chance a priest was going down
that road; and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32So
likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the
other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was; and
when he saw him, he had compassion, 34and went to him and bound up his
wounds, pouring on oil and wine; then he set him on his own beast and
brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35And the next day he took out
two denariii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him; and
whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36Which of
these three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among the
robbers?” 37He said, “The one who showed mercy on him.” And Jesus said
to him, “Go and do likewise.”
Jesus Visits Martha and Mary
38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a village; and a woman
named Martha received him into her house. 39And she had a sister called
Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40But Martha
was distracted with much serving; and she went to him and said, “Lord, do
you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help
me.” 41But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and
troubled about many things; 42one thing is needful.j Mary has chosen the
good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.”
The Lord’s Prayer
11 He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his
disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”
2And he said to them, “When you pray, say:
“Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3Give us each day
our daily bread;k 4and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive every
one who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation.”
Perseverance in Prayer
5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at
midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; 6for a friend of
mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7and
he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and
my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8I
tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his
friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him whatever he
needs. 9And I tell you, Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will
find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10For every one who asks
receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
11What father among you, if his son asks forl a fish, will instead of a fish
give him a serpent; 12or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13If
you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how
much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask
him!”
Jesus and Be-elzebul
14 Now he was casting out a demon that was mute; when the demon had
gone out, the mute man spoke, and the people marveled. 15But some of
them said, “He casts out demons by Be-el'zebul, the prince of demons”;
16while others, to test him, sought from him a sign from heaven. 17But he,
knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself
is laid waste, and house falls upon house. 18And if Satan also is divided
against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out
demons by Be-el'zebul. 19And if I cast out demons by Be-el'zebul, by whom
do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. 20But if it
is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has
come upon you. 21When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace,
his goods are in peace; 22but when one stronger than he assails him and
overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted, and divides
his spoil. 23He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not
gather with me scatters.
The Return of the Unclean Spirit
24 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passes through
waterless places seeking rest; and finding none he says, ‘I will return to my
house from which I came.’ 25And when he comes he finds it swept and put
in order. 26Then he goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than
himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man
becomes worse than the first.”
True Blessedness
27 As he said this, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him,
“Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked!” 28But
he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
The Sign of Jonah
29 When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is
an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the
sign of Jonah. 30For as Jonah became a sign to the men of Nin'eveh, so will
the Son of man be to this generation. 31The queen of the South will arise at
the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she
came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and
behold, something greater than Solomon is here. 32The men of Nin'eveh
will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they
repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than
Jonah is here.
The Light of the Body
33 “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a bushel, but
on a stand, that those who enter may see the light. 34Your eye is the lamp of
your body; when your eye is sound, your whole body is full of light; but
when it is not sound, your body is full of darkness. 35Therefore be careful
lest the light in you be darkness. 36If then your whole body is full of light,
having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays
gives you light.”
Jesus Denounces the Hypocrisy of the Pharisees and Lawyers
37 While he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him; so he
went in and sat at table. 38The Pharisee was astonished to see that he did not
first wash before dinner. 39And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees
cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of
extortion and wickedness. 40You fools! Did not he who made the outside
make the inside also? 41But give for alms those things which are within;
and behold, everything is clean for you.
42 “But woe to you Pharisees! for you tithe mint and rue and every herb,
and neglect justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done,
without neglecting the others. 43Woe to you Pharisees! for you love the best
seat in the synagogues and salutations in the market places. 44Woe to you!
for you are like graves which are not seen, and men walk over them without
knowing it.”
45 One of the lawyers answered him, “Teacher, in saying this you
reproach us also.” 46And he said, “Woe to you lawyers also! for you load
men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens
with one of your fingers. 47Woe to you! for you build the tombs of the
prophets whom your fathers killed. 48So you are witnesses and consent to
the deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs.
49Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and
apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ 50that the blood of all
the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this
generation, 51from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechari'ah, who
perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be
required of this generation. 52Woe to you lawyers! for you have taken away
the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those
who were entering.”
53 As he went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to
press him hard, and to provoke him to speak of many things, 54lying in wait
for him, to catch him in something he might say.
A Warning against Hypocrisy
12 In the meantime, when so many thousands of the multitude had
gathered together that they trod upon one another, he began to say to his
disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
2Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be
known. 3Whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and
what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed upon the
housetops.
Whom to Fear
4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that
have no more that they can do. 5But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him
who, after he has killed, has power to cast into hell;m yes, I tell you, fear
him! 6Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is
forgotten before God. 7Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered.
Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.
8 “And I tell you, every one who acknowledges me before men, the Son of
man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; 9but he who denies
me before men will be denied before the angels of God. 10And every one
who speaks a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but he who
blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 11And when they
bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not
be anxious about how or what you are to answer or what you are to say;
12for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to
say.”
The Parable of the Rich Fool
13 One of the multitude said to him, “Teacher, bid my brother divide the
inheritance with me.” 14But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or
divider over you?” 15And he said to them, “Take heed, and beware of all
covetousness; for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his
possessions.” 16And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man
brought forth plentifully; 17and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I
have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18And he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull
down my barns, and build larger ones; and there I will store all my grain
and my goods. 19And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods
laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry.’ 20But God said
to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you; and the things you
have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21So is he who lays up treasure for
himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Do Not Be Anxious
22 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious
about your life, what you shall eat, nor about your body, what you shall put
on. 23For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
24Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither
storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are
you than the birds! 25And which of you by being anxious can add a cubit to
his span of life?n 26If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that,
why are you anxious about the rest? 27Consider the lilies, how they grow;
they neither toil nor spin;o yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was
not clothed like one of these. 28But if God so clothes the grass which is
alive in the field today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much
more will he clothe you, O men of little faith! 29And do not seek what you
are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be of anxious mind. 30sup>For all
the nations of the world seek these things; and your Father knows that you
need them. 31Instead, seek hisp kingdom, and these things shall be yours as
well.
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you
the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves
with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does
not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34For where your
treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The Necessity of Watchfulness
35 “Let your loins be girded and your lamps burning, 36and be like men
who are waiting for their master to come home from the marriage feast, so
that they may open to him at once when he comes and knocks. 37Blessed
are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes; truly, I say
to you, he will put on his apron and have them sit at table, and he will come
and serve them. 38If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds
them so, blessed are those servants! 39But know this, that if the householder
had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would have been awake
andq would not have left his house to be broken into. 40You also must be
ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
The Faithful and the Unfaithful Servant
41 Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” 42And
the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise steward, whom his master
will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper
time? 43Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so
doing. 44Truly I tell you, he will set him over all his possessions. 45But if
that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins
to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink and get
drunk, 46the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not
expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will punishr him, and put
him with the unfaithful. 47And that servant who knew his master’s will, but
did not make ready or act according to his will, shall receive a severe
beating. 48But he who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, shall
receive a light beating. Every one to whom much is given, of him will much
be required; and of him to whom men commit much they will demand the
more.
Jesus the Cause of Division
49 “I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already
kindled! 50I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how I am constrained
until it is accomplished! 51Do you think that I have come to give peace on
earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; 52for henceforth in one house there
will be five divided, three against two and two against three; 53they will be
divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter
and daughter against her mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”
Interpreting the Present Time
54 He also said to the multitudes, “When you see a cloud rising in the
west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it happens. 55And
when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching
heat’; and it happens. 56You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the
appearance of earth and sky; but why do you not know how to interpret the
present time?
Settling with Your Accuser
57 “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? 58As you go
with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him
on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the
officer, and the officer put you in prison. 59I tell you, you will never get out
till you have paid the very last copper.”
Repent or Perish
13 There were some present at that very time who told him of the
Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2And he
answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than
all the other Galileans, because they suffered thus? 3I tell you, No; but
unless you repent you will all likewise perish. 4Or those eighteen upon
whom the tower in Silo'am fell and killed them, do you think that they were
worse offenders than all the others who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5I tell you, No;
but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”
The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree
6 And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard;
and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7And he said to the
vinedresser, ‘Behold, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig
tree, and I find none. Cut it down; why should it use up the ground?’ 8And
he answered him, ‘Let it alone, sir, this year also, till I dig about it and put
on manure. 9And if it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you
can cut it down.’ ”
Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman
10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. 11And
there was a woman who had had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she
was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. 12And when Jesus saw
her, he called her and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your
infirmity.” 13And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was
made straight, and she praised God. 14But the ruler of the synagogue,
indignant because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, said to the people,
“There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days
and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.” 15Then the Lord answered him,
“You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his
donkey from the manger, and lead it away to water it? 16And ought not this
woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be
loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?” 17As he said this, all his
adversaries were put to shame; and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious
things that were done by him.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
18 He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what
shall I compare it? 19It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and
sowed in his garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air
made nests in its branches.”
The Parable of the Leaven
20 And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? 21It
is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till it
was all leavened.”
The Narrow Door
22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching, and
journeying toward Jerusalem. 23And some one said to him, “Lord, will
those who are saved be few?” And he said to them, 24“Strive to enter by the
narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
25When once the householder has risen up and shut the door, you will begin
to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us.’ He will
answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26Then you will begin
to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’
27But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from; depart
from me, all you workers of iniquity!’ 28There you will weep and gnash
your teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets
in the kingdom of God and you yourselves thrust out. 29And men will come
from east and west, and from north and south, and sit at table in the
kingdom of God. 30And behold, some are last who will be first, and some
are first who will be last.”
The Lament over Jerusalem
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came, and said to him, “Get away
from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32And he said to them, “Go and tell
that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow,
and the third day I finish my course. 33Nevertheless I must go on my way
today and tomorrow and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet
should perish away from Jerusalem.’ 34O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the
prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have
gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings,
and you would not! 35Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you
will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the
Lord!' "
Jesus Heals the Man with Dropsyon the Sabbath
14 One sabbath when he went to dine at the house of a ruler who
belonged to the Pharisees, they were watching him. 2And behold, there was
a man before him who had dropsy. 3And Jesus spoke to the lawyers and
Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath, or not?” 4But they
were silent. Then he took him and healed him, and let him go. 5And he said
to them, “Which of you, having a sons or an ox that has fallen into a well,
will not immediately pull him out on a sabbath day?” 6And they could not
reply to this.
Humility and Hospitality
7 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he marked how
they chose the places of honor, saying to them, 8“When you are invited by
any one to a marriage feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest a more
eminent man than you be invited by him; 9and he who invited you both will
come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you will begin with
shame to take the lowest place. 10But when you are invited, go and sit in the
lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go
up higher’; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table
with you. 11For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who
humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner
or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your kinsmen or
rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid. 13But
when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind,
14and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be
repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

The Parable of the Great Banquet
15 When one of those who sat at table with him heard this, he said to him,
“Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!” 16But he said to
him, “A man once gave a great banquet, and invited many; 17and at the time
for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited,
‘Come; for all is now ready.’ 18But they all alike began to make excuses.
The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it;
please, have me excused.’ 19And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of
oxen, and I go to examine them; please, have me excused.’ 20And another
said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21So the servant
came and reported this to his master. Then the householder in anger said to
his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in
the poor and maimed and blind and lame.’ 22And the servant said, ‘Sir,
what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23And the
master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel
people to come in, that my house may be filled. 24For I tell you, none of
those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.' "
The Cost of Discipleship
25 Now great multitudes accompanied him; and he turned and said to
them, 26“If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and
mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his
own life, he cannot be my disciple. * 27Whoever does not bear his own
cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple. 28For which of you,
desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether
he has enough to complete it? 29Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation,
and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30saying, ‘This
man began to build, and was not able to finish.’ 31Or what king, going to
encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel
whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him
with twenty thousand? 32And if not, while the other is yet a great way off,
he sends an embassy and asks terms of peace. 33So therefore, whoever of
you does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
About Salt
34 “Salt is good; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be
restored? 35It is fit neither for the land nor for the dunghill; men throw it
away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
15 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear
him. 2And the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This man
receives sinners and eats with them.”
3 So he told them this parable: 4“What man of you, having a hundred
sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the
wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? 5And when
he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6And when he comes
home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them,
‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.’ 7Just so, I tell
you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over
ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
The Parable of the Lost Coin
8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins,t if she loses one coin, does not
light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it?
9And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors,
saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost.’ 10Just
so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who
repents.”
The Parable of the Prodigal and His Brother
11 And he said, “There was a man who had two sons; 12and the younger of
them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that falls to
me.’ And he divided his living between them. 13Not many days later, the
younger son gathered all he had and took his journey into a far country, and
there he squandered his property in loose living. 14And when he had spent
everything, a great famine arose in that country, and he began to be in want.
15So he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, who
sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16And he would gladly have fed onu
the pods that the swine ate; and no one gave him anything. 17But when he
came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have
bread enough and to spare, but I perish here with hunger! 18I will arise and
go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven
and before you; 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me as
one of your hired servants.” ’ 20And he arose and came to his father. But
while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and
ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21And the son said to him, ‘Father, I
have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be
called your son.’v 22But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the
best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his
feet; 23and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and make merry;
24for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’
And they began to make merry.

25 “Now his elder son was in the field; and as he came and drew near to
the house, he heard music and dancing. 26And he called one of the servants
and asked what this meant. 27And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come,
and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has received him safe
and sound.’ 28But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out
and entreated him, 29but he answered his father, ‘Behold, these many years
I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command; yet you never
gave me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends. 30But when this
son of yours came, who has devoured your living with harlots, you killed
for him the fatted calf!’ 31And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with
me, and all that is mine is yours. 32It was fitting to make merry and be glad,
for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.' "
The Parable of the Dishonest Steward
16 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a
steward, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his
goods. 2And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about
you? Turn in the account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be
steward.’ 3And the steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my
master is taking the stewardship away from me? I am not strong enough to
dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4I have decided what to do, so that people
may receive me into their houses when I am put out of the stewardship.’
5So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How
much do you owe my master?’ 6He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And
he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 7Then
he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred
measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 8The
master commended the dishonest steward for his prudence; for the sons of
this worldw are wiser in their own generation than the sons of light. * 9And I
tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon, so
that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal habitations.
10 “He who is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and he who
is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11If then you have not
been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust to you the true
riches? 12And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who
will give you that which is your own? 13No servant can serve two masters;
for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to
the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
The Law and the Kingdom of God
14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they
scoffed at him. 15But he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves
before men, but God knows your hearts; for what is exalted among men is
an abomination in the sight of God.
16 “The law and the prophets were until John; since then the good news of
the kingdom of God is preached, and every one enters it violently. 17But it
is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one dot of the law to
become void.
18 “Every one who divorces his wife and marries another commits
adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits
adultery.
The Rich Man and Lazarus
19 “There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and
who feasted sumptuously every day. 20And at his gate lay a poor man
named Laz'arus, full of sores, 21who desired to be fed with what fell from
the rich man’s table; moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22The
poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich
man also died and was buried; 23and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up
his eyes, and saw Abraham far off and Laz'arus in his bosom. 24And he
called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy upon me, and send Laz'arus to dip
the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in
this flame.’ 25But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you in your lifetime
received your good things, and Laz'arus in like manner evil things; but now
he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26And besides all this,
between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who
would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from
there to us.’ 27And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my
father’s house, 28for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest
they also come into this place of torment.’ 29But Abraham said, ‘They have
Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30And he said, ‘No, father
Abraham; but if some one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’
31He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will
they be convinced if some one should rise from the dead.' "
Some Sayings of Jesus
17 And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sinx are sure to come;
but woe to him by whom they come! 2It would be better for him if a
millstone were hung round his neck and he were cast into the sea, than that
he should cause one of these little ones to sin.y 3Take heed to yourselves; if
your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him; 4and if he sins
against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, and says,
‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6And the Lord said,
“If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this sycamine
tree, ‘Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
7 “Will any one of you, who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep, say
to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down at
table’? 8Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and put on
your apron and serve me, till I eat and drink; and afterward you shall eat
and drink’? 9Does he thank the servant because he did what was
commanded? 10So you also, when you have done all that is commanded
you, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.'
"
Jesus Cleanses Ten Lepers
11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Sama'ria and
Galilee. 12And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood
at a distance 13and lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have
mercy on us.” 14When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show
yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. 15Then one
of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a
loud voice; 16and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now
he was a Samaritan. 17Then said Jesus, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are
the nine? 18Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this
foreigner?” 19And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has
made you well.”
The Coming of the Kingdom
20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming,
he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be
observed; * 21nor will they say, ‘Behold, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold,
the kingdom of God is in your midst.”z
22 And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will
desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, and you will not see it.
23And they will say to you, ‘Behold, there!’ or ‘Behold, here!’ Do not go,
do not follow them. 24For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from
one side to the other, so will the Son of man be in his day.a 25But first he
must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. 26As it was in
the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of man. 27They ate,
they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, until the day when
Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
28Likewise as it was in the days of Lot—they ate, they drank, they bought,
they sold, they planted, they built, 29but on the day when Lot went out from
Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from heaven and destroyed them all—
30so will it be on the day when the Son of man is revealed. 31On that day, let
him who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to
take them away; and likewise let him who is in the field not turn back.
32Remember Lot’s wife. 33Whoever seeks to gain his life will lose it, but
whoever loses his life will preserve it. 34I tell you, in that night there will be
two men in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35There will be
two women grinding together; one will be taken and the other left.”b 37And
they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is,
there the eaglesc will be gathered together.”
The Parable of the Widow andthe Unrighteous Judge
18 And he told them a parable, to the effect that they ought always to
pray and not lose heart. 2He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who
neither feared God nor regarded man; 3and there was a widow in that city
who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Vindicate me against my adversary.’
4For a while he refused; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither
fear God nor regard man, 5yet because this widow bothers me, I will
vindicate her, or she will wear me out by her continual coming.' " 6And the
Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7And will not God
vindicate his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over
them? 8I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the
Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
The Parable of the Pharisees andthe Tax Collector
9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they
were righteous and despised others: 10“Two men went up into the temple to
pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood and
prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men,
extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice
a week, I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13But the tax collector, standing far
off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying,
‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his
house justified rather than the other; for every one who exalts himself will
be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
15 Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them;
and when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16But Jesus called them
to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to
such belongs the kingdom of God. 17Truly, I say to you, whoever does not
receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”
The Rich Ruler
18 And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal
life?” 19And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good
but God alone. 2020You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,
Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and
mother.' " 21And he said, “All these I have observed from my youth.” 22And
when Jesus heard it, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that
you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven;
and come, follow me.” 23But when he heard this he became sad, for he was
very rich. 24Jesus looking at him said, “How hard it is for those who have
riches to enter the kingdom of God! 25For it is easier for a camel to go
through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of
God.” 26Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” 27But he said,
“What is impossible with men is possible with God.” 28And Peter said,
“Behold, we have left our homes and followed you.” 29And he said to them,
“Truly, I say to you, there is no man who has left house or wife or brothers
or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30who will not
receive manifold more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
A Third Time Jesus Foretells HisDeath and Resurrection
31 And taking the Twelve, he said to them, “Behold, we are going up to
Jerusalem, and everything that is written of the Son of man by the prophets
will be accomplished. 32For he will be delivered to the Gentiles, and will be
mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon; 33they will scourge him and
kill him, and on the third day he will rise.” 34But they understood none of
these things; this saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what
was said.
Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar near Jericho
35 As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside
begging; 36and hearing a multitude going by, he inquired what this meant.
37They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38And he cried, “Jesus,
Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39And those who were in front rebuked
him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David,
have mercy on me!” 40And Jesus stopped, and commanded him to be
brought to him; and when he came near, he asked him, 41“What do you
want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me receive my sight.” 42And
Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.”
43And immediately he received his sight and followed him, glorifying God;
and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Jesus and Zacchaeus
19 He entered Jericho and was passing through. 2And there was a man
named Zacchae'us; he was a chief tax collector, and rich. 3And he sought to
see who Jesus was, but could not, on account of the crowd, because he was
small of stature. 4So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to
see him, for he was to pass that way. 5And when Jesus came to the place, he
looked up and said to him, “Zacchae'us, make haste and come down; for I
must stay at your house today.” 6So he made haste and came down, and
received him joyfully. 7And when they saw it they all murmured, “He has
gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” 8And Zacchae'us stood
and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor;
and if I have defrauded any one of anything, I restore it fourfold.” 9And
Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is
a son of Abraham. 10For the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost.”
The Parable of the Ten Pounds
11 As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he
was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God
was to appear immediately. 12He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a
far country to receive kingly powerd and then return. 13Calling ten of his
servants, he gave them ten pounds,e and said to them, ‘Trade with these till
I come.’ 14But his citizens hated him and sent an embassy after him, saying,
‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ 15When he returned, having
received the kingly power,d he commanded these servants, to whom he had
given the money, to be called to him, that he might know what they had
gained by trading. 16The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your pound
has made ten pounds more.’ 17And he said to him, ‘Well done, good
servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have
authority over ten cities.’ 18And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your
pound has made five pounds.’ 19And he said to him, ‘And you are to be
over five cities.’ 20Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your pound,
which I kept laid away in a napkin; 21for I was afraid of you, because you
are a severe man; you take up what you did not lay down, and reap what
you did not sow.’ 22He said to him, ‘I will condemn you out of your own
mouth, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking up
what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow? 23Why then did
you not put my money into the bank, and at my coming I should have
collected it with interest?’ 24And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the
pound from him, and give it to him who has the ten pounds.’ 25(And they
said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten pounds!’) 26‘I tell you, that to every one who
has will more be given; but from him who has not, even what he has will be
taken away. 27But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to
reign over them, bring them here and slay them before me.' "
28 And when he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
29When he drew near to Beth'phage and Beth'any, at the mount that is called
Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30saying, “Go into the village opposite,
where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet
sat; untie it and bring it here. 31If any one asks you, ‘Why are you untying
it?’ you shall say this, ‘The Lord has need of it.' " 32So those who were sent
went away and found it as he had told them. 33And as they were untying the
colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34And they
said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35And they brought it to Jesus, and
throwing their garments on the colt they set Jesus upon it. 36And as he rode
along, they spread their garments on the road. 37As he was now drawing
near, at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the
disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the
mighty works that they had seen, 38saying, “Blessed is the King who comes
in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39And
some of the Pharisees in the multitude said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your
disciples.” 40He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones
would cry out.”
Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem
41 And when he drew near and saw the city he wept over it, 42saying,
“Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace! But now
they are hidden from your eyes. 43For the days shall come upon you, when
your enemies will cast up a bank about you and surround you, and hem you
in on every side, 44and dash you to the ground, you and your children
within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another in you; because
you did not know the time of your visitation.” *
45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold,
46saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer’; but
you have made it a den of robbers.”

47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the
scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him; 48but
they did not find anything they could do, for all the people hung upon his
words.
The Authority of Jesus Questioned
20 One day, as he was teaching the people in the temple and preaching
the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up 2and
said to him, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that
gave you this authority.” 3He answered them, “I also will ask you a
question; now tell me, 4Was the baptism of John from heaven or from
men?” 5And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From
heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ 6But if we say, ‘From
men,’ all the people will stone us; for they are convinced that John was a
prophet.” 7So they answered that they did not know where it was from.
8And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do
these things.”
9 And he began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard,
and leased it to tenants, and went into another country for a long while.
10When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, that they should
give him some of the fruit of the vineyard; but the tenants beat him, and
sent him away empty-handed. 11And he sent another servant; him also they
beat and treated shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. 12And he
sent yet a third; this one they wounded and cast out. 13Then the owner of
the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; it may be
they will respect him.’ 14But when the tenants saw him, they said to
themselves, ‘This is the heir; let us kill him, that the inheritance may be
ours.’ 15And they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then
will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16He will come and destroy
those tenants, and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they
said, “God forbid!” 17But he looked at them and said, “What then is this
that is written:
has become the cornerstone’?
18Every one who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; but when it
falls on any one it will crush him.”
19 The scribes and the chief priests tried to lay hands on him at that very
hour, but they feared the people; for they perceived that he had told this
parable against them. 20So they watched him, and sent spies, who pretended
to be sincere, that they might take hold of what he said, so as to deliver him
up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor. 21They asked him,
“Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality,
but truly teach the way of God. 22Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar,
or not?” 23But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, 24“Show me a
coin.f Whose likeness and inscription has it?” They said, “Caesar’s.” 25He
said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to
God the things that are God’s.” 26And they were not able in the presence of
the people to catch him by what he said; but marveling at his answer they
were silent.
27 There came to him some Sad'ducees, those who say that there is no
resurrection, 28and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses
wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, having a wife but no children, the
mang must take the wife and raise up children for his brother. 29Now there
were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and died without children; 30and
the second 31and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children
and died. 32Afterward the woman also died. 33In the resurrection, therefore,
whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.”
34 And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in
marriage; 35but those who are accounted worthy to attain to that age and to
the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, 36for
they cannot die any more, because they are equal to angels and are sons of
God, being sons of the resurrection. 37But that the dead are raised, even
Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the
God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. * 38Now he is
not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to him.” 39And some of
the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” 40For they no
longer dared to ask him any question.
A Question about the Messiah
41 But he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David’s son?
42For David himself says in the Book of Psalms,
‘The Lord said to my Lord,

43till I make your enemies a stool for your feet.’
44David thus calls him Lord; so how is he his son?”
Jesus Denounces the Hypocrisy of the Scribes
45 And in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, 46“Beware
of the scribes, who like to go about in long robes, and love salutations in the
market places and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor
at feasts, 47who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long
prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
The Widow’s Offering
21 He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury;
2and he saw a poor widow put in two copper coins. 3And he said, “Truly I
tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; 4for they all
contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all the
living that she had.”
5 And as some spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones
and offerings, he said, 6“As for these things which you see, the days will
come when there shall not be left here one stone upon another that will not
be thrown down.” 7And they asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and
what will be the sign when this is about to take place?” 8And he said, “Take
heed that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name, saying, ‘I
am he!’ and, ‘The time is at hand!’ Do not go after them. 9And when you
hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified; for this must first take place,
but the end will not be at once.”
Signs and Persecutions
10 Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom; 11there will be great earthquakes, and in various places
famines and pestilences; and there will be terrors and great signs from
heaven. 12But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute
you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be
brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. 13This will be a
time for you to bear testimony. 14Settle it therefore in your minds, not to
meditate beforehand how to answer; 15for I will give you a mouth and
wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or
contradict. 16You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and
kinsmen and friends, and some of you they will put to death; 17you will be
hated by all for my name’s sake. 18But not a hair of your head will perish.
19By your endurance you will gain your lives.
The Destruction of Jerusalem Foretold

20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its
desolation has come near. 21Then let those who are in Judea flee to the
mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those
who are out in the country enter it; 22for these are days of vengeance, to
fulfil all that is written. 23Alas for those who are with child and for those
who are nursing in those days! For great distress shall be upon the earth and
wrath upon this people; 24they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led
captive among all nations; and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the
Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles * are fulfilled.
25 “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth
distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,
26men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the
world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27And then they will
see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28Now
when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads,
because your redemption is drawing near.”
29 And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees; 30as
soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the
summer is already near. 31So also, when you see these things taking place,
you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly, I say to you, this
generation will not pass away till all has taken place. 33Heaven and earth
will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Exhortation to Watchfulness
34 “But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with
dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon
you suddenly like a snare; 35for it will come upon all who dwell upon the
face of the whole earth. 36But watch at all times, praying that you may have
strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before
the Son of man.”
37 And every day he was teaching in the temple, but at night he went out
and lodged on the mount called Olivet. 38And early in the morning all the
people came to him in the temple to hear him.
22 Now the feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the
Passover. 2And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put
him to death; for they feared the people.
3 Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of
the Twelve; 4he went away and conferred with the chief priests and captains
how he might betray him to them. 5And they were glad, and engaged to
give him money. 6So he agreed, and sought an opportunity to betray him to
them in the absence of the multitude.
The Preparation of the Passover
7 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb
had to be sacrificed. 8So Jesush sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and
prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” 9They said to him, “Where
will you have us prepare it?” 10He said to them, “Behold, when you have
entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him
into the house which he enters, 11and tell the householder, ‘The Teacher
says to you, Where is the guest room, where I am to eat the Passover with
my disciples?’ 12And he will show you a large upper room furnished; there
make ready.” 13And they went, and found it as he had told them; and they
prepared the Passover.
Jesus Institutes the Eucharist
14 And when the hour came, he sat at table, and the apostles with him.
15And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with
you before I suffer; 16for I tell you I shall not eat iti until it is fulfilled in the
kingdom of God.” 17And he took a chalice, and when he had given thanks
he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves; 18for I tell you that
from now on I shall not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of
God comes.” 19And he took bread, and when he had given thanks he broke
it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do
this in remembrance of me.” 20And likewise the chalice after supper,
saying, “This chalice which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my
blood.”j 21But behold the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the
table. 22For the Son of man goes as it has been determined; but woe to that
man by whom he is betrayed!” 23And they began to question one another,
which of them it was that would do this.
The Dispute about Greatness
24 A dispute also arose among them, which of them was to be regarded as
the greatest. 25And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise
lordship over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors.
26But not so with you; rather let the greatest among you become as the
youngest, and the leader as one who serves. 27For which is the greater, one
who sits at table, or one who serves? Is it not the one who sits at table? But
I am among you as one who serves.
28 “You are those who have continued with me in my trials; 29as my
Father appointed a kingdom for me, so do I appoint for you 30that you may
eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the
twelve tribes of Israel.
31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you,k that he might
sift youk like wheat, 32but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail;
and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren.” 33And he said
to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” 34He said,
“I tell you, Peter, the cock will not crow this day, until you three times deny
that you know me.”
Purse, Bag, and Sword
35 And he said to them, “When I sent you out with no purse or bag or
sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.” 36He said to them,
“But now, let him who has a purse take it, and likewise a bag. And let him
who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one. 37For I tell you that this
Scripture must be fulfilled in me, ‘And he was reckoned with
transgressors’; for what is written about me has its fulfilment.” 38And they
said, “Look, Lord, here are two swords.” And he said to them, “It is
enough.”
Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives
39 And he came out, and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives;
and the disciples followed him. 40And when he came to the place he said to
them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41And he withdrew
from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, 42“Father, if
you are willing, remove this chalice from me; nevertheless not my will, but
yours, be done.” 43And there appeared to him an angel from heaven,
strengthening him. 44And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and
his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down upon the ground.l
45And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them
sleeping for sorrow, 46and he said to them, “Why do you sleep? Rise and
pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
47 While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called
Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss
him; 48but Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of man with
a kiss?” 49And when those who were about him saw what would follow,
they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” 50And one of them struck
the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. 51But Jesus said, “No
more of this!” And he touched his ear and healed him. 52Then Jesus said to
the chief priests and captains of the temple and elders, who had come out
against him, * “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and
clubs? 53When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay
hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”
Peter Denies Jesus
54 Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high
priest’s house. Peter followed at a distance; 55and when they had kindled a
fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among
them. 56Then a maid, seeing him as he sat in the light and gazing at him,
said, “This man also was with him.” 57But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I
do not know him.” 58And a little later some one else saw him and said,
“You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” 59And after an
interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man
also was with him; for he is a Galilean.” 60But Peter said, “Man, I do not
know what you are saying.” And immediately, while he was still speaking,
the cock crowed. 61And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter
remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the
cock crows today, you will deny me three times.” 62And he went out and
wept bitterly.
The Mocking and Beating of Jesus
63 Now the men who were holding Jesus mocked him and beat him;
64they also blindfolded him and asked him, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck
65
you?” And they spoke many other words against him, reviling him.
Jesus before the Council
66 When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people gathered
together, both chief priests and scribes; and they led him away to their
council, and they said, 67“If you are the Christ, tell us.” But he said to them,
“If I tell you, you will not believe; 68and if I ask you, you will not answer.
69But from now on the Son of man shall be seated at the right hand of the
power of God.” 70And they all said, “Are you the Son of God, then?” And
he said to them, “You say that I am.” 71And they said, “What further
testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips.”
Jesus before Pilate
23 Then the whole company of them arose, and brought him before
Pilate. 2And they began to accuse him, saying, “We found this man
perverting our nation, and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and
saying that he himself is Christ a king.” * 3And Pilate asked him, “Are you
the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” 4And
Pilate said to the chief priests and the multitudes, “I find no crime in this
man.” 5But they were urgent, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching
throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place.”
Jesus before Herod
6 When Pilate heard this, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. 7And
when he learned that he belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him over
to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. 8When Herod saw
Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had
heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. 9So he
questioned him at some length; but he made no answer. 10The chief priests
and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing him. 11And Herod with his
soldiers treated him with contempt and mocked him; then, clothing him in
gorgeous apparel, he sent him back to Pilate. 12And Herod and Pilate
became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been
at enmity with each other.
Jesus Sentenced to Death
13 Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the
people, 14and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was
perverting the people; and after examining him before you, behold, I did not
find this man guilty of any of your charges against him; * 15neither did
Herod, for he sent him back to us. Behold, nothing deserving death has
been done by him; 16I will therefore chastise him and release him.”m
18 But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us
Barab'bas”—19a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection
started in the city, and for murder. 20Pilate addressed them once more,
desiring to release Jesus; 21but they shouted out, “Crucify, crucify him!”
22A third time he said to them, “Why, what evil has he done? I have found
in him no crime deserving death; I will therefore chastise him and release
him.” 23But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be
crucified. And their voices prevailed. 24So Pilate gave sentence that their
demand should be granted. 25He released the man who had been thrown
into prison for insurrection and murder, whom they asked for; but Jesus he
delivered up to their will.
26 And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyre'ne, who was
coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind
Jesus. 27And there followed him a great multitude of the people, and of
women who bewailed and lamented him. 28But Jesus turning to them said,
“Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and
for your children. 29For behold, the days are coming when they will say,
‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that
never nursed!’ 30Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us’;
and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ 31For if they do this when the wood is green,
what will happen when it is dry?” *
32 Two others also, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death
with him. 33And when they came to the place which is called The Skull,
there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on the right and one on the
left. 34And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they
do.”n And they cast lots to divide his garments. 35And the people stood by,
watching; but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him
save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” 36The soldiers
also mocked him, coming up and offering him vinegar, 37and saying, “If
you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” 38There was also an
inscription over him,o “This is the King of the Jews.”
39 One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you
not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40But the other rebuked him, saying,
“Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of
condemnation? 41And we indeed justly; for we are receiving the due reward
of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42And he said, “Jesus,
remember me when you come in your kingly power.”p 43And he said to
him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
The Death of Jesus
44 It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole
landq until the ninth hour, 45while the sun’s light failed;r and the curtain of
the temple was torn in two. 46Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said,
“Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he
breathed his last. 47Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he
praised God, and said, “Certainly this man was innocent!” 48And all the
multitudes who assembled to see the sight, when they saw what had taken
place, returned home beating their breasts. 49And all his acquaintances and
the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance and saw
these things.
The Burial of Jesus
50 Now there was a man named Joseph from the Jewish town of
Arimathe'a. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man,
51who had not consented to their purpose and deed, and he was looking for
the kingdom of God. 52This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of
Jesus. 53Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud, and laid
him in a rock-hewn tomb, where no one had ever yet been laid. 54It was the
day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning.s 55The women who had
come with him from Galilee followed, and saw the tomb, and how his body
was laid; 56then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments.
On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
24 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the
tomb, taking the spices which they had prepared. 2And they found the stone
rolled away from the tomb, 3but when they went in they did not find the
body.t 4While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by
them in dazzling apparel; 55and as they were frightened and bowed their
faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living
among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.u 6Remember how he told
you, while he was still in Galilee, 7that the Son of man must be delivered
into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise.”
8And they remembered his words, 9and returning from the tomb they told
all this to the Eleven and to all the rest. 10Now it was Mary Mag'dalene and
Jo-an'na and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them
who told this to the apostles; 11but these words seemed to them an idle tale,
and they did not believe them. 12But Peter rose and ran to the tomb;
stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went
home wondering at what had happened.v
The Walk to Emmaus
13 That very day two of them were going to a village named Emma'us,
about seven milesw from Jerusalem, 14and talking with each other about all
these things that had happened. 15While they were talking and discussing
together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. 16But their eyes were
kept from recognizing him. 17And he said to them, “What is this
conversation which you are holding with each other as you walk?” And
they stood still, looking sad. 18Then one of them, named Cle'opas, answered
him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things
that have happened there in these days?” 19And he said to them, “What
things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a
prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20and how
our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and
crucified him. 21But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.
Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since this happened.
22Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the
tomb early in the morning 23and did not find his body; and they came back
saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was
alive. 24Some of those who were with us went to the tomb, and found it just
as the women had said; but him they did not see.” 25And he said to them,
“O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have
spoken! 26Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and
enter into his glory?” 27And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he
interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
28 So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He appeared
to be going further, 29but they constrained him, saying, “Stay with us, for it
is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with
them. 30When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and
broke it, and gave it to them. 31And their eyes were opened and they
recognized him; and he vanished out of their sight. 32They said to each
other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road,
while he opened to us the Scriptures?” 33And they rose that same hour and
returned to Jerusalem; and they found the Eleven gathered together and
those who were with them, 34who said, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has
appeared to Simon!” 35Then they told what had happened on the road, and
how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
Jesus Appears to His Disciples
36 As they were saying this, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to
them, “Peace to you.”x 37But they were startled and frightened, and
supposed that they saw a spirit. 38And he said to them, “Why are you
troubled, and why do questionings rise in your hearts? * 39See my hands
and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see; for a spirit has not flesh
and bones as you see that I have.” 40And when he had said this he showed
them his hands and his feet.y 41And while they still disbelieved for joy, and
wondered, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42They gave
him a piece of broiled fish, 43and he took it and ate before them.
44 Then he said to them, “These are my words which I spoke to you,
while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of
Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled.” 45Then he
opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46and said to them, “Thus
it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the
dead, 47and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in
his name to all nations,z beginning from Jerusalem. 48You are witnesses of
these things. 49And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but
stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high.”
50 Then he led them out as far as Beth'any, and lifting up his hands he
blessed them. 51While he blessed them, he parted from them, and was
carried up into heaven.a 52And they worshiped him, andb returned to
Jerusalem with great joy, 53and were continually in the temple blessing
God.
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John
Chapters
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THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN
The Word Became Flesh
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God. * 2He was in the beginning with God; 3all things were made
through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. 4In
him was life,a and the life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the
darkness, * and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7He came for
testimony, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him.
8He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light.
9 The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world.
10He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world
knew him not. 11He came to his own home, and his own people received
him not. 12But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave
power to become children of God; 13who were born, not of blood nor of the
will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and
truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only-begotten Son from the
Father. 15( John bore witness to him, and cried, “This was he of whom I
said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.’ ”)
16And from his fulness have we all received, grace upon grace. 17For the
law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
18No one has ever seen God; the only-begotten Son,b who is in the bosom
of the Father, he has made him known.

The Testimony of John the Baptist
19And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites
from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20He confessed, he did not
deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21And they asked him, “What
then? Are you Eli'jah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” And he
answered, “No.” 22They said to him then, “Who are you? Let us have an
answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23He said,
“I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of
the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”
24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25They asked him, “Then
why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Eli'jah, nor the
prophet?” 26John answered them, “I baptize with water; but among you
stands one whom you do not know, 27even he who comes after me, the
thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” 28This took place in
Beth'any beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
The Lamb of God
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the
Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! * 30This is he of whom
I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, for he was before me.’
31I myself did not know him; but for this I came baptizing with water, that
he might be revealed to Israel.” 32And John bore witness, “I saw the Spirit
descend as a dove from heaven and remain on him. 33I myself did not know
him; but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom
you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy
Spirit.’ 34And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of
God.”
The First Disciples of Jesus
35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples; 36and
he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”
37The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38Jesus
turned, and saw them following, and said to them, “What do you seek?”
And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you
staying?” 39He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he
was staying; and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth
hour. 40One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41He first found his brother Simon, and said
to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). 42He brought
him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, “So you are Simon the son of
John? You shall be called Ce'phas” (which means Peterc).
Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael
43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. And he found Philip and
said to him, “Follow me.” 44Now Philip was from Beth-sa'ida, the city of
Andrew and Peter. 45Philip found Nathan'a-el, and said to him, “We have
found him of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of
Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46Nathan'a-el said to him, “Can anything good
come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47Jesus saw
Nathan'a-el coming to him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in
whom is no guile!” 48Nathan'a-el said to him, “How do you know me?”
Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the
fig tree, I saw you.” 49Nathan'a-el answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of
God! You are the King of Israel!” 50Jesus answered him, “Because I said to
you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater
things than these.” 51And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will
see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon
the Son of man.”
The Marriage at Cana
2 On the third day there was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the
mother of Jesus was there; 2Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his
disciples. 3When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They
have no wine.” 4And Jesus said to her, “O woman, what have you to do
with me? * My hour has not yet come.” 5His mother said to the servants,
“Do whatever he tells you.” 6Now six stone jars were standing there, for the
Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7Jesus
said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.
8He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the steward of the
feast.” So they took it. 9When the steward of the feast tasted the water now
become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants
who had drawn the water knew), the steward of the feast called the
bridegroom 10and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first; and
when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the
good wine until now.” 11This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in
Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
12 After this he went down to Caper'na-um, with his mother and his
brethren * and his disciples; and there they stayed for a few days.
The Cleansing of the Temple
13 The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
14In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and
pigeons, and the money-changers at their business. 15And making a whip of

cords, he drove them all, with the sheep and oxen, out of the temple; and he
poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables.
16And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; you
shall not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” 17His disciples
remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
18The Jews then said to him, “What sign have you to show us for doing
this?” 19Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will
raise it up.” 20The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this
temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” 21But he spoke of the temple
of his body. 22When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples
remembered that he had said this; and they believed the Scripture and the
word which Jesus had spoken.
23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover feast, many believed in
his name when they saw the signs which he did; 24but Jesus did not trust
himself to them, 25because he knew all men and needed no one to bear
witness of man; for he himself knew what was in man.
Nicodemus Visits Jesus
3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicode'mus, a ruler of
the Jews. 2This man came to Jesusd by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we
know that you are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs
that you do, unless God is with him.” 3Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I
say to you, unless one is born anew,e he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
4Nicode'mus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he
enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5Jesus answered,
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he
cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6That which is born of the flesh is flesh,
and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.f 7Do not marvel that I said to
you, ‘You must be born anew.’e 8The windf blows where it wills, and you
hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it
goes; so it is with every one who is born of the Spirit.” 9Nicode'mus said to
him, “How can this be?” 10Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of
Israel, and yet you do not understand this? 11Truly, truly, I say to you, we
speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen; but you do
not receive our testimony. 12If I have told you earthly things and you do not
believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13No one has
ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man.g
14And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of
man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”h
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that
whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17For God
sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world
might be saved through him. 18He who believes in him is not condemned;
he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed
in the name of the only-begotten Son of God. 19And this is the judgment,
that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than
light, because their deeds were evil. 20For every one who does evil hates the
light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.
21But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly
seen that his deeds have been wrought in God.

Jesus and John the Baptist
22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the land of Judea; there he
remained with them and baptized. * 23John also was baptizing at Ae'non
near Sa'lim, because there was much water there; and people came and were
baptized. 24For John had not yet been put in prison. *
25 Now a discussion arose between John’s disciples and a Jew over
purifying. 26And they came to John, and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was
with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you bore witness, here he is,
baptizing, and all are going to him.” 27John answered, “No one can receive
anything except what is given him from heaven. 28You yourselves bear me
witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.
29He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom,
who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice;
therefore this joy of mine is now full. 30He must increase, but I must
decrease.”i
He Who Comes from Heaven
31 He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth belongs
to the earth, and of the earth he speaks; he who comes from heaven is above
all. 32He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives
his testimony; 33he who receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God
is true. 34For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for it is not by
measure that he gives the Spirit; 35the Father loves the Son, and has given
all things into his hand. 36He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he
who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests
upon him.
Jesus and the Woman of Samaria
4 Now when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was
making and baptizing more disciples than John 2(although Jesus himself did
not baptize, but only his disciples), 3he left Judea and departed again to
Galilee. 4He had to pass through Samar'ia. 5So he came to a city of
Samar'ia, called Sy'char, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
6Jacob’s well was there, and so Jesus, wearied as he was with his journey,
sat down beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
7 There came a woman of Samar'ia to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give
me a drink.” 8For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.
9The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink
of me, a woman of Samar'ia?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.
10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is
saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him and he would
have given you living water.” 11The woman said to him, “Sir, you have
nothing to draw with, and the well is deep; where do you get that living
water? 12Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and
drank from it himself, and his sons, and his cattle?” 13Jesus said to her,
“Every one who drinks of this water will thirst again, 14but whoever drinks
of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give
him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15The
woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come
here to draw.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” 17The
woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are
right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18for you have had five husbands, and
he whom you now have is not your husband; this you said truly.” 19The
woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20Our fathers
worshiped on this mountain; * and you say that in Jerusalem is the place
where men ought to worship.” 21Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the
hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you
worship the Father. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what
we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and now
is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for
such the Father seeks to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who
worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25The woman said to him, “I
know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ); when he comes, he
will show us all things.” 26Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”
27 Just then his disciples came. They marveled that he was talking with a
woman, but none said, “What do you wish?” or, “Why are you talking with
her?” 28So the woman left her water jar, and went away into the city, and
said to the people, 29“Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can
this be the Christ?” 30They went out of the city and were coming to him.
31 Meanwhile the disciples begged him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” 32But he
said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” 33So the
disciples said to one another, “Has any one brought him food?” 34Jesus said
to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish
his work. 35Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the
harvest’? I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see how the fields are already
white for harvest. 36He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for
eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. 37For here the
saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38I sent you to reap that
for which you did not labor; others have labored, and you have entered into
their labor.”
39 Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the
woman’s testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40So when the
Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed
there two days. 41And many more believed because of his word. 42They
said to the woman, “It is no longer because of your words that we believe,
for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior
of the world.”
Jesus Departs for Galilee
43 After the two days he departed to Galilee. 44For Jesus himself testified
that a prophet has no honor in his own country. 45So when he came to
Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in
Jerusalem at the feast, for they too had gone to the feast.
Jesus Heals an Official’s Son
46 So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water
wine. And at Caper'na-um there was an official whose son was ill. 47When
he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged
him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 48Jesus
therefore said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not
believe.” 49The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”
50Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word
that Jesus spoke to him and went his way. 51As he was going down, his
servants met him and told him that his son was living. 52So he asked them
the hour when he began to mend, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the
seventh hour the fever left him.” 53The father knew that was the hour when
Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live”; and he himself believed, and all
his household. 54This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had
come from Judea to Galilee.
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
5 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to
Jerusalem.
2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Hebrew called
Beth-za'tha,j which has five porticoes. 3In these lay a multitude of invalids,
blind, lame, paralyzed.k 5One man was there, who had been ill for thirty-
eight years. 6When Jesus saw him and knew that he had been lying there a
long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” 7The sick man
answered him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is
troubled, and while I am going another steps down before me.” 8Jesus said
to him, “Rise, take up your pallet, and walk.” 9And at once the man was
healed, and he took up his pallet and walked.
Now that day was the sabbath. 10So the Jews said to the man who was
cured, “It is the sabbath, it is not lawful for you to carry your pallet.” 11But
he answered them, “The man who healed me said to me, ‘Take up your
pallet, and walk.’ ” 12They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you,
‘Take up your pallet, and walk’?” 13Now the man who had been healed did
not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the
place. 14Afterward, Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “See,
you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse befall you.” 15The man went
away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. 16And this
was why the Jews persecuted Jesus, because he did this on the sabbath.
17But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working still, and I am working.”
18This was why the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not
only broke the sabbath * but also called God his Father, making himself
equal with God.
The Authority of the Son
19 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of
his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he
does, that the Son does likewise. 20For the Father loves the Son, and shows
him all that he himself is doing; and greater works than these will he show
him, that you may marvel. 21For as the Father raises the dead and gives
them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. 22The Father judges
no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, 23that all may honor the Son,
even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not
honor the Father who sent him. 24Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my
word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into
judgment, but has passed from death to life.
25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the
dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
26For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to
have life in himself, 27and has given him authority to execute judgment,
because he is the Son of man. 28Do not marvel at this; for the hour is
coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29and come forth,
those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have
done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.
The Testimony to Jesus
30 “I can do nothing on my own authority; as I hear, I judge; and my
judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who
sent me. 31If I bear witness to myself, my testimony is not true; 32there is
another who bears witness to me, and I know that the testimony which he
bears to me is true. 33You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the
truth. 34Not that the testimony which I receive is from man; but I say this
that you may be saved. 35He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were
willing to rejoice for a while in his light. 36But the testimony which I have
is greater than that of John; for the works which the Father has granted me
to accomplish, these very works which I am doing, bear me witness that the
Father has sent me. 37And the Father who sent me has himself borne
witness to me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never
seen; 38and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe
him whom he has sent. 39You search the Scriptures, because you think that
in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness to me; 40yet
you refuse to come to me that you may have life. 41I do not receive glory
from men. 42But I know that you have not the love of God within you. 43I
have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me; if another
comes in his own name, him you will receive. 44How can you believe, who
receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from
the only God? 45Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; it is
Moses who accuses you, on whom you set your hope. 46If you believed
Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote of me. 47But if you do not
believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”
6 After this Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is
the Sea of Tibe'ri-as. 2And a multitude followed him, because they saw the
signs which he did on those who were diseased. 3Jesus went up into the
hills, and there sat down with his disciples. 4Now the Passover, the feast of
the Jews, was at hand. 5Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a multitude
was coming to him, Jesus said to Philip, “How are we to buy bread, so that
these people may eat?” 6This he said to test him, for he himself knew what
he would do. 7Philip answered him, “Two hundred denariil would not buy
enough bread for each of them to get a little.” 8One of his disciples,
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, 9“There is a lad here who has
five barley loaves and two fish; but what are they among so many?” 10Jesus
said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place;
so the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11Jesus then took the
loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who
were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12And when they had
eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the fragments left over, that
nothing may be lost.” 13So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets
with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten.
14When the people saw the sign which he had done, they said, “This is
indeed the prophet who is to come into the world!”
15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to
make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the hills by himself.
16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17got into a
boat, and started across the sea to Caper'na-um. It was now dark, and Jesus
had not yet come to them. 18The sea rose because a strong wind was
blowing. 19When they had rowed about three or four miles,m they saw Jesus
walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat. They were frightened,
20but he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21Then they were glad to
take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which
they were going.
The Bread from Heaven
22 On the next day the people who remained on the other side of the sea
saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered
the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone.
23However, boats from Tibe'ri-as came near the place where they ate the
bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24So when the people saw that Jesus
was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went
to Caper'na-um, seeking Jesus.
25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him,
“Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I
say to you, you seek me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate
your fill of the loaves. 27Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for
the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of man will give to
you; for on him has God the Father set his seal.” 28Then they said to him,
“What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” 29Jesus answered them,
“This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30So
they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see, and believe
you? What work do you perform? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the
wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
32Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who
gave you the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from
heaven. 33For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven, and
gives life to the world.” 34They said to him, “Lord, give us this bread
always.”
35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall
not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst. 36But I said to you
that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37All that the Father gives me
will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out. 38For I have
come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who
sent me; 39and this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose
nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up at the last day. 40For this
is the will of my Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in
him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
41 The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, “I am the bread
which came down from heaven.” 42They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of
Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have
come down from heaven’?” 43Jesus answered them, “Do not murmur
among yourselves. 44No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me
draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45It is written in the
prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Every one who has heard
and learned from the Father comes to me. 46Not that any one has seen the
Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47Truly, truly, I
say to you, he who believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your
fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50This is the bread
which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. 51I
am the living bread * which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this
bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of
the world is my flesh.”
52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man
give us his flesh to eat?” * 53So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to
you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you
have no life in you; 54he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal
life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For my flesh is food indeed,
and my blood is drink indeed. 56He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood
abides in me, and I in him. 57As the living Father sent me, and I live
because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. 58This is
the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and
died; he who eats this bread will live for ever.” 59This he said in the
synagogue, as he taught at Caper'na-um.
The Words of Eternal Life
60 Many of his disciples, when they heard it, said, “This is a hard saying;
who can listen to it?” 61But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples
murmured at it, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? 62Then what if
you were to see the Son of man ascending where he was before? * 63It is the
Spirit that gives life, the flesh is of no avail; the words that I have spoken to
you are Spirit and life. 64But there are some of you that do not believe.” For
Jesus knew from the first who those were that did not believe, and who it
was that would betray him. 65And he said, “This is why I told you that no
one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”
66 After this many of his disciples drew back and no longer walked with
him. 67Jesus said to the Twelve, “Will you also go away?” 68Simon Peter
answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal
life; 69and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy
One of God.” 70Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the Twelve,
and one of you is a devil?” 71He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot,
for he, one of the Twelve, was to betray him.
The Unbelief of Jesus’ Brethren
7 After this Jesus went about in Galilee; he would not go about in Judea,
because the Jewsn sought to kill him. 2Now the Jews’ feast of Tabernacles
was at hand. 3So his brethren * said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea,
that your disciples may see the works you are doing. 4For no man works in
secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself
to the world.” 5For even his brethren did not believe in him. 6Jesus said to
them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. 7The world
cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify of it that its works are evil.
8Go to the feast yourselves; I am noto going up to this feast, for my time has
not yet fully come.” 9So saying, he remained in Galilee.

Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles
10 But after his brethren had gone up to the feast, then he also went up,
not publicly but in private. 11The Jews were looking for him at the feast,
and saying, “Where is he?” 12And there was much muttering about him
among the people. While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No,
he is leading the people astray.” 13Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke
openly of him.
14 About the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.
15The Jews marveled at it, saying, “How is it that this man has learning,p
when he has never studied?” 16So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is
not mine, but his who sent me; 17if any man’s will is to do his will, he shall
know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my
own authority. 18He who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory;
but he who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is
no falsehood. 19Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps the
law. Why do you seek to kill me?” 20The people answered, “You have a
demon! Who is seeking to kill you?” 21Jesus answered them, “I did one
deed, and you all marvel at it. 22Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is
from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man upon the
sabbath. 23If on the sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of
Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the sabbath I
made a man’s whole body well? 24Do not judge by appearances, but judge
with right judgment.”
Is This the Christ?
25 Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, “Is not this the man
whom they seek to kill? 26And here he is, speaking openly, and they say
nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the
Christ? 27Yet we know where this man comes from; and when the Christ
appears, no one will know where he comes from.” 28So Jesus proclaimed,
as he taught in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I come
from? But I have not come of my own accord; he who sent me is true, and
him you do not know. 29I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me.”
30So they sought to arrest him; but no one laid hands on him, because his
hour had not yet come. 31Yet many of the people believed in him; they said,
“When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?”
Officers Are Sent to Arrest Jesus
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd thus muttering about him, and the chief
priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest him. 33Jesus then said, “I shall
be with you a little longer, and then I go to him who sent me; 34you will
seek me and you will not find me; where I am you cannot come.” 35The
Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we shall
not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and
teach the Greeks? 36What does he mean by saying, ‘You will seek me and
you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?”
Rivers of Living Water
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and
proclaimed, “If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink. 38He who
believes in me, asq the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart shall flow rivers
of living water.’ ” 39Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who
believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given,
because Jesus was not yet glorified.
Division among the People
40 When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This is really
the prophet.” 41Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the
Christ to come from Galilee? 42Has not the Scripture said that the Christ is
descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where
David was?” 43So there was a division among the people over him. 44Some
of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
The Authorities andthe Woman Caught in Adultery
45 The officers then went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said
to them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46The officers answered, “No man
ever spoke like this man!” 47The Pharisees answered them, “Are you led
astray, you also? 48Have any of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed
in him? 49But this crowd, who do not know the law, are accursed.”
50Nicode'mus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said
to them, 51“Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing
and learning what he does?” 52They replied, “Are you from Galilee too?
Search and you will see that no prophet is to rise from Galilee.” * 53They
went each to his
8 own house, 1but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2Early in the
morning he came again to the temple; all the people came to him, and he sat
down and taught them. 3The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman
who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in their midst 4they said to
him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5Now in
the law Moses commanded us to stone such. What do you say about her?”
6This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring
against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 7And
as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is
without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8And once more
he bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 9But when they
heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the eldest, and Jesus
was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10Jesus looked up and
said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11She
said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and
do not sin again.”r
Jesus and the Light of the World
12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world; he who
follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 13The
Pharisees then said to him, “You are bearing witness to yourself; your
testimony is not true.” 14Jesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness to
myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I have come from and
where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am
going. 15You judge according to the flesh, I judge no one. 16Yet even if I do
judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone that judge, but I and hes who
sent me. 17In your law it is written that the testimony of two men is true; 18I
bear witness to myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness to me.”
19They said to him therefore, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered,
“You know neither me nor my Father; if you knew me, you would know my
Father also.” 20These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the
temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.
Jesus Alludes to His Death
21 Again he said to them, “I go away, and you will seek me and die in
your sin; * where I am going, you cannot come.” 22Then said the Jews,
“Will he kill himself, since he says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot
come’?” 23He said to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are
of this world, I am not of this world. 24I told you that you would die in your
sins, for you will die in your sins unless you believe that I am he.” 25They
said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Even what I have told you
from the beginning.t 26I have much to say about you and much to judge; but
he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from
him.” 27They did not understand that he spoke to them of the Father. 28So
Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know
that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority but speak thus as
the Father taught me. 29And he who sent me is with me; he has not left me
alone, for I always do what is pleasing to him.” 30As he spoke thus, many
believed in him.
True Disciples of Jesus
31 Jesus then said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue
in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32and you will know the truth, and
the truth will make you free.” 33They answered him, “We are descendants
of Abraham, and have never been in bondage to any one. How is it that you
say, ‘You will be made free’?”
34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, every one who
commits sin is a slave to sin. 35The slave does not continue in the house for
ever; the son continues for ever. 36So if the Son makes you free, you will be
free indeed. 37I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you seek to
kill me, because my word finds no place in you. 38I speak of what I have
seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”
Jesus and Abraham
39 They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If
you were Abraham’s children, you would do what Abraham did, 40but now
you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from
God; this is not what Abraham did. 41You do the works of your father.”
They said to him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father,
even God.” * 42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would
love me, for I proceeded and came forth from God; I came not of my own
accord, but he sent me. 43Why do you not understand what I say? It is
because you cannot bear to hear my word. 44You are of your father the
devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from
the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth
in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar
and the father of lies. 45But, because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.
46Which of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not
believe me? 47He who is of God hears the words of God; the reason why
you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”
48 The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a
Samaritan and have a demon?” 49Jesus answered, “I have not a demon; but
I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50Yet I do not seek my own glory;
there is One who seeks it and he will be the judge. 51Truly, truly, I say to
you, if any one keeps my word, he will never see death.” 52The Jews said to
him, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, as did the
prophets; and you say, ‘If any one keeps my word, he will never taste
death.’ 53Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the
prophets died! Who do you claim to be?” 54Jesus answered, “If I glorify
myself, my glory is nothing; it is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you
say that he is your God. 55But you have not known him; I know him. If I
said, I do not know him, I should be a liar like you; but I do know him and I
keep his word. 56Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day;
he saw it * and was glad.” 57The Jews then said to him, “You are not yet
fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?”u 58Jesus said to them, “Truly,
truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” * 59So they took up stones
to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple.
Healing of the Blind Man
9 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth. 2And his disciples
asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born
blind?” 3Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents,
but that the works of God might be made manifest in him. * 4We must work
the works of him who sent me, while it is day; night comes, when no one
can work. 5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6As
he said this, he spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and anointed
the man’s eyes with the clay, 7saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of
Silo'am” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back
seeing. 8The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar,
said, “Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?” 9Some said, “It is he”;
others said, “No, but he is like him.” He said, “I am the man.” 10They said
to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11He answered, “The man
called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Silo'am
and wash’; so I went and washed and received my sight.” 12They said to
him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”
The Pharisees Investigate the Healing
13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
14Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.
15The Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said
to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16Some of the
Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the
sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?”
There was a division among them. 17So they again said to the blind man,
“What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He
is a prophet.”
18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his
sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight,
19and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then
does he now see?” 20His parents answered, “We know that this is our son,
and that he was born blind; 21but how he now sees we do not know, nor do
we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for
himself.” 22His parents said this because they feared the Jews, for the Jews
had already agreed that if any one should confess him to be Christ, he was
to be put out of the synagogue. 23Therefore his parents said, “He is of age,
ask him.”
24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and
said to him, “Give God the praise; we know that this man is a sinner.” 25He
answered, “Whether he is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I know, that
though I was blind, now I see.” 26They said to him, “What did he do to
you? How did he open your eyes?” 27He answered them, “I have told you
already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do
you too want to become his disciples?” 28And they reviled him, saying,
“You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29We know that God
has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes
from.” 30The man answered, “Why, this is a marvel! You do not know
where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31We know that God
does not listen to sinners, but if any one is a worshiper of God and does his
will, God listens to him. 32Never since the world began has it been heard
that any one opened the eyes of a man born blind. 33If this man were not
from God, he could do nothing.” 34They answered him, “You were born in
utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.
Spiritual Blindness
35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said,
“Do you believe in the Son of man?”v 36He answered, “And who is he, sir,
that I may believe in him?” 37Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it
is he who speaks to you.” 38He said, “Lord, I believe”; and he worshiped
him. 39Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do
not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” 40Some of the
Pharisees near him heard this, and they said to him, “Are we also blind?”
41Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now
that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

Jesus the Good Shepherd
10 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by
the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber; 2but
he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3To him the
gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by
name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes
before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5A stranger
they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the
voice of strangers.” 6This figure Jesus used with them, but they did not
understand what he was saying to them.
7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of
the sheep. 8All who came before me are thieves and robbers; but the sheep
did not heed them. 9I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved,
and will go in and out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and
kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. 11I
am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not,
sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches
them and scatters them. 13He flees because he is a hireling and cares
nothing for the sheep. 14I am the good shepherd; * I know my own and my
own know me, 15as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay
down my life for the sheep. 16And I have other sheep, that are not of this
fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be
one flock, one shepherd. 17For this reason the Father loves me, because I
lay down my life, that I may take it again. 18No one takes it from me, but I
lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have
power to take it again; this charge I have received from my Father.” *
19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words.
20Many of them said, “He has a demon, and he is mad; why listen to him?”
21Others said, “These are not the sayings of one who has a demon. Can a
demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Jesus Is Rejected by the Jews
22 It was the feast of the Dedication at Jerusalem; 23it was winter, and
Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. 24So the Jews
gathered round him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in
suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25Jesus answered them, “I
told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name,
they bear witness to me; 26but you do not believe, because you do not
belong to my sheep. 27My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they
follow me; 28and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and
no one shall snatch them out of my hand. 29My Father, who has given them
to me,w is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the
Father’s hand. 30I and the Father are one.”
31 The Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32Jesus answered them, “I
have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of these do
you stone me?” 33The Jews answered him, “We stone you for no good work
but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God.” 34Jesus
answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’? 35If he
called them gods to whom the word of God came (and Scripture cannot be
nullified), 36do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into
the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?
37If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38but if
I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you
may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”
39Again they tried to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.
40 He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John at first
baptized, and there he remained. 41And many came to him; and they said,
“John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.”
42And many believed in him there.
The Death of Lazarus

11 Now a certain man was ill, Laz'arus of Beth'any, the village of Mary
and her sister Martha. 2It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment
and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Laz'arus was ill. 3So the
sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4But when
Jesus heard it he said, “This illness is not unto death; it is for the glory of
God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it.”
5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Laz'arus. 6So when he heard
that he was ill, he stayed two days longer * in the place where he was.
7Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go into Judea again.” 8The
disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were but now seeking to stone you,
and are you going there again?” 9Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve
hours in the day? If any one walks in the day, he does not stumble, because
he sees the light of this world. 10But if any one walks in the night, he
stumbles, because the light is not in him.” 11Thus he spoke, and then he said
to them, “Our friend Laz'arus has fallen asleep, but I go to awake him out of
sleep.” 12The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will
recover.” 13Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he
meant taking rest in sleep. 14Then Jesus told them plainly, “Laz'arus is dead;
15and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe.
But let us go to him.” 16Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow
disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
Jesus the Resurrection and the Life
17 Now when Jesus came, he found that Laz'arusx had already been in the
tomb four days. 18Beth'any was near Jerusalem, about two milesy off, 19and
many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them
concerning their brother. 20When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she
went and met him, while Mary sat in the house. 21Martha said to Jesus,
“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22And even
now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 23Jesus
said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24Martha said to him, “I know
that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” 25Jesus said to her,
“I am the resurrection and the life;z he who believes in me, though he die,
yet shall he live, 26and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do
you believe this?” 27She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the
Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world.”
Jesus Weeps
28 When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying
quietly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29And when she heard
it, she rose quickly and went to him. 30Now Jesus had not yet come to the
village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31When the
Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly
and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to
weep there. 32Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was and saw him,
fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother
would not have died.” 33When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who
came with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled;
34and he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come
and see.” 35Jesus wept. 36So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37But
some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man
have kept this man from dying?”
Jesus Raises Lazarus to Life
38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb; it was a cave, and a
stone lay upon it. 39Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of
the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he
has been dead four days.” 40Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you
would believe you would see the glory of God?” 41So they took away the
stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you
have heard me. 42I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this on
account of the people standing by, that they may believe that you sent me.”
43When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Laz'arus, come out.”
44The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his
face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him
go.”
The Plot to Put Jesus to Death
45 Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen
what he did, believed in him; 46but some of them went to the Pharisees and
told them what Jesus had done. 47So the chief priests and the Pharisees
gathered the council, and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs
many signs. 48If we let him go on like this, every one will believe in him,
and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy placea and our
nation.” 49But one of them, Cai'aphas, who was high priest that year, said to
them, “You know nothing at all; 50you do not understand that it is expedient
for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation
should not perish.” * 51He did not say this of his own accord, but being high
priest that year he prophesied that Jesus should die for the nation, 52and not
for the nation only, but to gather into one the children of God who are
scattered abroad. 53So from that day on they took counsel about how to put
him to death.
54 Jesus therefore no longer went about openly among the Jews, but went
from there to the country near the wilderness, to a town called E'phraim;
and there he stayed with the disciples.
55 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the
country to Jerusalem before the Passover, to purify themselves. 56They were
looking for Jesus and saying to one another as they stood in the temple,
“What do you think? That he will not come to the feast?” 57Now the chief
priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if any one knew where he
was, he should let them know, so that they might arrest him.
Mary of Bethany Anoints Jesus
12 * Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Beth'any, where
Laz'arus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2There they made him
a supper; Martha served, and Laz'arus was one of those at table with him.
3Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed the feet of
Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the
fragrance of the ointment. 4But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who
was to betray him), said, 5“Why was this ointment not sold for three
hundred denariib and given to the poor?” 6This he said, not that he cared for
the poor but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box he used to
take what was put into it. 7Jesus said, “Let her alone, let her keep it for the
day of my burial. 8The poor you always have with you, but you do not
always have me.”
The Plot to Put Lazarus to Death
9 When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came,
not only on account of Jesus but also to see Laz'arus, whom he had raised
from the dead. 10So the chief priests planned to put Laz'arus also to death,
11because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and
believing in Jesus.
Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
12 The next day a great crowd who had come to the feast heard that Jesus
was coming to Jerusalem. 13So they took branches of palm trees and went
out to meet him, crying, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of
the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14And Jesus found a young donkey and
sat upon it; as it is written,
15“Fear not, daughter of Zion;
behold, your king is coming,

sitting on a donkey’s colt!”
16His disciples did not understand this at first; but when Jesus was
glorified, then they remembered that this had been written of him and had
been done to him. 17The crowd that had been with him when he called
Laz'arus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead bore witness. 18The
reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done
this sign. 19The Pharisees then said to one another, “You see that you can do
nothing; look, the world has gone after him.”
Some Greeks Wish to See Jesus
20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some
Greeks. 21So these came to Philip, who was from Beth-sa'ida in Galilee, and
said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22Philip went and told Andrew;
Andrew went with Philip and they told Jesus. 23And Jesus answered them,
“The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified. 24Truly, truly, I say
to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone;
but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25He who loves his life loses it, and he
who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26If any one
serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there shall my servant be
also; if any one serves me, the Father will honor him.
Jesus Speaks about His Death
27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from
this hour’? No, for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28Father, glorify
your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will
glorify it again.” 29The crowd standing by heard it and said that it had
thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30Jesus answered,
“This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. 31Now is the judgment of
this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast out; 32and I, when I am
lifted up * from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” 33He said this to
show by what death he was to die. 34The crowd answered him, “We have
heard from the law that the Christ remains for ever. How can you say that
the Son of man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man?” 35Jesus said to
them, “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the
light, lest the darkness overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not
know where he goes. 36While you have the light, believe in the light, that
you may become sons of light.”
The Unbelief of the People
When Jesus had said this, he departed and hid himself from them.
37Though he had done so many signs before them, yet they did not believe
in him; 38it was that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be
fulfilled:
“Lord, who has believed our report,
and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
39Therefore they could not believe. For Isaiah again said,
40“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart,
lest they should see with their eyes and perceive with their heart,
and turn for me to heal them.”
41Isaiah said this because he saw his glory and spoke of him.
42Nevertheless many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of
the Pharisees they did not confess it, lest they should be put out of the
synagogue: 43for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.
Summary of Jesus’ Teaching
44 And Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in me, believes not in
me but in him who sent me. 45And he who sees me sees him who sent me.
46I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not
remain in darkness. 47If any one hears my sayings and does not keep them, I
do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the
world. 48He who rejects me and does not receive my sayings has a judge;
the word that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day. 49For I have
not spoken on my own authority; the Father who sent me has himself given
me commandment what to say and what to speak. 50And I know that his
commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has
bidden me.”
Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet
13 * Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his
hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his
own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2And during supper,
when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s
son, to betray him, 3Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into
his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4rose
from supper, laid aside his garments, and tied a towel around himself. 5Then
he poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to
wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6He came to Simon
Peter; and Peter said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” 7Jesus answered
him, “What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will
understand.” 8Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus
answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part in me.” 9Simon Peter
said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!”
10Jesus said to him, “He who has bathed does not need to wash, except for
his feet,c but he is clean all over; and you are clean, but not all of you.”
11For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “You are not
all clean.”
12 When he had washed their feet, and taken his garments, and resumed
his place, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13You
call me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. 14If I then, your
Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one
another’s feet. 15For I have given you an example, that you also should do
as I have done to you. 16Truly, truly, I say to you, a servantd is not greater
than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17If you
know these things, blessed are you if you do them. 18I am not speaking of
you all; I know whom I have chosen; it is that the Scripture may be
fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ 19I tell you
this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe
that I am he. 20Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives any one whom I
send receives me; and he who receives me receives him who sent me.”
Jesus Foretells His Betrayal
21 When Jesus had thus spoken, he was troubled in spirit, and testified,
“Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” 22The disciples
looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. 23One of his disciples,
whom Jesus loved, was lying close to the breast of Jesus; 24so Simon Peter
beckoned to him and said, “Tell us who it is of whom he speaks.” 25So
lying thus, close to the breast of Jesus, he said to him, “Lord, who is it?”
26Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have
dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son
of Simon Iscariot. 27Then after the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus
said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” 28Now no one at the
table knew why he said this to him. 29Some thought that, because Judas had
the money box, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast”; or,
that he should give something to the poor. 30So, after receiving the morsel,
he immediately went out; and it was night.
The New Commandment
31 When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of man glorified,
and in him God is glorified; 32if God is glorified in him, God will also
glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once. 33Little children, yet a little
while I am with you. You will seek me; and as I said to the Jews so now I
say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’ 34A new commandment *
I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you
also love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Jesus Foretells Peter’s Denial
36 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus
answered, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now; but you shall
follow afterward.” 37Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you
now? I will lay down my life for you.” 38Jesus answered, “Will you lay
down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till
you have denied me three times.
Jesus the Way, the Truth, and the Life
14 “Let not your hearts be troubled; believee in God, believe also in me.
2In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, would I have told
you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3And when I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I
am you may be also. 4And you know the way where I am going.”f 5Thomas
said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know
the way?” 6Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no
one comes to the Father, but by me. 7If you had known me, you would have
known my Father also; henceforth you know him and have seen him.”
8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied.”
9Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know
me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; how can you say,
‘Show us the Father’? 10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the
Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own
authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11Believe me
that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or else believe me for the
sake of the works themselves.
12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in me will also do the works
that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I go to the
Father. 13Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be
glorified in the Son; 14if you askg anything in my name, I will do it.
The Promise of the Holy Spirit
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16And I will ask
the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever,
17even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither
sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells with you, and will be
in you.
18 “I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you. 19Yet a little while,
and the world will see me no more, but you will see me; because I live, you
will live also. 20In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you
in me, and I in you. 21He who has my commandments and keeps them, he it
is who loves me; and he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I
will love him and manifest myself to him.” 22Judas (not Iscariot) said to
him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the
world?” 23Jesus answered him, “If a man loves me, he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home
with him. 24He who does not love me does not keep my words; and the
word which you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.
25 “These things I have spoken to you, while I am still with you. 26But the
Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will
teach you all things, * and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to
you. 27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world
gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be
afraid. 28You heard me say to you, ‘I go away, and I will come to you.’ If
you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the
Father is greater than I. 29And now I have told you before it takes place, so
that when it does take place, you may believe. 30I will no longer talk much
with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me;
31but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know
that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

Jesus the True Vine
15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2Every branch
of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear
fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3You are already made clean by
the word which I have spoken to you. 4Abide in me, and I in you. As the
branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can
you, unless you abide in me. 5I am the vine, you are the branches. He who
abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me
you can do nothing. 6If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a
branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and
burned. 7If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you
will, and it shall be done for you. 8By this my Father is glorified, that you
bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples. 9As the Father has loved
me, so have I loved you; abide in my love. 10If you keep my
commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s
commandments and abide in his love. 11These things I have spoken to you,
that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved
you. 13Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for
his friends. 14You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15No
longer do I call you servants,h for the servanti does not know what his
master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from
my Father I have made known to you. 16You did not choose me, but I chose
you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit
should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give
it to you. 17This I command you, to love one another.
The World’s Hatred
18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. *
19If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you
are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world
hates you. 20Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servanti is not
greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if
they kept my word, they will keep yours also. 21But all this they will do to
you on my account, because they do not know him who sent me. 22If I had
not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have
no excuse for their sin. 23He who hates me hates my Father also. 24If I had
not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have
sin; but now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. 25It is to
fulfil the word that is written in their law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’
26But when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father,
even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness
to me; 27and you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from
the beginning.
16 “I have said all this to you to keep you from falling away. 2They will
put you out of the synagogues; indeed, the hour is coming when whoever
kills you will think he is offering service to God. 3And they will do this
because they have not known the Father, nor me. 4But I have said these
things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you
of them.
The Work of the Spirit
“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with
you. 5But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me,
‘Where are you going?’ 6But because I have said these things to you,
sorrow has filled your hearts. 7Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your
advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not
come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8And when he comes, he
will convince the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment: 9of
sin, because they do not believe in me; 10of righteousness, because I go to
the Father, and you will see me no more; * 11of judgment, because the ruler
of this world is judged.
12 “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.
13When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he
will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak,
and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14He will glorify me,
for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15All that the Father has
is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
Sorrow Will Turn into Joy
16 “A little while, and you will see me no more; again a little while, and
you will see me.” 17Some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this
that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little
while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?” 18They
said, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he
means.” 19Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him; so he said to them, “Is
this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while,
and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’?
20Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will
rejoice; you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. 21When a
woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she is
delivered of the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a
childj is born into the world. 22So you have sorrow now, but I will see you
again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.
23In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you
ask anything of the Father, he will give it to you in my name. 24Until now
you have asked nothing in my name; ask, and you will receive, that your
joy may be full.
Peace for the Disciples
25 “I have said this to you in figures; the hour is coming when I shall no
longer speak to you in figures but tell you plainly of the Father. 26In that
day you will ask in my name; and I do not say to you that I shall ask the
Father for you; 27for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved
me and have believed that I came from the Father. 28I came from the Father
and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to
the Father.”
29 His disciples said, “Ah, now you are speaking plainly, not in any
figure! 30Now we know that you know all things, and need none to question
you; by this we believe that you came from God.” 31Jesus answered them,
“Do you now believe? 32The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you
will be scattered, every man to his home, and will leave me alone; yet I am
not alone, for the Father is with me. 33I have said this to you, that in me you
may have peace. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I
have overcome the world.”
Jesus Prays for the Church
17 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven
and said, * “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may
glorify you, 2since you have given him power over all flesh, to give eternal
life to all whom you have given him. 3And this is eternal life, that they
know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. 4I
glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work which you gave me to
do; 5and now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory which
I had with you before the world was made. *
6 “I have manifested your name to the men whom you gave me out of the
world; they were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your
word. 7Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you;
8for I have given them the words which you gave me, and they have
received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have
believed that you sent me. 9I am praying for them; I am not praying for the
world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours; 10all mine
are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11And now I am
no more in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you.
Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they
may be one, even as we are one. 12While I was with them, I kept them in
your name, which you have given me; I have guarded them, and none of
them is lost but the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
13But now I am coming to you; and these things I speak in the world, that
they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14I have given them your
word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even
as I am not of the world. 15I do not pray that you should take them out of
the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one.k 16They are not
of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17Sanctify them in the truth;
your word is truth. 18As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into
the world. 19And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be
consecrated in truth.
20 “I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me
through their word, 21that they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in
me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe
that you have sent me. 22The glory which you have given me I have given
to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23I in them and you in
me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that
you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
24Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me
where I am, to behold my glory which you have given me in your love for
me before the foundation of the world. 25O righteous Father, the world has
not known you, but I have known you; and these know that you have sent
me. 26I made known to them your name, and I will make it known, that the
love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
The Arrest of Jesus
18 When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples
across the Kidron valley, where there was a garden, which he and his
disciples entered. 2Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place; for
Jesus often met there with his disciples. 3So Judas, procuring a band of
soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went
there with lanterns and torches and weapons. 4Then Jesus, knowing all that
was to befall him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?”
5They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.”
Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. 6When he said to them,
“I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. 7Again he asked them,
“Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” 8Jesus
answered, “I told you that I am he; so, if you seek me, let these men go.”
9This was to fulfil the word which he had spoken, “Of those whom you
gave me I lost not one.” 10Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and
struck the high priest’s slave and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was
Malchus. 11Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not
drink the chalice which the Father has given me?”
Jesus before the High Priest
12 So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Jews
seized Jesus and bound him. 13First they led him to Annas; for he was the
father-in-law of Cai'aphas, who was high priest that year. * 14It was
Cai'aphas who had given counsel to the Jews that it was expedient that one
man should die for the people.
Peter Denies Jesus
15 Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. As this
disciple was known to the high priest, he entered the court of the high priest
along with Jesus, 16while Peter stood outside at the door. So the other
disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the maid
who kept the door, and brought Peter in. 17The maid who kept the door said
to Peter, “Are not you also one of this man’s disciples?” He said, “I am
not.” 18Now the servantsl and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it
was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was
with them, standing and warming himself.
The High Priest Questions Jesus
19 The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his
teaching. 20Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world; I have
always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come
together; I have said nothing secretly. 21Why do you ask me? Ask those
who have heard me, what I said to them; they know what I said.” 22When
he had said this, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand,
saying, “Is that how you answer the high priest?” 23Jesus answered him, “If
I have spoken wrongly, bear witness to the wrong; but if I have spoken
rightly, why do you strike me?” 24Annas then sent him bound to Cai'aphas
the high priest.
Peter Denies Jesus Again
25 Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to
him, “Are not you also one of his disciples?” He denied it and said, “I am
not.” 26One of the servantsl of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose
ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?”
27Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed.
Jesus before Pilate

28 Then they led Jesus from the house of Cai'aphas to the praetorium. It
was early. They themselves did not enter the praetorium, so that they might
not be defiled, but might eat the Passover. * 29So Pilate went out to them
and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” * 30They
answered him, “If this man were not an evildoer, we would not have handed
him over.” 31Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by
your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put any man
to death.” * 32This was to fulfil the word which Jesus had spoken to show
by what death he was to die.
Jesus Sentenced to Death
33 Pilate entered the praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him,
“Are you the King of the Jews?” 34Jesus answered, “Do you say this of
your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” 35Pilate answered,
“Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over
to me; what have you done?” 36Jesus answered, “My kingship is not of this
world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I
might not be handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from the
world.” 37Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say
that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the
world, to bear witness to the truth. Every one who is of the truth hears my
voice.” 38Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”
After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again, and told them, “I
find no crime in him. 39But you have a custom that I should release one
man for you at the Passover; will you have me release for you the King of
the Jews?” 40They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barab'bas!” Now
Barab'bas was a robber.
19 Then Pilate took Jesus and scourged him. 2And the soldiers plaited a
crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and clothed him in a purple robe;
3they came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him
with their hands. 4Pilate went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I am
bringing him out to you, that you may know that I find no crime in him.”
5So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate
said to them, “Here is the man!” 6When the chief priests and the officers
saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them,
“Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no crime in him.” 7The
Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law he ought to die,
because he has made himself the Son of God.” * 8When Pilate heard these
words, he was even more afraid; 9he entered the praetorium again and said
to Jesus, “Where are you from?” * But Jesus gave no answer. 10Pilate
therefore said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I
have power to release you, and power to crucify you?” 11Jesus answered
him, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from
above; therefore he who delivered me to you has the greater sin.”
12 Upon this Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you
release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend; every one who makes himself
a king sets himself against Caesar.” 13When Pilate heard these words, he
brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The
Pavement, and in Hebrew, Gab'batha. 14Now it was the day of Preparation
of the Passover; it was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Here is
your King!” 15They cried out, “Away with him, away with him, crucify
him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests
answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” 16Then he handed him over to
them to be crucified.
The Crucifixion
17 So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place
called the place of a skull, which is called in Hebrew Gol'gotha. 18There
they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus
between them. 19Pilate also wrote a title and put it on the cross; it read,
“Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” 20Many of the Jews read this
title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was
written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. 21The chief priests of the Jews
then said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘This man
said, I am King of the Jews.’ ” 22Pilate answered, “What I have written I
have written.”
23 When the soldiers had crucified Jesus they took his garments and made
four parts, one for each soldier; also his tunic. But the tunic was without
seam, woven from top to bottom; 24so they said to one another, “Let us not
tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be.” This was to fulfil the
Scripture,
“They parted my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.”
25 So the soldiers did this. But standing by the cross of Jesus were his
mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary
Mag'dalene. 26When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved
standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27Then he
said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple
took her to his own home. *
28 After this Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfil the
Scripture), “I thirst.” 29A bowl full of vinegar stood there; so they put a
sponge full of the vinegar on hyssop and held it to his mouth. 30When Jesus
had received the vinegar, he said, “It is finished”; and he bowed his head
and gave up his spirit.
Jesus’ Side Is Pierced
31 Since it was the day of Preparation, in order to prevent the bodies from
remaining on the cross on the sabbath (for that sabbath was a high day), the
Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be
taken away. 32So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the
other who had been crucified with him; 33but when they came to Jesus and
saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34But one of the
soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and
water. 35He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he
knows that he tells the truth—that you also may believe. 36For these things
took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled, “Not a bone of him shall be
broken.” 37And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on him
whom they have pierced.”
The Burial of Jesus
38 After this Joseph of Arimathe'a, who was a disciple of Jesus, but
secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body
of Jesus, and Pilate gave him leave. So he came and took away his body.
39Nicode'mus also, who had at first come to him by night, came bringing a
mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds’ weight. 40They took
the body of Jesus, and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the
burial custom of the Jews. 41Now in the place where he was crucified there
was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb where no one had ever been
laid. 42So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, as the tomb was close
at hand, they laid Jesus there.
20 Now on the first day of the week, Mary Mag'dalene came to the
tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken
away from the tomb. 2So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other
disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the
Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”
3Peter then came out with the other disciple, and they went toward the
tomb. 4They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the
tomb first; 5and stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but
he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the
tomb; he saw the linen cloths lying, 7and the napkin, which had been on his
head, not lying with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself. 8Then
the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and
believed; 9for as yet they did not know the Scripture, that he must rise from
the dead. 10Then the disciples went back to their homes.
Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene
11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped
to look into the tomb; 12and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the
body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13They said to
her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have
taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”
14Saying this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not
know that it was Jesus. 15Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom do you seek?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him,
“Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I
will take him away.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him
in Hebrew, “Rab-bo'ni!” (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said to her, “Do
not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my
brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to
my God and your God.” * 18Mary Mag'dalene went and said to the
disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these
things to her.
Jesus Gives the Disciples the Powerto Forgive Sins
19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being
shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood
among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20When he had said
this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad
when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As
the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22And when he had said this,
he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you
forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they
are retained.”
Jesus and Thomas
24 Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them
when Jesus came. 25So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the
Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails,
and place my finger in the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side,
I will not believe.”
26 Eight days later, his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was
with them. The doors were shut, but Jesus came and stood among them, and
said, “Peace be with you.” 27Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here,
and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side; do not be
faithless, but believing.” 28Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
29Jesus said to him, “You have believed because you have seen me. Blessed
are those who have not seen and yet believe.”

The Purpose of This Book
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which
are not written in this book; 31but these are written that you may believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have
life in his name.
Jesus Appears to Disciples by theSea of Tiberias
21 * After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea
of Tibe'ri-as; and he revealed himself in this way. 2Simon Peter, Thomas
called the Twin, Nathan'a-el of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zeb'edee, and
two others of his disciples were together. 3Simon Peter said to them, “I am
going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and
got into the boat; but that night they caught nothing.
4 Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did
not know that it was Jesus. 5Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any
fish?” They answered him, “No.” 6He said to them, “Cast the net on the
right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they
were not able to haul it in, for the quantity of fish. 7That disciple whom
Jesus loved * said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it
was the Lord, he put on his clothes, for he was stripped for work, and
sprang into the sea. 8But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the
net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred
yardsm off.
9 When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish
lying on it, and bread. 10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you
have just caught.” 11So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore,
full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three of them; and although there were
so many, the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have
breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They
knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them,
and so with the fish. 14This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed
to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Peter Is Given a Command
15 * When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon,
son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord;
you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16A second
time he said to him, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him,
“Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”
17He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?”
And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love
you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. 18Truly, truly, I say to you, when
you were young, you fastened your own belt and walked where you would;
but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will
fasten your belt for you and carry you where you do not wish to go.”
19(This he said to show by what death he was to glorify God.) And after this
he said to him, “Follow me.”

Jesus and the Beloved Disciple
20 Peter turned and saw following them the disciple whom Jesus loved,
who had lain close to his breast at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it
that is going to betray you?” 21When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord,
what about this man?” 22Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain
until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!” 23The saying spread abroad
among the brethren that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to
him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come,
what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who is bearing witness to these things, and who has
written these things; and we know that his testimony is true.
25 But there are also many other things which Jesus did; were every one
of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the
books that would be written.
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The Acts of the Apostles
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
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THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
The Promise of the Holy Spirit
1 In the first book, * O Theoph'ilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began
to do and teach, 2until the day when he was taken up, after he had given
commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.
3To them he presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs,
appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the kingdom of God.
4And while stayinga with them he charged them not to depart from
Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you
heard from me, 5for John baptized with water, but before many days you
shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this
time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7He said to them, “It is not for you to
know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority.
8But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and
you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samar'ia and to
the end of the earth.” 9And when he had said this, as they were looking on,
he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10And while they
were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in
white robes, 11and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into
heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in
the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is
near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away; 13and when they had entered,
they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John
and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew,
James the son of Alphae'us and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of
James. 14All these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer, together
with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. *
15 In those days Peter stood up among the brethren (the company of
persons was in all about a hundred and twenty), and said, 16“Brethren, the
Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the
mouth of David, concerning Judas who was guide to those who arrested
Jesus. 17For he was numbered among us, and was allotted his share in this
ministry. 18(Now this man bought a field with the reward of his wickedness;
and falling headlongb he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed
out. 19And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the
field was called in their language Akel'dama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20For
it is written in the book of Psalms,
‘Let his habitation become desolate,
and let there be no one to live in it’;
and
‘His office let another take.’
21So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that
the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22beginning from the baptism of
John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must
become with us a witness to his resurrection.” * 23And they put forward
two, Joseph called Barsab'bas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthi'as.
24And they prayed and said, “Lord, you know the hearts of all men, show
which one of these two you have chosen 25to take the place in this ministry
and apostleship from which Judas turned aside, to go to his own place.”
26And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthi'as; and he was
enrolled with the eleven apostles.

The Coming of the Holy Spirit
2 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one
place. 2And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty
wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3And there
appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of
them. 4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in
other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every
nation under heaven. 6And at this sound the multitude came together, and
they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own
language. 7And they were amazed and wondered, saying, “Are not all these
who are speaking Galileans? 8And how is it that we hear, each of us in his
own native language? 9Par'thians and Medes and E'lamites and residents of
Mesopota'mia, Judea and Cappado'cia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phryg'ia and
Pamphyl'ia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyre'ne, and visitors
from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11Cretans and Arabians, we hear
them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12And all were
amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”
13But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
Peter Addresses the Crowd
14 But Peter, * standing with the Eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed
them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to
you, and give ear to my words. 15For these men are not drunk, as you
suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day; 16but this is what was
spoken by the prophet Joel:
17‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,

and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;
18yes, and on my menservants and my maidservants in those days
I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.

19And I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth beneath,

blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20the sun shall be turned into darkness
and the moon into blood,

before the day of the Lord comes,
the great and manifest day.
21And it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be
saved.’
22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to
you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did
through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—23this Jesus, delivered
up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified
and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24But God raised him up, having
loosed the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by
it. 25For David says concerning him,
‘I saw the Lord always before me,
for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;
26therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
moreover my flesh will dwell in hope.
27For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,
nor let your Holy One see corruption.

