Staff & Leadership

¹Does not wisdom call,

And understanding lift up her voice?

²On top of the heights beside the way,

Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;

³Beside the gates, at the opening to the city,

At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:

⁴“To you, O men, I call,

And my voice is to the sons of men.

⁵“O naive ones, understand prudence;

And, O fools, understand wisdom.

⁶“Listen, for I will speak noble things;

And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.

⁷“For my mouth will utter truth;

And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

⁸“All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness;

There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.

⁹“They are all straightforward to him who understands,

And right to those who find knowledge.

¹⁰“Take my instruction and not silver,

And knowledge rather than choicest gold.

¹¹“For wisdom is better than jewels;

And all desirable things cannot compare with her.

¹²“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,

And I find knowledge and discretion.

¹³“The fear of the LORD is to hate evil;

Pride and arrogance and the evil way

And the perverted mouth, I hate.

¹⁴“Counsel is mine and sound wisdom;

I am understanding, power is mine.

¹⁵“By me kings reign,

And rulers decree justice.

¹⁶“By me princes rule, and nobles,

All who judge rightly.

¹⁷“I love those who love me;

And those who diligently seek me will find me.

¹⁸“Riches and honor are with me,

Enduring wealth and righteousness.

¹⁹“My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold,

And my yield better than choicest silver.

²⁰“I walk in the way of righteousness,

In the midst of the paths of justice,

²¹To endow those who love me with wealth,

That I may fill their treasuries.

²²“The LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way,

Before His works of old.

²³“From everlasting I was established,

From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.

²⁴“When there were no depths I was brought forth,

When there were no springs abounding with water.

²⁵“Before the mountains were settled,

Before the hills I was brought forth;

²⁶While He had not yet made the earth and the fields,

Nor the first dust of the world.

²⁷“When He established the heavens, I was there,

When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,

²⁸When He made firm the skies above,

When the springs of the deep became fixed,

²⁹When He set for the sea its boundary

So that the water would not transgress His command,

When He marked out the foundations of the earth;

³⁰Then I was beside Him, as a master workman;

And I was daily His delight,

Rejoicing always before Him,

³¹Rejoicing in the world, His earth,

And having my delight in the sons of men.

¹O LORD, our Lord,

How majestic is Your name in all the earth,

Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens!

²From the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established strength

Because of Your adversaries,

To make the enemy and the revengeful cease.

³When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,

The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;

⁴What is man that You take thought of him,

And the son of man that You care for him?

⁵Yet You have made him a little lower than God,

And You crown him with glory and majesty!

⁶You make him to rule 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 heavens and the fish of the sea,

Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

⁹O LORD, our Lord,

How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

Results of Justification

¹Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,²through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.³And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;⁴and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;⁵and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

¹²“I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.¹³“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.¹⁴“He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.¹⁵“All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.

Jesus’ Death and Resurrection Foretold

¹“I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me;

I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me.

I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’

To a nation which did not call on My name.

²“I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people,

Who walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts,

³A people who continually provoke Me to My face,

Offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on bricks;

⁴Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places;

Who eat swine’s flesh,

And the broth of unclean meat is in their pots.

⁵“Who say, ‘Keep to yourself, do not come near me,

For I am holier than you!’

These are smoke in My nostrils,

A fire that burns all the day.

⁶“Behold, it is written before Me,

I will not keep silent, but I will repay;

I will even repay into their bosom,

⁷Both their own iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers together,” says the LORD.

“Because they have burned incense on the mountains

And scorned Me on the hills,

Therefore I will measure their former work into their bosom.”

⁸Thus says the LORD,

“As the new wine is found in the cluster,

And one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for there is benefit in it,’

So I will act on behalf of My servants

In order not to destroy all of them.

⁹“I will bring forth offspring from Jacob,

And an heir of My mountains from Judah;

Even My chosen ones shall inherit it,

And My servants will dwell there.

¹⁹But You, O LORD, be not far off;

O You my help, hasten to my assistance.

²⁰Deliver my soul from the sword,

My only life from the power of the dog.

²¹Save me from the lion’s mouth;

From the horns of the wild oxen You answer me.

²²I will tell of Your name to my brethren;

In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.

