David Spares Saul Again

26 ^(A)Then the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, saying, “Is not David hiding himself on the hill of Hachilah, which is on the east of Jeshimon?” ² So Saul arose and went down to ^(B)the wilderness of Ziph with ^(C)three thousand chosen men of Israel to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. ³ And Saul encamped on the hill of Hachilah, which is beside the road on the east of Jeshimon. But David remained in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness, ⁴ David sent out spies and learned that Saul had indeed come. ⁵ Then David rose and came to the place where Saul had encamped. And David saw the place where Saul lay, with ^(D)Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army. Saul was lying within ^(E)the encampment, while the army was encamped around him.

⁶ Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Joab's brother ^(F)Abishai the son of Zeruiah, ^(G)“Who will go down with me into the camp to Saul?” And Abishai said, “I will go down with you.” ⁷ So David and Abishai went to the army by night. And there lay Saul sleeping within ^(H)the encampment, with his spear stuck in the ground ^(I)at his head, and Abner and the army lay around him. ⁸ Then Abishai said to David, ^(J)“God has given your enemy into your hand this day. Now please let me pin him to the earth with one stroke of the spear, and I will not strike him twice.” ⁹ But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can put out his hand ^(K)against the Lord's anointed and be guiltless?” ¹⁰ And David said, ^(L)“As the Lord lives, ^(M)the Lord will strike him, or ^(N)his day will come to die, ^(O)or he will go down into battle and perish. ^11 (P)The Lord forbid that I should put out my hand against the Lord's anointed. But take now the spear that is ^(Q)at his head and the jar of water, and let us go.” ¹² So 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 ^(R)a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen upon them.

¹³ Then David went over to the other side and stood far off on the top of the hill, with a great space between them. ¹⁴ And David called to the army, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not answer, Abner?” Then Abner answered, “Who are you who calls to the king?” ¹⁵ And 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. ¹⁶ This thing that you have done is not good. ^(S)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 ^(T)at his head.”

¹⁷ Saul recognized David's voice and said, ^(U)“Is this your voice, my son David?” And David said, “It is my voice, my lord, O king.” ¹⁸ And he said, ^(V)“Why does my lord pursue after his servant? For what have I done? What evil is on my hands? ¹⁹ Now 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, ^(W)for they have driven me out this day that I should have no share in ^(X)the heritage of the Lord, saying, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ ²⁰ Now 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 ^(Y)a single flea like one who hunts a partridge in the mountains.”

²¹ Then Saul said, ^(Z)“I have sinned. 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 acted foolishly, and have made a great mistake.” ²² And David answered and said, “Here is the spear, O king! Let one of the young men come over and take it. ^23 (AA)The Lord rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness, for the Lord gave you into my hand today, and I would not put out my hand against the Lord's anointed. ²⁴ Behold, 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.” ²⁵ Then Saul said to David, “Blessed be you, my son David! You will do many things and will ^(AB)succeed in them.” So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place.

Principles for Marriage

7 Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: ^(A)“It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” ² But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. ^3 (B)The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. ⁴ For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. ^5 (C)Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, ^(D)so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

⁶ Now as a concession, ^(E)not a command, I say this.^{[a] 7 (F)}I wish that all were ^(G)as I myself am. But ^(H)each has his own gift from God, ^(I)one of one kind and one of another.

⁸ To the unmarried and the widows I say that ^(J)it is good for them to remain single, ^(K)as I am. ⁹ But if they cannot exercise self-control, ^(L)they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

¹⁰ To the married ^(M)I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): ^(N)the wife should not separate from her husband ¹¹ (but if she does, ^(O)she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and ^(P)the husband should not divorce his wife.

¹² To the rest I say (I, 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. ¹³ If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. ¹⁴ For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. ^(Q)Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. ¹⁵ But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you^{[b] (R)}to peace. ¹⁶ For how do you know, wife, ^(S)whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?

Live as You Are Called

¹⁷ Only let each person lead the life^{[c] (T)}that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. ^(U)This is my rule in ^(V)all the churches. ¹⁸ Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? ^(W)Let him not seek circumcision. ^19 (X)For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but ^(Y)keeping the commandments of God. ^20 (Z)Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. ²¹ Were you a bondservant^[d] when called? Do not be concerned about it. (But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.) ²² For he who was called in the Lord as a bondservant is ^(AA)a freedman of the Lord. Likewise he who was free when called is ^(AB)a bondservant of Christ. ^23 (AC)You were bought with a price; ^(AD)do not become bondservants of men. ²⁴ So, brothers,^{[e] (AE)}in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God.