28You have made known to me the ways of life;
you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

29 “Brethren, I may say to you confidently of the patriarch David that he
both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30Being
therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him
that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne, 31he foresaw and
spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades,
nor did his flesh see corruption. 32This Jesus God raised up, and of that we
all are witnesses. 33Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and
having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has
poured out this which you see and hear. 34For David did not ascend into the
heavens; but he himself says,
‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand,
35till I make your enemies a stool for your feet.’
36Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God has made
him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
The First Converts
37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter
and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” 38And Peter said
to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus
Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit. 39For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that
are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to him.” 40And he
testified with many other words and exhorted them, saying, “Save
yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41So those who received his
word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand
souls. 42And they held steadfastly to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship,
to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers.
Life among the Believers
43 And fear came upon every soul; and many wonders and signs were
done through the apostles. 44And all who believed were together and had all
things in common; 45and they sold their possessions and goods and
distributed them to all, as any had need. 46And day by day, attending the
temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they partook of food
with glad and generous hearts, 47praising God and having favor with all the
people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were
being saved.
Peter Heals a Lame Beggar
3 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer,
the ninth hour. * 2And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they
laid daily at that gate of the temple which is called Beautiful to ask alms of
those who entered the temple. 3Seeing Peter and John about to go into the
temple, he asked for alms. 4And Peter directed his gaze at him, with John,
and said, “Look at us.” 5And he fixed his attention upon them, expecting to
receive something from them. 6But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold,
but I give you what I have; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise and
walk.” 7And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and
immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. 8And leaping up he
stood and walked and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping
and praising God. 9And all the people saw him walking and praising God,
10and recognized him as the one who sat for alms at the Beautiful Gate of
the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had
happened to him.
Peter Addresses the Peoplein Solomon’s Portico
11 While he clung to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in
the portico called Solomon’s, astounded. 12And when Peter saw it he
addressed the people, “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do
you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him
walk? 13The God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob, the God of our
fathers, glorified his servantc Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in
the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. 14But you
denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted
to you, 15and killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To
this we are witnesses. 16And his name, by faith in his name, has made this
man strong whom you see and know; and the faith which is through Jesusd
has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.
17 “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also
your rulers. 18But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that
his Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled. 19Repent therefore, and turn
again, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come
from the presence of the Lord, 20and that he may send the Christ appointed
for you, Jesus, 21whom heaven must receive until the time for establishing
all that God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old. 22Moses
said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet from your brethren as
he raised me up. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. 23And it
shall be that every soul that does not listen to that prophet shall be
destroyed from the people.’ 24And all the prophets who have spoken, from
Samuel and those who came afterwards, also proclaimed these days. 25You
are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God gave to your
fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your posterity shall all the families of
the earth be blessed.’ 26God, having raised up his servant,c sent him to you
first, to bless you in turning every one of you from your wickedness.”
Peter and John before the Council
4 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of
the temple and the Sad'ducees came upon them, 2annoyed because they
were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the
dead. * 3And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day,
for it was already evening. 4But many of those who heard the word
believed; and the number of the men came to about five thousand.
5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered
together in Jerusalem, 6with Annas the high priest and Cai'aphas and John
and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7And when
they had set them in their midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what
name did you do this?” 8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to
them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9if we are being examined today
concerning a good deed done to a cripple, by what means this man has been
healed, 10be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the
name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised
from the dead, by him this man is standing before you well. 11This is the
stone which was rejected by you builders, but which has become the
cornerstone. 12And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other
name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that
they were uneducated, common men, they wondered; and they recognized
that they had been with Jesus. 14But seeing the man that had been healed
standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. 15But when
they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred
with one another, 16saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a
notable sign has been performed through them is manifest to all the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17But in order that it may
spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to
any one in this name.” 18So they called them and charged them not to speak
or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19But Peter and John answered them,
“Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God,
you must judge; 20for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and
heard.” 21And when they had further threatened them, they let them go,
finding no way to punish them, because of the people; for all men praised
God for what had happened. 22For the man on whom this sign of healing
was performed was more than forty years old.
The Believers Pray for Boldness
23 When they were released they went to their friends and reported what
the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24And when they heard it,
they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who
made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, 25who
by the mouth of our father David, your servant,c said by the Holy Spirit,
‘Why did the Gentiles rage,
and the peoples imagine vain things?
26The kings of the earth set themselves in array,
and the rulers were gathered together,

against the Lord and against his Anointed’—e
27for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy
servantc Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the
Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28to do whatever your hand and your
plan had predestined to take place. 29And now, Lord, look upon their
threats, and grant to your servantsf to speak your word with all boldness,
30while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are
performed through the name of your holy servantc Jesus.” 31And when they
had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken; and
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with
boldness.
The Believers Share Their Possessions
32 Now the company of those who believed were of one heart and soul,
and no one said that any of the things which he possessed was his own, but
they had everything in common. * 33And with great power the apostles
gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace
was upon them all. 34There was not any one needy among them, for as
many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the
proceeds of what was sold 35and laid it at the apostles’ feet; and distribution
was made to each as any had need. 36Thus Joseph who was surnamed by
the apostles Barnabas (which means, Son of encouragement), a Levite, a
native of Cyprus, 37sold a field which belonged to him, and brought the
money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Ananias and Sapphira
5 But a man named Anani'as with his wife Sapphi'ra sold a piece of
property, 2and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back some of the
proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3But Peter
said, “Anani'as, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and
to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? 4While it remained unsold,
did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your
disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You
have not lied to men but to God.” 5When Anani'as heard these words, he
fell down and died. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. 6The
young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him.
7 After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing
what had happened. 8And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the
land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.” 9But Peter said to her,
“How is it that you have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord?
Listen, the feet of those that have buried your husband are at the door, and
they will carry you out.” 10Immediately she fell down at his feet and died.
When the young men came in they found her dead, and they carried her out
and buried her beside her husband. 11And great fear came upon the whole
Church, * and upon all who heard of these things.
The Apostles Heal Many
12 Now many signs and wonders were done among the people by the
hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico.
13None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high honor.
14And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes both of
men and women, 15so that they even carried out the sick into the streets, and
laid them on beds and pallets, that as Peter came by at least his shadow
might fall on some of them. 16The people also gathered from the towns
around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits,
and they were all healed.
The Apostles Are Imprisoned andBrought before the Council
17 But the high priest rose up and all who were with him, that is, the party
of the Sad'ducees, and filled with jealousy 18they arrested the apostles and
put them in the common prison. 19But at night an angel of the Lord opened
the prison doors and brought them out and said, 20“Go and stand in the
temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.” * 21And when
they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and taught.
Now the high priest came and those who were with him and called
together the council and all the senate of Israel, and sent to the prison to
have them brought. 22But when the officers came, they did not find them in
the prison, and they returned and reported, 23“We found the prison securely
locked and the sentries standing at the doors, but when we opened it we
found no one inside.” 24Now when the captain of the temple and the chief
priests heard these words, they were much perplexed about them,
wondering what this would come to. 25And some one came and told them,
“The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching
the people.” 26Then the captain with the officers went and brought them,
but without violence, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.
27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council.
And the high priest questioned them, 28saying, “We strictly charged you not
to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching
and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” 29But Peter and the
apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. 30The God of our
fathers raised Jesus whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31God
exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to
Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32And we are witnesses to these things, and
so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”
33 When they heard this they were enraged and wanted to kill them. 34But
a Pharisee in the council named Gama'li-el, * a teacher of the law, held in
honor by all the people, stood up and ordered the men to be put outside for
a while. 35And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you do with
these men. 36For before these days Theu'das arose, claiming to be
somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him; but he
was slain and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing.
37After him Judas the Galilean arose in the days of the census and drew
away some of the people after him; he also perished, and all who followed
him were scattered. 38So in the present case I tell you, keep away from
these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this undertaking is of men,
it will fail; 39but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You
might even be found opposing God!”
40 So they took his advice, and when they had called in the apostles, they
beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them
go. 41Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were
counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. 42And every day in the
temple and at home they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the
Christ.
Seven Chosen to Serve
6 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, the
Hellenists * murmured against the Hebrews because their widows were
neglected in the daily distribution. 2And the Twelve summoned the body of
the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the
word of God to serve tables. 3Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you
seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may
appoint to this duty. 4But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the
ministry of the word.” 5And what they said pleased the whole multitude,
and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and
Philip, and Proch'orus, and Nica'nor, and Ti'mon, and Par'menas, and
Nicola'us, a proselyte of Antioch. 6These they set before the apostles, and
they prayed and laid their hands upon them.
7 And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples
multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were
obedient to the faith.
The Arrest of Stephen
8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs
among the people. 9Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of
the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyre'nians, and of the
Alexandrians, and of those from Cili'cia and Asia, arose and disputed with
Stephen. 10But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with
which he spoke. 11Then they secretly instigated men, who said, “We have
heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” 12And they
stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him
and seized him and brought him before the council, 13and set up false
witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this
holy place and the law; 14for we have heard him say that this Jesus of
Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs which Moses
delivered to us.” 15And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his
face was like the face of an angel.
Stephen’s Speech to the Council
7 And the high priest said, “Is this so?” 2And Stephen said:
“Brethren and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father
Abraham, when he was in Mesopota'mia, before he lived in Haran, 3and
said to him, ‘Depart from your land and from your kindred and go into the
land which I will show you.’ 4Then he departed from the land of the
Chalde'ans, and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him
from there into this land in which you are now living; 5yet he gave him no
inheritance in it, not even a foot’s length, but promised to give it to him in
possession and to his posterity after him, though he had no child. 6And God
spoke to this effect, that his posterity would be aliens in a land belonging to
others, who would enslave them and ill-treat them four hundred years. 7‘But
I will judge the nation which they serve,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall
come out and worship me in this place.’ 8And he gave him the covenant of
circumcision. And so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised
him on the eighth day; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of
the twelve patriarchs.
9 “And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God
was with him, 10and rescued him out of all his afflictions, and gave him
favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor
over Egypt and over all his household. 11Now there came a famine
throughout all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction, and our fathers could
find no food. 12But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent
forth our fathers the first time. 13And at the second visit Joseph made
himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to
Pharaoh. 14And Joseph sent and called to him Jacob his father and all his
kindred, seventy-five souls; 15and Jacob went down into Egypt. And he
died, himself and our fathers, 16and they were carried back to She'chem and
laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons
of Hamor in Shechem.
17 “But as the time of the promise drew near, which God had granted to
Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt 18till there arose over
Egypt another king who had not known Joseph. 19He dealt craftily with our
race and forced our fathers to expose their infants, that they might not be
kept alive. 20At this time Moses was born, and was beautiful before God.
And he was brought up for three months in his father’s house; 21and when
he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her
own son. 22And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians,
and he was mighty in his words and deeds.
23 “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his
brethren, the sons of Israel. 24And seeing one of them being wronged, he
defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking the Egyptian.
25He supposed that his brethren understood that God was giving them
deliverance by his hand, but they did not understand. 26And on the
following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and would have
reconciled them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren, why do you wrong each
other?’ 27But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside,
saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? 28Do you want to kill
me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ 29At this retort Moses fled, and
became an exile in the land of Mid'ian, where he became the father of two
sons.
30 “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the
wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31When Moses saw
it he wondered at the sight; and as he drew near to look, the voice of the
Lord came, 32‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of
Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33And
the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the shoes from your feet, for the place where
you are standing is holy ground. 34I have surely seen the ill-treatment of my
people that are in Egypt and heard their groaning, and I have come down to
deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’
35 “This Moses whom they refused, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a
judge?’ God sent as both ruler and deliverer by the hand of the angel that
appeared to him in the bush. 36He led them out, having performed wonders
and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years.
37This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a
prophet from your brethren as he raised me up.’ 38This is he who was in the
congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount
Sinai, and with our fathers; and he received living oracles to give to us.
39Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts
they turned to Egypt, 40saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods to go before us;
as for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know
what has become of him.’ 41And they made a calf in those days, and offered
a sacrifice to the idol and rejoiced in the works of their hands. 42But God
turned and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in
the book of the prophets:
‘Did you offer to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
43And you took up the tent of Mo'loch,
and the star of the god Re'phan,

the figures which you made to worship;
and I will remove you beyond Babylon.’
44 “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, even as he who
spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had
seen. 45Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed
the nations which God thrust out before our fathers. So it was until the days
of David, 46who found favor in the sight of God and asked leave to find a
habitation for the God of Jacob. 47But it was Solomon who built a house for
him. 48Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands; as the
prophet says,
49‘Heaven is my throne,
and earth my footstool.

What house will you build for me, says the Lord,
or what is the place of my rest?
50 Did not my hand make all these things?’
51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always

resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52Which of the
prophets did not your fathers persecute? And they killed those who
announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have
now betrayed and murdered, 53you who received the law as delivered by
angels and did not keep it.”
The Stoning of Stephen
54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground
their teeth against him. 55But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven
and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God;
56and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man
standing at the right hand of God.” 57But they cried out with a loud voice
and stopped their ears and rushed together upon him. 58Then they cast him
out of the city and stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their garments
at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59And as they were stoning Stephen,
he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60And he knelt down and cried
with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he
had said
8 this, he fell asleep. 1And Saul was consenting to his death.
Saul Persecutes the Church
And on that day a great persecution arose against the Church in Jerusalem;
and they were all scattered throughout the region of Judea and Sama'ria,
except the apostles. 2Devout men buried Stephen, and made great
lamentation over him. 3But Saul laid waste the Church, and entering house
after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.
Philip Preaches in Samaria
4 Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. 5Philip
went down to a city of Samar'ia, and proclaimed to them the Christ. 6And
the multitudes with one accord gave heed to what was said by Philip, when
they heard him and saw the signs which he did. 7For unclean spirits came
out of many who were possessed, crying with a loud voice; and many who
were paralyzed or lame were healed. 8So there was much joy in that city.
Simon the Magician
9 But there was a man named Simon who had previously practiced magic
in the city and amazed the nation of Samar'ia, saying that he himself was
somebody great. 10They all listened to him, from the least to the greatest,
saying, “This man is that power of God which is called Great.” 11And they
listened to him, because for a long time he had amazed them with his
magic. 12But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the
kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both
men and women. 13Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized
he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed,
he was amazed.
14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samar'ia had received
the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, 15who came down and
prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit; 16for the Spirit had
not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name
of the Lord Jesus. 17Then they laid their hands on them and they received
the Holy Spirit. 18Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through
the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, 19saying,
“Give me also this power, that any one on whom I lay my hands may
receive the Holy Spirit.” 20But Peter said to him, “Your silver perish with
you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! *
21You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right
before God. 22Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the
Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23For I
see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.” 24And
Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have
said may come upon me.”
25 Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they
returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the
Samaritans.
Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch
26 But an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the southg
to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert road.
27And he rose and went. And behold, an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a minister of
Canda'ce the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of all her treasure, had
come to Jerusalem to worship 28and was returning; seated in his chariot, he
was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and
join this chariot.” 30So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading Isaiah the
prophet, and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31And he
said, “How can I, unless some one guides me?” And he invited Philip to
come up and sit with him. 32Now the passage of the Scripture which he was
reading was this:
“As a sheep led to the slaughter
or a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opens not his mouth.
33In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?

For his life is taken up from the earth.”
34And the eunuch said to Philip, “Please, about whom does the prophet
say this, about himself or about some one else?” 35Then Philip opened his
mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news of
Jesus. 36And as they went along the road they came to some water, and the
eunuch said, “See, here is water! What is to prevent my being baptized?”h
38And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the
water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39And when they came
up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught up Philip; and the eunuch
saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40But Philip was found at
Azo'tus, and passing on he preached the gospel to all the towns till he came
to Caesare'a.
The Conversion of Saul
9 But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the
Lord, went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues at
Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he
might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3Now as he journeyed he approached
Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed about him. 4And he
fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you
persecute me?” 5And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am
Jesus, whom you are persecuting; * 6but rise and enter the city, and you will
be told what you are to do.” 7The men who were traveling with him stood
speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. 8Saul arose from the
ground; and when his eyes were opened, he could see nothing; so they led
him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9And for three days he
was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Anani'as. The Lord said
to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11And the
Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire in
the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul; for behold, he is
praying, 12and he has seen a man named Anani'as come in and lay his hands
on him so that he might regain his sight.” 13But Anani'as answered, “Lord, I
have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your
saints * at Jerusalem; 14and here he has authority from the chief priests to
bind all who call upon your name.” 15But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he
is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and
kings and the sons of Israel; 16for I will show him how much he must suffer
for the sake of my name.” 17So Anani'as departed and entered the house.
And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who
appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me that you may
regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18And immediately
something like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight. Then he
rose and was baptized, 19and took food and was strengthened.
Saul Preaches in Damascus
For several days he was with the disciples at Damascus. 20And in the
synagogues immediately he proclaimed Jesus, saying, “He is the Son of
God.” 21And all who heard him were amazed, and said, “Is not this the man
who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called on this name? And he
has come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief
priests.” 22But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the
Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.
Saul Escapes from the Jews
23 When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, 24but their
plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night, to
kill him; 25but his disciples took him by night and let him down over the
wall, lowering him in a basket.
Saul in Jerusalem
26 And when he had come to Jerusalem he attempted to join the disciples;
and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a
disciple. 27But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and
declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him,
and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. 28So he
went in and out among them at Jerusalem, 29preaching boldly in the name
of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists; but they
were seeking to kill him. 30And when the brethren knew it, they brought
him down to Caesare'a, and sent him off to Tarsus.
31 So the Church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samar'ia had peace
and was built up; and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of
the Holy Spirit it was multiplied.
Peter Heals Aeneas in Lydda
32 Now as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also
to the saints that lived at Lydda. 33There he found a man named Aene'as,
who had been bedridden for eight years and was paralyzed. 34And Peter
said to him, “Aene'as, Jesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed.” And
immediately he rose. 35And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him,
and they turned to the Lord.
Peter in Joppa
36 Now there was at Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which means Dorcas
or Gazelle. She was full of good works and acts of charity. 37In those days
she fell sick and died; and when they had washed her, they laid her in an
upper room. 38Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter
was there, sent two men to him entreating him, “Please come to us without
delay.” 39So Peter rose and went with them. And when he had come, they
took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping, and
showing coats and garments which Dorcas made while she was with them.
40But Peter put them all outside and knelt down and prayed; then turning to
the body he said, “Tabitha, rise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she
saw Peter she sat up. 41And he gave her his hand and lifted her up. Then
calling the saints and widows he presented her alive. 42And it became
known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. 43And he
stayed in Joppa for many days with one Simon, a tanner.
Peter and Cornelius
10 At Caesare'a there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what
was known as the Italian Cohort, 2a devout man who feared God with all
his household, gave alms liberally to the people, and prayed constantly to
God. 3About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of
God coming in and saying to him, “Cornelius.” 4And he stared at him in
terror, and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and
your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. 5And now send men to
Joppa, and bring one Simon who is called Peter; 6he is lodging with Simon,
a tanner, whose house is by the seaside.” 7When the angel who spoke to
him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from
among those that waited on him, 8and having related everything to them, he
sent them to Joppa.
9 The next day, as they were on their journey and coming near the city,
Peter went up on the housetop to pray, about the sixth hour. 10And he
became hungry and desired something to eat; but while they were preparing
it, he fell into a trance 11and saw the heaven opened, and something
descending, like a great sheet, let down by four corners upon the earth. 12In
it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. 13And there
came a voice to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” 14But Peter said, “No, Lord;
for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” 15And the
voice came to him again a second time, “What God has cleansed, you must
not call common.” 16This happened three times, and the thing was taken up
at once to heaven. *
17 Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what the vision which
he had seen might mean, behold, the men that were sent by Cornelius,
having made inquiry for Simon’s house, stood before the gate 18and called
out to ask whether Simon who was called Peter was lodging there. 19And
while Peter was pondering the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three
men are looking for you. 20Rise and go down, and accompany them without
hesitation; for I have sent them.” 21And Peter went down to the men and
said, “I am the one you are looking for; what is the reason for your
coming?” 22And they said, “Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and God-
fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, was
directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house, and to hear
what you have to say.” 23So he called them in to be his guests.
The next day he rose and went off with them, and some of the brethren
from Joppa accompanied him. 24And on the following day they entered
Caesare'a. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his
kinsmen and close friends. 25When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and
fell down at his feet and worshiped him. 26But Peter lifted him up, saying,
“Stand up; I too am a man.” 27And as he talked with him, he went in and
found many persons gathered; 28and he said to them, “You yourselves know
how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit any one of another
nation; but God has shown me that I should not call any man common or
unclean. 29So when I was sent for, I came without objection. I ask then why
you sent for me.”
30 And Cornelius said, “Four days ago, about this hour, I was keeping the
ninth hour of prayer in my house; and behold, a man stood before me in
bright apparel, 31saying, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your
alms have been remembered before God. 32Send therefore to Joppa and ask
for Simon who is called Peter; he is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner,
by the seaside.’ 33So I sent to you at once, and you have been kind enough
to come. Now therefore we are all here present in the sight of God, to hear
all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”
Gentiles Hear the Good News
34 And Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I perceive that God
shows no partiality, 35but in every nation any one who fears him and does
what is right is acceptable to him. 36You know the word which he sent to
the sons of Israel, preaching good news of peace by Jesus Christ (he is Lord
of all), 37the word which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, beginning
from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: 38how God anointed
Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about
doing good and healing all that were oppressed by the devil, for God was
with him. 39And we are witnesses to all that he did both in the country of
the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree;
40but God raised him on the third day and made him manifest; 41not to all
the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and
drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42And he commanded us to
preach to the people, and to testify that he is the one ordained by God to be
judge of the living and the dead. 43To him all the prophets bear witness that
every one who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his
name.”
The Gentiles Receive the Holy Spirit
44 While Peter was still saying this, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard
the word. 45And the believers from among the circumcised who came with
Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out
even on the Gentiles. 46For they heard them speaking in tongues and
extolling God. Then Peter declared, 47“Can any one forbid water for
baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”
48And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then
they asked him to remain for some days.

Peter’s Report to the Churchat Jerusalem
11 Now the apostles and the brethren who were in Judea heard that the
Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2So when Peter went up to
Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, 3saying, “Why did you go
to uncircumcised men and eat with them?” 4But Peter began and explained
to them in order: 5“I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw
a vision, something descending, like a great sheet, let down from heaven by
four corners; and it came down to me. 6Looking at it closely I observed
animals and beasts of prey and reptiles and birds of the air. 7And I heard a
voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ 8But I said, ‘No, Lord; for
nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ 9But the voice
answered a second time from heaven, ‘What God has cleansed you must not
call common.’ 10This happened three times, and all was drawn up again into
heaven. 11At that very moment three men arrived at the house in which we
were, sent to me from Caesare'a. 12And the Spirit told me to go with them,
making no distinction. These six brethren also accompanied me, and we
entered the man’s house. 13And he told us how he had seen the angel
standing in his house and saying, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon called
Peter; 14he will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you
and all your household.’ 15As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them
just as on us at the beginning. 16And I remembered the word of the Lord,
how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the
Holy Spirit.’ 17If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when
we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand
God?” 18When they heard this they were silenced. And they glorified God,
saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance unto life.”
The Church in Antioch
19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose
over Stephen traveled as far as Phoeni'cia and Cyprus and Antioch,
speaking the word to none except Jews. 20But there were some of them,
men of Cyprus and Cyre'ne, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the
Greeksi also, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21And the hand of the Lord was
with them, and a great number that believed turned to the Lord. 22News of
this came to the ears of the Church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to
Antioch. 23When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad; and he
exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose;
24for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a large
company was added to the Lord. 25So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for
Saul; 26and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a
whole year they met withj the Church, and taught a large company of
people; and in Antioch the disciples were for the first time called Christians.
27 Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.
28And one of them named Ag'abus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that
there would be a great famine over all the world; and this took place in the
days of Claudius. 29And the disciples determined, every one according to
his ability, to send relief to the brethren who lived in Judea; 30and they did
so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.
James Killed and Peter Imprisonedby Herod
12 About that time Herod the king laid violent hands upon some who
belonged to the Church. * 2He killed James the brother of John with the
sword; 3and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest
Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. 4And when he
had seized him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of
soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the
people. 5So Peter was kept in prison; but earnest prayer for him was made
to God by the Church.
An Angel Rescues Peter from Prison
6 The very night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was
sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before
the door were guarding the prison; 7and behold, an angel of the Lord
appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter on the side and
woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands. 8And
the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did
so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” 9And
he went out and followed him; he did not know that what was done by the
angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10When they had passed
the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the
city. It opened to them of its own accord, and they went out and passed on
through one street; and immediately the angel left him. 11And Peter came to
himself, and said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and
rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people
were expecting.”
12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of
John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and
were praying. 13And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a maid
named Rhoda came to answer. 14Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she
did not open the gate but ran in and told that Peter was standing at the gate.
15They said to her, “You are mad.” But she insisted that it was so. They
said, “It is his angel!” 16But Peter continued knocking; and when they
opened, they saw him and were amazed. 17But motioning to them with his
hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of
the prison. And he said, “Tell this to James and to the brethren.” Then he
departed and went to another place.
18 Now when day came, there was no small stir among the soldiers over
what had become of Peter. 19And when Herod had sought for him and could
not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put
to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesare'a, and remained there.
The Death of Herod
20 Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Si'don; and they
came to him in a body, and having persuaded Blastus, the king’s
chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the
king’s country for food. 21On an appointed day Herod put on his royal
robes, took his seat upon the throne, and made an oration to them. 22And
the people shouted, “The voice of a god, and not of man!” 23Immediately an
angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give God the glory; and he
was eaten by worms and died.
24 But the word of God grew and multiplied.
25 And Barnabas and Saul returned fromk Jerusalem when they had
fulfilled their mission, bringing with them John whose other name was
Mark.
Barnabas and Saul Commissioned
13 Now in the Church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers,
Barnabas, Symeon who was called Ni'ger, Lucius of Cyre'ne, Man'a-en a
member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2While they were
worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me
Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3Then after
fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.
The Apostles Preach in Cyprus
4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleu'cia; and
from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5When they arrived at Sal'amis, they
proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had
John to assist them. 6When they had gone through the whole island as far as
Pa'phos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet, named
Bar-Jesus. 7He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of
intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the
word of God. 8But El'ymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his
name) withstood them, seeking to turn away the proconsul from the faith.
9But Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked
intently at him 10and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all
righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making
crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11And now, behold, the hand of the
Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind and unable to see the sun for a
time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him and he went about
seeking people to lead him by the hand. 12Then the proconsul believed,
when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of
the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas in Antioch of Pisid'ia
13 Now Paul and his company set sail from Pa'phos, and came to Perga in
Pamphyl'ia. And John left them and returned to Jerusalem; 14but they
passed on from Perga and came to Antioch of Pisid'ia. And on the sabbath
day they went into the synagogue and sat down. 15After the reading of the
law and the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying,
“Brethren, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, say it.” 16So
Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said: *
“Men of Israel, and you that fear God, listen. 17The God of this people
Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the
land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it. 18And for about
forty years he bore withm them in the wilderness. 19And when he had
destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an
inheritance, for about four hundred and fifty years. 20And after that he gave
them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21Then they asked for a king; and
God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for
forty years. 22And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their
king; of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David, the son of
Jesse, a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’ 23Of this man’s
posterity God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. 24Before
his coming John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of
Israel. 25And as John was finishing his course, he said, ‘What do you
suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but after me one is coming, the sandals
of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’
26 “Brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you that
fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation. 27For those who
live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor
understand the utterances of the prophets which are read every sabbath,
fulfilled these by condemning him. 28Though they could charge him with
nothing deserving death, yet they asked Pilate to have him killed. 29And
when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down
from the tree, and laid him in a tomb. 30But God raised him from the dead;
31and for many days he appeared to those who came up with him from
Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people. 32And we
bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, 33this he
has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus; as also it is written in the
second psalm,
‘You are my Son,
today I have begotten you.’
34And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return
to corruption, he spoke in this way,

‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.’
35Therefore he says also in another psalm,
‘You will not let your Holy One see corruption.’

36For David, after he had served the counsel of God in his own
generation, fell asleep, and was laid with his fathers, and saw corruption;
37but he whom God raised up saw no corruption. 38Let it be known to you
therefore, brethren, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed

to you, 39and by him every one that believes is freed from everything from
which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. 40Beware, therefore, lest
there come upon you what is said in the prophets:
41‘Behold, you scoffers, and wonder, and perish;
for I do a deed in your days,

a deed you will never believe, if one declares it to you.’ ”
42 As they went out, the people begged that these things might be told
them the next sabbath. 43And when the meeting of the synagogue broke up,
many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas,
who spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.
44 The next sabbath almost the whole city gathered together to hear the
word of God. 45But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with
jealousy, and contradicted what was spoken by Paul, and reviled him. 46And
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word
of God should be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it from you, and
judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.
47For so the Lord has commanded us, saying,
‘I have set you to be a light for the Gentiles,

that you may bring salvation to the uttermost parts of the earth.’ ”
48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the
word of God; and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. 49And
the word of the Lord spread throughout all the region. 50But the Jews
incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city,
and stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of
their district. 51But they shook off the dust from their feet against them, and
went to Ico'nium. 52And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy
Spirit.
Paul and Barnabas in Iconium
14 Now at Ico'nium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue,
and so spoke that a great company believed, both of Jews and of Greeks.
2But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds
against the brethren. 3So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for
the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and
wonders to be done by their hands. 4But the people of the city were divided;
some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles. 5When an attempt
was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to molest them and
to stone them, 6they learned of it and fled to Lystra and Der'be, cities of
Lycao'nia, and to the surrounding country; 7and there they preached the
gospel.
Paul and Barnabas in Lystra and Derbe
8 Now at Lystra there was a man sitting, who could not use his feet; he
was a cripple from birth, who had never walked. 9He listened to Paul
speaking; and Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith to
be made well, 10said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.” And he
sprang up and walked. 11And when the crowds saw what Paul had done,
they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycao'nian, “The gods have come
down to us in the likeness of men!” 12Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul,
because he was the chief speaker, they called Hermes. 13And the priest of
Zeus, whose temple was in front of the city, brought oxen and garlands to
the gates and wanted to offer sacrifice with the people. 14But when the
apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed
out among the multitude, crying, 15“Men, why are you doing this? We also
are men, of like nature with you, and bring you good news, that you should
turn from these vain things to a living God who made the heaven and the
earth and the sea and all that is in them. 16In past generations he allowed all
the nations to walk in their own ways; 17yet he did not leave himself
without witness, for he did good and gave you from heaven rains and
fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.” 18With
these words they scarcely restrained the people from offering sacrifice to
them.
19 But Jews came there from Antioch and Ico'nium; and having persuaded
the people, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that
he was dead. 20But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and
entered the city; and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe.
21When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many
disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Ico'nium and to Antioch,

22strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the
faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom
of God. 23And when they had appointed elders for them in every church,
with prayer and fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they
believed.
The Return to Antioch in Syria
24 Then they passed through Pisid'ia, and came to Pamphyl'ia. 25And
when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attali'a; 26and
from there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the
grace of God for the work which they had fulfilled. 27And when they
arrived, they gathered the Church together and declared all that God had
done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.
28And they remained no little time with the disciples.
The Council at Jerusalem

15 But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the
brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses,
you cannot be saved.” 2And when Paul and Barnabas had no small
dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others
were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about
this question. 3So, being sent on their way by the Church, they passed
through both Phoeni'cia and Samar'ia, reporting the conversion of the
Gentiles, and they gave great joy to all the brethren. 4When they came to
Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the Church and the apostles and the
elders, and they declared all that God had done with them. 5But some
believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up, and said, “It is
necessary to circumcise them, and to charge them to keep the law of
Moses.”
6 The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this
matter. 7And after there had been much debate, Peter rose and said to them,
“Brethren, you know that in the early days God made choice among you,
that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and
believe. 8And God who knows the heart bore witness to them, giving them
the Holy Spirit just as he did to us; 9and he made no distinction between us
and them, but cleansed their hearts by faith. 10Now therefore why do you
make trial of God by putting a yoke upon the neck of the disciples which
neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11But we believe that we
shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”
12 And all the assembly kept silence; and they listened to Barnabas and
Paul as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them
among the Gentiles. 13After they finished speaking, James replied,
“Brethren, listen to me. 14Symeon has related how God first visited the
Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. 15And with this the
words of the prophets agree, as it is written,
16‘After this I will return,
and I will rebuild the dwelling of David, which has fallen;

I will rebuild its ruins,
and I will set it up,
17that the rest of men may seek the Lord,
and all the Gentiles who are called by my name,

18says the Lord, who has made these things known from of old.’
19Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the
Gentiles who turn to God, 20but should write to them to abstain from the
pollutions of idols and from unchastity and from what is strangledn and
from blood. 21For from early generations Moses has had in every city those
who preach him, for he is read every sabbath in the synagogues.”
The Council’s Letter to the Gentile Believers
22 Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole
Church, to choose men from among them and send them to Antioch with
Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsab'bas, and Silas, leading
men among the brethren, 23with the following letter: “The brethren, both
the apostles and the elders, to the brethren who are of the Gentiles in
Antioch and Syria and Cili'cia, greeting. 24Since we have heard that some
persons from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your minds,
although we gave them no instructions, 25it has seemed good to us in
assembly to choose men and send them to you with our beloved Barnabas
and Paul, 26men who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus
Christ. 27We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell
you the same things by word of mouth. 28For it has seemed good to the
Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these
necessary things: 29that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols
and from blood and from what is strangledn and from unchastity. If you
keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
30 So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch; and having
gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter. 31And when
they read it, they rejoiced at the exhortation. 32And Judas and Silas, who
were themselves prophets, exhorted the brethren with many words and
strengthened them. 33And after they had spent some time, they were sent off
in peace by the brethren to those who had sent them.o 35But Paul and
Barnabas remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the
Lord, with many others also.
Paul and Barnabas Separate
36 And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Come, let us return and
visit the brethren in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord,
and see how they are.” 37And Barnabas wanted to take with them John
called Mark. 38But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had
withdrawn from them in Pamphyl'ia, and had not gone with them to the
work. 39And there arose a sharp contention, so that they separated from
each other; Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, 40but
Paul chose Silas and departed, being commended by the brethren to the
grace of the Lord. 41And he went through Syria and Cili'cia, strengthening
the churches.
Timothy Accompanies Paul and Silas
16 And he came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there,
named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer; but his
father was a Greek. 2He was well spoken of by the brethren at Lystra and
Ico'nium. 3Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him; and he took him and
circumcised him because of the Jews that were in those places, for they all
knew that his father was a Greek. 4As they went on their way through the
cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions which had been
reached by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem. 5So the churches
were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.
Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia
6 And they went through the region of Phry'gia and Galatia, having been
forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7And when they had
come opposite My'sia, they attempted to go into Bithyn'ia, but the Spirit of
Jesus did not allow them; 8so, passing by My'sia, they went down to Troas.
9And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was
standing pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help
us.” 10And when he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on
into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to
them. *
The Conversion of Lydia and Her Household
11 Setting sail therefore from Troas, we made a direct voyage to
Sam'othrace, and the following day to Ne-ap'olis, 12and from there to
Philip'pi, which is the leading city of the districtx of Macedonia, and a
Roman colony. We remained in this city some days; 13and on the sabbath
day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was
a place of prayer; * and we sat down and spoke to the women who had
come together. 14One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the
city of Thyati'ra, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The
Lord opened her heart to listen to what was said by Paul. 15And when she
was baptized, with her household, she begged us, saying, “If you have
judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she
prevailed upon us.
Paul and Silas Beaten and Imprisoned
16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl
who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by
soothsaying. 17She followed Paul and us, crying, “These men are servants
of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18And
this she did for many days. But Paul was annoyed, and turned and said to
the spirit, “I charge you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.”
And it came out that very hour.
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized
Paul and Silas and dragged them into the market place before the rulers;
20and when they had brought them to the magistrates they said, “These men
are Jews and they are disturbing our city. 21They advocate customs which it
is not lawful for us Romans to accept or practice.” 22The crowd joined in
attacking them; and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave
orders to beat them with rods. 23And when they had inflicted many blows
upon them, they threw them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them
safely. 24Having received this charge, he put them into the inner prison and
fastened their feet in the stocks.
25 But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to
God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26and suddenly there was a
great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and
immediately all the doors were opened and every one’s chains were
unfastened. 27When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were
open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the
prisoners had escaped. 28But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm
yourself, for we are all here.” 29And he called for lights and rushed in, and
trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, 30and brought them
out and said, “Men, what must I do to be saved?” 31And they said, “Believe
in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32And
they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all that were in his house.
33And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their wounds,
and he was baptized at once, with all his family. 34Then he brought them up
into his house, and set food before them; and he rejoiced with all his
household that he had believed in God.
35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those
men go.” 36And the jailer reported the words to Paul, saying, “The
magistrates have sent to let you go; now therefore come out and go in
peace.” 37But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly,
uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into
prison; and do they now cast us out secretly? No! let them come themselves
and take us out.” 38The police reported these words to the magistrates, and
they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens; 39so they
came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to
leave the city. 40So they went out of the prison, and visited Lydia; and when
they had seen the brethren, they exhorted them and departed.
The Uproar in Thessalonica
17 Now when they had passed through Amphip'olis and Apollo'nia,
they came to Thessaloni'ca, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2And
Paul went in, as was his custom, and for three weeksp he argued with them
from the Scriptures, 3explaining and proving that it was necessary for the
Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I
proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4And some of them were persuaded, and
joined Paul and Silas; as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a
few of the leading women. 5But the Jews were jealous, and taking some
wicked fellows of the rabble, they gathered a crowd, set the city in an
uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the
people. 6And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some
of the brethren before the city authorities, crying, “These men who have
turned the world upside down have come here also, 7and Jason has received
them; and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there
is another king, Jesus.” 8And the people and the city authorities were
disturbed when they heard this. 9And when they had taken security from
Jason and the rest, they let them go.
Paul and Silas in Beroea
10 The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Beroe'a;
and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. 11Now these
Jews were more noble than those in Thessaloni'ca, for they received the
word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these
things were so. 12Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek
women of high standing as well as men. 13But when the Jews of
Thessaloni'ca learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at
Beroe'a also, they came there too, stirring up and inciting the crowds.
14Then the brethren immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but
Silas and Timothy remained there. 15Those who conducted Paul brought
him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to
come to him as soon as possible, they departed.
Paul in Athens
16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was
provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. 17So he
argued in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the
market place every day with those who chanced to be there. 18Some also of
the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers met him. And some said, “What
would this babbler say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign
divinities”—because he preached Jesus and the resurrection. 19And they
took hold of him and brought him to the Are-op'agus, saying, “May we
know what this new teaching is which you present? 20For you bring some
strange things to our ears; we wish to know therefore what these things
mean.” 21Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent
their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.
22 So Paul, standing in the middle of the Are-op'agus, said: “Men of
Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23For as I
passed along, and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an
altar with this inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you
worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24The God who made the
world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in
shrines made by man, 25nor is he served by human hands, as though he
needed anything, since he himself gives to all men life and breath and
everything. 26And he made from one every nation of men to live on all the
face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of
their habitation, 27that they should seek God, in the hope that they might
feel after him and find him. Yet he is not far from each one of us, 28for
‘In him we live and move and have our being’;
as even some of your poets have said,
‘For we are indeed his offspring.’
29Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the Deity is like
gold, or silver, or stone, a representation by the art and imagination of man.

30The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all men
everywhere to repent, 31because he has fixed a day on which he will judge

the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he
has given assurance to all men by raising him from the dead.”
32 Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked;
but others said, “We will hear you again about this.” 33So Paul went out
from among them. 34But some men joined him and believed, among them
Dionys'ius the Are-op'agite and a woman named Dam'aris and others with
them.
Paul in Corinth
18 After this he left Athens and went to Corinth. 2And he found a Jew
named Aqui'la, a native of Pontus, lately come from Italy with his wife
Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome.
And he went to see them; 3and because he was of the same trade he stayed
with them, and they worked, for by trade they were tentmakers. 4And he
argued in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded Jews and Greeks.
5 When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was occupied
with preaching, testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus. 6And when
they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them,
“Your blood be upon your heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to
the Gentiles.” 7And he left there and went to the house of a man named
Titiusq Justus, a worshiper of God; his house was next door to the
synagogue. 8Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord,
together with all his household; and many of the Corinthians hearing Paul
believed and were baptized. 9And the Lord said to Paul one night in a
vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak and do not be silent; 10for I am with
you, and no man shall attack you to harm you; for I have many people in
this city.” 11And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God
among them.
12 But when Gallio was proconsul of Acha'ia, the Jews made a united
attack upon Paul and brought him before the tribunal, 13saying, “This man
is persuading men to worship God contrary to the law.” 14But when Paul
was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of
wrongdoing or vicious crime, I should have reason to bear with you, O
Jews; 15but since it is a matter of questions about words and names and
your own law, see to it yourselves; I refuse to be a judge of these things.”
16And he drove them from the tribunal. 17And they all seized Sos'thenes,
the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribunal. But Gallio
paid no attention to this.
Paul’s Return to Antioch
18 After this Paul stayed many days longer, and then took leave of the
brethren and sailed for Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aqui'la. At
Cen'chre-ae he cut his hair, for he had a vow. 19And they came to Ephesus,
and he left them there; but he himself went into the synagogue and argued
with the Jews. 20When they asked him to stay for a longer period, he
declined; 21but on taking leave of them he said, “I will return to you if God
wills,” and he set sail from Ephesus.
22 When he had landed at Caesare'a, he went up and greeted the Church,
and then went down to Antioch. 23After spending some time there he
departed and went from place to place through the region of Galatia and
Phryg'ia, strengthening all the disciples.
Ministry of Apollos
24 Now a Jew named Apol'los, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus.
He was an eloquent man, well versed in the Scriptures. 25He had been
instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and
taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the
baptism of John. 26He began to speak boldly in the synagogue; but when
Priscilla and Aqui'la heard him, they took him and expounded to him the
way of God more accurately. 27And when he wished to cross to Acha'ia, the
brethren encouraged him, and wrote to the disciples to receive him. When
he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed, 28for he
powerfully confuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the
Christ was Jesus.
Paul in Ephesus
19 While Apol'los was at Corinth, Paul passed through the upper
country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. 2And he said
to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they
said, “No, we have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3And he
said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.”
4And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the
people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” 5On
hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6And when
Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they
spoke with tongues and prophesied. 7There were about twelve of them in
all.
8 And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly,
arguing and pleading about the kingdom of God; 9but when some were
stubborn and disbelieved, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation,
he withdrew from them, taking the disciples with him, and argued daily in
the hall of Tyran'nus.r 10This continued for two years, so that all the
residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
The Sons of Sceva
11 And God did extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 12so that
handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick, and
diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. 13Then some of the
itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to pronounce the name of the Lord
Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus
whom Paul preaches.” 14Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva
were doing this. 15But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and
Paul I know; but who are you?” 16And the man in whom the evil spirit was
leaped on them, mastered all of them, and overpowered them, so that they
fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17And this became known to all
residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks; and fear fell upon them all;
and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled. 18Many also of those who
were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. 19And a
number of those who practiced magic arts brought their books together and
burned them in the sight of all; and they counted the value of them and
found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20So the word of the Lord
grew and prevailed mightily.
The Riot in Ephesus
21 Now after these events Paul resolved in the Spirit to pass through
Macedonia and Acha'ia and go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been
there, I must also see Rome.” 22And having sent into Macedonia two of his
helpers, Timothy and Eras'tus, he himself stayed in Asia for a while.
23 About that time there arose no little stir concerning the Way. 24For a
man named Deme'trius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Ar'temis,
brought no little business to the craftsmen. 25These he gathered together,
with the workmen of like occupation, and said, “Men, you know that from
this business we have our wealth. 26And you see and hear that not only at
Ephesus but almost throughout all Asia this Paul has persuaded and turned
away a considerable company of people, saying that gods made with hands
are not gods. 27And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may
come into disrepute but also that the temple of the great goddess Ar'temis
may count for nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her
magnificence, she whom all Asia and the world worship.”
28 When they heard this they were enraged, and cried out, “Great is
Ar'temis of the Ephesians!” 29So the city was filled with the confusion; and
they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them Ga'ius and
Aristar'chus, Macedonians who were Paul’s companions in travel. 30Paul
wished to go in among the crowd, but the disciples would not let him;
31some of the A'si-archs also, who were friends of his, sent to him and
begged him not to venture into the theater. 32Now some cried one thing,
some another; for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not
know why they had come together. 33Some of the crowd prompted
Alexander, whom the Jews had put forward. And Alexander motioned with
his hand, wishing to make a defense to the people. 34But when they
recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours they all with one voice
cried out, “Great is Ar'temis of the Ephesians!” And when the town clerk
had quieted the crowd, he said, “Men of Ephesus, what man is there who
does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great
Ar'temis, and of the sacred stone * that fell from the sky? s 36Seeing then
that these things cannot be contradicted, you ought to be quiet and do
nothing rash. 37For you have brought these men here who are neither
sacrilegious nor blasphemers of our goddess. 38If therefore Deme'trius and
the craftsmen with him have a complaint against any one, the courts are
open, and there are proconsuls; let them bring charges against one another.
39But if you seek anything further,t it shall be settled in the regular
assembly. 40For we are in danger of being charged with rioting today, there
being no cause that we can give to justify this commotion.” 41And when he
had said this, he dismissed the assembly.
Paul Goes to Macedonia and Greece
20 After the uproar ceased, Paul sent for the disciples and having
exhorted them took leave of them and departed for Macedonia. 2When he
had gone through these parts and had given them much encouragement, he
came to Greece. 3There he spent three months, and when a plot was made
against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he determined
to return through Macedonia. 4Sop'ater of Beroe'a, the son of Pyrrhus,
accompanied him; and of the Thessalo' nians, Aristar'chus and Secun'dus;
and Ga'ius of Derbe, and Timothy; and the Asians, Tych'icus and
Troph'imus. 5These went on and were waiting for us at Troas, 6but we
sailed away from Philip'pi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five
days we came to them at Troas, where we stayed for seven days.
Paul Preaches and Heals Eutychusin Troas
7 On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break
bread, * Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day; and he
prolonged his speech until midnight. 8There were many lights in the upper
chamber where we were gathered. 9And a young man named Eu'tychus was
sitting in the window. He sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer;
and being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was
taken up dead. 10But Paul went down and bent over him, and embracing
him said, “Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.” 11And when Paul had
gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long
while, until daybreak, and so departed. 12And they took the lad away alive,
and were not a little comforted.
13 But going ahead to the ship, we set sail for Assos, intending to take
Paul aboard there; for so he had arranged, intending himself to go by land.
14And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to
Mityle'ne. 15And sailing from there we came the following day opposite
Chi'os; the next day we touched at Sa'mos; andu the day after that we came
to Mile'tus. 16For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he might
not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hastening to be at Jerusalem, if
possible, on the day of Pentecost.
Paul Speaks to the Elders of Ephesus
17 And from Mile'tus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of
the Church. 18And when they came to him, he said to them:
“You yourselves know how I lived among you all the time from the first
day that I set foot in Asia, 19serving the Lord with all humility and with
tears and with trials which befell me through the plots of the Jews; 20how I
did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and
teaching you in public and from house to house, 21testifying both to Jews
and to Greeks of repentance to God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
22And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, bound in the Spirit, not
knowing what shall befall me there; 23except that the Holy Spirit testifies to
me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. 24But I do not
account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may
accomplish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord
Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. 25And now, behold, I
know that all you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom
will see my face no more. 26Therefore I testify to you this day that I am
innocent of the blood of all of you, 27for I did not shrink from declaring to
you the whole counsel of God. 28Take heed to yourselves and to all the
flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you guardians, to feed the Church
of the Lordv which he obtained with his own blood.w 29I know that after my
departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;
30and from among your own selves will arise men speaking perverse things,
to draw away the disciples after them. 31Therefore be alert, remembering

that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with
tears. 32And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace,
which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all
those who are sanctified. 33I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel.
34You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities, and to
those who were with me. * 35In all things I have shown you that by so
toiling one must help the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus,
how he said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
36 And when he had spoken thus, he knelt down and prayed with them all.
37And they all wept and embraced Paul and kissed him, 38sorrowing most
of all because of the word he had spoken, that they should see his face no
more. And they brought him to the ship.
Paul’s Journey to Jerusalem
21 And when we had parted from them and set sail, we came by a
straight course to Cos, and the next day to Rhodes, and from there to
Pat'ara.x 2And having found a ship crossing to Phoeni'cia, we went aboard,
and set sail. 3When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left
we sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre; for there the ship was to unload its
cargo. 4And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days.
Through the Spirit they told Paul not to go * on to Jerusalem. 5And when
our days there were ended, we departed and went on our journey; and they
all, with wives and children, brought us on our way till we were outside the
city; and kneeling down on the beach we prayed and bade one another
farewell. 6Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home.
7 When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolema'is;
and we greeted the brethren and stayed with them for one day. 8The next
day we departed and came to Caesare'a; and we entered the house of Philip
the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. 9And he had
four unmarried daughters, who prophesied. 10While we were staying for
some days, a prophet named Ag'abus came down from Judea. 11And
coming to us he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and
said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the
man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.' "
12When we heard this, we and the people there begged him not to go up to
Jerusalem. 13Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and
breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to
die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” 14And when he would not
be persuaded, we ceased and said, “The will of the Lord be done.”
15 After these days we made ready and went up to Jerusalem. 16And some
of the disciples from Caesare'a went with us, bringing us to the house of
Mnason of Cyprus, an early disciple, with whom we should lodge.
Paul Visits James at Jerusalem
17 When we had come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. 18On
the following day Paul went in with us to James; and all the elders were
present. 19After greeting them, he related one by one the things that God
had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20And when they heard
it, they glorified God. And they said to him, “You see, brother, how many
thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed; they are all
zealous for the law, 21and they have been told about you that you teach all
the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to
circumcise their children or observe the customs. 22What then is to be
done? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23Do therefore what we
tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; 24take these men and
purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may
shave their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have
been told about you but that you yourself live in observance of the law.
25But as for the Gentiles who have believed, we have sent a letter with our
judgment that they should abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols
and from blood and from what is strangledy and from unchastity.” 26Then
Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself with them and went
into the temple, to give notice when the days of purification would be
fulfilled and the offering presented for every one of them.
Paul Arrested in the Temple
27 When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, who
had seen him in the temple, stirred up all the crowd, and laid hands on him,
28crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching men
everywhere against the people and the law and this place; moreover he also
brought Greeks into the temple, and he has defiled this holy place.” 29For
they had previously seen Troph'imus the Ephesian with him in the city, and
they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. 30Then all the city
was aroused, and the people ran together; they seized Paul and dragged him
out of the temple, and at once the gates were shut. 31And as they were
trying to kill him, word came to the tribune of the cohort that all Jerusalem
was in confusion. 32He at once took soldiers and centurions, and ran down
to them; and when they saw the tribune and the soldiers, they stopped
beating Paul. 33Then the tribune came up and arrested him, and ordered him
to be bound with two chains. He inquired who he was and what he had
done. 34Some in the crowd shouted one thing, some another; and as he
could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought
into the barracks. 35And when he came to the steps, he was actually carried
by the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd; 36for the mob of the
people followed, crying, “Away with him!”
Paul Defends Himself
37 As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the
tribune, “May I say something to you?” And he said, “Do you know Greek?
38Are you not the Egyptian, then, who recently stirred up a revolt and led
the four thousand men of the Assassins out into the wilderness?” 39Paul
replied, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cili'cia, a citizen of no mean city; I beg
you, let me speak to the people.” 40And when he had given him leave, Paul,
standing on the steps, motioned with his hand to the people; and when there
was a great hush, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, saying:
22 “Brethren and fathers, hear the defense which I now make before
you.”
2 And when they heard that he addressed them in the Hebrew language,
they were the more quiet. And he said:
3 “I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cili'cia, but brought up in this city at the
feet of Gama'li-el, educated according to the strict manner of the law of our
fathers, being zealous for God as you all are this day. 4I persecuted this Way
to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, 5as the
high priest and the whole council of elders bear me witness. From them I
received letters to the brethren, and I journeyed to Damascus to take those
also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished.
Paul Tells of His Conversion
6 “As I made my journey and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great
light from heaven suddenly shone about me. 7And I fell to the ground and
heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ 8And I
answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth
whom you are persecuting.’ 9Now those who were with me saw the light
but did not hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me. 10And I said,
‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Rise, and go into
Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.’
11And when I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led
by the hand by those who were with me, and came into Damascus.
12 “And one Anani'as, a devout man according to the law, well spoken of
by all the Jews who lived there, 13came to me, and standing by me said to
me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And in that very hour I received my
sight and saw him. 14And he said, ‘The God of our fathers appointed you to
know his will, to see the Just One and to hear a voice from his mouth; 15for
you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and heard.
16And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your
sins, calling on his name.’

Paul Tells How He Was Sent to the Gentiles
17 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell
into a trance 18and saw him saying to me, ‘Make haste and get quickly out
of Jerusalem, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’ 19And
I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that in every synagogue I imprisoned
and beat those who believed in you. 20And when the blood of Stephen your
witness * was shed, I also was standing by and approving, and keeping the
garments of those who killed him.’ 21And he said to me, ‘Depart; for I will
send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ”
Paul and the Roman Tribune
22 Up to this word they listened to him; then they lifted up their voices
and said, “Away with such a fellow from the earth! For he ought not to
live.” 23And as they cried out and waved their garments and threw dust into
the air, 24the tribune commanded him to be brought into the barracks, and
ordered him to be examined by scourging, to find out why they shouted thus
against him. 25But when they had tied him up with the thongs, Paul said to
the centurion who was standing by, “Is it lawful for you to scourge a man
who is a Roman citizen, and uncondemned?” 26When the centurion heard
that, he went to the tribune and said to him, “What are you about to do? For
this man is a Roman citizen.” 27So the tribune came and said to him, “Tell
me, are you a Roman citizen?” And he said, “Yes.” 28The tribune answered,
“I bought this citizenship for a large sum.” Paul said, “But I was born a
citizen.” 29So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him
instantly; and the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a
Roman citizen and that he had bound him.
Paul before the Chief Priests and Council
30 But the next day, desiring to know the real reason why the Jews
accused him, he unbound him, and commanded the chief priests and all the
council to meet, and he brought Paul down and set him before them.
23 And Paul, looking intently at the council, said, “Brethren, I have

lived before God in all good conscience up to this day.” 2And the high
priest Anani'as commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the
mouth. 3Then Paul said to him, “God shall strike you, you whitewashed
wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to
the law you order me to be struck?” 4Those who stood by said, “Would you
revile God’s high priest?” 5And Paul said, “I did not know, brethren, that he
was the high priest; for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of
your people.' "
6 But when Paul perceived that one part were Sad'ducees and the other
Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brethren, I am a Pharisee, a son of
Pharisees; with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead I am on
trial.” 7And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees
and the Sad'ducees; and the assembly was divided. 8For the Sad'ducees say
that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit; but the Pharisees
acknowledge them all. 9Then a great clamor arose; and some of the scribes
of the Pharisees’ party stood up and contended, “We find nothing wrong in
this man. What if a spirit or an angel spoke to him?” 10And when the
dissension became violent, the tribune, afraid that Paul would be torn in
pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force
from among them and bring him into the barracks.
11 The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for
as you have testified about me at Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also
at Rome.”
The Plot to Kill Paul
12 When it was day, the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an
oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. 13There were more
than forty who made this conspiracy. 14And they went to the chief priests
and elders, and said, “We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath to taste
no food till we have killed Paul. 15You therefore, along with the council,
give notice now to the tribune to bring him down to you, as though you
were going to determine his case more exactly. And we are ready to kill him
before he comes near.”
16 Now the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush; so he went and
entered the barracks and told Paul. 17And Paul called one of the centurions
and said, “Take this young man to the tribune; for he has something to tell
him.” 18So he took him and brought him to the tribune and said, “Paul the
prisoner called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, as he has
something to say to you.” 19The tribune took him by the hand, and going
aside asked him privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?” 20And he
said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the council
tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more closely
about him. 21But do not yield to them; for more than forty of their men lie
in ambush for him, having bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor
drink till they have killed him; and now they are ready, waiting for the
promise from you.” 22So the tribune dismissed the young man, charging
him, “Tell no one that you have informed me of this.”
Paul Is Brought to Felix the Governor
23 Then he called two of the centurions and said, “At the third hour of the
night get ready two hundred soldiers with seventy horsemen and two
hundred spearmen to go as far as Caesare'a. 24Also provide mounts for Paul
to ride, and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” 25And he wrote a letter
to this effect:
26 “Claudius Lys'ias to his Excellency the governor Felix, greeting. 27This
man was seized by the Jews, and was about to be killed by them, when I
came upon them with the soldiers and rescued him, having learned that he
was a Roman citizen. 28And desiring to know the charge on which they
accused him, I brought him down to their council. 29I found that he was
accused about questions of their law, but charged with nothing deserving
death or imprisonment. 30And when it was disclosed to me that there would
be a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, ordering his accusers
also to state before you what they have against him.”
31 So the soldiers, according to their instructions, took Paul and brought
him by night to Antip'atris. 32And the next day they returned to the
barracks, leaving the horsemen to go on with him. 33When they came to
Caesare'a and delivered the letter to the governor, they presented Paul also
before him. 34On reading the letter, he asked to what province he belonged.
When he learned that he was from Cili'cia 35he said, “I will hear you when
your accusers arrive.” And he commanded him to be guarded in Herod’s
praetorium.
Paul before Felix at Caesarea
24 And after five days the high priest Anani'as came down with some
elders and a spokesman, one Tertul'lus. They laid before the governor their
case against Paul; 2and when he was called, Tertul'lus began to accuse him,
saying:
“Since through you we enjoy much peace, and since by your provision,
most excellent Felix, reforms are introduced on behalf of this nation, 3in
every way and everywhere we accept this with all gratitude. 4But, to detain
you no further, I beg you in your kindness to hear us briefly. 5For we have
found this man a pestilent fellow, an agitator among all the Jews throughout
the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. 64He even tried to
profane the temple, but we seized him.z 8By examining him yourself you
will be able to learn from him about everything of which we accuse him.”
9 The Jews also joined in the charge, affirming that all this was so.
Paul’s Defense before Felix
10 And when the governor had motioned to him to speak, Paul replied:
“Realizing that for many years you have been judge over this nation, I
cheerfully make my defense. 11As you may ascertain, it is not more than
twelve days since I went up to worship at Jerusalem; 12and they did not find
me disputing with any one or stirring up a crowd, either in the temple or in
the synagogues, or in the city. 13Neither can they prove to you what they
now bring up against me. 14But this I admit to you, that according to the
Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing
everything laid down by the law or written in the prophets, 15having a hope
in God which these themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of
both the just and the unjust. 16So I always take pains to have a clear
conscience toward God and toward men. 17Now after some years I came to
bring to my nation alms and offerings. 18As I was doing this, they found me
purified in the temple, without any crowd or tumult. But some Jews from
Asia—19they ought to be here before you and to make an accusation, if they
have anything against me. 20Or else let these men themselves say what
wrongdoing they found when I stood before the council, 21except this one
thing which I cried out while standing among them, ‘With respect to the
resurrection of the dead I am on trial before you this day.' "
22 But Felix, having a rather accurate knowledge of the Way, put them
off, saying, “When Lys'ias the tribune comes down, I will decide your
case.” 23Then he gave orders to the centurion that he should be kept in
custody but should have some liberty, and that none of his friends should be
prevented from attending to his needs.
Paul Held in Custody
24 After some days Felix came with his wife Drusil'la, who was Jewish;
and he sent for Paul and heard him speak upon faith in Christ Jesus. 25And
as he argued about justice and self-control and future judgment, Felix was
alarmed and said, “Go away for the present; when I have an opportunity I
will summon you.” 26At the same time he hoped that money would be given
him by Paul. So he sent for him often and conversed with him. 27But when
two years had elapsed, Felix was succeeded by Por'cius Festus; and desiring
to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.
Paul Appeals to Caesar
25 Now when Festus had come into his province, after three days he
went up to Jerusalem from Caesare'a. 2And the chief priests and the
principal men of the Jews informed him against Paul; and they urged him,
3asking as a favor to have the man sent to Jerusalem, planning an ambush to
kill him on the way. 4Festus replied that Paul was being kept at Caesare'a,
and that he himself intended to go there shortly. 5“So,” said he, “let the men
of authority among you go down with me, and if there is anything wrong
about the man, let them accuse him.”
6 When he had stayed among them not more than eight or ten days, he
went down to Caesare'a; and the next day he took his seat on the tribunal
and ordered Paul to be brought. 7And when he had come, the Jews who had
gone down from Jerusalem stood about him, bringing against him many
serious charges which they could not prove. 8Paul said in his defense,
“Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against
Caesar have I offended at all.” 9But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor,
said to Paul, “Do you wish to go up to Jerusalem, and there be tried on
these charges before me?” 10But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s
tribunal, where I ought to be tried; to the Jews I have done no wrong, as you
know very well. 11If then I am a wrongdoer, and have committed anything
for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death; but if there is
nothing in their charges against me, no one can give me up to them. I appeal
to Caesar.” 12Then Festus, when he had conferred with his council,
answered, “You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you shall go.”
Festus Consults King Agrippa
13 Now when some days had passed, Agrippa the king and Bernice
arrived at Caesare'a to welcome Festus. 14And as they stayed there many
days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, “There is a man left
prisoner by Felix; 15and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the
elders of the Jews gave information about him, asking for sentence against
him. 16I answered them that it was not the custom of the Romans to give up
any one before the accused met the accusers face to face, and had
opportunity to make his defense concerning the charge laid against him.
17When therefore they came together here, I made no delay, but on the next
day took my seat on the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought in.
18When the accusers stood up, they brought no charge in his case of such
evils as I supposed; 19but they had certain points of dispute with him about
their own superstition and about one Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul
asserted to be alive. 20Being at a loss how to investigate these questions, I
asked whether he wished to go to Jerusalem and be tried there regarding
them. 21But when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision
of the emperor, I commanded him to be held until I could send him to
Caesar.” 22And Agrippa said to Festus, “I should like to hear the man
myself.” “Tomorrow,” said he, “you shall hear him.”
Paul Is Brought before Agrippa
23 So the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they
entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men
of the city. Then by command of Festus Paul was brought in. 24And Festus
said, “King Agrippa and all who are present with us, you see this man about
whom the whole Jewish people petitioned me, both at Jerusalem and here,
shouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25But I found that he had done
nothing deserving death; and as he himself appealed to the emperor, I
decided to send him. 26But I have nothing definite to write to my lord about
him. Therefore I have brought him before you, and, especially before you,
King Agrippa, that, after we have examined him, I may have something to
write. 27For it seems to me unreasonable, in sending a prisoner, not to
indicate the charges against him.”
Paul Makes His Defense before Agrippa
26 Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.”
Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense:
2 “I think myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am to
make my defense today against all the accusations of the Jews, 3because
you are especially familiar with all customs and controversies of the Jews;
therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4 “My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my
own nation and at Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. 5They have known
for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest
party of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee. 6And now I stand here on
trial for hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, 7to which our
twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And
for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! 8Why is it thought incredible
by any of you that God raises the dead?
9 “I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the
name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10And I did so in Jerusalem; I not only shut up
many of the saints in prison, by authority from the chief priests, but when
they were put to death I cast my vote against them. 11And I punished them
often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme; and in raging
fury against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.
Paul Tells of His Conversion
12 “Thus I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of
the chief priests. 13At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from
heaven, brighter than the sun, shining round me and those who journeyed
with me. 14And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying
to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It
hurts you to kick against the goads.’ 15And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’
And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16But rise and
stand upon your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint
you to serve and bear witness to the things in which you have seen me and
to those in which I will appear to you, 17delivering you from the people and
from the Gentiles—to whom I send you 18to open their eyes, that they may
turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they
may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified
by faith in me.’
Paul Tells of His Preaching
19 “Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly
vision, 20but declared first to those at Damascus, then at Jerusalem and
throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they
should repent and turn to God and perform deeds worthy of their
repentance. 21For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to
kill me. 22To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I
stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the
prophets and Moses said would come to pass: 23that the Christ must suffer,
and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light
both to the people and to the Gentiles.”
Paul Appeals to Agrippa to Believe
24 And as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul,
you are mad; your great learning is turning you mad.” 25But Paul said, “I
am not mad, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking the sober truth. 26For
the king knows about these things, and to him I speak freely; for I am
persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this was not
done in a corner. 27King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that
you believe.” 28And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time you think to
make me a Christian!” 29And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to
God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such
as I am—except for these chains.”
30 Then the king rose, and the governor and Bernice and those who were
sitting with them; 31and when they had withdrawn, they said to one another,
“This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” 32And
Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not
appealed to Caesar.”
Paul Sails for Rome
27 And when it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they delivered
Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort,
named Julius. 2And embarking in a ship of Adramyt'tium, which was about
to sail to the ports along the coast of Asia, we put to sea, accompanied by
Aristar'chus, a Macedonian from Thessaloni'ca. 3The next day we put in at
Si'don; and Julius treated Paul kindly, and gave him leave to go to his
friends and be cared for. 4And putting to sea from there we sailed under the
lee of Cyprus, because the winds were against us. 5And when we had sailed
across the sea which is off Cili'cia and Pamphyl'ia, we came to Myra in
Ly'cia. 6There the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing for Italy, and
put us on board. 7We sailed slowly for a number of days, and arrived with
difficulty off Cni'dus, and as the wind did not allow us to go on, we sailed
under the lee of Crete off Salmo'ne. 8Coasting along it with difficulty, we
came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lase'a.
9 As much time had been lost, and the voyage was already dangerous
because the fast had already gone by, Paul advised them, 10saying, “Sirs, I
perceive that the voyage will be with injury and much loss, not only of the
cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” 11But the centurion paid more
attention to the captain and to the owner of the ship than to what Paul said.
12And because the harbor was not suitable to winter in, the majority advised
to put to sea from there, on the chance that somehow they could reach
Phoenix, a harbor of Crete, looking northeast and southeast,a and winter
there.
The Storm at Sea
13 And when the south wind blew gently, supposing that they had
obtained their purpose, they weighed anchor and sailed along Crete, close
inshore. 14But soon a tempestuous wind, called the northeaster, struck down
from the land; 15and when the ship was caught and could not face the wind,
we gave way to it and were driven. 16And running under the lee of a small
island called Cau'da,b we managed with difficulty to secure the boat; 17after
hoisting it up, they took measuresc to undergird the ship; then, fearing that
they should run on the Syr'tis, they lowered the gear, and so were driven.
18As we were violently storm-tossed, they began next day to throw the
cargo overboard; 19and the third day they cast out with their own hands the
tackle of the ship. 20And when neither sun nor stars appeared for many a
day, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope of our being saved was at last
abandoned.
21 As they had been long without food, Paul then came forward among
them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me, and should not have
set sail from Crete and incurred this injury and loss. 22I now bid you take
heart; for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. 23For
this very night there stood by me an angel of the God to whom I belong and
whom I worship, 24and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand
before Caesar; and behold, God has granted you all those who sail with
you.’ 25So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I
have been told. 26But we shall have to run on some island.”
27 When the fourteenth night had come, as we were drifting across the sea
of A'dria, about midnight the sailors suspected that they were nearing land.
28So they sounded and found twenty fathoms; a little farther on they
sounded again and found fifteen fathoms. 29And fearing that we might run
on the rocks, they let out four anchors from the stern, and prayed for day to
come. 30And as the sailors were seeking to escape from the ship, and had
lowered the boat into the sea, under pretense of laying out anchors from the
bow, 31Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in
the ship, you cannot be saved.” 32Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of
the boat, and let it go.
33 As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food,
saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have continued in suspense
and without food, having taken nothing. 34Therefore I urge you to take
some food; it will give you strength, since not a hair is to perish from the
head of any of you.” 35And when he had said this, he took bread, and giving
thanks to God in the presence of all, he broke it and began to eat. 36Then
they all were encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37(We were in all
two hundred and seventy-sixd persons in the ship.) 38And when they had
eaten enough, they lightened the ship, throwing out the wheat into the sea.
The Shipwreck
39 Now when it was day, they did not recognize the land, but they noticed
a bay with a beach, on which they planned if possible to bring the ship
ashore. 40So they cast off the anchors and left them in the sea, at the same
time loosening the ropes that tied the rudders; then hoisting the foresail to
the wind they made for the beach. 41But striking a shoale they ran the vessel
aground; the bow stuck and remained immovable, and the stern was broken
up by the surf. 42The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners, lest any should
swim away and escape; 43but the centurion, wishing to save Paul, kept them
from carrying out their purpose. He ordered those who could swim to throw
themselves overboard first and make for the land, 44and the rest on planks
or on pieces of the ship. And so it was that all escaped to land.
Paul on the Island of Malta
28 After we had escaped, we then learned that the island was called
Malta. 2And the natives showed us unusual kindness, for they kindled a fire
and welcomed us all, because it had begun to rain and was cold. 3Paul had
gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, when a viper came out
because of the heat and fastened on his hand. 4When the natives saw the
creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this
man is a murderer. Though he has escaped from the sea, justice has not
allowed him to live.” 5He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and
suffered no harm. 6They waited, expecting him to swell up or suddenly fall
down dead; but when they had waited a long time and saw no misfortune
come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.
7 Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief
man of the island, named Pub'lius, who received us and entertained us
hospitably for three days. 8It happened that the father of Pub'lius lay sick
with fever and dysentery; and Paul visited him and prayed, and putting his
hands on him healed him. 9And when this had taken place, the rest of the
people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured. 10They
presented many gifts to us;f and when we sailed, they put on board
whatever we needed.
Paul Comes to Rome
11 After three months we set sail in a ship which had wintered in the
island, a ship of Alexandria, with the Twin Brothers as figurehead. 12Putting
in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days. 13And from there we made a
circuit and arrived at Rhe'gium; and after one day a south wind sprang up,
and on the second day we came to Pute'oli. 14There we found brethren, and
were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome.
15And the brethren there, when they heard of us, came as far as the Forum
of Ap'pius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them Paul thanked God
and took courage. 16And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to
stay by himself, with the soldier that guarded him.
Paul and Jewish Leaders in Rome
17 After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews; and
when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brethren, though I had done
nothing against the people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered
prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18When they had
examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason
for the death penalty in my case. 19But when the Jews objected, I was
compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my
nation. 20For this reason therefore I have asked to see you and speak with
you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this
chain.” 21And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea
about you, and none of the brethren coming here has reported or spoken any
evil about you. 22But we desire to hear from you what your views are; for
with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”
Paul Preaches in Rome
23 When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his
lodging in great numbers. And he expounded the matter to them from
morning till evening, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to
convince them about Jesus both from the law of Moses and from the
prophets. 24And some were convinced by what he said, while others
disbelieved. 25So, as they disagreed among themselves, they departed, after
Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your
fathers through Isaiah the prophet:
26‘Go to this people, and say,
You shall indeed hear but never understand,

and you shall indeed see but never perceive.
27For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and their ears are heavy of hearing,

and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should perceive with their eyes,
and understand with their heart,
and turn for me to heal them.’
28Let it be known to you then that this salvation of God has been sent to
the Gentiles; they will listen.” g

30 And he lived there two whole years at his own expense,h and
welcomed all who came to him, 31preaching the kingdom of God and
teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ quite openly and unhindered.
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Romans
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS
Salutation
1 * Paul, a servanta of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for
the gospel of God 2which he promised beforehand through his prophets in
the holy Scriptures, 3the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended
from David according to the flesh 4and designateda2 Son of God in power
according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus
Christ our Lord, 5through whom we have received grace and apostleship to
bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the
nations, 6including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ;
7 To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Prayer of Thanksgiving
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your
faith is proclaimed in all the world. 9For God is my witness, whom I serve
with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you
always in my prayers, 10asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at
last succeed in coming to you. * 11For I long to see you, that I may impart to
you some spiritual gift to strengthen you, 12that is, that we may be mutually
encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13I want you to
know, brethren, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have
been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest * among you as well
as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14I am under obligation both to Greeks
and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish: 15so I am eager to
preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
The Power of the Gospel
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel: it is the power of God for
salvation to every one who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it
is written, “He who through faith is righteous shall live.”b

God’s Wrath against Man’s Wickedness
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness
and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress the truth. 19For
what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it
to them. 20Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely,
his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that
have been made. So they are without excuse; 21for although they knew God
they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile
in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. 22Claiming to be
wise, they became fools, 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for
images resembling mortal man or birds or animals or reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to
the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25because they
exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the
creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed for ever! Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their
women exchanged natural relations for unnatural, 27and the men likewise
gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for
one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in
their own persons the due penalty for their error.
28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up
to a base mind and to improper conduct. 29They were filled with all manner
of wickedness, evil, covetousness, malice. Full of envy, murder, strife,
deceit, malignity, they are gossips, 30slanderers, haters of God, insolent,
haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31foolish,
faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32Though they know God’s decree that those
who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them but approve those
who practice them.
The Righteous Judgment of God
2 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, whoever you are, when you
judge another; for in passing judgment upon him you condemn yourself,
because you, the judge, are doing the very same things. 2We know that the
judgment of God rightly falls upon those who do such things. 3Do you
suppose, O man, that when you judge those who do such things and yet do
them yourself, you will escape the judgment of God? 4Or do you presume
upon the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? Do you not
know that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 5But by your
hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day
of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. 6For he will
render to every man according to his works: 7to those who by patience in
well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal
life; 8but for those who are factious and do not obey the truth, but obey
wickedness, there will be wrath and fury. 9There will be tribulation and
distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the
Greek, 10but glory and honor and peace for every one who does good, the
Jew first and also the Greek. 11For God shows no partiality.
12 All who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law,
and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13For it is
not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of
the law who will be justified. 14When Gentiles who have not the law do by
nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they
do not have the law. 15They show that what the law requires is written on
their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting
thoughts accuse or perhaps excuse them 16on that day when, according to
my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
The Jews and the Law
17 But if you call yourself a Jew and rely upon the law and boast of your
relation to God 18and know his will and approve what is excellent, because
you are instructed in the law, 19and if you are sure that you are a guide to
the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20a corrector of the foolish, a
teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and
truth—21you then who teach others, will you not teach yourself? While you
preach against stealing, do you steal? 22You who say that one must not
commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob
temples? 23You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the
law? 24For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the
Gentiles because of you.”
25 Circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law; but if you break
the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. 26So, if a man who is
uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be
regarded as circumcision? 27Then those who are physically uncircumcised
but keep the law will condemn you who have the written code and
circumcision but break the law. 28For he is not a real Jew who is one
outwardly, nor is true circumcision something external and physical. 29He is
a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart,
spiritual and not literal. His praise is not from men but from God.
3 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of
circumcision? 2Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews are entrusted
with the oracles of God. 3What if some were unfaithful? Does their
faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? 4By no means! Let God be
true though every man be false, as it is written,
“That you may be justified in your words,
and prevail when you are judged.”
5But if our wickedness serves to show the justice of God, what shall we
say? That God is unjust to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.)
6By no means! For then how could God judge the world? 7But if through
my falsehood God’s truthfulness abounds to his glory, why am I still being
condemned as a sinner? 8And why not do evil that good may come?—as
some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is
just.
None Is Righteous
9 What then? Are we Jews any better off?c No, not at all; for Id have
already charged that all men, both Jews and Greeks, are under the power of
sin, 10as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
11no one understands, no one seeks for God.
12All have turned aside, together they have gone wrong;
no one does good, not even one.”

13“Their throat is an open grave,
they use their tongues to deceive.”

“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14“Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15“Their feet are swift to shed blood,
16in their paths are ruin and misery,
17and the way of peace they do not know.”
18“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are
under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world
may be held accountable to God. 20For no human being will be justified in
his sight by works of the law, since through the law comes knowledge of
sin.
Righteousness through Faith
21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from law,
although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, 22the righteousness of
God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no
distinction; 23since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24they
are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ
Jesus, 25whom God put forward as an expiation by his blood, to be received
by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine
forbearance he had passed over former sins; 26it was to prove at the present
time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies him who has faith in
Jesus.
27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. On what principle?
On the principle of works? No, but on the principle of faith. * 28For we hold
that a man is justified by faith apart from works of law. 29Or is God the God
of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also,
30since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of
their faith and the uncircumcised through their faith. 31Do we then
overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold
the law.
The Example of the Faith of Abraham
4 What then shall we say aboute Abraham, our forefather according to
the flesh? 2For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to
boast about, but not before God. 3For what does the Scripture say?
“Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.”
4Now to one who works, his wages are not reckoned as a gift but as his due.
5And to one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his
faith is reckoned as righteousness. 6So also David pronounces a blessing

upon the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works:
7“Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are
covered;
8blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not reckon his sin.”
9 Is this blessing pronounced only upon the circumcised, or also upon the
uncircumcised? We say that faith was reckoned to Abraham as
righteousness. 10How then was it reckoned to him? Was it before or after he
had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. 11He
received circumcision as a sign or seal of the righteousness which he had by
faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the
father of all who believe without being circumcised and who thus have
righteousness reckoned to them, 12and likewise the father of the
circumcised who are not merely circumcised but also follow the example of
the faith which our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
God’s Promise Realized through Faith
13 The promise to Abraham and his descendants, that they should inherit
the world, did not come through the law but through the righteousness of
faith. 14If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null
and the promise is void. 15For the law brings wrath, but where there is no
law there is no transgression.
16 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on
grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants—not only to the adherents of
the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, for he is the father
of us all, 17as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—
in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead
and calls into existence the things that do not exist. 18In hope he believed
against hope, that he should become the father of many nations; as he had
been told, “So shall your descendants be.” 19He did not weaken in faith
when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead because he
was about a hundred years old, or when he considered the barrenness of
Sarah’s womb. 20No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of
God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21fully
convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. 22That is why his
faith was “reckoned to him as righteousness.” 23But the words, “it was
reckoned to him,” were written not for his sake alone, 24but for ours also. It
will be reckoned to us who believe in him that raised from the dead Jesus
our Lord, 25who was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our
justification.
Results of Justification
5 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, wef have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2Through him we have obtained accessg to
this grace in which we stand, and weh rejoice in our hope of sharing the
glory of God. 3More than that, weh rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that
suffering produces endurance, 4and endurance produces character, and
character produces hope, 5and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s
love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been
given to us.
6 While we were yet helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
7Why, one will hardly die for a righteous man—though perhaps for a good
man one will dare even to die. 8But God shows his love for us in that while
we were yet sinners Christ died for us. 9Since, therefore, we are now
justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath
of God. 10For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the
death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved
by his life. 11Not only so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus
Christ, through whom we have now received our reconciliation.
Adam and Christ
12 Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death
through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned *—13sin
indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted
where there is no law. 14Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over
those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type
of the one who was to come.
15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one
man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift in the
grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. * 16And the free gift
is not like the effect of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one
trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses
brings justification. 17If, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned
through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of
grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man
Jesus Christ.
18 Then as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one
man’s act of righteousness leads to acquittal and life for all men. 19For as by
one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man’s
obedience many will be made righteous. 20Law came in, to increase the
trespass; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21so that, as
sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness to eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Dying and Rising with Christ
6 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may
abound? 2By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3Do
you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were
baptized into his death? 4We were buried * therefore with him by baptism
into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the
Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall
certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6We know that our
former man was crucified with him so that the sinful body might be
destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. 7For he who has died
is freed from sin. 8But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall
also live with him. 9For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will
never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10The death he
died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. 11So
you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ
Jesus.
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies, to make you obey
their passions. 13Do not yield your members to sin as instruments of
wickedness, but yield yourselves to God as men who have been brought
from death to life, and your members to God as instruments of
righteousness. 14For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not
under law but under grace.
Slaves of Sin or of Righteousness
15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under
grace? By no means! * 16Do you not know that if you yield yourselves to
any one as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either
of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
17But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become
obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were
committed, 18and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of
righteousness. 19I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural
limitations. For just as you once yielded your members to impurity and to
greater and greater iniquity, so now yield your members to righteousness
for sanctification.
20 When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.
21But then what return did you get from the things of which you are now
ashamed? The end of those things is death. 22But now that you have been
set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is
sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but
the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The Analogy with Marriage
7 Do you not know, brethren—for I am speaking to those who know the
law—that the law is binding on a person only during his life? 2Thus a
married woman is bound by law to her husband as long as he lives; but if
her husband dies she is discharged from the law concerning the husband.
3Accordingly, she will be called an adulteress if she lives with another man
while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies she is free from that law,
and if she marries another man she is not an adulteress.
4 Likewise, my brethren, you have died to the law through the body of
Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from
the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God. 5While we were living in
the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our
members to bear fruit for death. 6But now we are discharged from the law,
dead to that which held us captive, so that we serve not under the old
written code but in the new life of the Spirit.
The Law and Sin
7 What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet, if it had
not been for the law, I should not have known sin. I should not have known
what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” 8But sin,
finding opportunity in the commandment, wrought in me all kinds of
covetousness. Apart from the law sin lies dead. 9I was once alive apart from
the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died; 10the
very commandment which promised life proved to be death to me. 11For
sin, finding opportunity in the commandment, deceived me and by it killed
me. 12So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good.
The Interior Conflictbetween Good and Evil
13 Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? * By no means! It was
sin, working death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be
shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful
beyond measure. 14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold
under sin. 15I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I
want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16Now if I do what I do not want, I
agree that the law is good. 17So then it is no longer I that do it, but sin
which dwells within me. 18For I know that nothing good dwells within me,
that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. 19For I do not
do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. 20Now if I do
what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within
me.
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at
hand. 22For I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self, 23but I see in my
members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me
captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members. 24Wretched man that
I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God
through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I of myself serve the law of God
with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
Life in the Spirit
8 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ
Jesus. 2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from
the law of sin and death. 3For God has done what the law, weakened by the
flesh, could not do: sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and
for sin,i he condemned sin in the flesh, 4in order that the just requirement of
the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but
according to the Spirit. 5For those who live according to the flesh set their
minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit
set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6To set the mind on the flesh is
death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7For the mind that
is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, indeed
it cannot; 8and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God
really dwells in you. Any one who does not have the Spirit of Christ does
not belong to him. 10But if Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead
because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness. 11If the Spirit
of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ
Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his
Spirit who dwells in you.
12 So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to
the flesh—13for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the
Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live. 14For all who are
led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you did not receive the spirit
of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship.
When we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with
our spirit that we are children of God, 17and if children, then heirs, heirs of
God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that
we may also be glorified with him.
The Glory to Be Revealed
18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth
comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19For the creation
waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God; * 20for the
creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of him
who subjected it in hope; 21because the creation itself will be set free from
its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God.
22We know that the whole creation has been groaning with labor pains
together until now; 23and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have
the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons,
the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved. Now hope
that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25But if we hope
for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how
to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too
deep for words. 27And he who searches the hearts of men knows what is the
mind of the Spirit, becausej the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to
the will of God.
28 We know that in everything God works for goodk with those who love
him,l who are called according to his purpose. 29For those whom he
foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in
order that he might be the first-born among many brethren. 30And those
whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also
justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
God’s Love in Christ Jesus
31 What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who is against us?
32He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, will he not
also give us all things with him? 33Who shall bring any charge against
God’s elect? It is God who justifies; 34who is to condemn? Is it Christ Jesus,
who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of
God, who indeed intercedes for us?m 35Who shall separate us from the love
of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who
loved us. 38For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39nor
height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate
us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God’s Election of Israel
9 I am speaking the truth in Christ, I am not lying; my conscience bears
me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2that I have great sorrow and unceasing
anguish in my heart. 3For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut
off from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the
flesh. 4They are Israelites, and to them belong the sonship, the glory, the
covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; 5to them
belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ,
who is God over all, blessed for ever.n Amen.
6 But it is not as though the word of God had failed. For not all who are
descended from Israel belong to Israel, 7and not all are children of Abraham
because they are his descendants; but “Through Isaac shall your
descendants be named.” 8This means that it is not the children of the flesh
who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are reckoned as
descendants. 9For this is what the promise said, “About this time I will
return and Sarah shall have a son.” 10And not only so, but also when
Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11though
they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad, in order
that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but
because of his call, 12she was told, “The elder will serve the younger.” 13As
it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!
15For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I
will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16So it depends not

upon man’s will or exertion, but upon God’s mercy. 17For the Scripture says
to Pharaoh, “I have raised you up for the very purpose of showing my
power in you, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18So
then he has mercy upon whomever he wills, and he hardens the heart of
whomever he wills.
God’s Wrath and Mercy
19 * You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can
resist his will?”20But who are you, a man, to answer back to God? Will
what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me thus?” 21Has the
potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for
beauty and another for menial use? 22What if God, desiring to show his
wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience the
vessels of wrath made for destruction, 23in order to make known the riches
of his glory for the vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for
glory, 24even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from
the Gentiles?
25As indeed he says in Hose'a,
“Those who were not my people

I will call ‘my people,’
and her who was not beloved
I will call ‘my beloved.' "
26“And in the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my
people,’
they will be called ‘sons of the living God.' "
27 And Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: “Though the number of the sons
of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will be saved;
28for the Lord will execute his sentence upon the earth with rigor and
dispatch.” 29And as Isaiah predicted,

“If the Lord of hosts had not left us children,
we would have fared like Sodom and been made like Gomor'rah.”
Israel’s Lack of Faith
30 What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue
righteousness have attained it, that is, righteousness through faith; 31but that
Israel who pursued the righteousness which is based on law did not succeed
in fulfilling that law. 32Why? Because they did not pursue it through faith,
but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling
stone, 33as it is written,
“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone that will make men stumble,
a rock that will make them fall;
and he who believes in him will not be put to shame.”
10 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they
may be saved. * 2I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but it is
not enlightened. 3For, being ignorant of the righteousness that comes from
God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s
righteousness. 4For Christ is the end of the law, that every one who has faith
may be justified.
Salvation Is for Believers in Christ
5 Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is
based on the law shall live by it. 6But the righteousness based on faith says,
Do not say in your heart, “Who will ascend into heaven?” (that is, to bring
Christ down) 7or “Who will descend into the abyss?” (that is, to bring
Christ up from the dead). 8But what does it say? The word is near you, on
your lips and in your heart (that is, the word of faith which we preach);
9because, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in
your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For man
believes with his heart and so is justified, and he confesses with his lips and
so is saved. 11The Scripture says, “No one who believes in him will be put
to shame.” 12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same
Lord is Lord of all and bestows his riches upon all who call upon him.
13For, “every one who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14 But how are men to call upon him in whom they have not believed?
And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And
how are they to hear without a preacher? 15And how can men preach unless
they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who
preach good news!” 16But they have not all heeded the gospel; for Isaiah
says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17So faith
comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes by the preaching of
Christ.
18 But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have; for
“Their voice has gone out to all the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.”
19Again I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,
“I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation;

with a foolish nation I will make you angry.”
20Then Isaiah is so bold as to say,
“I have been found by those who did not seek me;

I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”
21But of Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a
disobedient and contrary people.”

Israel’s Rejection Is Not Final
11 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am
an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
2God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what
the Scripture says of Eli'jah, how he pleads with God against Israel? 3“Lord,
they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I
alone am left, and they seek my life.” 4But what is God’s reply to him? “I
have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to
Ba'al.” 5So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. 6But
if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would
no longer be grace.
7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it sought. The elect obtained it,
but the rest were hardened, 8as it is written,
“God gave them a spirit of stupor,
eyes that should not see and ears that should not hear,
down to this very day.”
9And David says,
“Let their feast become a snare and a trap,

a pitfall and a retribution for them;
10let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see,
and bend their backs for ever.”
The Salvation of the Gentiles
11 So I ask, have they stumbled so as to fall? By no means! But through
their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel
jealous. 12Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their
failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full
inclusion mean!
13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle
to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14in order to make my fellow Jews
jealous, and thus save some of them. 15For if their rejection means the
reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from
the dead? 16If the dough offered as first fruits is holy, so is the whole batch;
and if the root is holy, so are the branches.
17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive
shoot, were grafted in their place to share the richnesso of the olive tree,
18do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember it is not you
that support the root, but the root that supports you. 19You will say,
“Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20That is true.
They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast only
through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. 21For if God did
not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. 22Note then the
kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen,
but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness;
otherwise you too will be cut off. 23And even the others, if they do not
persist in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft
them in again. 24For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild
olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how
much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive
tree.
Israel Will Be Saved
25 Lest you be wise in your own conceits, I want you to understand this
mystery, brethren: a hardening has come upon part of Israel, until the full
number of the Gentiles come in, 26and so all Israel will be saved; as it is
written,
“The Deliverer will come from Zion,
he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”;
27“and this will be my covenant with them
when I take away their sins.”

28As regards the gospel they are enemies of God, for your sake; but as
regards election they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29For the
gifts and the call of God are irrevocable. 30Just as you were once
disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their
disobedience, 31so they have now been disobedient in order that by the
mercy shown to you they also mayp receive mercy. 32For God has
consigned all men to disobedience, that he may have mercy upon all.
33 O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
34“For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”

35“Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”

36For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be
glory for ever. Amen.