²³You who fear the LORD, praise Him;

All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,

And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.

²⁴For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;

Nor has He hidden His face from him;

But when he cried to Him for help, He heard.

²⁵From You comes my praise in the great assembly;

I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him.

²⁶The afflicted will eat and be satisfied;

Those who seek Him will praise the LORD.

Let your heart live forever!

²⁷All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD,

And all the families of the nations will worship before You.

²⁸For the kingdom is the LORD’S

And He rules over the nations.

²³But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed.²⁴Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.²⁵But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.²⁶For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.²⁷For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.²⁸There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.²⁹And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

²⁶Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.²⁷And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs.²⁸Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, 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 it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.³⁰And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him.³¹They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss.

³²Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission.³³And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and out in the country.³⁵The people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened.³⁶Those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well.³⁷And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat and returned.³⁸But the man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him that he might accompany Him; but He sent him away, saying,³⁹“Return to your house and describe what great things God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

Miracles of Healing

¹Preserve me, O God, for I take refuge in You.

²I said to the LORD, “You are my Lord;

I have no good besides You.”

³As for the saints who are in the earth,

They are the majestic ones in whom is all my delight.

⁴The sorrows of those who have bartered for another god will be multiplied;

I shall not pour out their drink offerings of blood,

Nor will I take their names upon my lips.

⁵The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;

You support my lot.

⁶The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;

Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.

⁷I will bless the LORD who has counseled me;

Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night.

⁸I have set the LORD continually before me;

Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

⁹Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;

My flesh also will dwell securely.

¹⁰For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;

Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.

¹¹You will make known to me the path of life;

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

¹³For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.¹⁴For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”¹⁵But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.

¹⁶But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.¹⁷For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.¹⁸But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.¹⁹Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,²⁰idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,²¹envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will 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 things there is no law.²⁴Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

²⁵If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

⁵¹When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem;⁵²and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the Samaritans to make arrangements for Him.⁵³But they did not receive Him, because He was traveling toward Jerusalem.⁵⁴When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”⁵⁵But He turned and rebuked them, [and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of;⁵⁶for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.

Exacting Discipleship

⁵⁷As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.”⁵⁸And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”⁵⁹And He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.”⁶⁰But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.”⁶¹Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.”⁶²But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

¹⁰“Be joyful with Jerusalem and rejoice for her, all you who love her;

Be exceedingly glad with her, all you who mourn over her,

¹¹That you may nurse and be satisfied with her comforting breasts,

That you may suck and be delighted with her bountiful bosom.”

¹²For thus says the LORD, “Behold, I extend peace to her like a river,

And the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;

And you will be nursed, you will be carried on the hip and fondled on the knees.

¹³“As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you;

And you will be comforted in Jerusalem.”

¹⁴Then you will see this, and your heart will be glad,

And your bones will flourish like the new grass;

And the hand of the LORD will be made known to His servants,

But He will be indignant toward His enemies.

¹Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;

²Sing the glory of His name;

Make His praise glorious.

³Say to God, “How awesome are Your works!

Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will give feigned obedience to You.

⁴“All the earth will worship You,

And will sing praises to You;

They will sing praises to Your name.”

Selah.

⁵Come and see the works of God,

Who is awesome in His deeds toward the sons of men.

⁶He turned the sea into dry land;

They passed through the river on foot;

There let us rejoice in Him!

⁷He rules by His might forever;

His eyes keep watch on the nations;

Let not the rebellious exalt themselves.

Selah.

⁸Bless our God, O peoples,

And sound His praise abroad,

⁹Who keeps us in life

And does not allow our feet to slip.

Bear One Another’s Burdens

¹Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.²Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.³For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.⁴But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.⁵For each one will bear his own load.

⁶The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.⁷Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.⁸For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.⁹Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.¹⁰So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.

¹¹See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.¹²Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.¹³For those who are circumcised do not even keep the Law themselves, but they desire to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh.¹⁴But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.¹⁵For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.¹⁶And those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.

The Seventy Sent Out

¹Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come.²And He was saying to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.³“Go; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.⁴“Carry no money belt, no bag, no shoes; and greet no one on the way.⁵“Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house.’⁶“If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.⁷“Stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house.⁸“Whatever city you enter and they receive you, eat what is set before you;⁹and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’¹⁰“But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say,¹¹‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’¹²“I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city.