The Unmarried and the Widowed

²⁵ Now concerning^[f] the betrothed,^{[g] (AF)}I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as ^(AG)one who by the Lord's mercy is ^(AH)trustworthy. ²⁶ I think that in view of the present^[h] distress ^(AI)it is good for a person to remain as he is. ²⁷ Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife. ²⁸ But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman^[i] marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. ²⁹ This is what I mean, brothers: ^(AJ)the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, ³⁰ and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy ^(AK)as though they had no goods, ³¹ and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For ^(AL)the present form of this world is passing away.

³² I want you to be ^(AM)free from anxieties. ^(AN)The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. ³³ But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, ³⁴ and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. ³⁵ I say this for your own benefit, ^(AO)not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.

³⁶ If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed,^[j] if his^[k] passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. ³⁷ But 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, he will do well. ³⁸ So then he who marries his betrothed ^(AP)does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.

^39 (AQ)A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only ^(AR)in the Lord. ⁴⁰ Yet ^(AS)in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think ^(AT)that I too have the Spirit of God.

Jerusalem Will Be Destroyed

5 “And you, ^(A)O son of man, take a ^(B)sharp sword. Use it as ^(C)a barber's razor and ^(D)pass it over your head and your beard. Then take balances for weighing and divide the hair. ^2 (E)A third part you shall burn in the fire ^(F)in the midst of the city, ^(G)when the days of the siege are completed. And a third part you shall take and strike with the sword all around the city. ^(H)And a third part you shall scatter to the wind, and ^(I)I will unsheathe the sword after them. ^3 (J)And you shall take from these a small number and bind them in the skirts of your robe. ^4 (K)And of these again you shall take some and cast them into the midst of the fire and burn them in the fire. From there a fire will come out into all the house of Israel.

⁵ “Thus says the Lord God: ^(L)This is Jerusalem. I have set her ^(M)in the center of the nations, with countries all around her. ⁶ And she has rebelled against my rules by doing wickedness ^(N)more than the nations, and against my statutes more than ^(O)the countries all around her; for they have rejected my rules and have not walked in my statutes. ⁷ Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you are ^(P)more turbulent than the nations that are all around you, ^(Q)and have not walked in my statutes or obeyed my rules, ^(R)and have not^[a] even acted according to the rules of the nations that are all around you, ⁸ therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, even I, ^(S)am against you. ^(T)And I will execute judgments^[b] in your midst ^(U)in the sight of the nations. ⁹ And because of all your abominations I will do with you ^(V)what I have never yet done, and the like of which I will never do again. ¹⁰ Therefore ^(W)fathers shall eat their sons in your midst, and sons shall eat their fathers. ^(X)And I will execute judgments on you, ^(Y)and any of you who survive I will scatter to all the winds. ¹¹ Therefore, ^(Z)as I live, declares the Lord God, surely, ^(AA)because you have defiled my sanctuary ^(AB)with all your detestable things and with all your ^(AC)abominations, ^(AD)therefore I will withdraw.^{[c] (AE)}My eye will not spare, and I will have no pity. ^12 (AF)A third part of you shall die of pestilence and be consumed with famine in your midst; ^(AG)a third part shall fall by the sword all around you; ^(AH)and a third part I will scatter to all the winds and will unsheathe the sword after them.

^13 (AI)“Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that ^(AJ)I am the Lord—that I have spoken in my jealousy—^(AK)when I spend my fury upon them. ¹⁴ Moreover, I will make you ^(AL)a desolation and ^(AM)an object of reproach among ^(AN)the nations all around you and in the sight of all who pass by. ¹⁵ You shall be^[d] a reproach and a taunt, a warning ^(AO)and a horror, to ^(AP)the nations all around you, ^(AQ)when I execute judgments on you in anger and fury, and ^(AR)with furious rebukes—I am the Lord; I have spoken— ¹⁶ when I send against you^{[e] (AS)}the deadly arrows of famine, arrows for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, and when I bring more and more famine upon ^(AT)you and break your supply^[f] of bread. ¹⁷ I will send famine and ^(AU)wild beasts against you, ^(AV)and they will rob you of your children. Pestilence and ^(AW)blood shall pass through you, and I will bring the sword upon you. I am the Lord; I have spoken.”