The New Life in Christ
12 I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present
your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your
spiritual worship. 2Do not be conformed to this worldq but be transformed
by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God,
what is good and acceptable and perfect.r
3 For by the grace given to me I bid every one among you not to think of
himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober
judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned
him. 4For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do
not have the same function, 5so we, though many, are one body in Christ,
and individually members one of another. 6Having gifts that differ
according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in
proportion to our faith; 7if service, in our serving; he who teaches, in his
teaching; 8he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who contributes, in
liberality; he who gives aid, with zeal; he who does acts of mercy, with
cheerfulness.
Marks of the True Christian
9 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; 10love
one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
11Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. 12Rejoice in
your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13Contribute to

the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15Rejoice
with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16Live in harmony with
one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly;s never be
conceited. 17Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in
the sight of all. 18If possible, so far as it depends upon you, live peaceably
with all. 19Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave itt to the wrath of
God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”
20No, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him drink;
for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head.” 21Do not be
overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Being Subject to Authorities
13 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is
no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by
God. 2Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has
appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3For rulers are not a
terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of him who is in
authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4for he
is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does
not bear the sword in vain; he is the servant of God to execute his wrath on
the wrongdoer. 5Therefore one must be subject, not only to avoid God’s
wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6For the same reason you also pay
taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.
7Pay all of them their dues, taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom
revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is

due.
Love for One Another
8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his
neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9The commandments, “You shall not commit
adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and
any other commandment, are summed up in this sentence, “You shall love
your neighbor as yourself.” 10Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore
love is the fulfilling of the law.
An Urgent Appeal
11 Besides this you know what hour it is, how it is full time now for you
to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first
believed; 12the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the
works of darkness and put on the armor of light; 13let us conduct ourselves
becomingly as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in
debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14But put on
the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its
desires.
Do Not Judge One Another
14 * As for the man who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not for
disputes over opinions. 2One believes he may eat anything, while the weak
man eats only vegetables. 3Let not him who eats despise him who abstains,
and let not him who abstains pass judgment on him who eats; for God has
welcomed him. 4Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It
is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for
the Master is able to make him stand.
5 One man esteems one day as better than another, while another man
esteems all days alike. Let every one be fully convinced in his own mind.
6He who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. He also who
eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God; while he who
abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7None of us
lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8If we live, we live to the
Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether
we die, we are the Lord’s. 9For to this end Christ died and lived again, that
he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you
despise your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of
God; 11for it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall give praiseu to God.”
12So each of us shall give account of himself to God.
Do Not Hinder a Brother
13 Then let us no more pass judgment on one another, but rather decide
never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. 14I
know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself;
but it is unclean for any one who thinks it unclean. * 15If your brother is
being injured by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. Do not let
what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died. 16So do not let
what is good to you be spoken of as evil. 17For the kingdom of God does
not mean food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy
Spirit; 18he who thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by
men. 19Let us then pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
20Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is
indeed clean, but it is wrong for any one to make others fall by what he
eats; 21it is right not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that makes
your brother stumble.v 22The faith that you have, keep between yourself and
God; happy is he who has no reason to judge himself for what he approves.
23But he who has doubts is condemned, if he eats, because he does not act
from faith; for whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.w
Please Others, Not Yourselves
15 We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and
not to please ourselves; 2let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to
edify him. 3For Christ did not please himself; but, as it is written, “The
reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.” 4For whatever was
written in former days was written for our instruction, that by steadfastness
and by the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. 5May the
God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony
with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, 6that together you may with
one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Gospel for Jews and Gentiles Alike
7 Welcome one another, therefore, as Christ has welcomed you, for the
glory of God. 8For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised
to show God’s truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the
patriarchs, 9and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.
As it is written,
“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles,
and sing to your name”;
10and again it is said,
“Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people”;

11and again,
“Praise the Lord, all Gentiles,

and let all the peoples praise him”;
12and further Isaiah says,
“The root of Jesse shall come,

he who rises to rule the Gentiles;
in him shall the Gentiles hope.”
13May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so
that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Paul’s Reason for Writing So Boldly
14 I myself am satisfied about you, my brethren, that you yourselves are
full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another.
15But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder,
because of the grace given me by God 16to be a minister of Christ Jesus to

the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering
of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. * 17In
Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. 18For I
will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought
through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19by the
power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Holy Spirit, so that from
Jerusalem and as far round as Illyr'icum I have fully preached the gospel of
Christ, 20thus making it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ
has already been named, lest I build on another man’s foundation, 21
“They shall see who have never been told of him,
and they shall understand who have never heard of him.”
Paul’s Plan to Visit Rome
22 This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to
you. 23But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions,
and since I have longed for many years to come to you, 24I hope to see you
in passing as I go to Spain, and to be sped on my journey there by you, once
I have enjoyed your company for a little. 25At present, however, I am going
to Jerusalem with aid for the saints. 26For Macedonia and Acha'ia have been
pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at
Jerusalem; 27they were pleased to do it, and indeed they are in debt to them,
for if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought
also to be of service to them in material blessings. 28When therefore I have
completed this, and have delivered to them what has been raised,x I shall go
on by way of you to Spain; 29and I know that when I come to you I shall
come in the fulness of the blessingy of Christ.
30 I appeal to you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of
the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf,
31that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service
for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32so that by God’s will I may
come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. 33The God of
peace be with you all. Amen.
Personal Greetings
16 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deaconess of the Church at
Cen'chre-ae, 2that you may receive her in the Lord as befits the saints, and
help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a helper of
many and of myself as well.
3 Greet Prisca and Aqui'la, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4who
risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I but also all the churches
of the Gentiles give thanks; 5greet also the church in their house. Greet my
beloved Epae'netus, who was the first convert in Asia for Christ. 6Greet
Mary, who has worked hard among you. 7Greet Andron'icus and Ju'nias, my
kinsmen and my fellow prisoners; they are men of note among the apostles,
and they were in Christ before me. 8Greet Amplia'tus, my beloved in the
Lord. 9Greet Urba'nus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved
Stachys. 10Greet Apel'les, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who
belong to the family of Aristob'ulus. 11Greet my kinsman Hero'dion. Greet
those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcis'sus. 12Greet those
workers in the Lord, Tryphae'na and Trypho'sa. Greet the beloved Persis,
who has worked hard in the Lord. 13Greet Rufus, eminent in the Lord, also
his mother and mine. 14Greet Asyn'critus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patro'bas,
Hermas, and the brethren who are with them. 15Greet Philol'ogus, Julia,
Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.
16Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you. *
Final Instructions
17 I appeal to you, brethren, to take note of those who create dissensions
and difficulties, in opposition to the doctrine which you have been taught;
avoid them. 18For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own
appetites,z and by fair and flattering words they deceive the hearts of the
simple-minded. 19For while your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice
over you, I would have you wise as to what is good and guileless as to what
is evil; 20then the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.a
21 Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and
Sosip'ater, my kinsmen.
22 I Tertius, the writer of this letter, greet you in the Lord.
23 Ga'ius, who is host to me and to the whole Church, greets you. Eras'tus,
the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus, greet you.b
Final Doxology
25 Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and
the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery
which was kept secret for long ages 26but is now disclosed and through the
prophetic writings is made known to all nations, according to the command
of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—27to the only wise
God be glory for evermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.
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1 Corinthians
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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THE FIRST LETTER OF PAUL TO THE CORINTHIANS
Salutation
1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our
brother Sos'thenes,
2 To the Church of God which is at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ
Jesus, called to be saints * together with all those who in every place call on
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I give thanks to Goda always for you because of the grace of God which
was given you in Christ Jesus, 5that in every way you were enriched in him
with all speech and all knowledge—6even as the testimony to Christ was
confirmed among you—7so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as
you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ; 8who will sustain you to
the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9God is faithful, by
whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Dissension in the Church
10 I appeal to you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all
of you agree and that there be no dissensions among you, but that you be
united in the same mind and the same judgment. 11For it has been reported
to me by Chlo'e’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brethren.
12What I mean is that each one of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong
to Apol'los,” or “I belong to Ce'phas,” * or “I belong to Christ.” 13Is Christ

divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of
Paul? 14I am thankfulb that I baptized none of you except Crispus and
Ga'ius; 15lest any one should say that you were baptized in my name. 16(I
did baptize also the household of Steph'anas. Beyond that, I do not know
whether I baptized any one else.) 17For Christ did not send me to baptize
but to preach the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of
Christ be emptied of its power.
Christ the Power and Wisdom of God
18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us
who are being saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the cleverness of the clever I will thwart.”
20Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of
this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21For since,
in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it
pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
22For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23but we preach Christ
crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24but to those

who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the
wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the
weakness of God is stronger than men.
26 For consider your call, brethren; not many of you were wise according
to the flesh, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth; 27but
God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, God chose what
is weak in the world to shame the strong, 28God chose what is low and
despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things
that are, 29so that no flesh might boast in the presence of God. 30He is the
source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom, our
righteousness and sanctification and redemption; 31therefore, as it is
written, “Let him who boasts, boast of the Lord.”
Proclaiming Christ Crucified
2 When I came to you, brethren, I did not come proclaiming to you the
testimonyc of God in lofty words or wisdom. 2For I decided to know
nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. * 3And I was
with you in weakness and in much fear and trembling; 4and my speech and
my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration
of the Spirit and of power, 5that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of
men but in the power of God.
The True Wisdom of God
6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom
of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. 7But
we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before
the ages for our glorification. 8None of the rulers of this age understood
this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9But,
as it is written,
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man conceived,
what God has prepared for those who love him,”
10God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches
everything, even the depths of God. 11For what person knows a man’s
thoughts except the spirit of the man which is in him? So also no one
comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12Now we have
received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God, that
we might understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. 13And we impart this
in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting
spiritual truths to those who possess the Spirit.d
14 The unspirituale man does not receive the gifts of the Spirit of God, for
they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are
spiritually discerned. 15The spiritual man judges all things, but is himself to
be judged by no one. 16“For who has known the mind of the Lord so as to
instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
On Dissension in the Corinthian Church
3 But I, brethren, could not address you as spiritual men, but as men of
the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you
were not ready for it; and even yet you are not ready, 3for you are still of the
flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the
flesh, and behaving like ordinary men? 4For when one says, “I belong to
Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apol'los,” are you not merely men?
5 What then is Apol'los? What is Paul? Servants through whom you
believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6I planted, Apol'los watered, but
God gave the growth. 7So neither he who plants nor he who waters is
anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8He who plants and he who
waters are equal, and each shall receive his wages according to his labor.
9For we are God’s fellow workers;f you are God’s field, God’s building.
10 According to the commission of God given to me, like a skilled master
builder I laid a foundation, and another man is building upon it. Let each
man take care how he builds upon it. 11For no other foundation can any one
lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12Now if any one builds
on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—
13each man’s work will become manifest; for the Day * will disclose it,
because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work
each one has done. 14If the work which any man has built on the foundation
survives, he will receive a reward. 15If any man’s work is burned up, he will
suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple * and that God’s Spirit
dwells in you? 17If any one destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him.
For God’s temple is holy, and that temple you are.
18 Let no one deceive himself. If any one among you thinks that he is
wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19For the
wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the
wise in their craftiness,” 20and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of
the wise are futile.” 21So let no one boast of men. For all things are yours,
22whether Paul or Apol'los or Ce'phas or the world or life or death or the
present or the future, all are yours; 23and you are Christ’s; and Christ is
God’s.
The Ministry of the Apostles
4 This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards
of the mysteries of God. 2Moreover it is required of stewards that they be
found trustworthy. 3But with me it is a very small thing that I should be
judged by you or by any human court. I do not even judge myself. 4I am not
aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the
Lord who judges me. 5Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the
time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden
in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then every man will
receive his commendation from God.
6 I have applied all this to myself and Apol'los for your benefit, brethren,
that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you
may be puffed up in favor of one against another. 7For who sees anything
different in you? What have you that you did not receive? If then you
received it, why do you boast as if it were not a gift?
8 Already you are filled! Already you have become rich! Without us you
have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share
the rule with you! 9For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of
all, like men sentenced to death; because we have become a spectacle to the
world, to angels and to men. 10We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are
wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but
we in disrepute. 11To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly
clothed and buffeted and homeless, 12and we labor, working with our own
hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; 13when
slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become, and are now, as the refuse
of the world, the dregs of all things.
Fatherly Admonition
14 I do not write this to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my
beloved children. 15For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do
not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the
gospel. 16I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 17Therefore I sentg to you
Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my
ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church. 18Some are
arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. 19But I will come to you
soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant
people but their power. 20For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk
but in power. 21What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with
love in a spirit of gentleness?
Sexual Immorality Defiles the Church
5 It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and of a
kind that is not found even among pagans; for a man is living with his
father’s wife. * 2And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let
him who has done this be removed from among you.
3 For though absent in body I am present in spirit, and as if present, I have
already pronounced judgment 4in the name of the Lord Jesus on the man
who has done such a thing. When you are assembled, and my spirit is
present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5you are to deliver this man to
Satan * for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the
day of the Lord Jesus.h
6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens
all the dough? 7Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be new dough, as
you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Paschal Lamb, has been
sacrificed. 8Let us, therefore, celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven,
the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity
and truth.
Immorality and Judgment
9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with immoral men; * 10not at
all meaning the immoral * of this world, or the greedy and robbers, or
idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11But rather I
wrotei to you not to associate with any one who bears the name of brother if
he is guilty of immorality § or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or
robber—not even to eat with such a one. 12For what have I to do with
judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the Church whom you are to judge?
13God judges those outside. “ Drive out the wicked person from among
you.”
Lawsuits among Believers
6 When one of you has a grievance against a brother, does he dare go to
law before the unrighteous * instead of the saints? 2Do you not know that
the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are
you incompetent to try trivial cases? 3Do you not know that we are to judge
angels? How much more, matters pertaining to this life! 4If then you have
such cases, why do you lay them before those who are least esteemed by the
Church? 5I say this to your shame. Can it be that there is no man among you
wise enough to decide between members of the brotherhood, 6but brother
goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?
7 To have lawsuits at all with one another is defeat for you. Why not
rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? 8But you yourselves
wrong and defraud, and that even your own brethren.
9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of
God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, * nor idolaters, nor
adulterers, nor homosexuals,j * 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards,
nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were
some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
Glorifying God in the Body
12 “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All
things are lawful for me,” § but I will not be enslaved by anything. 13“Food
is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”—and God will destroy
both one and the other. The body is not meant for immorality, * but for the
Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14And God raised the Lord and will also
raise us up by his power. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members
of Christ? Shall I therefore take the members of Christ and make them
members of a prostitute? Never! 16Do you not know that he who joins
himself to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written,
“The two shall become one.”k 17But he who is united to the Lord becomes
one spirit with him. 18Shun immorality. * Every other sin which a man
commits is outside the body; but the immoral man sins against his own
body. 19Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit
within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; 20you were
bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Concerning Marriage
7 Now concerning the matters about which you wrote. It is well for a
man not to touch a woman. 2But because of the temptation to immorality,
each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. *
3The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the
wife to her husband. 4For the wife does not rule over her own body, but the
husband does; likewise the husband does not rule over his own body, but
the wife does. 5Do not refuse one another except perhaps by agreement for
a season, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together
again, lest Satan tempt you through lack of self-control. 6I say this by way
of concession, not of command. 7I wish that all were as I myself am. But
each has his own special gift from God, one of one kind and one of another.
8 To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is well for them to remain
single as I do. 9But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry.
For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion.
10 To the married I give charge, not I but the Lord, that the wife should
not separate from her husband 11(but if she does, let her remain single or
else be reconciled to her husband)—and that the husband should not
divorce his wife.
12 To the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an
unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her.
13If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live
with her, she should not divorce him. 14For the unbelieving husband is
consecrated through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is consecrated
through her husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, but as it
is they are holy. 15But if the unbelieving partner desires to separate, let it be
so; in such a case the brother or sister is not bound. For God has called usl
to peace. 16Wife, how do you know whether you will save your husband?
Husband, how do you know whether you will save your wife?
Leading the Life the Lord Has Assigned
17 Only, let every one lead the life which the Lord has assigned to him,
and in which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. 18Was
any one at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to
remove the marks of circumcision. Was any one at the time of his call
uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision. 19For neither circumcision
counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of
God. 20Every one should remain in the state in which he was called. 21Were
you a slave when called? Never mind. But if you can gain your freedom,
avail yourself of the opportunity.x 22For he who was called in the Lord as a
slave is a freedman of the Lord. Likewise he who was free when called is a
slave of Christ. 23You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of
men. 24So, brethren, in whatever state each was called, there let him remain
with God.
More concerning Marriage
25 Now concerning the unmarried, x2 I have no command of the Lord, but
I give my opinion as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy. 26I think
that in view of the impending distressm it is well for a person to remain as
he is. 27Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from
a wife? Do not seek marriage. 28But if you marry, you do not sin, and if a
girl m2 marries she does not sin. Yet those who marry will have worldly
troubles, and I would spare you that. 29I mean, brethren, the appointed time
has grown very short; from now on, let those who have wives live as though
they had none, 30and those who mourn as though they were not mourning,
and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy
as though they had no goods, 31and those who deal with the world as
though they had no dealings with it. For the form of this world is passing
away.
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious
about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; 33but the married man
is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please his wife, 34and his interests
are divided. And the unmarried woman or virgin is anxious about the affairs
of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman is
anxious about worldly affairs, how to please her husband. 35I say this for
your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good
order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
36 If any one thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his
betrothed,m2 if his passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he
wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. 37But whoever is firmly established in
his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and
has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed,m2 he will do
well. 38So that he who marries his betrothedm2 does well; and he who
refrains from marriage will do better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. If the husband dies,
she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. 40But in my
judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I have the
Spirit of God.
Food Offered to Idols
8 Now concerning food offered to idols: * we know that “all of us
possess knowledge.” “Knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up. 2If any one
imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to
know. 3But if one loves God, one is known by him.
4 Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol
has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” 5For although
there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are
many “gods” and many “lords”—6yet for us there is one God, the Father,
from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus
Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
7 However, not all possess this knowledge. But some, through being until
now accustomed to idols, eat food as really offered to an idol; and their
conscience, being weak, is defiled. 8Food will not commend us to God. We
are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. 9Only take care
lest this liberty of yours somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.
10For if any one sees you, a man of knowledge, at table in an idol’s temple,
might he not be encouraged, if his conscience is weak, to eat food offered to

idols? 11And so by your knowledge this weak man is destroyed, the brother
for whom Christ died. 12Thus, sinning against your brethren and wounding
their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. 13Therefore, if
food is a cause of my brother’s falling, I will never eat meat, lest I cause my
brother to fall.
The Rights of an Apostle
9 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?
Are you not my workmanship in the Lord? 2If to others I am not an apostle,
at least I am to you; for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.
3 This is my defense to those who would examine me. * 4Do we not have
the right to our food and drink? 5Do we not have the right to be
accompanied by a wife,n * as the other apostles and the brethren * of the
Lord and Cephas? 6Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain
from working for a living? 7Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?
Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Who tends a flock
without getting some of the milk?
8 Do I say this on human authority? Does not the law say the same? 9For
it is written in the law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is
treading out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned? 10Does he not
speak entirely for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the
plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of a share in
the crop. 11If we have sown spiritual good among you, is it too much if we
reap your material benefits? 12If others share this rightful claim upon you,
do not we still more?
Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything
rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. 13Do you not
know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from
the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial
offerings? 14In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim
the gospel should get their living by the gospel.
15 But I have made no use of any of these rights, nor am I writing this to
secure any such provision. For I would rather die than have any one deprive
me of my ground for boasting. 16For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no
ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not
preach the gospel! 17For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if
not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. 18What then is my
reward? Just this: that in my preaching I may make the gospel free of
charge, not making full use of my right in the gospel.
The Responsibilities of the Apostle
19 For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all,
that I might win the more. 20To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win
Jews; to those under the law I became as one under the law—though not
being myself under the law—that I might win those under the law. 21To
those outside the law I became as one outside the law—not being without
law toward God but under the law of Christ—that I might win those outside
the law. 22To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have
become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23I do it
all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one
receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 25Every athlete exercises
self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we
an imperishable. 26Well, I do not run aimlessly, I do not box as one beating
the air; 27but I pommel my body and subdue it, lest after preaching to others
I myself should be disqualified.
Warnings from Israel’s History
10 I want you to know, brethren, that our fathers were all under the
cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2and all were baptized into Moses in
the cloud and in the sea, 3and all ate the same supernaturalo food 4and all
drank the same supernaturalo drink. For they drank from the supernaturalo
Rock which followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 5Nevertheless with
most of them God was not pleased; for they were overthrown in the
wilderness.
6 Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did. 7Do
not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat
down to eat and drink and rose up to dance.” 8We must not indulge in
immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single
day. 9We must not put the Lordp to the test, as some of them did and were
destroyed by serpents; 10nor grumble, as some of them did and were
destroyed by the Destroyer. 11Now these things happened to them as a
warning, but they were written down for our instruction, upon whom the
end of the ages has come. 12Therefore let any one who thinks that he stands
take heed lest he fall. 13No temptation has overtaken you that is not
common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond
your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape,
that you may be able to endure it.
14 Therefore, my beloved, shun the worship of idols. 15I speak as to
sensible men; judge for yourselves what I say. 16The cup of blessing which
we bless, is it not a participationq in the blood of Christ? The bread which
we break, is it not a participationq in the body of Christ? 17Because there is
one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one
bread. 18Consider the people of Israel; are not those who eat the sacrifices
partners in the altar? 19What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is
anything, or that an idol is anything? 20No, I imply that what pagans
sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be
partners with demons. * 21You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup
of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of
demons. 22Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?
All to the Glory of God
23 “All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are
lawful,” but not all things build up. 24Let no one seek his own good, but the
good of his neighbor. 25Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without
raising any question on the ground of conscience. 26For “the earth is the
Lord’s, and everything in it.” 27If one of the unbelievers invites you to
dinner and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without
raising any question on the ground of conscience. 28(But if some one says to
you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then out of consideration for the
man who informed you, and for conscience’ sake—29I mean his conscience,
not yours—do not eat it.) For why should my liberty be determined by
another man’s scruples? 30If I partake with thankfulness, why am I
denounced because of that for which I give thanks?
31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of
God. 32Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the Church of God, 33just
as I try to please all men in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage,
but that of
11 many, that they may be saved. 1Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
Head Coverings
2 I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain
the traditions even as I have delivered them to you. 3But I want you to
understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is her
husband, and the head of Christ is God. 4Any man who prays or prophesies
with his head covered dishonors his head, 5but any woman who prays or
prophesies with her head unveiled dishonors her head—it is the same as if
her head were shaven. 6For if a woman will not veil herself, then she should
cut off her hair; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to be shorn or shaven,
let her wear a veil. 7For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the
image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8(For man was not
made from woman, but woman from man. 9Neither was man created for
woman, but woman for man.) 10That is why a woman ought to have a veilr
on her head, because of the angels. 11(Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is
not independent of man nor man of woman; 12for as woman was made from
man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God.) 13Judge
for yourselves; is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head
uncovered? 14Does not nature itself teach you that for a man to wear long
hair is degrading to him, 15but if a woman has long hair, it is her pride? For
her hair is given to her for a covering. 16If any one is disposed to be
contentious, we recognize no other practice, nor do the churches of God.
Abuses at the Lord’s Supper
17 But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when
you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. 18For, in the first
place, when you assemble as a Church, I hear that there are divisions among
you; and I partly believe it, 19for there must be factions among you in order
that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. 20When you
meet together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. * 21For in eating, each
one goes ahead with his own meal, and one is hungry and another is drunk.
22What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the
Church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to
you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.
The Institution of the Eucharist
23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord
Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24and when he had
given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is fors you. Do
this in remembrance of me.” 25In the same way also the chalice, after
supper, saying, “This chalice is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as
often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26For as often as you eat this
bread and drink the chalice, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Partaking of the Eucharist Unworthily
27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an
unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the
Lord. 28Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the
cup. 29For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats
and drinks judgment upon himself. 30That is why many of you are weak and
ill, and some have died.t 31But if we judged ourselves truly, we should not
be judged. 32But when we are judged by the Lord, we are chastenedu so that
we may not be condemned along with the world.
33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one
another—34if any one is hungry, let him eat at home—lest you come
together to be condemned. About the other things I will give directions
when I come.
Spiritual Gifts
12 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be
uninformed. * 2You know that when you were heathen, you were led astray
to mute idols, however you may have been moved. 3Therefore I want you to
understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus be
cursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5and there are
varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6and there are varieties of working,
but it is the same God who inspires them all in every one. 7To each is given
the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8To one is given
through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of
knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same
Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10to another the working
of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish
between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the
interpretation of tongues. 11All these are inspired by one and the same
Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
One Body with Many Members
12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the
members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13For
by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves
or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15If the foot
should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that
would not make it any less a part of the body. 16And if the ear should say,
“Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not
make it any less a part of the body. 17If the whole body were an eye, where
would be the hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the
sense of smell? 18But as it is, God arranged the organs in the body, each one
of them, as he chose. 19If all were a single organ, where would the body be?
20As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. 21The eye cannot say to the
hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no
need of you.” 22On the contrary, the parts of the body which seem to be
weaker are indispensable, 23and those parts of the body which we think less
honorable we invest with the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are
treated with greater modesty, 24which our more presentable parts do not
require. But God has so composed the body, giving the greater honor to the
inferior part, 25that there may be no discord in the body, but that the
members may have the same care for one another. 26If one member suffers,
all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.
27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28And
God has appointed in the Church first apostles, second prophets, third
teachers, then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators,
speakers in various kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets?
Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all possess gifts of healing?
Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31But earnestly desire the
higher gifts.
And I will show you a still more excellent way. *
The Way of Love
13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I
am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2And if I have prophetic powers, and
understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to
remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give away all I
have, and if I deliver my body to be burned,v but have not love, I gain
nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; 5it is not
arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or
resentful; 6it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. 7Love bears
all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues,
they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9For our knowledge is
imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect; 10but when the perfect comes, the
imperfect will pass away. 11When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I
thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave
up childish ways. 12For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.
Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully
understood. 13So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of
these is love.
Gifts of Prophecy and Tongues
14 Make love your aim, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts,
especially that you may prophesy. 2For one who speaks in a tongue speaks
not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries
in the Spirit. 3On the other hand, he who prophesies speaks to men for their
upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. 4He who speaks in a
tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the Church. 5Now I
want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. He who
prophesies is greater than he who speaks in tongues, unless some one
interprets, so that the Church may be edified.
6 Now, brethren, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how shall I benefit
you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or
teaching? 7If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not
give distinct notes, how will any one know what is played? 8And if the
bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? 9So with
yourselves; if you in a tongue utter speech that is not intelligible, how will
any one know what is said? For you will be speaking into the air. 10There
are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without
meaning; 11but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a
foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 12So with
yourselves; since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to
excel in building up the Church.
13 Therefore, he who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to
interpret. 14For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is
unfruitful. 15What am I to do? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with
the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also.
16Otherwise, if you blessw with the spirit, how can any one in the position
of an outsiderx say the “Amen” to your thanksgiving when he does not

know what you are saying? 17For you may give thanks well enough, but the
other man is not edified. 18I thank God that I speak in tongues more than
you all; 19nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my
mind, in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.
20 Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; be infants in evil, but in
thinking be mature. 21In the law it is written, “By men of strange tongues
and by the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, and even then they
will not listen to me, says the Lord.” 22Thus, tongues are a sign not for
believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is not for unbelievers but for
believers. 23If, therefore, the whole Church assembles and all speak in
tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are
mad? 24But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is
convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 25the secrets of his heart are
disclosed; and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that
God is really among you.
Orderly Worship
26 What then, brethren? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a
lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for
edification. 27If any speak in a tongue, let there be only two or at most
three, and each in turn; and let one interpret. 28But if there is no one to
interpret, let each of them keep silence in church and speak to himself and
to God. 29Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is
said. 30If a revelation is made to another sitting by, let the first be silent.
31For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be
encouraged; 32and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. 33For God
is not a God of confusion but of peace.
As in all the churches of the saints, 34the women should keep silence in
the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be
subordinate, as even the law says. 35If there is anything they desire to know,
let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to
speak in church. 36What! Did the word of God originate with you, or are
you the only ones it has reached?
37 If any one thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should
acknowledge that what I am writing to you is a command of the Lord. 38If
any one does not recognize this, he is not recognized. 39So, my brethren,
earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues; 40but
all things should be done decently and in order.
The Resurrection of Christ
15 Now I would remind you, brethren, in what terms I preached to you
the gospel, which you received, in which you stand, 2by which you are
saved, if you hold it fast—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that
Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4that he was
buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the
Scriptures, 5and that he appeared to Ce'phas, then to the Twelve. 6Then he
appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom are
still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7Then he appeared to James,
then to all the apostles. 8Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared
also to me. 9For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle,
because I persecuted the Church of God. 10But by the grace of God I am
what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I
worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God
which is with me. 11Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you
believed.
The Resurrection of the Dead
12 Now if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some of
you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13But if there is no
resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; * 14if Christ has
not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15We
are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that
he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not
raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. 17If
Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.
18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19If for
this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied.
20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those
who have fallen asleep. 21For as by a man came death, by a man has come
also the resurrection of the dead. 22For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ
shall all be made alive. 23But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits,
then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24Then comes the end, when
he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and
every authority and power. 25For he must reign until he has put all his
enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27“For
Godz has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “All
things are put in subjection under him,” it is plain that he is excepted who
put all things under him. 28When all things are subjected to him, then the
Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things under him, that
God may be everything to every one.
29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the
dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their
behalf? * 30Why am I in peril every hour? 31I protest, brethren, by my pride
in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32What do I
gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are
not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33Do not be
deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34Come to your right mind,
and sin no more. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your
shame.
The Resurrection of the Body
35 But some one will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of
body do they come?” 36You foolish man! What you sow does not come to
life unless it dies. 37And what you sow is not the body which is to be, but a
bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. 38But God gives it a
body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. 39For not all
flesh is alike, but there is one kind for men, another for animals, another for
birds, and another for fish. 40There are celestial bodies and there are
terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the
terrestrial is another. 41There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of
the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable,
what is raised is imperishable. 43It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory.
It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44It is sown a physical body, it
is raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual
body. 45Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living soul”; the
last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46But it is not the spiritual which is
first but the physical, and then the spiritual. 47The first man was from the
earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48As was the man of
dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are
those who are of heaven. 49Just as we have borne the image of the man of
dust, we shalla also bear the image of the man of heaven. 50I tell you this,
brethren: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the
perishable inherit the imperishable.
51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be
changed, 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For
the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we
shall be changed. 53For this perishable nature must put on the imperishable,
and this mortal nature must put on immortality. 54When the perishable puts
on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to
pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55“O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”

56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57But thanks be
to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is
not in vain.
The Contribution for the Saints
16 Now concerning the contribution for the saints: * as I directed the
churches of Galatia, so you also are to do. 2On the first day of every week,
each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so
that contributions need not be made when I come. 3And when I arrive, I will
send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to Jerusalem. 4If it
seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.
Plans for Travel
5 I will visit you after passing through Macedonia, for I intend to pass
through Macedonia, 6and perhaps I will stay with you or even spend the
winter, so that you may speed me on my journey, wherever I go. 7For I do
not want to see you now just in passing; I hope to spend some time with
you, if the Lord permits. 8But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, 9for a
wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many
adversaries.
10 When Timothy comes, see that you put him at ease among you, for he
is doing the work of the Lord, as I am. 11So let no one despise him. Speed
him on his way in peace, that he may return to me; for I am expecting him
with the brethren.
12 As for our brother Apol'los, I strongly urged him to visit you with the
other brethren, but it was not at all his willb to come now. He will come
when he has opportunity.
Final Message and Greeting
13 Be watchful, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong. 14Let
all that you do be done in love.
15 Now, brethren, you know that the household of Steph'anas were the
first converts in Acha'ia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of
the saints; 16I urge you to be subject to such men and to every fellow
worker and laborer. 17I rejoice at the coming of Steph'anas and Fortuna'tus
and Acha'icus, because they have made up for your absence; 18for they
refreshed my spirit as well as yours. Give recognition to such men.
19 The churches of Asia send greetings. Aqui'la and Prisca, together with
the church in their house, send you hearty greetings in the Lord. 20All the
brethren send greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.
21 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. 22If any one has no love
for the Lord, let him be accursed. Our Lord, come!c 1The grace of the Lord
Jesus be with you. 24My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
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2 Corinthians
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
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THE SECOND LETTER OF PAUL TO THE CORINTHIANS
Salutation
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our
brother.
To the Church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in
the whole of Acha'ia:
Paul’s Thanksgiving after Affliction
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of
mercies and God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our affliction, so
that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the
comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5For as we share
abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in
comfort too.a 6If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if
we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you
patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 7Our hope for you is
unshaken; for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also
share in our comfort.
8 For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of the affliction * we
experienced in Asia; for we were so utterly, unbearably crushed that we
despaired of life itself. 9Why, we felt that we had received the sentence of
death; but that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises
the dead; 10he delivered us from so deadly a peril, and he will deliver us; on
him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 11You also must help
us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing
granted us in answer to many prayers.
12 For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience that we have
behaved in the world, and still more toward you, with holiness and godly
sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God. 13For we write
you nothing but what you can read and understand; I hope you will
understand fully, 14as you have understood in part, that you can be proud of
us as we can be of you, on the day of the Lord Jesus.
The Postponement of Paul’s Visit
15 Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you
might have a double pleasure;b 16I wanted to visit you on my way to
Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send
me on my way to Judea. 17Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I
make my plans like a worldly man, ready to say Yes and No at once? 18As
surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. 19For
the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we preached among you, Silva'nus and
Timothy and I, was not Yes and No; but in him it is always Yes. 20For all
the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why we utter the Amen
through him, to the glory of God. 21But it is God who establishes us with
you in Christ, and has commissioned us; 22he has put his seal upon us and
given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
23 But I call God to witness against me—it was to spare you that I
refrained from coming to Corinth. 24Not that we lord it over your faith; we
work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in
2 your faith. 1For I made up my mind not to make you another painful
visit. 2For if I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one
whom I have pained? 3And I wrote as I did, so that when I came I might not
suffer pain from those who should have made me rejoice, for I felt sure of
all of you, that my joy would be the joy of you all. 4For I wrote you out of
much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you
pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.
Forgiveness for the Offender
5 But if any one has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some
measure—not to put it too severely—to you all. 6For such a one this
punishment by the majority is enough; 7so you should rather turn to forgive
and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8So I
beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 9For this is why I wrote, that I might
test you and know whether you are obedient in everything. 10Any one
whom you forgive, I also forgive. What I have forgiven, if I have forgiven
anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11to keep Satan
from gaining the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his designs.
Paul’s Anxiety in Troas
12 When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, a door was
opened for me in the Lord; 13but my mind could not rest because I did not
find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to
Macedonia.
14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph, and
through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.
15For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved
and among those who are perishing, 16to one a fragrance from death to
death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these
things? 17For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word; but as men
of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in
Christ.
Ministers of the New Covenant
3 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as
some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? 2You yourselves
are our letter of recommendation, written on yourc hearts, to be known and
read by all men; 3and you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered
by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on
tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5Not
that we are sufficient of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our
sufficiency is from God, 6who has qualified us to be ministers of a new
covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit; for the written code kills,
but the Spirit gives life.
7 Now if the dispensation of death, carved in letters on stone, came with
such splendor that the Israelites could not look at Moses’ face because of its
brightness, fading as this was, 8will not the dispensation of the Spirit be
attended with greater splendor? 9For if there was splendor in the
dispensation of condemnation, the dispensation of righteousness must far
exceed it in splendor. 10Indeed, in this case, what once had splendor has
come to have no splendor at all, because of the splendor that surpasses it.
11For if what faded away came with splendor, what is permanent must have
much more splendor.

12 Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, 13not like Moses, who
put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not see the end of the
fading splendor. 14But their minds were hardened; for to this day, when they
read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through
Christ is it taken away. 15Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies
over their minds; 16but when a man turns to the Lord the veil is removed.
17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
freedom. 18And we all, with unveiled face, beholdingd the glory of the
Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to
another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. *
4 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God,e we do not lose
heart. 2We have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways; we refuse to
practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement
of the truth we would commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the
sight of God. 3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those
who are perishing. 4In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds
of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the
glory of Christ, who is the likeness of God. 5For what we preach is not
ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servantsf for
Jesus’ sake. 6For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”
who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory
of God in the face of Christ.
Treasure in Earthen Vessels
7 But we have this treasure * in earthen vessels, to show that the
transcendent power belongs to God and not to us. 8We are afflicted in every
way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9persecuted, but
not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10always carrying in the body
the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our
bodies. 11For while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus’
sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12So
death is at work in us, but life in you. *
13 Since we have the same spirit of faith as he had who wrote, “I believed,
and so I spoke,” we too believe, and so we speak, 14knowing that he who
raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into
his presence. 15For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more
and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
Living by Faith
16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer man is wasting away, our
inner man is being renewed every day. 17For this slight momentary
affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all
comparison, 18because we look not to the things that are seen but to the
things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the
things that are unseen are eternal.
5 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a
building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
2Here indeed we groan, and long to put on our heavenly dwelling, 3so that
by putting it on we may not be found naked. 4For while we are still in this
tent, we sigh with anxiety; not that we would be unclothed, but that we
would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by
life. 5He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us
the Spirit as a guarantee.
6 So we are always of good courage; we know that while we are at home
in the body we are away from the Lord, 7for we walk by faith, not by sight.
8We are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and
at home with the Lord. 9So whether we are at home or away, we make it our
aim to please him. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of
Christ, so that each one may receive good or evil, according to what he has
done in the body.
The Ministry of Reconciliation
11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men; but what
we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.
12We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to be
proud of us, so that you may be able to answer those who pride themselves
on a man’s position and not on his heart. 13For if we are beside ourselves, it
is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14For the love of Christ
urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all
have died. 15And he died for all, that those who live might live no longer
for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh; even
though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus
no longer. 17Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation;g the old
has passed away, behold, the new has come. 18All this is from God, who
through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of
reconciliation; 19that is, in Christ God was reconcilingh the world to
himself, * not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us
the message of reconciliation. 20So we are ambassadors for Christ, God
making his appeal through us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be
reconciled to God. 21For our sake he made him to be sin * who knew no sin,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
6 Working together with him, then, we entreat you not to accept the
grace of God in vain. 2For he says,
“At the acceptable time I have listened to you,
and helped you on the day of salvation.”
Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
3We put no obstacle in any one’s way, so that no fault may be found with
our ministry, 4but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way:

through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5beatings,
imprisonments, tumults, labors, watching, hunger; 6by purity, knowledge,
forbearance, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love, 7truthful speech, and
the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and
for the left; 8in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are
treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9as unknown, and yet well known; as
dying, and behold we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10as sorrowful,
yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and
yet possessing everything.
11 Our mouth is open to you, Corinthians; our heart is wide. 12You are not
restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections. 13In return—I
speak as to children—widen your hearts also.
The Temple of the Living God
14 Do not be mismated with unbelievers. For what partnership have
righteousness and iniquity? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
15What accord has Christ with Be'lial?i Or what has a believer in common
with an unbeliever? 16What agreement has the temple of God with idols?
For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,
“I will live in them and move among them,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
17Therefore come out from them,
and be separate from them, says the Lord,

and touch nothing unclean;
then I will welcome you,
18andI will be a father to you,
and you shall be my sons and daughters,
says the Lord Almighty.”
7 Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from
every defilement of body and spirit, and make holiness perfect in the fear of
God.
Paul’s Joy at the Corinthians’Repentance and Zeal
2 Open your hearts to us; we have wronged no one, we have corrupted no
one, we have taken advantage of no one. 3I do not say this to condemn you,
for I said before that you are in our hearts, to die together and to live
together. 4I have great confidence in you; I have great pride in you; I am
filled with comfort. With all our affliction, I am overjoyed.
5 For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest but we
were afflicted at every turn—fighting without and fear within. 6But God,
who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, 7and not
only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in
you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that
I rejoiced still more. 8For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not
regret it (though I did regret it), for I see that that letter grieved you, though
only for a while. 9As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but
because you were grieved into repenting; for you felt a godly grief, so that
you suffered no loss through us. 10For godly grief produces a repentance
that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces
death. 11For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, what
eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing,
what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves
guiltless in the matter. 12So although I wrote to you, it was not on account
of the one who did the wrong, nor on account of the one who suffered the
wrong, but in order that your zeal for us might be revealed to you in the
sight of God. 13Therefore we are comforted.
And besides our own comfort we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus,
because his mind has been set at rest by you all. 14For if I have expressed to
him some pride in you, I was not put to shame; but just as everything we
said to you was true, so our boasting before Titus has proved true. 15And his
heart goes out all the more to you, as he remembers the obedience of you
all, and the fear and trembling with which you received him. 16I rejoice,
because I have perfect confidence in you.
Encouragement to Be Generous
8 We want you to know, brethren, about the grace of God which has
been shown in the churches of Macedonia, 2for in a severe test of affliction,
their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a
wealth of liberality on their part. 3For they gave according to their means,
as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own free will, 4begging us
earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints—5and this,
not as we expected, but first they gave themselves to the Lord and to us by
the will of God. 6Accordingly we have urged Titus that as he had already
made a beginning, he should also complete among you this gracious work.
7Now as you excel in everything—in faith, in utterance, in knowledge, in
all earnestness, and in your love for us—see that you excel in this gracious
work also.
8 I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others
that your love also is genuine. 9For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that by
his poverty you might become rich. 10And in this matter I give my advice: it
is best for you now to complete what a year ago you began not only to do
but to desire, 11so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your
completing it out of what you have. 12For if the readiness is there, it is
acceptable according to what a man has, not according to what he has not.
13I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, 14but that as
a matter of equality your abundance at the present time should supply their
want, so that their abundance may supply your want, that there may be
equality. 15As it is written, “He who gathered much had nothing over, and
he who gathered little had no lack.”
Commendation of Titus
16 But thanks be to God who puts the same earnest care for you into the
heart of Titus. 17For he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very
earnest he is going to you of his own accord. 18With him we are sending the
brother who is famous among all the churches for his preaching of the
gospel; 19and not only that, but he has been appointed by the churches to
travel with us in this gracious work which we are carrying on, for the glory
of the Lord and to show our good will. 20We intend that no one should
blame us about this liberal gift which we are administering, 21for we aim at
what is honorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of men.
22And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested
and found earnest in many matters, but who is now more earnest than ever
because of his great confidence in you. 23As for Titus, he is my partner and
fellow worker in your service; and as for our brethren, they are messengersj
of the churches, the glory of Christ. 24So give proof, before the churches, of
your love and of our boasting about you to these men.
Generosity in Giving
9 Now it is superfluous * for me to write to you about the offering for
the saints, 2for I know your readiness, of which I boast about you to the
people of Macedonia, saying that Acha'ia has been ready since last year;
and your zeal has stirred up most of them. 3But I am sending the brethren so
that our boasting about you may not prove vain in this case, so that you may
be ready, as I said you would be; 4lest if some Macedonians come with me
and find that you are not ready, we be humiliated—to say nothing of you—
for being so confident. 5So I thought it necessary to urge the brethren to go
on to you before me, and arrange in advance for this gift you have
promised, so that it may be ready not as an exaction but as a willing gift.
6 The point is this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he
who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7Each one must do as he
has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a
cheerful giver. 8And God is able to provide you with every blessing in
abundance, so that you may always have enough of everything and may
provide in abundance for every good work. 9As it is written,
“He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;
his righteousnessk endures for ever.”
10He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and
multiply your resourcesl and increase the harvest of your righteousness.k

11You will be enriched in every way for great generosity, which through us
will produce thanksgiving to God; 12for the rendering of this service not
only supplies the wants of the saints but also overflows in many
thanksgivings to God. 13Under the test of this service, youm will glorify
God by your obedience in acknowledging the gospel of Christ, and by the
generosity of your contribution for them and for all others; 14while they
long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God in
you. 15Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!
Paul Defends His Ministry
10 I, Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ
—I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold to you when I am
away! *—2I beg of you that when I am present I may not have to show
boldness with such confidence as I count on showing against some who
suspect us of acting in worldly fashion. 3For though we live in the world we
are not carrying on a worldly war, 4for the weapons of our warfare are not
worldly but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5We destroy
arguments and every proud obstacle to the knowledge of God, and take
every thought captive to obey Christ, 6being ready to punish every
disobedience, when your obedience is complete.
7 Look at what is before your eyes. If any one is confident that he is
Christ’s, let him remind himself that as he is Christ’s, so are we. 8For even
if I boast a little too much of our authority, which the Lord gave for
building you up and not for destroying you, I shall not be put to shame. 9I
would not seem to be frightening you with letters. For they say, “His letters
are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech of
no account.” 11Let such people understand that what we say by letter when
absent, we do when present. 12Not that we venture to class or compare
ourselves with some of those who commend themselves. But when they
measure themselves by one another, and compare themselves with one
another, they are without understanding.
13 But we will not boast beyond limit, but will keep to the limits God has
apportioned us, to reach even to you. 14For we are not overextending
ourselves, as though we did not reach you; we were the first to come all the
way to you with the gospel of Christ. 15We do not boast beyond limit, in
other men’s labors; but our hope is that as your faith increases, our field
among you may be greatly enlarged, 16so that we may preach the gospel in
lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another’s field.
17“Let him who boasts, boast of the Lord.” 18For it is not the man who
commends himself that is accepted, but the man whom the Lord commends.
Paul and the False Apostles
11 I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with
me! 2I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I betrothed you to Christ to present
you as a pure bride to her one husband. 3But I am afraid that as the serpent
deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a
sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 4For if some one comes and preaches
another Jesus than the one we preached, or if you receive a different spirit
from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one
you accepted, you submit to it readily enough. 5I think that I am not in the
least inferior to these superlative apostles. 6Even if I am unskilled in
speaking, I am not in knowledge; in every way we have made this plain to
you in all things.
7 Did I commit a sin in abasing myself so that you might be exalted,
because I preached God’s gospel without cost to you? 8I robbed other
churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you. 9And when
I was with you and was in want, I did not burden any one, for my needs
were supplied by the brethren who came from Macedonia. So I refrained
and will refrain from burdening you in any way. 10As the truth of Christ is
in me, this boast of mine shall not be silenced in the regions of Acha'ia.
11And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
12 And what I do I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of

those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on
the same terms as we do. 13For such men are false apostles, deceitful
workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14And no wonder, for
even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15So it is not strange if his
servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end
will correspond to their deeds.
Paul’s Sufferings as an Apostle
16 I repeat, let no one think me foolish; but even if you do, accept me as a
fool, so that I too may boast a little. 17(What I am saying I say not with the
Lord’s authority but as a fool, in this boastful confidence; 18since many
boast of worldly things, I too will boast.) 19For you gladly bear with fools,
being wise yourselves! 20For you bear it if a man makes slaves of you, or
preys upon you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in
the face. 21To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that!
But whatever any one dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also
dare to boast of that. 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So
am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. 23Are they servants of
Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater
labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near
death. 24Five times I have received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes
less one. 25Three times I have been beaten with rods; once I was stoned.
Three times I have been shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been adrift at
sea; 26on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers,
danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city,
danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brethren; 27in toil
and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often
without food, in cold and exposure. 28And, apart from other things, there is
the daily pressure upon me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29Who is
weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?
30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31The
God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed for ever, knows that I
do not lie. 32At Damascus, the governor under King Ar'etas guarded the city
of Damascus in order to seize me, 33but I was let down in a basket through
a window in the wall, and escaped his hands.
Paul’s Visions and Revelations
12 I must boast; there is nothing to be gained by it, but I will go on to
visions and revelations of the Lord. 2I know a man in Christ who fourteen
years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of
the body I do not know, God knows. 3And I know that this man was caught
up into Paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know,
God knows—4and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not
utter. 5On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not
boast, except of my weaknesses. 6Though if I wish to boast, I shall not be a
fool, for I shall be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one
may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. 7And to keep
me from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn * was
given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep me from
being too elated. 8Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it should
leave me; 9but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power
is made perfect in weakness.” I will all the more gladly boast of my
weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10For the sake of
Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions,
and calamities; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
Paul’s Concern for the Corinthian Church
11 I have been a fool! You forced me to it, for I ought to have been
commended by you. For I am not at all inferior to these superlative apostles,
even though I am nothing. 12The signs of a true apostle were performed
among you in all patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works. 13For
in what were you less favored than the rest of the churches, except that I
myself did not burden you? Forgive me this wrong! *
14 Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a
burden, for I seek not what is yours but you; for children ought not to lay up
for their parents, but parents for their children. 15I will most gladly spend
and be spent for your souls. If I love you the more, am I to be loved the
less? 16But granting that I myself did not burden you, I was crafty, you say,
and got the better of you by guile. 17Did I take advantage of you through
any of those whom I sent to you? 18I urged Titus to go, and sent the brother
with him. Did Titus take advantage of you? Did we not act in the same
spirit? Did we not take the same steps?
19 Have you been thinking all along that we have been defending
ourselves before you? It is in the sight of God that we have been speaking
in Christ, and all for your upbuilding, beloved. 20For I fear that perhaps I
may come and find you not what I wish, and that you may find me not what
you wish; that perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness,
slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder. 21I fear that when I come again my
God may humble me before you, and I may have to mourn over many of
those who sinned before and have not repented of the impurity, immorality,
and licentiousness which they have practiced.
Further Warning
13 This is the third time I am coming to you. Any charge must be
sustained by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 2I warned those who
sinned before and all the others, and I warn them now while absent, as I did
when present on my second visit, that if I come again I will not spare them
—3since you desire proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in
dealing with you, but is powerful in you. 4For he was crucified in weakness,
but lives by the power of God. For we are weak in him, but in dealing with
you we shall live with him by the power of God.
5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are holding to your faith. Test
yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed
you fail to meet the test! 6I hope you will find out that we have not failed.
7But we beg God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to
have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to
have failed. 8For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the
truth. 9For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. What we pray
for is your improvement. 10I write this while I am away from you, in order
that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority
which the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.
Final Greetings and Benediction
11 Finally, brethren, rejoice. Mend your ways, heed my appeal, agree with
one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.
12Greet one another with a holy kiss. 13All the saints greet you.
14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the
fellowship ofn the Holy Spirit be with you all.
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Galatians
Chapters
123456
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THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE GALATIANS
Salutation
1 Paul an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus
Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead—2and all the
brethren who are with me,
To the churches of Galatia:
3 Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ,
4who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age,
according to the will of our God and Father; 5to whom be the glory for ever
and ever. Amen.
There Is No Other Gospel
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in
the grace of Christ and turning to a different gospel— * 7not that there is
another gospel, but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the
gospel of Christ. 8But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to
you a gospel contrary to that which we preached to you, let him be
accursed. 9As we have said before, so now I say again, If any one is
preaching to you a gospel contrary to that which you received, let him be
accursed.
10 Am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I trying to
please men? If I were still pleasing men, I should not be a servanta of
Christ. *
Paul’s Vindication of His Apostleship
11 Brethren, I would have you know that the gospel which was preached
by me is not man’sb gospel. 12For I did not receive it from man, nor was I
taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13For you have
heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the Church of God
violently and tried to destroy it; 14and I advanced in Judaism beyond many
of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the
traditions of my fathers. 15But when he who had set me apart before I was
born, and had called me through his grace, 16was pleased to reveal his Son
toc me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not
confer with flesh and blood, 17nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who
were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia; and again I returned
to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Ce'phas, and
remained with him fifteen days. 19But I saw none of the other apostles
except James the Lord’s brother. * 20(In what I am writing to you, before
God, I do not lie!) 21Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cili'cia.
22And I was still not known by sight to the churches of Christ in Judea;
23they only heard it said, “He who once persecuted us is now preaching the
faith he once tried to destroy.” 24And they glorified God because of me.
Paul and the Other Apostles
2 Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas,
taking Titus along with me. 2I went up by revelation; and I laid before them
(but privately before those who were of repute) the gospel which I preach
among the Gentiles, lest somehow I should be running or had run in vain.
3But even Titus, who was with me, was not compelled to be circumcised,
though he was a Greek. 4But because of false brethren secretly brought in,
who slipped in to spy out our freedom which we have in Christ Jesus, that
they might bring us into bondage—5to them we did not yield submission
even for a moment, that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.
6And from those who were reputed to be something (what they were makes
no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who were of

repute added nothing to me; 7but on the contrary, when they saw that I had
been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been
entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised 8(for he who worked through
Peter for the mission to the circumcised worked through me also for the
Gentiles), 9and when they perceived the grace that was given to me, James
and Ce'phas and John, who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and
Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and
they to the circumcised; 10only they would have us remember the poor,
which very thing I was eager to do.
Paul Rebukes Peter at Antioch
11 But when Cephas came to Antioch I opposed him to his face, because
he stood condemned. 12For before certain men came from James, he ate
with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself,
fearing the circumcision party. 13And with him the rest of the Jews acted
insincerely, so that even Barnabas was carried away by their insincerity.
14But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the
gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a
Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like
Jews?” 15We ourselves, who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, 16yet
who know that a man is not justifiedd by works of the law * but through
faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be
justified by faith in Christ, and not by works of the law, because by works
of the law shall no flesh be justified. 17But if, in our endeavor to be justified
in Christ, we ourselves were found to be sinners, is Christ then an agent of
sin? Certainly not! 18But if I build up again those things which I tore down,
then I prove myself a transgressor. 19For I through the law died to the law,
that I might live to God. 20I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I
who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I
live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21I
do not nullify the grace of God; for if justificatione were through the law,
then Christ died to no purpose.
Law or Faith
3 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus
Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? 2Let me ask you only this: Did
you receive the Spirit * by works of the law, or by hearing with faith? 3Are
you so foolish? Having begun with the Spirit, are you now ending with the
flesh? 4Did you experience so many things in vain?—if it really is in vain.
5Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do
so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?
6 Thus Abraham “believed God, and it was reckoned to him as
righteousness.” 7So you see that it is men of faith who are the sons of
Abraham. 8And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the
Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In
you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9So then, those who are men of faith
are blessed with Abraham who had faith.
10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written,
“Cursed be every one who does not abide by all things written in the book
of the law, and do them.” 11Now it is evident that no man is justified before
God by the law; for “He who through faith is righteous shall live”;f 12but
the law does not rest on faith, for “He who does them shall live by them.”
13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for
us—for it is written, “Cursed be every one who hangs on a tree”—14that in
Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles, that
we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
The Promise to Abraham
15 To give a human example, brethren: no one annuls even a man’s will,g
or adds to it, once it has been ratified. 16Now the promises were made to
Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring
to many; but, referring to one, “And to your offspring,” which is Christ.
17This is what I mean: the law, which came four hundred and thirty years
afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to
make the promise void. 18For if the inheritance is by the law, it is no longer
by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
The Purpose of the Law
19 Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the
offspring should come to whom the promise had been made; and it was
ordained by angels through an intermediary. 20Now an intermediary implies
more than one; but God is one.
21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not; for if a law
had been given which could make alive, then righteousness would indeed
be by the law. 22But the Scripture consigned all things to sin, that what was
promised to faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 Now before faith came, we were confined under the law, kept under
restraint until faith should be revealed. 24So that the law was our custodian
until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. 25But now that faith
has come, we are no longer under a custodian; 26for in Christ Jesus you are
all sons of God, through faith. 27For as many of you as were baptized into
Christ have put on Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither
slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ
Jesus. 29And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs
according to promise.
4 I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no better than a slave,
though he is the owner of all the estate; 2but he is under guardians and
trustees until the date set by the father. 3So with us; when we were children,
we were slaves to the elemental spirits of the universe. 4But when the time
had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,
5to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption
as sons. 6And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into
our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7So through God you are no longer a
slave but a son, and if a son then an heir.
Paul Reproves the Galatians
8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were in bondage to beings
that by nature are no gods; 9but now that you have come to know God, or
rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and
beggarly elemental spirits, whose slaves you want to be once more? 10You
observe days, and months, and seasons, and years! 11I am afraid I have
labored over you in vain.
12 Brethren, I beg you, become as I am, for I also have become as you are.
You did me no wrong; 13you know it was because of a bodily ailment that I
preached the gospel to you at first; 14and though my condition was a trial to
you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God,
as Christ Jesus. 15What has become of the satisfaction you felt? For I bear
you witness that, if possible, you would have plucked out your eyes and
given them to me. 16Have I then become your enemy by telling you the
truth?h 17They make much of you, but for no good purpose; they want to
shut you out, that you may make much of them. 18For a good purpose it is
always good to be made much of, and not only when I am present with you.
19My little children, with whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed
in you! 20I could wish to be present with you now and to change my tone,
for I am perplexed about you.
The Allegory of Hagar and Sarah
21 Tell me, you who desire to be under law, do you not hear the law?
22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave and one by a
free woman. 23But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, the
son of the free woman through promise. 24Now this is an allegory: these
women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for
slavery; she is Hagar. 25Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia;i she
corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.
26But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. 27For it is written,
“Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear;

break forth and shout, you who are not with labor pains;
for the desolate has more children
than she who has a husband.”
28Now we,j brethren, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29But as at that
time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born
according to the Spirit, so it is now. 30But what does the Scripture say?
“Cast out the slave and her son; for the son of the slave shall not inherit
with the son of the free woman.” 31So, brethren, we are not children of the
slave but of the free woman.
Christian Freedom
5 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not
submit again to a yoke of slavery.
2 Now I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be
of no advantage to you. 3I testify again to every man who receives
circumcision that he is bound to keep the whole law. 4You are severed from
Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from
grace. 5For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait for the hope of
righteousness. 6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision
is of any avail, but faith working through love. 7You were running well;
who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8This persuasion is not from him
who called you. 9A little leaven leavens all the dough. 10I have confidence
in the Lord that you will take no other view than mine; and he who is
troubling you will bear his judgment, whoever he is. 11But if I, brethren,
still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? In that case the
stumbling block of the cross * has been removed. 12I wish those who
unsettle you would mutilate themselves!
13 For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not use your
freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one
another. 14For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, “You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.” 15But if you bite and devour one another take heed
that you are not consumed by one another.
The Works of the Fleshand the Fruit of the Spirit
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.
17For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the
Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent
you from doing what you would. 18But if you are led by the Spirit you are
not under the law. 19Now the works of the flesh are plain: immorality,
impurity, licentiousness, 20idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger,
selfishness, dissension, party spirit, 21envy,k drunkenness, carousing, and
the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things
shall not inherit the kingdom of God. 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love,
joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-
control; against such there is no law. 24And those who belong to Christ
Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 26Let us have no
self-conceit, no provoking of one another, no envy of one another.
Bear One Another’s Burdens
6 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual
should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Look to yourself, lest you too be
tempted. 2Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. 3For if
any one thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
4But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in
himself alone and not in his neighbor. 5For each man will have to bear his
own load.
6 Let him who is taught the word share all good things with him who
teaches.
7 Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that
he will also reap. 8For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap
corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal
life. 9And let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall
reap, if we do not lose heart. 10So then, as we have opportunity, let us do
good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
Final Admonitions and Benediction
11 See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. 12It
is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh that would compel
you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for
the cross of Christ. 13For even those who receive circumcision do not
themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they
may glory in your flesh. 14But far be it from me to glory except in the cross
of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whichl the world has been crucified to me, and
I to the world. 15For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor
uncircumcision, but a new creation. 16Peace and mercy be upon all who
walk by this rule, upon the Israel of God.
17 Henceforth let no man trouble me; for I bear on my body the marks of
Jesus.
18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brethren. Amen.
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Ephesians
Chapters
123456
OceanofPDF.com
THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE EPHESIANS
Salutation
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To the saints who are * also faithfula in Christ Jesus:
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed
us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4even as he
chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy
and blameless before him. 5He destined us in loveb to be his sons through
Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6to the praise of his
glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7In him we
have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace 8which he lavished upon us. 9For he has
made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ 10as a plan for the
fulness of time, to unite * all things in him, things in heaven and things on
earth.
11 In him, according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things
according to the counsel of his will, 12we who first hoped in Christ have
been destined and appointed to live for the praise of his glory. 13In him you
also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and
have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is
the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the
praise of his glory.
Paul’s Prayer
15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus
and your lovec toward all the saints, 16I do not cease to give thanks for you,
remembering you in my prayers, 17that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the
knowledge of him, 18having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you
may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches
of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and what is the immeasurable
greatness of his power in us who believe, according to the working of his
great might 20which he accomplished in Christ when he raised him from the
dead and made him sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21far above
all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that
is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come; 22and he has
put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for
the Church, 23which is his body, the fulness of him who fills all in all.
From Death to Life with Christ
2 And you he made alive, when you were dead through the trespasses
and sins 2in which you once walked, following the course of this world,
following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in
the sons of disobedience. 3Among these we all once lived in the passions of
our flesh, following the desires of body and mind, and so we were by nature
children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4But God, who is rich in mercy,
out of the great love with which he loved us, 5even when we were dead
through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you
have been saved), 6and raised us up with him, and made us sit with him in
the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7that in the coming ages he might show
the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
8For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own
doing, it is the gift of God—9not because of works, lest any man should
boast. 10For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good
works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
One in Christ
11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called
the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the
flesh by hands—12remember that you were at that time separated from
Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the
covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But
now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near in
the blood of Christ. 14For he is our peace, who has made us both one, and
has broken down the dividing wall * of hostility, 15by abolishing in his flesh
the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself
one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16and might reconcile us
both to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to
an end. 17And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and
peace to those who were near; 18for through him we both have access in one
Spirit to the Father. 19So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners,
but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of
God, 20built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus
himself being the cornerstone, 21in whom the whole structure is joined
together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22in whom you also are
built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Paul’s Ministry to the Gentiles
3 For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you
Gentiles—2assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace
that was given to me for you, 3how the mystery * was made known to me
by revelation, as I have written briefly. 4When you read this you can
perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5which was not made known
to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his
holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 6that is, how the Gentiles are
fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in
Christ Jesus through the gospel.
7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace
which was given me by the working of his power. 8To me, though I am the
very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles
the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9and to make all men see what is the plan
of the mystery hidden for ages ind God who created all things; 10that
through the Church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made
known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places. 11This was
according to the eternal purpose which he has realized in Christ Jesus our
Lord, 12in whom we have boldness and confidence of access through our
faith in him. 13So I ask you not toe lose heart over what I am suffering for
you, which is your glory.
Prayer for the Ephesians
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15from whom every
family in heaven and on earth is named, 16that according to the riches of his
glory he may grant you to be strengthened with might through his Spirit in
the inner man, 17and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that
you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18may have power to comprehend
with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
19and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may
be filled with all the fulness of God.
20 Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to do far more
abundantly than all that we ask or think, 21to him be glory in the Church
and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.
Unity in the Body of Christ
4 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, beg you to walk in a manner
worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2with all lowliness and
meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, 3eager to maintain
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one
Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, 5one
Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of us all, who is above
all and through all and in all. 7But grace was given to each of us according
to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8Therefore it is said,
“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men.”
9(In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also
descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10He who descended is he who
also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11And
his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some
evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of
ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until we all attain to the unity
of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to
the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ; 14so that we may no
longer be children, tossed back and forth and carried about with every wind
of doctrine, by the cunning of men, by their craftiness in deceitful wiles.
15Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into
him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and
knit together by every joint with which it is supplied, when each part is
working properly, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love.
The Old Life and the New
17 Now this I affirm and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk
as the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their minds; 18they are darkened in
their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance
that is in them, due to their hardness of heart; 19they have become callous
and have given themselves up to licentiousness, greedy to practice every
kind of uncleanness. 20You did not so learn Christ! —21assuming that you
have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus. 22Put
off the old man that belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt
through deceitful lusts, 23and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24and
put on the new man, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness
and holiness.
Rules for the New Life
25 Therefore, putting away falsehood, let every one speak the truth with
his neighbor, for we are members one of another. 26Be angry but do not sin;
do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27and give no opportunity to the
devil. 28Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest
work with his hands, so that he may be able to give to those in need. 29Let
no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for edifying,
as fits the occasion, that it may impart grace to those who hear. 30And do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption. 31Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander
be put away from you, with all malice, 32and be kind to one another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
5 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2And walk in love,
as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and
sacrifice to God.
Renounce Pagan Ways
3 But immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be
named among you, as is fitting among saints. 4Let there be no filthiness, nor
silly talk, nor levity, which are not fitting; but instead let there be
thanksgiving. 5Be sure of this, that no immoral or impure man, or one who
is covetous (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of
Christ and of God. 6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for it is
because of these things that the wrath of God comes upon the sons of
disobedience. 7Therefore do not associate with them, 8for once you were
darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light 9(for
the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10and try to
learn what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Take no part in the unfruitful works of
darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is a shame even to speak of the
things that they do in secret; 13but when anything is exposed by the light it
becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. 14Therefore it is
said,
“Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead,
and Christ shall give you light.” *
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise,
16making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not
be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get
drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit,
19addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, 20always and for
everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the
Father.
The Christian Household
21 Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22Wives, be
subject to your husbands, as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of
the wife as Christ is the head of the Church, his body, and is himself its
Savior. 24As the Church is subject to Christ, so let wives also be subject in
everything to their husbands. 25Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved
the Church and gave himself up for her, 26that he might sanctify her, having
cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27that he might present
the Church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such
thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28Even so husbands
should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves
himself. 29For no man ever hates his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes
it, as Christ does the Church, 30because we are members of his body. 31“For
this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his
wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32This is a great mystery, and I
mean in reference to Christ and the Church; 33however, let each one of you
love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
Children and Parents
6 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2“Honor your
father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), 3“that it
may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth.” 4Fathers, do
not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and
instruction of the Lord.
Slaves and Masters
5 Slaves, be obedient to those who are your earthly masters, with fear and
trembling, in singleness of heart, as to Christ; 6not in the way of eye-
service, as men-pleasers, but as servantsf of Christ, doing the will of God
from the heart, 7rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to
men, 8knowing that whatever good any one does, he will receive the same
again from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. 9Masters, do the same to
them, and forbear threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and
yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him.
The Whole Armor of God
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11Put on
the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of
the devil. 12For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against
the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present
darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
13Therefore take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand
in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14Stand therefore, having
fastened the belt of truth around your waist, and having put on the
breastplate of righteousness, 15and having shod your feet with the
equipment of the gospel of peace; 16besides all these, taking the shield of
faith, with which you can quench all the flaming darts of the Evil One.
17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God. 18Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and
supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making
supplication for all the saints, 19and also for me, that utterance may be
given me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the
gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains; that I may declare it
boldly, as I ought to speak.
Personal Matters and Benediction
21 Now that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tych'icus
the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you
everything. 22I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may
know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts.
23 Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and
the Lord Jesus Christ. 24Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ
with love undying.
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Philippians
Chapters
1234
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THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE PHILIPPIANS
Salutation
1 Paul and Timothy, servantsa of Christ Jesus,
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philip'pi, with the bishopsb
and deacons:
Paul’s Prayer for the Philippians
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4always in every prayer
of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5thankful for your
partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6And I am sure that
he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of
Jesus Christ. 7It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold
you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my
imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8For God
is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.
9And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with
knowledge and all discernment, 10so that you may approve what is
excellent, and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11filled with
the fruits of righteousness which come through Jesus Christ, to the glory
and praise of God.
Paul’s Present Circumstances
12 I want you to know, brethren, that what has happened to me has really
served to advance the gospel, 13so that it has become known throughout the
whole praetorian guardc and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for
Christ; 14and most of the brethren have been made confident in the Lord
because of my imprisonment, * and are much more bold to speak the word
of God without fear.
15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good
will. 16The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the
defense of the gospel; 17the former proclaim Christ out of partisanship, not
sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18What then? Only
that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and
in that I rejoice.
To Live Is Christ
19 Yes, and I shall rejoice. For I know that through your prayers and the
help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20as it
is my eager expectation and hope that I shall not be at all ashamed, but that
with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, *
whether by life or by death. 21For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22If it is to be life in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I
shall choose I cannot tell. 23I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is
to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24But to remain in the
flesh is more necessary on your account. 25Convinced of this, I know that I
shall remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the
faith, 26so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus,
because of my coming to you again.
27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that
whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you stand
firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the
gospel, 28and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear
omen to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.
29For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not
only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, 30engaged in the same
conflict which you saw and now hear to be mine.
Imitating Christ’s Humility
2 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any incentive of love, any
participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2complete my joy by
being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of
one mind. 3Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility count
others better than yourselves. 4Let each of you look not only to his own
interests, but also to the interests of others. 5Have this mind among
yourselves, which was in Christ Jesus, 6who, though he was in the form of
God, * did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7but emptied
himself, * taking the form of a servant,d being born in the likeness of men.
8And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient
unto death, even death on a cross. 9Therefore God has highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, 10that at the
name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the
earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
God the Father.
Shining as Lights in the World
12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only
as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own
salvation with fear and trembling; 13for God is at work in you, both to will
and to work for his good pleasure.
14 Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15that you may be
blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a
crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the
world, 16holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be
proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17Even if I am to be poured
as a libation upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice
with you all. 18Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
Timothy and Epaphroditus
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I may be
cheered by news of you. 20I have no one like him, who will be genuinely
anxious for your welfare. 21They all look after their own interests, not those
of Jesus Christ. 22But Timothy’s worth you know, how as a son with a
father he has served with me in the gospel. 23I hope therefore to send him
just as soon as I see how it will go with me; 24and I trust in the Lord that
shortly I myself shall come also.
25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphrodi'tus my brother
and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to
my need, 26for he has been longing for you all, and has been distressed
because you heard that he was ill. 27Indeed he was ill, near to death. But
God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should
have sorrow upon sorrow. 28I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that
you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29So
receive him in the Lord with all joy; and honor such men, 30for he nearly
died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete your service to me.
Loss of All to Gain Christ
3 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to
you is not irksome to me, and is safe for you.
2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evil-workers, look out for those
who mutilate the flesh. 3For we are the true circumcision, who worship God
in spirit,e and glory in Christ Jesus, and put no confidence in the flesh.
4Though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If any other
man thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more:
5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of
Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law a Pharisee, 6as to zeal a

persecutor of the Church, as to righteousness under the law blameless. 7But
whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8Indeed I count
everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus
my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them
as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a
righteousness of my own, based on law, but that which is through faith in
Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith; 10that I may know
him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death, 11that if possible I may attain the
resurrection from the dead.
Pressing toward the Goal
12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press
on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. *
13Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but one thing I
do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14I
press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ
Jesus. 15Let those of us who are mature be thus minded; and if in anything
you are otherwise minded, God will reveal that also to you. 16Only let us
hold true to what we have attained.
17 Brethren, join in imitating me, and mark those who so walk as you
have an example in us. 18For many, of whom I have often told you and now
tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19Their end
is destruction, their god is the belly, and they glory in their shame, with
minds set on earthly things. § 20But our commonwealth is in heaven, and
from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who will change our
lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power which enables him
even to subject all things to himself.
Exhortations
4 Therefore, my brethren, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown,
stand firm in this way in the Lord, my beloved.
2 I entreat Eu-o'dia and I entreat Syn'tyche to agree in the Lord. 3And I
also ask you, who are a true co-worker, help these women, for they have
labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the
rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5Let all men know
your forbearance. The Lord is at hand. 6Have no anxiety about anything,
but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your
requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which passes all
understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is
just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is
any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these
things. 9What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do;
and the God of peace will be with you.
Acknowledgment of the Philippians’ Gifts
10 I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your
concern for me; you were indeed concerned for me, but you had no
opportunity. 11Not that I complain of want; for I have learned, in whatever
state I am, to be content. 12I know how to be abased, and I know how to
abound; in any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of facing
plenty and hunger, abundance and want. 13I can do all things in him who
strengthens me.
14 Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. 15And you Philippians
yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia,
no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving except
you only; 16for even in Thessaloni'ca you sent me helpf once and again.
17Not that I seek the gift; but I seek the fruit which increases to your credit.
18I have received full payment, and more; I am filled, having received from
Epaphrodi'tus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable

and pleasing to God. 19And my God will supply every need of yours
according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20To our God and Father be
glory for ever and ever. Amen.
21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet
you. 22All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household.
23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
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Colossians
Chapters
1234
OceanofPDF.com
THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE COLOSSIANS
Salutation
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our
brother,
2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ at Colos'sae:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
Gratitude for the Colossians’ Faith
3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we
pray for you, 4because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of
the love which you have for all the saints, 5because of the hope laid up for
you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the
gospel 6which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing
fruit and growing—so among yourselves, from the day you heard and
understood the grace of God in truth, 7as you learned it from Ep'aphras our
beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on oura behalf
8and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.
9 And so, from the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you,
asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual
wisdom and understanding, 10to lead a life worthy of the Lord, fully
pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the
knowledge of God. 11May you be strengthened with all power, according to
his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, 12giving thanks
to the Father, who has qualified usb to share in the inheritance of the saints
in light. 13He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and
transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14in whom we have
redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
The Supremacy of Christ
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born * of all creation;
16for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and
invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities—all

things were created through him and for him. 17He is before all things, and
in him all things hold together. 18He is the head of the body, the Church; he
is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he * might
be pre-eminent. 19For in him all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell,
20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in
heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
21 And you, who once were estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil
deeds, 22he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to
present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him, 23provided
that you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the
hope of the gospel which you heard, which has been preached to every
creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Paul’s Sufferings and Ministry
24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I
complete what is lacking * in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body,
that is, the Church, 25of which I became a minister according to the divine
office which was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully
known, 26the mystery hidden for ages and generationsc but now made
manifest to his saints. 27To them God chose to make known how great
among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is
Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28Him we proclaim, warning every man
and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man
mature in Christ. 29For this I toil, striving with all the energy which he
mightily inspires within me.
2 For I want you to know how greatly I strive for you, and for those at
La-odice'a, and for all who have not seen my face, 2that their hearts may be
encouraged as they are knit together in love, to have all the riches of
assured understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, of Christ, 3in
whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4I say this in
order that no one may delude you with beguiling speech. 5For though I am
absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order
and the firmness of your faith in Christ.
Fulness of Life in Christ
6 As therefore you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so live in him, 7rooted
and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught,
abounding in thanksgiving.
Warnings against False Teachers
8 See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty
deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of
the universe, and not according to Christ. 9For in him the whole fulness of
deity dwells bodily, 10and you have come to fulness of life in him, who is
the head of all rule and authority. 11In him also you were circumcised with a
circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the
circumcision of Christ; 12and you were buried with him in baptism, in
which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God,
who raised him from the dead. 13And you, who were dead in trespasses and
the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having
forgiven us all our trespasses, 14having canceled the bond which stood
against us with its legal demands; this he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
15He disarmed the principalities and powers and made a public example of
them, triumphing over them in him.d

16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and
drink or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath. 17These are
only a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. 18Let
no one disqualify you, insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels,
taking his stand on visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind,
19and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished
and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that
is from God.
20 If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the universe, why do
you live as if you still belonged to the world? Why do you submit to
regulations, 21“Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22(referring to
things which all perish as they are used), according to human precepts and
doctrines? 23These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting
rigor of devotion and self-abasement and severity to the body, but they are
of no value in checking the indulgence of the flesh.e
New Life in Christ
3 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are
above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on
things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3For you have died,
and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ who is our life
appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: immorality, impurity,
passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6On account of
these the wrath of God is coming.f 7In these you once walked, when you
lived in them. 8But now put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander,
and foul talk from your mouth. 9Do not lie to one another, seeing that you
have put off the old man with his practices 10and have put on the new man,
who is being renewed in knowledge after the image of his creator. 11Here
there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian,
Scyth'ian, slave, free man, but Christ is all, and in all.
12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion,
kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, 13forbearing one another and,
if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has
forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14And over all these put on love,
which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15And let the peace of
Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body.
And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as you teach
and admonish one another in all wisdom, and as you sing psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17And
whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Rules for Christian Households
18 * Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
19Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. 20Children,
obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21Fathers, do not
provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. 22Slaves, obey in
everything those who are your earthly masters, not with eyeservice, as men-
pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing the Lord. 23Whatever your task,
work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men, 24knowing that from the
Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you are serving the
Lord Christ. 25For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has
done, and there is no partiality.
4 Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have
a Master in heaven.
Further Instructions
2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving;
3and pray for us also, that God may open to us a door for the word, to
declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison, 4that I
may make it clear, as I ought to speak.
5 Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the
time. 6Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you
may know how you ought to answer every one.
7 Tych'icus will tell you all about my affairs; he is a beloved brother and
faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. 8I have sent him to you for
this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may
encourage your hearts, 9and with him Ones'imus, the faithful and beloved
brother, who is one of yourselves. They will tell you of everything that has
taken place here.
10 Aristar'chus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark the cousin of
Barnabas * (concerning whom you have received instructions—if he comes
to you, receive him), 11and Jesus who is called Justus. These are the only
men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God,
and they have been a comfort to me. 12Ep'aphras, who is one of yourselves,
a servantg of Christ Jesus, greets you, always remembering you earnestly in
his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of
God. 13For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those
in La-odice'a and in Hi-erap'olis. 14Luke the beloved physician * and
Demas greet you. 15Give my greetings to the brethren at La-odice'a, and to
Nympha and the church in her house. 16And when this letter has been read
among you, have it read also in the Church of the La-odice'ans; and see that
you read also the letter from La-odice'a. 17And say to Archip'pus, “See that
you fulfil the ministry which you have received in the Lord.”
18 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my chains.
Grace be with you.
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1 Thessalonians
Chapters
12345
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THE FIRST LETTER OF PAUL TO THE THESSALONIANS
Salutation
1 Paul, Silva'nus, and Timothy, *
To the Church of the Thessalo'nians in God the Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ:
Grace to you and peace.
The Thessalonians’ Faith and Example
2 We give thanks to God always for you all, constantly mentioning you in
our prayers, 3remembering before our God and Father your work of faith
and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4For
we know, brethren beloved by God, that he has chosen you; 5for our gospel
came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and
with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among
you for your sake. 6And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for
you received the word in much affliction, with joy inspired by the Holy
Spirit; 7so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia
and in Acha'ia. 8For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from
you in Macedonia and Acha'ia, but your faith in God has gone forth
everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9For they themselves report
concerning us what a welcome we had among you, and how you turned to
God from idols, to serve a living and true God, 10and to wait for his Son
from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the
wrath to come.
Paul’s Ministry in Thessalonica
2 For you yourselves know, brethren, that our visit to you was not in
vain; 2but though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at
Philip'pi, as you know, we had courage in our God to declare to you the
gospel of God in the face of great opposition. 3For our appeal does not
spring from error or uncleanness, nor is it made with guile; 4but just as we
have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak,
not to please men, but to please God who tests our hearts. 5For we never
used either words of flattery, as you know, or a cloak for greed, as God is
witness; 6nor did we seek glory from men, whether from you or from
others, though we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. 7But we
were gentlea among you, like a nurse taking care of her children. 8So, being
affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the
gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear
to us.
9 For you remember our labor and toil, brethren; we worked night and
day, that we might not burden any of you, while we preached to you the
gospel of God. 10You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous
and blameless was our behavior to you believers; 11for you know how, like
a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you
and charged you 12to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into
his own kingdom and glory.
13 And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the
word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of
men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you
believers. 14For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God in
Christ Jesus which are in Judea; for you suffered the same things from your
own countrymen as they did from the Jews, 15who killed both the Lord
Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all
men 16by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they may be saved
—so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But God’s wrath has
come upon them at last!b
Paul’s Desire to Visitthe Thessalonians Again
17 But since we were deprived of you, brethren, for a short time, in person
not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see
you face to face; 18because we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, * again and
again—but Satan hindered us. 19For what is our hope or joy or crown of
boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? 20For you are
our glory and joy.
3 Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left
behind at Athens alone, 2and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s
servant in the gospel of Christ, to establish you in your faith and to exhort
you, 3that no one be moved by these afflictions. You yourselves know that
this is to be our lot. 4For when we were with you, we told you beforehand
that we were to suffer affliction; just as it has come to pass, and as you
know. 5For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent that I might
know your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and
that our labor would be in vain.
Timothy’s Good Report
6 But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the
good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us
kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you—7for this reason, brethren,
in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through
your faith; 8for now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord. 9For what
thanksgiving can we render to God for you, for all the joy which we feel for
your sake before our God, 10praying earnestly night and day that we may
see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith?
11 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our
way to you; 12and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to
one another and to all men, as we do to you, 13so that he may establish your
hearts unblamable in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of
our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
A Life Pleasing to God
4 Finally, brethren, we beg and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you
learned from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are
doing, you do so more and more. 2For you know what instructions we gave
you through the Lord Jesus. 3For this is the will of God, your
sanctification: * that you abstain from immorality; * 4/sup>that each one of
you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5not in the
passion of lust like heathens who do not know God; 6that no man
transgress, and wrong his brother in this matter,c because the Lord is an
avenger in all these things, as we solemnly forewarned you. 7For God has
not called us for uncleanness, but in holiness. 8Therefore whoever
disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to
you.
9 But concerning love of the brethren you have no need to have any one
write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one
another; 10and indeed you do love all the brethren throughout Macedonia.
But we exhort you, brethren, to do so more and more, 11to aspire to live
quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we
charged you; * 12so that you may command the respect of outsiders, and be
dependent on nobody.
The Coming of the Lord
13 But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who
are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. * 14For
since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God
will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15For this we declare to
you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the
coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For
the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the
archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in
Christ will rise first; 17then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught
up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we
shall always be with the Lord. * 18Therefore comfort one another with these
words.
5 But as to the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need to
have anything written to you. 2For you yourselves know well that the day of
the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3When people say, “There is
peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor
pains come upon a woman with child, and there will be no escape. 4But you
are not in darkness, brethren, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5For
you are all sons of light and sons of the day; we are not of the night or of
darkness. 6So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and
be sober. 7For those who sleep sleep at night, and those who get drunk are
drunk at night. 8But, since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on
the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9For
God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord
Jesus Christ, 10who died for us so that whether we wake or sleep we might
live with him. 11Therefore encourage one another and build one another up,
just as you are doing.
Final Exhortations, Greetings,and Benediction
12 But we beg you, brethren, to respect those who labor among you and
are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13and to esteem them very
highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.c2
14And we exhort you, brethren, admonish the idle, encourage the
fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15See that none of you
repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all.
16Rejoice always, 17pray constantly, 18give thanks in all circumstances; for
this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19Do not quench the Spirit,
20do not despise prophesying, 21but test everything; hold fast what is good,
22abstain from every form of evil.
23 May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit
and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord
Jesus Christ. 24He who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.
25 Brethren, pray for us.
26 Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss.
27 I adjure you by the Lord that this letter be read to all the brethren.
28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
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2 Thessalonians
Chapters
123
OceanofPDF.com
THE SECOND LETTER OF PAUL TO THE THESSALONIANS
Salutation
1 Paul, Silva'nus, and Timothy,
To the Church of the Thessalo'nians in God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ:
2 Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving
3 We are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, as is
fitting, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one
of you for one another is increasing. 4Therefore we ourselves boast of you
in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your
persecutions and in the afflictions which you are enduring.
The Judgment at Christ’s Coming
5 This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be
made worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering—6since
indeed God deems it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7and
to grant rest with us to you who are afflicted, when the Lord Jesus is
revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, 8inflicting
vengeance upon those who do not know God and upon those who do not
obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They shall suffer the punishment of
eternal destruction and exclusion from the presence of the Lord and from
the glory of his might, 10when he comes on that day to be glorified in his
saints, and to be marveled at in all who have believed, because our
testimony to you was believed. 11To this end we always pray for you, that
our God may make you worthy of his call, and may fulfil every good
resolve and work of faith by his power, 12so that the name of our Lord Jesus
may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God
and the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Man of Lawlessness
2 Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
assembling to meet him, we beg you, brethren, 2not to be quickly shaken in
mind or excited, either by spirit or by word, or by letter purporting to be
from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. * 3Let no one
deceive you in any way; for that day will not come, unless the rebellion
comes first, and the man of lawlessnessa * is revealed, the son of perdition,
4who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of
worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself
to be God. 5Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you
this? 6And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be
revealed in his time. 7For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work;
only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. * 8And
then the lawless one will be revealed, and the Lord Jesus will slay him with
the breath of his mouth and destroy him by his appearing and his coming.
9The coming of the lawless one by the activity of Satan will be with all
power and with pretended signs and wonders, 10and with all wicked
deception for those who are to perish, because they refused to love the truth
and so be saved. 11Therefore God sends upon them a strong delusion, to
make them believe what is false, 12so that all may be condemned who did
not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Chosen for Salvation
13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren
beloved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginningb to be
saved through sanctification by the Spiritc and belief in the truth. 14To this
he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our
Lord Jesus Christ. 15So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions
which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter.
16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who
loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace,
17comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.
Request for Prayer
3 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed on
and triumph, as it did among you, 2and that we may be delivered from
wicked and evil men; for not all have faith. 3But the Lord is faithful; he will
strengthen you and guard you from evil.d 4And we have confidence in the
Lord about you, that you are doing and will do the things which we
command. 5May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the
steadfastness of Christ.
Warning against Idleness
6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in
accord with the tradition that you received from us. 7For you yourselves
know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with
you, 8we did not eat any one’s bread without paying, but with toil and labor
we worked night and day, that we might not burden any of you. 9It was not
because we have not that right, but to give you in our conduct an example
to imitate. 10For even when we were with you, we gave you this command:
If any one will not work, let him not eat. 11For we hear that some of you are
walking in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. 12Now such
persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work
in quietness and to earn their own living. 13Brethren, do not be weary in
well-doing.
14 If any one refuses to obey what we say in this letter, note that man, and
have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. 15Do not look on him
as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all
ways. The Lord be with you all.
17 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. This is the mark in every
letter of mine; it is the way I write. 18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be
with you all.
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1 Timothy
Chapters
123456
OceanofPDF.com
THE FIRST LETTER OF PAUL TO TIMOTHY
Salutation
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of
Christ Jesus our hope,
2 To Timothy, my true child in the faith: *
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Warning against False Teachers
3 As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that
you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, 4nor to
occupy themselves with myths and endless genealogies * which promote
speculations rather than the divine traininga that is in faith; 5whereas the
aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good
conscience and sincere faith. 6Certain persons by swerving from these have
wandered away into vain discussion, 7desiring to be teachers of the law,
without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which
they make assertions.
8 Now we know that the law is good, if any one uses it lawfully,
9understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the
lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and
profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,
10immoral persons, sodomites, kidnapers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else
is contrary to sound doctrine, 11in accordance with the glorious gospel of

the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.
Gratitude for Mercy
12 I thank him who has given me strength for this, Christ Jesus our Lord,
because he judged me faithful by appointing me to his service, 13though I
formerly blasphemed and persecuted and insulted him; but I received mercy
because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, 14and the grace of our Lord
overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 15The
saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners. And I am the foremost of sinners; 16but I received
mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might
display his perfect patience for an example to those who were to believe in
him for eternal life. 17To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only
God, be honor and glory for ever and ever.b Amen.
18 This charge I commit to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the
prophetic utterances which pointed to you, that inspired by them you may
wage the good warfare, 19holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting
conscience, certain persons have made shipwreck of their faith, 20among
them Hymenae'us and Alexander, whom I have delivered to Satan * that
they may learn not to blaspheme.
Instructions concerning Prayer
2 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and
thanksgivings be made for all men, 2for kings and all who are in high
positions, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful
in every way. 3This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our
Savior, 4who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of
the truth. 5For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and
men, the man Christ Jesus, 6who gave himself as a ransom for all, * the
testimony to which was given at the proper time. 7For this I was appointed a
preacher and apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the
Gentiles in faith and truth.
8 I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands
without anger or quarreling; 9also that women should adorn themselves
modestly and sensibly in seemly apparel, not with braided hair or gold or
pearls or costly attire 10but by good deeds, as befits women who profess
religion. 11Let a woman learn in silence with all submissiveness. 12I permit
no woman to teach or to have authority over men; she is to keep silent.
13For Adam was formed first, then Eve; 14and Adam was not deceived, but
the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. 15Yet woman will be
saved through bearing children,c if she continuesd in faith and love and
holiness, with modesty.
Qualifications of Bishops
3 The saying is sure: If any one aspires to the office of bishop, * he
desires a noble task. 2Now a bishop must be above reproach, the husband of
one wife, temperate, sensible, dignified, hospitable, an apt teacher, 3no
drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and no lover of money.
4He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive
and respectful in every way; 5for if a man does not know how to manage his
own household, how can he care for God’s Church? 6He must not be a
recent convert, or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the
condemnation of the devil;f 7moreover he must be well thought of by
outsiders, or he may fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.f
Qualifications of Deacons
8 Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not addicted to
much wine, not greedy for gain; 9they must hold the mystery of the faith
with a clear conscience. 10And let them also be tested first; then if they
prove themselves blameless let them serve as deacons. 11The women *
likewise must be serious, no slanderers, but temperate, faithful in all things.
12Let deacons be the husband of one wife, and let them manage their
children and their households well; 13for those who serve well as deacons
gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith
which is in Christ Jesus.
The Mystery of Our Religion
14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you
so that, 15if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the
household of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and
bulwark of the truth. 16Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our
religion:
Heh was manifested in the flesh,
vindicatedi in the Spirit,
seen by angels,
preached among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory.
False Asceticism
4 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from
the faith by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,
2through the pretensions of liars whose consciences are seared, 3who forbid
marriage * and enjoin abstinence from foods * which God created to be

received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4For
everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is
received with thanksgiving; 5for then it is consecrated by the word of God
and prayer.
A Good Minister of Jesus Christ
6 If you put these instructions before the brethren, you will be a good
minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the words of the faith and of the good
doctrine which you have followed. 7Have nothing to do with godless and
silly myths. Train yourself in godliness; 8for while bodily training is of
some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the
present life and also for the life to come. 9The saying is sure and worthy of
full acceptance. 10For to this end we toil and strive,j because we have our
hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those
who believe.
11 Command and teach these things. 12Let no one despise your youth, but
set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in
purity. 13Till I come, attend to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching,
to teaching. 14Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by
prophetic utterance when the elders laid their hands upon you. 15Practice
these duties, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress.
16Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing
you will save both yourself and your hearers.

Duties toward Believers
5 Do not rebuke an older man but exhort him as you would a father;
treat younger men like brothers, 2older women like mothers, younger
women like sisters, in all purity.
3 Honor widows who are real widows. * 4If a widow has children or
grandchildren, let them first learn their religious duty to their own family
and make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of
God. 5She who is a real widow, and is left all alone, has set her hope on
God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day; 6whereas she
who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. 7Command this, so that
they may be without reproach. 8If any one does not provide for his relatives,
and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse
than an unbeliever.
9 Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having
been the wife of one husband; 10and she must be well attested for her good
deeds, as one who has brought up children, shown hospitality, washed the
feet of the saints, relieved the afflicted, and devoted herself to doing good in
every way. 11But refuse to enrol younger widows; for when they grow
wanton against Christ they desire to marry, 12and so they incur
condemnation for having violated their first pledge. * 13Besides that, they
learn to be idlers, gadding about from house to house, and not only idlers
but gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. 14So I would have
younger widows marry, bear children, rule their households, and give the
enemy no occasion to revile us. 15For some have already strayed after
Satan. 16If any believing womanl has relatives who are widows, let her
assist them; let the Church not be burdened, so that it may assist those who
are real widows.
17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor,
especially those who labor in preaching and teaching; 18for the Scripture
says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain,” and,
“The laborer deserves his wages.” 19Never admit any charge against an
elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 20As for those who
persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand
in fear. 21In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I
charge you to keep these rules without favor, doing nothing from partiality.
22Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor participate in another man’s
sins; keep yourself pure.

23 No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your
stomach and your frequent ailments.
Men’s Deeds, False Teaching,and True Riches
24 The sins of some men are conspicuous, pointing to judgment, but the
sins of others appear later. 25So also good deeds are conspicuous; and even
when they are not, they cannot remain hidden.
6 Let all who are under the yoke of slavery regard their masters as
worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and the teaching may not be
defamed. 2Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful on
the ground that they are brethren; rather they must serve all the better since
those who benefit by their service are believers and beloved.
Teach and urge these duties. 3If any one teaches otherwise and does not
agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching which
accords with godliness, 4he is puffed up with conceit, he knows nothing; he
has a morbid craving for controversy and for disputes about words, which
produce envy, dissension, slander, base suspicions, 5and wrangling among
men who are depraved in mind and bereft of the truth, imagining that
godliness is a means of gain. 6There is great gain in godliness with
contentment; 7for we brought nothing into the world, andm we cannot take
anything out of the world; 8but if we have food and clothing, with these we
shall be content. 9But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a
snare, into many senseless and hurtful desires that plunge men into ruin and
destruction. 10For the love of money is the root of all evils; it is through this
craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced their
hearts with many pangs.
The Good Fight of Faith
11 But as for you, man of God, shun all this; aim at righteousness,
godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. 12Fight the good fight of the
faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made
the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13In the presence of
God who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus who in his testimony
before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, 14I charge you to keep the
commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our
Lord Jesus Christ; 15and this will be made manifest at the proper time by
the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16who
alone has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man
has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
17 As for the rich in this world, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set
their hopes on uncertain riches but on God who richly furnishes us with
everything to enjoy. 18They are to do good, to be rich in good deeds, liberal
and generous, 19thus laying up for themselves a good foundation for the
future, so that they may take hold of the life which is life indeed.
Personal Instructions and Benediction
20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you. Avoid the godless
chatter and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge, 21for by
professing it some have missed the mark as regards the faith.
Grace be with you.
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2 Timothy
Chapters
1234
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THE SECOND LETTER OF PAUL TO TIMOTHY
Salutation
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the
promise of the life which is in Christ Jesus,
2 To Timothy, my beloved child:
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Thanksgiving and Encouragement
3 I thank God whom I serve with a clear conscience, as did my fathers,
when I remember you constantly in my prayers. 4As I remember your tears,
I long night and day to see you, that I may be filled with joy. 5I am
reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother
Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you. 6For this
reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through
the laying on of my hands; 7for God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a
spirit of power and love and self-control.
8 Do not be ashamed then of testifying to our Lord, nor of me his prisoner,
but take your share of suffering for the gospel in the power of God, 9who
saved us and called us with a holy calling, not in virtue of our works but in
virtue of his own purpose and the grace which he gave us in Christ Jesus
ages ago, 10and now has manifested through the appearing of our Savior
Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light
through the gospel. 11For this gospel I was appointed a preacher and apostle
and teacher, 12and therefore I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I
know whom I have believed, and I am sure that he is able to guard until that
Day what has been entrusted to me.a 13Follow the pattern of the sound
words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in
Christ Jesus; 14guard the truth that has been entrusted to you by the Holy
Spirit who dwells within us.
15 You are aware that all who are in Asia * turned away from me, and
among them Phy'gelus and Hermog'enes. 16May the Lord grant mercy to
the household of Onesiph'orus, for he often refreshed me; he was not
ashamed of my chains, 17but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me
eagerly and found me—18may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the
Lord on that Day—and you well know all the service he rendered at
Ephesus.
A Good Soldier of Christ
2 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2and
what you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men
who will be able to teach others also. 3Take your share of suffering as a
good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No soldier on service gets entangled in
civilian pursuits, since his aim is to satisfy the one who enlisted him. 5An
athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6It is the
hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7Think
over what I say, for the Lord will grant you understanding in everything.
8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descended from David, as
preached in my gospel, 9the gospel for which I am suffering and wearing
chains like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained. 10Therefore I
endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the
salvation which in Christ Jesus goes with eternal glory. 11The saying is sure:
If we have died with him, we shall also live with him;
12if we endure, we shall also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us;

13if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself.

A Workman Approved by God
14 Remind them of this, and charge them before the Lordb to avoid
disputing about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers.
15Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who
has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 16Avoid such
godless chatter, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,
17and their talk will eat its way like gangrene. Among them are Hymenae'us
and Phile'tus, 18who have swerved from the truth by holding that the
resurrection is past already. * They are upsetting the faith of some. 19But
God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those
who are his,” and, “Let every one who names the name of the Lord depart
from iniquity.”
20 In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of
wood and earthenware, and some for noble use, some for ignoble. 21If any
one purifies himself from what is ignoble, then he will be a vessel for noble
use, consecrated and useful to the master of the house, ready for any good
work. 22So shun youthful passions and aim at righteousness, faith, love, and
peace, along with those who call upon the Lord from a pure heart. 23Have
nothing to do with stupid, senseless controversies; you know that they breed
quarrels. 24And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kindly to
every one, an apt teacher, forbearing, 25correcting his opponents with
gentleness. God may perhaps grant that they will repent and come to know
the truth, 26and they may escape from the snare of the devil, after being
captured by him to do his will.c
Godlessness in the Last Days
3 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of
stress. 2For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant,
abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3inhuman,
implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good, 4treacherous,
reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5holding the form of religion but denying the power of it. Avoid such
people. 6For among them are those who make their way into households
and capture weak women, burdened with sins and swayed by various
impulses, 7who will listen to anybody and can never arrive at a knowledge
of the truth. 8As Jan'nes and Jam'bres opposed Moses, so these men also
oppose the truth, men of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith; 9but they will
not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two
men.
Paul’s Charge to Timothy
10 Now you have observed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my
faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11my persecutions, my
sufferings, what befell me at Antioch, at Ico'nium, and at Lystra, what
persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. 12Indeed all
who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13while
evil men and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceivers and
deceived. 14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have
firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15and how from
childhood you have been acquainted with the Sacred Writings which are
able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All
Scripture is inspired by God andd profitable for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, and for training in righteousness, * 17that the man of God may
be complete, equipped for every good work.
4 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to
judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom:
2preach the word, be urgent in season and out of season, convince, rebuke,
and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching. 3For the time is coming
when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they
will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, 4and will
turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths. 5As for you,
always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your
ministry.
6 For I am already on the point of being sacrificed; * the time of my
departure has come. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I
have kept the faith. 8From now on there is laid up for me the crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that
Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
Personal Instructions
9 Do your best to come to me soon. 10For Demas, in love with this present
world, has deserted me and gone to Thessaloni'ca; Crescens has gone to
Galatia,e Titus to Dalmatia. 11Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring
him with you; for he is very useful in serving me. 12Tych'icus I have sent to
Ephesus. 13When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at
Tro'as, also the books, and above all the parchments. 14Alexander the
coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will pay him back for his deeds.
15Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message. 16At my
first defense no one took my part; all deserted me. May it not be charged
against them! 17But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength to proclaim
the word fully, that all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the
lion’s mouth. 18The Lord will rescue me from every evil and save me for
his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
19 Greet Prisca and Aqui'la, and the household of Onesiph'orus. 20Eras'tus
remained at Corinth; Troph'imus I left ill at Mile'tus. 21Do your best to
come before winter. Eubu'lus sends greetings to you, as do Pudens and
Linus * and Claudia and all the brethren.
22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
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Titus
Chapters
123
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THE LETTER OF PAUL TO TITUS
Salutation
1 Paul, a servanta of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to further the
faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth which accords with
godliness, 2in hope of eternal life which God, who never lies, promised ages
ago 3and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching
with which I have been entrusted by command of God our Savior;
4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Titus in Crete
5 This is why I left you in Crete, that you might amend what was
defective, and appoint elders * in every town as I directed you, 6if any man
is blameless, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not
open to the charge of debauchery and not being insubordinate. 7For a
bishop, as God’s steward, must be blameless; he must not be arrogant or
quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, 8but hospitable,
a lover of goodness, master of himself, upright, holy, and self-controlled;
9he must hold firm to the sure word as taught, so that he may be able to give
instruction in sound doctrine and also to confute those who contradict it.
10For there are many insubordinate men, empty talkers and deceivers,
especially the circumcision party; 11they must be silenced, since they are
upsetting whole families by teaching for base gain what they have no right
to teach. 12One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are
always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” 13This testimony is true. Therefore
rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14instead of giving
heed to Jewish myths or to commands of men who reject the truth. 15To the
pure all things are pure, but to the corrupt and unbelieving nothing is pure;
their very minds and consciences are corrupted. 16They profess to know
God, but they deny him by their deeds; they are detestable, disobedient,
unfit for any good deed.
Teach Sound Doctrine
2 But as for you, teach what befits sound doctrine. 2Bid the older men
be temperate, serious, sensible, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.
3Bid the older women likewise to be reverent in behavior, not to be
slanderers or slaves to drink; they are to teach what is good, 4and so train
the young women to love their husbands and children, 5to be sensible,
chaste, domestic, kind, and submissive to their husbands, that the word of
God may not be discredited. 6Likewise urge the younger men to control
themselves. 7Show yourself in all respects a model of good deeds, and in
your teaching show integrity, gravity, 8and sound speech that cannot be
censured, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to
say of us. 9Bid slaves to be submissive to their masters and to give
satisfaction in every respect; they are not to talk back, 10nor to pilfer, but to
show entire and true fidelity, so that in everything they may adorn the
doctrine of God our Savior.
11 For the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men,
12training us to renounce irreligion and worldly passions, and to live sober,
upright, and godly lives in this world, 13awaiting our blessed hope, the
appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviorc * Jesus Christ, 14who
gave himself for us to redeem us from all iniquity and to purify for himself
a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.
15 Declare these things; exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one
disregard you.
Maintain Good Deeds
3 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be
obedient, to be ready for any honest work, 2to speak evil of no one, to avoid
quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all men. 3For
we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various
passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by men
and hating one another; 4but when the goodness and loving kindness of God
our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in
righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of
regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, 6which he poured out upon us
richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that we might be justified by his
grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life. * 8The saying is sure.
I desire you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in
God may be careful to apply themselves to good deeds;d these are excellent
and profitable to men. 9But avoid stupid controversies, genealogies,
dissensions, and quarrels over the law, for they are unprofitable and futile.
10As for a man who is factious, after admonishing him once or twice, have
nothing more to do with him, 11knowing that such a person is perverted and
sinful; he is self-condemned.
Final Messages and Benediction
12 When I send Ar'temas or Tych'icus to you, do your best to come to me
at Nicop'olis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. 13Do your best to
speed Ze'nas the lawyer and Apol'los on their way; see that they lack
nothing. 14And let our people learn to apply themselves to good deeds,d so
as to help cases of urgent need, and not to be unfruitful.
15 All who are with me send greetings to you. Greet those who love us in
the faith.
Grace be with you all.
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THE LETTER OF PAUL TO PHILEMON
Salutation
1 Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,
To Phile'mon our beloved fellow worker 2and Ap'phia our sister and
Archip'pus our fellow soldier, and the church in your house:
Philemon’s Love and Faith
4 I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, 5because I
hear of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and
all the saints, 6and I pray that the sharing of your faith may promote the
knowledge of all the good that is ours in Christ. 7For I have derived much
joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints
have been refreshed through you.
Paul’s Plea for Onesimus
8 Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do
what is required, 9yet for love’s sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an
ambassadora and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus—10I appeal to you for
my child, Ones'imus,b whose father I have become in my imprisonment.
11(Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and
to me.) 12I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. 13I would
have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on
your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel; 14but I preferred to do
nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by
compulsion but of your own free will.
15 Perhaps this is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might
have him back for ever, 16no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a
beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the
flesh and in the Lord. 17So if you consider me your partner, receive him as
you would receive me. 18If he has wronged you at all, or owes you
anything, charge that to my account. 19I, Paul, write this with my own hand,
I will repay it—to say nothing of your owing me even your own self. 20Yes,
brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in
Christ.
21 Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do
even more than I say. 22At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I
am hoping through your prayers to be granted to you.
23 Ep'aphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you,
24and so do Mark, Aristar'chus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.
25 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
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Hebrews
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
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THE LETTER TO THE HEBREWS
God Has Spoken by His Son
1 In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the
prophets; 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he
appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the ages. 3He
reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding
the universe by his word of power. When he had made purification for sins,
he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4having become as
much superior to angels as the name he has obtained is more excellent than
theirs. *
The Son’s Superiority to Angels
5 For to what angel did God ever say,
“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”?
Or again,
“I will be to him a father,
and he shall be to me a son”?
6And again, when he brings the first-born into the world, he says,
“Let all God’s angels worship him.”