¹³“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.¹⁴“But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you.¹⁵“And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be brought down to Hades!

¹⁶“The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

The Happy Results

¹⁷The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”¹⁸And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.¹⁹“Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you.²⁰“Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”

⁹“Then the LORD your God will prosper you abundantly in all the work of your hand, in the offspring of your body and in the offspring of your cattle and in the produce of your ground, for the LORD will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers;¹⁰if you obey 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 soul.

¹¹“For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach.¹²“It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’¹³“Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?’¹⁴“But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.

Choose Life

¹To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.

²O my God, in You I trust,

Do not let me be ashamed;

Do not let my enemies exult over me.

³Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed;

Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed.

⁴Make me 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.

⁶Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and Your lovingkindnesses,

For they have been from of old.

⁷Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;

According to Your lovingkindness 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 justice,

And He teaches the humble His way.

¹⁰All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth

To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

Thankfulness for Spiritual Attainments

¹Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

²To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

³We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,⁴since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints;⁵because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel⁶which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth;⁷just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf,⁸and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.

⁹For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,¹⁰so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;¹¹strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.

The Incomparable Christ

¹³For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

²⁵And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”²⁶And He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How does it read to you?”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 correctly; DO THIS AND YOU WILL LIVE.”²⁹But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

The Good Samaritan

³⁰Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead.³¹“And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.³²“Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.³³“But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion,³⁴and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him.³⁵“On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’³⁶“Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?”³⁷And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.”

Martha and Mary

Birth of Isaac Promised

¹Now the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day.²When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth,³and said, “My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by.⁴“Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree;⁵and I will bring a piece of bread, that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have visited your servant.” And they said, “So do, as you have said.”⁶So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah, and said, “Quickly, prepare three measures of fine flour, knead it and make bread cakes.”⁷Abraham also ran to the herd, and took a tender and choice calf and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it.⁸He took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and placed it before them; and he was standing by them under the tree as they ate.

⁹Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “There, in the tent.”¹⁰He said, “I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him.

¹O LORD, who may abide in Your tent?

Who may dwell on Your holy hill?

²He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness,

And speaks truth in his heart.

³He does not slander with his tongue,

Nor does evil to his neighbor,

Nor takes up a reproach against his friend;

⁴In whose eyes a reprobate is despised,

But who honors those who fear the LORD;

He swears to his own hurt and does not change;

⁵He does not put out his money at interest,

Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.

He who does these things will never be shaken.

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.¹⁶For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.¹⁷He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.¹⁸He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.¹⁹For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,²⁰and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

²¹And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds,²²yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—²³if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

²⁴Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body, which is the church, in filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.²⁵Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God,²⁶that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints,²⁷to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.²⁸We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.

³⁸Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.³⁹She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word.⁴⁰But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.”⁴¹But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things;⁴²but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

²⁰And the LORD said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.²¹“I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”

²²Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the LORD.²³Abraham came near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?²⁴“Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it?²⁵“Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?”²⁶So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.”²⁷And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes.²⁸“Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”²⁹He spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty.”³⁰Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”³¹And he said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.”³²Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.”

¹I will give You thanks with all my heart;

I will sing praises to You before the gods.

²I will bow down toward Your holy temple

And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth;

For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.

³On the day I called, You answered me;

You made me bold with strength in my soul.

⁴All the kings of the earth will give thanks to You, O LORD,

When they have heard the words of Your mouth.

⁵And they will sing of the ways of the LORD,

For great is the glory of the LORD.

⁶For though the LORD is exalted,

Yet He regards the lowly,

But the haughty He knows from afar.

⁷Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me;

You will stretch forth Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,

And Your right hand will save me.

⁸The LORD will accomplish what concerns me;

Your lovingkindness, O LORD, is everlasting;

Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

⁶Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,⁷having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.

⁸See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.⁹For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,¹⁰and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority;¹¹and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;¹²having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.¹³When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,¹⁴having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.¹⁵When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.

¹⁶Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day—¹⁷things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.¹⁸Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind,¹⁹and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.

Instruction about Prayer

¹It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples.”²And He said to them, “When you pray, say:

‘Father, hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come.