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

6 After this ^(A)Jesus went away to the other side of ^(B)the Sea of Galilee, which is ^(C)the Sea of Tiberias. ² And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. ³ Jesus went up on ^(D)the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. ⁴ Now ^(E)the Passover, the ^(F)feast of the Jews, was at hand. ^5 (G)Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to ^(H)Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” ⁶ He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. ^7 (I)Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii^[a] worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” ⁸ One of his disciples, ^(J)Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, ⁹ “There is a boy here who has five ^(K)barley loaves and two fish, but ^(L)what are they for so many?” ¹⁰ Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” ^(M)Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. ¹¹ Jesus then took the loaves, and ^(N)when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. ¹² And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” ¹³ So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. ¹⁴ When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, ^(O)“This is indeed ^(P)the Prophet ^(Q)who is to come into the world!”

^15 (R)Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus ^(S)withdrew again to ^(T)the mountain by himself.

Jesus Walks on Water

¹⁶ When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷ got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸ The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. ¹⁹ When they had rowed about three or four miles,^[b] they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. ^20 (U)But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” ²¹ Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

I Am the Bread of Life

²² On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only ^(V)one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. ²³ Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord ^(W)had given thanks. ^24 (X)So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and ^(Y)went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, ^(Z)“Rabbi, when did you come here?” ²⁶ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(AA)you are seeking me, not because you saw ^(AB)signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. ^27 (AC)Do not work for the food that perishes, but for ^(AD)the food that endures to eternal life, which ^(AE)the Son of Man will give to you. For on ^(AF)him God the Father has ^(AG)set his seal.” ²⁸ Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing ^(AH)the works of God?” ²⁹ Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, ^(AI)that you believe in him whom ^(AJ)he has sent.” ³⁰ So they said to him, ^(AK)“Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? ^31 (AL)Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ^(AM)‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” ³² Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is ^(AN)he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” ³⁴ They said to him, ^(AO)“Sir, give us this bread always.”

³⁵ Jesus said to them, ^(AP)“I am the bread of life; ^(AQ)whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. ³⁶ But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. ^37 (AR)All that ^(AS)the Father gives me will come to me, and ^(AT)whoever comes to me I will never cast out. ³⁸ For ^(AU)I have come down from heaven, not to do ^(AV)my own will but ^(AW)the will of him ^(AX)who sent me. ³⁹ And ^(AY)this is the will of him who sent me, ^(AZ)that I should lose nothing of ^(BA)all that he has given me, but ^(BB)raise it up on the last day. ⁴⁰ For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who ^(BC)looks on the Son and ^(BD)believes in him ^(BE)should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

⁴¹ So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, ^(BF)“I am the bread that came down from heaven.” ⁴² They said, ^(BG)“Is not this Jesus, ^(BH)the son of Joseph, whose father and mother ^(BI)we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” ⁴³ Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. ⁴⁴ No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me ^(BJ)draws him. And ^(BK)I will raise him up on the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the Prophets, ^(BL)‘And they will all be ^(BM)taught by God.’ ^(BN)Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— ^46 (BO)not that anyone has seen the Father except ^(BP)he who is from God; he ^(BQ)has seen the Father. ⁴⁷ Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(BR)whoever believes has eternal life. ^48 (BS)I am the bread of life. ^49 (BT)Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and ^(BU)they died. ^50 (BV)This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it ^(BW)and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread ^(BX)that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give ^(BY)for the life of the world is ^(BZ)my flesh.”

⁵² The Jews then ^(CA)disputed among themselves, saying, ^(CB)“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” ⁵³ So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of ^(CC)the Son of Man and drink his blood, you ^(CD)have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood ^(CE)has eternal life, and ^(CF)I will raise him up on the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood ^(CG)abides in me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ As ^(CH)the living Father ^(CI)sent me, and ^(CJ)I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. ^58 (CK)This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread^[c] the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” ⁵⁹ Jesus^[d] said these things in the synagogue, as he taught ^(CL)at Capernaum.

The Words of Eternal Life

^60 (CM)When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” ⁶¹ But Jesus, ^(CN)knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? ⁶² Then what if you were to see ^(CO)the Son of Man ^(CP)ascending to ^(CQ)where he was before? ^63 (CR)It is the Spirit who gives life; ^(CS)the flesh is no help at all. ^(CT)The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. ⁶⁴ But ^(CU)there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus ^(CV)knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and ^(CW)who it was who would betray him.) ⁶⁵ And he said, “This is why I told you ^(CX)that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

^66 (CY)After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. ⁶⁷ So Jesus said to ^(CZ)the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” ⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have ^(DA)the words of eternal life, ⁶⁹ and ^(DB)we have believed, and have come to know, that ^(DC)you are ^(DD)the Holy One of God.” ⁷⁰ Jesus answered them, ^(DE)“Did I not choose you, ^(DF)the twelve? And yet one of you is ^(DG)a devil.” ⁷¹ He spoke of Judas ^(DH)the son of Simon Iscariot, for ^(DI)he, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.