7Of the angels he says,
“Who makes his angels winds,

and his servants flames of fire.”
8But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God,a is for ever and ever,

the righteous scepter is the scepter of yourb kingdom.
9You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness beyond your comrades.”
10And,
“You, Lord, founded the earth in the beginning,

and the heavens are the work of your hands;
11they will perish, but you remain;
they will all grow old like a garment,

12like a cloak you will roll them up,
and they will be changed.c
But you are the same,
and your years will never end.”
13But to what angel has he ever said,
“Sit at my right hand,

till I make your enemies
a stool for your feet”?
14Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve, for the sake of
those who are to obtain salvation?
Warning to Pay Attention
2 Therefore we must pay the closer attention to what we have heard, lest
we drift away from it. 2For if the message declared by angels * was valid
and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, 3how
shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first
by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard him, 4while God
also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of
the Holy Spirit distributed according to his own will.
Exaltation through Suffering
5 For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which
we are speaking. 6It has been testified somewhere,
“What is man that you are mindful of him,
or the son of man, that you care for him?
7You made him for a little while lower than the angels,
you have crowned him with glory and honor,d

8putting everything in subjection under his feet.”
Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside
his control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. 9But
we see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels,
crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by
the grace of God he might taste death for every one.
10 For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in
bringing many sons to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation
perfect through suffering. * 11For he who sanctifies and those who are
sanctified have all one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them
brethren, 12saying,
“I will proclaim your name to my brethren,
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”
13And again,
“I will put my trust in him.”

And again,
“Here am I, and the children God has given me.”
14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself
likewise partook of the same nature, that through death he might destroy
him who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15and deliver all those
who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage. 16For surely it
is not with angels that he is concerned but with the descendants of
Abraham. 17Therefore he had to be made like his brethren in every respect,
so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of
God, to make expiation for the sins of the people. 18For because he himself
has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.
Moses a Servant, Christ a Son
3 Therefore, holy brethren, who share in a heavenly call, consider Jesus,
the apostle and high priest of our confession. 2He was faithful to him who
appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful ine God’s house. 3Yet Jesus
has been counted worthy of as much more glory than Moses as the builder
of a house has more honor than the house. 4(For every house is built by
some one, but the builder of all things is God.) 5Now Moses was faithful in
all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken
later, 6but Christ was faithful over God’sf house as a son. And we are his
house if we hold fast our confidence and pride in our hope.g
Warning against Unbelief
7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says,
“Today, when you hear his voice,
8do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
on the day of testing in the wilderness,

9where your fathers put me to the test
and saw my works for forty years.

10Therefore I was provoked with that generation,
and said, ‘They always go astray in their hearts;

they have not known my ways.’
11As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall never enter my rest.' " *
12Take care, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving
heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13But exhort one
another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be
hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14For we share in Christ, if only we
hold our first confidence firm to the end, 15while it is said,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
16Who were they that heard and yet were rebellious? Was it not all those
who left Egypt under the leadership of Moses? 17And with whom was he
provoked forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell
in the wilderness? 18And to whom did he swear that they should never enter
his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19So we see that they were
unable to enter because of unbelief.
The Rest That God Promised
4 Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest remains, let us fear
lest any of you be judged to have failed to reach it. 2For good news came to
us just as to them; but the message which they heard did not benefit them,
because it did not meet with faith in the hearers.h 3For we who have
believed enter that rest, as he has said,
“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall never enter my rest,' "
although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4For
he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way, “And God rested
on the seventh day from all his works.” 5And again in this place he said,
“They shall never enter my rest.”
6Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly
received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, 7again he

sets a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the
words already quoted,
do not harden your hearts.”
8For if Joshua had given them rest, Godi would not speak later of another
day. 9So then, there remains a sabbath rest for the people of God; 10for
whoever enters God’s rest also ceases from his labors as God did from his.
11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same
sort of disobedience. 12For the word of God is living and active, sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of
joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
13And before him no creature is hidden, but all are open and laid bare to the
eyes of him with whom we have to do.

Jesus the Great High Priest
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the
heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15For we
have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without
sinning. 16Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that
we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
5 For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on
behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2He
can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset
with weakness. 3Because of this he is bound to offer sacrifice for his own
sins as well as for those of the people. 4And one does not take the honor
upon himself, but he is called by God, just as Aaron was.
5 So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was
appointed by him who said to him,
“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”; *
6as he says also in another place,
“You are a priest for ever,

7 In the days of his flesh, Jesusj offered up prayers and supplications, with
loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he
was heard for his godly fear. 8Although he was a Son, he learned obedience
through what he suffered; 9and being made perfect he became the source of
eternal salvation to all who obey him, 10being designated by God a high
priest according to the order of Melchiz'edek.
Spiritual Growth
11 About this we have much to say which is hard to explain, since you
have become dull of hearing. 12For though by this time you ought to be
teachers, you need some one to teach you again the first principles of God’s
word. You need milk, not solid food; 13for every one who lives on milk is
unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a child. 14But solid food is
for the mature, for those who have their faculties trained by practice to
distinguish good from evil.
The Peril of Falling Away
6 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrines of Christ and go on to
maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and
of faith toward God, 2with instructionk about baptisms, the laying on of
hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3And this we will
do if God permits.l 4For it is impossible * to restore again to repentance
those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift,
and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5and have tasted the
goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6if they
then commit apostasy, since they crucify the Son of God on their own
account and hold him up to contempt. 7For land which has drunk the rain
that often falls upon it, and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose
sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. 8But if it bears thorns
and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed; its end is to be burned.
9 Though we speak thus, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better
things that belong to salvation. 10For God is not so unjust as to overlook
your work and the love which you showed for his sake in serving the saints,
as you still do. 11And we desire each one of you to show the same
earnestness in realizing the full assurance of hope until the end, 12so that
you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and
patience inherit the promises.
The Certainty of God’s Promise
13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one
greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14saying, “Surely I will
bless you and multiply you.” 15And thus Abraham,m having patiently
endured, obtained the promise. 16Men indeed swear by a greater than
themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17So
when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise
the unchangeable character of his purpose, he interposed with an oath, 18so
that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God
should prove false, we who have fled for refuge might have strong
encouragement to seize the hope set before us. 19We have this as a sure and
steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner shrine behind
the curtain, 20where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having
become a high priest for ever according to the order of Melchiz'edek.
The Priestly Order of Melchizedek
7 For this Melchiz'edek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God,
met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him;
2and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by
translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of

Salem, that is, king of peace. 3He is without father * or mother or
genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end of life, * but
resembling the Son of God he continues a priest for ever.
4 See how great he is! Abraham the patriarch gave him a tithe of the
spoils. 5And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have
a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their
brethren, though these also are descended from Abraham. 6But this man
who has not their genealogy received tithes from Abraham and blessed him
who had the promises. 7It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by
the superior. 8Here tithes are received by mortal men; there, by one of
whom it is testified that he lives. 9One might even say that Levi himself,
who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, 10for he was still in the
loins of his ancestor when Melchiz'edek met him.
Another Priest, according to the Order of Melchizedek
11 Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood
(for under it the people received the law), what further need would there
have been for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchiz'edek,
rather than one named according to the order of Aaron? 12For when there is
a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well.
13For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe,
from which no one has ever served at the altar. 14For it is evident that our
Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses
said nothing about priests.
15 This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the
likeness of Melchiz'edek, 16who has become a priest, not according to a
legal requirement concerning bodily descent but by the power of an
indestructible life. 17For it is witnessed of him,
“You are a priest for ever,
18On the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its
weakness and uselessness 19(for the law made nothing perfect); on the other
hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.
20 And it was not without an oath. 21Those who formerly became priests
took their office without an oath, but this one was addressed with an oath,
“The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
‘You are a priest for ever.' "
22This makes Jesus the surety of a better covenant.
23 The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented
by death from continuing in office; 24but he holds his priesthood
permanently, because he continues for ever. 25Consequently he is able for
all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always
lives to make intercession for them.
26 For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy,
blameless, unstained, separated from sinners, exalted above the heavens.
27He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for
his own sins and then for those of the people; he did this once for all when
he offered up himself. 28Indeed, the law appoints men in their weakness as
high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law,
appoints a Son who has been made perfect for ever.
Mediator of a New Covenant
8 Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high
priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in
heaven, 2a minister in the sanctuary and the true tentn which is set up not by
man but by the Lord. 3For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and
sacrifices; hence it is necessary for this priest also to have something to
offer. 4Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there
are priests who offer gifts according to the law. 5They serve a copy and
shadow of the heavenly sanctuary; for when Moses was about to erect the
tent,n he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything
according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.” 6But as it
is, Christo has obtained a ministry which is as much more excellent than the
old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better
promises. 7For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have
been no occasion for a second.
8 For he finds fault with them when he says:
“The days will come, says the Lord,
when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah;
9not like the covenant that I made with their fathers
on the day when I took them by the hand

to lead them out of the land of Egypt;
for they did not continue in my covenant,
and so I paid no heed to them, says the Lord.
10This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, says the Lord:

I will put my laws into their minds,
and write them on their hearts,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
11And they shall not teach every one his fellow
or every one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

for all shall know me,
from the least of them to the greatest. *
12For I will be merciful toward their iniquities,
and I will remember their sins no more.”

13In speaking of a new covenant he treats the first as obsolete. And what
is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
The Earthly and the Heavenly Sanctuaries
9 Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an
earthly sanctuary. 2For a tentp was prepared, the outer one, in which were
the lampstand and the table and the bread of offering;q it is called the Holy
Place. 3Behind the second curtain stood a tentp called the Holy of Holies,
4having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on
all sides with gold, which contained a golden urn holding the manna, and
Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; 5above it were the
cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot
now speak in detail.
6 These preparations having thus been made, the priests go continually
into the outer tent,p performing their ritual duties; 7but into the second only
the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood
which he offers for himself and for the errors of the people. 8By this the
Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the sanctuary is not yet opened as
long as the outer tentp is still standing 9(which is symbolic for the present
age). According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered which
cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, 10but deal only with food
and drink and various baptisms, regulations for the body imposed until the
time of reformation.
11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have
come,r then through the greater and more perfect tentp (not made with
hands, that is, not of this creation) 12he entered once for all into the Holy
Place, takings not the blood of goats and calves but his own blood, thus
securing an eternal redemption. 13For if the sprinkling of defiled persons
with the blood of goats and bulls and with the ashes of a heifer sanctifies for
the purification of the flesh, 14how much more shall the blood of Christ,
who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God,
purify yourt conscience from dead works to serve the living God.
15 Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are
called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has
occurred which redeems them from the transgressions under the first
covenant.u 16For where a willu is involved, the death of the one who made it
must be established. 17For a willu takes effect only at death, since it is not in
force as long as the one who made it is alive. 18Hence even the first
covenant was not ratified without blood. 19For when every commandment
of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood
of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled
both the book itself and all the people, 20saying, “This is the blood of the
covenant which God commanded you.” 21And in the same way he sprinkled
with the blood both the tentp and all the vessels used in worship. 22Indeed,
under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the
shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
Christ’s Sacrifice Takes Away Sin
23 Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be
purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better
sacrifices than these. 24For Christ has entered, not into a sanctuary made
with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in
the presence of God on our behalf. 25Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly,
as the high priest enters the Holy Place yearly with blood not his own; 26for
then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the
world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to put
away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27And just as it is appointed for men to
die once, and after that comes judgment, 28so Christ, having been offered
once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with
sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Christ’s Sacrifice Once for All
10 * For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come
instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same
sacrifices which are continually offered year after year, make perfect those
who draw near. 2Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered? If
the worshipers had once been cleansed, they would no longer have any
consciousness of sin. 3But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sin year
after year. 4For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take
away sins.
5 Consequently, when Christv came into the world, he said,
“Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,
but a body have you prepared for me;
6in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure.
7Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,’
as it is written of me in the roll of the book.”

8When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in
sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are
offered according to the law), 9then he added, “Behold, I have come to do
your will.” He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. 10And by
that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all.
11 And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the
same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12But when Christw had
offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand
of God, 13then to wait until his enemies should be made a stool for his feet.
14For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are
sanctified. 15And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying,
16“This is the covenant that I will make with them
after those days, says the Lord:

I will put my laws on their hearts,
and write them on their minds,”
17then he adds,
“I will remember their sins and their misdeeds no more.”

18Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for
sin.
A Call to Persevere
19 Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by
the blood of Jesus, 20by the new and living way which he opened for us
through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21and since we have a great
priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near with a true heart in full
assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience
and our bodies washed with pure water. 23Let us hold fast the confession of
our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful; 24and let us
consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25not
neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one
another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
26 For if we sin deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth,
there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27but a fearful prospect of
judgment, and a fury of fire which will consume the adversaries. 28A man
who has violated the law of Moses dies without mercy at the testimony of
two or three witnesses. 29How much worse punishment do you think will be
deserved by the man who has spurned the Son of God, and profaned the
blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and outraged the Spirit of
grace? 30For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay.”
And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31It is a fearful thing to fall
into the hands of the living God.
32 But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you
endured a hard struggle with sufferings, 33sometimes being publicly
exposed to abuse and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so
treated. 34For you had compassion on the prisoners, and you joyfully
accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you
yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. 35Therefore do not
throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. 36For you have
need of endurance, so that you may do the will of God and receive what is
promised.
37“For yet a little while,
and the coming one shall come and shall not tarry;
38but my righteous one shall live by faith,
and if he shrinks back,

my soul has no pleasure in him.”
39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those
who have faith and keep their souls.

The Meaning of Faith
11 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of
things not seen. 2For by it the men of old received divine approval. 3By
faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God, so that
what is seen was made out of things which do not appear.
The Examples of Abel, Enoch, and Noah
4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain,
through which he received approval as righteous, God bearing witness by
accepting his gifts; he died, but through his faith he is still speaking. 5By
faith E'noch was taken up so that he should not see death; and he was not
found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was
attested as having pleased God. 6And without faith it is impossible to please
him. For whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and
that he rewards those who seek him. * 7By faith Noah, being warned by
God concerning events as yet unseen, took heed and constructed an ark for
the saving of his household; by this he condemned the world and became an
heir of the righteousness which comes by faith.
The Faith of Abraham
8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place which
he was to receive as an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he
was to go. 9By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a foreign
land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same
promise. 10For he looked forward to the city which has foundations, whose
builder and maker is God. 11By faith Sarah herself received power to
conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful
who had promised. 12Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead,
were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as the
innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.
13 These all died in faith, not having received what was promised, but
having seen it and greeted it from afar, and having acknowledged that they
were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14For people who speak thus make it
clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15If they had been thinking of that
land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to
return. 16But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one.
Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared
for them a city.
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who
had received the promises was ready to offer up his only-begotten son, 18of
whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your descendants be named.” 19He
considered that God was able to raise men even from the dead; hence he did
receive him back and this was a symbol. 20By faith Isaac invoked future
blessings on Jacob and Esau. 21By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of
the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. 22By faith
Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites
and gave directions concerning his burial.x
The Faith of Moses
23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his
parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful; and they were not
afraid of the king’s edict. 24By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused
to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25choosing rather to share ill-
treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.
26He considered abuse suffered for the Christ greater wealth than the
treasures of Egypt, for he looked to the reward. 27By faith he left Egypt, not
being afraid of the anger of the king; for he endured as seeing him who is
invisible. 28By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that
the Destroyer of the first-born might not touch them.
The Faith of Other Heroesin Israel’s History
29 By faith the people crossed the Red Sea as if on dry land; but the
Egyptians, when they attempted to do the same, were drowned. 30By faith
the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.
31By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish with those who were disobedient,
because she had given friendly welcome to the spies.

32 And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon,
Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—33who
through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, received promises,
stopped the mouths of lions, 34quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the
sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign
armies to flight. 35Women received their dead by resurrection. Some were
tortured, refusing to accept release, that they might rise again to a better
life. 36Others suffered mocking and scourging, and even chains and
imprisonment. 37They were stoned, they were sawn in two,y they were
killed with the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute,
afflicted, ill-treated— 38of whom the world was not worthy—wandering
over deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
39 And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what
was promised, 40since God had foreseen something better for us, that apart
from us they should not be made perfect.
The Example of Jesus
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us
run with perseverance the race that is set before us, * 2looking to Jesus the
pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the
throne of God.
3 Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself,
so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. 4In your struggle against
sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5And have
you forgotten the exhortation which addresses you as sons?—
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor lose courage when you are punished by him.
6For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.”

7It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons;
for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8If you are left
without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate
children and not sons. 9Besides this, we have had earthly fathers to
discipline us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to
the Father of spirits and live? 10For they disciplined us for a short time at
their pleasure, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his
holiness. 11For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant;
later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been
trained by it.
Exhortation to Be Strong and Avoid Sin
12 Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees,
13and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put
out of joint but rather be healed. 14Strive for peace with all men, and for the
holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 15See to it that no one fail
to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” spring up and cause
trouble, and by it the many become defiled; 16that no one be immoral or
irreligious like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17For you
know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was
rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.
18 For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire, and
darkness, and gloom, and a tempest, 19and the sound of a trumpet, and a
voice whose words made the hearers entreat that no further messages be
spoken to them. 20For they could not endure the order that was given, “If
even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21Indeed, so
terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22But you
have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23and to the
assemblyz of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge who
is God of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24and to Jesus, the
mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks more
graciously than the blood of Abel.
25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not
escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less shall
we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26His voice then shook
the earth; but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only
the earth but also the heaven.” 27This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the
removal of what is shaken, as of what has been made, in order that what
cannot be shaken may remain. 28Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a
kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable
worship, with reverence and awe; 29for our God is a consuming fire.
Sacrifices Well-Pleasing to God
13 * Let brotherly love continue. 2Do not neglect to show hospitality to
strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. 3Remember
those who are in prison, as though in prison with them; and those who are
ill-treated, since you also are in the body. 4Let marriage be held in honor
among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled; for God will judge the
immoral and adulterous. 5Keep your life free from love of money, and be
content with what you have; for he has said, “I will never fail you nor
forsake you.” 6Hence we can confidently say,
“The Lord is my helper,
I will not be afraid;
what can man do to me?”
7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God;
consider the outcome of their life, and imitate their faith. 8Jesus Christ is the
same yesterday and today and for ever. 9Do not be led away by diverse and
strange teachings; for it is well that the heart be strengthened by grace, not
by foods, which have not benefited their adherents. * 10We have an altar
from which those who serve the tenta have no right to eat. 11For the bodies
of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high
priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. 12So Jesus also
suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own
blood. 13Therefore let us go forth to him outside the camp, bearing abuse
for him. * 14For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city which is
to come. 15Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise
to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. 16Do not neglect
to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to
God.
17 Obey your leaders and submit to them; for they are keeping watch over
your souls, as men who will have to give account. Let them do this joyfully,
and not sadly, for that would be of no advantage to you.
18 Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a clear conscience, desiring to
act honorably in all things. 19I urge you the more earnestly to do this in
order that I may be restored to you the sooner.
Benediction
20 Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord
Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant,
21equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in youb
that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory
for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Exhortation and Greetings
22 I appeal to you, brethren, bear with my word of exhortation, for I have
written to you briefly. 23You should understand that our brother Timothy
has been released, with whom I shall see you if he comes soon. 24Greet all
your leaders and all the saints. Those who come from Italy send you
greetings. 25Grace be with all of you. Amen.
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James
Chapters
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THE LETTER OF JAMES
Salutation
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To the twelve tribes * in the Dispersion:
Greeting.
Faith and Wisdom
2 Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trials, 3for you
know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4And let
steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete,
lacking in nothing.
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men
generously and without reproaching, and it will be given him. 6But let him
ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea
that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7, 8For that person must not suppose
that a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways, will receive anything
from the Lord.
Poverty and Riches
9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10and the rich in his
humiliation, because like the flower of the grass he will pass away. 11For
the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls,
and its beauty perishes. So will the rich man fade away in the midst of his
pursuits.
Trial and Temptation
12 Blessed is the man who endures trial, for when he has stood the test he
will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love
him. 13Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God
cannot be tempted with evil and he himself tempts no one; 14but each
person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15Then
desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin; and sin when it is full-grown
brings forth death.
16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. 17Every good endowment
and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights
with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.a 18Of his own
will he brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind of
first fruits of his creatures.
19 Know this, my beloved brethren. Let every man be quick to hear, slow
to speak, slow to anger, 20for the anger of man does not work the
righteousness of God. 21Therefore put away all filthiness and rank growth
of wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able
to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. *
23For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who
observes his natural face in a mirror; 24for he observes himself and goes
away and at once forgets what he was like. 25But he who looks into the
perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer that forgets
but a doer that acts, he shall be blessed in his doing.
26 If any one thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but
deceives his heart, this man’s religion is vain. 27Religion that is pure and
undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in
their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
Warning against Partiality
2 * My brethren, show no partiality as you hold the faith of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2For if a man with gold rings and in fine
clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also
comes in, 3and you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and
say, “Have a seat here, please,” while you say to the poor man, “Stand
there,” or, “Sit at my feet,” 4have you not made distinctions among
yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? 5Listen, my beloved
brethren. Has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in
faith and heirs of the kingdom which he has promised to those who love
him? 6But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress
you, is it not they who drag you into court? 7Is it not they who blaspheme
that honorable name by which you are called?
8 If you really fulfil the royal law, according to the Scripture, “You shall
love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well. 9But if you show partiality,
you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10For
whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all
of it. * 11For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” said also, “Do not
kill.” If you do not commit adultery but do kill, you have become a
transgressor of the law. 12So speak and so act as those who are to be judged
under the law of liberty. 13For judgment is without mercy to one who has
shown no mercy; yet mercy triumphs over judgment.
Faith without Works Is Dead
14 What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not
works? Can his faith save him? * 15If a brother or sister is poorly clothed
and in lack of daily food, 16and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be
warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body,
what does it profit? 17So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
18 But some one will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me
your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my
faith. 19You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe
—and shudder. 20Do you want to be shown, you foolish fellow, that faith
apart from works is barren? 21Was not Abraham our father justified by
works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? 22You see that faith
was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, 23and
the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was
reckoned to him as righteousness”; and he was called the friend of God.
24You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25And in
the same way was not also Ra'hab the harlot justified by works when she
received the messengers and sent them out another way? 26For as the body
apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead.
Taming the Tongue
3 Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, for you know that
we who teach shall be judged with greater strictness. 2For we all make
many mistakes, and if any one makes no mistakes in what he says he is a
perfect man, able to bridle the whole body also. 3If we put bits into the
mouths of horses that they may obey us, we guide their whole bodies.
4Look at the ships also; though they are so great and are driven by strong
winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot
directs. 5So the tongue is a little member and boasts of great things. How
great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire!
6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is an unrighteous world among our
members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the cycle of nature,b and
set on fire by hell.c 7For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea
creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8but no human
being can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9With it
we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who are made in
the likeness of God. 10From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My
brethren, this ought not to be so. 11Does a spring pour forth from the same
opening fresh water and brackish? 12Can a fig tree, my brethren, yield
olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
Two Kinds of Wisdom
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good life let him
show his works in the meekness of wisdom. 14But if you have bitter
jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the
truth. 15This wisdom is not such as comes down from above, but is earthly,
unspiritual, devilish. 16For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there
will be disorder and every vile practice. 17But the wisdom from above is
first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good
fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity. 18And the harvest of righteousness
is sown in peace by those who make peace.
Friendship with the World
4 What causes wars, and what causes fightings among you? Is it not
your passions that are at war in your members? 2You desire and do not
have; so you kill. And you covetd and cannot obtain; so you fight and wage
war. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3You ask and do not receive,
because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4Unfaithful
creatures! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with
God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself
an enemy of God. 5Or do you suppose it is in vain that the Scripture says,
“He yearns jealously over the spirit which he has made to dwell in us”?
6But he gives more grace; therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but
gives grace to the humble.” 7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the
devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and he will draw near to
you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you men of
double mind. 9Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be
turned to mourning and your joy to dejection. 10Humble yourselves before
the Lord and he will exalt you.
Warning against Judging Another
11 Do not speak evil against one another, brethren. He that speaks evil
against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and
judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a
judge. 12There is one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to
destroy. But who are you that you judge your neighbor?
Boasting about Tomorrow
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and
such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain”; 14whereas you
do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that
appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15Instead you ought to say, “If
the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.” 16As it is, you
boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17Whoever knows what is
right to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
Warning to Rich Oppressors
5 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming
upon you. 2Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten.
3Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be evidence against
you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasuree * for the last
days. 4Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you
kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the harvesters have reached the
ears of the Lord of hosts. 5You have lived on the earth in luxury and in
pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6You have
condemned, you have killed the righteous man; he does not resist you.
Patience in Suffering
7 Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the
farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient over it until it
receives the early and the late rain. 8You also be patient. Establish your
hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9Do not grumble, brethren,
against one another, that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is
standing at the doors. 10As an example of suffering and patience, brethren,
take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11Behold, we call
those happy who were steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job,
and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate
and merciful.
12 But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth
or with any other oath, but let your yes be yes and your no be no, that you
may not fall under condemnation.
The Prayer of Faith
13 * Is any one among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let
him sing praise. 14Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the
Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of
the Lord; 15and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will
raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore
confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be
healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects.
17Eli'jah was a man of like nature with ourselves and he prayed fervently
that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on
the earth. 18Then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth
brought forth its fruit.
19 My brethren, if any one among you wanders from the truth and some
one brings him back, 20let him know that whoever brings back a sinner
from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a
multitude of sins.
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1 Peter
Chapters
12345
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THE FIRST LETTER OF PETER
Salutation
1 * Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To the exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappado'cia, Asia,
and Bithyn'ia, 2chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the
Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:
May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
A Living Hope
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great
mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of
Jesus Christ from the dead, 4and to an inheritance which is imperishable,
undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are
guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
6In this you rejoice,a though now for a little while you may have to suffer
various trials, 7so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than
gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and
glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8Without having seenb
him youc love him; though you do not now see him you believe in him and
rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. 9As the outcome of your faith you
obtain the salvation of your souls.
10 The prophets who prophesied of the grace that was to be yours
searched and inquired about this salvation; 11they inquired what person or
time was indicated by the Spirit of Christ * within them when predicting the
sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glory. 12It was revealed to them that
they were serving not themselves but you, in the things which have now
been announced to you by those who preached the good news to you
through the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to
look.
A Call to Holy Living
13 Therefore gird up your minds, be sober, set your hope fully upon the
grace that is coming to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14As obedient
children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance,
15but as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your conduct;
16since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17And if you invoke
as Father him who judges each one impartially according to his deeds,
conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile. 18You know
that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your fathers,
not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19but with the precious
blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20He was
destined before the foundation of the world but was made manifest at the
end of the times for your sake. 21Through him you have confidence in God,
who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and
hope are in God.d
22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere
love of the brethren, love one another earnestly from the heart. 23You have
been born anew, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the
living and abiding word of God; 24for
“All flesh is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers, and the flower falls,
25but the word of the Lord abides for ever.”
That word is the good news which was preached to you.
The Living Stone and a Chosen People
2 So put away all malice and all guile and insincerity and envy and all
slander. 2Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it
you may grow up to salvation; 3for you have tasted the kindness of the
Lord.
4 Come to him, to that living stone, rejected by men but in God’s sight
chosen and precious; 5and like living stones be yourselves built into a
spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices
acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6For it stands in Scripture:
“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and
precious,
and he who believes in him will not be put to shame.”
7To you therefore who believe, he is precious, but for those who do not
believe,
“The very stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”
8and
“A stone that will make men stumble,

a rock that will make them fall”;
for they stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to
do.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own
people,e that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you
out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10Once you were no people but
now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy but now you
have received mercy.
Live as Servants of God
11 Beloved, I beg you as aliens and exiles to abstain from the passions of
the flesh that wage war against your soul. 12Maintain good conduct among
the Gentiles, so that in case they speak against you as wrongdoers, they may
see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution,f whether it
be to the emperor as supreme, 14or to governors as sent by him to punish
those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. 15For it is God’s will
that by doing right you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.
16Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil; but
live as servants of God. 17Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God.
Honor the emperor.
The Example of Christ’s Suffering
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to the
kind and gentle but also to the overbearing. 19For one is approved if,
mindful of God, he endures pain while suffering unjustly. 20For what credit
is it, if when you do wrong and are beaten for it you take it patiently? But if
when you do right and suffer for it you take it patiently, you have God’s
approval. 21For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered
for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22He
committed no sin; no guile was found on his lips. 23When he was reviled,
he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he
trusted to him who judges justly. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on
the tree,g that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds
you have been healed. 25For you were straying like sheep, but have now
returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.
Wives and Husbands
3 * Likewise you wives, be submissive to your husbands, so that some,
though they do not obey the word, may be won without a word by the
behavior of their wives, 2when they see your reverent and chaste behavior.
3Let not yours be the outward adorning with braiding of hair, decoration of
gold, and wearing of robes, 4but let it be the hidden person of the heart with
the imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is
very precious. 5So once the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn
themselves and were submissive to their husbands, 6as Sarah obeyed
Abraham, calling him lord. And you are now her children if you do right
and let nothing terrify you.
7 Likewise you husbands, live considerately with your wives, bestowing
honor on the woman as the weaker sex, since you are joint heirs of the
grace of life, in order that your prayers may not be hindered.
Suffering for Doing Right
8 Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love of the brethren, a
tender heart and a humble mind. 9Do not return evil for evil or reviling for
reviling; but on the contrary bless, for to this you have been called, that you
may obtain a blessing. 10For
“He that would love life
and see good days,
let him keep his tongue from evil
and his lips from speaking guile;
11let him turn away from evil and do right;
let him seek peace and pursue it.

12For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous,
and his ears are open to their prayer.

But the face of the Lord is against those that do evil.”
13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is right?
14But even if you do suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed.
Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15but in your hearts reverence Christ
as Lord. Always be prepared to make a defense to any one who calls you to
account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence;
16and keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are abused, those who
revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17For it is better to
suffer for doing right, if that should be God’s will, than for doing wrong.
18For Christ also diedh for sins once for all, the righteous for the
unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh
but made alive in the spirit; 19in which he went and preached to the spirits
in prison, 20who formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the
days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight
persons, were saved through water. 21Baptism, which corresponds to this,
now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to
God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22who
has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels,
authorities, and powers subject to him.
Good Stewards of God’s Grace
4 Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh,i arm yourselves with the
same thought, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, *
2so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer by human
passions but by the will of God. 3Let the time that is past suffice for doing
what the Gentiles like to do, living in licentiousness, passions, drunkenness,
revels, carousing, and lawless idolatry. 4They are surprised that you do not
now join them in the same wild debauchery, and they abuse you; 5but they
will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6For
this is why the gospel was preached even to the dead, that though judged in
the flesh like men, they might live in the spirit like God.
7 The end of all things is at hand; therefore keep sane and sober for your
prayers. 8Above all hold unfailing your love for one another, since love
covers a multitude of sins. 9Practice hospitality ungrudgingly to one
another. 10As each has received a gift, employ it for one another, as good
stewards of God’s varied grace: 11whoever speaks, as one who utters oracles
of God; whoever renders service, as one who renders it by the strength
which God supplies; in order that in everything God may be glorified
through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion for ever and ever.
Amen.
Suffering as a Christian
12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you
to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13But
rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice
and be glad when his glory is revealed. 14If you are reproached for the name
of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of gloryj and of God rests upon
you. 15But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or a wrongdoer,
or a mischief-maker; 16yet if one suffers as a Christian, let him not be
ashamed, but under that name let him glorify God. 17For the time has come
for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us,
what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18And
“If the righteous man is scarcely saved,
where will the impious and sinner appear?”
19Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will do right and
entrust their souls to a faithful Creator.

Tending the Flock of Christ
5 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of
the sufferings of Christ as well as a partaker in the glory that is to be
revealed. 2Tend the flock of God that is your charge,k not by constraint but
willingly,l not for shameful gain but eagerly, 3not as domineering over those
in your charge but being examples to the flock. 4And when the chief
Shepherd is manifested you will obtain the unfading crown of glory.
5Likewise you that are younger be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves,
all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.”
6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that in due
time he may exalt you. 7Cast all your anxieties on him, for he cares about
you. 8Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a
roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. 9Resist him, firm in your faith,
knowing that the same experience of suffering is required of your
brotherhood throughout the world. 10And after you have suffered a little
while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in
Christ, will himself restore, establish, and strengthenm you. 11To him be the
dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
12 By Silva'nus, a faithful brother as I regard him, I have written briefly to
you, exhorting and declaring that this is the true grace of God; stand fast in
it. 13She who is at Babylon, * who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings;
and so does my son Mark. 14Greet one another with the kiss of love.
Peace to all of you that are in Christ.
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2 Peter
Chapters
123
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THE SECOND LETTER OF PETER
Salutation
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours in the
righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:a
2 May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and
of Jesus our Lord.
The Christian’s Call and Election
3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and
godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us tob his own glory
and excellence, 4by which he has granted to us his precious and very great
promises, that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in
the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature. *
5For this very reason make every effort to supplement your faith with
virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6and knowledge with self-control, and
self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7and
godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8For if
these things are yours and abound, they keep you from being ineffective or
unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9For whoever lacks
these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten that he was cleansed
from his old sins. 10Therefore, brethren, be the more zealous to confirm
your call and election, for if you do this you will never fall; 11so there will
be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ.
12 Therefore I intend always to remind you of these things, though you
know them and are established in the truth that you have. 13I think it right,
as long as I am in this body,c to arouse you by way of reminder, 14since I
know that the putting off of my bodyc will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ
showed me. 15And I will see to it that after my departure you may be able at
any time to recall these things.
Eyewitnesses of Christ’s Glory
16 * For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known
to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were
eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17For when he received honor and glory from
God the Father and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This
is my beloved Son,d with whom I am well pleased,” 18we heard this voice
borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19And we
have the prophetic word made more sure. You will do well to pay attention
to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the
morning star rises in your hearts. 20First of all you must understand this,
that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation,
21because no prophecy ever came by the impulse of man, but men moved
by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.e

False Prophets and Their Punishment
2 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be
false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies,
even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift
destruction. 2And many will follow their licentiousness, and because of
them the way of truth will be reviled. 3And in their greed they will exploit
you with false words; from of old their condemnation has not been idle, and
their destruction has not been asleep. *
4 For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into
hellf and committed them to pits of deepest darkness to be kept until the
judgment; 5if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a
herald of righteousness, with seven other persons, when he brought a flood
upon the world of the ungodly; 6if by turning the cities of Sodom and
Gomor'rah to ashes he condemned them to extinction and made them an
example to those who were to be ungodly; 7and if he rescued righteous Lot,
greatly distressed by the licentiousness of the wicked 8(for by what that
righteous man saw and heard as he lived among them, he was vexed in his
righteous soul day after day with their lawless deeds), 9then the Lord knows
how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under
punishment until the day of judgment, 10and especially those who indulge
in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.
Bold and wilful, they are not afraid to revile the glorious ones, 11whereas
angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a reviling
judgment upon them before the Lord. 12But these, like irrational animals,
creatures of instinct, born to be caught and killed, reviling in matters of
which they are ignorant, will be destroyed in the same destruction with
them, 13suffering wrong for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to
revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their
dissipation,g carousing with you. 14They have eyes full of adultery,
insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in
greed. Accursed children! 15Forsaking the right way they have gone astray;
they have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain
from wrongdoing, 16but was rebuked for his own transgression; a
speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s
madness.
17 These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm; for them the
deepest gloom of darkness has been reserved. 18For, uttering loud boasts of
folly, they entice with licentious passions of the flesh men who have barely
escaped from those who live in error. 19They promise them freedom, but
they themselves are slaves of corruption; for whatever overcomes a man, to
that he is enslaved. 20For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the
world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are
again entangled in them and overpowered, the last state has become worse
for them than the first. 21For it would have been better for them never to
have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back
from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22It has happened to them
according to the true proverb, The dog turns back to his own vomit, and the
sow is washed only to wallow in the mire.
The Promise of the Lord’s Coming
3 This is now the second letter that I have written to you, beloved, and
in both of them I have aroused your sincere mind by way of reminder; 2that
you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the
commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles. 3First of all
you must understand this, that scoffers will come in the last days with
scoffing, following their own passions 4and saying, “Where is the promise
of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things have
continued as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5They deliberately
ignore this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago, and an
earth formed out of water and by means of water, 6through which the world
that then existed was deluged with water and perished. 7But by the same
word the heavens and earth that now exist have been stored up for fire,
being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
8 But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as
a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9The Lord is not slow
about his promise as some count slowness, but is forbearing toward you,h
not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
10But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will
pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire,
and the earth and the works that are upon it will be burned up.
11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of persons
ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12waiting for and
hasteningi the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will
be kindled and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire! 13But
according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which
righteousness dwells.
Final Exhortation and Doxology
14 Therefore, beloved, since you wait for these, be zealous to be found by
him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 15And count the forbearance of
our Lord as salvation. So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you
according to the wisdom given him, 16speaking of this * as he does in all his
letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the
ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other
Scriptures. 17You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, beware lest
you be carried away with the error of lawless men and lose your own
stability. 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.
Amen.
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1 John
Chapters
12345
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THE FIRST LETTER OF JOHN
The Word of Life
1 * That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we
have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our
hands, concerning the word of life—2the life was made manifest, and we
saw it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with
the Father and was made manifest to us—3that which we have seen and
heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship * with us;
and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4And
we are writing this that oura joy may be complete.
God Is Light
5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that
God is light and in him is no darkness * at all. 6If we say we have
fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live
according to the truth; 7but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we
have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses
us from all sin. 8If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the
truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will
forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say we
have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Christ Is Our Advocate
2 My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but
if any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous; 2and he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but
also for the sins of the whole world. 3And by this we may be sure that we
know him, if we keep his commandments. * 4He who says “I know him”
but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5but
whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we
may be sure that we are in him: 6he who says he abides in him ought to
walk in the same way in which he walked.
A New Commandment
7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old
commandment which you had from the beginning; the old commandment is
the word which you have heard. 8Yet I am writing you a new
commandment, which is true in him and in you, becauseb the darkness is
passing away and the true light is already shining. 9He who says he is in the
light and hates his brother is in the darkness still. 10He who loves his
brother abides in the light, and in itc there is no cause for stumbling. 11But
he who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and
does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his
eyes.
12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for
his sake. 13I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from
the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome
the Evil One. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. 14I
write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I
write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God
abides in you, and you have overcome the Evil One.
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If any one loves the
world, love for the Father is not in him. 16For all that is in the world, the
lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the
Father but is of the world. 17And the world passes away, and the lust of it;
but he who does the will of God abides for ever.
Warning against the Antichrist
18 Children, it is the last hour; * and as you have heard that antichrist is
coming, so now many antichrists have come; therefore we know that it is
the last hour. 19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they
had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out, that
it might be plain that they all are not of us. 20But you have been anointed by
the Holy One, and you all know.d 21I write to you, not because you do not
know the truth, but because you know it, and know that no lie is of the
truth. 22Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is
the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. 23Any one who denies
the Son does not have the Father. He who confesses the Son has the Father
also. 24Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you
heard from the beginning abides in you, then you will abide in the Son and
in the Father. 25And this is what he has promised us,e eternal life.
26 I write this to you about those who would deceive you; 27but the
anointing which you received from him abides in you, and you have no
need that any one should teach you; as his anointing teaches you about
everything, and is true, and is no lie, just as it has taught you, abide in him.
Children of God
28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may
have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. 29If you
know that he is righteous, you may be sure that every one who does right is
born of him.
3 See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called
children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us
is that it did not know him. 2Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does
not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall
be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3And every one who thus hopes in
him purifies himself as he is pure.
4 Every one who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.
5You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.
6Any one who abides in him does not sin; * any one who sins has not seen
him, nor has he known him. 7Little children, let no one deceive you. He
who does right is righteous, as he is righteous. 8He who commits sin is of
the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The reason the Son of
God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9Any one born of God
does not commit sin; for God’sf seed abides in him, and he cannot sin
because he isg born of God. 10By this it may be seen who are the children of
God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not do right is not
of God, nor he who does not love his brother.
Love One Another
11 For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that
we should love one another, 12and not be like Cain who was of the Evil One
and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own
deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13Do not wonder, brethren, that
the world hates you. 14We know that we have passed out of death into life,
because we love the brethren. He who does not love remains in death.
15Any one who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no
murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16By this we know love, that he
laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the
brethren. 17But if any one has the world’s goods and sees his brother in
need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?
18Little children, let us not love in word or speech but in deed and in truth.
19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth, and reassure our hearts
before him 20whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our
hearts, and he knows everything. 21Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn
us, we have confidence before God; 22and we receive from him whatever
we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
23And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his
Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24All
who keep his commandments abide in him, and he in them. And by this we
know that he abides in us, by the Spirit which he has given us.
Testing the Spirits
4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits * to see
whether they are of God; for many false prophets have gone out into the
world. 2By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses
that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, 3and every spirit which
does not confess Jesus is not of God. This is the spirit of antichrist, of which
you heard that it was coming, and now it is in the world already. 4Little
children, you are of God, and have overcome them; for he who is in you is
greater than he who is in the world. 5They are of the world, therefore what
they say is of the world, and the world listens to them. 6We are of God.
Whoever knows God listens to us, and he who is not of God does not listen
to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
God Is Love
7 Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God, and he who loves is
born of God and knows God. 8He who does not love does not know God;
for God is love. 9In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that
God sent his only-begotten Son into the world, so that we might live
through him. 10In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us
and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved
us, we also ought to love one another. 12No man has ever seen God; if we
love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has
given us of his own Spirit. 14And we have seen and testify that the Father
has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. 15Whoever confesses that Jesus
is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16So we know and
believe the love God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love
abides in God, and God abides in him. 17In this is love perfected with us,
that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so
are we in this world. 18There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out
fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and he who fears is not perfected
in love. 19We love, because he first loved us. 20If any one says, “I love
God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his
brother whom he has seen, cannoth love God whom he has not seen. 21And
this commandment we have from him, that he who loves God should love
his brother also.
Faith Conquers the World
5 Every one who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God,
and every one who loves the parent loves the one begotten by him. 2By this
we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his
commandments. 3For this is the love of God, that we keep his
commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. 4For
whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that
overcomes the world, our faith. 5Who is it that overcomes the world but he
who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
Testimony concerning the Son of God
6 This is he who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the
water only but with the water and the blood. 7And the Spirit is the witness,
because the Spirit is the truth. 8There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the
water, and the blood; and these three agree. * 9If we receive the testimony
of men, the testimony of God is greater; for this is the testimony of God that
he has borne witness to his Son. 10He who believes in the Son of God has
the testimony in himself. He who does not believe God has made him a liar,
because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne to his Son.
11And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in
his Son. 12He who has the Son has life; he who has not the Son of God has
not life.
Epilogue
13 I write this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you
may know that you have eternal life. 14And this is the confidence which we
have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15And
if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have
obtained the requests made of him. 16If any one sees his brother committing
what is not a deadly sin, he will ask, and Godi will give him life for those
whose sin is not deadly. There is sin which is deadly; I do not say that one
is to pray for that. 17All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin which is not
deadly.
18 We know that any one born of God does not sin, but He who was born
of God keeps him, and the Evil One does not touch him.
19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world is in the power of
the Evil One.
20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us
understanding, to know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in
his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. 21Little children,
keep yourselves from idols.
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THE SECOND LETTER OF JOHN
Salutation
1 The elder * to the elect lady * and her children, whom I love in the truth,
and not only I but also all who know the truth, 2because of the truth which
abides in us and will be with us for ever:
3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from
Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.
Truth and Love
4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children following the truth, just
as we have been commanded by the Father. 5And now I beg you, lady, not
as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had
from the beginning, that we love one another. 6And this is love, that we
follow his commandments; this is the commandment, as you have heard
from the beginning, that you follow love. 7For many deceivers have gone
out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus
Christ in the flesh; such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8Look to
yourselves, that you may not lose what youa have worked for, but may win
a full reward. 9Any one who goes ahead and does not abide in the doctrine
of Christ does not have God; he who abides in the doctrine has both the
Father and the Son. 10If any one comes to you and does not bring this
doctrine, do not receive him into the house or give him any greeting; 11for
he who greets him shares his wicked work.
Final Greetings
12 Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and
ink, but I hope to come to see you and talk with you face to face, so that our
joy may be complete.
13 The children * of your elect sister greet you.
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THE THIRD LETTER OF JOHN
Salutation
1 The elder to the beloved Ga'ius, whom I love in the truth.
Gaius Commended for His Service
2 Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in
health; I know that it is well with your soul. 3For I greatly rejoiced when
some of the brethren arrived and testified to the truth of your life, as indeed
you do follow the truth. 4No greater joy can I have than this, to hear that my
children follow the truth.
5 Beloved, it is a loyal thing you do when you render any service to the
brethren, especially to strangers, 6who have testified to your love before the
Church. You will do well to send them on their journey as befits God’s
service. 7For they have set out for his sake and have accepted nothing from
the heathen. 8So we ought to support such men, that we may be fellow
workers in the truth.
Diotrephes and Demetrius
9 I have written something to the Church; but Diot'rephes, who likes to
put himself first, does not acknowledge my authority. 10So if I come, I will
bring up what he is doing, accusing me falsely with evil words. And not
content with that, he refuses himself to welcome the brethren, and also
stops those who want to welcome them and puts them out of the Church.
11 Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. He who does good is of
God; he who does evil has not seen God. 12Deme'trius * has testimony from
every one, and from the truth itself; I testify to him too, and you know my
testimony is true.
Final Greetings
13 I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and
ink; 14I hope to see you soon, and we will talk together face to face.
15 Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends, every one of
them.
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THE LETTER OF JUDE
Salutation
1 Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James,
To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus
Christ:
2 May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
Occasion of the Letter
3 Beloved, being very eager to write to you of our common salvation, I
found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith which
was once for all delivered to the saints. 4For admission has been secretly
gained by some who long ago were designated for this condemnation,
ungodly persons who pervert the grace of our God into licentiousness and
deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.a
Judgment on the Ungodly
5 Now I desire to remind you, though you were once for all fully
informed, that heb who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward
destroyed those who did not believe. 6And the angels that did not keep their
own position but left their proper dwelling have been kept by him in eternal
chains in the deepest darkness until the judgment of the great day; * 7just as
Sodom and Gomor'rah and the surrounding cities, which likewise acted
immorally and indulged in unnatural lust, serve as an example by
undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.
8 Yet in like manner these men in their dreamings defile the flesh, reject
authority, and revile the glorious ones.c 9But when the archangel Michael,
contending with the devil, disputed about the body of Moses, he did not
presume to pronounce a reviling judgment upon him, but said, “The Lord
rebuke you.” * 10But these men revile whatever they do not understand, and
by those things that they know by instinct as irrational animals do, they are
destroyed. 11Woe to them! For they walk in the way of Cain, and abandon
themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error, and perish in Ko'rah’s
rebellion. 12These are blemishesd on your love feasts, as they boldly
carouse together, looking after themselves; waterless clouds, carried along
by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; 13wild waves
of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars for
whom the deepest darkness has been reserved for ever.
14 It was of these also that Enoch in the seventh generation from Adam
prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord came with myriads of his holy ones,
15to execute judgment on all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their
deeds of ungodliness which they have committed in such an ungodly way,

and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
16These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own passions, loud-
mouthed boasters, flattering people to gain advantage.

Warnings and Exhortations
17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our
Lord Jesus Christ; 18they said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers,
following their own ungodly passions.” 19It is these who set up divisions,
worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. 20But you, beloved, build yourselves
up on your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; 21keep yourselves in the
love of God; wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
22And convince some, who doubt; 23save some, by snatching them out of
the fire; on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment spotted by
the flesh.e
Benediction
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you
without blemish before the presence of his glory with rejoicing, 25to the
only God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty,
dominion, and authority, before all time and now and for ever. Amen.
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Revelation
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
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THE REVELATION TO JOHN (THE APOCALYPSE)
Introduction and Salutation
1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his
servants what must soon take place; and he made it known by sending his
angel to his servant John, 2who bore witness to the word of God and to the
testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3Blessed is he who reads
aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who
keep what is written therein; for the time is near.
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: *
Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to
come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5and from Jesus
Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings
on earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6and
made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 7Behold, he is coming with the clouds,
and every eye will see him, every one who pierced him; and all tribes of the
earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who
was and who is to come, the Almighty.
A Vision of Christ
9 I John, your brother, who share with you in Jesus the tribulation and the
kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island called Patmos on
account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10I was in the Spirit
on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet
11saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches,
to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Per'gamum and to Thyati'ra and to Sardis
and to Philadelphia and to La-odice'a.”
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I
saw seven golden lampstands, 13and in the midst of the lampstands one like
a Son of man, * clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash across his
chest; 14his head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his
eyes were like a flame of fire, 15his feet were like burnished bronze, refined
as in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of many waters; 16in his
right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth issued a sharp two-edged
sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right
hand upon me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18and the living
one; I died, and behold I am alive for evermore, and I have the keys of
Death and Hades. 19Now write what you see, what is and what is to take
place hereafter. 20As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in
my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the
angels of the seven churches and the seven lampstands are the seven
churches.
The Message to Ephesus
2 “To the angel of the Church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who
holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden
lampstands.
2 “ ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how
you cannot bear evil men but have tested those who call themselves
apostles but are not, and found them to be false; 3I know you are enduring
patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown
weary. 4But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you
had at first. 5Remember then from what you have fallen, repent and do the
works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand
from its place, unless you repent. 6Yet this you have, you hate the works of
the Nicola'itans, which I also hate. 7He who has an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit says to the churches. To him who conquers I will grant to eat of
the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’
The Message to Smyrna
8 “And to the angel of the Church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first
and the last, who died and came to life.
9 “ ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the
slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue
of Satan. 10Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is
about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten
days * you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you
the crown of life. 11He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to
the churches. He who conquers shall not be hurt by the second death.’
The Message to Pergamum
12 “And to the angel of the Church in Per'gamum write: ‘The words of
him who has the sharp two-edged sword.
13 “ ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is; you hold fast my
name and you did not deny my faith even in the days of An'tipas my
witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
14But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the
teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the
sons of Israel, that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice
immorality. 15So you also have some who hold the teaching of the
Nicola'itans. 16Repent then. If not, I will come to you soon and war against
them with the sword of my mouth. 17He who has an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit says to the churches. To him who conquers I will give some of the
hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written
on the stone which no one knows except him who receives it.’
The Message to Thyatira
18 “And to the angel of the Church in Thyati'ra write: ‘The words of the
Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like
burnished bronze.
19 “ ‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient
endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. 20But I have this
against you, that you tolerate the woman Jez'ebel, who calls herself a
prophetess and is teaching and beguiling my servants to practice
immorality * and to eat food sacrificed to idols. 21I gave her time to repent,
but she refuses to repent of her immorality. * 22Behold, I will throw her on a
sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great
tribulation, unless they repent of her doings; 23and I will strike her children
dead. And all the churches shall know that I am he who searches mind and
heart, and I will give to each of you as your works deserve. 24But to the rest
of you in Thyati'ra, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned
what some call the deep things of Satan, * to you I say, I do not lay upon
you any other burden; 25only hold fast what you have, until I come. 26He
who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, I will give him power
over the nations, 27and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as when
earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received power
from my Father; 28and I will give him the morning star. * 29He who has an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
The Message to Sardis
3 “And to the angel of the Church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him
who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.
“ ‘I know your works; you have the name of being alive, and you are dead.
2Awake, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I
have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. 3Remember then
what you received and heard; keep that, and repent. If you will not awake, I
will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon
you. 4Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled
their garments; and they shall walk with me in white, for they are worthy.
5He who conquers shall be clothed like them in white garments, and I will
not blot his name out of the book of life; I will confess his name before my
Father and before his angels. 6He who has an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit says to the churches.’
The Message to Philadelphia
7 “And to the angel of the Church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the
holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one
shall shut, who shuts and no one opens.
8 “ ‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door,
which no one is able to shut; I know that you have but little power, and yet
you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9Behold, I will make
those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but
lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and
learn that I have loved you. 10Because you have kept my word of patient
endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial which is coming on the
whole world, to try those who dwell upon the earth. 11I am coming soon;
hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. 12He who
conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God; never shall he
go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of
the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which comes down from my God
out of heaven, and my own new name. * 13He who has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches.’
The Message to La-odicea
14 “And to the angel of the Church in La-odice'a write: ‘The words of the
Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.
15 “ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you
were cold or hot! 16So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,
I will spew you out of my mouth. 17For you say, I am rich, I have
prospered, and I need nothing; not knowing that you are wretched, pitiable,
poor, blind, and naked. 18Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold
refined by fire, that you may be rich, and white garments to clothe you and
to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen, and salve to anoint
your eyes, that you may see. 19Those whom I love, I reprove and chasten;
so be zealous and repent. 20Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any
one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with
him, and he with me. 21He who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on
my throne, as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his
throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the
churches.’ ”
The Heavenly Worship
4 After this I looked, and behold, in heaven an open door! And the first
voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up
here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2At once I was in
the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the
throne! 3And he who sat there appeared like jasper and carnelian, and round
the throne was a rainbow that looked like an emerald. * 4Round the throne
were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four
elders, * clothed in white garments, with golden crowns upon their heads.
5From the throne issue flashes of lightning, and voices and peals of thunder,
and before the throne burn seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits
of God; 6and before the throne there is as it were a sea of glass, like crystal.
And round the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living
creatures, * full of eyes in front and behind: 7the first living creature like a
lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the
face of a man, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle. 8And the
four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all round
and within, and day and night they never cease to sing,
“Holy, holy, holy, * is the Lord God Almighty,
who was and is and is to come!”
9And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to
him who is seated on the throne, who lives for ever and ever, 10the twenty-
four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship
him who lives for ever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne,
singing,
11“Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,

for you created all things,
and by your will they existed and were created.”
The Scroll and the Lamb
5 And I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a
scroll * written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals; 2and I saw a
strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the
scroll and break its seals?” 3And no one in heaven or on earth or under the
earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, 4and I wept much that no
one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5Then one of the
elders said to me, “Weep not; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the
Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven
seals.”
6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the
elders, I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns
and with seven eyes, * which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all
the earth; 7and he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who
was seated on the throne. 8And when he had taken the scroll, the four living
creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each
holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers
of the saints; 9and they sang a new song, saying,
“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals,
for you were slain and by your blood you ransomed men for God
from every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
10and have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
and they shall reign on earth.”

11Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures
and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and
thousands of thousands, 12saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb
who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and
honor and glory and blessing!” 13And I heard every creature in heaven and
on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all therein, saying, “To him
who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory
and might for ever and ever!” 14And the four living creatures said, “Amen!”
and the elders fell down and worshiped.
The Seven Seals
6 * Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I
heard one of the four living creatures say, as with a voice of thunder,
“Come!” 2And I saw, and behold, a white horse, and its rider had a bow;
and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.
3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say,
“Come!” 4And out came another horse, bright red; its rider was permitted to
take peace from the earth, so that men should slay one another; and he was
given a great sword.
5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say,
“Come!” And I saw, and behold, a black horse, and its rider had a balance *
in his hand; 6and I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four
living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius,a and three quarts
of barley for a denarius;a but do not harm oil and wine!”
7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living
creature say, “Come!” 8And I saw, and behold, a pale horse, and its rider’s
name was Death, and Hades followed him; and they were given power over
a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence
and by wild beasts of the earth.
9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those
who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne;
10they cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how
long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell upon
the earth?” 11Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little
longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren should
be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
12 When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great
earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became
like blood, 13and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its
winter fruit when shaken by a gale; 14the sky vanished like a scroll that is
rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
15Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the generals and the
rich and the strong, and every one, slave and free, hid in the caves and
among the rocks of the mountains, 16calling to the mountains and rocks,
“Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne,
and from the wrath of the Lamb; 17for the great day of their wrath has
come, and who can stand before it?”
The 144,000 of Israel Sealed
7 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth,
holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth
or sea or against any tree. 2Then I saw another angel ascend from the rising
of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice
to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, 3saying,
“Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, till we have sealed the
servants of our God upon their foreheads.” 4And I heard the number of the
sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand * sealed, out of every tribe of the
sons of Israel, 5twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Judah, twelve
thousand of the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand of the tribe of Gad,
6twelve thousand of the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand of the tribe of
Naph'tali, twelve thousand of the tribe of Manas'seh, 7twelve thousand of

the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand of the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand
of the tribe of Is'sachar, 8twelve thousand of the tribe of Zeb'ulun, twelve
thousand of the tribe of Joseph, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of
Benjamin.
The Multitude from Every Nation
9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could
number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues,
standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes,
with palm branches in their hands, 10and crying out with a loud voice,
“Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb!”
11And all the angels stood round the throne and round the elders and the
four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and
worshiped God, 12saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and
thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God for ever and
ever! Amen.”
13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed
in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14I said to him, “Sir, you
know.” And he said to me, “These are they who have come out of the great
tribulation; * they have washed their robes and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb.
15Therefore are they before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night within his temple;

and he who sits upon the throne will shelter them with his presence.
16They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more;
the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.
17For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of living water;

and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer
8 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven
for about half an hour. 2Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God,
and seven trumpets were given to them. 3And another angel came and stood
at the altar with a golden censer; and he was given much incense to mingle
with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne;
4and the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the
hand of the angel before God. 5Then the angel took the censer and filled it
with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth; * and there were peals of
thunder, loud noises, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
The Seven Angels and Seven Trumpets
6 Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets made ready to blow
them.
7 The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed
with blood, which fell on the earth; and a third of the earth was burnt up,
and a third of the trees were burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
8 The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great
mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea; 9and a third of the sea
became blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of
the ships were destroyed.
10 The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven,
blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the fountains
of water. 11The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters
became wormwood, and many men died of the water, because it was made
bitter.
12 The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck,
and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light
was darkened; a third of the day was kept from shining, and likewise a third
of the night.
13 Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice, as it flew
in midheaven, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts
of the other trumpets which the three angels are about to blow!”
9 And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star * fallen from
heaven to earth, and he was given the key of the shaft of the bottomless pit;
2he opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke
like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened
with the smoke from the shaft. 3Then from the smoke came locusts on the
earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth;
4they were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green growth or
any tree, but only those of mankind who have not the seal of God upon their
foreheads; 5they were allowed to torture them for five months, but not to
kill them, and their torture was like the torture of a scorpion, when it stings
a man. 1And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will
long to die, and death will fly from them.
7 In appearance the locusts were like horses arrayed for battle; on their
heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human
faces, 8their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth; 9they
had scales like iron breastplates, and the noise of their wings was like the
noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. 10They have tails
like scorpions, and stings, and their power of hurting men for five months
lies in their tails. 11They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless
pit; his name in Hebrew is Abad'don, and in Greek he is called Apol'lyon.b
12 The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.
13 Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the
four horns of the golden altar before God, 14saying to the sixth angel who
had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river
Euphra'tes.” * 15So the four angels were released, who had been held ready
for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, to kill a third of mankind.
16The number of the troops of cavalry was twice ten thousand times ten
thousand; I heard their number. 17And this was how I saw the horses in my
vision: the riders wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphirec and of
sulphur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and
smoke and sulphur issued from their mouths. 18By these three plagues a
third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulphur issuing from
their mouths. 19For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their
tails; their tails are like serpents, with heads, and by means of them they
wound.
20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not
repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols
of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot either see
or hear or walk; 21nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or
their immorality * or their thefts.
The Angel with the Little Scroll
10 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven,
wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the
sun, and his legs like pillars of fire. 2He had a little scroll open in his hand.
And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, 3and called
out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring; when he called out, the seven
thunders sounded. 4And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about
to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven
thunders have said, and do not write it down.” 5And the angel whom I saw
standing on sea and land lifted up his right hand to heaven 6and swore by
him who lives for ever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the
earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there should be no
more delay, 7but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the
seventh angel, the mystery of God, * as he announced to his servants the
prophets, should be fulfilled.
8 Then the voice which I had heard from heaven spoke to me again,
saying, “Go, take the scroll which is open in the hand of the angel who is
standing on the sea and on the land.” 9So I went to the angel and told him to
give me the little scroll; and he said to me, “Take it and eat; it will be bitter
to your stomach, but sweet * as honey in your mouth.” 10And I took the
little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it; it was sweet as honey in
my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. 11And I
was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and
tongues and kings.”
The Two Witnesses
11 * Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told: “Rise
and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there,
2but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is
given over to the nations, and they will trample over the holy city for forty-
two months. * 3And I will grant my two witnesses * power to prophesy for
one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”
4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands which stand before
the Lord of the earth. 5And if any one would harm them, fire pours from
their mouth and consumes their foes; if any one would harm them, thus he
is doomed to be killed. 6They have power to shut the sky, that no rain may
fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the
waters to turn them into blood, and to afflict the earth with every plague, as
often as they desire. 7And when they have finished their testimony, the
beast that ascends from the bottomless pit will make war upon them and
conquer them and kill them, 8and their dead bodies will lie in the street of
the great city * which is allegoricallyd called Sodom and Egypt, where their
Lord was crucified. 9For three days and a half men from the peoples and
tribes and tongues and nations gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let
them be placed in a tomb, 10and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice
over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two
prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11But after the
three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood
up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12Then they
heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And in
the sight of their foes they went up to heaven in a cloud. 13And at that hour
there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand
people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave
glory to the God of heaven.
14 The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.
The Seventh Trumpet
15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in
heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our
Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.” 16And the
twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces
and worshiped God, 17saying,
“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who are and who were,
that you have taken your great power and begun to reign.
18The nations raged, but your wrath came,
and the time for the dead to be judged,

for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
and those who fear your name, both small and great,
and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”
19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant
was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, loud noises,
peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.
The Woman and the Dragon
12 * And a great sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the
sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars;
2she was with child and she cried out in her pangs of birth, in anguish for
delivery. 3And another sign appeared in heaven; behold, a great red dragon,
with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems upon his heads. 4His tail
swept down a third of the stars of heaven, and cast them to the earth. And
the dragon stood before the woman who was about to bear a child, that he
might devour her child when she brought it forth; 5she brought forth a male
child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was
caught up to God and to his throne, 6and the woman fled into the
wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which to be
nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
Michael Defeats the Dragon
7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the
dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8but they were defeated and
there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9And the great dragon
was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan,
the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his
angels were thrown down with him. 10And I heard a loud voice in heaven,
saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and
the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has
been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11And
they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their
testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12Rejoice then, O
heaven and you that dwell therein! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the
devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time
is short!”
The Dragon Makes War against the Woman’s Offspring
13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth,
he pursued the woman who had borne the male child. 14But the woman was
given the two wings of the great eagle that she might fly from the serpent
into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and
times, and half a time. * 15The serpent poured water like a river out of his
mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with the flood. 16But the earth
came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and
swallowed the river which the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17Then
the dragon was angry with the woman, * and went off to make war on the
rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and
bear testimony to Jesus. And he stoode on the sand of the sea.
The Beast from the Sea
13 And I saw a beast * rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven
heads, with ten diadems upon its horns and a blasphemous name upon its
heads. 2And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a
bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his
power and his throne and great authority. 3One of its heads seemed to have
a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth
followed the beast with wonder. 4Men worshiped the dragon, for he had
given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who
is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”
5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous
words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months; 6it
opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name
and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7Also it was allowed to
make war on the saints and to conquer them.f And authority was given it
over every tribe and people and tongue and nation, 8and all who dwell on
earth will worship it, every one whose name has not been written before the
foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain. 9If
any one has an ear, let him hear:
10If any one is to be taken captive,
to captivity he goes;
if any one slays with the sword,
with the sword must he be slain.
Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.
The Beast from the Earth
11 Then I saw another beast * which rose out of the earth; it had two horns
like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 12It exercises all the authority of the
first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship
the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 13It works great signs, even
making fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of men; 14and by
the signs which it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast, it
deceives those who dwell on earth, bidding them make an image for the
beast which was wounded by the sword and yet lived; 15and it was allowed
to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast should
even speak, and to cause those who would not worship the image of the
beast to be slain. 16Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and
poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead,
17so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of
the beast or the number of its name. 18This calls for wisdom: let him who
has understanding reckon the number of the beast, for it is a human number,
its number is six hundred and sixty-six.g *
The Lamb and the 144,000
14 Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with
him a hundred and forty-four thousand who had his name and his Father’s
name written on their foreheads. 2And I heard a voice from heaven like the
sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder; the voice I heard
was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, 3and they sing a new
song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the
elders. No one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four
thousand who had been redeemed from the earth. 4It is these who have not
defiled themselves with women, for they are chaste;h * it is these who
follow the Lamb wherever he goes; these have been redeemed from
mankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb, 5and in their mouth no lie was
found, for they are spotless.
The Messages of the Three Angels
6 Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal gospel to
proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and tongue
and people; 7and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory,
for the hour of his judgment has come; and worship him who made heaven
and earth, the sea and the fountains of water.”
8 Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon *
the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of her impure passion.”
9 And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If
any one worships the beast and its image, and receives a mark on his
forehead or on his hand, 10he also shall drink the wine of God’s wrath,
poured unmixed into the cup of his anger, and he shall be tormented with
fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of
the Lamb. 11And the smoke of their torment goes up for ever and ever; and
they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image,
and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the
commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the
dead who from now on die in the Lord.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit,
“that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
Reaping the Earth’s Harvest
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one
like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his
hand. 15And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice
to him who sat upon the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to
reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” 16So he who sat
upon the cloud swung his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped.
17 And another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a
sharp sickle. 18Then another angel came out from the altar, the angel who
has power over fire, and he called with a loud voice to him who had the
sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the
earth, for its grapes are ripe.” 19So the angel swung his sickle on the earth
and gathered the vintage of the earth, and threw it into the great wine press
of the wrath of God; 20and the wine press was trodden outside the city, and
blood flowed from the wine press, as high as a horse’s bridle, for one
thousand six hundred stadia.i
The Angels with the Seven Last Plagues
15 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and wonderful, seven
angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of
God is ended.
2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire, and
those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its
name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.
3And they sing the song of Moses, * the servant of God, and the song of the
Lamb, saying,
“Great and wonderful are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
O King of the ages!j
4Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord?
For you alone are holy.

All nations shall come and worship you,
for your judgments have been revealed.”
5 After this I looked, and the temple of the tent of witness in heaven was
opened, 6and out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven
plagues, robed in pure bright linen, and with golden sashes across their
chests. 7And one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven
golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives for ever and ever; 8and the
temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power,
and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven
angels were ended.
The Bowls of God’s Wrath
16 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels,
“Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
2 So the first angel went and poured his bowl on the earth, and foul and
evil sores came upon the men who bore the mark of the beast and
worshiped its image.
3 The second angel poured his bowl into the sea, and it became like the
blood of a dead man, and every living thing died that was in the sea.
4 The third angel poured his bowl into the rivers and the fountains of
water, and they became blood. 5And I heard the angel of water say,
“Just are you in these your judgments,
you who are and were, O Holy One.
6For men have shed the blood of saints and prophets,
and you have given them blood to drink.

It is their due!”
7And I heard the altar cry,
“Yes, Lord God the Almighty,

true and just are your judgments!”
8 The fourth angel poured his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to
scorch men with fire; 9men were scorched by the fierce heat, and they
cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues, and they did
not repent and give him glory.
10 The fifth angel poured his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its
kingdom was in darkness; men gnawed their tongues in anguish 11and
cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores, and did not repent of
their deeds.
12 The sixth angel poured his bowl on the great river Euphra'tes, and its
water was dried up, to prepare the way for the kings from the east. 13And I
saw, issuing from the mouth of the dragon and from the mouth of the beast
and from the mouth of the false prophet, three foul spirits like frogs; 14for
they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of
the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day * of God the
Almighty. 15(“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is he who is awake,
keeping his garments that he may not go naked and be seen exposed!”)
16And they assembled them at the place which is called in Hebrew
Armaged'don. *
17 The seventh angel poured his bowl into the air, and a great voice came
out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18And there were
flashes of lightning, loud noises, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake
such as had never been since men were on the earth, so great was that
earthquake. 19The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the
nations fell, and God remembered great Babylon, to make her drain the cup
of the fury of his wrath. 20And every island fled away, and no mountains
were to be found; 21and great hailstones, heavy as a hundredweight,
dropped on men from heaven, till men cursed God for the plague of the
hail, so fearful was that plague.
The Great Whore and the Beast
17 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and
said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot * who
is seated upon many waters, 2with whom the kings of the earth have
committed fornication, and with the wine of whose fornication * the
dwellers on earth have become drunk.” 3And he carried me away in the
Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which
was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. 4The
woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels
and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the
impurities of her fornication; 5and on her forehead was written a name of
mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of earth’s
abominations.” 6And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints
and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.
When I saw her I marveled greatly. 7But the angel said to me, “Why
marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with
seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 8The beast that you saw was, and
is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to perdition; and the
dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life
from the foundation of the world, will marvel to behold the beast, because it
was and is not and is to come. 9This calls for a mind with wisdom: the
seven heads are seven hills on which the woman is seated; 10they are also
seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come,
and when he comes he must remain only a little while. 11As for the beast
that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to
perdition. 12And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet
received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one
hour, together with the beast. 13These are of one mind and give over their
power and authority to the beast; 14they will make war on the Lamb, and
the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and
those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”
15 And he said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the harlot is
seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. 16And the ten
horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the harlot; they will make
her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, 17for
God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one
mind and giving over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God
shall be fulfilled. 18And the woman that you saw is the great city which has
dominion over the kings of the earth.”
The Fall of Babylon
18 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having
great authority; and the earth was made bright with his splendor. 2And he
called out with a mighty voice,
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
It has become a dwelling place of demons,
a haunt of every foul spirit,
a haunt of every foul and hateful bird;
3for all nations have drunkk the wine of her impure passion,
and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,
and the merchants of the earth have grown rich with the wealth of her
wantonness.”
4Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
“Come out of her, my people,

lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
5for her sins are heaped high as heaven,
and God has remembered her iniquities.

6Render to her as she herself has rendered,
and repay her double for her deeds;

mix a double draught for her in the cup she mixed.
7As she glorified herself and played the wanton,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning.

Since in her heart she says, ‘A queen I sit,
I am no widow, mourning I shall never see,’
8so shall her plagues come in a single day,
pestilence and mourning and famine,

and she shall be burned with fire;
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
9 And the kings of the earth, who committed fornication and were wanton
with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her
burning; 10they will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
“Alas! alas! you great city,
you mighty city, Babylon!
In one hour has your judgment come.”
11 * And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one
buys their cargo any more, 12cargo of gold, silver, jewels and pearls, fine
linen, purple, silk and scarlet, all kinds of scented wood, all articles of
ivory, all articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13cinnamon,
spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle
and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.
14“The fruit for which your soul longed has gone from you,
and all your delicacies and your splendor are lost to you, never to be
found again!”
15The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand
far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,

16“Alas, alas, for the great city
that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet,

adorned with gold, with jewels, and with pearls!
17In one hour all this wealth has been laid waste.”
And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on
the sea, stood far off 18and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning,
“What city was like the great city?”
19And they threw dust on their heads, as they wept and mourned, crying
out,
“Alas, alas, for the great city
where all who had ships at sea grew rich by her wealth!
In one hour she has been laid waste.
20Rejoice over her, O heaven,
O saints and apostles and prophets,
for God has given judgment for you against her!”
21 Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it
into the sea, saying,
“So shall Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence,
and shall be found no more;
22and the sound of harpists and minstrels, of flute players and
trumpeters,
shall be heard in you no more;
and a craftsman of any craft
shall be found in you no more;
and the sound of the millstone
23and the light of a lamp
shall shine in you no more;

and the voice of bridegroom and bride
for your merchants were the great men of the earth,
and all nations were deceived by your sorcery.
24And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of all who have been slain on earth.”

The Rejoicing in Heaven
19 After this I heard what seemed to be the mighty voice of a great
multitude in heaven, crying,
“Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
2for his judgments are true and just;
he has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her
fornication,
and he has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”
3Once more they cried,
“Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.”
4And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and
worshiped God who is seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!”

5And from the throne came a voice crying,
“Praise our God, all you his servants,
you who fear him, small and great.”
6Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the
sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunderpeals, crying,
“Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.
7Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb * has come,

and his Bride has made herself ready;
8it was granted her to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure”—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

9 And the angel saidl to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited
to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are true
words of God.” 10Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to
me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your
brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony
of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
The Rider on the White Horse
11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! He who sat upon
it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.
12His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems; and
he has a name inscribed which no one knows but himself. 13He is clothed in
a robe dipped inm blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of
God. 14And the armies of heaven, wearing fine linen, white and pure,
followed him on white horses. 15From his mouth issues a sharp sword with
which to strike the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will
tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16On his
robe and on his thigh he has a name inscribed, King of kings and Lord of
lords.
The Beast and Its Armies Defeated
17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he
called to all the birds that fly in midheaven, “Come, gather for the great
supper of God, 18to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of
mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men,
both free and slave, both small and great.” 19And I saw the beast and the
kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who
sits upon the horse and against his army. 20And the beast was captured, and
with it the false prophet who in its presence had worked the signs by which
he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who
worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that
burns with brimstone. 21And the rest were slain by the sword of him who
sits upon the horse, the sword that issues from his mouth; and all the birds
were gorged with their flesh.
The Thousand Years
20 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand
the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2And he seized the dragon,
that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a
thousand years, 3and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over
him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years
were ended. * After that he must be let out for a little while.
4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom judgment
was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for
their testimony to Jesus and for the word of God, and who had not
worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their
foreheads or their hands. They came to life, and reigned with Christ a
thousand years. 5The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand
years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6Blessed and holy is he who
shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power,
but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and they shall reign with him
a thousand years.
Satan’s Doom
7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his
prison 8and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four
corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Ma'gog, to gather them for battle; their
number is like the sand of the sea. 9And they marched up over the broad
earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city; but fire
came down from heavenn and consumed them, 10and the devil who had
deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone where the
beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night
for ever and ever.
The Dead Are Judged
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who sat upon it; from his
presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. 12And I
saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were
opened. Also another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the
dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done.
13And the sea gave up the dead in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead in
them, and all were judged by what they had done. 14Then Death and Hades
were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire;
15and if any one’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was
thrown into the lake of fire.