³‘Give us each day our daily bread.

⁴‘And forgive us our sins,

For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

And lead us not into temptation.’”

⁵Then He said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves;⁶for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’;⁷and from inside he answers and says, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’⁸“I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

⁹“So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.¹⁰“For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened.¹¹“Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he?¹²“Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he?¹³“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

Pharisees’ Blasphemy

²“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher,

“Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.”

³What advantage does man have in all his work

Which he does under the sun?

⁴A generation goes and a generation comes,

But the earth remains forever.

⁵Also, the sun rises and the sun sets;

And hastening to its place it rises there again.

⁶Blowing toward the south,

Then turning toward the north,

The wind continues swirling along;

And on its circular courses the wind returns.

⁷All the rivers flow into the sea,

Yet the sea is not full.

To the place where the rivers flow,

There they flow again.

⁸All things are wearisome;

Man is not able to tell it.

The eye is not satisfied with seeing,

Nor is the ear filled with hearing.

⁹That which has been is that which will be,

And that which has been done is that which will be done.

So there is nothing new under the sun.

¹⁰Is there anything of which one might say,

“See this, it is new”?

Already it has existed for ages

Which were before us.

¹¹There is no remembrance of earlier things;

And also of the later things which will occur,

There will be for them no remembrance

Among those who will come later still.

The Futility of Wisdom

¹²I, the Preacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem.¹³And I set my mind to seek and explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. It is a grievous task which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.¹⁴I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind.

¹Hear this, all peoples;

Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,

²Both low and high,

Rich and poor together.

³My mouth will speak wisdom,

And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.

⁴I will incline my ear to a proverb;

I will express my riddle on the harp.

⁵Why should I fear in days of adversity,

When the iniquity of my foes surrounds me,

⁶Even those who trust in their wealth

And boast in the abundance of their riches?

⁷No man can by any means redeem his brother

Or give to God a ransom for him—

⁸For the redemption of his soul is costly,

And he should cease trying forever—

⁹That he should live on eternally,

That he should not undergo decay.

¹⁰For he sees that even wise men die;

The stupid and the senseless alike perish

And leave their wealth to others.

¹¹Their inner thought is that their houses are forever

And their dwelling places to all generations;

They have called their lands after their own names.

¹²But man in his pomp will not endure;

He is like the beasts that perish.

Put On the New Self

¹Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.²Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.³For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.⁴When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

⁵Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.⁶For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience,⁷and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.⁸But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth.⁹Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,¹⁰and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him—¹¹a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.

¹³Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”¹⁴But He said to him, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?”¹⁵Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”¹⁶And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive.¹⁷“And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’¹⁸“Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.¹⁹‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”’²⁰“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’²¹“So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Abram Promised a Son

¹After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying,

“Do not fear, Abram,

I am a shield to you;

Your reward shall be very great.”

²Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”³And Abram said, “Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.”⁴Then behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir.”⁵And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”⁶Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.

¹²Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,

The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.

¹³The LORD looks from heaven;

He sees all the sons of men;

¹⁴From His dwelling place He looks out

On all the inhabitants of the earth,

¹⁵He who fashions the hearts of them all,

He who understands all their works.

¹⁶The king is not saved by a mighty army;

A warrior is not delivered by great strength.

¹⁷A horse is a false hope for victory;

Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.

¹⁸Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,

On those who hope for His lovingkindness,

¹⁹To deliver their soul from death

And to keep them alive in famine.

²⁰Our soul waits for the LORD;

He is our help and our shield.

²¹For our heart rejoices in Him,

Because we trust in His holy name.

²²Let Your lovingkindness, O LORD, be upon us,

According as we have hoped in You.

The Triumphs of Faith

¹Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.²For by it the men of old gained approval.

³By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.⁴By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.⁵By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; AND HE WAS NOT FOUND BECAUSE GOD TOOK HIM UP; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God.⁶And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.⁷By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

⁸By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.⁹By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise;¹⁰for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.¹¹By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised.¹²Therefore there was born even of one man, and him as good as dead at that, as many descendantsAS THE STARS OF HEAVEN IN NUMBER, AND INNUMERABLE AS THE SAND WHICH IS BY THE SEASHORE.