The New Heaven and the New Earth
21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and
the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. * 2And I saw the
holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared
as a bride adorned for her husband; 3and I heard a great voice from the
throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell
with them, and they shall be his people,o and God himself will be with
them;p 4he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no
more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the
former things have passed away.”
5 And he who sat upon the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”
Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 6And
he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and
the end. To the thirsty I will give water without price from the fountain of
the water of life. 7He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be
his God and he shall be my son. 8But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the
polluted, as for murderers, fornicators, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars,
their lot shall be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the
second death.” *
Vision of the New Jerusalem
9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the
seven last plagues, and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the
Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10And in the Spirit he carried me away to a
great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down
out of heaven from God, 11having the glory of God, its radiance like a most
rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12It had a great, high wall, with
twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of
the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed; 13on the east three
gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west
three gates. 14And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them
the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 And he who talked to me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the
city and its gates and walls. 16The city lies foursquare, its length the same as
its breadth; and he measured the city with his rod, twelve thousand stadia;q
its length and breadth and height are equal. 17He also measured its wall, a
hundred and forty-four cubits by a man’s measure, that is, an angel’s. 18The
wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass. 19The
foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every jewel; the first
was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20the
fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the
ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth
amethyst. 21And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates
made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent
as glass.
22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the
Almighty and the Lamb. 23And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine
upon it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24By its
light shall the nations walk; and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory
into it, 25and its gates shall never be shut by day—and there shall be no
night there; 26they shall bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.
27But nothing unclean shall enter it, nor any one who practices abomination
or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
River of the Water of Life
22 Then he showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal,
flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2through the middle of the
street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of lifer with its
twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree
were for the healing of the nations. 3There shall no more be anything
accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and his
servants shall worship him; 4they shall see his face, and his name shall be
on their foreheads. 5And night shall be no more; they need no light of lamp
or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they shall reign for ever and
ever.
6 And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the
Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his
servants what must soon take place. 7And behold, I am coming soon.”
Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.
Epilogue and Benediction
8 I John am he who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and
saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them
to me; 9but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with
you and your brethren the prophets, and with those who keep the words of
this book. Worship God.”
10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this
book, for the time is near. 11Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still
be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.”
12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense, to repay every
one for what he has done. 13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the
last, the beginning and the end.”
14 Blessed are those who wash their robes,s that they may have the right
to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15Outside are
the dogs and sorcerers and fornicators and murderers and idolaters, and
every one who loves and practices falsehood.
16 “I Jesus have sent my angel to you with this testimony for the
churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star.”
17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let him who hears say,
“Come.” And let him who is thirsty come, let him who desires take the
water of life without price.
18 I warn every one who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if
any one adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this
book, 19and if any one takes away from the words of the book of this
prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy
city, which are described in this book.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints.t Amen.
OceanofPDF.com
PARALLEL NOTES
THE BOOK OF GENESIS
Gen 1:1: Jn 1:1. Back to text.
Gen 1:26, 27: Gen 5:1; Mt 19:4; Mk 10:6; Col 3:10; Jas 3:9. Back to
text.
Gen 2:1–3: Ex 20:11. Back to text.
Gen 2:2: Heb 4:4, 10. Back to text.
Gen 2:7: 1 Cor 15:45, 47. Back to text.
Gen 2:9: Rev 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19. Back to text.
Gen 2:24: Mt 19:5; Mk 10:7; 1 Cor 6:16; Eph 5:31. Back to text.
Gen 3:1: Rev 12:9; 20:2. Back to text.
Gen 3:4: 2 Cor 11:3. Back to text.
Gen 3:13: 2 Cor 11:3. Back to text.
Gen 3:14, 15: Rev 12:9; 20:2. Back to text.
Gen 3:17, 18: Heb 6:8. Back to text.
Gen 3:22, 24: Rev 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19. Back to text.
Gen 4:4: Heb 11:4. Back to text.
Gen 4:8: 1 Jn 3:12. Back to text.
Gen 5:1: Gen 1:27. Back to text.
Gen 5:24: Heb 11:5. Back to text.
Gen 6:4: Num 13:33. Back to text.
Gen 7:7: Mt 24:38; Lk 17:27. Back to text.
Gen 9:4: Lev 7:26, 27; 17:10–14; Deut 12:16, 23. Back to text.
Gen 12:1: Acts 7:3; Heb 11:8. Back to text.
Gen 12:2: Gen 15:5; 17:4, 5; 18:18; 22:17; 28:14; 32:12; 35:11; 46:3.
Back to text.
Gen 12:3: Gen 18:18; 22:17, 18; 26:4; 28:14; Gal 3:8. Back to text.
Gen 12:7: Gen 13:15; 15:18; 17:8; 24:7; 26:3; 28:4, 13; 35:12; 48:4;
Acts 7:5; Gal 3:16. Back to text.
Gen 12:10–20: Gen 20:1–18; 26:7–11. Back to text.
Gen 13:15: Acts 7:5; Gal 3:16. Back to text.
Gen 14:17–20: Heb 7:1–10. Back to text.
Gen 15:4: Gen 17:16, 21; 18:10; 21:2. Back to text.
Gen 15:5: Rom 4:18; Heb 11:12. Back to text.
Gen 15:6: Rom 4:3, 9, 22, 23; Gal 3:6. Back to text.
Gen 15:13, 14: Acts 7:6, 7. Back to text.
Gen 15:18: Gen 17:2, 7, 9–14, 21. Back to text.
Gen 17:5: Rom 4:17. Back to text.
Gen 17:7: Lk 1:55; Gal 3:16. Back to text.
Gen 17:8: Acts 7:5. Back to text.
Gen 17:11–14: Gen 17:24; 21:4. Back to text.
Gen 18:10: Rom 9:9. Back to text.
Gen 18:12: 1 Pet 3:6. Back to text.
Gen 18:14: Mt 19:26; Mk 10:27; Lk 1:37; Rom 9:9. Back to text.
Gen 18:18: Gen 12:3; Acts 3:25; Gal 3:8. Back to text.
Gen 19:24, 25: Lk 17:29. Back to text.
Gen 19:26: Lk 17:32. Back to text.
Gen 19:28: Rev 9:2. Back to text.
Gen 21:10: Gal 4:30. Back to text.
Gen 21:12: Rom 9:7; Heb 11:18. Back to text.
Gen 22:1–18: Heb 11:17–19. Back to text.
Gen 22:9, 10, 12: Jas 2:21. Back to text.
Gen 22:16, 17: Lk 1:73; Heb 6:13, 14; 11:12. Back to text.
Gen 22:18: Acts 3:25; Gal 3:16. Back to text.
Gen 23:4: Heb 11:9, 13. Back to text.
Gen 23:16, 17: Acts 7:16. Back to text.
Gen 25:13–16: 1 Chron 1:29–31. Back to text.
Gen 27:5: Gen 12:3; Num 24:9. Back to text.
Gen 36:2: Gen 26:34; 28:9. Back to text.
Gen 37:11, 28: Acts 7:9. Back to text.
Gen 39:1, 2, 21: Acts 7:9. Back to text.
Gen 41:38–45: Acts 7:10. Back to text.
Gen 46:6: Acts 7:14, 15. Back to text.
Gen 46.8–27: Ex 1:1–4; Num 26:4–50. Back to text.
Gen 49:9, 10: Num 24:9; Rev 5:5. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF EXODUS
Ex 1:1–4: Gen 46:8–27; Num 26:4–50. Back to text.
Ex 1:5–8: Acts 7:14–18. Back to text.
Ex 1:10, 11, 22: Acts 7:19. Back to text.
Ex 2:2: Acts 7:20; Heb 11:23. Back to text.
Ex 2:5, 10: Acts 7:21. Back to text.
Ex 2:12: Acts 7:24. Back to text.
Ex 2:14: Acts 7:27, 28. Back to text.
Ex 3:1—4:17: Ex 6:2–13. Back to text.
Ex 3:6: Mt 22:32; Mk 12:26; Lk 20:37; Acts 3–13; 7:32. Back to text.
Ex 6:14–16: Gen 46:8–11; Num 26:5–14. Back to text.
Ex 6:16–19: Num 3:15–20; 26:57–58; 1 Chron 6:1, 16–19. Back to text.
Ex 6:20–23: Num 26:58–60. Back to text.
Ex 9:16: Rom 9:17. Back to text.
Ex 12:13: Heb 11:28. Back to text.
Ex 12:46: Num 9:12; Jn 19:36. Back to text.
Ex 12:49: Lev 24:22; Num 9:14; 15:15, 16, 29. Back to text.
Ex 13:2, 12, 15: Lk 2:23. Back to text.
Ex 13:19: Gen 50:25. Back to text.
Ex 14:12: Ex 16:3; 17:3. Back to text.
Ex 16:3: Ex 14:12; 17:3. Back to text.
Ex 16:4, 13: Jn 6:31. Back to text.
Ex 16:18: 2 Cor 8:15. Back to text.
Ex 17:3: 14:12; 16:3. Back to text.
Ex 17:14: Deut 25:17–19; 1 Sam 15:2–9. Back to text.
Ex 19:5, 6: Deut 7:6; 14:2, 21; 26:19; Tit 2.14; 1 Pet 2:9; Rev 1:6; 5:10.
Back to text.
Ex 19:12–19: Heb 12:18–20. Back to text.
Ex 20:2–17: Deut 5:6–21. Back to text.
Ex 20:3: Ex 20:23; Deut 5:7. Back to text.
Ex 20:4: Ex 20:23; 34:17; Lev 19:4; 26:1; Deut 4:15–19; 5:8; 27:15.
Back to text.
Ex 20:5, 6: Ex 23:24; 34:6, 7, 14; Deut 4:24; 5:9, 10; 7:9. Back to text.
Ex 20:7: Lev 19:12; Deut 5:11. Back to text.
Ex 20:8: Ex 23:12; 31:12–17; 34:21; 35:2, 3; Lev 19:3; Deut 5:12–15.
Back to text.
Ex 20:12–16: Mt 19:18, 19; Mk 10:19; Lk 18:20. Back to text.
Ex 20:12: Lev 19:3; Deut 5:16; Mt 15:4; Mk 7:10; Eph 6:2. Back to text.
Ex 20:13: Gen 9:6; Ex 21:12; Lev 24:17; Deut 5:17; Mt 5:21; Jas 2:11.
Back to text.
Ex 20:13–17: Rom 13:9. Back to text.
Ex 20:14: Lev 20:10; Deut 5:18; Mt 5:27; Rom 7:7. Back to text.
Ex 20:16: Ex 23:1; Deut 5:20. Back to text.
Ex 20:17: Deut 5:21; Rom 7:7. Back to text.
Ex 20:23: Ex 20:3, 4; 34:17; Deut 27:15. Back to text.
Ex 20:24: Ex 27:1–8; Deut 12:5; 26:2. Back to text.
Ex 20:25: Deut 27:5, 6. Back to text.
Ex 21:2–11: Lev 25:39–46; Deut 15:12–18. Back to text.
Ex 21:12: Ex 20:13; Lev 24:17; Deut 5:17; Mt 5:21. Back to text.
Ex 21:13: Num 35:10–34; Deut 19:1–13; Josh 20:1–9. Back to text.
Ex 21:16: Deut 24:7. Back to text.
Ex 21:17: Lev 20:9; Mt 15:4; Mk 7:10. Back to text.
Ex 21:23–25: Lev 24:19–20; Deut 19:21; Mt 5:38. Back to text.
Ex 22:7–15: Lev 5:14—6:7; Num 5:5–8. Back to text.
Ex 22:16–17: Deut 22:28, 29. Back to text.
Ex 22:19: Lev 18:23; 20:15, 16; Deut 27:21. Back to text.
Ex 22:21: Ex 23:9; Lev 19:33, 34; Deut 27:19. Back to text.
Ex 22:25–27: Lev 25:36, 37; Deut 23:19, 20. Back to text.
Ex 22:29: Ex 23:16, 19; Deut 26:2–11; Ex 13:2, 11–16. Back to text.
Ex 22:31: Ex 19:6; Lev 11:44; 19:1; 7:24; 17:15. Back to text.
Ex 23:1: Ex 20:16; 23:7; Deut 5:20; 19:15–21. Back to text.
Ex 23:3, 6: Lev 19:15. Back to text.
Ex 23:7: Ex 20:16; 23:1. Back to text.
Ex 23:9: Ex 22:21; Lev 19:33, 34; Deut 27:19. Back to text.
Ex 23:10, 11: Lev 25:1–7. Back to text.
Ex 23:12: Ex 20:8–11; 31:15–17; 34:21; 35:2; Deut 5:12–15. Back to
text.
Ex 23:14–17: Ex 34:22–24; Lev 23:1–44; Deut 16:1–17. Back to text.
Ex 23:18: Ex 12:10; 34:25; Lev 2:11; 7:15. Back to text.
Ex 23:19: Ex 22:29; 34:26; Deut 26:2–11; 14:21. Back to text.
Ex 24:8: Mt 26:28; Mk 14:24; Lk 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25; Heb 9:20; 10:29.
Back to text.
25–31: Ex 35–40. Back to text.
Ex 25:2–8: Ex 35:4–9. Back to text.
Ex 25:10–22: Ex 37:1–9. Back to text.
Ex 25:23–30: Ex 37:10–15. Back to text.
Ex 25:30: Ex 39:36; 40:23; Lev 24:5–9. Back to text.
Ex 25:31–40: Ex 37:17–24. Back to text.
Ex 26:1–14: Ex 36:8–19. Back to text.
Ex 26:15–29: Ex 36:20–34. Back to text.
Ex 26:31–37: Ex 36:35–38. Back to text.
Ex 27:9–19: Ex 38:9–20. Back to text.
Ex 27:20–21: Lev 24:1–4. Back to text.
Ex 28:6–12: Ex 39:2–7. Back to text.
Ex 28:15–28: Ex 39:8–21. Back to text.
Ex 28:31–34: Ex 39:22–26. Back to text.
Ex 28:36, 37: Ex 39:30, 31. Back to text.
Ex 28:39, 40, 42: Ex 39:27–29. Back to text.
Ex 29:1–37: Lev 8:1–34. Back to text.
Ex 29:18: Eph 5:2; Phil 4:18. Back to text.
Ex 29:38–42: Num 28:3–10. Back to text.
Ex 30:1–5: Ex 37:25–29. Back to text.
Ex 30:11–16: Ex 38:25, 26. Back to text.
Ex 30:18: Ex 38:8. Back to text.
Ex 30:22–33: Ex 37:29. Back to text.
Ex 31:1–6: Ex 35:30—36:1. Back to text.
Ex 31:12–17: Ex 20:8; 23:12; 35:2; Deut 5:12–15. Back to text.
Ex 32:1–6: Acts 7:40, 41. Back to text.
Ex 32:9–14: Ex 32:31–35; Num 14:11–25. Back to text.
Ex 32:32, 33: Rev 3:5. Back to text.
Ex 33:11: Num 12:8; Deut 34:10. Back to text.
Ex 33:19: Rom 9:15. Back to text.
Ex 34:6: Num 14:18; Neh 9:17; Ps 86:15; 103:8; 145:8; Jon 4:2. Back to
text.
Ex 34:14: Ex 20:5; 34:7; Deut 4:24; 5:9. Back to text.
Ex 34:18: Ex 12:15–20. Back to text.
Ex 34:19–20: Ex 13:2, 11–16. Back to text.
Ex 34:21: Ex 20:8–10; 23:12; 31:12–17; 35:2; Deut 5:12–15. Back to
text.
Ex 34:22–24: Ex 23:14–17; Lev 23:1–44; Deut 16:1–17. Back to text.
Ex 34:25: Ex 23:18; Lev 2:11; Ex 12:10. Back to text.
Ex 34:26: Ex 23:19; Deut 14:21; 26:2–11. Back to text.
Ex 34:29–35: 2 Cor 3:7–16. Back to text.
Ex 35:2, 3: Ex 23:12; 31:12–17; 34:21; Deut 5:12–15. Back to text.
Ex 35:30—36:1: Ex 31:1–6. Back to text.
Ex 36:8–19: Ex 26:1–14. Back to text.
Ex 36:20–34: Ex 26:15–29. Back to text.
Ex 36:35–38: Ex 26:31–37. Back to text.
Ex 37:1–9: Ex 25:10–22. Back to text.
Ex 37:10–16: Ex 25:23–29. Back to text.
Ex 37:17–24: Ex 25:31–39. Back to text.
Ex 37:25–29: Ex 30:1–5. Back to text.
Ex 38:9–20: Ex 27:9–19. Back to text.
Ex 38:25, 26: Ex 30:11–16. Back to text.
Ex 39:2–7: Ex 28:6–12. Back to text.
Ex 39:8–21: Ex 28:15–28. Back to text.
Ex 39:22–26: Ex 28:31–34. Back to text.
Ex 39:27–29: Ex 28:39, 40, 42. Back to text.
Ex 39:30–31: Ex 28:36, 37. Back to text.
Ex 40:30–32: Ex 30:18–21. Back to text.
Ex 40:34: Rev 15:8. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF LEVITICUS
Lev 3:1–17: Lev 7:11–18. Back to text.
Lev 4:2–12: Num 15:27–29. Back to text.
Lev 4:13–21: Num 15:22–26. Back to text.
Lev 6:1–7: Ex 22:7–15; Num 5:5–8. Back to text.
Lev 8:1–36: Ex 29:1–37. Back to text.
Lev 9:18–21: Lev 3:1–11. Back to text.
Lev 10:8: Ezek 44:21. Back to text.
Lev 10:12, 13: Lev 6:14–18. Back to text.
Lev 10:14, 15: Lev 7:30–34. Back to text.
Lev 11:2–47: Deut 14:3–21. Back to text.
Lev 11:44–45: Lev 19:2; 20:7, 26; 1 Pet 1:16. Back to text.
Lev 11:46: Num 5:2, 3. Back to text.
Lev 12:1–8: Lk 2:22–24. Back to text.
Lev 14:2–32: Mt 8:4; Mk 1:44; Lk 5:14; 17:14. Back to text.
Lev 15:24: Lev 18:19; 20:18. Back to text.
Lev 16:2, 12: Heb 6:19; 9:7, 25. Back to text.
Lev 16:27: Heb 13:11. Back to text.
Lev 17:10–16: Lev 3:17; 7:26, 27; 19:26; Deut 12:16, 23–25. Back to
text.
Lev 18:5: Lk 10:28; Rom 10:5; Gal 3:12. Back to text.
Lev 18:7: Lev 20:11. Back to text.
Lev 18:9, 11: Lev 20:17; Deut 27:22. Back to text.
Lev 18:21: Lev 20:2–5. Back to text.
Lev 18:22: Lev 20:13; Deut 23:18. Back to text.
Lev 18:23: Ex 22:19; Lev 20:15, 16; Deut 27:21. Back to text.
Lev 19:2: Lev 11:44, 45; 20:7, 26; 1 Pet 1:16. Back to text.
Lev 19:3, 30: Ex 20:12; Deut 5:16; Ex 20:8; 23:12; 34:21; 35:23; Deut
5:12–15. Back to text.
Lev 19:4: Ex 20:4; Lev 26:1; Deut 4:15–19; 27:15. Back to text.
Lev 19:9, 10: Lev 23:22; Deut 24:20, 21. Back to text.
Lev 19:11: Ex 20:15, 16; Deut 5:19. Back to text.
Lev 19:12: Ex 20:7; Deut 5:11; Mt 5:33. Back to text.
Lev 19:13: Deut 24:15; Jas 5:4. Back to text.
Lev 19:14: Deut 27:18. Back to text.
Lev 19:15: Ex 23:6; Deut 1:17. Back to text.
Lev 19:18: Mt 5:43; 19:19; 22:39; Mk 12:31; Lk 10:27; Rom 13:9; Gal
5:14; Jas 2:8. Back to text.
Lev 19:19: Deut 22:9, 11. Back to text.
Lev 19:26: Lev 3:17; 7:26, 27; 17:10–16; Deut 12:16, 23–25; 18:10.
Back to text.
Lev 19:29: Deut 23:17, 18. Back to text.
Lev 19:30: Ex 20:8–11; 23:12; 34:21; 35:2, 3; Lev 19:3; 26:2; Deut
Lev 19:31: Lev 20:6, 27. Back to text.
Lev 19:33: Ex 22:21. Back to text.
Lev 20:2–5: Lev 18:21. Back to text.
Lev 20:7: Lev 11:44, 45; 19:2; 20:26; 1 Pet 1:16. Back to text.
Lev 20:9: Ex 21:17; Deut 27:16. Back to text.
Lev 20:10: Ex 20:14; Lev 18:20; Deut 5:18. Back to text.
Lev 20:15, 16: Lev 18:23. Back to text.
Lev 21:1–3: Ezek 44:25. Back to text.
Lev 22:12: Lev 7:31–36. Back to text.
Lev 23:1–44: Ex 23:14–17; 34:22–24; Deut 16:1–17. Back to text.
Lev 23:22: Lev 19:9, 10; Deut 24:20, 21. Back to text.
Lev 24:1–4: Ex 27:20, 21. Back to text.
Lev 24:5–9: Ex 25:30; 39:36; 40:23; Mt 12:4; Mk 2:26; Lk 6:4. Back to
text.
Lev 24:19, 20: Ex 21:23–25; Deut 19:21; Mt 5:38. Back to text.
Lev 24:22: Ex 12:49; Num 9:14; 15:15, 16, 29. Back to text.
Lev 25:2–7: Ex 23:10, 11. Back to text.
Lev 25:35: Deut 15:7–11. Back to text.
Lev 25:36: Ex 22:25; Deut 23:19, 20. Back to text.
Lev 25:39–43: Ex 21:2–6; Deut 15:12–18. Back to text.
Lev 26:1: Lev 19:4; Ex 20:4, 23; Deut 4:15–18; 27:15. Back to text.
Lev 26:2: Ex 20:8; 23:12; 34:21; 35:2, 3; Lev 19:3, 30; Deut 5:12–15.
Back to text.
Lev 26:3–13: Deut 7:12–26; 28:1–14. Back to text.
Lev 26:11, 12: 2 Cor 6:16. Back to text.
Lev 26:14–45: Deut 28:16–68. Back to text.
Lev 26:40, 41: Acts 7:51. Back to text.
Lev 27:28: Num 18:14. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF NUMBERS
Num 1:1–46: Num 26:1–51. Back to text.
Num 1:47: Num 2:33. Back to text.
Num 1:50–53: Num 3:5–8, 21–37; 4:1–33; 8:19; 18:3, 4, 23. Back to
text.
Num 3:5–8: Num 1:50–53; 3:21–37; 4:1–33; 8:19. Back to text.
Num 3:11–13: Num 3:45; 8:18. Back to text.
Num 3:17–20: Ex 6:16, 22. Back to text.
Num 3:45: Num 3:11–13; 8:18. Back to text.
Num 4:1–33: Num 1:50–53; 3:5–8, 21–37; 8:19; 18:3, 4, 23. Back to
text.
Num 5:2, 3: Num 12:14, 15. Back to text.
Num 5:5–8: Ex 22:7–15; Lev 6:1–7. Back to text.
Num 6:3: Lk 1:15. Back to text.
Num 6:13–21: Acts 21:24, 26. Back to text.
Num 8:18: Num 3:11–13, 45. Back to text.
Num 9:1–5: Ex 12:1–14, 21–28. Back to text.
Num 9:12: Ex 12:46; Jn 19:36. Back to text.
Num 9:15–23: Ex 40:36–38. Back to text.
Num 10:35: Ps 68:1, 2. Back to text.
Num 11:4: 1 Cor 10:6. Back to text.
Num 11:34: 1 Cor 10:6. Back to text.
Num 12:7: Heb 3:2, 5, 6. Back to text.
Num 12:8: Ex 33:11; Deut 34:10. Back to text.
Num 13:33: Gen 6:4. Back to text.
Num 14:3: Acts 7:39. Back to text.
Num 14:11–25: Ex 32:9–14, 31–35. Back to text.
Num 14:22, 23: Heb 3:18. Back to text.
Num 14:29: Heb 3:17. Back to text.
Num 14:33: Acts 7:36. Back to text.
Num 15:14: Ex 12:49; Lev 24:22; Num 15:15, 16, 29. Back to text.
Num 15:17–21: Ex 34:26; Lev 23:14. Back to text.
Num 15:22–26: Lev 4:13–21. Back to text.
Num 15:38–40: Deut 22:12. Back to text.
Num 16:5: 2 Tim 2:19. Back to text.
Num 18:3, 4, 23: Num 1:50–53; 3:5–8, 21–37; 4:1–33; 8:19. Back to
text.
Num 18:14: Lev 27:28. Back to text.
Num 18:19: 2 Chron 13:5. Back to text.
Num 20:25–29: Num 33:38, 39. Back to text.
Num 21:21–30: Deut 2:26–37. Back to text.
Num 24:9: Gen 49:9. Back to text.
Num 26:64, 65: Num 14:26–35. Back to text.
Num 27:12–14: Deut 3:23–27; 32:48–52. Back to text.
Num 27:18–23: Deut 3:28. Back to text.
Num 28:16: Ex 12:1–14, 21–27; Lev 23:5; Deut 16:1, 2, 5–7. Back to
text.
Num 28:17–25: Ex 12:15–20; Lev 23:6–8; Deut 16:3, 4, 8. Back to text.
Num 28:26–31: Ex 23:16; 34:22; Lev 23:15–21; Deut 16:9–12. Back to
text.
Num 29:1–6: Ex 23:16; 34:22; Lev 23:23–25. Back to text.
Num 29:7–11: Lev 16:29–34; 23:26–32. Back to text.
Num 29:35–38: Lev 23:36. Back to text.
Num 30:2: Mt 5:33. Back to text.
Num 31:16: Rev 2:14. Back to text.
Num 33:38, 39: Num 20:23–29; Deut 10:6. Back to text.
Num 33:52: Ex 23:24; Deut 7:5; 12:3. Back to text.
Num 34:3–5: Josh 15:1–4. Back to text.
Num 34:13–15: Josh 14:1–5. Back to text.
Num 35:1–8: Lev 25:32–34; Josh 21:1–42. Back to text.
Num 35:6, 9–34: Deut 19:1–13. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY
Deut 1:9–15: Num 11:10–25. Back to text.
Deut 1:16–18: Ex 18:25, 26. Back to text.
Deut 1:22–46: Num 13:1—14:45; 32:8–13. Back to text.
Deut 1:31: Acts 13:18. Back to text.
Deut 3:12–20: Num 32. Back to text.
Deut 3:23–27: Num 27:12–14; Deut 32:48–52. Back to text.
Deut 4:2: Rev 22:18, 19. Back to text.
Deut 4:9–14: Ex 19:1–20, 21. Back to text.
Deut 4:24: Heb 12:29. Back to text.
Deut 4:35: Mk 12:32. Back to text.
Deut 4:41–43: Num 35:6, 9–34; Deut 19:2–13; Josh 20:7–9. Back to
text.
Deut 5:6–21: Ex 20:2–17. Back to text.
Deut 5:14: Ex 20:8–11; 23:12. Back to text.
Deut 5:16–20: Mt 19:18, 19; Mk 10:19; Lk 18:20. Back to text.
Deut 5:16: Mt 15:4; Mk 7:10; Eph 6:3. Back to text.
Deut 5:17, 18: Jas 2:11. Back to text.
Deut 5:17–21: Rom 13:9. Back to text.
Deut 5:18: Mt 5:27; Rom 7:7. Back to text.
Deut 5:21: Rom 7:7. Back to text.
Deut 6:4, 5: Mt 22:37; Mk 12:29, 30; Lk 10:27. Back to text.
Deut 6:6–9: Deut 6:20–25; 11:18–20. Back to text.
Deut 6:8: Ex 13:9, 16; Deut 11:18. Back to text.
Deut 6:13: Mt 4:10; Lk 4:8. Back to text.
Deut 7:2–4: Ex 23:32, 33; 34:12, 15, 16. Back to text.
Deut 7:3: Ex 34:15, 16. Back to text.
Deut 7:5: Ex 23:24; 34:13; Num 33:52; Deut 12:3. Back to text.
Deut 7:6: Ex 19:5; 22:31; Lev 11:44, 45; 19:2; 20:7, 26; Num 15:40;
Deut 14:2, 21; 26:19; 28:9. Back to text.
Deut 9:3: Heb 12:29. Back to text.
Deut 10:17: Acts 10:34; Gal 2:6; Rev 17:14; 19:16. Back to text.
Deut 10:19: Ex 22:21; 23:9; Lev 19:34. Back to text.
Deut 12:1–28: Ex 20:24. Back to text.
Deut 12:16, 23: Lev 17:10–14; 19:26. Back to text.
Deut 12:29–32: Ex 23:24; 34:12–14; Num 33:52. Back to text.
Deut 14:1: Lev 19:28. Back to text.
Deut 14:2: Ex 19:5, 6; Deut 26:19; Tit 2:14; 1 Pet 2:9; Rev 1:6; 5:10.
Back to text.
Deut 14:3–20: Lev 11:2–23. Back to text.
Deut 14:21: Lev 11:39, 40; 17:15; Ex 23:19; 34:26. Back to text.
Deut 14:22–29: Lev 27:30–33; Num 18:21–32. Back to text.
Deut 15:12–18: Ex 21:2–11; Lev 25:39–46. Back to text.
Deut 15:19–23: Ex 13:11, 12; 22:30; 34:19; Num 18:17, 18. Back to
text.
Deut 16:1–17: Ex 23:14–17; Lev 23; Num 28–29. Back to text.
Deut 16:19: Ex 23:6–9; Lev 19:15. Back to text.
Deut 16:21, 22: Lev 26:1. Back to text.
Deut 17:1: Lev 22:17–24. Back to text.
Deut 17:2–7: Ex 22:20. Back to text.
Deut 17:6: Num 35:30; Deut 19:15; Mt 18:16; 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Tim 5:19;
Heb 10:28. Back to text.
Deut 17:7: Deut 19:19; 1 Cor 5:13. Back to text.
Deut 18:10, 11: Ex 22:18; Lev 19:26, 31; 20:6, 27. Back to text.
Deut 18:13: Mt 5:48. Back to text.
Deut 18:15–19: Acts 3:22, 23; 7:37. Back to text.
Deut 19:1–13: Ex 21:12–14; Num 35. Back to text.
Deut 19:15: Num 35:30; Deut 17:6; Mt 18:16; 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Tim 5:19;
Heb 10:28. Back to text.
Deut 19:16–20: Ex 20:16; 23:1; Lev 19:16; Deut 5:20. Back to text.
Deut 19:19: 1 Cor 5:13. Back to text.
Deut 19:21: Ex 21:23–26; Lev 24:20; Mt 5:38. Back to text.
Deut 21:18–21: Ex 20:12; 21:15, 17; Lev 20:9; Deut 5:16; 27:16. Back
to text.
Deut 21:22: Acts 5:30; 10:39. Back to text.
Deut 21:23: Gal 3:13. Back to text.
Deut 22:1–4: Ex 23:4, 5. Back to text.
Deut 22:9–11: Lev 19:19. Back to text.
Deut 22:12: Num 15:37–41. Back to text.
Deut 22:22–27: Ex 20:14; Lev 18:20; 20:10; Deut 5:18. Back to text.
Deut 22:28, 29: Ex 22:16, 17. Back to text.
Deut 23:19: Ex 22:26; Lev 25:35–37. Back to text.
Deut 24:1: Mt 5:31; 19:7; Mk 10:4. Back to text.
Deut 24:6, 10–13: Ex 22:26, 27. Back to text.
Deut 24:7: Ex 21:16; 1 Cor 5:13. Back to text.
Deut 24:8, 9: Lev 13–14. Back to text.
Deut 24:14, 15: Lev 19:13; Jas 5:4. Back to text.
Deut 24:17, 18: Ex 22:21–24; 23:9; Lev 19:33, 34. Back to text.
Deut 24:19–22: Lev 19:9, 10; 23:22. Back to text.
Deut 25:4: 1 Cor 9:9; 1 Tim 5:18. Back to text.
Deut 25:5, 6: Mt 22:24; Mk 12:19; Lk 20:28. Back to text.
Deut 25:13–16: Lev 19:35, 36. Back to text.
Deut 25:17–19:Ex 17:14; 1 Sam 15. Back to text.
Deut 26:1–11: Ex 22:29; 23:19; 34:26; Num 18:12, 13. Back to text.
Deut 27:15: Ex 20:4, 23; 34:17; Lev 19:4; 26:1; Deut 4:16, 23, 25; 5:8;
7:25. Back to text.
Deut 27:16: Ex 20:12; 21:15, 17; Lev 20:9; Deut 5:16; 21:18–21. Back
to text.
Deut 27:18: Lev 19:14. Back to text.
Deut 27:19: Ex 22:21–24; 23:9; Lev 19:33, 34; Deut 24:17, 18. Back to
text.
Deut 27:20: Lev 18:8; 20:11; Deut 22:30. Back to text.
Deut 27:21: Ex 22:19; Lev 18:23; 20:15. Back to text.
Deut 27:22: Lev 18:9; 20:17. Back to text.
Deut 27:23: Lev 18:17; 20:14. Back to text.
Deut 27:26: Gal 3:10. Back to text.
Deut 28: Lev 26:3–45. Back to text.
Deut 29:18: Acts 8:23; Heb 12:15. Back to text.
Deut 30:4: Mt 24:31; Mk 13:27. Back to text.
Deut 30:12, 13: Rom 10:6, 7. Back to text.
Deut 31:6, 8: Heb 13:5. Back to text.
Deut 32:5: Phil 2:15. Back to text.
Deut 32:21: Rom 10:19; 11:11; 1 Cor 10:22. Back to text.
Deut 32:35: Rom 12:19; Heb 10:30. Back to text.
Deut 32:43: Rom 15:10; Heb 1:6 (Septuagint); Rev 6:10; 19:2. Back to
text.
Deut 34:10: Num 12:6–8. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JOSHUA
Josh 1:5: Heb 13:5. Back to text.
Josh 1:12–18: Josh 22:1–34; Num 32:20–22. Back to text.
Josh 6:26: 1 Kings 16:34. Back to text.
Josh 8:30–35: Deut 27:2–8. Back to text.
Josh 14:6–15: Num 13:6, 30; 14:6, 24, 30. Back to text.
Josh 15:14–19: Judg 1:10–15, 20. Back to text.
Josh 15:63: Judg 1:21; 2 Sam 5:6. Back to text.
Josh 16:10: Judg 1:29. Back to text.
Josh 17:3, 4: Num 26:33; 27:1–7. Back to text.
17:11–13: Judg 1:27–28.
Josh 19:47: Judg 18:27–31. Back to text.
Josh 20:2–9: Num 35:6–34; Deut 4:41–43; 19:1–13. Back to text.
Josh 21:1–42: Num 35:1–8; 1 Chron 6:54–81. Back to text.
Josh 22:1–34: 1:12–18; Num 32:20–22. Back to text.
Josh 24:32: Gen 50:24, 25; Ex 13:19; Acts 7:16. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JUDGES
Judg 1:10: Josh 15:13–19. Back to text.
Judg 1:10–15: Josh 15:14–19. Back to text.
Judg 1:20: Josh 15:14. Back to text.
Judg 1:27, 28: Josh 17:11–13. Back to text.
Judg 2:6–9: Josh 24:28–31. Back to text.
Judg 5:31: Rev 1:16. Back to text.
Judg 13:4, 5: Lk 1:15. Back to text.
Judg 13:24: Lk 2:40. Back to text.
Judg 18:7: Judg 18:27, 28. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF RUTH
Ruth 4:7: Deut 25:8–10. Back to text.
1 Sam 2:1–10: Lk 1:46–55. Back to text.
1 Sam 2:26: Lk 2:52. Back to text.
1 Sam 10:11–12: 19:23, 24. Back to text.
1 Sam 13:14: Acts 13:22. Back to text.
1 Sam 14:49: 31:2; 1 Chron 10:2. Back to text.
1 Sam 15:22: Mk 12:33. Back to text.
1 Sam 18:7: 21:11; 29:5. Back to text.
1 Sam 19:23, 24: 10, 11, 12. Back to text.
1 Sam 21:11: 18:7; 29:5. Back to text.
1 Sam 24:1–22: 26:1–25. Back to text.
1 Sam 26:1–25: 24:1–22. Back to text.
1 Sam 29:5: 18:7; 21:11. Back to text.
1 Sam 31:1–13: 2 Sam 1:6–10; 1 Chron 10:1–12. Back to text.
2 Sam 3:2–5: 1 Chron 3:1–4. Back to text.
2 Sam 5:4, 5: 1 Chron 3:4. Back to text.
2 Sam 5:11–12: 1 Chron 14:1, 2. Back to text.
2 Sam 5:14–16: 1 Chron 3:5–8; 14:3–7. Back to text.
2 Sam 6:12–19: 1 Chron 15:1—16:3. Back to text.
2 Sam 7:14: Heb 1:5. Back to text.
2 Sam 11:1: 1 Chron 20:1. Back to text.
2 Sam 20:23–26: 8:15–18; 1 Chron 18:14–17. Back to text.
2 Sam 22:2–51: Ps 18:2–50. Back to text.
2 Sam 22:50: Rom 15:9. Back to text.
THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS
1 Kings 2:12: 1 Chron 29:23. Back to text.
1 Kings 3:4–15: 2 Chron 1:3–13. Back to text.
1 Kings 5:15, 16: 2 Chron 2:2, 18. Back to text.
1 Kings 6:1–28: 2 Chron 3:1–13; Acts 7:47. Back to text.
1 Kings 7:38–51: 2 Chron 4:6, 5:1. Back to text.
1 Kings 8:1–6: Rev 11:19. Back to text.
1 Kings 8:10, 11: 2 Chron 5:13, 14; Rev 15:8. Back to text.
1 Kings 11:42–43: 2 Chron 9:30, 31. Back to text.
1 Kings 15:1, 2, 7: 2 Chron 13:1, 2. Back to text.
1 Kings 15:13–22: 2 Chron 15:16—16:6. Back to text.
1 Kings 15:23, 24: 2 Chron 16:12–14. Back to text.
1 Kings 16:34: Josh 6:26. Back to text.
1 Kings 17:1: Rev 11:6. Back to text.
1 Kings 17:8–16: Lk 4:25, 26. Back to text.
1 Kings 17:18: Mt 8:29; Mk 1:24; Jn 2:4. Back to text.
1 Kings 19:10: Rom 11:2, 3. Back to text.
1 Kings 19:18: Rom 11:4. Back to text.
1 Kings 21:19: 2 Kings 9:26. Back to text.
1 Kings 22:17: Mt 9:36. Back to text.
1 Kings 22:48, 49: 2 Chron 20:35–37. Back to text.
THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS
2 Kings 1:10–12: Lk 9:54; Rev 11:5; 20:9. Back to text.
2 Kings 2:11: Rev 11:12. Back to text.
2 Kings 4:33: Mt 6:6. Back to text.
2 Kings 8:17–24: 2 Chron 21:5–10, 20. Back to text.
2 Kings 9:1—10:36: 2 Chron 22:7–9. Back to text.
2 Kings 11:1–20: 2 Chron 22:10—23:21. Back to text.
2 Kings 18:1–3: 2 Chron 29:1, 2. Back to text.
2 Kings 18:13—19:35: 2 Chron 32:1–21; Is 36:1—37:38. Back to text.
2 Kings 20:1–21: 2 Chron 32:24–33; Is 38:1—39:8. Back to text.
2 Kings 24:18—25:21: 2 Chron 36:11–21; Jer 52:1–27. Back to text.
2 Kings 25:22–26: Jer 40:7—43:7. Back to text.
2 Kings 25:27–30: Jer 52:31–34. Back to text.
THE FIRST BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES
1 Chron 1:1–53: Gen 5; 10; 11; 25; 36. Back to text.
1 Chron 2:1–2: Gen 35:23–26. Back to text.
1 Chron 2:3–4: Gen 38:3–7, 29–30; Num 26:19, 20. Back to text.
1 Chron 2:5: Gen 46:12; Num 26:21. Back to text.
1 Chron 2:6–8: Josh 7:1; 1 Kings 4:31. Back to text.
1 Chron 3:1–9: 2 Sam 3:2–5; 5:14–16; 1 Chron 14:3–6. Back to text.
1 Chron 3:4: 2 Sam 5:4, 5. Back to text.
1 Chron 4:24: Gen 46:10; Ex 6:15; Num 26:12, 13. Back to text.
1 Chron 4:28–33: Josh 19:2–8. Back to text.
1 Chron 5:1–26: Gen 46:9; Num 26:5, 6. Back to text.
1 Chron 6:1–15: Gen 46:11; Ex 6:16–20; Num 3:2. Back to text.
1 Chron 6:16–53: Ex 6:16–24. Back to text.
1 Chron 6:54–81: Josh 21:1–42. Back to text.
1 Chron 9:1, 2: Ezra 2:70; Neh 7:73; 11:3. Back to text.
1 Chron 9:3–17: Neh 11:4–19. Back to text.
1 Chron 10:1–12: 1 Sam 31:1–13. Back to text.
1 Chron 14:1, 2: 2 Sam 5:11, 12. Back to text.
1 Chron 14:3–7: 3:5–8; 2 Sam 5:14–16. Back to text.
1 Chron 15:1—16:3: 2 Sam 6:12–19. Back to text.
1 Chron 16:8–22: Ps 105:1–15. Back to text.
1 Chron 16:34: Ps 106:1. Back to text.
1 Chron 16:35–36: Ps 106:47, 48. Back to text.
1 Chron 20:1: 2 Sam 11:1. Back to text.
1 Chron 29:23: 1 Kings 2:12. Back to text.
THE SECOND BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES
2 Chron 1:3–13: 1 Kings 3:4–15. Back to text.
2 Chron 1:14–17:1 Kings 10:26–29. Back to text.
2 Chron 2:2: 2:18; 1 Kings 5:15, 16. Back to text.
2 Chron 4:6–5:1: 1 Kings 7:38–51. Back to text.
2 Chron 5:13, 14: 1 Kings 8:10–11. Back to text.
2 Chron 6:1–39: 1 Kings 8:12-50. Back to text.
2 Chron 13:1, 2: 1 Kings 15:1, 2, 7. Back to text.
2 Chron 15:16—16:6: 1 Kings 15:13–22. Back to text.
2 Chron 16:12–14: 1 Kings 15:23, 24. Back to text.
2 Chron 20:7: Jas 2:23. Back to text.
2 Chron 20:35–37: 1 Kings 22:48, 49. Back to text.
2 Chron 21:20: 2 Kings 8:17, 24. Back to text.
2 Chron 22:7–9: 2 Kings 9:1—10:36. Back to text.
2 Chron 22:10—23:21: 2 Kings 11:1–20. Back to text.
2 Chron 24:23–26: 2 Kings 12:17, 18, 20, 21. Back to text.
2 Chron 25:17–20, 21–24: 2 Kings 14:8–14. Back to text.
2 Chron 26:1–4: 2 Kings 14:21, 22; 15:2, 3. Back to text.
2 Chron 32:9–21: 2 Kings 18:17-19:37. Back to text.
2 Chron 34:1, 2: 2 Kings 22:1, 2. Back to text.
2 Chron 36:22, 23: Ezra 1:1–3. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF EZRA
Ezra 1:1–3: 5:13; 6:3; 2 Chron 36:22, 23. Back to text.
Ezra 2:1–70: Neh 7:6–73. Back to text.
Ezra 5:1: Hag 1:1; Zech 1:1. Back to text.
Ezra 5:13: 1:1; 6:3. Back to text.
Ezra 6:3: 1:1; 5:13. Back to text.
Neh 7:6–73: Ezra 2:1–70. Back to text.
Neh 11:3–22: 1 Chron 9:2–34. Back to text.
Neh 13:1: Deut 23:3–5. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF ESTHER
Esther 5:3, 6: Mk 6:23. Back to text.
Esther 7:2: Mk 6:23. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JOB
Job 3:3–19: Jer 20:14–18. Back to text.
Job 5:12–13: 1 Cor 3:19. Back to text.
Job 7:17: Ps 8:4. Back to text.
Job 22:2, 3: 35:6–8. Back to text.
Job 35:6–8: 22:2–3. Back to text.
Job 38:10: Jer 5:22. Back to text.
Job 41:11: Rom 11:35. Back to text.
Ps 1:1–3: Jer 17:7–8. Back to text.
Ps 2:1–2: Acts 4:25–26. Back to text.
Ps 2:7: Mt 3:17; Acts 13:33; Heb 1:5; 5:5; 2 Pet 1:17. Back to text.
Ps 2:8–9: Rev 2:26; 12:5; 19:15. Back to text.
Ps 4:4: Eph 4:26. Back to text.
Ps 5:9: Rom 3:13. Back to text.
Ps 6:8: Mt 7:23; Lk 13:27. Back to text.
Ps 7:9: Rev 2:23. Back to text.
Ps 8:2: Mt 21:16. Back to text.
Ps 8:4–6: Job 7:17–18; Ps 144:3; Heb 2:6–8. Back to text.
Ps 8:6: 1 Cor 15:27; Eph 1:22. Back to text.
Ps 9:8: Acts 17:31. Back to text.
Ps 14:1–3: Rom 3:10–12. Back to text.
Ps 14:1–7: Ps 53:1–6. Back to text.
Ps 16:8–11: Acts 2:25–28, 31. Back to text.
Ps 18:1–50: 2 Sam 22:2–51. Back to text.
Ps 22:1: Mt 27:46; Mk 15:34. Back to text.
Ps 22:7–8: Mt 27:39, 43; Mk 15:29; Lk 23:35. Back to text.
Ps 22:18: Mt 27:35; Mk 15:24; Lk 23:34; Jn 19:24. Back to text.
Ps 22:22: Heb 2:12. Back to text.
Ps 24:1: 1 Cor 10:26. Back to text.
Ps 31:5: Lk 23:46. Back to text.
Ps 31:13: Jer 6:25; 20:3, 10; 46:5; 49:29. Back to text.
Ps 34:8: 1 Pet 2:3. Back to text.
Ps 34:12–16: 1 Pet 3:10–12. Back to text.
Ps 35:19: Ps 69:4; Jn 15:25. Back to text.
Ps 40:6–8: Heb 10:5–9. Back to text.
Ps 40:13–17: Ps 70:1–5. Back to text.
Ps 41:9: Jn 13:18. Back to text.
Ps 53:1–6: Ps 14:1–7. Back to text.
Ps 57:7–11: Ps 108:1–5. Back to text.
Ps 60:5–12: Ps 108:6–13. Back to text.
Ps 62:12: Jer 17:10; Rev 2:23; 22:12. Back to text.
Ps 68:18: Eph 4:8. Back to text.
Ps 69:4: Ps 35:19; Jn 15:25. Back to text.
Ps 69:9: Jn 2:17; Rom 15:3. Back to text.
Ps 69:21: Mt 27:34, 48; Mk 15:36; Lk 23:36; Jn 19:29. Back to text.
Ps 69:28: Rev 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27. Back to text.
Ps 70:1–5: Ps 40:13–17. Back to text.
Ps 89:3–4: Ps 132:11; Acts 2:30. Back to text.
Ps 89:37: Rev 1:5; 3:14. Back to text.
Ps 91:11–12: Mt 4:6; Lk 4:10–11. Back to text.
Ps 95:7–11: Heb 3:7–11; 4:3–11. Back to text.
Ps 96:1–13: 1 Chron 16:23–33. Back to text.
Ps 103:8 Jas 5:11. Back to text.
Ps 104:12: Mt 13:32; Mk 4:32; Lk 13:19. Back to text.
Ps 105:8–9: Lk 1:72–73. Back to text.
Ps 106:1: 1 Chron 16:34. Back to text.
Ps 108:1–5: Ps 57:7–11. Back to text.
Ps 108:6–13: Ps 60:5–12. Back to text.
Ps 109:25: Mt 27:39; Mk 15:29. Back to text.
Ps 110:1: Mt 22:44; 26:64; Mk 12:36; 14:62; 16:19; Lk 20:42–43; 22:69;
Acts 2:34; 1 Cor 15:25; Eph 1:20; Col 3:1; Heb 1:3, 13; 10:12–13; 12:2.
Back to text.
Ps 110:4: Heb 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:11, 15, 21. Back to text.
Ps 115:4–8: Ps 135:15–18. Back to text.
Ps 115:13: Rev 11:18; 19:5. Back to text.
Ps 118:22–23: Mt 21:42; Mk 12:10–11; Lk 20:17; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:7.
Back to text.
Ps 118:25–26: Mt 21:9; 23:39; Mk 11:9–10; Lk 13:35; 19:38; Jn 12:13.
Back to text.
Ps 130:3: Ps 143:2; Rom 3:20; Gal 2:16. Back to text.
Ps 132:11: Ps 89:3–4; Acts 2:30. Back to text.
Ps 135:15–18: Ps 115:4–8. Back to text.
Ps 141:2: Rev 5:8; 8:3–4. Back to text.
Ps 143:2: Ps 130:3; Rom 3:20; Gal 2:16. Back to text.
Prov 1:20, 21: 8:1–3. Back to text.
Prov 3:4: Rom 12:17. Back to text.
Prov 3:7: Rom 12:16. Back to text.
Prov 3:11, 12: Heb 12:5, 6. Back to text.
Prov 3:34 (Gk): Jas 4:6; 1 Pet 5:5. Back to text.
Prov 4:26 (Gk): Heb 12:13. Back to text.
Prov 8:1–3: 1:20, 21. Back to text.
Prov 10:12: Jas 5:20; 1 Pet 4:8. Back to text.
Prov 11:31 (Gk): 1 Pet 4:18. Back to text.
Prov 22:8 (Gk): 1 Cor 9:7. Back to text.
Prov 25:21, 22: Rom 12:20. Back to text.
Prov 26:11: 2 Pet 2:22. Back to text.
Is 1:9: Rom 9:29. Back to text.
Is 2:2–4: Mic 4:1–3. Back to text.
Is 4:2: Jer 23:5; 33:15; Zech 3:8; 6:12. Back to text.
Is 5:1–7: Mt 21:33–46; Mk 12:1–12; Lk 20:9–19. Back to text.
Is 6:3: Rev 4:8. Back to text.
Is 6:9–10: Mt 13:14–15; Mk 4:12; Lk 8:10; Jn 12:39–41; Acts 28:26–27.
Back to text.
Is 7:14: Mt 1:23. Back to text.
Is 8:12–13: 1 Pet 3:14–15. Back to text.
Is 8:14: Rom 9:32–33; 1 Pet 2:8. Back to text.
Is 8:17–18: Heb 2:13. Back to text.
Is 9:1–2: Mt 4:15–16; Lk 1:79. Back to text.
Is 10:5–34: Nahum; Zeph 2:13–15. Back to text.
Is 10:22–23: Rom 9:27–28. Back to text.
Is 11:1: Is 11:10; Rom 15:12. Back to text.
Is 11:2: 1 Pet 4:14. Back to text.
Is 11:5: Eph 6:14. Back to text.
Is 11:6–9: Is 65:25; Hab 2:14. Back to text.
Is 13:1—14:23: Is 47; Jer 50–51; Hab 1–2. Back to text.
Is 13:10: Mt 24:29; Mk 13:24; Rev 6:12; 8:12. Back to text.
Is 14:29–31: Jer 47; Ezek 25:15–17; Joel 3:4–8; Amos 1:6–8; Zeph 2:4–
7; Zech 9:5–7. Back to text.
Is 15–16: Is 25:10–12; Jer 48; Ezek 25:8–11; Amos 2:1–3; Zeph 2:8–11.
Is 17:1–3: Jer 49:23–27; Amos 1:3–5; Zech 9:1. Back to text.
Is 18: Zeph 2:12.
Is 19: Jer 46; Ezek 29–32; Zech 14:18–19.
Is 23: Ezek 26:1—28:19; Joel 3:4–8; Amos 1:9–10; Zech 9:3–4. Back to
text.
Is 25:8: 1 Cor 15:54; Rev 7:17; 21:4. Back to text.
Is 25:10–12: Is 15–16; Jer 48; Ezek 25:8–11; Amos 2:1–3; Zeph 2:8–11.
Back to text.
Is 27:13: Mt 24:31; 1 Cor 15:52; 1 Thess 4:16. Back to text.
Is 28:11–12: 1 Cor 14:21. Back to text.
Is 28:16: Rom 9:33; 10:11; 1 Pet 2:4–6. Back to text.
Is 29:13: Mt 15:8–9; Mk 7:6–7. Back to text.
Is 29:14: 1 Cor 1:19. Back to text.
Is 29:18–19: Mt 11:5. Back to text.
Is 34: Is 63:1–6; Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–14; 35; Amos 1:11–12; Obad;
Mal 1:2–5.
Is 34:4: Rev 6:13–14. Back to text.
Is 34:9–10: Rev 19:3. Back to text.
Is 35:3: Heb 12:12. Back to text.
Is 35:5–6: Mt 11:5; Lk 7:22. Back to text.
Is 36:1—38:8, 21–22: 2 Kings 18:13—20:11; 2 Chron 32:1–24. Back to
text.
Is 39:1–8: 2 Kings 20:12–19; 2 Chron 32:31. Back to text.
Is 40:3: Mt 3:3; Mk 1:3; Lk 3:4; Jn 1:23. Back to text.
Is 40:4–5: Lk 3:5–6. Back to text.
Is 40:9: Is 52:7; Nah 1:15; Acts 10:36; Rom 10:15. Back to text.
Is 40:10: Rev 22:7, 12. Back to text.
Is 40:13: Rom 11:34; 1 Cor 2:16. Back to text.
Is 41:8: Jas 2:23. Back to text.
Is 41:8–9: Lk 1:54; Heb 2:16. Back to text.
Is 41:10: Acts 18:10. Back to text.
Is 42:1–4: Mt 12:18–21. Back to text.
Is 42:5: Acts 17:24–25. Back to text.
Is 42:6: Is 49:6; Lk 2:32; Acts 13:47; 26:23. Back to text.
Is 42:7, 16: Acts 26:18. Back to text.
Is 44:6: Is 48:12; Rev 1:17; 2:8; 22:13. Back to text.
Is 44:23: Jer 51:48; Rev 12:12; 18:20. Back to text.
Is 45:14: 1 Cor 14:25 Back to text.
Is 45:23: Rom 14:11; Phil 2:10–11. Back to text.
47: Is 13:1–14:23; Jer 50–51; Hab 1–2.
Is 48:12: Is 44:6; Rev 1:17; 2:8; 22:13. Back to text.
Is 49:1: Jer 1:5; Gal 1:15. Back to text.
Is 49:4: Phil 2:16. Back to text.
Is 49:6: Is 42:6; Lk 2:32; Acts 13:47; 26:23. Back to text.
Is 49:13: Is 44:23; Jer 51:48; Rev 12:12; 18:20. Back to text.
Is 50:8–9: Rom 8:33; Heb 1:11. Back to text.
Is 52:7: Acts 10:36; Rom 10:15; Eph 6:15. Back to text.
Is 52:10: Lk 2:30; 3:6. Back to text.
Is 53:1: Jn 12:38; Rom 10:16. Back to text.
Is 53:7–8: Acts 8:32–33. Back to text.
Is 53:9: 1 Pet 2:22. Back to text.
Is 53:12: Lk 22:37. Back to text.
Is 54:1: Gal 4:27. Back to text.
Is 54:11–12: Rev 21:19. Back to text.
Is 54:13: Jn 6:45. Back to text.
Is 55:1: Rev 21:6; 22:17. Back to text.
Is 55:3: Acts 13:34; Heb 13:20. Back to text.
Is 56:7: Mt 21:13; Mk 11:17; Lk 19:46. Back to text.
Is 57:19: Acts 2:39; Eph 2:13, 17. Back to text.
Is 59:17: Eph 6:14, 17; 1 Thess 5:8. Back to text.
Is 59:19: Mt 8:11; Lk 13:29. Back to text.
Is 60:11: Rev 21:25–26. Back to text.
Is 60:19: Rev 21:23; 22:5. Back to text.
Is 61:1–2: Mt 11:5; Lk 4:18–19; 7:22. Back to text.
Is 61:6: Ex 19:6; 1 Pet 2:5; Rev 1:6; 5:10; 20:6. Back to text.
Is 63:1–6: Is 34; Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–14; 35; Amos 1:11–12; Obad;
Mal 1:2–5. Back to text.
Is 65:17: Is 66:22; 2 Pet 3:13; Rev 21:1. Back to text.
Is 65:25: Is 11:6–9. Back to text.
Is 66:1–2: Mt 5:34; Acts 7:49–50. Back to text.
Is 66:6: Rev 16:1, 17. Back to text.
Is 66:22: Is 65:17; 2 Pet 3:13; Rev 21:1. Back to text.
Is 66:24: Mk 9:48. Back to text.
Jer 1:5: Is 49:1; Gal 1:15. Back to text.
Jer 1:8: Is 43:5; Acts 18:9–10. Back to text.
Jer 1:10: Rev 10:11. Back to text.
Jer 5:21: Is 6:9–10; Mt 13:10–15; Mk 8:17–18. Back to text.
Jer 6:16: Mt 11:29. Back to text.
Jer 6:25: Jer 20:3, 10; 46:5; 49:29; Ps 31:13. Back to text.
Jer 7:11: Mt 21:13; Mk 11:17; Lk 19:46. Back to text.
Jer 9:24: 1 Cor 1:31; 2 Cor 10:17. Back to text.
Jer 9:26: Acts 7:51. Back to text.
Jer 10:25: 1 Thess 4:5; Rev 16:1. Back to text.
Jer 16:9: Jer 7:34; 25:10; Rev 18:23. Back to text.
Jer 17:7–8: Ps 1:1–3. Back to text.
Jer 17:10: Ps 62:12; Rev 2:23; 22:12. Back to text.
Jer 18:6: Rom 9:21. Back to text.
Jer 19:13: Acts 7:42. Back to text.
Jer 20:3, 10: Jer 6:25; 46:5; 49:29; Ps 31:13. Back to text.
Jer 20:14–18: Job 3:3–13. Back to text.
Jer 22:5: Mt 23:38; Lk 13:35. Back to text.
Jer 23:5: Jer 33:15; Is 4:2; Zech 3:8; Zech6:12. Back to text.
Jer 25:10: Jer 7:34; 16:9; Rev 18:23. Back to text.
Jer 25:15: Jer 51:7; Rev 14:8, 10; 16:19; 17:4; 18:3. Back to text.
Jer 31:15: Mt 2:18. Back to text.
Jer 31:31: Lk 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25. Back to text.
Jer 31:31–34: Jer 32:38–40; Heb 8:8–12; 10:16–17. Back to text.
Jer 32:38–40: Jer 31:31–34. Back to text.
Jer 33:15: Jer 23:5; Is 4:2; Zech 3:8; 6:12. Back to text.
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Jer 46: Is 19; Ezek 29–32; Zech 14:18–19. Back to text.
Jer 46:5: Jer 6:25; 20:3, 10; 49:29; Ps 31:13. Back to text.
Jer 47 Is 14:29–31; Ezek 25:15–17; Amos 1:6–8; Zeph 2:4–7; Zech 9:5–
7. Back to text.
Jer 48: Is 15–16; 25:10–12; Ezek 25:8–11; Amos 2:1–3; Zeph 2:8–11.
Back to text.
Jer 49:1–6: Ezek 21:28–32; 25:1–7; Amos 1:13–15; Zeph 2:8–11. Back
to text.
Jer 49:7–22: Is 34; 63:1–6; Ezek 25:12–14; 35; Amos 1:11–12; Obad;
Jer 49:23–27: Is 17:1–3; Amos 1:3–5; Zech 9:1. Back to text.
Jer 49:29: Jer 6:25; 20:3, 10; 46:5; Ps 31:13. Back to text.
Jer 50–51: Is 13:1–14:23; 47; Hab 1–2. Back to text.
Jer 50:8: Jer 51:6, 9, 45; 2 Cor 6:17; Rev 18:4. Back to text.
Jer 51:6, 9, 45: Jer 50:8; 2 Cor 6:17; Rev 18:4. Back to text.
Jer 51:7–8: Jer 25:15; Rev 14:8, 10; 16:19; 17:4; 18:3. Back to text.
Jer 51:48: Is 44:23; Rev 12:12; 18:20. Back to text.
Jer 51:63–64: Rev 18:21. Back to text.
Jer 52: 2 Kings 24:18—25:30; 2 Chron 36:11–13. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL
Ezek 1:1: Rev 19:11. Back to text.
Ezek 1:5, 18: Rev 4:6. Back to text.
Ezek 1:18: Ezek 10:12; Rev 4:8. Back to text.
Ezek 1:24: Ezek 43:2; Rev 1:15; 14:2; 19:6. Back to text.
Ezek 1:26: Rev 1:13; 4:2. Back to text.
Ezek 2:8—3:3: Rev 5:1; 10:8–10. Back to text.
Ezek 3:16–21: Ezek 33:1–9. Back to text.
Ezek 6:9: Ezek 20:43; 36:31. Back to text.
Ezek 9:4, 6: 1 Pet 4:17; Rev 7:3; 9:4; 14:1. Back to text.
Ezek 11:19: Ezek 18:31; 36:26; 2 Cor 3:3. Back to text.
Ezek 12:2: Mk 8:18. Back to text.
Ezek 16:3: Ezek 16:45. Back to text.
Ezek 17:23: Ezek 31:6; Mt 13:32; Mk 4:32; Lk 13:19. Back to text.
Ezek 18:2: Jer 31:29. Back to text.
Ezek 20:41: Eph 5:2; Phil 4:18. Back to text.
Ezek 21:28–32: Ezek 25:1–7; Jer 49:1–6; Amos 1:13–15; Zeph 2:8–11.
Back to text.
Ezek 25:1–7: Ezek 21:28–32; Jer 49:1–6; Amos 1:13–15; Zeph 2:8–11.
Back to text.
Ezek 25:8–11: Is 15–16; 25:10–12; Jer 48; Amos 2:1–3; Zeph 2:8–11.
Back to text.
Ezek 25:12–14: Ezek 35; Is 34; 63:1–6; Jer 49:7–22; Amos 1:11–12;
Obad; Mal 1:2–5. Back to text.
Ezek 25:15–17: Is 14:29–31; Jer 47; Amos 1:6–8; Zeph 2:4–7; Zech
Ezek 26:1—28:19: Is 23; Joel 3:4–8; Amos 1:9–10; Zech 9:3–4. Back to
text.
Ezek 26:16–17: Rev 18:9–10. Back to text.
Ezek 28:2: Dan 11:36; 2 Thess 2:4; Rev 13:5. Back to text.
Ezek 28:20–26: Joel 3:4–8; Zech 9:2. Back to text.
Ezek 29–32: Is 19; Jer 46; Zech 14:18–19. Back to text.
Ezek 31:6: Ezek 17:23; Dan 4:12–21; Mt 13:32; Mk 4:32; Lk 13:19.
Back to text.
Ezek 31:8 (Gk): Rev 2:7. Back to text.
Ezek 33:1–9: Ezek 3:16–21. Back to text.
Ezek 33:11: Ezek 18:23, 32. Back to text.
Ezek 34:5: Mt 9:36; Mk 6:34. Back to text.
Ezek 34:16: Lk 19:10. Back to text.
Ezek 36:26: Ezek 11:19; 18:31; 2 Cor 3:3. Back to text.
Ezek 36:27: Ezek 37:14; 1 Thess 4:8. Back to text.
Ezek 37:14: Ezek 36:27; 1 Thess 4:8. Back to text.
Ezek 37:26: Heb 13:20. Back to text.
Ezek 37:27: Ex 25:8; 29:45; Lev 26:12; Jer 31:1; 2 Cor 6:16; Rev 21:3.
Back to text.
Ezek 38:2, 9, 15: Rev 20:8. Back to text.
Ezek 39:4, 17–20: Rev 19:17, 18, 21. Back to text.
Ezek 40:1—43:17: 1 Kings 6–7; 2 Chron 3–4. Back to text.
Ezek 43:2: Ezek 1:24; Rev 1:15; 14:2; 19:6. Back to text.
Ezek 47:1–2: Zech 14:8; Rev 22:1–2. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF DANIEL
Dan 2:44: Rev 11:15. Back to text.
Dan 3:5, 6: Rev 13:15. Back to text.
Dan 4:12, 21: Ezek 17:23; 31:6; Mt 13:32; Mk 4:32; Lk 13:19. Back to
text.
Dan 6:22: 2 Tim 4:17. Back to text.
Dan 7:3, 7, 21: Rev 11:7. Back to text.
Dan 7:4–6: Rev 13:2. Back to text.
Dan 7:7: Rev 12:3; 13:1; 17:3. Back to text.
Dan 7:9: Rev 1:14; 20:4, 11. Back to text.
Dan 7:10: Rev 5:11; 20:12. Back to text.
Dan 7:13–14: Mt 24:30; 26:64; Mk 13:26; 14:62; Lk 21:27; 22:69; Rev
1:7, 13; 14:14. Back to text.
Dan 7:14, 18, 22, 27: Rev 11:15. Back to text.
Dan 8:13: Lk 21:24. Back to text.
Dan 9:27: Dan 11:31; 12:11; Mt 24:15; Mk 13:14. Back to text.
Dan 10:5–6: Rev 1:13–14; 2:18. Back to text.
Dan 11:36: Ezek 28:2; 2 Thess 2:4; Rev 13:5. Back to text.
Dan 12:1: Mt 24:21; Mk 13:19; Rev 12:7; 16:18. Back to text.
Dan 12:2: Mt 25:46. Back to text.
Dan 12:3: Mt 13:43. Back to text.
Dan 12:7: Rev 4:9; 10:5; 12:14. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF HOSEA
Hos 1:6, 9: Hos 2:23; 1 Pet 2:10. Back to text.
Hos 1:10: Rom 9:26. Back to text.
Hos 2:1, 23: Rom 9:25; 1 Pet 2:10. Back to text.
Hos 6:6: Mt 9:13; 12:7. Back to text.
Hos 8:14: Amos 1:4, 7, 10, 12, 14; 2:2, 5. Back to text.
Hos 9:7: Lk 21:22. Back to text.
Hos 10:8: Lk 23:30; Rev 6:16. Back to text.
Hos 10:12: 2 Cor 9:10. Back to text.
Hos 11:1: Mt 2:15. Back to text.
Hos 12:8: Rev 3:17. Back to text.
Hos 13:14: 1 Cor 15:55. Back to text.
Hos 14:2: Heb 13:15. Back to text.
Hos 14:9: Acts 13:10. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JOEL
Joel 1:6: Rev 9:8. Back to text.
Joel 2:4–5: Rev 9:7, 9. Back to text.
Joel 2:28–32: Acts 2:17–21. Back to text.
Joel 2:32: Rom 10:13. Back to text.
Joel 3:4–8: Is 23; Ezek 26:1–28:19; Amos 1:9–10; Zech 9:3–4; Ezek
28:20–26; Zech 9:2; Is 14:29–31; Jer 47; Ezek 25:15–17; Amos 1:6–8;
Zeph 2:4–7; Zech 9:5–7. Back to text.
Joel 3:10: Is 2:4; Mic 4:3. Back to text.
Joel 3:13: Mk 4:29; Rev 14:15, 18, 19. Back to text.
Joel 3:16: Amos 1:2. Back to text.
Joel 3:18: Ezek 47:1–12; Amos 9:13; Zech 14:8; Rev 22:1. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF AMOS
Amos 1:2: Joel 3:16. Back to text.
Amos 1:3–5: Is 17:1–3; Jer 49:23–27; Zech 9:1. Back to text.
Amos 1:6–8: Is 14:29–31; Jer 47; Ezek 25:15–17; Joel 3:4–8; Zeph 2:4–
Amos 1:9–10: Is 23; Ezek 26:1—28:19; Joel 3:4–8; Zech 9:3-4. Back to
text.
Amos 1:11–12: Is 34; 63:1–6; Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–14; 35; Obad;
Amos 1:13–15: Jer 49:1–6; Ezek 21:28–32; 25:1–7; Zeph 2:8–11. Back
to text.
Amos 2:1–3: Is 15–16; 25:10–12; Jer 48; Ezek 25:8–11; Zeph 2:8–11.
Back to text.
Amos 3:7: Rev 10:7. Back to text.
Amos 5:25–27: Acts 7:42–43. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF OBADIAH
Obad 1–21: Is 34; 63:1–6; Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–14; 35; Amos 1:11–
12; Mal 1:2–5. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JONAH
Jon 1:17: Mt 12:40. Back to text.
Jon 3:9: Joel 2:14. Back to text.
Jon 4:2: Ex 34:6. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF MICAH
Mic 1:2: 1 Kings 22:28. Back to text.
Mic 4:1–3: Is 2:2–4. Back to text.
Mic 4:4: Zech 3:10. Back to text.
Mic 5:2: Mt 2:6; Jn 7:42. Back to text.
Mic 7:6: Mt 10:21, 35, 36; Mk 13:12; Lk 12:53. Back to text.
Mic 7:20: Lk 1:55. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF NAHUM
Nahum 1–3: Is 10:5–34; Zeph 2:12–15. Back to text.
Nahum 1:15: Is 40:9; 52:7; Acts 10:36; Rom 10:15. Back to text.
Hab 1:2: Is 13:1–14:23; 47; Jer 50–51. Back to text.
Hab 1:5: Acts 13:41. Back to text.
Hab 1:6: Rev 20:9. Back to text.
Hab 2:1: Is 21:8. Back to text.
Hab 2:3: Heb 10:37. Back to text.
Hab 2:4: Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11; Heb 10:38–39. Back to text.
Hab 2:14: Is 11:9. Back to text.
Hab 2:20: Zeph 1:7; Zech 2:13. Back to text.
Zeph 3:13: Rev 14:5. Back to text.
Zeph 1:7: Hab 2:20; Zech 2:13. Back to text.
Zeph 2:4–7: Is 14:29–31; Jer 47; Ezek 25:15–17; Joel 3:4–8; Amos 1:6–
Zeph 2:8–11: Is 15–16; 25:10–12; Jer 48; Ezek 25:8–11; Amos 2:1–3.
Back to text.
Zeph 2:12: Is 18. Back to text.
Zeph 2:13–15: Is 10:5–34; Nah. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF HAGGAI
Hag 2:6: Heb 12:26 Back to text.
Zech 2:13: Hab 2:20; Zeph 1:7. Back to text.
Zech 3:2: Jude 9. Back to text.
Zech 3:8: Is 4:2; Jer 23:5; 33:15; Zech 6:12. Back to text.
Zech 3:10: Mic 4:4. Back to text.
Zech 4:3, 11–14: Rev 11:4. Back to text.
Zech 4:10: Rev 5:6. Back to text.
Zech 6:1–3: Rev 6:2–8. Back to text.
Zech 6:12: Zech 3:8; Is 4:2; Jer 23:5; 33:15. Back to text.
Zech 8:16: Eph 4:25. Back to text.
Zech 9:9: Mt 21:5; Jn 12:15. Back to text.
Zech 11:12–13: Mt 26:15; 27:9. Back to text.
Zech 12:10: Jn 19:37. Back to text.
Zech 13:7: Mt 26:31; Mk 14:27. Back to text.
Zech 14:8: Ezek 47:1–12; Rev 22:1–2. Back to text.
Zech 14:18–19: Is 19; Jer 46; Ezek 29–32. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF MALACHI
Mal 1:2–3: Rom 9:13. Back to text.
Mal 1:2–5: Is 34; 63:1–6; Jer 49:7–22; Ezek 25:12–14; 35; Amos 1:11–
12; Obad. Back to text.
Mal 3:1: Mt 11:10; Mk 1:2; Lk 1:17, 76; 7:27. Back to text.
Mal 3:2: Rev 6:17 Back to text.
Mal 4:5: Mt 17:11; Mk 9:12. Back to text.
Mal 4:6: Lk 1:17. Back to text.
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
Mt 1:1–17: Lk 3:23–38. Back to text.
Mt 1:3–6: Ruth 4:18–22; 1 Chron 2:1–15. Back to text.
Mt 1:11: 2 Kings 24:14; Jer 27:20. Back to text.
Mt 1:18: Lk 1:26–38. Back to text.
Mt 1:21: Lk 2:21; Jn 1:29; Acts 13:23. Back to text.
Mt 1:23: Is 7:14. Back to text.
Mt 2:1: Lk 2:4–7; 1:5. Back to text.
Mt 2:2: Jer 23:5; Zech 9:9; Mk 15:2; Jn 1:49; Num 24:17. Back to text.
Mt 2:5: Jn 7:42. Back to text.
Mt 2:6: Mic 5:2. Back to text.
Mt 2:11: Mt 1:18; 12:46. Back to text.
Mt 2:12: Mt 2:22; Acts 10:22; Heb 11:7. Back to text.
Mt 2:15: Hos 11:1; Ex 4:22. Back to text.
Mt 2:18: Jer 31:15. Back to text.
Mt 2:19: Mt 1:20; 2:13. Back to text.
Mt 2:23: Lk 1:26; Is 11:1; Mk 1:24. Back to text.
Mt 3:1–12: Mk 1:3–8; Lk 3:2–17; Jn 1:6–8, 19–28. Back to text.
Mt 3:2: Mt 4:17; Dan 2:44; 4:17; Mt 10:7. Back to text.
Mt 3:4: 2 Kings 1:8; Zech 13:4; Lev 11:22. Back to text.
Mt 3:7: Mt 12:34; 23:33; 1 Thess 1:10. Back to text.
Mt 3:9: Jn 8:33; Rom 4:16. Back to text.
Mt 3:10: Mt 7:19. Back to text.
Mt 3:13–17: Mk 1:9–11; Lk 3:21–22; Jn 1:31–34. Back to text.
Mt 3:17: Mt 12:18; 17:5; Mk 9:7; Lk 9:35; Ps 2:7; Is 42:1. Back to text.
Mt 4:1–11: Mk 1:12–13; Lk 4:1–13; Heb 2:18; 4:15. Back to text.
Mt 4:2: Ex 34:28; 1 Kings 19:8. Back to text.
Mt 4:4: Deut 8:3. Back to text.
Mt 4:5: Mt 27:53; Neh 11:1; Dan 9:24; Rev 21:10. Back to text.
Mt 4:6: Ps 91:11–12. Back to text.
Mt 4:10: Deut 6:13; Mk 8:33. Back to text.
Mt 4:11: Mt 26:53; Lk 22:43. Back to text.
Mt 4:12: Mk 1:14; Lk 4:14; Mt 14:3; Jn 1:43. Back to text.
Mt 4:13: Jn 2:12; Mk 1:21; Lk 4:23. Back to text.
Mt 4:15: Is 9:1–2. Back to text.
Mt 4:17: Mk 1:15; Mt 3:2; 10:7. Back to text.
Mt 4:23–25: Mk 1:39; Lk 4:15, 44; Mt 9:35; Mk 3:7–8; Lk 6:17. Back to
text.
Mt 5:1–12: Lk 6:17, 20–23; Mk 3:13; Jn 6:3. Back to text.
Mt 5:3: Mk 10:14; Lk 22:29. Back to text.
Mt 5:4: Is 61:2; Jn 16:20, Rev 7:17. Back to text.
Mt 5:5: Ps 37:11. Back to text.
Mt 5:6: Is 55:1–2; Jn 4:14; 6:48–51. Back to text.
Mt 5:8: Ps 24:4; Heb 12:14; 1 Jn 3:2; Rev 22:4. Back to text.
Mt 5:10: 1 Pet 3:14; 4:14. Back to text.
Mt 5:12: 2 Chron 36:16; Mt 23:37; Acts 7:52; 1 Thess 2:15; Jas 5:10.
Back to text.
Mt 5:13: Mk 9:49–50; Lk 14:34–35. Back to text.
Mt 5:14: Eph 5:8; Phil 2:15; Jn 8:12. Back to text.
Mt 5:15–16: Lk 11:33; Mk 4:21; 1 Pet 2:12. Back to text.
Mt 5:18: Lk 16:17; Mk 13:31. Back to text.
Mt 5:19: Jas 2:10. Back to text.
Mt 5:21: Ex 20:13; Deut 5:17; 16:18. Back to text.
Mt 5:25–26: Lk 12:57–59. Back to text.
Mt 5:27: Ex 20:14; Deut 5:18. Back to text.
Mt 5:29–30: Mk 9:43–48; Mt 18:8–9. Back to text.
Mt 5:31–32: Lk 16:18; Mk 10:11–12; Mt 19:9; 1 Cor 7:10–11; Deut
Mt 5:33–37: Mt 23:16–22; Jas 5:12; Lev 19:12; Num 30:2; Deut 23:21.
Back to text.
Mt 5:35: Is 66:1; Acts 7:49; Ps 48:2. Back to text.
Mt 5:38: Ex 21:24; Lev 24:20; Deut 19:21. Back to text.
Mt 5:39–42: Lk 6:29–30; 1 Cor 6:7; Rom 12:17; 1 Pet 2:19; 3:9; Prov
24:29. Back to text.
Mt 5:43–48: Lk 6:27–28, 32–36; Lev 19:18; Prov 25:21–22. Back to
text.
Mt 5:48: Lev 19:2. Back to text.
Mt 6:4: Col 3:23–24. Back to text.
Mt 6:5: Mk 11:25; Lk 18:10–14. Back to text.
Mt 6:7: 1 Kings 18:25–29. Back to text.
Mt 6:9–13: Lk 11:2–4. Back to text.
Mt 6:13: 2 Thess 3:3; Jn 17:15; Jas 1:13. Back to text.
Mt 6:14–15: Mt 18:35; Mk 11:25; Eph 4:32; Col 3:13. Back to text.
Mt 6:18: Mt 6:4, 6. Back to text.
Mt 6:19–21: Lk 12:33–34; Mk 10:21; 1 Tim 6:17–19; Jas 5:1–3. Back to
text.
Mt 6:22–23: Lk 11:34–36; Mt 20:15; Mk 7:22. Back to text.
Mt 6:24: Lk 16:13. Back to text.
Mt 6:25–33: Lk 12:22–31; 10:41; 12:11; Phil 4:6; 1 Pet 5:7. Back to text.
Mt 6:29: 1 Kings 10:4–7. Back to text.
Mt 6:30: Mt 8:26; 14:31; 16:8. Back to text.
Mt 6:33: Mt 19:28; Mk 10:29–30; Lk 18:29–30. Back to text.
Mt 7:1–2: Lk 6:37–38; Mk 4:24; Rom 2:1; 14:10. Back to text.
Mt 7:3–5: Lk 6:41–42. Back to text.
Mt 7:7–11: Lk 11:9–13; Mk 11:24; Jn 15:7; 16:23–24; Jas 4:3; 1 Jn 3:22;
5:14. Back to text.
Mt 7:13–14: Lk 13:23–24; Jer 21:8; Deut 30:19; Jn 14:6; 10:7. Back to
text.
Mt 7:15: Mt 24:11, 24; Ezek 22:27; 1 Jn 4:1; Jn 10:12. Back to text.
Mt 7:16–20: Lk 6:43–44; Mt 12:33–35; Mt 3:10; Jas 3:12; Lk 13:7. Back
to text.
Mt 7:22–23: Lk 13:26–27; Mt 25:12; Ps 6:8. Back to text.
Mt 7:24–27: Lk 6:47–49; Jas 1:22–25. Back to text.
Mt 7:28–29: Mk 1:22; Lk 4:32; Mt 11:1; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1. Back to text.
Mt 8:2–4: Mk 1:40–44; Lk 5:12–14. Back to text.
Mt 8:2: Mt 9:18; 15:25; 18:26; 20:20; Jn 9:38. Back to text.
Mt 8:4: Mk 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 8:30; 9:9; Lev 14:2. Back to text.
Mt 8:5–13: Lk 7:1–10; Jn 4:46–53. Back to text.
Mt 8:11–12: Lk 13:28–29; Is 49:12; 59:19; Mal 1:11; Ps 107:3. Back to
text.
Mt 8:12: Mt 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Lk 13:28. Back to text.
Mt 8:14–16: Mk 1:29–34; Lk 4:38–41; Mt 4:23–24. Back to text.
Mt 8:18–22: Lk 9:57–60; Mk 4:35; Lk 8:22. Back to text.
Mt 8:22: Mt 9:9; Jn 1:43; 21:19. Back to text.
Mt 8:26: Mt 6:30; 14:31; 16:8. Back to text.
Mt 8:29: Judg 11:12; 2 Sam 16:10; Mk 1:24; Jn 2:4. Back to text.
Mt 9:1–8: Mk 2:1–12, Lk 5:17–26. Back to text.
Mt 9:2: Mt 9:22; Mk 6:50; 10:49; Jn 16:33; Acts 23:11; Lk 7:48. Back to
text.
Mt 9:9–13: Mk 2:13–17; Lk 5:27–32; 15:1–2; 7:34. Back to text.
Mt 9:13: Hos 6:6; Mt 12:7; 1 Tim 1:15. Back to text.
Mt 9:14–17: Mk 2:18–22; Lk 5:33–39; 18:12. Back to text.
Mt 9:20: Num 15:38; Deut 22:12; Mt 14:36; Mk 3:10. Back to text.
Mt 9:22: Mk 10:52; Lk 7:50; 17:19; Mt 15:28; 9:29. Back to text.
Mt 9:27–31: Mt 20:29–34. Back to text.
Mt 9:32–34: Lk 11:14–15; Mt 12:22–24; Mk 3:22; Jn 7:20. Back to text.
Mt 9:35: Mt 4:23; Mk 6:6. Back to text.
Mt 9:36: Mk 6:34; Mt 14:14; 15:32; Num 27:17; Zech 10:2. Back to
text.
Mt 9:37–38: Lk 10:2; Jn 4:35. Back to text.
Mt 10:1–4: Mk 6:7; 3:16–19; Lk 9:1; 6:14–16; Acts 1:13. Back to text.
Mt 10:5: Lk 9:52; Jn 4:9; Acts 8:5, 25. Back to text.
Mt 10:6: Mt 15:24; 10:23. Back to text.
Mt 10:7–8: Lk 9:2; 10:9–11; Mt 4:17. Back to text.
Mt 10:9–14: Mk 6:8–11; Lk 9:3–5; 10:4–12; 22:35–36. Back to text.
Mt 10:10: 1 Cor 9:14; 1 Tim 5:18. Back to text.
Mt 10:14: Acts 13:51. Back to text.
Mt 10:15: Mt 11:24; Lk 10:12; Jude 7; 2 Pet 2:6. Back to text.
Mt 10:16: Lk 10:3; Gen 3:1; Rom l6:19. Back to text.
Mt 10:17–22: Mk 13:9–13; Lk 12:11–12; 21:12–19; Jn 16:2. Back to
text.
Mt 10:18: Acts 25:24–26. Back to text.
Mt 10:20: Jn 16:7–11. Back to text.
Mt 10:21: Mt 10:35–36; Lk 12:52–53. Back to text.
Mt 10:22: Jn 15:18; Mt 24:9. Back to text.
Mt 10:23: Mt 16:27; 1 Thess 4:17. Back to text.
Mt 10:24: Lk 6:40; Jn 13:16; 15:20. Back to text.
Mt 10:25: Mt 9:34; 12:24; Mk 3:22; Lk 11:15; 2 Kings 1:2. Back to text.
Mt 10:26–33: Lk 12:2–9. Back to text.
Mt 10:26: Mk 4:22; Lk 8:17; Eph 5:13. Back to text.
Mt 10:28: Heb 10:31. Back to text.
Mt 10:32: Mk 8:38; Lk 9:26; Rev 3:5; 2 Tim 2:12. Back to text.
Mt 10:34–36: Lk 12:51–53; Mt 10:21; Mk 13:12; Mic 7:6. Back to text.
Mt 10:37–39: Lk 14:25–27; 17:33; 9:23–24; Mt 16:24–25; Mk 8:34–35;
Jn 12:25. Back to text.
Mt 10:40: Lk 10:16; Jn 13:20; Gal 4:14; Mk 9:37; Mt 18:5; Lk 9:48.
Back to text.
Mt 10:42: Mk 9:41; Mt 25:40. Back to text.
Mt 11:1: Mt 7:28; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1. Back to text.
Mt 11:2–19: Lk 7:18–35. Back to text.
Mt 11:3: Mk 1:7–8; Hab 2:3; Jn 11:27. Back to text.
Mt 11:5: Is 35:5–6; 61:1; Lk 4:18–19. Back to text.
Mt 11:9: Mt 14:5; 21:26; Lk 1:76. Back to text.
Mt 11:10: Mal 3:1; Mk l:2. Back to text.
Mt 11:12–13: Lk 16:16. Back to text.
Mt 11:14: Mal 4:5; Mt 17:10–13; Jn 1:21; Lk 1:17. Back to text.
Mt 11:15: Mt 13:9, 43; Mk 4:23; Rev 13:9; 2:7. Back to text.
Mt 11:16–19: Lk 7:31–35. Back to text.
Mt 11:20–24: Lk 10:13–15. Back to text.
Mt 11:25–27: Lk 10:21–22. Back to text.
Mt 11:25: 1 Cor 1:26–29. Back to text.
Mt 11:27: Jn 3:35; 5:20; 13:3; 7:29; 10:15; 17:25; Mt 28:18. Back to
text.
Mt 11:29: Jn 13:15; Phil 2:5; 1 Pet 2:21; Jer 6:16. Back to text.
Mt 12:3: 1 Sam 21:1–6; Lev 24:9. Back to text.
Mt 12:5: Num 28:9–10. Back to text.
Mt 12:6: Mt 12:41–42; Lk 11:31–32. Back to text.
Mt 12:7: Hos 6:6; Mt 9:13. Back to text.
Mt 12:8: Jn 5:1–18; 7:19–24; 9:1–41. Back to text.
Mt 12:14: Mk 14:1; Jn 7:30; 8:59; 10:39; 11:53. Back to text.
Mt 12:18–21: Is 42:1–4. Back to text.
Mt 12:22: Mt 9:32–33. Back to text.
Mt 12:24: Mt 9:34; 10:25; Jn 7:20; 8:52; 10:20. Back to text.
Mt 12:30: Lk 11:23; Mk 9:40. Back to text.
Mt 12:31–32: Mk 3:28–30; Lk 12:10. Back to text.
Mt 12:33–35: Lk 6:43–45; Mt 7:16–20; Jas 3:11–12; Mt 15:18. Back to
text.
Mt 12:38–42: Lk 11:16, 29–32; Mk 8:11–12; Mt 16:1–4; Jn 2:18; 6:30; 1
Cor 1:22.
Mt 12:40: Jon 1:17. Back to text.
Mt 12:41: Jon 3:5. Back to text.
Mt 12:42: 1 Kings 10:1–10; 2 Chron 9:1–12. Back to text.
Mt 12:43–45: Lk 11:24–26; 2 Pet 2:20. Back to text.
Mt 12:46: Jn 2:1–12; 19:25–27; 7:1–10; Mk 6:3; 1 Cor 9:5. Back to text.
Mt 13:1–9: Mk 4:1–9; Lk 8:4–8; 5:1–3. Back to text.
Mt 13:12: Mk 4:25; Lk 8:18; Mt 25:29; Lk 19:26. Back to text.
Mt 13:14–15: Is 6:9–10; Mk 8:18; Jn 12:39–41; Acts 28:26–27. Back to
text.
Mt 13:16–17: Lk 10:23–24; Jn 8:56; Heb 11:13; 1 Pet 1:10–12. Back to
text.
Mt 13:22: Mt 19:23; 1 Tim 6:9–10, 17. Back to text.
Mt 13:24–30: Mk 4:26–29. Back to text.
Mt 13:31–32: Mk 4:30–32; Lk 13:18–19; Mt 17:20. Back to text.
Mt 13:33: Lk 13:20–21; Gal 5:9; Gen 18:6. Back to text.
Mt 13:34: Mk 4:33–34; Jn 10:6; 16:25. Back to text.
Mt 13:38: Jn 8:44; 1 Jn 3:10. Back to text.
Mt 13:42: Mt 13:50; 8:12; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Lk 13:28. Back to text.
Mt 13:47–50: Mt 13:40–42. Back to text.
Mt 13:53: Mt 7:28; 11:1; 19:1; 26:1. Back to text.
Mt 14:1–2: Mk 6:14–16; Lk 9:7–9; Mk 8:28. Back to text.
Mt 14:3–4: Mk 6:17–18; Lk 3:19–20; Lev 18:16; 20:21. Back to text.
Mt 14:5–12: Mk 6:19–29. Back to text.
Mt 14:13–21: Mk 6:32–44; Lk 9:10–17; Jn 6:1–13; Mt 15:32–38. Back
to text.
Mt 14:19: Mk 14:22; Lk 24:30. Back to text.
Mt 14:22–23: Mk 6:45–46; Jn 6:15–17. Back to text.
Mt 14:31: Mt 6:30; 8:26; 16:8. Back to text.
Mt 14:33: Mt 28:9, 17. Back to text.
Mt 14:36: Mk 3:10; Num 15:38; Mt 9:20. Back to text.
Mt 15:1–20: Mk 7:1–23. Back to text.
Mt 15:4: Ex 20:12; Deut 5:16; Ex 21:17; Lev 20:9. Back to text.
Mt 15:8–9: Is 29:13. Back to text.
Mt 15:11: Acts 10:14–15; 1 Tim 4:3. Back to text.
Mt 15:13: Is 60:21; Jn 15:2. Back to text.
Mt 15:14: Lk 6:39; Mt 23:16, 24; Rom 2:19. Back to text.
Mt 15:19: Gal 5:19–21; 1 Cor 6:9–10; Rom 14:14. Back to text.
Mt 15:21–28: Mk 7:24–30. Back to text.
Mt 15:24: Mt 10:6, 23. Back to text.
Mt 15:25: Mt 8:2; 18:26; 20:20; Jn 9:38. Back to text.
Mt 15:28: Mt 9:22, 28; Mk 10:52; Lk 7:50; 17:19. Back to text.
Mt 15:29–31: Mk 7:31–37. Back to text.
Mt 15:32–39: Mk 8:1–10; Mt 14:13–21. Back to text.
Mt 16:1–4: Mk 8:11–12; Lk 11:16, 29; 12:54–56; Mt 12:38–39; Jn 2:18;
6:30. Back to text.
Mt 16:4: Jon 3:4–5. Back to text.
Mt 16:5–12: Mk 8:13–21. Back to text.
Mt 16:8: Mt 6:30; 8:26; 14:31. Back to text.
Mt 16:10: Mt 15:34–38. Back to text.
Mt 16:14: Mt 14:2; Mk 6:15; Lk 9:7–8; Jn 1:21. Back to text.
Mt 16:16: Mt 1:16; Jn 11:27; 1:49. Back to text.
Mt 16:17: 1 Cor 15:50; Gal 1:16; Eph 6:12; Heb 2:14. Back to text.
Mt 16:18: Jn 1:40–42; 21:15–17; 1 Cor 15:5. Back to text.
Mt 16:19: Is 22:22; Rev 1:18; Mt 18:18; Jn 20:23. Back to text.
Mt 16:20: Mt 8:4; Mk 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 9:9. Back to text.
Mt 16:21–28: Mk 8:31—9:1; Lk 9:22–27. Back to text.
Mt 16:21: Mt 17:22–23; 20:17–19; Lk 17:25; Mt 17:12; 26:2. Back to
text.
Mt 16:24–26: Mt 10:38–39; Lk 14:27; 17:33; Jn 12:25. Back to text.
Mt 16:27: Mt 10:33; Lk 12:9; 1 Jn 2:28; Rom 2:6; Rev 22:12. Back to
text.
Mt 16:28: Mt 10:23; 1 Cor 16:22; 1 Thess 4:15–18; Rev 1:7; Jas 5:7.
Mt 17:1–9: Mk 9:2–10; Lk 9:28–36; 2 Pet 1:17–18. Back to text.
Mt 17:1: Mt 26:37; Mk 5:37; 13:3. Back to text.
Mt 17:5: Mt 3:17; Is 42:1; Ps 2:7; Jn 12:28. Back to text.
Mt 17:9: Mt 8:4; 16:20; Mk 3:12; 5:43; 7:36. Back to text.
Mt 17:10–13: Mk 9:11–13; Mt 11:14; Mal 4:5. Back to text.
Mt 17:12: Mt 16:21; 17:22; 20:17; 26:2; Lk 17:25. Back to text.
Mt 17:19–21: Mk 9:28–29. Back to text.
Mt 17:20: Lk 17:6; Mt 21:21.; Mk 11:22–23; 1 Cor 13:2; Mk 9:23. Back
to text.
Mt 17:22–23: Mk 9:30–32; Lk 9:43–45; Mt 16:21; 20:17–19; 26:2. Back
to text.
Mt 17:24: Ex 30:13; 38:26. Back to text.
Mt 17:25: Rom 13:7; Mt 22:17–21. Back to text.
Mt 17:27: Mt 5:29; 18:6–9; Jn 6:61; 1 Cor 8:13. Back to text.
Mt 18:3: Mk 10:15; Lk 18:17; 1 Pet 2:2. Back to text.
Mt 18:5: Mt 10:40; Lk 10:16; Jn 13:20. Back to text.
Mt 18:8–9: Mt 5:29–30; 17:27. Back to text.
Mt 18:10: Acts 12:11. Back to text.
Mt 18:12–14: Lk 15:3–7. Back to text.
Mt 18:15–17: Lk 17:3; 1 Cor 6:1–6; Gal 6:1; Jas 5:19–20; Lev 19:17;
Deut 19:15. Back to text.
Mt 18:18: Mt 16:19; Jn 20:23. Back to text.
Mt 18:19–20: Mt 7:7; 21:22; Jas 1:5–7; 1 Jn 5:14; Jn 14:13. Back to text.
Mt 18:21–22: Lk 17:4; Gen 4:24. Back to text.
Mt 19:1: Mt 7:28; 11:1; 13:53; 26:1. Back to text.
Mt 19:1–9: Mk 10:1–12. Back to text.
Mt 19:5: Gen 1:27; 2:24; Eph 5:31; 1 Cor 6:16. Back to text.
Mt 19:7: Deut 24:1–4. Back to text.
Mt 19:9: Mt 5:32; Lk 16:18; 1 Cor 7:10–13. Back to text.
Mt 19:11: 1 Cor 7:7–9. Back to text.
Mt 19:13–15: Mk 10:13–16; Lk 18:15–17; Mt 18:2–3; 1 Cor 14:20.
Back to text.
Mt 19:16: Lk 10:25; Lev 18:5. Back to text.
Mt 19:18: Ex 20:12–16; Deut 5:16–20; Rom 13:9; Jas 2:11. Back to text.
Mt 19:19: Lev 19:18; Mt 22:39. Back to text.
Mt 19:21: Lk 12:33; Acts 2:45; 4:34; Mt 6:20. Back to text.
Mt 19:26: Gen 18:14; Job 42:2. Back to text.
Mt 19:28: Lk 22:30; Mt 20:21; Rev 3:21. Back to text.
Mt 20:1: Mt 21:28, 33. Back to text.
Mt 20:8: Lev 19:13; Deut 24:15. Back to text.
Mt 20:13: Mt 22:12; 26:50. Back to text.
Mt 20:15: Mt 6:23; Mk 7:22; Deut 15:9. Back to text.
Mt 20:16: Lk 13:30; Mt 19:30; Mk 10:31. Back to text.
Mt 20:17–19: Mk 10:32–34; Lk 18:31–34; Mt 16:21; 17:12, 22–23;
26:2. Back to text.
Mt 20:20–24: Mk 10:35–41. Back to text.
Mt 20:23: Acts 12:2; Rev 1:9; Mt 13:11. Back to text.
Mt 20:26: Mt 23:11; Mk 9:35; Lk 9:48. Back to text.
Mt 20:28: Mt 26:28; 1 Tim 2:5–6; Jn 13:15–16; Tit 2:14; 1 Pet 1:18.
Back to text.
Mt 21:5: Is 62:11; Zech 9:9. Back to text.
Mt 21:8: 2 Kings 9:13. Back to text.
Mt 21:9: Ps 118:26; Lk 2:14; Mt 21:15; 23:39. Back to text.
Mt 21:11: Jn 6:14; 7:40; Acts 3:22; Mk 6:15; Lk 13:33. Back to text.
Mt 21:12–13: Mk 11:15–17; Lk 19:45–46; Jn 2:13–17; Ex 30:13; Lev
1:14. Back to text.
Mt 21:13: Is 56:7; Jer 7:11. Back to text.
Mt 21:15: Lk 19:39; Mt 21:9. Back to text.
Mt 21:20–22: Mk 11:20–24. Back to text.
Mt 21:21: Mt 17:20; Lk 17:6; 1 Cor 13:2; Jas 1:6. Back to text.
Mt 21:22: Jn 14:13–14; 16:23. Back to text.
Mt 21:26: Mt 11:9; 14:5; Lk 1:76. Back to text.
Mt 21:28: Mt 20:1; 21:33. Back to text.
Mt 21:32: Lk 7:29–30. Back to text.
Mt 21:33–46: Mk 12:1–12; Lk 20:9–19; Is 5:1–7. Back to text.
Mt 21:41: Mt 8:11; Acts 13:46; 18:6; 28:28. Back to text.
Mt 21:42: Ps 118:22–23; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:7. Back to text.
Mt 22:1–10: Lk l4:16–24. Back to text.
Mt 22:12: Mt 20:13; 26:50. Back to text.
Mt 22:13: Mt 8:12; 13:42, 50; 24:51; 25:30; Lk 13:28. Back to text.
Mt 22:15: Mk 3:6; 8:15. Back to text.
Mt 22:21: Rom 13:7. Back to text.
Mt 22:23: Acts 4:1–2; 23:6–10. Back to text.
Mt 22:32: Ex 3:6. Back to text.
Mt 22:34–40: Mk 12:28–34; Lk 20:39–40; 10:25–28. Back to text.
Mt 22:35: Lk 7:30; 11:45; 14:3. Back to text.
Mt 22:39: Lev 19:18; Mt 19:19; Gal 5:14; Rom 13:9; Jas 2:8. Back to
text.
Mt 22:44: Ps 110:1; Acts 2:34–35; Heb 1:13; 10:13. Back to text.
Mt 22:46: Mk 12:34, Lk 20:40. Back to text.
Mt 23:4: Lk 11:46; Acts 15:10. Back to text.
Mt 23:5: Mt 6:1, 5, 16; Ex 13:9; Deut 6:8; Mt 9:20. Back to text.
Mt 23:6–7: Mk 12:38–39; Lk 20:46; 14:7–11; 11:43. Back to text.
Mt 23:8: Jas 3:1. Back to text.
Mt 23:11: Mt 20:26; Mk 9:35; 10:43; Lk 9:48; 22:26. Back to text.
Mt 23:12: Lk 14:11; 18:14; Mt 18:4; 1 Pet 5:6. Back to text.
Mt 23:15: Acts 2:10; 6:5; 13:43. Back to text.
Mt 23:16–22: Mt 5:33–37; 15:14. Back to text.
Mt 23:17: Ex 30:29. Back to text.
Mt 23:21: 1 Kings 8:13; Ps 26:8. Back to text.
Mt 23:23–24: Lk 11:42; Lev 27:30; Mic 6:8. Back to text.
Mt 23:25–26: Lk 11:39–41; Mk 7:4. Back to text.
Mt 23:27–28: Lk 11:44; Acts 23:3; Ps 5:9. Back to text.
Mt 23:29–32: Lk 11:47–48; Acts 7:51–53. Back to text.
Mt 23:34–36: Lk 11:49–51; 2 Chron 36:15–16. Back to text.
Mt 23:34: Mt 10:17, 23. Back to text.
Mt 23:35: Gen 4:8; Heb 11:4; Zech 1:1; 2 Chron 24:21. Back to text.
Mt 23:36: Mt 10:23; 16:28; 24:34. Back to text.
Mt 23:37–39: Lk 13:34–35. Back to text.
Mt 23:38: 1 Kings 9:7; Jer 22:5. Back to text.
Mt 23:39: Mt 21:9; Ps 118:26. Back to text.
Mt 24:2: Mt 26:61; 27:39–40; Lk 19:44; Jn 2:19. Back to text.
Mt 24:3: Lk 17:20; Mt 13:39, 40, 49; 28:20; 16:27. Back to text.
Mt 24:5: Mt 24:11, 23–24; 1 Jn 2:18. Back to text.
Mt 24:6–7: Rev 6:3–8, 12–17; Is 19:2. Back to text.
Mt 24:9: Mt 10:17–18, 22; Jn 15:18; 15.18. Back to text.
Mt 24:13: Mt 10:22; Rev 2:7. Back to text.
Mt 24:14: Mt 28:19; Rom 10:18. Back to text.
Mt 24:15: Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11. Back to text.
Mt 24:17–18: Lk 17:31. Back to text.
Mt 24:21: Dan 12:1; Joel 2:2. Back to text.
Mt 24:26–27: Lk 17:22–24; Rev 1:7. Back to text.
Mt 24:28: Lk 17:37; Job 39:30. Back to text.
Mt 24:29: Rev 8:12; Is 13:10; Ezek 32:7; Joel 2:10–11; Zeph 1:15. Back
to text.
Mt 24:30: Mt 16:27; Dan 7:13; Rev 1:7. Back to text.
Mt 24:31: 1 Cor 15:52; 1 Thess 4:16; Is 27:13; Zech 9:14. Back to text.
Mt 24:37–39: Lk 17:26–27; Gen 6:5–8; 7:6–24. Back to text.
Mt 24:40–41: Lk 17:34–35. Back to text.
Mt 24:42: Mk 13:35; Lk 12:40; Mt 25:13. Back to text.
Mt 24:43–51: Lk 12:39–46. Back to text.
Mt 24:43: 1 Thess 5:2; Rev 3:3; 16:15; 2 Pet 3:10. Back to text.
Mt 24:45: Mt 25:21, 23. Back to text.
Mt 24:51: Mt 8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; 25:30; Lk 13:28. Back to text.
Mt 25:1: Lk 12:35–38; Mk 13:34. Back to text.
Mt 25:10: Rev 19:9. Back to text.
Mt 25:11–12: Lk 13:25; Mt 7:21–23. Back to text.
Mt 25:14–30: Lk 19:12–28. Back to text.
Mt 25:30: Mt 8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; Lk 13:28. Back to text.
Mt 25:31: Mt 16:27; 19:28. Back to text.
Mt 25:32: Ezek 34:17. Back to text.
Mt 25:34: Lk 12:32; Mt 5:3; Rev 13:8; 17:8. Back to text.
Mt 25:35–36: Is 58:7; Jas 1:27; 2:15–16; Heb 13:2; 2 Tim 1:16. Back to
text.
Mt 25:40: Mt 10:42; Mk 9:41; Heb 6:10; Prov 19:17. Back to text.
Mt 25:41: Mk 9:48; Lk 16:23; Rev 20:10. Back to text.
Mt 25:46: Dan 12:2; Jn 5:29. Back to text.
Mt 26:1: Mt 7:28; 11:1; l3:53; 19.l. Back to text.
Mt 26:6–13: Mk 14:3–9; Jn 12:1–8; Lk 7:36–38. Back to text.
Mt 26:15: Ex 21:32; Zech 11:12. Back to text.
Mt 26:18: Mt 26:45; Jn 7:6; 12:23; 13:1; 17:1. Back to text.
Mt 26:19: Mt 21:6; Deut 16:5–8. Back to text.
Mt 26:20–24: Mk 14:17–21; Lk 22.l4, 21–23; Jn 13:21–30. Back to text.
Mt 26:24: Ps 41:9; Lk 24:25; 1 Cor 15:3; Acts 17:2–3; Mt 18:7. Back to
text.
Mt 26:26–29: Mk 14:22–25; Lk 22:17–19; 1 Cor 10:16; 11:23-26; Mt
14:19; 15:36. Back to text.
Mt 26:28: Heb 9:20; Mt 20:28; Mk 1:4; Ex 24:6–8. Back to text.
Mt 26:30–35: Mk 14:26–31; Lk 22:33–34, 39; Jn 14:31; 18:1; 13:36–38.
Back to text.
Mt 26:31: Zech 13:7; Jn 16:32. Back to text.
Mt 26:32: Mt 28:7, 10, 16. Back to text.
Mt 26:38: Jn 12:27; Heb 5:7–8. Back to text.
Mt 26:39: Jn 18:11; Mt 20:22. Back to text.
Mt 26:42: Jn 4:34; 5:30; 6:38. Back to text.
Mt 26:45: Mt 26:18; Jn 12:23; 13:1; 17:1. Back to text.
Mt 26:50: Mt 20:13; 22:12. Back to text.
Mt 26:52: Gen 9:6; Rev 13:10. Back to text.
Mt 26:55: Lk 19:47; Jn 18:19–21. Back to text.
Mt 26:61: Mt 24:2; 27:40; Acts 6:14; Jn 2:19. Back to text.
Mt 26:64: Mt 16:28; Dan 7:13; Ps 110:1. Back to text.
Mt 26:65: Num 14:6; Acts 14:14; Lev 24:16. Back to text.
Mt 27:1–2: Mk 15:1; Lk 23:1; Jn 18:28. Back to text.
Mt 27:3–10: Acts 1:16–20. Back to text.
Mt 27:3: Mt 26:15; Ex 21:32. Back to text.
Mt 27:9: Zech 11:12–13; Jer 32:6–15; 18:2–3. Back to text.
Mt 27:11–26: Mk 15:2–15; Lk 23:3, 18–25; Jn 18:29–19:16. Back to
text.
Mt 27:14: Lk 23:9; Mt 26:62; Mk 14:60; 1 Tim 6:13. Back to text.
Mt 27:24: Deut 21:6–9; Ps 26:6. Back to text.
Mt 27:25: Acts 5:28; Josh 2:19. Back to text.
Mt 27:27–31: Mk 15:16–20; Lk 23:11; Jn 19:2–3. Back to text.
Mt 27:32: Mk 15:21; Lk 23:26; Jn 19:17; Heb 13:12. Back to text.
Mt 27:39: Ps 22:7–8; 109:25. Back to text.
Mt 27:40: Mt 26:61; Acts 6:14; Jn 2:19. Back to text.
Mt 27:51: Heb 9:8; 10:19; Ex 26:31–35; Mt 28:2. Back to text.
Mt 27:54: Mt 3:17; 17:5. Back to text.
Mt 27:57–61: Mk 15:42–47; Lk 23:50–56; Jn 19:38–42; Acts 13:29.
Back to text.
Mt 27:63: Mt 16:21; 17:23; 20:19. Back to text.
Mt 27:66: Mt 27:60; 28:11–15. Back to text.
Mt 28:2: Mt 27:51, 60. Back to text.
Mt 28:7: Mt 26:32; 28:16; Jn 21:1–23. Back to text.
Mt 28:9: Jn 20:14–18. Back to text.
Mt 28:11: Mt 27:62–66. Back to text.
Mt 28:16–17: 1 Cor 15:5; Jn 21:1–23. Back to text.
Mt 28:18: Mt 11:27; Lk 10:22; Phil 2:9; Eph 1:20–22. Back to text.
Mt 28:19: Lk 24:47; Acts 1:8. Back to text.
Mt 28:20: Mt 13:39, 49; 24:3; 18:20; Acts 18:10. Back to text.
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK
Mk 1:2–8: Mt 3:1–12; Lk 3:2–16; Jn 1:6, 15, 19–28. Back to text.
Mk 1:2: Mal 3:1; Mt 11:10; Lk 7:27. Back to text.
Mk 1:3: Is 40:3. Back to text.
Mk 1:4: Acts 13:24. Back to text.
Mk 1:9–11: Mt 3:13–17; Lk 3:21–22; Jn 1:29–34. Back to text.
Mk 1:11: Ps 2:7; Is 42:1. Back to text.
Mk 1:12–13: Mt 4:1–11; Lk 4:1–13. Back to text.
Mk 1:23–28: Lk 4:33–37. Back to text.
Mk 1:24: Jn 6:69. Back to text.
Mk 1:35–38: Lk 4:42–43. Back to text.
Mk 1:39: Mt 4:23–25; Lk 4:44. Back to text.
Mk 1:44: Lev 13:49; 14:2–32. Back to text.
Mk 2:12: Mt 9:33. Back to text.
Mk 2:20: Lk 17:22. Back to text.
Mk 2:23: Deut 23:25. Back to text.
Mk 2:26: 1 Sam 21:1–6; 2 Sam 8:17. Back to text.
Mk 2:27: Ex 23:12; Deut 5:14. Back to text.
Mk 3:6: Mk 12:13. Back to text.
Mk 3:7–12: Mt 4:24–25; 12:15–16; Lk 6:17–19. Back to text.
Mk 3:10: Mk 5:29, 34; 6:56. Back to text.
Mk 3:13: Mt 5:1; Lk 6:12. Back to text.
Mk 3:14–15: Mt 10:1. Back to text.
Mk 3:16–19: Mt 10:2–4; Lk 6:14–16; Acts 1:13. Back to text.
Mk 3:19: Mk 2:1; 7:17. Back to text.
Mk 3:21: Mk 3:31–35; Jn 10:20. Back to text.
Mk 3:22: Mt 9:34; 10:25. Back to text.
Mk 3:27: Is 49:24–25. Back to text.
Mk 3:28–30: Mt 12:31–32; Lk 12:10. Back to text.
Mk 4:11: 1 Cor 5:12–13; Col 4:5; 1 Thess 4:12; 1 Tim 3:7. Back to text.
Mk 4:12: Is 6:9–10. Back to text.
Mk 4:21: Mt 5:15; Lk 8:16; 11:33. Back to text.
Mk 4:22: Mt 10:26; Lk 8:17; 12:2. Back to text.
Mk 4:23: Mt 11:15; Mk 4:9. Back to text.
Mk 4:25: Mt 13:12; 25:29; Lk 8:18; 19:26. Back to text.
Mk 4:26–29: Mt 13:24–30. Back to text.
Mk 4:34: Mt 13:34; Jn 16:25. Back to text.
Mk 4:35–41: Mt 8:18, 23–27; Lk 8:22–25. Back to text.
Mk 5:7: Acts 16:17; Heb 7:1; Mk 1:24. Back to text.
Mk 5:22: Lk 13:14; Acts 13:15; 18:8, 17. Back to text.
Mk 5:23: Mk 6:5; 7:32; 8:23; Acts 9:17; 28:8. Back to text.
Mk 5:34: Lk 7:50; Mk 10:52. Back to text.
Mk 5:37: Mk 9:2; 13:3. Back to text.
Mk 5:41: Lk 7:14; Acts 9:40. Back to text.
Mk 5:43: Mk 1:43–44; 7:36. Back to text.
Mk 6:2: Mk 1:21; Mt 7:28. Back to text.
Mk 6:5: Mk 5:23; 7:32; 8:23. Back to text.
Mk 6:7–11: Mt 10:1, 5, 7–11; Lk 9:1–5. Back to text.
Mk 6:12–13: Mt 11:1; Lk 9:6. Back to text.
Mk 6:13: Jas 5:14. Back to text.
Mk 6:14–16: Mt 14:1–2; Lk 9:7–9; 9:19; Mt 21:11. Back to text.
Mk 6:19–29: Mt 14:5–12. Back to text.
Mk 6:23: Esther 5:3, 6. Back to text.
Mk 6:30–31: Lk 9:10; Mk 3:20. Back to text.
6:32–44: Mt 14:13–21; Lk 9:11–17; Jn 6:5–13; Mk 8:1–10; Mt 15:32–
39.
Mk 6:37: 2 Kings 4:42–44. Back to text.
Mk 6:41: Mk 14:22; Lk 24:30–31. Back to text.
Mk 6:45–52: Mt 14:22–33; Jn 6:15–21. Back to text.
Mk 6:53–56: Mt 14:34–36. Back to text.
Mk 6:56: Mk 3:10; Mt 9:20. Back to text.
Mk 7:5: Gal 1:14. Back to text.
Mk 7:6–7: Is 29:13. Back to text.
Mk 7:10: Ex 20:12; Deut 5:16; Ex 21:17; Lev 20:9. Back to text.
Mk 7:17–23: Mt 15:15–20; Mk 4:10. Back to text.
Mk 7:18–19: 1 Cor 10:25–27; Rom 14:14; Tit 1:15; Acts 10:15.
Mk 7:20–23: Rom 1:28–31; Gal 5:19–21. Back to text.
Mk 7:22: Mt 6:23; 20:15. Back to text.
Mk 7:24–30: Mt 15:21–28. Back to text.
Mk 7:31–37: Mt 15:29–31. Back to text.
Mk 7:36: Mk 1:44; 5:43. Back to text.
Mk 8:1–10: Mt 15:32–39; Mk 6:32–44; Mt 14:13–21; Lk 9:11–17; Jn
Mk 8:11–12: Mt 16:1–4; 12:38–39; Lk 11:29. Back to text.
Mk 8:13–21: Mt 16:4–12. Back to text.
Mk 8:15: Lk 12:1; Mk 6:14; 12:13. Back to text.
Mk 8:17: Mk 6:52; Jer 5:21; Is 6:9–10; Mt 13:10–15. Back to text.
Mk 8:19: Mk 6:41–44. Back to text.
Mk 8:22–26: Mk 10:46–52; Jn 9:1–7. Back to text.
Mk 8:22: Mk 6:45; Lk 9:10. Back to text.
Mk 8:23: Mk 7:33; 5:23. Back to text.
Mk 8:30: Mk 9:9; 1:34. Back to text.
Mk 8:31—9:1: Mt 16:21–28; Lk 9:22–27. Back to text.
Mk 8:35: Mt 10:39; Lk 17:33; Jn 12:25. Back to text.
Mk 9:1: Mk 13:30; Mt 10:23; Lk 22:18. Back to text.
Mk 9:2: Mk 5:37; 13:3. Back to text.
Mk 9:7: 2 Pet 1:17–18; Mt 3:17; Jn 12:28–29. Back to text.
Mk 9:9: Mk 8:30; 5:43; 7:36. Back to text.
Mk 9:12: Mk 8:31; 9:31; 10:33. Back to text.
Mk 9:23: Mt 17:20; Lk 17:6; Mk 11:22–24. Back to text.
Mk 9:31: Mk 8:31; 10:33. Back to text.
Mk 9:35: Mk 10:43–44; Mt 20:26–27; 23:11; Lk 22:26. Back to text.
Mk 9:37: Mt 10:40; Lk 10:16; Jn 12:44; 13:20. Back to text.
Mk 9:38–40: Lk 9:49–50; 11:23; Mt 12:30; Num 11:27–29. Back to text.
Mk 9:42–48: Mt 18:6–9; 5:29–30; Lk 17:1–2. Back to text.
Mk 9:48: Is 66:24. Back to text.
Mk 9:49–50: Mt 5:13; Lk 14:34–35. Back to text.
Mk 9:50: Col 4:6; 1 Thess 5:13. Back to text.
Mk 10:1–12: Mt 19:1–9. Back to text.
Mk 10:1: Lk 9:51; Jn 10:40; 11:7. Back to text.
Mk 10:4: Deut 24:1–4. Back to text.
Mk 10:6: Gen 1:27; 5:2. Back to text.
Mk 10:7–8: Gen 2:24. Back to text.
Mk 10:11: Mt 5:32; Lk 16:18; 1 Cor 7:10–11; Rom 7:2–3. Back to text.
Mk 10:13–16: Mt 19:13–15; 18:3; Lk 18:15–17. Back to text.
Mk 10:17: Lk 10:25; Mk 1:40. Back to text.
Mk 10:19: Ex 20:12–16; Deut 5:16–20. Back to text.
Mk 10:21: Mt 6:20; Lk 12:33; Acts 2:45; 4:34–35. Back to text.
Mk 10:33: Mk 8:31; 9:12; 9:33. Back to text.
Mk 10:34: Mk 14:65; 15:19, 26–32. Back to text.
Mk 10:35–45: Mt 20:20–28. Back to text.
Mk 10:38: Lk 12:50; Jn 18:11. Back to text.
Mk 10:39: Acts 12:2; Rev 1:9. Back to text.
Mk 10:42–45: Lk 22:25–27. Back to text.
Mk 10:45: 1 Tim 2:5–6. Back to text.
Mk 10:46–52: Mt 20:29–34; Lk 18:35–43; Mk 8:22–26. Back to text.
Mk 10:52: Mt 9:22; Mk 5:34; Lk 7:50; 8:48; 17:19. Back to text.
Mk 11:7–10: Jn 12:12–15. Back to text.
Mk 11:9: Ps 118:26; Mt 21:15; 23:39. Back to text.
Mk 11:11: Mt 21:10–11, 17. Back to text.
Mk 11:17: Is 56:7; Jer 7:11. Back to text.
Mk 11:20–25: Mt 21:20–22; Mt 17:20; Lk 17:6. Back to text.
Mk 11:24: Jn 14:13–14; 16:23; Mt 7:7–11. Back to text.
Mk 11:25: Mt 6:14–15; 18:35. Back to text.
Mk 11:27–33: Mt 21:23–27; Lk 20:1–8; Jn 2:18. Back to text.
Mk 12:1–12: Mt 21:33–46; Lk 20:9–19; Is 5:1–7. Back to text.
Mk 12:10–11: Ps 118:22–23; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:7. Back to text.
Mk 12:13: Mk 3:6; Lk 11:54. Back to text.
Mk 12:17: Rom 13:7. Back to text.
Mk 12:26: Ex 3:6. Back to text.
Mk 12:28–34: Mt 22:34–40; Lk 20:39–40; 10:25–28. Back to text.
Mk 12:31: Lev 19:18; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; Jas 2:8. Back to text.
Mk 12:33: 1 Sam 15:22; Hos 6:6; Mic 6:6–8; Mt 9:13. Back to text.
Mk 12:36: Ps 110:1; Acts 2:34–35; Heb 1:13. Back to text.
Mk 12:38–40: Mt 23:5–7; Lk 20:46–47; Lk 11:43. Back to text.
Mk 12:41–44: Lk 21:1–4; Jn 8:20. Back to text.
Mk 13:1–37: Mt 24; Lk 21:5–36. Back to text.
Mk 13:2: Lk 19:43–44; Mk 14:58; 15:29; Jn 2:19; Acts 6:14. Back to
text.
Mk 13:3: Mk 5:37; 9:2. Back to text.
Mk 13:6: Jn 8:24; 1 Jn 2:18. Back to text.
Mk 13:9–13: Mt 10:17–22. Back to text.
Mk 13:11: Jn 14:26; 16:7–11; Lk 12:11–12. Back to text.
Mk 13:13: Jn 15:21 Back to text.
Mk 13:14: Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11. Back to text.
Mk 13:22: Mt 7:15; Jn 4:48. Back to text.
Mk 13:26: Mk 8:38; Mt 10:23; Dan 7:13. Back to text.
Mk 13:33: Eph 6:18; Col 4:2. Back to text.
Mk 13:35: Lk 12:35–40. Back to text.
14:17–21: Mt 26:20–25; Lk 22:14, 21–23; Jn 13:21–30; Ps 41:9.
Mk 14:22–25: Mt 26:26–29; Lk 22:17–19; 1 Cor 11:23–26. Back to text.
Mk 14:22: Mk 6:41; 8:6; Lk 24:30. Back to text.
Mk 14:23: 1 Cor 10:16. Back to text.
Mk 14:24: Ex 24:8; Heb 9:20 Back to text.
Mk 14:26–31: Mt 26:30–35; Lk 22:39, 33–34. Back to text.
Mk 14:27: Zech 13:7; Jn 16:32. Back to text.
Mk 14:30: Mk 14:66–72; Jn 13:36–38; 18:17–18, 25–27. Back to text.
Mk 14:32–42: Mt 26:36–46; Lk 22:40–46; Heb 5:7–8. Back to text.
Mk 14:36: Rom 8:15; Gal 4:6; Mk 10:38; Jn 18:11. Back to text.
Mk 14:49: Lk 19:47; Jn 18:19–21. Back to text.
Mk 14:53–65: Mt 26:57–68; Lk 22:54–55, 63–71; Jn 18:12–24. Back to
text.
Mk 14:58: Mk 13:2; 15:29; Acts 6:14; Jn 2:19. Back to text.
Mk 14:62: Dan 7:13; Mk 9:1; 13:26. Back to text.
Mk 14:63: Acts 14:14; Num 14:6. Back to text.
Mk 14:64: Lev 24:16. Back to text.
Mk 14:66–72: Mt 26:69–75; Lk 22:56–62; Jn 18:16–18, 25–27; Mk
14:30.
Mk 15:1: Mt 27:1–2; Lk 23:1; Jn 18:28. Back to text.
Mk 15:2–15: Mt 27:11–26; Lk 23:2–3, 18–25; Jn 18:29—19:16. Back to
text.
Mk 15:16–20: Mt 27:27–31; Lk 23:11; Jn 19:2–3. Back to text.
Mk 15:21: Mt 27:32; Lk 23:26; Rom 16:13. Back to text.
Mk 15:24: Ps 22:18. Back to text.
Mk 15:29: Mk 13:2; 14:58; Jn 2:19. Back to text.
Mk 15:31: Ps 22:7–8. Back to text.
Mk 15:38: Heb 10:19–20. Back to text.
Mk 15:39: Mk 1:11; 9:7. Back to text.
Mk 15:41: Lk 8:1–3. Back to text.
Mk 15:42–47: Mt 27:57–61; Lk 23:50–56; Jn 19:38–42; Acts 13:29.
Mk 15:42: Deut 21:22–23. Back to text.
Mk 16:1: Lk 23:56; Jn 19:39. Back to text.
Mk 16:7: Mk 14:28; Jn 21:1–23; Mt 28:7. Back to text.
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE
Lk 1:2: 1 Jn 1:1; Acts 1:21; Heb 2:3. Back to text.
Lk 1:3: Acts 1:1. Back to text.
Lk 1:4: Jn 20:31. Back to text.
Lk 1:5: Mt 2:1; 1 Chron 24:10; 2 Chron 31:2. Back to text.
Lk 1:9: Ex 30:7. Back to text.
Lk 1:11: Lk 2:9; Acts 5:19. Back to text.
Lk 1:13: Lk 1:30, 60. Back to text.
Lk 1:15: Num 6:3; Lk 7:33. Back to text.
Lk 1:17: Mt 11:14; 17:13; Mal 4:5. Back to text.
Lk 1:18: Lk 1:34. Back to text.
Lk 1:19: Dan 8:16; 9:21; Mt 18:10. Back to text.
Lk 1:25: Gen 30:23; Is 4:1. Back to text.
Lk 1:31: Lk 2:21; Mt 1:21. Back to text.
Lk 1:33: Mt 28:18; Dan 2:44. Back to text.
Lk 1:35: Mt 1:20. Back to text.
Lk 1:37: Gen 18:14. Back to text.
Lk 1:42: Lk 11:27–28. Back to text.
Lk 1:46–55: 1 Sam 2:1–10. Back to text.
Lk 1:47: 1 Tim 2:3; Tit 2:10; Jude 25. Back to text.
Lk 1:55: Mic 7:20; Gen 17:7; 18:18; 22:17. Back to text.
Lk 1:59: Lev 12:3; Gen 17:12. Back to text.
Lk 1:76: Lk 7:26; Mal 4:5. Back to text.
Lk 1:77: Mk 1:4. Back to text.
Lk 1:78: Mal 4:2; Eph 5:14. Back to text.
Lk 1:79: Is 9:2; Mt 4:16. Back to text.
Lk 1:80: Lk 2:40; 2:52. Back to text.
Lk 2:11: Jn 4:42; Acts 5:31; Mt 16:16; Acts 2:36. Back to text.
Lk 2:12: 1 Sam 2:34; 2 Kings 19:29; Is 7:14. Back to text.
Lk 2:14: Lk 19:38; 3:22. Back to text.
Lk 2:21: Lk 1:59, 31; Mt 1:25. Back to text.
Lk 2:22–24: Lev 12:2–8. Back to text.
Lk 2:23: Ex 13:2, 12. Back to text.
Lk 2:25: Lk 2:38; 23:51. Back to text.
Lk 2:30: Is 52:10; Lk 3:6. Back to text.
Lk 2:32: Is 42:6; 49:6; Acts 13:47; 26:23. Back to text.
Lk 2:36: Acts 21:9; Josh 19:24; 1 Tim 5:9. Back to text.
Lk 2:40: Judg 13:24; 1 Sam 2:26. Back to text.
Lk 2:41: Deut 16:1–8; Ex 23:15. Back to text.
Lk 2:48: Mk 3:31–35. Back to text.
Lk 2:52: Lk 1:80; 2:40. Back to text.
Lk 3:1: Lk 23:1; 9:7; 13:31; 23:7. Back to text.
Lk 3:2: Jn 18:13; Acts 4:6; Mt 26:3; Jn 11:49. Back to text.
Lk 3:3–9: Mt 3:1–10; Mk 1:1–5; Jn 1:6, 23. Back to text.
Lk 3:4–6: Is 40:3–5. Back to text.
Lk 3:7: Mt 12:34; 23:33. Back to text.
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Lk 3:8: Jn 8:33, 39. Back to text.
Lk 3:9: Mt 7:19; Heb 6:7–8. Back to text.
Lk 3:15: Acts 13:25; Jn 1:19–22. Back to text.
Lk 3:16–18: Mt 3:11–12; Mk 1:7–8; Jn 1:26–27, 33; Acts 1:5; 11:16;
19:4. Back to text.
Lk 3:19–20: Mt 14:3–4; Mk 6:17–18. Back to text.
Lk 3:21–22: Mt 3:13–17; Mk 1:9–11; Jn 1:29–34. Back to text.
Lk 3:21: Lk 5:16; 6:12; 9:18; 9:28; 11:1; Mk 1:35. Back to text.
Lk 3:22: Ps 2:7; Is 42:1; Lk 9:35; Acts 10:38; 2 Pet 1:17. Back to text.
Lk 3:23–38: Mt 1:1–17; Gen 5:3–32; 11:10–26; Ruth 4:18–22; 1 Chron
1:1–4, 24–28; 2:1–15. Back to text.
Lk 3:23: Jn 8:57; Lk 1:27. Back to text.
Lk 4:2: Deut 9:9; 1 Kings 19:8. Back to text.
Lk 4:4: Deut 8:3. Back to text.
Lk 4:6: 1 Jn 5:19. Back to text.
Lk 4:10–11: Ps 91:11–12. Back to text.
Lk 4:14: Mt 4:12; Mk 1:14; Mt 9:26; Lk 4:37. Back to text.
Lk 4:15: Mt 4:23; 9:35; 11:1. Back to text.
Lk 4:16–30: Mt 13:53–58; Mk 6:1–6; Acts 13:14–16. Back to text.
Lk 4:18–19: Is 61:1–2. Back to text.
Lk 4:22: Jn 6:42; 7:15. Back to text.
Lk 4:23: Mk 1:21; 2:1; Jn 4:46. Back to text.
Lk 4:25: 1 Kings 17:1, 8–16; 18:1; Jas 5:17–18. Back to text.
Lk 4:27: 2 Kings 5:1–14. Back to text.
Lk 4:29: Acts 7:58; Num 15:35. Back to text.
Lk 4:30: Jn 8:59; 10:39. Back to text.
Lk 4:31–37: Mk 1:21–28. Back to text.
Lk 4:32: Mt 7:28; 13:54; 22:33; Mk 11:18; Jn 7:46. Back to text.
Lk 4:37: Lk 4:14; 5:15; Mt 9:26. Back to text.
Lk 4:42–43: Mk 1:35–38. Back to text.
Lk 4:44: Mt 4:23; Mk 1:39; Mt 9:35. Back to text.
Lk 5:1–11: Mt 4:18–22; Mk 1:16–20; Jn 1:40–42; 21:1–19. Back to text.
Lk 5:3: Mt 13:1–2; Mk 4:1. Back to text.
Lk 5:5: Lk 8:24, 45; 9:33, 49; 17:13. Back to text.
Lk 5:12–16: Mt 8:1–4; Mk 1:40–45; Lk 17:11–19. Back to text.
Lk 5:14: Lev 13:49; 14:2–32. Back to text.
Lk 5:15: Lk 4:14, 37; Mt 9:26. Back to text.
Lk 5:16: Lk 3:21; 6:12; 9:18, 28; 11:1. Back to text.
Lk 5:17: Mt 15:1; Mk 5:30; Lk 6:19. Back to text.
Lk 5:32: 1 Tim 1:15. Back to text.
Lk 5:33: Lk 7:18; 11:1; Jn 3:25–26. Back to text.
Lk 5:35: Lk 9:22; 17:22. Back to text.
Lk 6:2: Ex 20:10; 23:12; Deut 5:14. Back to text.
Lk 6:3: 1 Sam 21:1–6. Back to text.
Lk 6:4: Lev 24:9. Back to text.
Lk 6:12–16: Mk 3:13–19; Mt 10:2–4; Acts 1:13. Back to text.
Lk 6:12: Lk 3:21; 5:16; 9:18, 28; 11:1. Back to text.
Lk 6:17–19: Mt 5:1–2; 4:24–25; Mk 3:7–12. Back to text.
Lk 6:19: Mk 3:10; Mt 9:21; 14:36; Lk 5:17. Back to text.
Lk 6:20–23: Mt 5:3–12. Back to text.
Lk 6:22: 1 Pet 4:14; Jn 9:22; 16:2. Back to text.
Lk 6:24–26: Lk 10:13–15; 11:38–52; 17:1; 21:23; 22:22. Back to text.
Lk 6:24: Lk 16:25; Jas 5:1–5; Mt 6:2. Back to text.
Lk 6:27–30: Mt 5:39–44; Rom 12:17; 1 Cor 6:7. Back to text.
Lk 6:32–36: Mt 5:44–48. Back to text.
Lk 6:37–38: Mt 7:1–2; Rom 2:1. Back to text.
Lk 6:38: Mk 4:24; Acts 20:35. Back to text.
Lk 6:40: Mt 10:24–25; Jn 13:16; 15:20. Back to text.
Lk 6:41–42: Mt 7:3–5. Back to text.
Lk 6:43–45: Mt 7:18–19; 12:33–35; Jas 3:11–12. Back to text.
Lk 6:47–49: Mt 7:24–27; Jas 1:22–25. Back to text.
Lk 7:1–10: Mt 8:5–10, 13; Jn 4:46–53. Back to text.
Lk 7:11–17: Mk 5:21–24, 35–43; Jn 11:1–44; 1 Kings 17:17–24; 2 Kings
Lk 7:13: Lk 7:19; 10:1; 11:39; 12:42; 13:15; 17:5–6; 18:6; 19:8; 22:61;
24:3. Back to text.
Lk 7:16: Lk 7:39; 24:19; Mt 21:11; Jn 6:14. Back to text.
Lk 7:18–35: Mt 11:2–19. Back to text.
Lk 7:21: Mt 4:23; Mk 3:10. Back to text.
Lk 7:22: Is 29:18–19; 35:5–6; 61:1; Lk 4:18–19. Back to text.
Lk 7:27: Mal 3:1; Mk 1:2. Back to text.
Lk 7:29–30: Mt 21:32; Lk 3:12. Back to text.
Lk 7:34: Lk 5:29; 15:1–2; 7:36–50. Back to text.
Lk 7:36: Lk 11:37; 14:1. Back to text.
Lk 7:39: Lk 7:16; 24:19; Mt 21:11; Jn 6:14. Back to text.
Lk 8:1–3: Lk 4:15; Mk 15:40–41; Mt 27:55–56; Lk 23:49. Back to text.
Lk 8:9–10: Mt 13:10–13; Mk 4:10–12; Is 6:9–10; Jer 5:21; Ezek 12:2.
Back to text.
Lk 8:11: 1 Thess 2:13; 1 Pet 1:23. Back to text.
Lk 8:16: Mk 4:21; Mt 5:15; Lk 11:33. Back to text.
Lk 8:17: Mk 4:22–23; Mt 10:26–27; Lk 12:2–3; Eph 5:13. Back to text.
Lk 8:18: Mk 4:24–25; Mt 13:12; 25:29; Lk 19:26. Back to text.
Lk 8:21: Lk 11:28; Jn 15:14. Back to text.
Lk 8:22–25: Mt 8:23–27; Mk 4:35–41; 6:47–52; Jn 6:16–21. Back to
text.
Lk 8:24: Lk 5:5; 8:45; 9:33, 49; 17:13. Back to text.
Lk 8:28: Mk 1:24; Jn 2:4. Back to text.
Lk 8:46: Lk 5:17; 6:19. Back to text.
Lk 8:48: Mt 9:22; Lk 7:50; 17:19; 18:42. Back to text.
Lk 8:56: Mt 8:4; Mk 3:12; 7:36; Lk 9:21. Back to text.
Lk 9:1–6: Mt 10:1, 5, 7–11, 14; Mk 6:7–12; Lk 10:4–11. Back to text.
Lk 9:7–9: Mt 14:1–2; Mk 6:14–16; Lk 9:19. Back to text.
Lk 9:10: Mk 6:30–31; Lk 10:17; Jn 1:44. Back to text.
Lk 9:11–17: Mt 14:13–21; Mk 6:32–44; Jn 6:1–14; Mk 8:4–10. Back to
text.
Lk 9:16: Lk 22:19; 24:30–31; Acts 2:42; 20:11; 27:35. Back to text.
Lk 9:18–21: Mt 16:13–20; Mk 8:27–30; Jn 1:49; 11:27; 6:66–69. Back
to text.
Lk 9:18: Lk 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:28; 11:1. Back to text.
Lk 9:19: Lk 9:9; Mk 9:11–13. Back to text.
Lk 9:22: Mt 16:21; Mk 8:31; Lk 9:43–45; 18:31–34; 17:25. Back to text.
Lk 9:23–27: Mt 16:24–28; Mk 8:34–9:1. Back to text.
Lk 9:24–25: Mt 10:38–39; Lk 14:27; 17:33; Jn 12:25. Back to text.
Lk 9:26: Mt 10:33; Lk 12:9; 1 Jn 2:28. Back to text.
Lk 9:27: Lk 22:18; Mt 10:23; 1 Thess 4:15–18; Jn 21:22. Back to text.
Lk 9:28–36: Mt 17:1–8; Mk 9:2–8; 2 Pet 1:17–18. Back to text.
Lk 9:28: Lk 8:51; 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18; 11:1. Back to text.
Lk 9:30: Acts 1:9–11. Back to text.
Lk 9:33: Lk 5:5; 8:24, 45; 9:49; 17:13. Back to text.
9:35: Lk 3:22; Jn 12:28–30.
Lk 9:36: Mt 17:9; Mk 9:9–10. Back to text.
Lk 9:43–45: Mt 17:22–23; Mk 9:30–32; Lk 9:22; 18:31–34; 17:25. Back
to text.
Lk 9:49–50: Mk 9:38–40; Lk 11:23. Back to text.
Lk 9:49: Lk 5:5; 8:24, 45; 9:33; 17:13. Back to text.
Lk 9:51–56: Mk 10:1; Lk 17:11; Jn 4:40–42. Back to text.
Lk 9:52: Mt 10:5; Jn 4:4. Back to text.
Lk 9:54: Mk 3:17; 2 Kings 1:9–16. Back to text.
Lk 9:57–60: Mt 8:19–22. Back to text.
Lk 9:61: 1 Kings 19:20; Phil 3:13. Back to text.
Lk 10:1: Lk 9:1–2, 51–52; 7:13. Back to text.
Lk 10:2: Mt 9:37–38; Jn 4:35. Back to text.
Lk 10:3–12: Mt 10:7–16; Mk 6:8–11; Lk 9:2–5; 22:35–36. Back to text.
Lk 10:5: 1 Sam 25:6. Back to text.
Lk 10:7: 1 Cor 10:27; 9:14; 1 Tim 5:18; Deut 24:15. Back to text.
Lk 10:12: Mt 11:24; Gen 19:24–28; Jude 7. Back to text.
Lk 10:13–15: Mt 11:21–23; Lk 6:24–26. Back to text.
Lk 10:16: Mt 10:40; 18:5; Mk 9:37; Lk 9:48; Jn 13:20; 12:48. Back to
text.
Lk 10:18: Rev 12:9; Jn 12:31. Back to text.
Lk 10:20: Ex 32:32; Ps 69:28; Dan 12:1; Phil 4:3; Heb 12:23; Rev 3:5;
13:8; 21:27. Back to text.
Lk 10:21–22: Mt 11:25–27. Back to text.
Lk 10:21 1 Cor 1:26–29. Back to text.
Lk 10:22: Mt 28:18; Jn 3:35; 13:3; 10:15; 17:25. Back to text.
Lk 10:23–24: Mt 13:16–17; Jn 8:56; Heb 11:13; 1 Pet 1:10–12. Back to
text.
Lk 10:25: Mk 10:17; Mt 19:16; Lk 18:18. Back to text.
Lk 10:27: Deut 6:5; Lev 19:18; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; Jas 2:8. Back to
text.
Lk 10:28: Lk 20:39; Lev 18:5. Back to text.
Lk 10:33: Lk 9:51–56; 17:11–19; Jn 4:4–42. Back to text.
Lk 10:38–42: Jn 12:1–3; 11:1–45. Back to text.
Lk 11:1: Mk 1:35; Lk 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18, 28; 5:33; 7:18. Back to text.
Lk 11:2–4: Mt 6:9–13. Back to text.
Lk 11:4: Mk 11:25; Mt 18:35. Back to text.
Lk 11:5–8: Lk 18:1–8. Back to text.
Lk 11:9–13: Mt 7:7–11. Back to text.
Lk 11:9: Mt 18:19; 21:22; Mk 11:24; Jas 1:5–8; 1 Jn 5:14–15; Jn 15:7;
Lk 11:14–23: Mt 12:22–30; 10:25; Mk 3:23–27. Back to text.
Lk 11:14–15: Mt 9:32–34. Back to text.
Lk 11:16: Mt 12:38; 16:1; Mk 8:11; Jn 2:18; 6:30. Back to text.
Lk 11:24–26: Mt 12:43–45. Back to text.
Lk 11:27: Lk 1:42; 23:29. Back to text.
Lk 11:28: Lk 8:21; Jn 15:14. Back to text.
Lk 11:29–32: Mt 12:39–42. Back to text.
Lk 11:29: Mt 16:4; Mk 8:12; Lk 11:16; Jon 3:4–5. Back to text.
Lk 11:31: 1 Kings 10:1–10; 2 Chron 9:1–12. Back to text.
Lk 11:34–35: Mt 6:22–23. Back to text.
Lk 11:37: Lk 7:36; 14:1. Back to text.
Lk 11:38: Mk 7:1–5. Back to text.
Lk 11:39–41: Mt 23:25–26. Back to text.
Lk 11:41: Tit 1:15; Mk 7:19. Back to text.
Lk 11:42: Mt 23:23–24; Lev 27:30; Mic 6:8. Back to text.
Lk 11:43: Mt 23:6–7; Mk 12:38–39; Lk 20:46. Back to text.
Lk 11:47–48: Mt 23:29–32; Acts 7:51–53. Back to text.
Lk 11:49–51: Mt 23:34–36. Back to text.
Lk 11:49: 1 Cor 1:24; Col 2:3. Back to text.
Lk 11:51: Gen 4:8; 2 Chron 24:20–21; Zech 1:1. Back to text.
Lk 11:53–54: Mk 12:13. Back to text.
Lk 12:2–3: Mt 10:26–27; Mk 4:22; Lk 8:17; Eph 5:13. Back to text.
Lk 12:4: Jn 15:14–15. Back to text.
Lk 12:4–9: Mt 10:28–33. Back to text.
Lk 12:5: Heb 10:31. Back to text.
Lk 12:7: Lk 21:18; Acts 27:34; Mt 12:12. Back to text.
Lk 12:9: Mk 8:38; Lk 9:26; 2 Tim 2:12. Back to text.
Lk 12:10: Mt 12.31–32; Mk 3:28–29. Back to text.
Lk 12:11–12: Mt 10:19–20; Mk 13:11; Lk 2l:14–15. Back to text.
Lk 12:15: 1 Tim 6:6–10. Back to text.
Lk 12:20: Jer 17:11; Job 27:8; Ps 39:6; Lk 12:33–34. Back to text.
Lk 12:22–31: Mt 6:25–33. Back to text.
12:24: Lk 12:6–7. Back to text.
Lk 12:32: Jn 21:15–17. Back to text.
Lk 12:33–34: Mt 6:19–21; Lk 18:22. Back to text.
Lk 12:35: Eph 6:14; Mt 25:1–13; Mk 13:33–37. Back to text.
Lk 12:37: Jn 13:3–5; Mt 24:42; Lk 21:36. Back to text.
Lk 12:39–40: Mt 24:43–44; 1 Thess 5:2; Rev 3:3; 16:15; 2 Pet 3:10.
Back to text.
Lk 12:42–46: Mt 24:45–51. Back to text.
Lk 12:47–48: Deut 25:2–3; Num 15:29–30; Lk 8:18; 19:26. Back to text.
Lk 12:50: Mk 10:38–39; Jn 12:27. Back to text.
Lk 12:51–53: Mt 10:34–36; Lk 21:16; Mic 7:6. Back to text.
Lk 12:54–56: Mt 16:2–3. Back to text.
Lk 12:57–59: Mt 5:25–26. Back to text.
Lk 13:6–9: Mt 21:18–20; Mk 11:12–14, 20–21. Back to text.
Lk 13:7: Mt 3:10; 7:19; Lk 3:9. Back to text.
Lk 13:14: Ex 20:9–10; Lk 6:6–11; 14:1–6; Jn 5:1–18. Back to text.
Lk 13:15: Lk 7:13; 14:5; Mt 12:11. Back to text.
Lk 13:20–21: Mt 13:33. Back to text.
Lk 13:22: Lk 9:51; 17:11; 18:31; 19:11. Back to text.
Lk 13:23–24: Mt 7:13–14; Jn 10:7. Back to text.
Lk 13:25: Mt 25:10–12. Back to text.
Lk 13:26–27: Mt 7:21–23; 25:41; Lk 6:46. Back to text.
Lk 13:28–29: Mt 8:11–12. Back to text.
Lk 13:32: Heb 2:10; 7:28. Back to text.
Lk 13:34–35: Mt 23:37–39; Lk 19:41. Back to text.
Lk 13:35: Jer 22:5; Ps 118:26; Lk 19:38. Back to text.
Lk 14:1: Lk 7:36; 11:37; Mk 3:2. Back to text.
14:5: Mt 12:11; Lk 13:15. Back to text.
Lk 14:8: Prov 25:6–7; Lk 11:43; 20:46. Back to text.
Lk 14:11: Mt 23:12; Lk 18.14; Mt 18:4; 1 Pet 5:6. Back to text.
Lk 14:12: Jas 2:2–4. Back to text.
Lk 14:15: Rev 19:9. Back to text.
Lk 14:16–24: Mt 22:1–10. Back to text.
Lk 14:20: Deut 24:5; 1 Cor 7:33. Back to text.
Lk 14:26–27: Mt 10:37–38. Back to text.
Lk 14:33: Lk 18:29–30; Phil 3:7. Back to text.
Lk 14:34–35: Mt 5:13; Mk 9:49–50; Mt 11:15. Back to text.
Lk 15:1–2: Lk 5:29–30; 19:7. Back to text.
Lk 15:4–7: Mt 18:10–14. Back to text.
Lk 15:7: Jas 5:20; Lk 19:10; 15:10. Back to text.
Lk 15:12: Deut 21:15–17. Back to text.
Lk 15:22: Gen 41:42; Zech 3:4. Back to text.
Lk 15:24: 1 Tim 5:6; Eph 2:1; Lk 9:60. Back to text.
Lk 16:8: 1 Thess 5:5; Eph 5:8; Lk 20:34; Jn 12:36. Back to text.
Lk 16:9: Lk 12:33; 18:22. Back to text.
Lk 16:10: Mt 25:21; Lk 19:17. Back to text.
Lk 16:15: 1 Sam 16:7; Prov 21:2; Acts 1:24; Lk 10:29. Back to text.
Lk 16:16: Mt 11:12–13. Back to text.
Lk 16:17: Mt 5:17–18; Lk 21:33. Back to text.
Lk 16:18: Mt 5:31–32; 19:9; Mk 10:11–12; 1 Cor 7:10–11. Back to text.
Lk 16:20: Jn 11:1–44; 12:1, 9. Back to text.
Lk 16:29: Jn 5:45–47; Acts 15:21; Lk 4:17. Back to text.
Lk 16:30: Lk 3:8; 19:9. Back to text.
Lk 17:1–2: Mt 18:6–7; Mk 9:42; 1 Cor 8:12. Back to text.
Lk 17:3–4: Mt 18:15, 21–22. Back to text.
Lk 17:5–6: Mt 17:20, 21:21; Mk 11:22–23. Back to text.
Lk 17:8: Lk 12:37; Jn 13:3–5. Back to text.
Lk 17:11: Lk 9:51; 13:22; 19:11. Back to text.
Lk 17:12: Lev 13:45–46. Back to text.
Lk 17:13: Lk 5:5; 8:24, 45; 9:33, 49. Back to text.
Lk 17:14: Lk 5:14; Mt 8:4; Mk 1:44; Lev 14:2–32. Back to text.
Lk 17:19: Mt 9:22; Mk 5:34; Lk 8:48; 18:42. Back to text.
Lk 17:20: Lk 19:11; 21:7; Acts 1:6. Back to text.
Lk 17:24: Mt 24:27; Rev 1:7. Back to text.
Lk 17:26–27: Mt 24:37–39; Gen 6:5–8; 7:6–24. Back to text.
Lk 17:28–30: Gen 18:20–33; 19:24–25. Back to text.
Lk 17:31: Mt 24:17–18; Mk 13:15–16; Lk 21:21. Back to text.
Lk 17:32: Gen 19:26. Back to text.
Lk 17:33: Mt 10:39; 16:25; Mk 8:35; Lk 9:24; Jn 12:25. Back to text.
Lk 17:34–35: Mt 24:40–41. Back to text.
Lk 18:1–8: Lk 11:5–8. Back to text.
Lk 18:7: Rev 6:10; Mt 24:22; Rom 8:33; Col 3:12; 2 Tim 2:10. Back to
text.
Lk 18:12: Lk 5:33; 11:42. Back to text.
Lk 18:14: Mt 18:4; 23:12; Lk 14:11; 1 Pet 5:6. Back to text.
Lk 18:15–17: Mt 19:13–15; 18:3; Mk 10:13–16. Back to text.
Lk 18:20: Ex 20:12–16; Deut 5:16–20; Rom 13:9; Jas 2:11. Back to text.
Lk 18:22: Lk 12:33; Acts 2:45; 4:32. Back to text.
Lk 18:27: Gen 18:14; Job 42:2; Jer 32:17; Lk 1:37. Back to text.
Lk 18:28–30: Mt 19:27–30; Mk 10:28–31; Lk 5:1–11. Back to text.
Lk 18:31–34: Mt 20:17–19; Mk 10:32–34; Lk 9:22, 44–45; 17:25. Back
to text.
Lk 18:35–43: Mt 20:29–34; Mk 10:46–52; Mt 9:27–31; Mk 8:22; Jn
Lk 18:42: Mt 9:22; Mk 5:34; 10:52; Lk 7:50; 8:48; 17:19. Back to text.
Lk 19:7: Lk 5:29–30; 15:1–2. Back to text.
Lk 19:8: Lk 7:13; 3:14; Ex 22:1; Lev 6:5; Num 5:6–7. Back to text.
Lk 19:9: Lk 3:8; 13:16; Rom 4:16. Back to text.
Lk 19:11: Lk 9:51; 13:22; 17:11; 18:31; 9:27. Back to text.
Lk 19:12–28: Mt 25:14–30. Back to text.
19:34: Lk 7:13.
Lk 19:36: 2 Kings 9:13. Back to text.
Lk 19:38: Ps 118:26; Lk 13:35; 2:14. Back to text.
Lk 19:39–40: Mt 21:15–16; Hab 2:11. Back to text.
Lk 19:41: Lk 13:33–34. Back to text.
Lk 19:43: Lk 21:21–24; 21:6; Is 29:3; Jer 6:6; Ezek 4:2. Back to text.
Lk 19:44: 1 Pet 2:12. Back to text.
Lk 19:47–48: Mk 11:18; Lk 21:37; 22:53. Back to text.
Lk 20:6: Mt 14:5; Lk 7:29. Back to text.
Lk 20:9: Is 5:1–7; Mt 25:14. Back to text.
Lk 20:16: Acts 13:46; 18:6; 28:28. Back to text.
Lk 20:17: Ps 118:22–23; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:6–7. Back to text.
Lk 20:18: Is 8:14–15. Back to text.
Lk 20:25: Rom 13:7; Lk 23:2. Back to text.
Lk 20:27: Acts 4:1–2; 23:6–10. Back to text.
Lk 20:37: Ex 3:6. Back to text.
Lk 20:40: Mk 12:34; Mt 22:46. Back to text.
Lk 20:41–44: Mt 22:41–45; Mk 12:35–37; Ps 110:1. Back to text.
Lk 20:45–47: Mk 12:38–40; Mt 23:6–7; Lk 11:43; 14:7–11. Back to text.
Lk 21:1–4: Mk 12:41–44. Back to text.
Lk 21:6: Lk 19:43–44; Mk 14:58; 15:29; Acts 6:14. Back to text.
Lk 21:8: Lk 17:23; Mk 13:21; 1 Jn 2:18. Back to text.
Lk 21:10: 2 Chron 15:6; Is 19:2. Back to text.
Lk 21:12–17: Mt 10:17–21. Back to text.
Lk 21:12: Acts 25:24; Jn 16:2. Back to text.
Lk 21:13: Phil 1:12. Back to text.
Lk 21:14–15: Lk 12:11–12. Back to text.
Lk 21:16: Lk 12:52–53. Back to text.
Lk 21:17: Mt 10:22; Jn 15:18–25. Back to text.
Lk 21:18: Lk 12:7; Mt 10:30; Acts 27:34; 1 Sam 14:45. Back to text.
Lk 21:19: Mt 10:22; Rev 2:7. Back to text.
Lk 21:20–22: Lk 19:41–44; 23:28–31; 17:31. Back to text.
Lk 21:24: Rom 11:25; Is 63:18; Dan 8:13; Rev 11:2. Back to text.
Lk 21:25: Rev 6:12–13; Is 13:10; Joel 2:10; Zeph 1:15. Back to text.
Lk 21:27: Lk 9:27; Dan 7:13–14. Back to text.
Lk 21:34: Lk 12:45; Mk 4:19; 1 Thess 5:6–7. Back to text.
Lk 21:37: Lk 19:47; Mk 11:19. Back to text.
Lk 22:3–6: Mt 26:14–16; Mk 14:10–11; Jn 13:2. Back to text.
Lk 22:7: Ex 12:18–20; Deut 16:5–8. Back to text.
Lk 22:8: Acts 3:1; Lk 19:29. Back to text.
Lk 22:14: Mt 26:20; Mk 14:17; Jn 13:17. Back to text.
Lk 22:15: Lk 12:49–50. Back to text.
Lk 22:17: Mt 26:27; Mk 14:23; 1 Cor 10:16. Back to text.
Lk 22:19: Mt 26:26; Mk 14:22; 1 Cor 10:16; 11:23–2;Lk 9:16. Back to
text.
Lk 22:21–23: Mt 26:21–24; Mk 14:18–21; Ps 41:9; Jn 13:21–30. Back
to text.
Lk 22:24: Lk 9:46; Mk 9:34. Back to text.
Lk 22:28–30: Mt 19:28. Back to text.
Lk 22:28: Lk 4:13; Heb 2:18; 4:15. Back to text.
Lk 22:29: Mk 14:24; Heb 9:20. Back to text.
Lk 22:30: Mk 10:37; Rev 3:21; 20:4. Back to text.
Lk 22:31: Job 1:6–12; Amos 9:9. Back to text.
Lk 22:32: Jn 17:15; 21:15–17. Back to text.
Lk 22:36: Lk 22:49–50. Back to text.
Lk 22:37: Is 53:12. Back to text.
Lk 22:40–46: Mt 26:36–46; Mk 14:32–42; Heb 5:7–8. Back to text.
Lk 22:42: Mk 10:38; Jn 18:11; 5:30. Back to text.
Lk 22:56–62: Mt 26:69–75; Mk 14:66–72; Jn 18:16–18, 25–27. Back to
text.
Lk 22:61: Lk 7:13; 22:34. Back to text.
Lk 22:63–65: Mt 26:67–68; Mk 14:65; Jn 18:22–24. Back to text.
Lk 23:1: Mt 27:1–2; Mk 15:1; Jn 18:28. Back to text.
Lk 23:3: Mt 27:11–12; Mk 15:2–3; Jn 18:29–38; Lk 22:70. Back to text.
Lk 23:4: Lk 23:14, 22, 41; Mt 27:24; Jn 19:4, 6; Acts 13:28. Back to
text.
Lk 23:8: Lk 9:9; Acts 4:27–28. Back to text.
Lk 23:11: Mk 15:17–19; Jn 19:2–3. Back to text.
Lk 23:14: Lk 23:4, 22, 41. Back to text.
Lk 23:16: Lk 23:22; Jn 19:12–14. Back to text.
Lk 23:18–23: Mt 27:20–23; Mk 15:11–14; Acts 3:13–14; Jn 18:38–40;
Lk 23:23–25: Mt 27:26; Mk 15:15. Back to text.
Lk 23:28–31: Lk 21:23–24; 19:41–44. Back to text.
Lk 23:34: Acts 7:60; Ps 22:18. Back to text.
Lk 23:36: Mk 15:23; Ps 69:21. Back to text.
Lk 23:41: Lk 23:4, 14, 22. Back to text.
Lk 23:43: 2 Cor 12:3; Rev 2:7. Back to text.
Lk 23:45: Ex 26:31–35; Heb 9:8; 10:19. Back to text.
Lk 23:46: Ps 31:5. Back to text.
Lk 23:49: Lk 8:1–3; 23:55–56; 24:10. Back to text.
Lk 23:50–56: Mt 27:57–61; Mk 15:42–47; Jn 19:38–42; Acts 13:29.
Back to text.
Lk 23:56: Mk 16:1; Ex 12:16; 20:10. Back to text.
Lk 24:1–9: Mt 28:1–8; Mk 16:1–7; Jn 20:1, 11–13. Back to text.
Lk 24:6: Lk 9:22; 13:32–33. Back to text.
Lk 24:10: Mk 16:1; Lk 8:1–3; Jn 20:2. Back to text.
Lk 24:16: Jn 20:14; 21:4. Back to text.
Lk 24:19: Mt 21:11; Lk 7:16; 13:33; Acts 3:22. Back to text.
Lk 24:27: Lk 24:44–45; Acts 28:23; 1 Pet 1:11. Back to text.
Lk 24:30: Lk 9:16; 22:19. Back to text.
Lk 24:34: 1 Cor 15:5. Back to text.
Lk 24:36–43: Jn 20:19–20, 27; Jn 21:5, 9–13; 1 Cor 15:5; Acts 10:40–
41. Back to text.
Lk 24:39: 1 Jn 1:1. Back to text.
Lk 24:44: Lk 24:26–27; Acts 28:23. Back to text.
Lk 24:46: Hos 6:2; 1 Cor 15:3–4. Back to text.
Lk 24:47: Acts 1:4–8; Mt 28:19. Back to text.
Lk 24:49: Acts 2:1–4; Jn 14:26; 20:21–23. Back to text.
Lk 24:51: Acts 1:9–11. Back to text.
Lk 24:52–53: Acts 1:12–14. Back to text.
Jn 1:1: Gen 1:1; 1 Jn 1:1; Rev 19:13; Jn 17:5. Back to text.
Jn 1:3: Col 1:16; 1 Cor 8:6; Heb 1:2. Back to text.
Jn 1:4: Jn 5:26; 11:25; 14:6. Back to text.
Jn 1:5: Jn 9:5; 12:46. Back to text.
Jn 1:6: Mk 1:4; Mt 3:1; Lk 3:8; Jn 1:19–23. Back to text.
Jn 1:9: 1 Jn 2:8. Back to text.
Jn 1:12: Gal 3:26; Jn 3:18; 1 Jn 5:13. Back to text.
Jn 1:13: Jn 3:5; 1 Pet 1:23; Jas 1:18; 1 Jn 3:9. Back to text.
Jn 1:14: Rom 1:3; Gal 4:4; Phil 2:7; 1 Tim 3:16; Heb 2:14; 1 Jn 4:2.
Back to text.
Jn 1:15: Jn 1:30. Back to text.
Jn 1:16: Col 1:19; 2:9; Eph 1:23; Rom 5:21. Back to text.
Jn 1:18: Ex 33:20; Jn 6:26; 1 Jn 4:12; Jn 3:11. Back to text.
Jn 1:21: Mt 11:14; 16:14; Mk 9:13; Mt 17:13; Deut 18:15, 18. Back to
text.
Jn 1:23: Is 40:3; Mk 1:3; Mt 3:3; Lk 3:4. Back to text.
Jn 1:26–27: Mk 1:7–8; Mt 3:11; Lk 3:16. Back to text.
Jn 1:28: Jn 3:26; 10:40. Back to text.
Jn 1:29: Jn 1:36; Is 53:7; Acts 8:32; 1 Pet 1:19; Rev 5:6; 1 Jn 3:5. Back
to text.
Jn 1:32: Mk 1:10; Mt 3:16; Lk 3:22. Back to text.
Jn 1:35: Lk 7:18. Back to text.
Jn 1:40–42: Mt 4:18–22; Mk 1:16–20; Lk 5:2–11. Back to text.
Jn 1:41: Dan 9:25; Jn 4:25. Back to text.
Jn 1:42: Jn 21:15–17; 1 Cor 15:5; Mt 16:18. Back to text.
Jn 1:43: Mt 10:3; Jn 6:5; 12:21; 14:8. Back to text.
Jn 1:46: Jn 7:41; Mk 6:2. Back to text.
Jn 1:49: Ps 2:7; Mk 15:32; Jn 12:13. Back to text.
Jn 1:51: Lk 3:21; Gen 28:12. Back to text.
Jn 2:1: Jn 4:46; 21:2. Back to text.
Jn 2:4: Mk 1:24; 5:7; Jn 7:6, 30; 8:20. Back to text.
Jn 2:6: Mk 7:3; Jn 3:25. Back to text.
Jn 2:11: Jn 2:23; 3:2; 4:54; 6:2. Back to text.
Jn 2:12: Mt 4:13; Jn 7:3; Mk 3:31. Back to text.
Jn 2:13: Jn 6:4; 11:55; Deut 16:1–6; Lk 2:41. Back to text.
Jn 2:17: Ps 69:9. Back to text.
Jn 2:19: Mk 14:58; Acts 6:14. Back to text.
Jn 2:21: 1 Cor 6:19; Jn 8:57. Back to text.
Jn 2:22: Jn 12:16; 14:26. Back to text.
Jn 2:25: Jn 1:47; 6:61; 13:11; Mk 2:8. Back to text.
Jn 3:1: Jn 7:50; 19:39; Lk 23:13; Jn 7:26. Back to text.
Jn 3:2: Jn 2:11; 7:31; 9:16; Acts 10:38. Back to text.
Jn 3:3: Jn 1:13; 1 Pet 1:23; Jas 1:18; 1 Jn 3:9. Back to text.
Jn 3:5: Ezek 36:25–27; Eph 5:26; Tit 3:5. Back to text.
Jn 3:6: 1 Cor 15:50. Back to text.
Jn 3:8: Ezek 37:9. Back to text.
Jn 3:11: Jn 8:26; 1:18; 3:32. Back to text.
Jn 3:13: Rom 10:6; Eph 4:9. Back to text.
Jn 3:14: Num 21:9; Jn 8:28; 12:34. Back to text.
Jn 3:16: Rom 5:8; 8:32; Eph 2:4; 1 Jn 4:9–10. Back to text.
Jn 3:17: Jn 8:15; 12:47; Lk 19:10; 1 Jn 4:14. Back to text.
Jn 3:19: Jn 1:4; 8:12; Eph 5:11, 13. Back to text.
Jn 3:24: Mk 1:14; 6:17–18. Back to text.
Jn 3:26: Jn 1:7, 28. Back to text.
Jn 3:29: Mk 2:19–20; Mt 25:1; Jn 15:11. Back to text.
Jn 3:31: Jn 3:13; 8:23; 1 Jn 4:5. Back to text.
Jn 3:36: Jn 3:16; 5:24. Back to text.
Jn 4:4: Lk 9:52; 17:11. Back to text.
Jn 4:5: Gen 33:19; 48:22; Josh 24:32. Back to text.
Jn 4:9: Mt 10:5; Jn 8:48; Ezra 4:3–6. Back to text.
Jn 4:10: Jn 7:37; Rev 21:6; 22:17. Back to text.
Jn 4:14: Jn 6:35; 7:38. Back to text.
Jn 4:18: 2 Kings 17:24; Hos 2:7. Back to text.
Jn 4:20: Deut 11:29; Josh 8:33; Lk 9:53. Back to text.
Jn 4:21: Jn 5:25; 16:2, 32; Mal 1:11. Back to text.
Jn 4:22: 2 Kings 17:28–41; Is 2:3; Rom 9:4. Back to text.
Jn 4:24: Phil 3:3. Back to text.
Jn 4:29: Jn 7:26; Mt 12:23. Back to text.
Jn 4:32: Mt 4:4. Back to text.
Jn 4:34: Jn 5:30; 6:38; 17:4. Back to text.
Jn 4:35: Lk 10:2; Mt 9:37. Back to text.
Jn 4:37: Job 31:8; Mic 6:15. Back to text.
Jn 4:42: 1 Jn 4:14; 2 Tim 1:10. Back to text.
Jn 4:44: Mk 6:4; Mt 13:57. Back to text.
Jn 4:46: Jn 2:1–11; Mt 8:5–10; Lk 7:2–10. Back to text.
Jn 4:48: Dan 4:2; Mk 13:22; Acts 2:19; 4:30; Rom 15:19; Heb 2:4. Back
to text.
Jn 4:53: Acts 11:14. Back to text.
Jn 5:2: Neh 3:1; 12:39. Back to text.
Jn 5:10: Neh 13:19; Jer 17:21; Jn:7:23; 9:16; Mk 2:24. Back to text.
Jn 5:14: Mk 2:5. Back to text.
Jn 5:17: Gen 2:3. Back to text.
Jn 5:18: Jn 7:1; 10:33. Back to text.
Jn 5:19: Jn 5:30; 8:28; 14:10. Back to text.
Jn 5:21: Rom 4:17; 8:11; Jn 11:25. Back to text.
Jn 5:23: Lk 10:16; 1 Jn 2:23. Back to text.
Jn 5:25: Jn 4:21; 16:2, 32. Back to text.
Jn 5:29: Dan 12:2; Acts 24:15; Jn 11:24; Mt 25:46; 1 Cor 15:52. Back to
text.
Jn 5:30: Jn 5:19; 8:16; 6:38. Back to text.
Jn 5:31–37: Jn 8:14–18. Back to text.
Jn 5:36: Jn 10:25; 14:11; 15:24; Mt 11:4. Back to text.
Jn 5:39: Lk 24:27; Acts 13:27. Back to text.
Jn 5:45: Jn 9:28; Rom 2:17. Back to text.
Jn 5:47: Lk 16:29, 31. Back to text.
Jn 6:5: Jn 1:43; 12:21. Back to text.
Jn 6:8: Jn 1:40; 12:22. Back to text.
Jn 6:9: Jn 21:9–13. Back to text.
Jn 6:15: Jn 6:3; 18:36. Back to text.
Jn 6:16–21: Mt 14:22–27; Mk 6:45–51. Back to text.
Jn 6:27: Is 55:2. Back to text.
Jn 6:29: 1 Thess 1:3; 1 Jn 3:23. Back to text.
Jn 6:30: Mt 12:38; Mk 8:11. Back to text.
Jn 6:31: Ex 16:4, 15; Num 11:8; Neh 9:15; Ps 78:24; 105:40. Back to
text.
6:35: Jn 6:48–50; 4:14.
Jn 6:38: Jn 4:34; 5:30. Back to text.
Jn 6:39: Jn 17:12; 18:9. Back to text.
Jn 6:40: Jn 5:29; 11:24; 6:54. Back to text.
Jn 6:42: Lk 4:22; Jn 7:27. Back to text.
Jn 6:44: Jer 31:3; Hos 11:4; Jn 12:32; 6:65. Back to text.
Jn 6:45: 1 Thess 4:9; 1 Jn 2:27; Is 54:13. Back to text.
Jn 6:52: Jn 3:4; 4:9. Back to text.
Jn 6:56: Jn 15:4; 1 Jn 3:24; 4:15. Back to text.
Jn 6:62: Jn 3:13; 17:5. Back to text.
Jn 6:63: 2 Cor 3:6; Jn 6:68. Back to text.
Jn 6:65: Jn 6:44; 3:27. Back to text.
Jn 6:68–69: Mk 8:27–30. Back to text.
Jn 6:70: Jn 15:16, 19. Back to text.
Jn 6:71: Jn 13:2, 27; 17:12. Back to text.
Jn 7:2: Lev 23:34; Deut 16:16. Back to text.
Jn 7:3: Mk 3:21, 31; Mt 12:46. Back to text.
Jn 7:6: Mt 26:18; Jn 2:4; 7:30. Back to text.
Jn 7:13: Jn 19:38; 20:19. Back to text.
Jn 7:20: Jn 8:48; 10:20; Mt 11:18; Mk 3:22. Back to text.
Jn 7:22: Lev 12:3; Gen 17:10; 21:4. Back to text.
Jn 7:23: Mk 3:5; Lk 13:12; 14:4. Back to text.
Jn 7:24: Jn 8:15; Is 11:3; Zech 7:9. Back to text.
Jn 7:27: Jn 6:42; 7:41; 9:29. Back to text.
Jn 7:29: Jn 8:55; 17:25; Mt 11:27. Back to text.
Jn 7:30: Jn 7:44; 10:39; Mk 12:12; Jn 8:20. Back to text.
Jn 7:31: Jn 8:30; 10:42; 11:45. Back to text.
Jn 7:33: Jn 8:21; 12:35; 13:33; 14:19; 16:16–19. Back to text.
Jn 7:35: Jas 1:1; 1 Pet 1:1; Jn 12:20; Acts 11:20. Back to text.
Jn 7:37: Lev 23:36; Jn 4:10, 14. Back to text.
Jn 7:38: Is 44:3; 55:1; 58:11. Back to text.
Jn 7:39: Jn 20:22; 12:23. Back to text.
Jn 7:42: Mic 5:2; Mt 1:1; Lk 2:4. Back to text.
Jn 7:44: Jn 7:30; 10:39. Back to text.
Jn 7:50: Jn 3:1; 19:39. Back to text.
Jn 7:51: Deut 17:6; Ex 23:1. Back to text.
7:52: 2 Kings 14:25.
Jn 8:12: Jn 9:5; 12:35; 1:4. Back to text.
Jn 8:13–18: Jn 5:31–39. Back to text.
Jn 8:15: Jn 7:24; 3:17. Back to text.
Jn 8:17: Deut 19:15; Mt 18:16. Back to text.
Jn 8:21–22: Jn 7:33–36. Back to text.
Jn 8:24: Jn 8:28; 4:26; 13:19; Mk 13:6. Back to text.
Jn 8:28: Jn 3:14; 12:32. Back to text.
Jn 8:30: Jn 7:31; 10:42; 11:45. Back to text.
Jn 8:31: Jn 15:7; 2 Jn 9. Back to text.
Jn 8:32: 2 Cor 3:17; Gal 5:1. Back to text.
Jn 8:33: Mt 3:9; Gal 3:7. Back to text.
Jn 8:34: Rom 6:16; 2 Pet 2:19. Back to text.
Jn 8:35: Gen 21:10; Gal 4:30. Back to text.
Jn 8:41: Deut 32:6; Is 63:16; 64:8. Back to text.
Jn 8:42: Jn 13:3; 16:28. Back to text.
Jn 8:44: 1 Jn 3:8, 15; Gen 3:4; 1 Jn 2:4; Mt 12:34. Back to text.
Jn 8:46: 1 Jn 3:5; Jn 18:37. Back to text.
Jn 8:48: Jn 7:20; 10:20; 4:9. Back to text.
Jn 8:56: Mt 13:17; Heb 11:13. Back to text.
Jn 8:58: Jn 1:1; 17:5, 24. Back to text.
Jn 8:59: Jn 10:31; 11:8. Back to text.
Jn 9:2: Lk 13:2; Acts 28:4; Ezek 18:20; Ex 20:5. Back to text.
Jn 9:4: Jn 11:9; 12:35. Back to text.
Jn 9:5: Jn 1:4; 8:12; 12:46. Back to text.
Jn 9:6: Mk 7:33; 8:23. Back to text.
Jn 9:16: Mt 12:2; Jn 5:9; 7:43; 10:19. Back to text.
Jn 9:22: Jn 7:13; 12:42; Lk 6:22. Back to text.
Jn 10:8: Jer 23:1; Ezek 34:2. Back to text.
Jn 10:11: Is 40:11; Ezek 34:11–16; Heb 13:20; 1 Pet 5:4; Rev 7:17; 1 Jn
3:16; Jn 15:13. Back to text.
Jn 10:16: Is 56:8; Jn 11:52; 17:20; Eph 2:13–18; 1 Pet 2:25. Back to text.
Jn 10:18: Jn 14:31; 15:10; Phil 2:8; Heb 5:8. Back to text.
Jn 10:19: Jn 7:43; 9:16. Back to text.
Jn 10:21: Jn 9:32; Ex 4:11. Back to text.
Jn 10:23: Acts 3:11; 5:12. Back to text.
Jn 10:25: Jn 5:36; 10:38. Back to text.
Jn 10:28: Jn 17:2; 1 Jn 2:25. Back to text.
Jn 10:31: Jn 8:59; 11:8. Back to text.
Jn 10:33: Lev 24:16; Mk 14:64. Back to text.
Jn 10:34: Jn 8:17; Ps 82:6. Back to text.
Jn 10:42: Jn 7:31; 11:45. Back to text.
Jn 11:1: Mk 11:1; Lk 10:38. Back to text.
Jn 11:2: Jn 12:3; Lk 7:38; Mk 14:3. Back to text.
Jn 11:8: Jn 8:59; 10:31. Back to text.
Jn 11:11: Mk 5:39; Acts 7:60. Back to text.
Jn 11:16: Mt 10:3; Jn 20:24–28. Back to text.
Jn 11:19: Job 2:11. Back to text.
Jn 11:24: Dan 12:2; Jn 5:28; Acts 24:15. Back to text.
Jn 11:25: Jn 1:4; 5:26; Rev 1:18. Back to text.
Jn 11:26: Jn 6:47; 8:51. Back to text.
Jn 11:38: Mt 27:60; Mk 15:46; Lk 24:2; Jn 20:1. Back to text.
Jn 11:44: Jn 19:40; 20:7. Back to text.
Jn 11:52: Jn 10:16; 17:21. Back to text.
Jn 11:55: Mt 26:1; Mk 14:1; Lk 22:1; Jn 13:1. Back to text.
Jn 12:4: Jn 6:71; 13:26. Back to text.
Jn 12:13: Ps 118:25; Jn 1:49. Back to text.
Jn 12:15: Zech 9:9. Back to text.
Jn 12:20: Jn 7:35; Acts 11:20. Back to text.
Jn 12:21: Jn 1:44; 6:5. Back to text.
Jn 12:23: Jn 13:1; 17:1; Mk 14:35, 41. Back to text.
Jn 12:25: Mt 10:39; Mk 8:35; Lk 9:24; 14:26. Back to text.
Jn 12:27: Jn 11:33; Mt 26:38; Mk 14:34. Back to text.
Jn 12:28: Mk 1:11; 9:7. Back to text.
Jn 12:31: Jn 16:11; 2 Cor 4:4; Eph 2:2. Back to text.
Jn 12:32: Jn 3:14; 8:28. Back to text.
Jn 12:34: Ps 110:4; Is 9:7; Ezek 37:25; Dan 7:14. Back to text.
Jn 12:35: Jn 7:33; 9:4; Eph 5:8; 1 Jn 2:11. Back to text.
Jn 12:38: Is 53:1; Rom 10:16. Back to text.
Jn 12:40: Is 6:10; Mt 13:14. Back to text.
Jn 12:41: Is 6:1; Lk 24:27. Back to text.
Jn 12:42: Jn 9:22; Lk 6:22. Back to text.
Jn 12:44: Mt 10:40; Jn 5:24. Back to text.
Jn 12:46: Jn 1:4; 8:12; 9:5. Back to text.
Jn 12:48: Mt 10:14–15. Back to text.
Jn 13:1: Jn 11:55; 12:23; 16:28. Back to text.
Jn 13:5: Lk 7:44; 22:27. Back to text.
Jn 13:8: Deut 12:12; Jn 3:5; 9:7. Back to text.
Jn 13:15: 1 Pet 2:21. Back to text.
Jn 13:16: Mt 10:24; Lk 6:40. Back to text.
Jn 13:17: Lk 11:28; Jas 1:25. Back to text.
Jn 13:18: Ps 41:9. Back to text.
Jn 13:19: Jn 14:29; 8:28. Back to text.
Jn 13:20: Mt 10:40; Lk 10:16. Back to text.
Jn 13:23: Jn 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20. Back to text.
Jn 13:31–32: Jn 17:1. Back to text.
Jn 13:33: 1 Jn 2:1; Jn 7:33. Back to text.
Jn 13:34: Jn 15:12, 17; 1 Jn 3:23; 2 Jn 5; Lev 19:18; 1 Thess 4:9; 1 Pet
1:22; Heb 13:1; Eph 5:2; 1 Jn 4:10. Back to text.
Jn 13:36: Jn 21:18; 2 Pet 1:14. Back to text.
Jn 14:6: Jn 10:9; 1:4, 14. Back to text.
Jn 14:13: Mt 7:7; Jn 15:7, 16; 16:23; Jas 1:5. Back to text.
Jn 14:15: Jn 15:10; 1 Jn 5:3; 2 Jn 6. Back to text.
Jn 14:16: Jn 14:26; 15:26; 16:7; 1 Jn 2:1. Back to text.
Jn 14:22: Acts 1:13; 10:40–41. Back to text.
Jn 14:23: 1 Jn 2:24; Rev 21:3. Back to text.
Jn 14:27: Jn 16:33; Phil 4:7; Col 3:15; Jn 20:19. Back to text.
Jn 15:1: Is 5:1–7; Ezek 19:10; Mk 12:1–9; Mt 15:13; Rom 11:17. Back
to text.
Jn 15:7: Jn 14:13; 16:23; Mt 7:7; Jas 1:5. Back to text.
Jn 15:13: Rom 5:7; Jn 10:11. Back to text.
Jn 15:16: Jn 6:70; 13:18; 14:13; 16:23. Back to text.
Jn 15:18: Jn 7:7; 1 Jn 3:13; Mt 10:22; 24:9. Back to text.
Jn 15:20: Jn 13:16; Mt 10:24; 1 Cor 4:12; Acts 4:17; 1 Pet 4:14; Rev
2:3. Back to text.
Jn 15:25: Ps 35:19; 69:4. Back to text.
Jn 15:26: Jn 14:16, 26; 16:7; 1 Jn 2:1; 5:7. Back to text.
Jn 16:2: Jn 9:22; Acts 26:9–11; Is 66:5. Back to text.
Jn 16:5: Jn 7:33; 14:5. Back to text.
Jn 16:7: Jn 14:16, 26; 15:26. Back to text.
Jn 16:10: Acts 3:14; 7:52; 1 Pet 3:18. Back to text.
Jn 16:16–24: Jn 14:18–24. Back to text.
Jn 16:21: Is 13:8; Hos 13:13; Mic 4:9; 1 Thess 5:3. Back to text.
Jn 16:24: Jn 14:14; 15:11. Back to text.
Jn 16:32: Jn 4:23; Mk 14:27; Zech 13:7. Back to text.
Jn 16:33: Jn 14:27; 15:18; Rom 8:37; 2 Cor 2:14; Rev 3:21. Back to text.
Jn 17:1: Jn 11:41; 13:31. Back to text.
Jn 17:5: Jn 1:1; 8:58; Phil 2:6. Back to text.
Jn 17:11: Phil 2:9; Rev 19:12; Rom 12:5; Gal 3:28; Jn 17:21. Back to
text.
Jn 17:12: Ps 41:9; Jn 6:70; 18:9. Back to text.
Jn 17:14: Jn 15:19; 8:23. Back to text.
Jn 17:21: Jn 10:38; 17:11. Back to text.
Jn 18:1: Mt 26:30, 36; Mk 14:26, 32; Lk 22:39; 2 Sam 15:23. Back to
text.
Jn 18:4: Jn 6:64; 13:1. Back to text.
Jn 18:9: Jn 17:12; 6:39. Back to text.
Jn 18:11: Mk 10:38; 14:36. Back to text.
Jn 18:12–13: Mt 26:57; Mk 14:53; Lk 22:54; 3:2. Back to text.
Jn 18:14: Jn 11:49–51. Back to text.
Jn 18:15–16: Mt 26:58; Mk 14:54; Lk 22:54. Back to text.
Jn 18:23: Mt 5:39; Acts 23:2–5. Back to text.
Jn 18:28: Jn 11:55; Mt 27:1–2; Mk 15:1; Lk 23:1. Back to text.
Jn 18:32: Jn 3:14; 12:32. Back to text.
Jn 18:37: Jn 3:32; 8:14, 47; 1 Jn 4:6. Back to text.
Jn 18:38–40: Mt 27:15–26; Mk 15:6–15; Lk 23:18–19; Acts 3:14. Back
to text.
Jn 19:2–3: Mt 27:27–31; Mk 15:16–20; Lk 22:63–65; 23:11. Back to
text.
Jn 19:7: Lev 24:16; Mk 14:61–64; Jn 5:18; 10:33. Back to text.
Jn 19:11: Rom 13:1; Jn 18:28. Back to text.
Jn 19:14: Mk 15:42; Jn 19:31, 42; Mk 15:25, 33. Back to text.
Jn 19:24: Ex 28:32; Ps 22:18. Back to text.
Jn 19:25: Mt 27:55–56; Mk 15:40–41; Lk 23:49; Jn 2:3; Mk 3:31; Lk
24:18; Jn 20:1, 18. Back to text.
Jn 19:26: Jn 13:23; 20:2; 21:20. Back to text.
Jn 19:28–30: Ps 69:21; Mt 27:45–50; Mk 15:33–37; Lk 23:44–46; Jn
17:4. Back to text.
Jn 19:31: Deut 21:23; Ex 12:16. Back to text.
Jn 19:34: 1 Jn 5:6–8. Back to text.
Jn 19:35: Jn 15:27; 21:24. Back to text.
Jn 19:36: Ex 12:46; Num 9:12; Ps 34:20. Back to text.
Jn 19:37: Zech 12:10. Back to text.
Jn 19:39: Jn 3:1; 7:50. Back to text.
Jn 19:40: Mk 16:1; 14:8. Back to text.
Jn 20:3–10: Lk 24:11–12. Back to text.
Jn 20:9: Lk 24:26, 46. Back to text.
Jn 20:12: Lk 24:4; Mt 28:5; Mk 16:5. Back to text.
Jn 20:14: Mt 28:9; Jn 21:4. Back to text.
Jn 20:17: Jn 20:27; Mt 28:10; Jn 7:33. Back to text.
Jn 20:18: Lk 24:10, 23. Back to text.
Jn 20:19–20: Lk 24:36–39. Back to text.
Jn 20:22: Acts 2:4, 33. Back to text.
Jn 20:23: Mt 16:19; 18:18. Back to text.
Jn 20:29: 1 Pet 1:8. Back to text.
Jn 21:3–6: Lk 5:3–7. Back to text.
Jn 21:7: Jn 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:20. Back to text.
Jn 21:14: Jn 20:19, 26. Back to text.
Jn 21:15: Jn 1:42; 13:37; Mk 14:29–31; Lk 12:32. Back to text.
Jn 21:16: Mt 2:6; Acts 20:28, 1 Pet 5:2; Rev 7:17. Back to text.
Jn 21:19: 2 Pet 1:14; Mk 1:17. Back to text.
Jn 21:22: 1 Cor 4:5; Jas 5:7; Rev 2:25; Mt 16:28. Back to text.
Jn 21:24: Jn 15:27; 19:35. Back to text.
Acts 1:1: Lk 1:1–4. Back to text.
Acts 1:4: Lk 24:49. Back to text.
Acts 1:8: Lk 24:48–49. Back to text.
Acts 1:9–12: Lk 24:50–53. Back to text.
Acts 1:13: Mt 10:2–4; Mk 3:16–19; Lk 6:14–16. Back to text.
Acts 1:16–19: Mt 27:3–10. Back to text.
Acts 1:20: Ps 69:25; 109:8. Back to text.
Acts 2:17–21: Joel 2:28–32. Back to text.
Acts 2:25–28: Ps 16:8–11. Back to text.
Acts 2:30: Ps 132:11. Back to text.
Acts 2:34–35: Ps 110:1. Back to text.
Acts 2:39: Is 57:19; Joel 2:32. Back to text.
Acts 2:44–45: Acts 4:32–35. Back to text.
Acts 3:13: Ex 3:6; Is 52:13. Back to text.
Acts 3:22: Deut 18:15–16. Back to text.
Acts 3:23: Deut 18:19; Lev 23:29. Back to text.
Acts 3:25: Gen 22:18. Back to text.
Acts 4:24: Ex 20:11; Ps 146:6. Back to text.
Acts 4:25–26: Ps 2:1–2. Back to text.
Acts 4:27: Ps 2:2; 2:1. Back to text.
Acts 7:2: Ps 29:3; Gen 11:31; 15:7. Back to text.
Acts 7:4: Gen 11:31; 15:7; 12:5. Back to text.
Acts 7:5: Deut 2:5; Gen 12:7; 17:8. Back to text.
Acts 7:6–7: Gen 15:13–14. Back to text.
Acts 7:7: Ex 3:12. Back to text.
Acts 7:8: Gen 17:10–14; 21:2–4; 25:26; 29:31–35; 30:1–24; 35:16–18;
Acts 7:9: Gen 37:11, 28; 45:4. Back to text.
Acts 7:9–10: Gen 39:2–3, 21. Back to text.
Acts 7:10: Gen 41:40–46; Ps 105:21. Back to text.
Acts 7:11: Gen 41:54–55; 42:5. Back to text.
Acts 7:13: Gen 45:1–4. Back to text.
Acts 7:14: Gen 45:9–10. Back to text.
Acts 7:14–15: Deut 10:22. Back to text.
Acts 7:16: Josh 24:32; Gen 50:13. Back to text.
Acts 7:17–18: Ex 1:7–8. Back to text.
Acts 7:19: Ex 1:10–11, 15–22. Back to text.
Acts 7:21: Ex 2:5–6, 10. Back to text.
Acts 7:29: Ex 2:22; 18:3-4. Back to text.
Acts 7:36: Ex 7:3; 14:21; Num 14:33. Back to text.
Acts 7:37: Deut 18:15, 18. Back to text.
Acts 7:38: Ex 19. Back to text.
Acts 7:39: Num 14:3–4. Back to text.
Acts 7:40: Ex 32:1, 23. Back to text.
Acts 7:42: Jer 19:13. Back to text.
Acts 7:42–43: Amos 5:25–27. Back to text.
Acts 7:45: Josh 3:14–17; Deut 32:49. Back to text.
Acts 7:46: 2 Sam 7:8–16; Ps 132:1–5. Back to text.
Acts 7:47: 1 Kings 6. Back to text.
Acts 7:49–50: Is 66:1–2. Back to text.
Acts 7:51: Ex 33:3, 5; Jer 9:26; 6:10; Num 27:14; Is 63:10. Back to text.
Acts 8:1: Acts 11:19. Back to text.
Acts 8:23: Is 58:6. Back to text.
Acts 9:1–19: Acts 22:4–16; 26:9–18. Back to text.
Acts 9:24–25: 2 Cor 11:32–33. Back to text.
Acts 13:10: Hos 14:9. Back to text.
Acts 13:18: Deut 1:31. Back to text.
Acts 13:19: Deut 7:1; Josh 14:1. Back to text.
Acts 13:22: Ps 89:20; 1 Sam 13:14; Is 44:28. Back to text.
Acts 13:24: Mk 1:1–4. Back to text.
Acts 13:25: Jn 1:20; Mt 3:11; Mk 1:7; Lk 3:16. Back to text.
Acts 13:41: Hab 1:5. Back to text.
Acts 14:15: Ex 20:11; Ps 146:6. Back to text.
Acts 14:19: 2 Cor 11:25.
Acts 15:1–30: Gal 2:1–10. Back to text.
Acts 15:16–18: Amos 9:11–12; Jer 12:15; Is 45:21. Back to text.
Acts 16:22–23: 2 Cor 11:25. Back to text.
Acts 17:24–25: Is 42:5. Back to text.
Acts 17:28: Epimenides; Aratus, Phaenomena, 5. Back to text.
Acts 17:31: Ps 9:8; 96:13; 98:9. Back to text.
Acts 18:9–10: Is 43:5; Jer 1:8. Back to text.
Acts 22:4–16: Acts 9:1–19; 26:9–18; Gal 1:14. Back to text.
Acts 26:9–18: Acts 9:1–8; 22:4–16. Back to text.
Acts 26:16–17: Ezek 2:1, 3. Back to text.
Acts 26:18: Is 42:7, 16. Back to text.
Rom 1:1: Acts 9:15; 13:2; 1 Cor 1:1; 2 Cor 1:1; Gal 1:15. Back to text.
Rom 1:5: Acts 26:16–18; Rom 15:18; Gal 2:7, 9. Back to text.
Rom 1:7: 1 Cor 1:3; 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; 1
Thess 1:2; 2 Thess 1:2; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Tit 1:4; Philem 3; 2 Jn 3.
Back to text.
Rom 1:8: Rom 16:19. Back to text.
Rom 1:10: Rom 15:23, 32; Acts 19:21. Back to text.
Rom 1:14: 1 Cor 9:16. Back to text.
Rom 1:16: 1 Cor 1:18, 24. Back to text.
Rom 1:17: Rom 3:21; Gal 3:11; Phil 3:9; Heb 10:38; Hab 2:4. Back to
text.
Rom 1:18: Eph 5:6; Col 3:6. Back to text.
Rom 1:20: Ps 19:1–4. Back to text.
Rom 1:21: Eph 4:17–18. Back to text.
Rom 1:23: Acts 17:29. Back to text.
Rom 2:4: Eph 1:7; 2:7; Phil 4:19; Col 1:27. Back to text.
Rom 2:6: Mt 16:27; 1 Cor 3:8; 2 Cor 5:10; Rev 22:12. Back to text.
Rom 2:11: Deut 10:17; 2 Chron 19:7; Gal 2:6; Eph 6:9; Col 3:25; 1 Pet
1:17. Back to text.
Rom 2:12: Rom 3:19; 1 Cor 9:21. Back to text.
Rom 2:13: Jas 1:22–23, 25. Back to text.
Rom 2:16: Eccles 12:14; Rom 16:25; 1 Cor 4:5. Back to text.
Rom 2:18: Phil 1:10. Back to text.
Rom 2:20: Rom 6:17; 2 Tim 1:13. Back to text.
Rom 2:21: Mt 23:3–4. Back to text.
Rom 2:24: Is 52:5. Back to text.
Rom 2:25: Jer 9:25. Back to text.
Rom 2:26: 1 Cor 7:19; Acts 10:35. Back to text.
Rom 2:27: Mt 12:41. Back to text.
Rom 2:28: Mt 3:9; Jn 8:39; Rom 9:6–7; Gal 6:15. Back to text.
Rom 2:29: 2 Cor 3:6; Phil 3:3; Col 2:11; 1 Pet 3:4. Back to text.
Rom 3:2: Ps 147:19; Rom 9:4. Back to text.
Rom 3:4: Ps 51:4. Back to text.
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Rom 3:5: Rom 5:9; 6:19; 1 Cor 9:8; Gal 3:15. Back to text.
Rom 3:8: Rom 6:1, 15. Back to text.
Rom 3:9: Rom 1:18–32; 2:1–29; 11:32; 3:23. Back to text.
Rom 3:10–12: Ps 14:1–3; 53:1–3. Back to text.
Rom 3:13: Ps 5:9; 140:3. Back to text.
Rom 3:15–17: Is 59:7–8. Back to text.
Rom 3:20: Ps 143:2; Acts 13:39; Gal 2:16; 3:11; Rom 7:7. Back to text.
Rom 3:21: Rom 1:17; Phil 3:9; 2 Pet 1:1. Back to text.
Rom 3:22: Rom 4:5; 9:30; 10:12; Gal 2:16. Back to text.
Rom 3:24: Rom 4:16; 5:9; Eph 2:8; Tit 3:7; Eph 1:7; Col 1:14; Heb 9:15.
Back to text.
Rom 3:26: 1 Jn 2:2; Col 1:20. Back to text.
Rom 3:28: Acts 13:39; Rom 5:1; Eph 2:9. Back to text.
Rom 3:29: Rom 9:24; Acts 10:34–35. Back to text.
Rom 3:30: Rom 4:11–12, 16. Back to text.
Rom 3:31: Rom 8:4; Mt 5:17. Back to text.
Rom 4:3: Gen 15:6; Rom 4:9, 22; Gal 3:6; Jas 2:23. Back to text.
Rom 4:11: Gen 17:10; Rom 3:22, 30. Back to text.
Rom 4:13: Gen 17:4–6; 22:17–18; Gal 3:29. Back to text.
Rom 4:14: Gal 3:18. Back to text.
Rom 4:17: Gen 17:5; Jn 5:21. Back to text.
Rom 4:18: Gen 15:5. Back to text.
Rom 4:19: Heb 11:12; Gen 17:17; 18:11. Back to text.
Rom 4:23–24: Rom 15:4; 1 Cor 9:10; 10:11. Back to text.
Rom 5:2: Eph 2:18; 3:12; Heb 10:19–20. Back to text.
Rom 5:3: Rom 5:11; 2 Cor 12:10; Jas 1:3. Back to text.
Rom 5:5: Ps 119:116; Acts 2:33; Phil 1:20. Back to text.
Rom 5:8: Jn 15:13; Rom 8:32; 1 Pet 3:18; 1 Jn 3:16; 4:10. Back to text.
Rom 5:9: Rom 3:5, 24–25; Eph 1:7; 1 Thess 1:10. Back to text.
Rom 5:10: Col 1:21. Back to text.
Rom 5:12: 1 Cor 15:21–22; Rom 6:23; Jas 1:15. Back to text.
Rom 5:14: 1 Cor 15:22, 45. Back to text.
Rom 5:20: Rom 7:7–8; Gal 3:19; 1 Tim 1:14. Back to text.
Rom 6:1: Rom 3:8; 6:15. Back to text.
Rom 6:2: Rom 7:4, 6; Gal 2:19; 1 Pet 2:24. Back to text.
Rom 6:3: Acts 2:38; 8:16; 19:5. Back to text.
Rom 6:5: 2 Cor 4:10; Col 2:12. Back to text.
Rom 6:6: Rom 7:24; Col 2:13. Back to text.
Rom 6:7: 1 Pet 4:1. Back to text.
Rom 6:8: 2 Tim 2:11. Back to text.
Rom 6:9: Acts 2:24; Rev 1:18. Back to text.
Rom 6:11: Rom 7:4, 6; Gal 2:19; 1 Pet 2:24. Back to text.
Rom 6:13: Rom 6:19; 7:5; 12:1. Back to text.
Rom 6:16: Mt 6:24; Jn 8:34; Rom 12:1. Back to text.
Rom 6:19: Rom 3:5; 6:13; 12:1. Back to text.
Rom 6:20: Mt 6:24; Jn 8:34. Back to text.
Rom 6:21: Rom 7:5; 8:6, 13, 21. Back to text.
Rom 6:23: Rom 5:12, 21; Gal 6:7, 8. Back to text.
Rom 7:4: Rom 6:2, 11; Gal 2:19; Col 1:22. Back to text.
Rom 7:5: Rom 6:13, 21; 8:8; Jas 1:15. Back to text.
Rom 7:7: Rom 3:20; 5:20; Ex 20:17; Deut 5:21. Back to text.
Rom 7:10: Lev 18:5; Rom 10:5. Back to text.
Rom 8:2: 1 Cor 15:45; Rom 6:14, 18. Back to text.
Rom 8:3: Acts 13:39; Heb 7:18; 10:1–2; Phil 2:7; Heb 2:14. Back to
text.
Rom 8:4: Rom 3:31; Gal 5:16, 25. Back to text.
Rom 8:5: Gal 5:19–25. Back to text.
Rom 8:6: Rom 6:21; 8:13, 27; Gal 6:8. Back to text.
Rom 8:9: 1 Cor 3:16; 6:19; 2 Cor 6:16; 2 Tim 1:14. Back to text.
Rom 8:10: Gal 2:20; Eph 3:17. Back to text.
Rom 8:11: Jn 5:21. Back to text.
Rom 8:15: Rom 9:4; Gal 4:5–7; Mk 14:36. Back to text.
Rom 8:17: Gal 3:29; 4:7; 2 Cor 1:5, 7; 2 Tim 2:12; 1 Pet 4:13. Back to
text.
Rom 8:18: 2 Cor 4:17; Col 3:4; 1 Pet 5:1. Back to text.
Rom 8:19: 1 Pet 1:7, 13; 1 Jn 3:2. Back to text.
Rom 8:20: Eccles 1:2. Back to text.
Rom 8:21: Acts 3:21; Rom 6:21; 2 Pet 3:13; Rev 21:1. Back to text.
Rom 8:22: Jer 12:4, 11. Back to text.
Rom 8:23: 2 Cor 1:22; 5:2, 4; Gal 5:5. Back to text.
Rom 8:24: 2 Cor 5:7; Heb 11:1. Back to text.
Rom 8:27: Ps 139:1–2; Lk 16:15; Rev 2:23; Rom 8:6, 34. Back to text.
Rom 8:29: Rom 9:23; 11:2; 1 Pet 1:2, 20; Eph 1:5, 11. Back to text.
Rom 8:32: Jn 3:16; Rom 4:25; 5:8. Back to text.
Rom 8:33: Lk 18:7; Is 50:8–9. Back to text.
Rom 9:3: Ex 32:32. Back to text.
Rom 9:6: Rom 2:28–29. Back to text.
Rom 9:7: Gen 21:12; Heb 11:18. Back to text.
Rom 9:8: Gal 3:29; 4:28. Back to text.
Rom 9:13: Mal 1:2–3. Back to text.
Rom 9:14: 2 Chron 19:7. Back to text.
Rom 9:20: Is 29:16; 45:9. Back to text.
Rom 9:22: Prov 16:4. Back to text.
Rom 9:25: Hos 2:23; 1 Pet 2:10. Back to text.
Rom 9:26: Hos 1:10. Back to text.
Rom 9:27: Is 10:22–23; Gen 22:17; Hos 1:10; Rom 11:5; 2 Kings 19:4;
Is 11:11. Back to text.
Rom 9:30: Rom 3:22; 10:6, 20; Gal 2:16; 3:24; Phil 3:9; Heb 11:7. Back
to text.
Rom 9:31: Is 51:1; Rom 10:2–3; 11:7. Back to text.
Rom 9:33: Is 28:16; Rom 10:11. Back to text.
Rom 10:2–4: Rom 9:31. Back to text.
Rom 10:4: Gal 3:24; Rom 3:22; 7:1–4. Back to text.
Rom 10:5: Lev 18:5; Neh 9:29; Ezek 20:11, 13, 21; Rom 7:10. Back to
text.
Rom 10:6: Deut 30:12–13; Rom 9:30. Back to text.
Rom 10:8: Deut 30:14. Back to text.
Rom 10:9: Mt 10:32; Lk 12:8; Acts 16:31. Back to text.
Rom 10:12: Rom 3:22, 29; Gal 3:28; Col 3:11; Acts 10:36. Back to text.
Rom 10:13: Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21. Back to text.
Rom 10:16: Is 53:1; Jn 12:38. Back to text.
Rom 10:18: Ps 19:4; Col 1:6, 23. Back to text.
Rom 10:19: Deut 32:21; Rom 11:11, 14. Back to text.
Rom 11:1: 1 Sam 12:22; Jer 31:37; 33:24–26; 2 Cor 11:22; Phil 3:5.
Back to text.
Rom 11:2: Ps 94:14; 1 Kings 19:10. Back to text.
Rom 11:4: 1 Kings 19:18. Back to text.
Rom 11:5: 2 Kings 19:4; Is 11:11; Rom 9:27. Back to text.
Rom 11:7: Rom 9:18, 31; 11:25. Back to text.
Rom 11:8: Is 29:10; Deut 29:4; Mt 13:13–14. Back to text.
Rom 11:14: Rom 10:19; 11:11; 1 Cor 9:22. Back to text.
Rom 11:15: Lk 15:24, 32. Back to text.
Rom 11:25: 1 Cor 2:7–10; Eph 3:3–5, 9; Rom 9:18; 11:7; Lk 21:24.
Back to text.
Rom 11:26: Is 59:20–21. Back to text.
Rom 11:27: Jer 31:33; Is 27:9. Back to text.
Rom 11:32: Rom 3:9; Gal 3:22–29. Back to text.
Rom 11:34: Is 40:13–14; 1 Cor 2:16. Back to text.
Rom 11:35: Job 35:7; 41:11. Back to text.
Rom 11:36: 1 Cor 8:6; 11:12; Col 1:16; Heb 2:10. Back to text.
Rom 12:1: Rom 6:13, 16, 19; 1 Pet 2:5. Back to text.
Rom 12:2: 1 Jn 2:15; Eph 4:23; 5:10. Back to text.
Rom 12:4: 1 Cor 12:12–14; Eph 4:4, 16. Back to text.
Rom 12:5: 1 Cor 10:17; 12:20, 27; Eph 4:25. Back to text.
Rom 12:6–8: 1 Cor 7:7; 12:4–11; 1 Pet 4:10–11. Back to text.
Rom 12:12: Acts 1:14; Rom 5:2; 1 Thess 5:17. Back to text.
Rom 12:14: Mt 5:44; Lk 6:28. Back to text.
Rom 12:16: Rom 11:25; 10.19; 1 Cor 1:10; 2 Cor 13:11; Phil 2:2; 4:2;
Prov 3:7, 26:12. Back to text.
Rom 12:17: Prov 20:22; 2 Cor 8:21; 1 Thess 5:15. Back to text.
Rom 12:18: Mk 9:50; Rom 14:19. Back to text.
Rom 12:19: Lev 19:18; Deut 32:35; Heb 10:30. Back to text.
Rom 12:20: Prov 25:21–22; Mt 5:44; Lk 6:27. Back to text.
Rom 13:1: Tit 3:1; 1 Pet 2:13–14; Prov 8:15; Jn 19:11. Back to text.
Rom 13:4: 1 Thess 4:6. Back to text.
Rom 13:7: Mt 22:21; Mk 12:17; Lk 20:25. Back to text.
Rom 13:8: Mt 22:39–40; Rom 13:10; Gal 5:14; Col 3:14; Jas 2:8. Back
to text.
Rom 13:9: Ex 20:13–14; Deut 5:17–18; Lev 19:18; Mt 19:19. Back to
text.
Rom 13:10: Mt 22:39–40; Rom 13:8; Gal 5:14; Jas 2:8. Back to text.
Rom 13:11: Eph 5:14; 1 Thess 5:6. Back to text.
Rom 13:12: 1 Jn 2:8; Eph 5:11; 1 Thess 5:8. Back to text.
Rom 13:13: 1 Thess 4:12; Gal 5:19–21. Back to text.
Rom 13:14: Gal 3:27; 5:16. Back to text.
Rom 14:7: Gal 2:20; 2 Cor 5:15. Back to text.
Rom 14:11: Is 45:23; Phil 2:10–11. Back to text.
Rom 14:13: Mt 7:1; 1 Cor 8:13. Back to text.
Rom 14:19: Mk 9:50; Rom 12:18; 1 Thess 5:11. Back to text.
Rom 14:20: Rom 14:15; 1 Cor 8:9–12. Back to text.
Rom 15:4: Rom 4:23–24; 1 Cor 9:10; 2 Tim 3:16. Back to text.
Rom 15:5: Rom 12:16; 1 Cor 1:10; 2 Cor 13:11; Phil 2:2; 4:2. Back to
text.
Rom 15:9: Ps 18:49; 2 Sam 22:50. Back to text.
Rom 15:10: Deut 32:43. Back to text.
Rom 15:12: Is 11:10; Mt 12:21. Back to text.
Rom 15:18: Rom 1:5; Acts 15:12; 21:19. Back to text.
Rom 15:19: Acts 19:11; 2 Cor 12:12. Back to text.
Rom 15:20: 2 Cor 10:15–16. Back to text.
Rom 15:23: Acts 19:21; Rom 1:10–11; 15:32. Back to text.
Rom 15:25: Acts 19:21; 24:17; 15:31. Back to text.
Rom 15:26: 2 Cor 8:1–5; 9:2; 1 Thess 1:7–8. Back to text.
Rom 15:31: 2 Thess 3:2; Rom 15:25–26; 2 Cor 8:4; 9:1. Back to text.
Rom 15:32: Rom 1:10; Acts 19:21. Back to text.
Rom 15:33: 2 Cor 13:11; Phil 4:9. Back to text.
Rom 16:16: 2 Cor 13:12; 1 Thess 5:26; 1 Pet 5:14. Back to text.
Rom 16:17: Gal 1:8–9; 2 Thess 3:6, 14; 2 Jn 10. Back to text.
Rom 16:20: 1 Cor 16:23; 2 Cor 13:14; Gal 6:18; Phil 4:23; 1 Thess 5:28;
2 Thess 3:18; Rev 22:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:1: Rom 1:1; Acts 18:17. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:2: Acts 18:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:3: Rom 1:7. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:8: 1 Cor 5:5; 2 Cor 1:14. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:9: Rom 8:28; 1 Jn 1:3. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:12: 1 Cor 3:4; Acts 18:24; 1 Cor 3:22; Jn 1:42; 1 Cor 9:5; 15:5.
Back to text.
1 Cor 1:13: Mt 28:19; Acts 2:38. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:14: Acts 18:8; Rom 16:23. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:16: 1 Cor 16:15. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:17: Jn 4:2; Acts 10:48; 1 Cor 2:1; 4:13. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:19: Is 29:14. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:22: Mt 12:38. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:23: 1 Cor 2:2; Gal 3:1; 5:11. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:27: Jas 2:5. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:29: Eph 2:9. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:30: 1 Cor 4:15; Rom 8:1; 2 Cor 5:21; 1 Cor 6:11; 1 Thess 5:23;
Eph 1:7, 14; Col 1:14; Rom 3:24. Back to text.
1 Cor 1:31: Jer 9:24; 2 Cor 10:17. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:2: Gal 6:14; 1 Cor 1:23. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:3: Acts 18:1, 6, 12; 1 Cor 4:10; 2 Cor 11:30. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:4: Rom 15:19; 1 Cor 4:20. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:5: 2 Cor 4:7; 6:7; 1 Cor 12:9. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:7: Rom 8:29–30. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:8: Acts 7:2; Jas 2:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:9: Is 64:4; 65:17. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:10: Mt 11:25; 13:11; 16:17; Eph 3:3, 5. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:14: 1 Cor 1:18; Jas 3:15. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:15: 1 Cor 3:1; 14:37; Gal 6:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 2:16: Is 40:13; Rom 11:34. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:1: Rom 7:14; Heb 5:13. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:2: Heb 5:12–13; 1 Pet 2:2. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:5: 2 Cor 6:4; Eph 3:7; Col 1:25. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:6: Acts 18:4–11, 24–27; 1 Cor 1:12. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:9: Is 61:3; Eph 2:20–22; 1 Pet 2:5. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:13: 2 Thess 1:7–10. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:15: Job 23:10. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:18: Is 5:21; 1 Cor 8:2; Gal 6:3. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:19: Job 5:13; 1 Cor 1:20. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:20: Ps 94:11. Back to text.
1 Cor 3:21: 1 Cor 4:6; Rom 8:32. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:1: 1 Cor 9:17; Rom 11:25; 16:25. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:5: Rom 2:16; 1 Cor 3:13; 2 Cor 10:18; Rom 2:29. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:6: 1 Cor 1:19, 31; 3:19–20; 1:12; 3:4. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:9: 1 Cor 15:31; 2 Cor 11:23; Rom 8:36; Heb 10:33. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:10: 1 Cor 1:18; 2 Cor 11:19; 1 Cor 3:18; 2 Cor 13:9; 1 Cor 2:3.
Back to text.
1 Cor 4:11: Rom 8:35; 2 Cor 11:23–27. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:12: Acts 18:3; 1 Pet 3:9. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:15: 1 Cor 1:30; Philem 10. Back to text.
1 Cor 4:17: 1 Cor 16:10; Acts 16:1; 1 Cor 7:17. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:1: Deut 22:30; 27:20. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:3: Col 2:5. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:4: 2 Thess 3:6. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:5: Mt 4:10; 1 Cor 1:8. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:6: Gal 5:9. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:8: Ex 12:19; 13:7; Deut 16:3. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:11: 2 Thess 3:6; 1 Cor 10:7, 14, 20–21. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:12: Mk 4:11. Back to text.
1 Cor 5:13: Deut 17:7; 1 Cor 5:2. Back to text.
1 Cor 6:7: Mt 5:39–40. Back to text.
1 Cor 6:16: Gen 2:24; Mt 19:5; Mk 10:8; Eph 5:31. Back to text.
1 Cor 6:17: Jn 17:21–23; Rom 8:9; Gal 2:20. Back to text.
1 Cor 6:19: 1 Cor 3:16; Jn 2:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 6:20: 1 Cor 7:23; Acts 20:28; Rom 12:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:5: Ex 19:15. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:7: 1 Cor 7:8; 9:5. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:9: 1 Tim 5:14. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:16: 1 Pet 3:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:17: Rom 12:3; 1 Cor 14:33; 2 Cor 8:18; 11:28. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:18: 1 Mac 1:15; Acts 15:1–8. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:19: Gal 5:6; 6:15; Rom 2:25. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:22: Jn 8:32, 36. Back to text.
1 Cor 7:29: Rom 13:11–12; 1 Cor 7:31. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:2: 1 Cor 3:18; 13:8, 9, 12. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:3: Gal 4:9; Rom 8:29. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:4: 1 Cor 10:19; Deut 6:4. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:6: Mal 2:10; Eph 4:6; Rom 11:36; 1 Cor 1:2; Eph 4:5; Jn 1:3;
Col 1:16. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:7: 1 Cor 8:4–5. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:9: 1 Cor 8:10–11; Rom 14:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:11: Rom 14:15, 20. Back to text.
1 Cor 8:12: Mt 18:6; Rom 14:20. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:1: 1 Cor 9:19; 2 Cor 12:12; 1 Thess 2:6; Acts 9:3, 17; 1 Cor
15:8. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:5: 1 Cor 7:7–8; Mt 12:46; 8:14; Jn 1:42. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:9: Deut 25:4; 1 Tim 5:18. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:13: Deut 18:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:14: Mt 10:10; Lk 10:7–8. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:17: 1 Cor 4:1; Gal 2:7. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:21: Rom 2:12, 14. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:22: 2 Cor 11:29; Rom 15:1; 1 Cor 10:33; Rom 11:14. Back to
text.
1 Cor 9:24: Heb 12:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 9:25: 2 Tim 2:5; 4:8; Jas 1:12; 1 Pet 5:4. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:1: Rom 1:13; Ex 13:21; 14:22, 29. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:2: Rom 6:3; Gal 3:27. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:3: Ex 16:4, 35. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:4: Ex 17:6; Num 20:11. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:5: Num 14:29–30. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:6: Num 11:4, 34. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:7: Ex 32:4, 6. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:10: Num 16:41, 49. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:14: 1 Jn 5:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:16: Mt 26:27–28; Acts 2:42. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:18: Lev 7:6. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:22: Deut 32:21; Eccles 6:10; Is 45:9. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:23: 1 Cor 6:12; Phil 2:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:26: Ps 24:1; 50:12. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:28: 1 Cor 8:7, 10–12. Back to text.
1 Cor 10:33: 1 Cor 9:22; Rom 15:2; 1 Cor 13:5. Back to text.
1 Cor 11:3: Eph 1:22; 4:15; 5:23; Col 1:8; 2:19. Back to text.
1 Cor 11:5: Lk 2:36; Acts 21:9; 1 Cor 14:34. Back to text.
1 Cor 11:7: Gen 1:26. Back to text.
1 Cor 11:8: Gen 2:21–23. Back to text.
1 Cor 11:23–25: Mt 26:26–28; Mk 14:22–24; Lk 22:17–19; 1 Cor 10:16.
Back to text.
1 Cor 11:25: 2 Cor 3:6; Lk 22:20. Back to text.
1 Cor 12:2: Eph 2:11–12. Back to text.
1 Cor 12:13: Gal 3:28; Col 3:11; Eph 2:13–18; Jn 7:37–39. Back to text.
1 Cor 12:27: Eph 1:23; 4:12; Col 1:18, 24; Eph 5:30; Rom 12:5. Back to
text.
1 Cor 12:28: Eph 4:11; 2:20; 3:5. Back to text.
1 Cor 13:2: 1 Cor 14:2; Mt 17:20; 21:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 14:15: Eph 5:19; Col 3:16. Back to text.
1 Cor 14:16: 1 Chron 16:36; Ps 106:48; Mt 15:36. Back to text.
1 Cor 14:21: Is 28:11–12. Back to text.
1 Cor 14:34: 1 Tim 2:11–12; 1 Pet 3:1. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:3: 1 Cor 11:23; 1 Pet 2:24; Is 53:5–12. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:4: Mt 16:21; Ps 16:8–9. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:5: Lk 24:34; Mt 28:17. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:8: 1 Cor 9:1; Gal 1:16; Acts 9:3–6. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:27: Ps 8:6; Eph 1:22. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:28: Phil 3:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:30: 2 Esdr 7:89. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:32: 2 Cor 1:8, 9; Is 22:13. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:33: Menander, Thais. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:36: Jn 12:24. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:42: Dan 12:3. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:51–52: 1 Thess 4:15–17. Back to text.
1 Cor 15:55: Hos 13:14. Back to text.
1 Cor 16:2: Acts 20:7; 2 Cor 9:4–5. Back to text.
1 Cor 16:5: Rom 15:26; Acts 19:21. Back to text.
1 Cor 16:13: Ps 31:24; Eph 6:10. Back to text.
1 Cor 16:21: Col 4:18; Gal 6:11; 2 Thess 3:17. Back to text.
2 Cor 1:1: Eph 1:1; Col 1:1; 2 Cor 1:19; Acts 16:1; 18:1. Back to text.
2 Cor 1:3: Eph 1:3; 1 Pet 1:3; Rom 15:5. Back to text.
2 Cor 1:4: 2 Cor 7:6, 7, 13. Back to text.
2 Cor 1:19: 1 Thess 1:1; Acts 15:22. Back to text.
2 Cor 1:20: 1 Cor 14:16; Rev 3:14. Back to text.
2 Cor 3:1: Acts 18:27; Rom 16:1; 1 Cor 16:3. Back to text.
2 Cor 3:3: Ex 24:12; 31:18; 32:15–16; Jer 31:33. Back to text.
2 Cor 3:6: Jer 31:31. Back to text.
2 Cor 3:7: Ex 34:29–35. Back to text.
2 Cor 3:17: Is 61:1–2. Back to text.
2 Cor 4:4: Jn 12:31; Col 1:15. Back to text.
2 Cor 5:14: Rom 5:15; 6:6–7. Back to text.
2 Cor 5:17: Rom 16:7; Gal 6:15. Back to text.
2 Cor 5:18: 1 Cor 11:12; Col 1:20; Rom 5:10. Back to text.
2 Cor 5:21: Heb 4:15; 7:25; 1 Pet 2:22; 1 Jn 3:5; Acts 3:14. Back to text.
2 Cor 6:4: 2 Cor 4:8–11; 11:23–27. Back to text.
2 Cor 6:7: 2 Cor 10:4; Rom 13:12; Eph 6:11–12. Back to text.
2 Cor 6:11: Ezek 33:22; Is 60:5. Back to text.
2 Cor 6:16: 1 Cor 10:21; 3:16; Ex 25:8; 29:45; Lev 26:12; Ezek 37:27;
Jer 31:1. Back to text.
2 Cor 6:18: Hos 1:10; Is 43:6. Back to text.
2 Cor 7:6: 2 Cor 2:13; 7:13–14. Back to text.
2 Cor 7:12: 2 Cor 7:8; 2:3, 9. Back to text.
2 Cor 8:6: 2 Cor 8:16, 23; 2:13. Back to text.
2 Cor 8:10: 2 Cor 9:2; 1 Cor 16:2–3. Back to text.
2 Cor 8:15: Ex 16:18. Back to text.
2 Cor 9:7: Prov 22:8 Septuagint. Back to text.
2 Cor 9:10: Is 55:10; Hos 10:12. Back to text.
2 Cor 10:2: 2 Cor 13:2, 10; 1 Cor 4:21. Back to text.
2 Cor 10:17: Jer 9:24. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:2: Hos 2:19–20; Eph 5:26–27. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:4: Gal 1:6. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:5: 2 Cor 12:11; Gal 2:6. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:8: Phil 4:15, 18. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:17: 1 Cor 7:12, 25. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:23: Acts 16:23; 2 Cor 6:5. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:25: Acts 16:22; 14:19. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:26: Acts 9:23; 14:5. Back to text.
2 Cor 11:32–33: Acts 9:24–25. Back to text.
2 Cor 12:4: Lk 23:43. Back to text.
2 Cor 12:7: Job 2:6. Back to text.
2 Cor 12:10: Rom 5:3; 2 Cor 6:4–5. Back to text.
2 Cor 12:20: 2 Cor 2:1–4; 1 Cor 1:11; 3:3. Back to text.
2 Cor 13:1: 2 Cor 12:14; Deut 19:15. Back to text.
2 Cor 13:4: Phil 2:7–8; Rom 6:8. Back to text.
2 Cor 13:13: Phil 4:22. Back to text.
Gal 1:3: Rom 1:7. Back to text.
Gal 1:4: Gal 2:20; 1 Tim 2:6. Back to text.
Gal 1:8: 2 Cor 11:4. Back to text.
Gal 1:10: 1 Thess 2:4. Back to text.
Gal 1:11: Rom 1:16–17. Back to text.
Gal 1:13: Acts 8:3. Back to text.
Gal 1:15: Acts 9:1–19; Is 49:1; Jer 1:5. Back to text.
Gal 1:18: Acts 9:26–30; 11:30. Back to text.
Gal 2:5: Acts 15:23–29. Back to text.
Gal 2:6: Deut 10:17. Back to text.
Gal 2:11: Acts 11:19–26. Back to text.
Gal 2:16: Ps 143:2; Rom 3:20. Back to text.
Gal 2:20: Gal 1:4. Back to text.
Gal 3:6: Gen 15:6; Rom 4:3. Back to text.
Gal 3:8: Gen 12:3; 18:18; Acts 3:25. Back to text.
Gal 3:11: Hab 2:4; Rom 1:17; Heb 10:38. Back to text.
Gal 3:12: Lev 18:5; Rom 10:5. Back to text.
Gal 3:16: Gen 12:7. Back to text.
Gal 3:17: Ex 12:40. Back to text.
Gal 3:22: Rom 3:9–19; 11:32. Back to text.
Gal 4:3: Col 2:20. Back to text.
Gal 4:22: Gen 16:15; 21:2, 9. Back to text.
Gal 4:27: Is 54:1. Back to text.
Gal 4:29: Gen 21:9. Back to text.
Gal 4:30: Gen 21:10–12. Back to text.
Gal 5:6: 1 Cor 7:19; Gal 6:15. Back to text.
Gal 5:14: Lev 19:18; Rom 13:8–10. Back to text.
Gal 6:16: Ps 125:5. Back to text.
Eph 1:3: 2 Cor 1:3. Back to text.
Eph 1:6: Col 1:13. Back to text.
Eph 1:10: Gal 4.4. Back to text.
Eph 1:14: 2 Cor 1:22. Back to text.
Eph 1:18: Deut 33:3. Back to text.
Eph 1:20: Ps 110:1. Back to text.
Eph 1:21: Col 1:6; 2:10, 15. Back to text.
Eph 1:22: Ps 8:6; Col 1:19. Back to text.
Eph 1:23: Rom 12:5; Col 2:17. Back to text.
Eph 2:8: Gal 2:16. Back to text.
Eph 2:12: Is 57:19. Back to text.
Eph 4:2: Col 3:12–13. Back to text.
Eph 4:8: Ps 68:18. Back to text.
Eph 4:25: Zech 8:16; Rom 12:5. Back to text.
Eph 5:2: Ex 29:18; Ezek 20:41. Back to text.
Eph 5:19: Col 3:16–17. Back to text.
Eph 5:22—6:9: Col 3:18—4:1. Back to text.
Eph 5:31: Gen 2:24. Back to text.
Eph 6:2: Ex 20:12. Back to text.
Eph 6:3: Deut 5:16. Back to text.
Eph 6:14: Is 11:5; 59:17; 1 Thess 5:8. Back to text.
Eph 6:21–22: Col 4:7–8. Back to text.
Phil 1:1: Acts 16:1, 12–40; Rom 1:1; 2 Cor 1:1; Gal 1:10; Col 1:1; 1
Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:1; Philem 1. Back to text.
Phil 1:2: Rom 1:7. Back to text.
Phil 1:6, 10: 1 Cor 1:8. Back to text.
Phil 1:7: Acts 21:33; 2 Cor 7:3; Eph 6:20. Back to text.
Phil 1:12: Lk 21:13. Back to text.
Phil 1:13: Acts 28:30; 2 Tim 2:9. Back to text.
Phil 1:19: Acts 16:7; 2 Cor 1:11. Back to text.
Phil 1:21: Gal 2:20. Back to text.
Phil 1:28: 2 Thess 1:5. Back to text.
Phil 1:30: Acts 16:19–40; 1 Thess 2:2. Back to text.
Phil 2:1: 2 Cor 13:14. Back to text.
Phil 2:3–4: Rom 12:10; 15:1–2. Back to text.
Phil 2:5–8: Mt 11:29; 20:28; Jn 1:1; 2 Cor 8:9; Heb 5:8. Back to text.
Phil 2:9–11: Rom 10:9; 14:9; Eph 1:20–21. Back to text.
Phil 2:15: Mt 5:45, 48. Back to text.
Phil 3:3: Rom 2:28–29; Gal 6:14–15. Back to text.
Phil 3:4–7: Acts 8:3; 22:3–21; 23:6; 26:4–23; Rom 11:1; 2 Cor 11:18–
31. Back to text.
Phil 3:17: 1 Cor 4:15–17. Back to text.
Phil 3:21: 1 Cor 15:35–58; Col 3:4. Back to text.
Phil 4:3: Lk 10:20. Back to text.
Phil 4:6: Mt 6:25–34. Back to text.
Phil 4:16: Acts 17:1–9; 1 Thess 2:9. Back to text.
Phil 4:23: Gal 6:18; Philem 25. Back to text.
Col 1:2: Rom 1:7. Back to text.
Col 1:3: Eph 1:16. Back to text.
Col 1:7: Col 4:12; Philem 23. Back to text.
Col 1:9: Eph 1:15–17. Back to text.
Col 1:13: Eph 1:21; 2:2. Back to text.
Col 1:15: 2 Cor 4:4. Back to text.
Col 1:17: Prov 8:22–31. Back to text.
Col 2:3: Is 45:3. Back to text.
Col 2:10: Eph 1:21–22. Back to text.
Col 2:16: Rom 14:1–12. Back to text.
Col 2:19: Eph 1:22; 4:16. Back to text.
Col 2:20: Gal 4:3. Back to text.
Col 2:22: Is 29:13; Mk 7:7. Back to text.
Col 3:1: Ps 110:1. Back to text.
Col 3:10: Gen 1:26. Back to text.
Col 3:12–13: Eph 4:2. Back to text.
Col 3:16–17: Eph 5:19. Back to text.
Col 3:18—4:1: Eph 5:22—6:9. Back to text.
Col 4:1: Lev 25:43, 53. Back to text.
Col 4:7–8: Eph 6:21–22. Back to text.
Col 4:9: Philem 10. Back to text.
Col 4:10–11: Acts 19:29; 27:2; Philem 24. Back to text.
Col 4:12: Col 1:7; Philem 23. Back to text.
Col 4:14: 2 Tim 4:10–11; Philem 24. Back to text.
Col 4:18: 1 Cor 16:21. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:1: 2 Thess 1:1; 2 Cor 1:19; Acts 16:1; 17:1; Rom 1:7. Back to
text.
1 Thess 1:2: 2 Thess 1:3; 2:13; Rom 1:9. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:3: 2 Thess 1:11; 1:3; Rom 8:25; 15:4; Gal 1:4. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:4: 2 Thess 2:13; Rom 1:7; 2 Pet 1:10. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:5: 2 Thess 2:14; Rom 15:19. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:6: Col 2:2; 1 Thess 2:10; 1 Cor 4:16; 11:1; Acts 17:5–10;
13:52. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:7: Rom 15:26; Acts 18:12. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:8: 2 Thess 3:1; Rom 1:8. Back to text.
1 Thess 1:10: Mt 3:7. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:2: Acts 16:19–24; 17:1–9; Rom 1:1. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:5: Acts 20:33. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:6: 1 Cor 9:1. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:7: 1 Thess 2:11; Gal 4:19. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:8: 2 Cor 12:15; 1 Jn 3:16. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:12: 1 Pet 5:10. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:13: 1 Thess 1:2. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:14: 1 Thess 1:6; 1 Cor 7:17; Gal 1:22; Acts 17:5; 2 Thess 1:4.
Back to text.
1 Thess 2:15: Lk 24:20; Acts 2:23; 7:52. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:16: Acts 9:23; 13:45, 50; 14:2, 5, 19; 17:5, 13; 18:12; 21:21,
27; 25:2, 7; 1 Cor 10:33; Gen 15:16; 1 Thess 1:10. Back to text.
1 Thess 2:19: Phil 4:1; 1 Thess 3:13; 4:15; 5:23; Mt 16:27; Mk 8:38.
Back to text.
1 Thess 3:1: Phil 2:19; Acts 17:15. Back to text.
1 Thess 3:2: 2 Cor 1:1; Col 1:1. Back to text.
1 Thess 3:5: Mt 4:3; Phil 2:16. Back to text.
1 Thess 3:13: 1 Cor 1:8; 1 Thess 2:19; 4:17. Back to text.
1 Thess 4:4: 1 Cor 7:2; 1 Pet 3:7. Back to text.
1 Thess 4:11: 2 Thess 3:12; Eph 4:28; 2 Thess 3:10–12. Back to text.
1 Thess 4:13: Eph 2:12. Back to text.
1 Thess 4:16: Mt 24:31; 1 Cor 15:23; 2 Thess 2:1. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:4: 1 Jn 2:8; Acts 26:18. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:5: Lk 16:8. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:6: Rom 13:11; 1 Pet 1:13. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:7: Acts 2:15; 2 Pet 2:13. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:8: Eph 6:14, 23, 17; Rom 8:24. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:9: 1 Thess 1:10; 2 Thess 2:13; Rom 14:9. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:12: 1 Cor 16:18; 1 Tim 5:17; 1 Cor 16:16; Rom 16:6, 12; 1
Cor 15:10; Heb 13:17. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:13: Mk 9:50. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:14: Is 35:4; Rom 14:1; 1 Cor 8:7; 2 Thess 3:6, 7, 11. Back to
text.
1 Thess 5:15: Rom 12:17; 1 Pet 3:9. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:16: Phil 4:4. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:21: 1 Cor 14:29; 1 Jn 4:1. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:23: Rom 15:33. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:27: Col 4:16. Back to text.
1 Thess 5:28: Rom 16:20; 2 Thess 3:18. Back to text.
2 Thess 1:1: 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Cor 1:19; Acts 16:1. Back to text.
2 Thess 1:8: Gal 4:8. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:1: 1 Thess 4:15–17. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:3: Eph 5:6–8; Dan 7:25; 8:25; 11:36; Rev 13:5; Jn 17:12. Back
to text.
2 Thess 2:4: Ezek 28:2. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:8: Is 11:4. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:9: Mt 24:24; Jn 4:48. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:13: 2 Thess 1:3; Eph 1:4; 1 Pet 1:2. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:15: 1 Cor 16:13; 11:2. Back to text.
2 Thess 2:16: 1 Thess 3:11; 1 Pet 1:3. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:1: 1 Thess 5:25; 1:8. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:3: 1 Cor 1:9; 1 Thess 5:24. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:6: 1 Cor 5:4, 5, 11; 1 Thess 5:14. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:7: 1 Thess 1:6, 9. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:8: 1 Thess 2:9; Acts 18:3; Eph 4:28. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:12: 1 Thess 4:1, 11. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:13: Gal 6:9. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:16: Ruth 2:4. Back to text.
2 Thess 3:18: Rom 16:20; 1 Thess 5:28. Back to text.
1 Tim 2:13: Gen 2:7, 21–22. Back to text.
1 Tim 2:14: Gen 3:1–6. Back to text.
1 Tim 5:18: Deut 25:4; 1 Cor 9:9; Mt 10:10; Lk 10:7; 1 Cor 9:14. Back
to text.
1 Tim 5:19: Deut 19:15. Back to text.
1 Tim 6:13: Jn 18:37. Back to text.
2 Tim 1:5: Acts 16:1. Back to text.
2 Tim 2:19: Num 16:5; Is 26:13. Back to text.
2 Tim 3:8: Ex 7:11. Back to text.
2 Tim 3:11: Acts 13:14–52; 14:1–20; 16:1–5. Back to text.
Tit 1:12: Epimenides. Back to text.
Tit 2:14: Ps 130:8; Ezek 37:23; Deut 14:2. Back to text.
THE LETTER OF PAUL TO PHILEMON
Philem 3: Rom 1:7. Back to text.
Philem 4: Rom 1:8. Back to text.
Philem 10: Col 4:9. Back to text.
Philem 23: Col 1:7; 4:12. Back to text.
Philem 24: Col 4:10, 14. Back to text.
Heb 1:5: Ps 2:7; 2 Sam 7:14. Back to text.
Heb 1:6: Deut 32:43 Septuagint; Ps 97:7. Back to text.
Heb 1:7: Ps 104:4. Back to text.
Heb 1:8–9: Ps 45:6–7. Back to text.
Heb 2:13: Is 8:17–18. Back to text.
Heb 2:16: Is 41:8–9. Back to text.
Heb 3:2: Num 12:7. Back to text.
Heb 3:15: Ps 95:7–8. Back to text.
Heb 3:16–19: Num 14:1–35. Back to text.
Heb 4:4: Gen 2:2. Back to text.
Heb 4:7: Ps 95:7–8. Back to text.
Heb 5:7: Mt 26:36–46; Mk 14:32–42; Lk 22:40–46. Back to text.
Heb 5:9: Is 45:17. Back to text.
Heb 6:8: Gen 3:17–18. Back to text.
Heb 6:13–14: Gen 22:16–17. Back to text.
Heb 6:19: Lev 16:2. Back to text.
Heb 7:11, 15, 17, 21, 28: Ps 110:4. Back to text.
Heb 8:5: Ex 25:40. Back to text.
Heb 8:8–12: Jer 31:31–34. Back to text.
Heb 9:1–10: Ex 25:10–40. Back to text.
Heb 9:2: Lev 24:5. Back to text.
Heb 9:3: Ex 26:31–33. Back to text.
Heb 9:4: Ex 30:1–5; 16:32–33; Num 17:8–10. Back to text.
Heb 9:7: Lev 16. Back to text.
Heb 9:13: Lev 16:6, 16; Num 19:9, 17–18. Back to text.
Heb 9:19–20: Ex 24:6–8. Back to text.
Heb 10:12–13: Ps 110:1. Back to text.
Heb 10:16–17: Jer 31:33–34. Back to text.
Heb 10:28: Deut 17:2–6. Back to text.
Heb 10:30: Deut 32:35–36. Back to text.
Heb 10:37: Is 26:20 Septuagint. Back to text.
Heb 10:37–38: Hab 2:3–4. Back to text.
Heb 11:11: Gen 17:19; 18:11–14; 21:2. Back to text.
Heb 11:12: Gen 15:5–6; 22:17; 32:12. Back to text.
Heb 11:13: Ps 39:12; Gen 23:4. Back to text.
Heb 11:16: Ex 3:6, 15; 4:5. Back to text.
Heb 11:20: Gen 27:27–29, 39–40. Back to text.
Heb 11:21: Gen 48; 47:31 Septuagint. Back to text.
Heb 11:22: Gen 50:24–25; Ex 13:19. Back to text.
Heb 11:23: Ex 2:2; 1:22. Back to text.
Heb 11:24: Ex 2:10, 11–15. Back to text.
Heb 11:28: Ex 12:21–28, 29–30. Back to text.
Heb 11:30: Josh 6:12–21. Back to text.
Heb 11:31: Josh 2:1–21; 6:22–25. Back to text.
Heb 11:32: Judg 6–8; 4–5; 13–16; 11–12; 1 Sam 16–30; 2 Sam 1–24; 1
Kings 1:1—2:11; 1 Sam 1–12; 15; 16:1–13. Back to text.
Heb 11:33: Dan 6. Back to text.
Heb 11:34: Dan 3. Back to text.
Heb 11:35: 1 Kings 17:17–24; 2 Kings 4:25–37. Back to text.
Heb 12:5–8: Prov 3:11–12. Back to text.
Heb 12:13: Prov 4:26 Septuagint. Back to text.
Heb 12:15: Deut 29:18 Septuagint. Back to text.
Heb 12:18–19: Ex 19:12–22; 20:18–21; Deut 4:11–12; 5:22–27. Back to
text.
Heb 12:21: Deut 9:19. Back to text.
Heb 12:26: Hag 2:6. Back to text.
Heb 12:29: Deut 4:24. Back to text.
Heb 13:2: Gen 18:1–8; 19:1–3. Back to text.
Heb 13:5: Deut 31:6, 8; Josh 1:5. Back to text.
Heb 13:11, 13: Lev 16:27. Back to text.
Heb 13:15: Lev 7:12; Is 57:19; Hos 14:2. Back to text.
Heb 13:20: Is 63:11; Zech 9:11; Is 55:3; Ezek 37:26. Back to text.
THE LETTER OF JAMES
Jas 1:10–11: Is 40:6–7. Back to text.
Jas 2:8: Lev 19:18. Back to text.
Jas 2:11: Ex 20:13–14; Deut 5:17–18. Back to text.
Jas 2:21: Gen 22:1–14. Back to text.
Jas 2:23: Gen 15:6; Is 41:8; 2 Chron 20:7. Back to text.
Jas 2:25: Josh 2:1–21. Back to text.
Jas 4:6: Prov 3:34. Back to text.
Jas 5:11: Job 1:21–22; 2:10; Ps 103:8; 111:4. Back to text.
Jas 5:12: Mt 5:37. Back to text.
Jas 5:17: 1 Kings 17:1; 18:1; Luke 4:25. Back to text.
Jas 5:18: 1 Kings 18:42. Back to text.
1 Pet 1:16: Lev 11:44–45. Back to text.
1 Pet 1:24–25: Is 40:6–9. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:3: Ps 34:8. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:4: Ps 118:22; Is 28:16. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:6: Is 28:16. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:8: Is 8:14–15. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:9: Ex 19:5–6. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:10: Hos 2:23. Back to text.
1 Pet 2:24: Is 53:12 Septuagint. Back to text.
1 Pet 3:6: Gen 18:12. Back to text.
1 Pet 3:10–12: Ps 34:12–16. Back to text.
1 Pet 3:20: Gen 6–8. Back to text.
1 Pet 4:18: Prov 11:31 Septuagint. Back to text.
1 Pet 5:5: Prov 3:34. Back to text.
2 Pet 1:17–18: Mt 17:1–8; Mk 9:2–8; Lk 9:28–36. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:1–18: Jude 4–16. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:5: Gen 8:18; 6:6–8. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:6: Gen 19:24. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:7: Gen 19:16, 29. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:15: Num 22:5, 7. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:16: Num 22:21, 23, 28, 30–31. Back to text.
2 Pet 2:22: Prov 26:11. Back to text.
2 Pet 3:5–6: Gen 1:6–8; 7:11. Back to text.
2 Pet 3:13: Is 65:17; 66:22. Back to text.
1 Jn 1:1–2: Lk 24:39; Jn 1:1; 4:14; 15:27; 20:20, 25; Acts 4:20; 1 Jn
2:13. Back to text.
1 Jn 1:4: Jn 15:11; 2 Jn 12. Back to text.
1 Jn 1:5: 1 Jn 3:11. Back to text.
1 Jn 1:6–8: Jn 3:21; 1 Jn 2:4, 11. Back to text.
1 Jn 1:7: Rev 1:5. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:1: Jn 14:16. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:2: Jn 1:29; 3:14–16; 11:51–52; 1 Jn 4:10. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:4: 1 Jn 1:6–8; 4:20. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:5: Jn 14:21, 23; 1 Jn 5:3. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:10–11: Jn 11:9–10; 1 Jn 1:6. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:13: Jn 1:1; 1 Jn 1:1. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:22: 2 Jn 7. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:23: 1 Jn 4:15; 2 Jn 9. Back to text.
1 Jn 2:29: 1 Jn 3:7–10; 4:7. Back to text.
1 Jn 3:1: Jn 1:12; 16:3. Back to text.
1 Jn 3:8: Jn 8:34, 44. Back to text.
1 Jn 3:13: Jn 15:18–19. Back to text.
1 Jn 3:16: Jn 13:1; 15:13. Back to text.
1 Jn 3:18: Jas 1:22. Back to text.
1 Jn 3:23: Jn 6:29; 13:34; 15:17. Back to text.
1 Jn 4:10: Jn 15:12; 1 Jn 4:19; 2:2. Back to text.
1 Jn 4:14: Jn 4:42; 3:17. Back to text.
1 Jn 5:3: Jn 14:15; 1 Jn 2:5; 2 Jn 6. Back to text.
1 Jn 5:6–8: Jn 19:34; 4:23; 15:26. Back to text.
1 Jn 5:9: Jn 5:32, 36; 8:18. Back to text.
2 Jn 1: 3 Jn 1. Back to text.
2 Jn 5: Jn 13:34. Back to text.
2 Jn 6: 1 Jn 5:3. Back to text.
2 Jn 7: 1 Jn 2:22. Back to text.
2 Jn 12: 1 Jn 1:4; 3 Jn 13. Back to text.
3 Jn 1: Acts 19:29; 2 Jn 1. Back to text.
3 Jn 12: Jn 21:24. Back to text.
3 Jn 13: 2 Jn 12. Back to text.
THE LETTER OF JUDE
Jude 4–16: 2 Pet 2:1–18. Back to text.
Jude 7: Gen 19. Back to text.
Jude 9: Zech 3:2. Back to text.
Jude 11: Gen 4:3–8; Num 22–24; 16. Back to text.
Jude 14–15: Enoch 1:9. Back to text.
Jude 23: Zech 3:3–4. Back to text.
THE REVELATION TO JOHN
Rev 1:4: Ex 3:14. Back to text.
Rev 1:5: Ps 89:27. Back to text.
Rev 1:6: Ex 19:6; Is 61:6. Back to text.
Rev 1:7: Dan 7:13; Mt 24:30; Mk 14:62; Zech 12:10. Back to text.
Rev 1:13: Dan 7:13; 10:5. Back to text.
Rev 1:15: Ezek 1:24. Back to text.
Rev 1:17: Is 44:2, 6. Back to text.
Rev 2:7: Gen 2:9. Back to text.
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Rev 2:8: Is 44:6. Back to text.
Rev 2:10: Dan 1:12. Back to text.
Rev 2:14: Num 31:16; 25:1–2. Back to text.
Rev 2:17: Ps 78:24; Is 62:2. Back to text.
Rev 2:20: 1 Kings 16:31; 2 Kings 9:22, 30; Num 25:1. Back to text.
Rev 2:23: Jer 17:10; Ps 62:12. Back to text.
Rev 2:26: Ps 2:8–9. Back to text.
Rev 3:5: Ex 32:32; Ps 69:28; Dan 12:1; Mt 10:32. Back to text.
Rev 3:9: Is 60:14; 49:23; 43:4. Back to text.
Rev 3:12: Is 62:2; Ezek 48:35; Rev 21:2. Back to text.
Rev 3:14: Ps 89:28; Prov 8:22; Jn 1:1–3. Back to text.
Rev 3:17: Hos 12:8. Back to text.
Rev 3:19: Prov 3:12. Back to text.
Rev 4:1: Ex 19:16, 24. Back to text.
Rev 4:2: Ezek 1:26–28. Back to text.
Rev 4:5: Ex 19:16; Zech 4:2. Back to text.
Rev 4:6: Ezek 1:5, 18. Back to text.
Rev 4:8: Is 6:2–3. Back to text.
Rev 5:1: Ezek 2:9; Is 29:11. Back to text.
Rev 5:6: Is 53:7; Zech 4:10. Back to text.
Rev 5:10: Ex 19:6; Is 61:6. Back to text.
Rev 6:2: Zech 1:8; 6:1–3. Back to text.
Rev 6:6: 2 Kings 6:25. Back to text.
Rev 6:8: Hos 13:14; Ezek 5:12. Back to text.
Rev 6:10: Zech 1:12; Ps 79:5; Gen 4:10. Back to text.
Rev 6:12: Joel 2:31; Acts 2:20. Back to text.
Rev 6:16: Hos 10:8. Back to text.
Rev 6:17: Joel 2:11; Mal 3:2. Back to text.
Rev 7:1: Zech 6:5. Back to text.
Rev 7:14: Dan 12:1; Gen 49:11. Back to text.
Rev 7:16: Is 49:10; Ps 121:6. Back to text.
Rev 7:17: Ezek 34:23; Ps 23:2; Is 25:8. Back to text.
Rev 8:3: Amos 9:1; Ps 141:2. Back to text.
Rev 8:5: Lev 16:12; Ezek 10:2. Back to text.
Rev 8:7: Ex 9:23–25. Back to text.
Rev 8:8: Jer 51:25. Back to text.
Rev 9:2: Gen 19:28; Ex 19:18; Joel 2:10. Back to text.
Rev 9:6: Job 3:21. Back to text.
Rev 9:7: Joel 2:4. Back to text.
Rev 9:20: Is 17:8; Ps 115:4–7; 135:15–17. Back to text.
Rev 10:5: Deut 32:40; Dan 12:7. Back to text.
Rev 10:9: Ezek 2:8; 3:1–3. Back to text.
Rev 11:2: Zech 12:3; Is 63:18; Lk 21:24. Back to text.
Rev 11:4: Zech 4:3, 11–14. Back to text.
Rev 11:5: 2 Kings 1:10; Jer 5:14. Back to text.
Rev 11:6: 1 Kings 17:1; Ex 7:17, 19. Back to text.
Rev 11:7: Dan 7:3, 7, 21. Back to text.
Rev 11:15: Ps 22:28; Dan 7:14, 27. Back to text.
Rev 11:19: 1 Kings 8:1–6; 2 Mac 2:4–8. Back to text.
Rev 12:2: Mic 4:10. Back to text.
Rev 12:9: Gen 3:1, 14–15; Zech 3:1. Back to text.
Rev 12:10: Job 1:9–11. Back to text.
Rev 12:12: Is 44:23; 49:13. Back to text.
Rev 12:14: Dan 7:25; 12:7. Back to text.
Rev 13:1: Dan 7:1–6. Back to text.
Rev 13:9: Mk 4:23. Back to text.
Rev 13:14: Deut 13:1–5. Back to text.
Rev 14:10: Jer 51:7; Gen 19:24. Back to text.
Rev 14:15: Joel 3:13; Mt 13:30. Back to text.
Rev 15:1: Lev 26:21. Back to text.
Rev 15:3: Ex 15:1; Ps 145:17. Back to text.
Rev 15:4: Jer 10:7; Ps 86:9–10. Back to text.
Rev 15:8: 1 Kings 8:10; Is 6:4; Ezek 44:4. Back to text.
Rev 16:2: Ex 9:10–11; Deut 28:35. Back to text.
Rev 16:3–4: Ex 7:17–21. Back to text.
Rev 16:13: 1 Kings 22:21–23; Ex 8:3. Back to text.
Rev 16:15: 1 Thess 5:2. Back to text.
Rev 16:18: Ex 19:16; Dan 12:1. Back to text.
Rev 17:2: Is 23:17; Jer 25:15–16. Back to text.
Rev 17:8: Dan 7:3; Rev 3:5. Back to text.
Rev 17:12: Dan 7:20–24. Back to text.
Rev 18:2: Is 21:9; Jer 50:39. Back to text.
Rev 18:3: Jer 25:15, 27. Back to text.
Rev 18:12: Ezek 27:12–13, 22. Back to text.
Rev 18:17: Is 23:14; Ezek 27:26–30. Back to text.
Rev 18:21: Jer 51:63; Ezek 26:21. Back to text.
Rev 18:22: Is 24:8; Ezek 26:13. Back to text.
Rev 19:2: Deut 32:43. Back to text.
Rev 19:16: Deut 10:17; Dan 2:47. Back to text.
Rev 19:17: Ezek 39:4, 17–20. Back to text.
Rev 20:4: Dan 7:9, 22, 27. Back to text.
Rev 20:8: Ezek 38:2, 9, 15. Back to text.
Rev 20:9: 2 Kings 1:10–12. Back to text.
Rev 20:11–12: Dan 7:9–10. Back to text.
Rev 20:15: Rev 3:5. Back to text.
Rev 21:2: Rev 3:12. Back to text.
Rev 21:7: Ps 89:27–28. Back to text.
Rev 21:12: Ezek 48:30–35; Ex 28:21. Back to text.
Rev 21:23: Is 24:23; 60:1, 19. Back to text.
Rev 21:27: Is 52:1; Rev 3:5. Back to text.
Rev 22:3: Zech 14:11. Back to text.
Rev 22:14: Gen 2:9; 3:22. Back to text.
Rev 22:16: Is 11:1, 10. Back to text.
Rev 22:21: 2 Thess 3:18. Back to text.
DOCTRINAL NOTES
THE BOOK OF GENESIS
* Gen 1:1—2:4a: The aim of this narrative is not to present a scientific
picture but to teach religious truth, especially the dependence of all creation
on God and its consecration to him through the homage rendered by man,
who is the climax of creation. Hence its strong liturgical character and the
concluding emphasis on the sabbath. It serves as a prologue to the whole of
the Old Testament.
* Gen 2:4b ff: This account of the state of the world at the beginning,
which introduces the story of the first sin, comes from a different and earlier
source and is composed in a very different style. There is nothing in these
early chapters that commits us to any particular scientific view of the
origins of the world or man, or that would exclude the evolution hypothesis.
* Gen 3:15, he shall bruise your head: i.e., the seed of the woman, that
is, mankind descended from Eve, will eventually gain the victory over the
powers of evil. This victory will, of course, be gained through the work of
the Messiah who is par excellence the seed of the woman.
The Latin Vulgate has the reading ipsa conteret, “she shall bruise.”
Some Old Latin manuscripts have this reading, and it occurs also in St.
Augustine, De Genesi contra Manichaeos, II, which is earlier than St.
Jerome’s translation. It could be due originally to a copyist’s mistake, which
was then seen to contain a genuine meaning—namely, that Mary, too,
would have her share in the victory, inasmuch as she was mother of the
Savior.
* Gen 4:1: The story of Cain and Abel has the purpose of showing the
effects of sin within society, the fratricide of Cain leading to the vengeance
of Lamech and so to the Flood. We are, however, no longer in the first age
of humanity, as can be seen from verses 14, 17, etc.
* Gen 4:26: Seth takes the place of the murdered Abel and is the ancestor
of Noah. In Ex 3:14 and 6:2–3 we find another account of the origins of
Yahwism.
* Gen 5:1, generations: It should be noted that these genealogies are
selective and schematic, and the numbers, as often in the Old Testament, are
symbolic.
* Gen 6:2, sons of God could mean simply “divine beings,” as elsewhere
in the Old Testament. The writer, however, may be using an old story or
myth to point out the progressive degradation of mankind before the Flood
and to warn against the evil effects of intermarriage either of the
descendants of Seth with the Kenites or, more probably, of the Israelites
with the native populations of Canaan.
* Gen 6:11: Here begins the Flood narrative formed of two almost
parallel accounts. This fact explains the existence of repetitions and
discrepancies. It is, in places, remarkably similar to other Flood stories from
the ancient Near East.
* Gen 10:1, generations: This “table of the nations” makes use of old
material to show how all the nations of the world as then known have
descended from the generation that survived the Flood. It was from this
world that Abraham was called to be the father of the chosen people.
* Gen 11:1–9: The tower of Babel ( = Babylon) is taken as a symbol of
political power, empire-building, and the civilization that opposes God’s
plan. The tower was probably a ziggurat, i.e., Babylonian temple.
* Gen 12:1–3: With Abraham’s call, sacred history in the strict sense
begins. The promise theme runs through the whole patriarchal history, e.g.,
18:18; 28:14.
* Gen 14:18, Melchizedek was later taken as a Messianic figure (Ps
110:4) and interpreted in the New Testament as foreshadowing Christ,
whose priesthood (including the offering of bread and wine) exceeds that of
the Old Testament; cf. Heb 7:1–7.
* Gen 15:1: The Vulgate has “I am thy protector, and thy reward
exceeding great.” There was, however, at this stage, no idea of a reward in a
future life.
* Gen 16:1–4: The practice suggested by Sarai, involving as it did
polygamy, was in accord with moral standards at that time and is referred to
in legal codes of the period.
* Gen 19:1: The Sodom episode, so often referred to in the Old and New
Testaments, expresses the abhorrence of the true Israelite for unnatural sin
and the violation of the sacred duty of hospitality, cf. Judg 19:11–30.
* Gen 22:1–19: The sacrifice of Isaac, while reprobating the practice of
human sacrifice then in use among the Canaanites, gives a magnificent
example of Abraham’s faith and obedience, as also does 18:1–15; cf. Rom 4
and Heb 11:8–12.
* Gen 22:6: Isaac, carrying the wood up the mountain for the sacrifice,
has often been seen as a figure of Christ carrying his cross to die on
Golgotha.
* Gen 25:19: With the birth of Esau and Jacob we enter a new narrative
cycle. Jacob, renamed Israel, is represented as the ancestor of the twelve
tribes and, therefore, of the whole people; cf. Deut 26:5.
* Gen 28:10–22: This narrative explains and justifies the use of what had
formerly been a Canaaaite sanctuary, Bethel. The ladder seems to represent
the ziggurat, which was a temple with steps leading to a platform at the top.
* Gen 32:24–32: The meaning of this, one of the oldest and most
mysterious narratives in Genesis, remains obscure. It is intended to explain
the place name Penuel, which means “face of God.”
* Gen 37:2: From this point the book of Genesis is chiefly concerned
with the Joseph story, which is full of the sense of divine providence. It has,
as might be expected, a markedly Egyptian character.
* Gen 49:1–27: In their present form these “Oracles of Jacob,” blessings
pronounced upon his sons as epitomizing the twelve tribes, date from the
period of the early monarchy.
THE BOOK OF EXODUS
* This book, made up of various traditions of different dates, deals with
two events, the deliverance from Egypt and the Sinai covenant, which,
closely linked together, form the basis of Old Testament faith. It is
dominated by the personality of Moses. Back to text.
* Ex 3:14: The translation is uncertain; it is, therefore, difficult to decide
whether this is a refusal to disclose the name or an explanation of the divine
title Yahweh revealed immediately afterward.
* Ex 7:14: Here begins the story of the ten plagues. Again, the narrative
is composite, and originally different traditions knew of different numbers
of plagues. All, however, lead up to the climax of the death of the first–
born. Some of the plagues correspond to natural phenomena that are known
to occur, or to have occurred in the past, in Egypt.
* Ex 12:1: The feast of the Passover, the regulations for which are given
here, commemorates the deliverance from Egypt. The feast of unleavened
bread would probably have been added only after the entry into Canaan.
The Passover foreshadows the sacrifice of Jesus (1 Cor 5:7).
* Ex 16:14: The mysterious manna may have been a substance secreted
by the tamarisk or perhaps by an insect that feeds on its leaves and is edible.
In the New Testament it is a type of the Eucharist; cf. Jn 6:31–35, 48–51.
* Ex 19:3: The covenant makes Israel the people of God and binds them
to the fulfilment of the commandments; it is concluded in chapter 24.
* Ex 20:1–17: The Ten Commandments, in their original form even
briefer than here, are found in a different version in Deut 5:6–21.
* Ex 40:34: the cloud and the fire, that is, the glory, are ways of
representing at the same time the presence and the transcendence of God.
* As the name suggests, this book is almost exclusively concerned with
the regulation of the religious life of Israel by the Levitical priesthood.
Although its underlying concept of Israel as a holy people contains an
element of permanent importance, the law as such, except for those parts
that Christ expressly sanctioned, is not binding on Christians. Back to text.
* Lev 11:1: These regulations concerning what is ritually pure or impure
depend, for the most part, on circumstances peculiar to that time; e.g.,
animals, such as the pig, used in pagan sacrifices. Some correspond to
ancient taboos.
* Lev 17:1: The so-called “Code of Holiness” (chapters 17–26) implies
an exalted idea of the holiness and otherness of the God of Israel.
THE BOOK OF NUMBERS
* The title of this book is explained by the census with which it opens. It
is composed of both history and legislation, and, though edited finally by
the priests after the Exile, it contains much ancient material. Back to text.
* Num 11:16–30: The account of the election of the seventy elders
emphasizes the charismatic or prophetic basis of authority in the
community.
* Num 21:4–9: The bronze serpent may have been the standard or
symbol of the tribe of Levi, to which Moses and Aaron belonged. In Jn 3:14
it becomes a type of the saving cross of Christ.
* Num 22:21–35: The story of Balaam and his donkey is of popular
origin. The oracles of this foreign seer, especially the fourth (24:15–19),
refer to the Messianic king of the future, of whom David is the type.
* The title comes from the mistranslation of 17:18 in the Greek version
(the Septuagint) and really means “a second copy of the law.” The book
comprises the so-called “Deuteronomic Code of Law” (chapters 12–26),
edited within the framework of two discourses attributed to Moses
represented as prophet and lawgiver. The whole is rounded off with a third
discourse, a psalm, and an account of Moses’ death and burial. The central
theme of Deuteronomy is the election of Israel as the people of God by
means of the covenant. Back to text.
* Deut 4:32–40: This passage gives the clearest and most eloquent
expression of Israel’s consciousness of its election as the people of God.
* Deut 4:41: The beginning of the second discourse of Moses containing
the Deuteronomic version of the Ten Commandments; cf. Ex 20:1–17.
* Deut 6:4–9: The recital thrice daily of this text, plus two others, is the
principal practice of piety of the religious Jew; it is called the Shema
(“Hear”). It contains the greatest commandment of the Law, that is, the love
of the covenant-God (cf. Mt 22:37), and a clear statement of monotheism.
* Deut 12:2: This law, enforcing one single place of worship, connects
historically with the religious reform of Josiah just before the Exile in the
opinion of many scholars; cf. 2 Kings 22–23.
* Deut 18:18: The prophet like Moses mentioned here refers either to the
prophetic movement as a whole or to an individual, either Joshua (successor
of Moses) or Samuel. The New Testament sees here a reference to the
Messiah; cf. Jn 1:21; Acts 3:22; 7:37.
* Deut 24:1: Divorce was permitted in Old Testament times on account
of “hardness of heart”; Jesus, however, insists that it was not in the original
plan of God (Mt 19:7–9).
THE BOOK OF JOSHUA
* This book continues the narrative from the death of Moses (Deut 34),
through the conquest of Canaan, down to the great covenant-renewal at
Shechem. The account of the conquest is stylized and summarized: thus, not
all the tribes entered the land together as here described, the operation was
not so free of difficulties and even failures as we might assume after a
reading of this book, and the occupation of the whole country could not
have been carried out by Joshua in person. Judges 1 gives a somewhat
different and complementary version. Back to text.
* Josh 6:1: Here, as elsewhere, the history has been worked over in
accordance with certain theological ideas.
* Josh 6:17: Following the indications elsewhere in the Old Testament, it
would appear that the ban, that is, the physical destruction of the enemy in
obedience to the Deity, was practiced much less than a reading of Joshua
might suggest. Despite the high religious principles that motivated it, it
must be seen in the light of the imperfect stage of moral development
reached at that time.
* Josh 3:7–17: The crossing of the Jordan is described in such a way as to
bring out the theological parallelism with the crossing of the Red Sea (or,
Sea of Reeds); both are seen as due to the direct intervention of God.
* Josh 10:12–14: Joshua’s apostrophe to the sun occurs in a fragment
quoted from an old collection of epic material, and the quotation goes on
beyond verse 12. This would make a literal interpretation of this event
undesirable. It appears from the narrative that a great storm occurred at the
same time as the attack and powerfully helped toward the Israelite victory
(verse 11). It is this sign of divine aid that is so graphically apostrophized in
the following poetic fragment (verses 12–13).
* Josh 13–21: This section consists of topographical indications: the
possessions and boundaries of the tribes and other ethnic groups, and a list
of the cities of refuge.
* Josh 24:1: The full gathering of the tribes at Shechem for a renewal of
the covenant sealed the conquest and the final apportioning of the land. It
seems to indicate the conversion to the worship of Yahweh of those
Hebrews who did not go down to Egypt.
THE BOOK OF JUDGES
* This book, which has been edited at least twice, fills in the period from
the settlement to the monarchy. This was a period of crisis that gave rise to
“saviors” raised up by God to meet these critical situations. The deeds of
six of these are recounted at some length: Othniel, Ehud, Deborah (and
Barak), Gideon, Jephthah, Samson; there are also six “minor” judges who
are given only a short notice: Shamgar, Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon. The
book ends with two appendixes (chapters 17–21). Back to text.
* Judg 1:1: This first chapter describes the difficulties and defeats of the
conquest.
* Judg 2:11–19: This passage gives the theological scheme of the book
according to which the episodic history is presented. It comes from an
editor inspired by the ideas of Deuteronomy and resembles closely the
scheme according to which the kings, beginning with Solomon, are
assessed and judged.
* Judg 5:1: The song of Deborah gives an alternative to the prose account
of the previous chapter. Though touched up by later editors, it is very
ancient and gives a valuable picture of the state of Israel in the thirteenth
century B.C..
* Judg 8:23: It appears from the sequel that Gideon did in fact become a
king even if he refused the title; but the idea of an hereditary monarchy was
still unacceptable, as the following history of Abimelech shows.
* Judg 11:39: Human sacrifice, common in Canaan and surrounding
lands, was never permitted in Israel; cf. Lev 18:21. The few cases we find
were due to foreign influence or to an erroneous conscience; cf. 2 Sam
21:4–6; 2 Kings 23:10.
* Judg 13:1: The “Samson cycle” (chapters 13–16) is built on the theme
of the broken vow; cf. 13:4–5. This gives a religious character to what
otherwise has the appearance of profane literature.
* Judg 17–21: Extracts from tribal tradition which give a dark picture of
the times.
THE BOOK OF RUTH
* This charming tale of family life in the countryside of Bethlehem
during the period of the judges is imbued with a deeply religious spirit. It is
a story of family devotion and of piety toward one’s ancestors. The book
has significance for the ancestry of David and the Messiah. Though Jewish
in feeling, it is not narrowly so; indeed, Boaz goes beyond what is strictly
required by the law and, though the book insists that Israel’s faith must
remain uncontaminated, yet it also says it must be made available to all.
The call of the Gentiles is foreseen. There is no certainty about the date of
the book. It was probably written during the period of the kingship, though
some think it was composed after the Exile. Back to text.
* The First and Second Books of Samuel (the First and Second Books of
Kings): Samuel was traditionally supposed to have written these books—
hence the title. The Latin Vulgate, following the Greek tradition, links these
books with 1 and 2 Kings, calling them 1–4 Kings (Greek, 1–4 Kingdoms).
1 and 2 Samuel cover the early period of the monarchy and are, in fact,
composed of two main traditions; this at times makes the sequence of
events difficult to follow. The narrative makes plain the difficulty of
centralizing the government of the tribes. David’s character and
achievement are well brought out, and there is special emphasis on the
Messianic importance of both. Yet at the end the signs of possible schism
are already manifest. The books were probably written during the period of
the divided monarchy. Back to text.
* 1 Sam 1:3, Shiloh: At this time, the central sanctuary of the tribes and
the residence of the ark, the visible assurance of the presence of Yahweh,
Lord of the hosts of Israel.
* 1 Sam 2:1–10: This song, though certainly touched up at a later period
(e.g., the reference to a king in verse 10), is meant to express Hannah’s
sentiments. It has profoundly influenced the Magnificat.
* 1 Sam 2:18, ephod: The ephod was either a distinctive priestly garment
as here, or a means of divination used by the priest, possibly a container for
the sacred lots; cf. 2:28.
* 1 Sam 3:1: This account of the prophetic vocation of Samuel (cf. Is 6)
is meant to begin a new chapter in the spiritual history of Israel.
* 1 Sam 4:1: Here begins a new phase in the epic struggle against the
Philistines, which the editor has skilfully woven into the story of the ark
and of Samuel.
* 1 Sam 4:21, Ichabod: The name means “The Glory is not”; i.e., the
glory of the Lord enthroned over the ark has departed. Then followed the
years during which the sanctuary of Shiloh was desolate and of which
Jeremiah long afterward was acutely conscious; cf. Jer 7:12, 14; 26:6.
* 1 Sam 7:2: The story of the ark, which comes from a special source, is
continued in 2 Sam 6.
* 1 Sam 8:10ff: Choosing a king. Two accounts are discernible—a
monarchist and an antimonarchist. In the absence of a central sanctuary and
in an atmosphere of defeat, one section of the people demanded a king to
re-establish their fortunes; the others preferred to leave it to God to raise up
leaders when necessary, as in the days of the judges.
* 1 Sam 9:13, high place: It was customary in early Israel to worship
God on raised platforms or hilltops, as the Canaanites did their gods. Later
such practices were forbidden as leading to idolatry, and worship was
allowed only in Jerusalem; cf. Deut 12:2ff.
* 1 Sam 10:5, prophets: An inferior kind of prophet who flourished for a
time in Israel. They were quite different from the writing prophets, in that
they cultivated states of ecstasy and even used musical instruments for the
purpose.
* 1 Sam 11:8: These figures are probably a later insertion.
* 1 Sam 12:11, Jerubbaal: i.e., Gideon.
* 1 Sam 12:20–25: Samuel here summarizes the antimonarchist attitude;
cf. Josh 24.
* 1 Sam 13:1: Acts 13:21 says Saul reigned forty years; but so did David
(2 Sam 5:5). These must be round numbers, to indicate a fairly long rule.
* 1 Sam 14:38–42: This passage shows how the sacred lots were cast to
find out God’s will.
* 1 Sam 15:22–23: Samuel does not condemn sacrifices but says
obedience is better.
* 1 Sam 18:25, marriage present: The usual payment for a bride.
* 1 Sam 19:20–24: cf. 10:5.
* 1 Sam 26:19, Go, serve other gods: They did not consider the
possibility of worshiping Yahweh, the God of Israel, in a foreign land.
* 2 Sam 1:26: Vulgate adds, “As the mother loves her only son, so did I
love you.”
* 2 Sam 2:8, Ish-bosheth: “Man of shame.” The name was really Ish-
baal, “Man or servant of Baal,” but the writer could not bring himself to
pronounce so profane a name, especially as it belonged to an Israelite; cf. 1
Chron 8:33; 9:39, where the name is given as Esh-baal.
* 2 Sam 2:14, play: He meant “do battle.” The idea was to settle the
matter by a fight between two select groups of soldiers.
* 2 Sam 5:1: The two chapters 5–6 represent the climax of David’s career
with the establishment of Jerusalem as the political and religious center of
Israel.
* 2 Sam 5:6, the blind and the lame: The meaning is, that the place was
so strong that it could be defended even by the blind and the lame. But
David took it by a stratagem, his men climbing secretly up a shaft from the
spring Gihon. The place was ideal for a capital city.
* 2 Sam 7:1–29: The point of this prophecy is the establishment of
David’s dynasty. Hence God says he will build David a house (verse 11).
David thanks him suitably in a formal prayer (verses 18–29).
* 2 Sam 9:1: 2 Sam 9—1 Kings 2 (except 2 Sam 21–24) is the account of
the struggle for the succession to David’s throne. It goes back to the early
monarchy and is probably the oldest continuous prose narrative in the Old
Testament.
* 2 Sam 11:1: The story of David’s double crime shows how he, too,
unlike other contemporary monarchs, was under the divine law, not above
it, and how God draws good from evil, since it was Bathsheba’s son who
would succeed David.
* 2 Sam 11:11: It was a religious law that soldiers should remain
continent in time of war; cf. 1 Sam 21:4–5.
* 2 Sam 13:1: The first signs of dissension become visible.
* 2 Sam 16:22: Absalom’s action meant that he was supplanting his
father in the kingship; cf. 3:7; 12:8.
* 2 Sam 20:10: Thus did Joab remove his last rival and remain in power
till David’s death, in spite of the king’s dislike of him.
* 2 Sam 22:2–51: This song, probably inserted later, is very similar to
Psalm 18.
* 2 Sam 24:1: God is here said to command the census, presumably on
the general grounds of ascribing the king’s policies to him, but in verse 10
David says he has sinned thereby, and in 1 Chron 21:1 the census is
ascribed to Satan as an infringement of God’s prerogatives.
* The First and Second Books of the Kings (the Third and Fourth Books
of the Kings): the period covered in these books extends from the death of
David to after the fall of Jerusalem in the year 586 B.C. The main theme is
the steady decline of Israel dragged down by the monarchy, and her
punishment by God for the worship of false gods, introduced by Solomon
and actively promoted by many of his successors, especially in the northern
kingdom. Back to text.
* 1 Kings 1:1: The story continues from 2 Sam 20:26.
* 1 Kings 1:5: There was as yet no natural right of succession and David
had already given the right to Solomon, a younger son; cf. verse 13.
* 1 Kings 3:1: Chapters 3–11 give the history of Solomon. The Pharaoh
of 3:1 and 9:16 (?) was of the twenty-first dynasty, possibly Psusennes II.
* 1 Kings 3:5, a dream: A common means of divine communication,
especially before the age of the prophets.
* 1 Kings 4:32, proverbs: Doubtless some of those of the book of
Proverbs are to be ascribed to Solomon. The book of Wisdom however
(called in Greek The Wisdom of Solomon), is ascribed to him only because
of his reputation for wisdom. It was actually written in the first century B.C.
* 1 Kings 6:1: The temple was built on the high ground to the north of
Ophel, David’s city.
* 1 Kings 8:10, cloud: The visible sign of the presence of Yahweh taking
possession of his sanctuary; later called the shekinah by the rabbis.
* 1 Kings 8:23–53: This eloquent prayer admirably sums up the relation
of God to his people.
* 1 Kings 8:27: A reminder that Yahweh was very different from the gods
of other nations, who dwelt in their temples.
* 1 Kings 9:3–9: God’s response to Solomon’s prayer.
* 1 Kings 10:1, Sheba: A kingdom in southwestern Arabia.
* 1 Kings 10:22, ships of Tarshish: i.e., ships that could sail to Tarshish
(usually located in Spain). The word then came to be applied to ocean-
going vessels.
* 1 Kings 11:1–8: This account of Solomon’s moral decline stresses the
connection between apostasy and sexual excess—a theme often met with in
the Old Testament.
* 1 Kings 11:14: Because of Solomon’s idolatry, God raised up enemies,
to the south (Edom), to the north (Damascus), and within the kingdom
(Jeroboam).
* 1 Kings 12:1, Shechem was the old religious center of the northern
tribes. The alliance between these and Judah was never very strong, even
during the united monarchy.
* 1 Kings 12:28, Behold your gods: Jeroboam seems to have had no
intention of introducing false gods. These were to be images of Yahweh.
But in doing this he debased the whole idea of true worship and made it
more like pagan religion, to which it was bound to lead in the end; cf.
16:31. Judah, with all its advantages of temple and dynasty, was no better at
this time, but reforms were instituted at intervals.
* 1 Kings 16:24, hill of Samaria: One of the most splendid sites in the
Middle East for a capital city. But even so, the northern kingdom never
achieved stability.
* 1 Kings 17:1: With this description of the drought begins the prophetic
career of Elijah, the great opponent of the nature religion that flourished in
the northern kingdom and that Ahab and his Phoenician wife, Jezebel, were
so active in promoting.
* 1 Kings 18:19, prophets of Baal: These had been brought from
Phoenicia by Jezebel.
* 1 Kings 19:8, Horeb: i.e., Mount Sinai, where the law was given to
Moses and God made a covenant with his people.
* 1 Kings 21:10: Two witnesses were required for a legal charge
involving the death penalty; cf. Susanna and the elders; cf. Num 35:30;
Deut 19:15; Dan 13:40; Mt 18:16.
* 1 Kings 21:29: God has mercy on the repentant king, as before in the
case of David. But he does not say here that the dynasty will be preserved.
* 2 Kings 2:9, a double share: The eldest son inherited a double share of
his father’s property; cf. Deut 21:17. Elisha regarded himself as the son and
so asked for Elijah’s spirit as his inheritance.
* 2 Kings 3:4–27: The Moabite Stone, or Stele of Mesha, in the Louvre,
found in Trans-Jordan in 1868, describes the liberation of Moab from Israel,
but understandably is silent about its subjection.
* 2 Kings 5:15: A forthright monotheism that not even an Israelite could
improve on. However, Naaman realized that Yahweh had a special relation
to Israel; cf. verse 17.
* 2 Kings 9:24: So was the sin of Ahab visited upon his son, according to
the word of the Lord; cf. 1 Kings 21:29.
* 2 Kings 14:21, Azariah: Otherwise known as Uzziah; cf. 15:13; 2
Chron 26:1–23.
* 2 Kings 15:19, Pul: i.e., Tiglath-pileser III; cf. verse 29.
* 2 Kings 16:3: Human sacrifice to Moloch was practiced in Phoenicia.
* 2 Kings 17:7–18: A full explanation of how Israel had sinned and was
punished accordingly.
* 2 Kings 17:24–41: Origin of the Samaritans, written by an orthodox
Jew.
* 2 Kings 19:35: It is usually supposed that the Assyrians were struck by
a virulent disease.
* 2 Kings 22:8, book of the law: Probably Deuteronomy. In Deut 12–26
may be seen details of Josiah’s reform, especially as regards the
centralization of worship. The book must have been hidden or lost during
the reign of the wicked Manasseh.
* The First and Second Books of the Chronicles (the First and Second
Paralipomenon): These books, written after the Exile, give a second account
of the period of the kingship. Composed as they were during a time of
religious revival, they aim at giving a more religious history of the period
than is available in Samuel and Kings. The author’s interest is mainly in
Judah and in the worship in the temple. The kingdom of David is idealized
and some developments that took place later are here situated in his reign.
Back to text.
* 1 Chron 1:1: Much space is given to genealogies in Chronicles.
Postexilic Judaism was greatly interested in these in its efforts to preserve
the race.
* 21—29: In these chapters the Chronicler enlarges on the organization
of divine worship and of the clergy charged with carrying it out. He records
the erection of a (permanent) altar to Yahweh on the site of the future
temple and even describes David’s preparation for the temple construction.
* 1 Chron 24:3: There were two chief priests in the time of David,
namely, Zadok and Abiathar, descended from Eleazar and Ithamar
respectively; cf. 1 Sam 22:20; 2 Sam 15:24. Later, in the time of Solomon,
Zadok became sole high priest.
* 2 Chron 1:1: The Chronicler makes no mention of the rival claims of
Adonijah and of his being put to death by Solomon; cf. 1 Kings 2:13–25.
He concentrates on the favorable aspects of the reign and enlarges on the
wisdom Solomon received from God.
* 2 Chron 6:21, hear from heaven: This phrase recurs like a refrain
throughout this prayer, which seems to have been given a liturgical form.
* 2 Chron 7:1, fire came down: As it did for Elijah’s sacrifice; cf. 1 Kings
18:38.
* 2 Chron 9:31: One might have expected something to be said on
Solomon’s decline in morals, but it is passed over in silence. By contrast,
the similar failings of his son Rehoboam are underlined; cf. chapters 11–12.
* 2 Chron 18:12, prophets: Jeremiah says that false prophets usually
proclaim what their hearers want them to say: “every one deals falsely . . .
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jer 6:13–14). It will be
noticed that the Chronicler omits a large part of 2 Kings which is concerned
with the northern kingdom. Elijah, for example, is mentioned only once, in
21:12.
* 2 Chron 30:1, Passover: This Passover is not mentioned in Kings. The
celebration inspired the people to go out and destroy the illegal high places
and altars.
* 2 Chron 33:11: There is no record of this captivity of Manasseh in
Babylon or of his subsequent repentance, either in 2 Kings or in the
Assyrian records, though he is known from the latter to have been a vassal
of Assyria.
* 2 Chron 33:18, prayer: An apocryphal prayer of Manasseh is usually
printed at the end of editions of the Vulgate Bible.
THE BOOK OF EZRA
* The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah (The First and Second Books of
Esdras): These two books were originally one and were written probably by
the same author as Chronicles. They deal with the century following the
return from the Exile, but it is by no means a complete history that they
give. The author’s main purpose is to describe the religious and political
reorganization after the return, and to underline the workings of God’s
providence. There is some uncertainty as to the chronology and order of the
events described. Two main sources, the memoirs of Ezra and those of
Nehemiah, are here intermingled. Back to text.
* Ezra 1:2: The Persians, unlike the Babylonians, pursued a very liberal
policy in matters of religion.
* Ezra 4:4: Understandably, the people who had occupied the land in the
absence of the exiles now resented their return and, especially, the building
of the temple.
* Ezra 5:1: Building is resumed nearly twenty years later, and the temple
is completed in four years (515 B.C.)—but it was a mere shadow of
Solomon’s temple; cf. 3:12.
* Ezra 7:1: Fifty-seven years later, i.e., about 458 B.C., according to one
view, Ezra the scribe came with other exiles from Babylonia to carry out a
much-needed reform. The total number in this group was some 6,000 or
8,000 persons. Many commentators place Ezra’s coming in the reign of Ar-
ta-xerxes II, 398 B.C., and hence after Nehemiah.
* 9–10: Mixed marriages. Experience had shown that marriage with
women of other races involved serious risk of idolatry; cf. Solomon, 1
Kings 11:1–8.
* Some years after the arrival of Ezra (cf. Ezra 7), Nehemiah had himself
appointed governor of Jerusalem by the Persian king and came to that city
to build up its walls (445 B.C.). As before, the project was opposed by the
surrounding peoples (cf. chapters 4 and 6), but this time the work was not
interrupted. Back to text.
* Neh 8–10: As it was only thirteen years since the reform of Ezra, some
scholars think that this passage belongs to the book of Ezra.
* Neh 8:8: The book was of course written in Hebrew, but the people,
since their sojourn in Babylonia, now spoke Aramaic, and it had to be
translated for them into that tongue.
THE BOOK OF TOBIT
* The Books of Tobit, Judith and Esther
These three books appear together in the Greek Bible, usually after the
historical books. The complete Aramaic original of Tobit and the Hebrew of
Judith have not survived, and neither book was included in the Jewish
canon at the end of the first century A.D. Existing as they did in the Greek
Bible, they would have been used and recognized as Scripture by the first
Christians. The Greek “Additions to Esther” were probably written two
centuries after the Hebrew text. They were composed in Egypt and they
exhibit a strictly Jewish doctrine. All three books have a literary form
somewhat strange to the Western mind. They are, in effect, religious tales
with the appearance of an historical narrative. They may have an historical
basis, but the persons, places, events and dates are woven into the narrative
in such a way as to have little resemblance to the actual historical record as
we know it from other sources. It would seem, therefore, that the writers are
intending, not to write history as we understand that term, but to use
historical material to impart a religious message.
The Book of Tobit (The Book of Tobias)
The author relates the story of a family living among a pagan people yet
trusting fully in God in spite of difficulties. Belief in one God is stressed;
marriage between Jews is likewise emphasized and angels figure
prominently in the narrative. The book has much to say, too, about the need
for good works. It was written after the Exile at some time during the
Persian period, though the story may be a good deal older than that. It
shows signs of dependence on earlier writings such as the Story of Ahikar, a
sixth-century work from Babylon. It also bears a likeness to Genesis in
certain points, e.g., to his last injunctions to the family, the important role of
angels, the son’s search for a wife, and the care given to burial of the dead.
It is interesting to note that fragments of the Hebrew and Aramaic texts
have been found at Qumran, which favor the longer text of Codex
Sinaiticus, the Old Latin and the Vulgate. Back to text.
* Tob 4:10, charity: i.e., almsgiving; cf. also verses 11 and 16.
* Tob 4:12, immorality: i.e., impurity, fornication.
* Tob 4:17, place your bread: The Greek verb means literally “pour out.”
The Latin, with its “your bread and your wine,” preserves better the original
text, cf. the Story of Ahikar: “Pour out your wine on the graves of the
righteous and drink it not with evil men.”
* Tob 12:9, charity: See note on 4:10.
THE BOOK OF JUDITH
* This is an account of the routing of an army and the freeing of the
people of God through a stratagem devised and carried out by a woman (cf.
Esther). The story is strongly nationalist in sentiment, especially the victory
song in chapter 16. The writer stresses that Judith’s strength comes from
God in response to her trust in him, and because she faithfully keeps all the
prescriptions of the law. The Greek version of the book (the basis of this
translation) was made from a Hebrew original, now lost. The Latin version
was made from an Aramaic text, almost a paraphrase, which is not now
extant and which apparently omitted about a fifth of the book. Back to text.
* Jud 8:1: The names in this genealogy differ in the various texts and
versions.
* Jud 10:4: The remainder of this verse reads in the Vulgate (verse
4): “ 4And the Lord also gave her more beauty: because all this dressing–up
did not proceed from sensuality, but from virtue: and therefore the Lord
increased this her beauty, so that she appeared to all men’s eyes
incomparably lovely.”
* Jud 13:20: Vulgate adds (verses 27–31): “ 27And Achior being called
for came, and Judith said to him: The God of Israel, to whom you gave
testimony, that he revenge himself of his enemies, he has cut off the head of
all the unbelievers this night by my hand. 28And that you may find that it is
so, behold the head of Holofernes, who in the contempt of his pride
despised the God of Israel, and threatened you with death, saying: When the
people of Israel shall be taken, I will command your sides to be pierced
with a sword. 29Then Achior, seeing the head of Holofernes, being seized
with a great fear he fell on his face upon the earth, and his soul swooned
away. 30But after he had recovered his spirits, he fell down at her feet, and
reverenced her, and said: 31Blessed are you by your God in every tabernacle
of Jacob, for in every nation which shall hear your name, the God of Israel
shall be magnified on occasion of you.”
* Jud 15:9, You are the exaltation of Jerusalem: This passage is included
in the office for feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary, e.g., the little chapter for
None on the Assumption, 15 August.
* Jud 16:25: Vulgate adds (verse 31): “ 31But the day of the festivity of
this victory is received by the Hebrews in the number of holy days, and is
religiously observed by the Jews from that time until this day.”
THE BOOK OF ESTHER
* Set in the Persian capital Susa, this story relates how God saved his
people from the hands of an enemy, this time in a foreign country. As in the
book of Judith, the deliverance is brought about through the instrumentality
of a woman. The book gives details for the keeping of the feast of Purim in
memory of this deliverance. Back to text.
* Esther 11:2: The disarrangement of the chapter and verse order is due
to the insertion of the deuterocanonical portions in their logical place in the
story of Esther, as narrated in the Greek version from which they are taken.
They are printed in italics to enable the reader to recognize them at once.
In the old Vulgate these portions were placed by Jerome immediately
after the Hebrew text of Esther, regardless of their logical position, because
he himself did not regard them as canonical. Hence they came to be
numbered 10:4—16:24. It has been thought best to leave the chapter and
verse numbering unchanged in the present edition.
* Esther 15:1–16: This deuterocanonical passage is a later expansion of
the Hebrew text 5:1–2, which is as follows: “On the third day Esther put on
her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, opposite
the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne inside the palace
opposite the entrance to the palace; 2and when the king saw Queen Esther
standing in the court, she found favor in his sight and he held out to Esther
the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and
touched the top of the scepter.” Greek and Hebrew rejoin at verse 3.
THE BOOK OF JOB
* This book is one of the most interesting among the texts that make up
the Wisdom literature of the Old Testament. It deals with a profound
subject: the problem of the suffering of good men; and is written almost
entirely in poetry. It is probably postexilic and its author is unknown.
The problem is clear enough. Material rewards and punishments are
promised respectively for the observance or transgression of God’s law; cf.
Lev 26; Deut 28. We see the application of this, in Judges and Kings, to the
people of Israel. This is collective responsibility; and sometimes, of course,
the good have to suffer because of the bad. But when it is a case of
individual responsibility, as in Job, why should the good man suffer?
Various solutions are proposed but none that satisfies entirely. As yet there
is no clear belief in the afterlife with its rewards and punishments; still less
is there anything approaching the revelation of the New Testament as
exemplified in Christ’s life. Job knows he is innocent though suffering. Is
God therefore unjust? He rejects the suggestion and submits himself to
God’s power and mercy without receiving a final answer. In the end he is
reinstated in his former state of affluence.
The speeches of Elihu (chapters 32–37) are a later insertion. These
chapters can be removed without causing any break in the narrative. Elihu
is not mentioned elsewhere in the book, nor does Job appear to take any
notice of what he has said. The insertion seems to have been made in order
to stress the value of suffering in bringing a man back to God. Back to text.
* The Psalter consists of 150 psalms or sacred hymns. In it we find
poetical compositions of different kinds—hymns of praise, prayers for
specific liturgical occasions, lamentations both of the individual and the
nation, among others. There are psalms that express the deepest emotions of
the human heart. They were used in, and many of them composed for, the
temple worship. Some of them date back to King David, others were
written after the Exile. Their composition thus covers a long period. They
were gradually brought together in small collections and finally edited in
one large collection arranged in five books. This became the hymnbook of
the Second Temple.
The Christian Church took over the Psalter and used it following the
example of Jesus himself. The Psalms have always been used extensively in
the liturgy and in the dally office of the priest. In the early Church lay
people became familiar with them, as St. Jerome tells us.
The numbering of the Psalms used here is that of the Hebrew Bible,
which is, of course, followed in the Revised Standard Version. It varies
somewhat from the Greek, which is followed by the Latin Vulgate and
vernacular versions based on it. This alternative numbering is given in
brackets. Psalms 9 and 10 in the Hebrew form Psalm 9 in the Vulgate.
Psalms 114 and 115 in the Hebrew are counted as Psalm 113 in the Vulgate.
Back to text.
* Ps 2:1 Together with Ps 110 a royal, Messianic psalm, often applied to
Jesus as Messiah in the New Testament.
* Ps 8:1 A magnificent hymn to the glory of God as seen in creation and
reflected in man.
* Ps 18:1 A slightly different form of this psalm is found in 2 Sam 22.
* Ps 22:1 This lamentation of the righteous man in his sufferings has
profoundly influenced the Gospel passion story. See especially Mt 27:46.
* Ps 42:1 This and the following psalm were originally one, as can be
seen from the refrain repeated three times.
* Ps 51:1 This psalm, known as the “Miserere,” is the one most used in
the Liturgy of the Hours to express repentance for sin.
* Ps 68:1 This is one of the most ancient compositions in the Psalter and
has been influenced by Canaanite motifs and representations.
* Ps 93:1 The first of several psalms which represent Yahweh as
enthroned in heaven.
* Ps 104:1 A magnificent hymn of creation, it should be compared with
Gen 1. It is remarkably similar to an Egyptian hymn to Aten, the sun god.
* Ps 110:1 See note on Ps 2.
* Ps 119:1 This great hymn of praise for the Torah, the law of God, is
typical of the best Jewish piety after the Exile.
* Ps 120:1 The first of the “Songs of Ascents,” or “Gradual Psalms,” that
is, those that were recited or sung during the journey to Jerusalem on the
occasion of the great pilgrim feasts.
* Ps 137:1 This psalm breathes the spirit of sadness and homesickness of
the Israelite in exile in Babylon.
* Ps 150:1 This exclamation of praise serves as the epilogue to the
Psalter.