¹³All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.¹⁴For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own.¹⁵And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went 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 a city for them.

³²“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.

³³“Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys.³⁴“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Be in Readiness

³⁵“Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit.³⁶“Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks.³⁷“Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.³⁸“Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

³⁹“But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into.⁴⁰“You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”

²³“Am I a God who is near,” declares the LORD,

“And not a God far off?

²⁴“Can a man hide himself in hiding places

So I do not see him?” declares the LORD.

“Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the LORD.

²⁵“I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy falsely in My name, saying, ‘I had a dream, I had a dream!’²⁶“How long? Is there anything in the hearts of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, even these prophets of the deception of their own heart,²⁷who intend to make My people forget My name by their dreams which they relate to one another, just as their fathers forgot My name because of Baal?²⁸“The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD.²⁹“Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?

¹God takes His stand in His own congregation;

He judges in the midst of the rulers.

²How long will you judge unjustly

And show partiality to the wicked?

Selah.

³Vindicate the weak and fatherless;

Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.

⁴Rescue the weak and needy;

Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.

⁵They do not know nor do they understand;

They walk about in darkness;

All the foundations of the earth are shaken.

⁶I said, “You are gods,

And all of you are sons of the Most High.

⁷“Nevertheless you will die like men

And fall like any one of the princes.”

⁸Arise, O God, judge the earth!

For it is You who possesses all the nations.

²⁹By faith they passed through the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, 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 along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.

³²And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,³³who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions,³⁴quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.³⁵Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection;³⁶and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment.³⁷They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated³⁸(men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.

³⁹And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised,⁴⁰because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect.

Jesus, the Example

¹Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,²fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

⁴⁹“I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled!⁵⁰“But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished!⁵¹“Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division;⁵²for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three.⁵³“They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

⁵⁴And He was also saying to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming,’ and so it turns out.⁵⁵“And when you see a south wind blowing, you say, ‘It will be a hot day,’ and it turns out that way.⁵⁶“You hypocrites! You know how to analyze the appearance of the earth and the sky, but why do you not analyze this present time?

⁹“Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;

You will cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’

If you remove the yoke from your midst,

The pointing of the finger and speaking wickedness,

¹⁰And if you give yourself to the hungry

And satisfy the desire of the afflicted,

Then your light will rise in darkness

And your gloom will become like midday.

¹¹“And the LORD will continually guide you,

And satisfy your desire in scorched places,

And give strength to your bones;

And you will be like a watered garden,

And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.

¹²“Those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins;

You will raise up the age-old foundations;

And you will be called the repairer of the breach,

The restorer of the streets in which to dwell.

Keeping the Sabbath

¹³“If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot

From doing your own pleasure on My holy day,

And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable,

And honor it, desisting from your own ways,

From seeking your own pleasure

And speaking your own word,

¹⁴Then you will take delight in the LORD,

And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;

And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,

For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

¹Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And all that is within me, bless His holy name.

²Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And forget none of His benefits;

³Who pardons all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases;

⁴Who redeems your life from the pit,

Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;

⁵Who satisfies your years with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.

⁶The LORD performs righteous deeds

And judgments for all who are oppressed.

⁷He made known His ways to Moses,

His acts to the sons of Israel.

⁸The LORD is compassionate and gracious,

Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.

¹⁸For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind,¹⁹and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.²⁰For they could not bear the command, “IF EVEN A BEAST TOUCHES THE MOUNTAIN, IT WILL BE STONED.”²¹And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, “I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling.”²²But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels,²³to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,²⁴and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.

The Unshaken Kingdom

²⁵See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven.²⁶And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.”²⁷This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.²⁸Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe;²⁹for our God is a consuming fire.

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

¹It happened that when He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread, they were watching Him closely.²And there in front of Him was a man suffering from dropsy.³And Jesus answered and spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”⁴But they kept silent. And He took hold of him and healed him, and sent him away.⁵And He said to them, “Which one of you will have a son or an ox fall into a well, and will not immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?”⁶And they could make no reply to this.

Parable of the Guests

⁷And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them,⁸“When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him,⁹and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place.¹⁰“But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you.¹¹“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹²And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment.¹³“But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,¹⁴and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”