The proverb or saying (mashal) was a typical form of expression in a
society that depended to a large extent on oral tradition. Each saying
expressed some important truth in pithy and memorable form. The proverbs
contained in this book were, of course, regarded as divinely inspired
teaching and had a correspondingly weighty authority. The book contains a
number of collections of proverbs, two of which are ascribed to Solomon
(10:1—22:16 and 25:1—29:27), but it is not likely that all the proverbs in
these collections are in fact attributable to Solomon. It is probable that 10:1
—22:16 forms the original nucleus of the book.
The general subject of the proverbs is the art of right living. Some
points are dealt with in detail, for example, wisdom and folly, justice and
injustice, and so on. They are not simply maxims of natural wisdom but
presuppose a background of revealed religion and inculcate its principles.
Religion is in fact regarded as the basis of all morality. The book was
finally edited and put together after the Exile. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES
The name is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew, Qoheleth, which means
“one who convenes or speaks in an assembly.” Hence the name: the
Preacher. By a literary device the book is ascribed to Solomon, but in fact it
was written after the Exile, probably in the third century B.C. There is no
knowledge in the book of any idea of rewards and punishments after this
life, thus much the same problem is met with here as in the book of Job.
Why do the good suffer and the wicked flourish? Belief and experience do
not harmonize. Ecclesiastes has to insist on God’s goodness and power and
providence even though experience seems at times to show the contrary. He
has no solution to offer other than faith in God and trust that he will, in his
own way and time, punish evil and reward good; cf. 3:17; 8:12–13. He
constantly emphasizes the vanity of created things, which can never satisfy
the heart of man. Thus he gives us something more than an unsolved
problem and stimulates faith and trust in God in spite of appearances which
might influence us to the contrary. Back to text.
THE SONG OF SOLOMON
The full title is “The Song of Songs Which Is Solomon’s.” But, as in the
case of other books, it is ascribed to him because of his fame. It is a love
song or collection of love songs written probably in the fifth century B.C.
The Jews had some doubts as to its canonical character but finally included
it in their canon of Scripture, and it has always been accepted by the
Christian Church as inspired and canonical.
The interpretations of the book have been of great variety. For our
purpose we may summarize them thus: (1) It is purely allegorical. For the
Jews it represented the relationship between God and his chosen people
Israel, which is often in the Old Testament described under the figure of a
marriage. The Christian Fathers, of course, saw it as an allegory of Christ
and his Church, describing the mystic union between the two; cf. Eph 5:21–
33. (2) Others hold it to be a poem describing human love between bride
and groom without seeking to identify actual historical persons. The
writer’s purpose was to extol married love and the sanctity of the marriage
bond as instituted and blessed by God. There is support in the Old
Testament for this view, e.g., in Proverbs and Sirach. (3) Others again,
while admitting the above literal sense of the book, say that it is to be taken
in the typical sense of the union of God with Israel, and of the union of
Christ with his Church.
Catholics tend to adopt the first or third of these positions. Either way,
the interpretation can be developed to include the relations between God
and the individual soul, as is done by mystical writers, e.g., St. John of the
Cross. The Song of Solomon is extensively used in the liturgy, particularly
on feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of Holy Women.
Although this is the one book of the Bible where God is never
mentioned by name, its presence in the Bible indicates the sanctity of
human love. Back to text.
THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON
The book describes the part that Wisdom plays in the life and destiny of
men and how we should acquire it, says much about the divine Wisdom,
and, in the latter part of the book, relates how the chosen people were
guided thereby throughout their history. At times the book proclaims truths
not exactly in harmony with beliefs then current, e.g., that suffering is not
necessarily the consequence of sin. The book was written in Greek,
probably in the first century B.C. Its author is unknown. It is ascribed to
Solomon according to a widespread practice of the time of adopting the
name of a famous man in antiquity to “father” one’s work. Thus David was
known to have written psalms and hence many subsequent psalms were
ascribed to him. Moses enacted laws and thus many subsequent laws were
ascribed to him which at best could be said to be only indirectly connected
with the great lawgiver. So here, Solomon was the “wise man”—and hence
it was natural to attribute the book to him. Back to text.
* Wis 1:5, a holy and disciplined spirit: Literally, “a holy spirit of
discipline.” Verse 6 seems to suggest here a personification of the Holy
Spirit; cf. also verse 7: the Spirit of the Lord.
* Wis 5:13: Vulgate adds (verse 14): “14Such things as these the sinners
said in hell.”
* Wis 6:6, tested: The meaning seems rather to be “tormented” and to
refer to punishment.
* Wis 11:26, Lord who love the living: Vulgate has “souls” for “living.”
The Greek word could mean either.
THE BOOK OF SIRACH
The Book of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) belongs to the Wisdom literature and
was written by Ben Sira, a “sage of Israel,” in the early second century B.C.
It was originally composed in Hebrew, as we learn from the Prologue, and
translated into Greek some fifty years later by his grandson. During these
fifty years there had been a violent persecution of the Jews by the Seleucid
kings in order to force them to adopt Greek religion and culture. The
beginnings of this were already apparent in the time of Ben Sira, and it was
to counteract such influences that his book was written. It is full of
traditional Jewish wisdom and morals; indeed, full of worldly wisdom and
written by one with wide experience of life. He re-emphasizes the
traditional truths, but manages to do this in an interesting way and
sometimes even from a new angle, e.g., his words on death (40:2; 41:2).
Sirach was included in the Greek Bible but not in the later Jewish
canon. The Hebrew text was known to Jerome but later disappeared and
was rediscovered, though not complete, only at the end of the nineteenth
century in Cairo. Further fragments have been found recently in Palestine.
The Church accepted the book as canonical, but it was the Greek text
she accepted. The name Ecclesiasticus was given to it in its Old Latin
version—a name which appears to date from the time of St. Cyprian. St.
Jerome did not translate the book or revise the Old Latin, so the text is
substantially as he found it. It is a version made from the Greek, but a
Greek text notably different from the one we use, chiefly in the quantity of
additional material. However, these additions do not add anything
substantially new to the book except, perhaps, the spirit in which they are
written. The version has been described as “a Pharisaic recension of the
original work of Ben Sira.” Back to text.
The Books of Prophecy
In ancient times there were prophets of many different religions, men
who claimed to speak in the name of their gods; and not infrequently they
existed in large groups. Thus Elijah had to confront no less than 450
prophets of Baal on the occasion of the contest on Mount Carmel (1 Kings
18). There were similar groups of prophets who spoke in the name of
Yahweh. These prophets experienced ecstasies and trances often induced by
the playing of music (1 Sam 10:5), and seem to have been organized into
communities (2 Kings 2:3–18).
The prophets, however, whom we know by name and whose actions are
recorded in the Bible, were very different from these and their influence on
Israel was much more profound. So far from their seeking prophecy as a
profession, it was imposed on them by God and they could not refuse (Jer
1:9; Amos 3:8). So far from their trying by fair words to please their
hearers, they often had to announce approaching disaster as punishment for
sin. Not only their words, their whole life was given up to the ministry, and
they had to lead a life of great penance and sacrifice often ending in violent
death. The prophet received an inner, wordless message, which he was then
compelled to communicate, sometimes in lyric poetry, sometimes in prose,
often making use of parables, allegories, and symbolic actions. When
disaster had fallen on the nation, then the role of the prophet changed from
one of threat to one of consolation (Is 40ff.). It was in such times as these
that many Messianic prophecies were uttered, foretelling the coming of
God’s kingdom in “the last days” heralded by God’s anointed or “messiah.”
The character and mission of Christ are vividly portrayed in Isaiah and even
his sufferings are there described, though it does not follow that those who
first heard the prophecies understood all that was being said. Many
prophecies were fully understood only when they came to pass.
Isaiah, the greatest of all the prophets, lived at a critical time in Israel’s
history. The very existence of the people was threatened by the king of
Assyria in the latter part of the eighth century B.C. The well-known and
beautiful Immanuel prophecies (chapters 6–12) were uttered on occasions
of great national danger when Judah was ruled by an unworthy king—
Ahaz. Under his successor, Hezekiah, a good and prudent king, Isaiah, who
was himself of noble birth, occupied a position of influence in promoting
religious reform, and many of his prophecies are to be ascribed to this
period. He was by now a national figure with a large following. He appears
last of all in the great crisis of 701 B.C. when, as he had promised,
Jerusalem was saved from destruction by the Assyrians.
His prophecies are distinguished both for their poetical quality and for
the elevation of their thought. The monotheism of Isaiah is declared in
eloquent terms. Likewise, his Messianic predictions attain a clarity that has
induced some to give him the title of “evangelist.” The second part of the
book (chapters 40–55), quite different from the first and perhaps even more
sublime, is generally held now not to be by Isaiah himself but by a later
prophet writing at the time of the Exile, doubtless a member of the Isaian
school and following in his tradition. These chapters are remarkable for the
words of comfort and encouragement they contain and perhaps even more
for the remarkable “Servant Songs,” prophecies about the Messiah to come,
foretelling his sufferings. The remaining chapters (56–66) contain a varied
selection of prophecies of different dates. Back to text.
* Is 2:2–4: Note the universalism of this prophecy.
* Is 5:1–7: This moving allegory may be compared with similar passages
in the New Testament, e.g., Mt 21:33–41; Jn 15:1–2.
* Is 6:1–13: This vision stresses the solemnity of the prophet’s calling.
The “Holy, holy, holy” is fittingly included in the Mass. The vision also
serves to introduce the Immanuel prophecies.
* Is 7:14, virgin or young woman: The Hebrew word ‘almah is not
explicit. The Greek translates this as parthenos, “virgin,” and may be
regarded as a witness to later Jewish tradition as to the meaning of the
prophecy. The virginal conception is, of course, unequivocally stated in the
Gospel where this prophecy is quoted (Mt 1:23; cf. also Lk 1:35).
* Is 9:6: Passage selected for the Introit of the Mass of Christmas Day,
showing that the Church regards these words as being fulfilled in Jesus
Christ.
* Is 11:1–3: cf. 61:1–2 and Lk 4:18–19.
* Is 11:2: The enumeration of the “gifts of the Holy Spirit” is taken from
this passage.
* Is 40:1: Here begins the “Book of the Consolation of Israel,” as it has
been beautifully called. It was written to comfort and console the people in
their exile in Babylonia.
* Is 42:1–4: The “Servant of Yahweh” is here introduced. This and three
other prophecies (49:1–6; 50:4–9; 52:13—53:12) depict the Messiah in a
new light, giving details of his meekness and suffering.
* Is 53:4–6: The doctrine of vicarious atonement is the unique
characteristic of this prophecy. We find it in the New Testament in all its
fulness.
* 56 to the end: These prophecies were probably uttered in the difficult
days of the return from exile, about the year 538 B.C.
* Is 61:1–4: cf. Lk 4:18–19.
* Jeremiah, sometimes called a prophet of doom, lived at the most tragic
period of Israel’s history, during which Jerusalem was destroyed by
Nebuchadrezzar and the people were carried off into captivity. He was of a
priestly family and he makes it clear in his book that he obeyed God’s call
to prophesy most reluctantly. It was his task, under the circumstances, to
preach repentance and prophesy destruction if repentance was not
forthcoming. But his words fell on deaf ears. In so far as the people heard at
all, it was only to resent what he said and make him suffer for it. As the
prophet was of a specially sensitive and affectionate nature, his sufferings
were all the more acute.
He did not always prophesy doom. Thus in 31:31–34, he foretells the
new covenant in terms that remind us of passages in the prophet Isaiah. His
words may not have had much effect during his lifetime but after his death
his influence was considerable, as was the case with other prophets also; cf.
Mt 23:29–30. Not all the prophecies in the book are from Jeremiah himself
but some have been inserted later. An important feature of the book is the
quantity of biographical material, which tells us a great deal about the
prophet.Back to text.
* Jer 1:6: Typically, Jeremiah is reluctant to accept an office for which he
feels himself ill suited, and which, he foresees, can bring nothing but
suffering and disappointment.
* Jer 3:16: The ark must have been destroyed at the same time as the
temple in 586 B.C. In the Messianic times the presence of the Lord will not
be restricted to the ark of the covenant; cf. Rev 21:22.
* Jer 7:4: Trust in the temple’s presence without true service of God and
observance of his commands is vain, just as earlier a similar trust in the
presence of the ark was fruitless without moral observance; 1 Sam 4:3.
* Jer 8:7: cf. Is 1:3.
* Jer 9:23–24: The basis of true religion.
* Jer 13:1–11: Note here and elsewhere the use of symbolic action
throughout Jeremiah’s ministry.
* Jer 30:8: The new covenant and the restoration.
* Jer 31:15: Quoted by Matthew and applied to the Holy Innocents (Mt
2:18).
* Jer 31:31–34: The new covenant; cf. Mt 26:28.
* Jer 33:15: cf. Is 11:1: “a shoot from the stump of Jesse.”
* Jer 35:1 This chapter is our chief source of information about the little-
known sect of Rechabites; cf. 2 Kings 10:15–16, 23. They obeyed what
they felt to be a call to serve God in the wilderness and desert places. The
ancient nomad life during the Exodus was always looked back to as the
time of the greatest fidelity to God.
* Jer 52:1 Historical supplement which recapitulates and enlarges on 2
Kings 24:18—25:30. Cf.Is 36–39, which was added in the same way.
THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH
* This book is traditionally ascribed to Jeremiah but is probably not all
by him. It seems rather to have been composed by more than one author,
though at about the same period of the siege and exile. The poems, written
in the rhythm known as qinah, were probably composed for the liturgical
services that continued to be held on the site of the temple. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF BARUCH
* This book, one of the deuterocanonical books, is not extant in Hebrew
and is placed here after Lamentations in the Latin Vulgate. It is said to have
been composed by Baruch at Babylon during the Exile, but in fact the
evidence indicates rather that some of it was composed about the second or
even first century B.C. The material may well have been composed at
different periods, and the final editing have taken place toward the time of
Christ. The particular value of the book is that it gives an insight into
Jewish life in the Dispersion. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL
* The beginning of Ezekiel’s ministry overlapped the end of that of
Jeremiah and the prophet is concerned with the same evils. But his style and
matter are very different. Ezekiel was a priest and mainly concerned with
the temple worship and the observances of the law. His description of the
future temple should be compared with that in Rev 21. Ezekiel performs a
great variety of symbolic actions—as did Jeremiah on a smaller scale.
Ezekiel’s visions make one think of apocalyptic writing, e.g., Daniel and
Revelation. He does not enlarge greatly on Messianic themes. He speaks of
a new covenant (16:60) and, like Jeremiah, of personal responsibility
(chapter 18). Above all, he insists on the need for interior renewal, and thus
prepares the way for the teaching of Christ. Back to text.
* Ezek 1:5, four living creatures: The description recalls the Assyrian
karibu: statues of animals with human heads guarding the palace at
Nineveh. Here these creatures are pressed into the service of Yahweh. They
are met again in Rev 4:6–8. The point of the vision is that Yahweh is not
tied to Jerusalem and could follow his people into exile.
* Ezek 1:23: cf. the cherubim over the ark (Ex 25:20–22; 1 Sam 4:4).
* Ezek 1:28, the glory of the Lord: The luminous cloud, or shekinah (Ex
24:16), that normally dwelt in the temple.
* Ezek 8:14, weeping for Tammuz: A vegetation god known as Adonis to
the Phoenicians. He was supposed to die in the summer and come to life
again in the spring. Women wept at the time of his departure to the
underworld.
* Ezek 14:12–23: The Lord stresses individual responsibility rather than
collective responsibility. It had been taken for granted that some just men
would have to suffer in a group or city with the guilty majority.
* Ezek 14:14, Daniel: It is possible that this refers to Danel, an ancient
Phoenician sage known to us from the Ras Shamra literature. It is unlikely
that Ezekiel would have been speaking of Daniel the prophet as the other
names in this passage are both of more ancient personages. Moreover, the
spelling of the name in the book of Ezekiel is different from the spelling
used in the book of Daniel.
* Ezek 17:2–24: The Messiah, a shoot from the stump of Jesse. Cf. Is
11:1, and also the parable of the mustard seed (Mt 13:31–32).
* Ezek 26: The city of Tyre, in those days an island and one of the richest
cities in the East, was regarded as impregnable from the landward side. In
this instance the siege lasted thirteen years but remained indecisive, as
Nebuchadnezzar had no fleet. We must, therefore, regard the prophet’s
language here as rhetorical rather than historical; cf. 29:18.
* Ezek 34:2, shepherds of Israel: cf. Jn 10:1–30.
* Ezek 34:23–31: The Messiah and his kingdom.
* Ezek 37:1, full of bones: This vision foretells the restoration of Israel
after the Exile (verse 12). It has sometimes been thought, wrongly, to
foretell the resurrection of the body.
* Ezek 38–39: Gog and Magog. Gog—an obscure name probably
meaning “darkness”—here represents the forces of evil. He is destroyed by
Yahweh. Magog probably means no more than “land of Gog.” The names
appear to be used here as ciphers for Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon.
* Ezek 40–48. In these chapters Ezekiel describes the new temple and its
worship. The passage is not meant to be taken historically and, in fact, the
later builders of the temple made no attempt to take it literally. The prophet
is referring to the Messianic times in symbolic language.
THE BOOK OF DANIEL
* The book is composed of two distinct parts. In the first, there are stories
about Daniel in the time of the Babylonian Empire; in the second, there are
a number of apocalyptic visions ascribed to Daniel and foretelling the
future. The stories of the first part may be based on original material dating
from the time of Daniel but must have been written down later, as they
betray an unfamiliarity with the history of the period. Likewise, the visions
of the second part are predominantly concerned with the later Greek Empire
and it is unlikely that they were composed before that time. Their literary
form, too, corresponds to the apocalyptic style of literature common in the
second century B.C. The Greek version has some portions not in the
Hebrew or Aramaic and these are accepted as canonical by the Catholic
Church. They are: The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young
Men (3:1–68); Susanna (chapter 13); Bel and the Dragon (chapter 14). In
the rest of the book there are some parts written in Aramaic, thus suggesting
a rather late date.
In the first part of the book, the main purpose is to exalt the God of
Israel over the gods of the pagans through the experiences of the prophet
Daniel. In the second part, the aim is equally to exalt the God of Israel, but
this time it is done through a series of visions in which many prophecies are
made—the chief of which is the seventy weeks of years until the coming of
the Messiah (9:24). The author aims at sustaining the faith of the people of
God during difficult times culminating in the persecution of Antiochus
Epiphanes. Back to text.
* Dan 1:8, would not defile himself: When the Greek persecution broke
out, the king tried to get the Jews to break their laws about food and drink,
and such breaches of the law were taken to be apostasy; cf. 2 Mac 6:18—
7:42.
* Dan 3:23: After this verse the section (sixty-eight verses) printed in
italics is contained only in the Greek. It is here translated from Theodotion’s
version. Concordance of verse numberings:
RSV Vulgate
1–28 24–51
29–30 52
31 53
32 55
33 54
34 56
35 57
36 59
37 58
38–45 60–67
46 68–69
47 71
48 72
49–50 70
51–68 73–90
* Dan 3:68: The reader will notice that the roman figures used for the
remaining verses of this chapter take up again the numbering of the
protocanonical text. Verses 24–30 are numbered 91–97 in the Greek and
Vulgate; they are written in Aramaic, not Hebrew.
* Dan 4:1–3: These verses correspond to 3:31–33 in the Aramaic and to
3:98–100 in the Greek and Vulgate. The chapter is considerably longer in
the Greek than in the Aramaic.
* Dan 4:8, Belteshazzar: The name given to Daniel means “May Bel
protect his life.”
* Dan 4:13, a watcher, a holy one: An angel, so called because he is ever
watchful to serve God. In Ezek 1:18 the wheels representing angels are said
to be full of eyes.
* Dan 5:1, Belshazzar: He was the son of Nabonidus and was never in
fact king.
* Dan 5:31, Darius the Mede: Nothing is known in history of this person.
The Persians, moreover, had already conquered the Medes before taking
Babylon.
* Dan 7:8, another horn, a little one: Antiochus Epiphanes, who
originally was of no importance.
* Dan 7:13, a son of man: The same title with which God addressed
Ezekiel. Here it means someone who is more than human.
* Dan 9:24–27: Prophecy of the seventy weeks. The prophecy, made to
encourage the Jews in time of persecution, looks to the future Messianic age
in the time of the end; cf. 12:9. The seventy weeks are seventy seven-year
periods, i.e., 490 years. But we can hardly take it as an exact historical
period. Its immediate application seems to be to the period 170–163 B.C.,
i.e., from the beginning of the persecution of the Jews by Antiochus
Epiphanes to the purification of the temple and the death of Antiochus.
* Dan 10–12: Summary of the history of the Persian and Greek periods
down to Antiochus Epiphanes and thence to the time of the end.
* Dan 13:1: The story of Susanna, here translated from the Greek of
Theodotion, is accepted by the Catholic Church as canonical Scripture and
placed among the deuterocanonical writings. It is prefixed to the book of
Daniel in the Septuagint Greek, but in the Vulgate Latin it is placed here as
chapter 13.
* Dan 14:1: Bel and the Dragon. These stories, here translated from the
Greek of Theodotion, are added at the end of Daniel by both Greek and
Vulgate. The latter treats the appendix as chapter 14, but attaches verse 1 to
the preceding chapter as 13:65.
The Books of the Minor Prophets
These twelve are grouped together both in the Hebrew and in the Greek.
The only reason for this seems to be that the books happen to be short. They
are not “minor” in any other way; their religious value is great. They do not
belong to any one historical period, and they range from Amos (eighth
century B.C.) to Malachi, Joel, Obadiah, and Jonah (fifth to fourth century
B.C.). They are here arranged according to their traditional order in the
Hebrew, which is not the same as their historical order. The Latin Vulgate
also follows the order of the Hebrew.
THE BOOK OF HOSEA
* Hosea (Osee) preached and prophesied during the century—the eighth
—that saw the decline and final destruction of the northern kingdom. It was
a period of both moral and material dissolution, and it is this that gives his
prophecy its peculiar characteristics. Hosea seems to take occasion of his
own unhappy marriage to draw a parallel between it and the relationship
between God and his unfaithful spouse Israel. He attacks passionately the
moral evils and the injustice of the society in which he lives. Above all, he
condemns the idolatry rampant everywhere, as well as the debased Yahweh
worship. Israel will be punished, but after repentance the people will be
welcomed back to their God. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JOEL
* Joel prophesied about four centuries later than Hosea, during the
postexilic period. He foretells a plague of locusts as punishment and speaks
threateningly of the “day of the LORD”; but then at once declares the Lord
to be merciful and kind to those who repent. Toward the end of chapter 2
the style becomes apocalyptic and he speaks of the outpouring of the Spirit
upon the people in the Messianic age. This was fulfilled (Acts 2:16–21) at
Pentecost. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF AMOS
* Amos was a shepherd of Judah called suddenly by God to denounce
social corruption and injustice in the northern kingdom during the reign of
Jeroboam II (eighth century B.C.). It was a time of great material luxury
and worldly splendor, and the pastoral origins of the prophet contrasted
strongly with the sophisticated decadence which, together with the people’s
infidelity, he denounced. He foretells the “day of the LORD,” a time of
punishment for men’s sins, but holds out a hope of God’s mercy to “the
remnant of Joseph” (5:15). Some of the prophecies are probably of a later
age. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF OBADIAH
* The book of Obadiah (Abdias) is so short that it is difficult to be certain
of its date and character. It is a tirade against the people of Edom, who are
told not to exult over the misfortune of Jerusalem, for they shall be utterly
destroyed, while a remnant from Israel shall survive. It seems to apply to
the situation of the postexilic period when the surrounding nations,
including Edom, had partly occupied the vacant territory of Judah. Back to
text.
THE BOOK OF JONAH
* The Book of Jonah (Jonas) is set in the reign of Jeroboam II (eighth
century B.C.), but the book was probably written long after the Exile. This
suggests that it is not meant to be taken historically, although the central
figure, Jonah, is mentioned in 2 Kings 14:25 and appears to have been a
well-known prophet of the time. In this story the writer, making use of
many improbable details, teaches that God is merciful even in his
punishments, if only his people will repent; and so far from being the God
of Israel alone, he is prepared to extend his mercy to others, provided they
possess or acquire the necessary dispositions of heart. Our Lord himself
quotes the conversion of the Ninevites and the three days Jonah spent inside
the great fish (Mt 12:38–41), but this is not a testimony to its historical
character. He is concerned rather with its teaching. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF MICAH
* Micah lived and prophesied at about the same time as Isaiah, in the
kingdom of Judah. Like his contemporaries, he denounces the evils of his
age, which he contrasts dramatically with the requirements of God: “to do
justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly” with God (6:8). He
foretells God’s punishments, even the fall of Jerusalem (3:12). At the same
time he prophesies, like Isaiah, that a remnant shall be saved (chapters 4–5)
and speaks of the Messiah to come (5:2). Back to text.
THE BOOK OF NAHUM
* The opening words of the Book of Nahum announce the central theme
—the coming destruction of Nineveh, the great oppressor of God’s people.
The passion with which this lyric poetry is imbued is explained by the
tyranny endured for so long by Israel. But the deliverance announced will
not, unfortunately, be of long duration. The fall of Nineveh (612 B.C.) will
be followed by the fall of Jerusalem, but that is not part of the prophet’s
message. Back to text.
* There is not much evidence for the date of the Book of Habakkuk
(Habacuc), but it is likely that the prophet is speaking against the Chaldeans
under Nebuchadnezzar, who destroyed Jerusalem in 586 B.C. The book
starts with a dialogue between the prophet and God—the prophet
complaining, and the Lord explaining and foretelling the coming
destruction of the oppressor. All this took place probably before the fall of
Jerusalem. Habakkuk has some originality; he asks God to explain his
thought: for example, why does he punish his erring people by a nation
more wicked than itself? And hence, why does wickedness seem to
triumph? This is the problem found all through the Old Testament. Back to
text.
* Zephaniah (Sophonias) prophesied shortly before the religious reform
of Josiah, i.e., about the year 630 B.C., and he proclaims in clarion tones the
“day of the LORD,” when his people will be crushed by their enemies
because of their sins; cf. Amos. The words of Zephaniah (1:15) remind one
of the Dies irae, which seems to have drawn its imagery from here. The
prophet foretells punishment not only for Judah but also for the nations
round about (2:4–15). Then, after more threats against Jerusalem (3:1–8),
he utters consolations (3:9–20): the people will be restored, but chastened
and humble. The reform of Josiah was too short-lived to affect the results of
these prophecies—the Exile and the return followed within the century.
Back to text.
THE BOOK OF HAGGAI
* Haggai (Aggeus) is the first of the postexilic prophets and differs
considerably from the earlier. No longer do we read threats of punishment
for sin or words of consolation. The people need to be helped in their work
of restoration and encouraged to persevere. Haggai first insists that the
temple must be built before they think of anything else. This is to be the
focal point of their life, as it was in the past, and they cannot hope for any
prosperity without it. In spite of its humble appearance, the Spirit of God
will rest upon it and the “latter splendor of this house shall be greater than
the former, says the LORD of hosts” (2:9). Back to text.
* Zechariah (Zacharias) prophesied at the same time as Haggai, about
520 B.C. and, like him, exhorted the people to press on with the building of
the temple, but he goes on to develop the plans for the national restoration.
He speaks in terms of a Messianic era in which the priesthood is supreme
but the royal prerogatives are possessed by “the Branch” (6:12), a
Messianic term for Zerubbabel. Chapters 1–8 relate a series of visions and
are apocalyptic in tone. The second part (chapters 9–14) is quite different,
and consists of a collection of prophecies dating from the fourth century
and edited later during the Greek period. These are chiefly noteworthy for
the Messianic passages in them, especially 9:9, fulfilled on Palm Sunday,
and 12:10: “when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall
mourn.” Back to text.
THE BOOK OF MALACHI
The name Malachi (Malachias) merely means “my messenger,” and the
book is probably anonymous. Its contents suggest that the historical context
is the period of Ezra and Nehemiah. The theme is the love of God for his
people in spite of their backsliding. Both priests and people are guilty of not
offering a clean sacrifice—and in 1:11 is the prophecy of the universal
sacrifice, relating evidently to Messianic times. The prophet also denounces
marriages with Gentiles and the practice of divorce. He goes on to proclaim
the “day of the LORD,” “great and terrible.” Like many prophets, he does
not distinguish between the first and second coming. Back to text.
The First and Second Books of the Maccabees
1 Maccabees deals with the history of the Jews in Palestine during the
forty years from the accession of the Syrian king Antiochus Epiphanes to
the death of Simon in 134 B.C. It was a life–and-death struggle between the
Jews and the Syrians who wanted to impose Greek religion and culture on
them. The book recounts the heroic deeds of the three great leaders, Judas
Maccabeus and his brothers Jonathan and Simon, who were in turn at the
head of the Jewish people until death overtook them. It was written with a
strong religious purpose, and the high point is reached with a description of
the rededication of the temple. Originally written in Hebrew about the year
100 B.C. the book now exists only in a Greek translation.
2 Maccabees is quite different. It is not a continuation of 1 Maccabees
but concentrates on the period of about fifteen years covered by 1
Maccabees, chapters 1–7. It aims at bringing out even more strongly the
religious lessons of the time, and the story is written in a way that is more
like a sermon than a history. The historical facts are arranged to suit the
religious purpose of the book. Several passages in the work are well known
in reference to particular doctrines, e.g., the resurrection of the body (7:9,
11; 14:46); rewards and punishments after death (6:26); prayers for the dead
(12:42–45); the intercession of the saints (15:12–16). Back to text.
THE FIRST BOOK OF THE MACCABEES
* 1 Mac 4:29: Vulgate has “Judea” for Idumea and “Beth-horon” for
Beth-zur.
* 1 Mac 5:35: Vulgate reads “Maspha” (i.e., Mizpah) for Alema; cf. note
b.
* 1 Mac 5:66, 68: Vulgate has “aliens” and “strangers” for Philistines,
and “Samaria” for Marisa; cf. note c.
* 1 Mac 9:37: Vulgate reads “Madaba” (i.e., Medeba, as in verse 36) for
Nadabath.
THE SECOND BOOK OF THE MACCABEES
* 2 Mac 4:29: Vulgate reads: “And Menelaus was removed from the
priesthood, Lysimachus his brother succeeding: and Sostratus was made
governor of the Cyprians.”
* 2 Mac 4:34, put him out of the way: Vulgate has “slew him.”
* 2 Mac 4:40, Auranus: Vulgate has “Tyrannus.”
* 2 Mac 7:9, to an everlasting renewal of life: Vulgate has: “in the
resurrection of eternal life.”
* 2 Mac 12:45: Vulgate has (verses 45–46): “45And because he
considered that they who had fallen asleep with godliness had great grace
laid up for them. 46It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for
the dead, that they may be loosed from sins.”
New Testament
Matthew
* Mt 1:1: The genealogy is given to show that Jesus had the descent
required for Messiahship, i.e., from Abraham and, in particular, from David
the King.
* Mt 1:16: Joseph’s, not Mary’s, descent is given here, as the Jews did
not usually reckon descent through the mother. Joseph was the legal and
presumed father, and it was this fact that conferred rights of inheritance, in
this case, the fulfilment of the Messianic promises.
* Mt 1:25: This means only that Joseph had nothing to do with the
conception of Jesus. It implies nothing as to what happened afterward.
* Mt 3:2: Repent implies an internal change of heart.
* Mt 3:6: Not a Christian baptism but a preparation for it.
* Mt 3:15: Though without sin, Jesus wished to be baptized by John, as
this was the final preparation for his mission as Messiah.
* Mt 5:17: Jesus came to bring the old law to its natural fulfilment in the
new, while discarding what had become obsolete; cf. Jn 4:21.
* Mt 5:29: An exaggeration to emphasize the need to avoid occasions of
sin.
* Mt 5:32, unchastity: The Greek word used here appears to refer to
marriages that were not legally marriages because they were either within
the forbidden degrees of consanguinity (Lev 18:6–16) or contracted with a
Gentile. The phrase except on the ground of unchastity does not occur in the
parallel passage in Lk 16:18. See also Mt 19:9 (Mk 10:11–12), and
especially 1 Cor 7:10–11, which shows that the prohibition is unconditional.
* Mt 6:6: This does not, of course, exclude public worship but
ostentatious prayer.
* Mt 6:24, mammon: i.e., riches.
* Mt 8:3: The miracles of Jesus were never performed to amaze people
and shock them into belief. They were worked with a view to a real
strengthening of faith in the recipient or beholder, from whom the proper
dispositions were required.
* Mt 8:29, before the time: Before the day of judgment the demons are
permitted by God to tempt men and even to possess them.
* Mt 10:5: The gospel, the Messianic salvation, had first to be preached
and offered to the chosen people, Israel. Later it would be offered to the
Gentiles.
* Mt 11:3: The Baptist expected more obvious signs of the Messiah. By
quoting the prophet Isaiah, Jesus showed that he was indeed inaugurating
the Messianic kingdom—but by doing good rather than by glorious
manifestations or sudden punishments.
* Mt 11:27: This shows a profound relationship between the Son and the
Father, far superior to adoptive sonship.
* Mt 12:14: The Pharisees regarded healing as work and so forbade it on
the sabbath.
* Mt 12:24, Beel-zebul: Name of a Canaanite god meaning “the Prince-
god.” The Jews interpreted this name as “Prince of demons,” because for
them all false gods were demons. The form “Beel-zebub” is a contemptuous
adaptation meaning “Lord of the flies.”
* Mt 12:31: To attribute to the devil the works of the Holy Spirit seems to
imply a hardness of heart that precludes repentance.
* Mt 12:46, brethren: The Greek word or its Semitic equivalent was used
for varying degrees of blood relationship; cf. Gen 14:14; 29:12; Lev 10:4.
* Mt 12:48: Jesus puts the work of salvation before family relationships.
It is not said, however, that he refused to see them.
* Mt 13:12: To those well-disposed Jews who have made good use of the
old covenant will now be given the perfection of the new. On the other
hand, from those who have rejected God’s advances will now be taken
away even that which they have, because the old covenant is passing away.
* Mt 13:52: This is Matthew’s ideal: that the learned Jew should become
the disciple of Jesus and so add the riches of the new covenant to those of
the old, which he already possesses; cf. verse 12.
* Mt 13:55: See note on Mt 12:46.
* Mt 14:33: Their realization of his Godhead was the prelude to Peter’s
confession of faith at Caesarea Philippi (Mt 16:16).
* Mt 15:5: By dedicating his property to God, i.e., to the temple, a man
could avoid having to help his parents, without actually giving up what he
had. The scribes held such a vow to be valid without necessarily approving
it.
* Mt 15:24: See note on Mt 10:5.
* Mt 16:14: The title of prophet had a Messianic significance because the
gift of prophecy, which had been extinct since Malachi, was expected to
return at the beginning of the Messianic era, especially by an outpouring of
the Spirit as foretold by the prophet Joel and as realized in Acts 2:16.
* Mt 16:16: The context shows that Peter recognizes the sonship of Jesus
as divine and not adoptive like ours. Mark and Luke in the parallel passages
mention only the confession of the Messiahship.
* Mt 16:18: The name “Peter” comes from the Greek word for “rock.”
Jesus makes him the foundation on which the church is to be built. The
word “church” means “assembly” or “society” of believers. The Hebrew
equivalent is used in the Old Testament to indicate the chosen people. In
applying it to the church, Jesus shows it to be the Messianic community
foretold by the prophets.
* Mt 16:19, the kingdom of heaven: Peter has the key to the gates of the
city of God. This power is exercised through the church. “Binding” and
“loosing” are rabbinic terms referring to excommunication, then later to
forbidding or allowing something. Not only can Peter admit to the
kingdom; he also has power to make authoritative decisions in matters of
faith or morals.
* Mt 16:26, life (both times): A play on the word “life”—natural and
supernatural; cf. Mk 8:35–36.
* Mt 17:4: Peter thought the glorious Messianic kingdom had come. In
fact, Jesus allowed this glimpse of his glory to strengthen them for the
coming passion.
* Mt 18:9: Gehenna (see footnote b) was the name of a valley south of
Jerusalem where human sacrifice had once been practiced; cf. 2 Chron 33:6.
Later it became a cursed place and a refuse dump, and the name came to
symbolize the Christian place of punishment.
* Mt 18:18: To the other apostles is given a share in the authority given
to Peter.
* Mt 19:9: This appears to refer to the case in Mt 5:32, though the Greek
word for “except” is different.
* Mt 19:11–12: Jesus means that a life of continence is to be chosen only
by those who are called to it for the sake of the kingdom of God.
* Mt 21:9: The crowd openly recognizes Jesus as the Messiah and he
allows it for the first time.
* Mt 21:23: They object to the assumption of authority implicit in the
manner of his entry into the city and in his expulsion of the sellers from the
temple.
* Mt 21:33–44: This parable is really an allegory in which almost every
detail represents something in God’s dealings with Israel.
* Mt 22:11: The wedding garment represents the dispositions necessary
for admission to the kingdom.
* Mt 23:5, phylacteries: Little leather boxes containing, on a very small
scroll, the principal words of the law; cf. Deut 6:4–9. Taking the command
literally, they fastened these to their arms and their foreheads.
* Mt 23:9: i.e., “Do not use the title without reference to God’s universal
fatherhood.” He cannot mean that the title is never to be used by a son to his
father.
* Mt 24:1—25:46: The “Eschatological Discourse,” as it is called, deals
with the fall of Jerusalem and the end of the world. The two themes seem to
be inextricably intermingled in the Gospel as we now have it, but it is
possible that originally they were in separate discourses. However, the
fusion of the two does bring out their connection. The one prefigures the
other. Moreover, in the reverse direction, so to speak, the language used to
describe the day of the Lord in Joel and elsewhere is here applied to the fall
of Jerusalem, the details of which must therefore not be taken too literally
(24:29).
* Mt 25:29: See note on Mt 13:12.
* Mt 26:17: The passover supper was eaten this year on the Friday
evening (Jn 18:28). Jesus must have anticipated the passover meal because
he would be dead the following day and because the meal prefigured his
death.
* Mt 26:26: The details of the Eucharist are superimposed on the ritual of
the passover.
* Mt 26:51: It was Peter, as John in his later Gospel tells us (Jn 18:10),
though Matthew is reluctant to say so.
* Mt 26:59: They sought evidence against him and this was necessarily
false.
* Mt 26:64–65: For the first time Jesus speaks clearly of his own identity.
Caiaphas evidently understands him to claim divinity.
* Mt 27:46: Jesus applies Psalm 22 (Vulgate 21) to himself.
* Mt 27:66: The sealing and guarding only helped to make the
subsequent resurrection more obvious.
* Mt 28:1–20: The resurrection appearances. There are divergent
traditions in the gospels, Galilean and Judean. Paul adds his own record (1
Cor 15). The accounts do not easily fit together, but this is surely evidence
of their genuineness. There is no attempt to produce an artificial conformity.
Mark
* Mk 1:34: Throughout his ministry Jesus forbade the demons and those
he healed of their infirmities to reveal his identity as Messiah, because the
people, with their ideas of a national leader to come, were only too prone to
mistake his true mission.
* Mk 2:14, Levi: Mark does not identify him with Matthew the apostle;
cf. Mt 9:9.
* Mk 3:31, brethren: See note on Mt 12:46.
* Mk 4:12, so that . . . : One might rephrase this: “so that the Scripture
might be fulfiled”; cf. Jn 18:32; 19:24, 28. It was not God’s intention to
prevent their understanding. Matthew avoids this difficulty by writing, “I
speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see” Mt 13:13).
* Mk 5:43: Knowing their nationalistic views about the Messiah to come,
Jesus wished to avoid a tumult.
* Mk 7:3: Mark, writing for Gentiles, explains these Jewish customs.
* Mk 8:36, life: See note on Mt 16:26.
* Mk 9:13, Elijah has come: i.e., in the person of the Baptist Mt 11:14).
* Mk 10:24, amazed at his words: The Old Testament often records
God’s offers of material rewards for observance of his laws. This was
because the future life was not yet revealed. It was therefore taken for
granted, in spite of contrary evidence, that riches were a sign of God’s
favor.
* Mk 10:30: Some of the reward will be given in this life.
* Mk 14:13: It was unusual for a man to carry water; it was a woman’s
task.
* Mk 14:51–52: This young man is usually supposed to have been the
evangelist himself.
* Mk 15:1: The Jews could not execute Jesus without the Roman
governor’s permission.
* Mk 15:40, the younger, or “the Less.”
* Mk 16:1: There had been no time on the Friday to anoint him before
the sabbath rest.
* Mk 16:9–20: This passage is regarded as inspired and canonical
Scripture even if not written by Mark. As it is missing from some important
manuscripts, it is possible that Mark did not write it. On the other hand, he
would hardly have left his Gospel unfinished at verse 8. Many think that the
original ending was lost at a very early date and that this ending was
composed at the end of the apostolic period to take its place.
Luke
* Lk 1:3: Theophilus is again referred to in Acts 1:1, but nothing is
known of him.
* Lk 1:5—2:52: The “Infancy Gospel,” as it is called, is written in a
markedly Semitic style, which differs from that of the rest of the Gospel. It
appears to be based on the reminiscences of Mary.
* Lk 1:30: The words of the angel are drawn from Messianic passages in
the Old Testament.
* Lk 1:34: How can this be: alternate reading is How will this be.
* Lk 1:46–55: The Magnificat is based on the Song of Hannah (1 Sam
2:1–10), and other Old Testament passages that describe God’s favor
toward Israel and especially toward the poor and lowly.
* Lk 1:69, a horn of salvation: i.e., a mighty savior.
* Lk 2:7, first-born: The term connotes possession of certain rights,
privileges, and obligations; cf. Ex 13:1–2, 11–16. The word is used even in
modern times without necessarily implying subsequent births.
* Lk 2:34, for the fall: i.e., in the sense that by rejecting his claims many
would sin grievously.
* Lk 2:49: Jesus stresses the priority of his duty to his Father, which
involves a high degree of independence of earthly ties.
* Lk 3:2: See note on Jn 18:13.
* Lk 3:7, brood of vipers: This epithet seems to have been directed
mainly at the Pharisees; cf. Mt 3:7.
* Lk 3:23: This genealogy is more universalist than that of Matthew. Like
Matthew, however, it gives the genealogy of Joseph, though Mary may well
have been of the family of David.
* Lk 4:16–30: This account of the visit to the synagogue seems to be
composed of the details of more than one visit. Luke is trying here to
underline the contrast between Christ’s offer of salvation and the people’s
refusal of it.
* Lk 6:20–49: Luke’s discourse is shorter than that of Matthew because it
does not contain Matthew’s additional material collected from other
occasions, or his details that would interest only Jews.
* Lk 7:28: John, by virtue of his office, belonged to the old dispensation,
the time of preparation for the kingdom. In terms of spiritual status, even
the humbler members of the kingdom were superior to him.
* Lk 7:47: The preceding parable suggests that she loved much because
she had been forgiven much. Jesus now implies that her love is a sign rather
than a cause of forgiveness, thus confirming the point of the parable.
* Lk 8:19, brethren: See note on Mt 12:46.
* Lk 8:39: There was no reason for secrecy (to avoid popular
disturbance) in a non-Jewish area.
* Lk 9:51: Here begins the “Travel Narrative” of Luke, which continues
up to the passion.
* Lk 9:51: received up: i.e., into heaven; cf. 2 Kings 2:9–11; Acts 1:2, 11.
The term here includes his passion, death, resurrection, and ascension.
* Lk 9:51, 53: The Samaritans worshiped on Mount Gerizim, while
orthodox Jews, of course, went to Jerusalem, and to Jerusalem only, for
sacrifice.
* Lk 10:18: Jesus refers to the fall of the angels (cf. Rev 12:9), while he
speaks of his conquest of the forces of evil.
* Lk 14:26: Christ’s disciples must be prepared to part from any one who
prevents them from serving him.
* Lk 16:8: The master commended his foresight without approving what
he actually did.
* Lk 17:20: At that time many persons were expecting to see the
kingdom inaugurated with striking manifestations; cf. 19:11.
* Lk 19:41–44: These moving words spoken over the city are full of
scriptural allusions. Moreover, the details given could apply as well to the
siege of 587 B.C. as to that of A.D. 70. It is not safe, therefore, to argue
from this passage that the fall of the city had already taken place when Luke
wrote his Gospel.
* Lk 20:37: As elsewhere (1 Cor 15:13–19), survival after death is linked
with the resurrection of the body.
* Lk 21:24, the times of the Gentiles: i.e., those during which the Gentiles
will take the place of the unbelieving people of Israel. Evidently, therefore,
the end of the world does not coincide with the fall of Jerusalem. St. Paul
says that the Jews will be converted before the end (Rom 11:26).
* Lk 22:52: Matthew and Mark describe the arrest first, before Christ’s
words. Luke and John both put his address to the soldiers and officials
before the arrest, doubtless to stress his command over events.
* Lk 23:2: They purposely produce political charges, as these alone
would interest Pilate.
* Lk 23:14: Luke, writing for Gentiles, makes it clear that Pilate wanted
to release Jesus.
* Lk 23:31: One does not burn green wood. The meaning is that, if an
innocent man is thus punished, what must the guilty (dry wood) expect?
* Lk 24:38: Luke stresses this episode for the benefit of his Greek
readers, for whom the resurrection of the body was both impossible and
absurd; cf. Acts 17:32.
* Jn 1:1: John begins by giving his Gospel a theological background. By
speaking at once of “the Word” he implies that his readers are familiar with
the term. To Gentiles it indicated some form of divine revelation or self-
expression. Jews would equate it with the divine Wisdom described in
Proverbs, which already appears as something more than a divine quality
and has some relationship with the visible world. In Sirach and Wisdom the
idea is further developed. In the last-named book, Wisdom appears as a pre-
existing person, taking part in the creation of the world and having a
mission to reveal God to his creatures; cf. Wis 7:22—8:1.
* Jn 1:5, light . . . darkness: One of the familiar themes of the Gospel.
* Jn 1:29: John applies to Jesus the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah 53:6–7,
perhaps worded more explicitly by the evangelist in later years.
* Jn 2:4, What have you to do with me?: What is that to you or to me?
While this expression always implies a divergence of view, the precise
meaning is to be determined by the context, which here shows that it is not
an unqualified refusal, still less a rebuke.
* Jn 2:12, brethren: See note on Mt 12:46.
* Jn 3:22, baptized: A baptism like that of John. The time for baptism “in
the Spirit” had not yet come.
* Jn 3:24: From the other Gospels we learn that, after John was arrested,
Jesus withdrew from Judea.
* Jn 4:20, this mountain: Gerizim, on which the Samaritans worshiped.
* Jn 5:18, broke the sabbath: i.e., broke the sabbath as interpreted by
them; see note on Mt 12:14.
* Jn 6:51: Jesus is the “living bread” both as Word of God (verses 32ff.)
and as sacrificial victim for the salvation of man.
* Jn 6:52: A natural question to ask. Jesus answers, not by explaining it
away, but by reemphasizing the reality, though not, of course, in the crude
sense implied in their question.
* Jn 6:62: When Jesus ascends into heaven they will know that he spoke
the truth.
* Jn 7:3, brethren: See note on Mt 12:46.
* Jn 7:53—8:11: This passage, though absent from some of the most
ancient manuscripts, is regarded as inspired and canonical by the Church.
The style suggests that it is not by St. John, and that it belongs to the
Synoptic tradition.
* Jn 8:21, die in your sin: Theirs is that sin against the truth which is the
sin against the Spirit; cf. Mt 12:31.
* Jn 8:41: They mean, “We are not idolaters,” and protest their fidelity to
God their Father; see notes on Rev 14:4 and 17:2.
* Jn 8:56, he saw it either in prophetic vision while on earth or by some
special privilege after death.
* Jn 8:58: The present tense indicates Christ’s eternal existence as God.
* Jn 9:3: Jesus explains in advance the purpose of the miracle.
* Jn 10:14, the good shepherd: The name has Messianic significance; cf.
Ezek 34.
* Jn 10:18: Throughout the Gospel, Jesus insists that he is master of his
own life and no one takes it from him; cf. 18:6 (at his arrest); 19:11 (before
Pilate); 19:30 (on the cross).
* Jn 11:6, stayed two days longer: This is explained in verse 15.
* Jn 11:50: Caiaphas agreed that, as Jesus was not (in their opinion) the
Messiah, any popular insurrection now could end only in disaster; so it was
better, he argued, to do away with him. He was unconscious of the deeper
meaning of his words, namely that Jesus must die for the salvation of man.
* Jn 12:1: Here begins the last week of Jesus’ public life. This is
described in great detail, as was the first week in chapter 1.
* Jn 12:32, lifted up: i.e., on the cross; but the words also contain a
reference to his going up into heaven. The two mysteries are inseparable.
* Jn 13:1: John begins here to unfold the mystery of the love of Jesus for
“his own.” Note the solemn introduction to the “hour” of his passion and
death.
* Jn 13:34, new commandment: Jesus gives a new depth to the familiar
commandment of the Old Testament. The standard now is, “as I have loved
you.”
* Jn 14:26, all things: After Jesus has gone to his Father, the Holy Spirit
will complete his revelation to the world.
* Jn 15:18: Jesus contrasts the love his disciples have with the hatred the
world bears them.
* Jn 16:10: Jesus is taken from them because they did not receive him.
* Jn 17:1–26: The priestly prayer of Jesus, before his sacrifice.
* Jn 17:5 declares his pre-existence.
* Jn 18:13: According to Jewish law the high-priesthood was for life. The
Romans had deposed Annas, the legal holder, in A.D. 15, and appointed
another in his place, but many Jews continued to recognize Annas.
* Jn 18:28: They would have contracted a legal impurity by entering the
house of a pagan.
* Jn 18:29: See note on Lk 23:2.
* Jn 18:31: Crucifixion was a Roman, not a Jewish, punishment.
* Jn 19:7: At last, because of Pilate’s reluctance, they produce the real
charge.
* Jn 19:8–9: Pilate is afraid and asks Jesus where he comes from—not
his country, but his mysterious origins, as implied in the charge.
* Jn 19:27, took her to his own home: Joseph must now have been dead.
* Jn 20:17: The death and resurrection of Jesus had put an end to the
ordinary familiar relationships of human life, and the time of lasting
companionship had not yet come.
* Jn 21:1–25: This chapter was added later, either by the evangelist or by
a disciple; cf. 20:3–31 and 21:24.
* Jn 21:7: John remembered a similar miracle before; cf. Lk 5:6.
* Jn 21:15–17: The threefold question addressed to Peter alone
corresponds to the threefold denial. Jesus gives Peter charge over his flock.
* Acts 1:1, the first book: i.e., St. Luke’s Gospel.
* Acts 1:14, brethren: See note on Mt 12:46.
* Acts 1:22: An apostle must be a witness to Christ’s resurrection.
* Acts 2:14: Peter assumes the leadership in public. In this discourse we
have the earliest form of the apostolic preaching.
* Acts 3:1: In the early days, the first Christians observed the
prescriptions of the Jewish law.
* Acts 4:2: The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection of the dead.
* Acts 4:32, everything in common: They freely shared what was theirs
individually; cf. Acts 5:4.
* Acts 5:11, Church: i.e., the Christian and Messianic community; a term
borrowed from the Old Testament.
* Acts 5:20, Life: cf. Acts 9:2, “the Way.” These terms recall the words of
Jesus, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” ( Jn 14:6).
* Acts 5:34, Gamaliel: Teacher of St. Paul; cf. Acts 22:3.
* Acts 6:1, Hellenists: Greek-speaking Jews of the Dispersion, who had
their own synagogues in Jerusalem and read the Scriptures in Greek.
* Acts 8:20: Hence the word “simony,” meaning “buying and selling
spiritual powers and privileges.”
* Acts 9:5: Jesus identifies himself with his followers.
* Acts 9:13, saints: i.e., Christians, made holy by baptism.
* Acts 10:16: The vision was to prepare Peter for his reception of
Cornelius the Gentile and his household into the Church; cf. also Acts 15.
* Acts 12:1: The second wave of persecution: cf. Acts 8:1.
* Acts 13:16–41: This first recorded sermon of Paul is similar to that of
Peter in Acts 2:14–36.
* Acts 16:10: This is the first of the passages in Acts in which the story is
told in the first person plural, indicating that Luke, the author, was there.
The manuscript Codex Bezae, however, has a “we” passage in 11:28.
* Acts 16:13: Being a Roman colony, Philippi had no synagogue within
its walls.
* Acts 19:35, the sacred stone or statue of the goddess which, according
to legend, came down from heaven. Possibly a meteorite.
* Acts 20:7: Celebration of the Eucharist on the Lord’s day, i.e., Saturday
evening, according to the Jewish way of reckoning a day from sunset to
sunset.
* Acts 20:34: Paul insisted on working for his living, though recognizing
the apostle’s right to support by the faithful; cf. 1 Cor 9:4–7.
* Acts 21:4, told Paul not to go: This was not a command. The Holy
Spirit enlightened them about what lay before Paul and they naturally
wished to spare him; cf. verse 11.
* Acts 22:20, your witness: Greek, “martyr.” Witnessing by one’s death
(i.e., martyrdom) is the supreme example.
* Rom 1:1–7: The opening address and salutation are very much in the
style of contemporary letter-writing, giving the name of the sender and
recipient, and following this with greetings.
* Rom 1:10: Paul did not found the church at Rome.
* Rom 1:13, harvest: Perhaps those who founded the church at Rome had
confined themselves largely to Jews and had not made much headway with
Gentiles.
* Rom 3:27: Above all, it is faith, not works alone, that will justify both
Jew and Gentile, and (as is made clear later) faith in Jesus.
* Rom 5:12: Physical death is a sign of spiritual death; though physical
death remains after justification.
* Rom 5:15: The felix culpa praised in the Exsultet at the Easter Vigil.
* Rom 6:4, buried: Immersed in the water of baptism.
* Rom 6:15: As before, in the case of the law (Rom 2:17–29), so now, in
the case of grace, Paul says it is not a license to sin.
* Rom 7:13–25: Man under the law of Moses and perhaps man under the
natural law too.
* Rom 8:19: Material creation, too, shares man’s destiny, made as it was
for him. Many ancient philosophers thought matter to be evil and that the
spirit should be freed from it.
* Rom 9:19–24: Paul’s words here, taken by themselves, seem to leave
no room for moral responsibility, but they must be taken in conjunction
with other passages; see chapters 1 and 2.
* Rom 10:1: Paul is afraid he has spoken too strongly of their sins, so he
declares his love for Israel.
* Rom 14:1—15:13: Paul is tolerant of the Jewish Christians’ reluctance
to abandon the ritual prescriptions of the law of Moses, while being equally
insistent that these shall not be forced on Gentile Christians.
* Rom 14:14: Conscience is the ultimate guide.
* Rom 15:15–16: Paul again justifies his writing to a church he did not
found.
* Rom 16:16, All the churches of Christ greet you: A remarkable
salutation, not used elsewhere.
* 1 Cor 1:2, saints: A word commonly used for Christians in Paul’s
letters and in Acts.
* 1 Cor 1:12, Cephas: i.e., Peter. It does not follow from this that he had
even been to Corinth, but it does indicate his authority there.
* 1 Cor 2:1–2: Paul’s failure at Athens convinced him that lofty words
and worldly wisdom were less effective than Jesus crucified.
* 1 Cor 3:13, the Day: i.e., the day of the Lord, God’s searching
judgment.
* 1 Cor 3:16, God’s temple: The dignity of the Christians.
* 1 Cor 5:1, father’s wife: Evidently his stepmother.
* 1 Cor 5:5, to Satan: Not only excommunicated, but in some sense given
over to suffering, for his own good.
* 1 Cor 5:9–10, immoral: Literally, “fornicators.”
* 1 Cor 5:11, guilty of immorality: Literally, “a fornicator.”
* 1 Cor 6:1, the unrighteous: i.e., civil courts in which the judges were,
of course, pagan.
* 1 Cor 6:9: the immoral: literally, “fornicators.”
* 1 Cor 6:9: homosexuals: Greek has “effeminate nor sodomites.” The
apostle condemns, not the inherent tendencies of such, but the indulgence of
them.
* 1 Cor 6:12: This saying is possibly an exaggeration of the freedom
from the Mosaic law that Christians enjoyed. The saying has been applied
to sinful practices, as is clear from the following verses.
* 1 Cor 6:13, 18, immorality: i.e., sexual immorality.
* 1 Cor 7:2: Note Paul’s insistence on equality of man and woman in
certain aspects of Christian marriage, and his recognition that the unmarried
state is also a gift from God.
* 1 Cor 8:1–13: Animals sacrificed to pagan gods were often sold as meat
in the market. Could Christians buy such meat? Paul allows it so long as
scandal is avoided.
* 1 Cor 9:3: Paul set great store by the fact that he has earned his living
and waived his right to support by the faithful. He used this as an
authentication of his apostolate.
* 1 Cor 9:5, wife: Greek, a “woman,” a “sister.” This could mean either a
woman who is a Christian or a wife who is a Christian. There were pious
women who ministered to the apostles (Lk 8:3). As many of the apostles
must have been married, they may have been ministered to by their wives,
though it is possible they had left their wives in answer to the Lord’s
command to leave all (Lk 18:28–29).
* 1 Cor 9:5, brethren: See note on Mt 12:46.
* 1 Cor 10:20: Paul appears to forbid partaking in sacrificial meals. In
verse 27 he says they may eat meat offered to idols if it is at an ordinary
meal, unless it would cause scandal to anyone present.
* 1 Cor 11:20: There was apparently a common meal before the
Eucharist at which food and drink were to be shared. Paul condemns the
abuses that had crept in.
* 1 Cor 12:1: The spiritual gifts here referred to were common in the first
age of the Church and helped to establish it on a firm basis.
* 1 Cor 12:31: Love, however, is far superior to these gifts.
* 1 Cor 15:13: Again, the resurrection of the dead is linked with Christ’s
resurrection; cf. Rom 8:11.
* 1 Cor 15:29: Apparently a custom of vicarious baptism for those who
had died without it. Paul mentions it without approving it.
* 1 Cor 16:1: The collection to be made everywhere for the poor
Christians in Jerusalem.
* 2 Cor 1:8, affliction: Possibly the disturbance at Ephesus (Acts 19:23–
41), or perhaps a serious illness.
* 2 Cor 3:18: Cleansed in baptism through the power of the Holy Spirit,
our soul shines with the reflected glory of God.
* 2 Cor 4:7, this treasure: i.e., the apostolate.
* 2 Cor 4:12: i.e., we suffer, if necessary, even unto death, that you may
have (spiritual) life.
* 2 Cor 5:19: Or, “God was reconciling the world to himself through
Christ.”
* 2 Cor 5:21, made him to be sin: i.e., “sending his own Son in the
likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh” (Rom
8:3).
* 2 Cor 9:1, superfluous: Yet Paul goes on to do so at some length,
exhorting them to be generous.
* 2 Cor 10:1: Paul is referring ironically to what some people are saying
about him; see verse 10.
* 2 Cor 12:7, a thorn: Perhaps some form of sickness or disability, or the
opposition of Israel to his teaching.
* 2 Cor 12:13: Paul ironically asks forgiveness for not being a charge on
them as the other apostles were.
* Gal 1:6: After the greeting there is no commendation, as was usual, but
rather strong rebuke.
* Gal 1:10: No doubt Paul was accused of exempting Gentile converts
from the law of Moses in order to curry favor.
* Gal 1:19: Lord’s brother: See the note on brethren at Mt 12:46 above.
* Gal 2:16, works of the law: Paul is contrasting not faith with good
works but faith in Jesus Christ with observance of the law of Moses.
* Gal 3:2, Spirit: He probably refers to the outward manifestations of the
Spirit, such as the gift of tongues.
* Gal 5:11, stumbling block of the cross: So far as the Jews were
concerned, this would consist largely in the exemption of converts from the
obligations of the law of Moses.
* Eph 1:1, To the saints who are: The addition “at Ephesus” is doubtful.
The letter may have been a form of encyclical.
* Eph 1:10, to unite: Or, “to sum up.” This is one of the chief themes of
the letter. Men are to be under Christ as head of the Mystical Body, and
even irrational creatures must be in some way under him as the cornerstone
of creation.
* Eph 2:14, dividing wall: A metaphor taken from the wall that divided
the court of the Gentiles from the court of the Israelites in the temple.
* Eph 3:3, the mystery: i.e., that the Gentiles were to be admitted to the
Church on the basis of equality.
* Eph 5:14: Apparently a fragment of an early Christian hymn; cf. 1 Tim
3:16.
* Phil 1:14, because of my imprisonment: i.e., because I continue to
preach in their midst, though in prison.
* Phil 1:20, honored in my body: i.e., through my sufferings.
* Phil 2:6, in the form of God: The Greek shows that divine attributes,
and therefore nature, are implied here. It is not the divine nature he set no
store by, but equality of treatment and recognition of his divinity.
* Phil 2:7, emptied himself of this external recognition, which was his
right.
* Phil 3:12, made me his own: On the road to Damascus.
* Phil 3:19: These Judaizers made holiness a question of distinction of
foods and set great store by circumcision.
* Col 1:15, first-born: Born of the Father before all ages. The reference
here is to the divine person of the Word; see verse 16.
* Col 1:18: His human nature.
* Col 1:24, what is lacking: Christ’s sufferings were, of course, sufficient
for our redemption, but all of us may add ours to his, in order that the fruits
of his redemption be applied to the souls of men.
* Col 3:18—4:5: The whole passage corresponds closely to Eph 5:22—
6:9.
* Col 4:10: Mark, the evangelist, and, probably, the John Mark of Acts
12:12, 25.
* Col 4:14: Luke, the evangelist.
* 1 Thess 1:1: Paul joins with himself two who had evangelized
Thessalonica with him.
* 1 Thess 2:18, I, Paul: He distinguishes himself from Silvanus and
Timothy.
* 1 Thess 4:3, sanctification: With special reference to the practice of
purity, specially difficult to those newly converted from paganism.
* 1 Thess 4:3, immorality: i.e., sexual immorality.
* 1 Thess 4:11: The Thessalonians thought that the second Coming of
Christ was at hand and tended to neglect their daily duties. He corrects this
misconception.
* 1 Thess 4:13: Paul tells them that those who died before Christ’s
second Coming are no worse off than those who will still be alive at his
coming.
* 1 Thess 4:17: i.e., we who are alive shall go out to meet him and
accompany him back on his return to this earth.
* 2 Thess 2:2: Paul warns against over-eagerness to expect the second
Coming, and specifies various signs to be looked for first.
* 2 Thess 2:3, the man of lawlessness: i.e., Antichrist.
* 2 Thess 2:7: Evil will operate secretly till the final unmasking.
* 1 Tim 1:2: Timothy, son of a Greek father and a Jewish mother, was
already a Christian when Paul met him (Acts 16:1). A close association
ensued.
* 1 Tim 1:4, myths and endless genealogies: A reference to the Jewish
legends and spurious pedigrees added by false Judaizers to the Biblical
narratives; cf. the Book of Jubilees.
* 1 Tim 1:20, delivered to Satan: A form of excommunication; see note
on 1 Cor 5:5.
* 1 Tim 2:6, ransom for all: This is why Paul wants prayers for all (verse
1).
* 1 Tim 3:1, bishop: At this time an office probably not distinct from that
of priest.
* 1 Tim 3:11, women: i.e., deaconesses.
* 1 Tim 4:3, forbid marriage: As some Gnostics did.
* 1 Tim 4:3, abstinence from foods: As practiced by Judaizers.
* 1 Tim 5:3, real widows: i.e., with no one to help and support them.
* 1 Tim 5:12: Paul had no objection to widows marrying again; cf. 1 Cor
7:8–9. But the widows here had clearly made some sort of vow or promise
to serve the Church in singleness. Paul recommended that younger widows
should marry again (verse 14).
* 2 Tim 1:15, Asia: The Roman province of that name, now in western
Turkey.
* 2 Tim 2:18: They explained the resurrection by saying it was the rising
to newness of life in baptism, thus ignoring a bodily resurrection, a doctrine
the Greeks found very hard to accept; cf. Acts 17:32.
* 2 Tim 3:16: Paul refers to the Old Testament Scriptures.
* 2 Tim 4:6, on the point of being sacrificed: Literally, “poured out in
sacrifice” as a drink-offering or libation.
* 2 Tim 4:21, Linus: According to tradition, the successor of Peter in the
see of Rome.
* Tit 1:5, elders: Each Christian community was ruled by a body of
elders.
* Tit 2:13, God and Savior: Both terms appear to refer to Jesus Christ.
* Tit 3:5–7: A brief and clear statement of the doctrine of justification.
* Heb 1:1–4: A contrast between the progressive and piecemeal
revelation of the old dispensation and the complete revelation of the new
given by a single representative—no mere prophet but the Son of God
himself.
* Heb 2:2, angels: The covenant of Sinai was thought to have been given
through the angels.
* Heb 2:10, suffering: The divinely appointed means of progress toward
God; cf. verse 18.
* Heb 3:11: Those who murmured against God in the desert were
excluded from the promised land (the “rest”). Christians should beware lest,
by offending God, they be excluded from heaven, the true rest, of which the
promised land was a type.
* Heb 5:1–5: If Jesus was to be mediator, he had to have a human nature
like ours, and, moreover, he could not appoint himself, but had to be
appointed by God.
* Heb 6:4, impossible: The apostasy referred to in verse 6 is clearly
thought of as so deliberate as to preclude any real possibility of repentance;
or there may be a reference here to the impossibility of being baptized a
second time.
* Heb 7:3, without father: i.e., the father is not mentioned in Scripture.
* Heb 7:3, neither beginning of days nor end of life: So too here, they are
not mentioned in Scripture either. Thus his priesthood can be taken to
foreshadow or symbolize the Christian priesthood. “You are a priest for
ever according to the order of Melchizedek” (Ps 110:4; cf. Heb 7:17).
* Heb 8:11: This verse means merely that knowledge of God will be
commonly shared. It does not exclude the existence of a ministry of
teaching in the Messianic times.
* Heb 10:1ff.: The sacrifices of the old law, being imperfect, were
repeated and did at least keep alive a sense of sin. Contrast with Christ’s
sacrifice (verse 14).
* Heb 11:6: Here is stated the minimum necessary for salvation.
* Heb 12:1ff.: After explaining in the preceding chapters how we are
redeemed through faith in Jesus Christ, the author now exhorts his readers
to run the race with perseverance.
* Heb 13:1ff.: Moral exhortation.
* Heb 13:9: Again the warning against false doctrine, especially the
Judaizers’ teachings; cf. Phil 3:19; 1 Tim 1:4; 4:3.
* Heb 13:13: i.e., “Let us leave the observance of Judaism behind us.”
THE LETTER OF JAMES
* Jas 1:1, twelve tribes: i.e., Jewish Christians outside Palestine.
* Jas 1:22: This is the main theme of the letter.
* Jas 2:1–7: These are hard words, but no harder than those of Jesus.
* Jas 2:10: In keeping the law, we must keep the whole law. We cannot
pick and choose.
* Jas 2:14: Good works are necessary besides faith.
* Jas 5:3: The “treasure” they have laid up is described in the following
verses.
* Jas 5:13–15: This passage is the scriptural basis for the sacrament of
anointing the sick.
* 1 Pet 1:1: See note on Jas 1:1. Baptism is the main theme of this letter
which, in fact, may have been a baptismal address.
* 1 Pet 1:11, Spirit of Christ: Christ, as the eternally existing Word, is
envisaged as inspiring the prophets of old.
* 1 Pet 3:1–6: Peter’s teaching on the behavior and status of women
corresponds to that of Paul, though without Paul’s forthrightness.
* 1 Pet 4:1, ceased from sin: Peter means that a continual acceptance of
suffering is incompatible with a proneness to sin.
* 1 Pet 5:13, Babylon: Rome was as full of iniquity as ancient Babylon;
cf. Rev 17:9.
* 2 Pet 1:4, partakers of the divine nature: A strong expression to
describe the transformation of human nature by divine grace.
* 2 Pet 1:16–18: A reference to the transfiguration.
* 2 Pet 2:3: Much of the material of this chapter appears to be from the
Letter of Jude.
* 2 Pet 3:16, this seems to refer to the theme of the end of the world and
the second Coming of Christ, about which Paul had written in his letters to
the Thessalonians.
* 1 Jn 1:1–7: Note the likeness with John’s Gospel 1:1–18.
* 1 Jn 1:3, fellowship: A Johannine theme.
* 1 Jn 1:5, light . . . darkness: Another familiar theme in John’s Gospel.
* 1 Jn 2:3: Cf. the words of Jesus, “If you love me, you will keep my
commandments” (Jn 14:15).
* 1 Jn 2:18, the last hour: John exhorts his readers to hold fast, as though
the end were at hand.
* 1 Jn 3:6, sins: i.e., remains in sin, or has a habit of sin.
* 1 Jn 4:1, test the spirits: i.e., examine those who claim to have special
gifts from the Holy Spirit; cf. 1 Cor 14:32.
* 1 Jn 5:8: This reads as follows in the Vulgate: “ 7There are three who
give testimony in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and
these three are one. 8And there are three that give testimony on earth: the
spirit, and the water, and the blood; and these three are one.” The “Three
Heavenly Witnesses,” as the first sentence is called, is first found in the
Latin (fourth century) and does not appear in any Greek manuscript until
the fifteenth century. It is probably a marginal gloss that found its way into
the text.
* 2 Jn 1: The elder: Perhaps the head of the group or “college” of elders
that presided over each Christian community. John was head not only of the
Ephesus community but of all the communities in the province of Asia.
* 2 Jn 1: the elect lady: Probably not an individual lady but a particular
church or community in Asia.
* 2 Jn 13: children: i.e., the Christians of Ephesus.
* 3 Jn 12: Demetrius: Evidently a leading Christian, recommended to
Gaius.
THE LETTER OF JUDE
* Jude 6: It is not clear to what Jude refers. Perhaps Gen 6:2 or the
apocryphal Enoch 6–15.
* Jude 9: Apparently a reference to another apocryphal work, the
Assumption of Moses.
THE REVELATION TO JOHN
* Rev 1:4–8: Describes the glorious coming and reign of the Messiah.
* Rev 1:13, Son of man refers to Dan 7:13. The Messiah is described in
symbolic terms.
* Rev 2:10, ten days: Not literally. It means the persecution will be short.
* Rev 2:20–21, immorality here seems to mean idolatry rather than
sexual excess.
* Rev 2:24, deep things of Satan: The doctrines of the Nicolaitans. They
called them the “deep things of God.”
* Rev 2:28, morning star: Probably Christ himself.
* Rev 3:12, new name: cf. Is 62:2. Perhaps it was “the Word,” or perhaps
it is not to be revealed till the last day.
* Rev 4:3: John describes God in symbolic terms.
* Rev 4:4, elders: They perform a priestly and royal task, since they
praise God and share in the government of the world.
* Rev 4:6, four living creatures: cf. Ezek 1:4–25: the four angels who
preside over the government of the world. But in Christian tradition these
symbols are used for the four evangelists.
* Rev 4:8, Holy, holy, holy: Quoted in the Sanctus at Mass.
* Rev 5:1, a scroll: This contained God’s designs, kept secret till now;
being written on both sides, nothing could be added.
* Rev 5:6: The seven horns and seven eyes symbolize Christ’s full power
and knowledge.
* Rev 6:1: Begins the account of the destruction of the Roman Empire
(chapters 6–9).
* Rev 6:5, balance: Symbol of famine. The balance was to measure
rations.
* Rev 7:4, a hundred and forty-four thousand: A symbolic number, i.e.,
twelve (the sacred number) squared and multiplied by 1,000 to denote a
multitude. It is the Church, the spiritual Israel, that is meant.
* Rev 7:14, the great tribulation: The Neronian persecution?
* Rev 8:5: Coals from the altar of burnt offering were brought to the altar
of incense.
* Rev 9:1, star: A fallen angel.
* Rev 9:14, Euphrates: The region of the Parthians.
* Rev 9:21, immorality: See note on 2:20–21.
* Rev 10:7, mystery of God: i.e., the establishment of the kingdom of
God following on the destruction of Israel’s enemies.
* Rev 10:9, bitter . . . sweet: The scroll related both the sufferings and the
victories of Christ’s Church.
* Rev 11:1–19: The Jerusalem here described stands for the Church,
which is to be persecuted by the Romans.
* Rev 11:2: The three and a half years’ persecution of the Jews by
Antiochus Epiphanes, 168–165 b.c., had become the standard time of a
persecution. Three and a half years equals 42 months equals 1,260 days
(verse 3).
* Rev 11:3, two witnesses: As they have yet to die, possibly they are
Elijah and Enoch.
* Rev 11:8, the great city: i.e., Rome.
* Rev 12:1–6: The child brought forth is the Messiah; the dragon is the
devil; the woman who gave birth to the Messiah is Israel, and then becomes
the Christian Church, which continually gives birth to the faithful.
* Rev 12:14, a time, and times, and half a time: This is the three and a
half years of 11:2.
* Rev 12:17: Mary, the mother of the Messiah, must also be included in
the meaning.
* Rev 13:1, a beast: This symbolizes the material forces of evil, arrayed
against the Church.
* Rev 13:11, another beast: i.e., the false prophets.
* Rev 13:18, six hundred and sixty-six: The letters of Nero’s name plus
the title of Caesar, given their numerical meaning in Hebrew and added
together, make 666.
* Rev 14:4: Although tradition tends to take this literally, the context and
Old Testament metaphor suggest that it means they have kept free from
idolatry.
* Rev 14:8, Babylon: i.e., Rome.
* Rev 15:3–4: The song of Moses in Ex 15:1–18 celebrated victory over
Pharaoh. This is seen as foreshadowing the triumph of the Lamb.
* Rev 16:14, the great day: On which all the Gentile armies shall be
gathered to give battle.
* Rev 16:16, Armageddon: i.e., Megiddo, where Josiah was defeated by
the king of Egypt, cf. 2 Kings 23:29.
* Rev 17:1, great harlot: i.e., Rome.
* Rev 17:2, fornication: i.e., idolatry.
* Rev 18:11–20: The description abruptly assumes the language of
Ezekiel’s prophecy of the destruction of Tyre, another city notorious for its
sins (Ezek 27:1—28:19).
* Rev 19:7, marriage of the Lamb: i.e., final establishment of the
kingdom of God. The spouse is the Church.
* Rev 20:3: The destruction of the dragon must coincide in time with that
of the beast (19:20), so that the first resurrection with the reign of the
martyrs refers to the revival and expansion of the Church after the years of
persecution.
* Rev 21:1: Creation will be renewed one day, freed from corruption and
illumined by God’s glory.
* Rev 21:8, second death: i.e., eternal damnation.
EXEGETICAL NOTES
THE BOOK OF GENESIS
a Or When God began to create. Back to text.
b Or wind. Back to text.
c Or flood. Back to text.
d Heb ishshah. Back to text.
e Heb ish. Back to text.
f The name in Hebrew resembles the word for living. Back to text.
g Heb qanah, get. Back to text.
h Sam Gk Syr Compare Vg: Heb lacks Let us go out to the field. Back to
text.
i Gk Syr Vg: Heb Therefore. Back to text.
j That is Wandering. Back to text.
k Or window. Back to text.
l Gk: Heb repeats every beast of the earth. Back to text.
m Or Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem. Back to text.
n Compare verses 20, 31. Heb lacks These are the sons of Japheth. Back
to text.
o That is Division. Back to text.
p Compare Heb balal, confuse. Back to text.
q Or in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Back to text.
r Or Terebinth. Back to text.
s Or Terebinths. Back to text.
t That is God hears. Back to text.
u Cn: Heb have I even here seen after him who sees me? Back to text.
v That is the well of one who sees and lives. Back to text.
w Heb El Shaddai. Back to text.
x That is exalted father. Back to text.
y Here taken to mean father of a multitude. Back to text.
z That is he laughs. Back to text.
a Or Terebinths. Back to text.
b Heb seahs. Back to text.
c Or wonderful. Back to text.
d Or in him all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. Back to text.
e Heb known. Back to text.
f Gk Syr Vg: Heb he. Back to text.
g That is Little. Back to text.
h Gk Vg: Heb lacks with her son Isaac. Back to text.
i Gk: Heb she lifted up her voice. Back to text.
j That is Well of seven or Well of the oath. Back to text.
k Or see. Back to text.
l Or he will be seen. Back to text.
n Syr Tg: Heb from coming to. Back to text.
o Heb adds of Sarah his mother. Back to text.
p Heb fell. Back to text.
q Syr: Heb obscure. Back to text.
r That is He takes by the heel or He supplants. Back to text.
s That is Red. Back to text.
t Heb today. Back to text.
u That is Contention. Back to text.
v That is Enmity. Back to text.
w That is Broad places or Room. Back to text.
x Cn: Heb of all. Back to text.
y Or of. Back to text.
z Heb El Shaddai. Back to text.
a Or beside him. Back to text.
b Or be blessed. Back to text.
c That is The house of God. Back to text.
d That is See, a son. Back to text.
e Heb shama. Back to text.
f Heb lawah. Back to text.
g Heb hodah. Back to text.
h That is He judged. Back to text.
i Heb niphtal. Back to text.
j That is Fortune. Back to text.
k That is Blessed. Back to text.
l Heb sakar. Back to text.
m Heb zabal. Back to text.
n That is He adds. Back to text.
o In Aramaic The heap of witness. Back to text.
p In Hebrew The heap of witness. Back to text.
q Compare Sam: Heb lacks the pillar. Back to text.
r That is Watchpost. Back to text.
s Ch 32:1 in Heb. Back to text.
t Here taken to mean Two armies. Back to text.
u That is He who strives with God or God strives. Back to text.
v That is The face of God. Back to text.
w That is Booths. Back to text.
x Heb a hundred qesitah. Back to text.
y That is God, the God of Israel. Back to text.
z That is God of Bethel. Back to text.
a That is Oak of weeping. Back to text.
b Heb El Shaddai. Back to text.
c That is Son of my sorrow. Back to text.
d That is Son of the right hand or Son of the South. Back to text.
e Sam Gk Syr: Heb daughter. Back to text.
f Gk Syr: Heb daughter. Back to text.
g Gk: Heb He. Back to text.
h Or cult prostitute. Back to text.
i That is A breach. Back to text.
j Gk: Heb them. Back to text.
k Abrek, probably an Egyptian word similar in sound to the Hebrew word
meaning to kneel. Back to text.

l Sam Gk: Heb which were. Back to text.
m That is Making to forget. Back to text.
n From a Hebrew word meaning to be fruitful. Back to text.
o Gk Vg Compare Syr: Heb all that was in them. Back to text.
p Heb El Shaddai. Back to text.
q Gk Compare Vg: Heb lacks Why have you stolen my silver cup? Back
to text.
r Compare Gk Vg: Heb you are commanded. Back to text.
s Sam Syr Compare Gk Vg: Heb to show the way. Back to text.
t Sam Gk Compare Vg: Heb he removed them to the cities. Back to text.
u Heb El Shaddai. Back to text.
v Heb shekem, shoulder. Back to text.
w Gk Syr Tg: Heb he. Back to text.
x Or glory. Back to text.
y Syr Compare Tg: Heb until Shiloh comes or until he comes to Shiloh.
Back to text.
z Heb gedud, a raiding troop. Back to text.
a Or who gives beautiful words. Back to text.
b Heb the arms of his hands. Back to text.
c Compare Gk: Heb of my progenitors to. Back to text.
d That is meadow (or mourning) of Egypt. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF EXODUS

a Sam Gk Tg: Heb lacks to the Hebrews. Back to text.
b Heb Mosheh. Back to text.
c Heb mashah. Back to text.
d Heb ger. Back to text.
e Or I AM WHAT I AM or I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE. Back to text.
f The word LORD when spelled with capital letters, stands for the divine
name, YHWH, which is here connected with the verb hayah, to be. Back to
text.
g Gk Vg: Heb no, not by a mighty hand. Back to text.
h Heb El Shaddai. Back to text.
i Ch 7:26 in Heb. Back to text.
j Gk: Heb upon your people. Back to text.
OceanofPDF.com
k Ch 8:1 in Heb. Back to text.
l Or which he had brought upon Pharaoh. Back to text.
m Gk Vg: Heb set redemption. Back to text.
n Heb before your face. Back to text.
o Heb between the two evenings. Back to text.
p Gk: Heb and it lit up the night. Back to text.
q Or binding. Sam Gk Syr: Heb removing. Back to text.
r Heb shook off. Back to text.
s Gk Syr: Heb to all the host. Back to text.
t Or its chariot. Back to text.
u That is Bitterness. Back to text.
v Heb he. Back to text.
w Or “It is manna.” Heb man hu. Back to text.
x That is Proof. Back to text.
y That is Contention. Back to text.
z Cn: Heb obscure. Back to text.
a Heb ger. Back to text.
b Heb Eli, my God, ezer, help. Back to text.
c Sam Gk Syr: Heb I. Back to text.
d Transposing the last clause of v. 10 to v. 11. Back to text.
e Syr Tg Vg: Heb took. Back to text.
f Or besides. Back to text.
g Another reading is so that he has not designated her. Back to text.
h Heb he shall. Back to text.
j Restoring the second half of verse 3 and the whole of verse 4 to their
place immediately following verse 1. Back to text.

k Ch 22:1 in Heb. Back to text.
l Or it is reckoned in (Heb comes into) its hire. Back to text.
m Gk: Heb obscure. Back to text.
n Gk Vg: Heb he. Back to text.
o Or cover. Back to text.
p The Hebrew word is of uncertain meaning. Back to text.
q Gk: Heb girdles, Aaron and his sons,. Back to text.
r Heb all. Back to text.
s Gk Vg See Tg: Heb ordain yourselves. Back to text.
x Gk Theodotion Vg Tg: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
t Heb words. Back to text.

a Ch 5:20 in Heb. Back to text.
b Ch 6:1 in Heb. Back to text.
c Meaning of Heb is uncertain. Back to text.
d Or Whoever. Back to text.
x Gk Syr: Heb afford, 31such as he can afford, one. Back to text.
e Gk Syr Compare Vg: Heb for the life of all flesh, its blood is in its life.
Back to text.
f Gk: Heb lacks your. Back to text.
g Heb blood. Back to text.
h Heb their uncircumcision. Back to text.
i Heb repeats if a man commits adultery with the wife of. Back to text.
j Heb between the two evenings. Back to text.
k Or tabernacles. Back to text.
l Or sabbaths. Back to text.
m Compare Vg: Heb exercises. Back to text.
n Or pay for. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF NUMBERS
a Heb their number was. Back to text.
b That is one separated or one consecrated. Back to text.
c Or Naziriteship. Back to text.
d Gk Syr Vg: Heb lacks by day. Back to text.
e That is Burning. Back to text.
f That is Graves of craving. Back to text.
g Heb lay not sin upon us. Back to text.
h That is Cluster. Back to text.
j Ch 17:16 in Heb. Back to text.
k Heb service of gift. Back to text.
l That is Contention. Back to text.
m Heb Destruction. Back to text.
n That is Well. Back to text.
o Or Jeshimon. Back to text.
p Gk: Heb the boundary of the Ammonites was strong. Back to text.
q Gk: Heb we have shot at them. Heshbon has perished. Back to text.
r Compare Sam and Gk: Heb we have laid waste to Nophah which to
Medeba. Back to text.

s Or dust clouds. Back to text.
t Or Jeshimon. Back to text.
u Or closed or perfect. Back to text.
v Or closed or perfect. Back to text.
w Heb corners (of the head). Back to text.
x Supplying take a census of the people. Compare verse 2. Back to text.
y Ch 30:1 in Heb. Back to text.
z That is the villages of Jair. Back to text.
a Syr: Heb lacks its. Back to text.

a Heb cubit of a man. Back to text.
b Heb words. Back to text.
c Syr: Heb Sion. Back to text.
d Or besides. Back to text.
e Or the LORD our God, the LORD is one.
Or the LORD is our God, the LORD is one.

Or the LORD is our God, the LORD alone. Back to text.
f Or quickly. Back to text.
g Heb words. Back to text.
h Or the wells of the Bene-jaakan. Back to text.
i Or instruction. Back to text.
j Sam Gk Vg: Heb I. Back to text.
k Gk Syr: See Gen 12:6. Heb Oaks or Terebinths. Back to text.
l Ch 13:1 in Heb. Back to text.
m Heb obscure. Back to text.
n Heb makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire. Back to text.
o Or the blood of the innocent. Back to text.
p Heb hide yourself. Back to text.
q Heb become holy. Back to text.
r Ch 23:1 in Heb. Back to text.
s Heb uncover his father’s skirt. Back to text.
t Or male prostitute. Back to text.
u Heb its name. Back to text.
v Heb whole. Back to text.
w Heb uncovered his father’s skirt. Back to text.
x Another reading is sword. Back to text.
y Ch 28:69 in Heb. Back to text.
z Ch 29:1 in Heb. Back to text.
a Or deal wisely. Back to text.
b Gk Syr: Heb your heads, your tribes. Back to text.
c Gk: Heb lacks If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God.
Back to text.
d Or God. Back to text.
e Or bore. Back to text.
f Heb the lightning of my sword. Back to text.
g Gk Vg: Heb his land his people. Back to text.
h Gk Syr Vg: Heb Hoshea. Back to text.
i Gk Syr Vg: Heb them. Back to text.
j The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
k Gk: Heb peoples. Back to text.
x Heb your. Back to text.
l Cn: Heb with his hands he contended. Back to text.
m Gk: Heb lacks Give to Levi. Back to text.
n Two Heb Mss and Tg: Heb with the dew. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JOSHUA
a That is the hill of the foreskins. Back to text.
b From Heb galal to roll. Back to text.
c That is Trouble. Back to text.
d Cn: Heb appointed time. Back to text.
x Heb they. Back to text.
e Gk: Heb the boundary of Og. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb Gilgal. Back to text.
g Cn: Heb With it. Back to text.
h Gk Syr Vg: Heb Lidebir. Back to text.
i That is The city of Arba. Back to text.
j Heb obscure. Back to text.
k Cn See 15:9. Heb westward. Back to text.
l Gk: Heb to the shoulder over against the Arabah. Back to text.
m Gk Syr Vg: Heb the Jebusite. Back to text.
n Heb Gibeath. Back to text.
o Gk: Heb Kiriath. Back to text.
p Cn Compare Gk: Heb Mehebel. Back to text.
q Heb qesitah. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF JUDGES
a Vg Old Latin Compare Gk: Heb sides. Back to text.
b That is Weepers. Back to text.
c The meaning of the Hebrew word is unknown. Back to text.
d Or You who offered yourselves willingly among the people, bless. Back
to text.
e The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb me. Back to text.
x Cn: Heb From Ephraim their root. Back to text.
g Gk: Heb in Amalek. Back to text.
h Gk Compare Tg: Heb exclaimed. Back to text.
i Cn: Heb and depart from Mount Gilead. Back to text.
j Cn: Heb the people took provisions in their hands. Back to text.
k Another reading is Zeredah. Back to text.
l Gk: Heb and he said. Back to text.
m Cn See 9:41. Heb Tormah. Back to text.
n Cn: Heb besieging. Back to text.
o Vg and some Mss of Gk: Heb companies. Back to text.
p Cn: Heb go down. Back to text.
q Gk: Heb in the cities of Gilead. Back to text.
r Gk Vg: Heb and working. Back to text.
s Heb wonders, while Manoah and his wife looked on. Back to text.
t Gk Syr: Heb seventh. Back to text.
u That is The hill of the jawbone. Back to text.
v That is The spring of him who called. Back to text.
w Compare Gk: Heb lacks and make it tight . . . into the web. Back to
text.
w2 Heb living, and the Levite went. Back to text.
x Cn Compare 18:10. The Hebrew text is uncertain. Back to text.
y That is Camp of Dan. Back to text.
z Another reading is Manasseh. Back to text.
a Gk Old Latin: Heb played the harlot against. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb she brought him. Back to text.
c Gk Compare 19:29. Heb to the house of the LORD. Back to text.
d Gk Vg: Heb in the plain. Back to text.
e Gk: Heb surrounding. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb (at their) resting place. Back to text.
THE BOOK OF RUTH

a That is Pleasant. Back to text.
b That is Bitter. Back to text.
c Gk Syr Vg: Heb testified against. Back to text.
d Compare Gk Vg: the meaning of the Hebrew text is uncertain. Back to
text.
e Old Latin Vg: Heb of Naomi and from Ruth. Back to text.

a Gk: Heb obscure. Back to text.
b Gk Syr: Heb three bulls. Back to text.
x Heb he. Back to text.
c Gk Syr Vg: Heb with it. Back to text.
d Or for the petition which she asked of. Back to text.
e Gk Tg: Heb Did I reveal. Back to text.
f Or treat with scorn. Gk: Heb kick at. Back to text.
g Gk: Heb your. Back to text.
h Gk: Heb die as men. Back to text.
i Gk See 3:10: Heb the LORD called Samuel. Back to text.
j Another reading is for themselves. Back to text.
k Cn: Heb of the people seventy men, fifty thousand men. Back to text.
l Gk Syr: Heb Shen. Back to text.
m That is Stone of help. Back to text.
n Gk: Heb lacks to me. Back to text.
o Gk: Heb young men. Back to text.
p Gk Vg: Heb he. Back to text.
q Heb lacks the affliction of. Back to text.
r Heb obscure. Back to text.
s Cn: Heb saying, I have invited the people. Back to text.
t Gk: Heb and he spoke with Saul. Back to text.
u Gk: Heb and they arose early and at break of dawn. Back to text.
w Gk: Heb lacks over his people Israel? And you shall . . . to be prince.
Back to text.
x Or the hill of God. Back to text.
z Or the hill. Back to text.
a Gk: Heb lacks finally . . . man by man. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb Is there yet a man to come here? Back to text.
c Gk: Heb lacks Testify against me. Back to text.
d Gk: Heb lacks is witness. Back to text.
e Gk: Heb lacks and the Egyptians oppressed them. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb lacks Jabin king of. Back to text.
g Gk Syr: Heb Bedan. Back to text.
h Gk: Heb fathers. Back to text.
i Gk Syr Tg Vg: Heb because after. Back to text.
j The number is lacking in Heb. Back to text.
k Two is not the entire number. Something has dropped out. Back to text.
l Cn: Heb Hebrews crossed the Jordan. Back to text.
m Gk: Heb plowshare. Back to text.
n The Heb of this verse is obscure. Back to text.
o Heb between the passes. Back to text.
p Gk: Heb Do all that is in your mind. Turn. Back to text.
q Gk: Heb lacks so is mine. Back to text.
r Heb yoke. Back to text.
s Gk: Heb they went and there. Back to text.
t Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb round about, they also, to be with. Back to text.
u Heb land. Back to text.
v Gk: Heb this day. Back to text.
w Vg Compare Gk: Heb Saul said to the LORD, the God of Israel. Back to
text.
x Gk Syr: Heb among men. Back to text.
y Gk: Heb Gai. Back to text.
z Or triangles, or three-stringed instruments. Back to text.
a Heb by two. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb Michal, Saul’s daughter. Back to text.
x Gk Old Latin: Heb escaped that night. 11And Saul. Back to text.
c Heb teraphim. Back to text.
d The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb lacks from. Back to text.
g Gk: Heb swore again. Back to text.
h Heb a covenant of the LORD. Back to text.
i Heb lacks be witness. Back to text.
j Heb uncertain. Back to text.
k Gk: Heb earth, and Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David.
Back to text.
l Gk: Heb go down quickly. Back to text.
m Gk: Heb the stone Ezel. Back to text.
n Cn See Gk: Heb stood up. Back to text.
o Gk: Heb from beside the south. Back to text.
p Or exceeded. Back to text.
q This sentence is 21:1 in Heb. Back to text.
r Ch 21:2 in Heb. Back to text.
s Syr Vg: Heb come out. Back to text.
t Gk Tg: Heb and has turned aside to. Back to text.
u Or saw that. Back to text.
v Gk: Heb and dwelt. Back to text.
w Ch 24:1 in Heb. Back to text.
x Gk Syr Tg: Heb you. Back to text.
y Gk Compare Syr: Heb the enemies of David. Back to text.
z That is fool. Back to text.
a Gk: Heb a flea (as in 24:14). Back to text.
b Gk Vg: Heb lacks whom. Back to text.
c Gk: Heb lacks and all. Back to text.
d Cn: Heb they drove before those cattle. Back to text.
e Gk Compare 1 Chron 10:9: Heb to the house of their idols. Back to text.

a Gk: Heb the Bow. Back to text.
b Or The upright. Back to text.
c Cn: Heb fields of offerings. Back to text.
d That is the field of sword-edges. Back to text.
e Gk: Heb where he was. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb 6And they came here into the middle of the house fetching
wheat; and they struck him in the belly; and Rechab and Baanah his
brother escaped. Back to text.
g Heb paraz. Back to text.
h That is Lord of breaking through. Back to text.
i Or and his brother. Back to text.
j Compare Gk: Heb the new cart, and brought it out of the house of
Abinadab which was on the hill. Back to text.
k Gk 1 Chron 13:8: Heb fir-trees. Back to text.
l 1 Chron 13:10: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
m That is The breaking forth upon Uzzah. Back to text.
n Vg: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
o Gk: Heb my. Back to text.
p 1 Chron 17:6: Heb tribes. Back to text.
q Gk Syr Vg 1 Chron 17:13: Heb shall not depart. Back to text.
r Cn: Heb this is the law for man. Back to text.
s Gk: Heb one. Back to text.
t Heb you. Back to text.
u Gk 1 Chron 17:21: Heb for your land. Back to text.
v Heb before your people, whom you redeemed for yourself from Egypt,
nations and its gods. Back to text.

w Gk: Heb returned from striking eighteen thousand Syrians. Back to
text.
x Syr Tg Vg 20:23; 1 Chron 18:17: Heb lacks was over. Back to text.
y Gk: Heb my. Back to text.
z Heb river. Back to text.
a Heb the enemies of the LORD. Back to text.
b That is beloved of the LORD. Back to text.
c Or Milcom See Zeph 1:5. Back to text.
d Cn: Heb pass through. Back to text.
e Cn Compare Gk Vg: Heb No, for this great wrong in sending me away
is (worse) than the other which you did to me. Back to text.
f Cn: Heb clad in robes. Back to text.
g Cn Compare Gk: Heb the road behind him. Back to text.
h Gk: Heb David. Back to text.
i Cn: Heb and he devises. Back to text.
j Gk Syr: Heb forty. Back to text.
k Or sent. Back to text.
l Gk Syr Vg: Heb to. Back to text.
m Gk: Heb lacks may the LORD show. Back to text.
n Gk: Heb Are you a seer or Do you see? Back to text.
o Cn: Heb lacks and Abiathar. Back to text.
p Gk Vg: Heb iniquity. Back to text.
q Gk: Heb lacks at the Jordan. Back to text.
r Heb word. Back to text.
s Gk: Heb like the return of the whole (is) the man whom you seek. Back
to text.
t Or when he falls upon them. Back to text.
u The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
v 1 Chron 2:17: Heb Israelite. Back to text.
w Heb lentils and parched grain. Back to text.
x Gk Vg Symmachus: Heb for now there are ten thousand such as we.
Back to text.
y Gk Syr Tg: Heb was put. Back to text.
z Another reading is at the risk of my life. Back to text.
b Heb the king’s servant, your servant. Back to text.
c Ch 19:1 in Heb. Back to text.
d Gk: Heb to the king, to his house. Back to text.
e Cn: Heb the ford crossed. Back to text.
f Heb to. Back to text.
g Gk Syr Vg: Heb said, I will saddle a donkey for myself. Back to text.
h Tg: Heb snatch away our eyes. Back to text.
i Cn Compare Gk: Heb after him Joab’s men. Back to text.
j This clause is transposed from the end of the verse. Back to text.
k With 20:15: Heb and Beth-maacah. Back to text.
l Heb Berites. Back to text.
m Heb the Gibeonites and said to them. Back to text.
n Cn Compare Gk and 21:9: Heb at Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the
LORD. Back to text.

o Two Hebrew Mss Gk: Heb Michal. Back to text.
p Gk Ps 18:2: Heb lacks my. Back to text.
r Ps 18:32: Heb set free. Back to text.
s Another reading is his. Back to text.
t Or gentleness. Back to text.
u Heb ankles. Back to text.
v Gk: Heb from strife with my people. Back to text.
w Ps 18:45: Heb armed themselves. Back to text.
x Another reading is He is a tower of salvation. Back to text.
y Or the favorite of the songs of Israel. Back to text.
z Heb from rain. Back to text.
a Heb worthlessness. Back to text.
b Heb fire in the sitting. Back to text.
c Or captains. Back to text.
d 1 Chron 11:11: Heb obscure. Back to text.
e Two Hebrew Mss Syr: MT three. Back to text.
f 1 Chron 11:25: Heb Was he the most renowned of the three? Back to
text.
g Another reading is the son of Ish-hai. Back to text.
h Gk: sons of Ariel. Heb lacks sons of. Back to text.
i Another reading is Hezrai. Back to text.
j 1 Chron 21:2 Gk: Heb to Joab the commander of the army. Back to text.
k Gk: Heb encamped in Aroer. Back to text.
l Gk: Heb to the land of Tahtim-hodshi. Back to text.
m Cn Compare Gk: Heb they came to Dan-jaan and. Back to text.
n Or hold over. Back to text.
o 1 Chron 21:12 Gk: Heb seven. Back to text.

a Gk: Heb commanders. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb one. Back to text.
c Gk: Heb placing. Back to text.
d Gk: Heb blood of war. Back to text.
e Gk: Heb his. Back to text.
f Gk Syr Vg: Heb and for him and for Abiathar. Back to text.
g Ch 5:1 in Heb. Back to text.
h Ch 5:15 in Heb. Back to text.
j Gk: Heb twenty. Back to text.
j Gk: Heb structure. Back to text.
k Gk Tg: Heb middle. Back to text.
l Heb lacks each story. Back to text.
m Gk: Heb walls. Back to text.
n Vg: Heb and before the inner sanctuary. Back to text.
o Gk: Heb covered. Back to text.
p Heb obscure. Back to text.
q Gk: Heb four. Back to text.
r Gk: Heb posts. Back to text.
s Syr Vg: Heb floor. Back to text.
t With 7:12: Heb from the outside. Back to text.
u Tg Syr Compare Gk and Jer 52:21: Heb and a line of twelve cubits
measured the circumference of the second pillar. Back to text.
v Gk: Heb lacks he made two. Back to text.
w Gk: Heb seven. Back to text.
x With 2 Mss Compare Gk: Heb pillars. Back to text.
y Heb ten. Back to text.
z Gk: Heb lacks has set the sun in the heavens, but. Back to text.
a Gk Syr: Heb the land. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb seven days and seven days, fourteen days. Back to text.
c Syr Old Latin: Heb high. Back to text.
d Heb lacks of Judah. Back to text.
e Gk: Heb burning incense with it which. Back to text.
f Gk Syr: Heb men. Back to text.
g Or baboons. Back to text.
h Gk Syr Vg: Heb they have. Back to text.
i Gk Vg Compare 2 Chron 10:2: Heb dwelt in. Back to text.
j Gk: Heb went to the one as far as Dan. Back to text.
k Gk Syr Vg: Heb son. Back to text.
l Gk: Heb he came to the city of the old prophet. Back to text.
m Heb obscure. Back to text.
n Gk: Heb of the settlers. Back to text.
o Gk Syr Vg: Heb you. Back to text.
p Gk: Heb struck. Back to text.

a Gk Compare verses 9, 13: Heb answered. Back to text.
b Gk Syr: Heb lacks his brother. Back to text.
c Tg: Heb lacks annually. Back to text.
d Gk: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
e Another reading is Amana. Back to text.
f See 7:2: Heb messenger. Back to text.
g Gk Syr: Heb Israel, Jehoshaphat being king of Judah. Back to text.
h Gk Syr: Heb the young man, the young man, the prophet. Back to text.
i The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
j Syr Vg Compare Gk: Heb lacks and they shot him. Back to text.
k Gk Vg: Heb Jezreel. Back to text.
l Gk: Heb Is it right with your heart, as my heart is with your heart?
Back to text.
m Gk: Heb lacks Jehu said. Back to text.
n Gk Syr Tg: Heb they. Back to text.
o Gk Compare verse 25: Heb they. Back to text.
p Cn: Heb city. Back to text.
q With 2 Chron 22:11: Heb lacks and she put. Back to text.
r Gk Syr Vg Compare 2 Chron 22:11: Heb they. Back to text.
s Heb the LORD to the king. Back to text.
t Heb the house to the king. Back to text.
u Ch 12:1 in Heb. Back to text.
v Gk Syr Tg Vg: Heb he walked. Back to text.
w Gk Compare 9:27: Heb before the people. Back to text.
x Compare Gk: Heb Tiphsah. Back to text.
y Heb adds Argob and Arieh, which probably belong to the list of places
in verse 29. Back to text.

z Or made his son to pass through the fire. Back to text.
a Heb At that time Rezin. Back to text.
b Heb Aram (Syria). Back to text.
c Cn: Heb turned to. Back to text.
d Heb obscure. Back to text.
e Or made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire. Back to
text.
f Syr Vg: Heb them. Back to text.
g Syr See Is 38:8 and Tg: Heb lacks the sun. Back to text.
h The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
i Heb pieces from there. Back to text.
j Gk: Heb he burned the high place. Back to text.
k Gk Compare Jer 39:4; 52:7: Heb lacks the king and fled. Back to text.
l With Jer 40:7: Heb lacks in the open country. Back to text.

a Gk Vg: Heb in Caleb Ephrathah. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb Mesha. Back to text.
c Heb the father of Hebron. Back to text.
d Gk Vg: Heb son. Back to text.
e Gk Compare Syr Vg: Heb sons of. Back to text.
f Gk Compare Vg: Heb father. Back to text.
g Gk Vg: Heb lacks Meonothai. Back to text.
h That is Valley of craftsmen. Back to text.
i The clause: These are . . . married is transposed from verse 18. Back to
text.
j Heb lacks and bore. Back to text.
k Vg Compare Gk: Heb and Jashubi-lahem. Back to text.
l Or matters. Back to text.
m Gk Vg: Heb and Epher. Back to text.
n Ch 5:27 in Heb. Back to text.
o Ch 6:1 in Heb. Back to text.
p Gk Syr Compare verse 33 and 1 Sam 8:2: Heb lacks Joel. Back to text.
q Heb and Abijah. Back to text.
r Syr Compare Vg: Heb and to the sons. Back to text.
s Heb and Naaman. Back to text.
t Or he carried them into exile. Back to text.
u Compare 9:35: Heb lacks Jeiel. Back to text.
v Compare 8:35: Heb lacks and Ahaz. Back to text.
w Heb they. Back to text.
x Compare 2 Sam 23:8: Heb thirty or captains. Back to text.
y Compare 2 Sam 23:12: Heb they . . . their. Back to text.
z Syr: Heb three. Back to text.
a Compare 2 Sam 23:19: Heb more renowned among the two. Back to
text.
b Syr: Heb the son of a valiant man. Back to text.
c Gk: sons of Ariel. Heb lacks sons of. Back to text.
d Compare 2 Sam 23:25: Heb the Harorite. Back to text.
e Compare Gk and 2 Sam 23:32: Heb the sons of Hashem. Back to text.
f Heb verse 5. Back to text.
g Heb verse 6. Back to text.
h Or as officers of his troops. Back to text.
i Gk: Heb lacks David. Back to text.
j Or and his brother. Back to text.
k That is The breaking forth upon Uzzah. Back to text.
l Heb paraz. Back to text.
m That is Lord of breaking through. Back to text.
n The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
o Compare Gk Syr Vg: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
p Heb their. Back to text.
q Cn: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
r Gk Vg: Heb one. Back to text.
s Heb hand. Back to text.
t Gk Vg 2 Sam 8:6 Compare Syr: Heb lacks garrisons. Back to text.
u Or Milcom See 1 Kings 11:5. Back to text.
v Compare 2 Sam 12:31: Heb he sawed. Back to text.
w Compare 2 Sam 12:31: Heb saws. Back to text.
x Vg Compare Gk Syr: Heb to the Gershonite. Back to text.
y See 23:19: Heb lacks Hebron. Back to text.
z See 23:19: Heb lacks the chief. Back to text.
a One Ms: Gk: Heb lacks Shime-i. Back to text.
b Gk: Heb Levites. Back to text.
c The meaning of the word parbar is unknown. Back to text.
d The Hebrew text of verse 21 is confused. Back to text.
e Heb Shelomith. Back to text.
f Gk: Heb Ahohite and his division and Mikloth the chief officer. Back to
text.
g Gk Vg: Heb was his division. Back to text.
h Cn: Heb upon me. Back to text.
i Gk Vg: Heb hope. Back to text.

a Gk Vg: Heb to. Back to text.
b Ch 1:18 in Heb. Back to text.
c Ch 2:1 in Heb. Back to text.
d Syr: Heb foundations. Back to text.
e 1 Kings 6:3: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
f Compare Gk: Heb lacks one shekel. Back to text.
g Gk: Heb uncertain. Back to text.
h Heb they overlaid. Back to text.
i Heb they. Back to text.
j Cn: Heb in the inner sanctuary. Back to text.
k 1 Kings 7:24: Heb oxen. Back to text.
l Compare verse 2: Heb ten. Back to text.
n Gk Syr Vg: Heb toward the good way. Back to text.
o The word you is plural here. Back to text.
m 1 Kings 7:50: Heb the door of the house. Back to text.
p Heb them. Back to text.
q Gk Syr Vg: Heb to. Back to text.
r Heb their. Back to text.
s Gk Compare 1 Kings 10:8: Heb men. Back to text.
t Gk Vg: The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain. Back to text.
x Or baboons. Back to text.
u Cn: Heb sought a multitude of wives. Back to text.
v Heb seer, to enroll oneself. Back to text.
w Heb they. Back to text.
x Another reading is Ephrain. Back to te

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THE HOLY BIBLE

Revised Standard Version | Second Catholic Edition

TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL TONGUES

COMPARED WITH THE MOST ANCIENT AUTHORITIES

THE ORIGINAL CATHOLIC EDITION OF THE RSV TRANSLATION

THIS EDITION WAS REVISED ACCORDING TO

THE OLD TESTAMENT

Abbreviations in the Notes

Song of Solomon (Canticle of Canticles)

The Wisdom of Solomon (Wisdom)

The books of the Apocrypha and the Deuterocanonical Books of the

The Wisdom of Solomon

The Letter of Jeremiah

Bel and the Dragon

The Prayer of Manasseh

THE NEW TESTAMENT

Revelation of John (The Apocalypse)

Gk Septuagint Greek Version of Old Testament

Lat Latin Version of Tobit, Judith, and 2 Maccabees

Sam Samaritan Hebrew text of Old Testament

Syr Syriac Version of Old Testament

Vg Vulgate, Latin Version of Old Testament

Cn indicates a correction made where the text has suffered in transmission

TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK

THE ORIGINAL CATHOLIC EDITION OF THE RSV TRANSLATION

THIS EDITION WAS REVISED ACCORDING TO

evening and there was morning, one day.

and between your seed and her seed;

“I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing;

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife,

and you shall eat the plants of the field.

you shall eat bread

“A'dah and Zillah, hear my voice;

truly La'mech seventy-sevenfold.”

became the father of La'mech. 26Methu'selah lived after the birth of

Shem, Ham, and Ja'pheth.

“Blessed by the LORD my God be Shem; m

and let him dwell in the tents of Shem;

of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years; and he died.

Ja'pheth, children were born. 22The sons of Shem: E'lam, Asshur,

had other sons and daughters.

sons and daughters.

Na'hor, and Haran.

who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”

the Am'orites is not yet complete.”

the Per'izzites, the Reph'aim, 21the Am'orites, the Canaanites, the

Abimelech’s servants had seized, 26Abim'elech said, “I do not know who

possession for a burying place by the Hittites.

of what use is a birthright to me?” 33Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” t So he

and of the fatness of the earth,

and nations bow down to you.

and you shall serve your brother;

Pad'dan-ar'am to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he

that I may go to my own home and country. 26Give me my wives and my

and menservants, and camels and donkeys.

Shechem Defiles Dinah

father’s concubine; and Israel heard of it.

him also. 11Then Judah said to Ta'mar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a

Judah was comforted, he went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers, he and