The Plague on Livestock

9 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: “Let my people go, so that they may worship^(A) me.” ² If you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, ³ the hand^(B) of the Lord will bring a terrible plague^(C) on your livestock in the field—on your horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats. ⁴ But the Lord will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt,^(D) so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will die.’”

⁵ The Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the land.” ⁶ And the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock^(E) of the Egyptians died,^(F) but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. ⁷ Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart^(G) was unyielding and he would not let the people go.^(H)

The Plague of Boils

⁸ Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. ⁹ It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils^(I) will break out on people and animals throughout the land.”

¹⁰ So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on people and animals. ¹¹ The magicians^(J) could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians. ¹² But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart^(K) and he would not listen^(L) to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses.

Saul and the Medium at Endor

³ Now Samuel was dead,^(A) and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in his own town of Ramah.^(B) Saul had expelled^(C) the mediums and spiritists^(D) from the land.

⁴ The Philistines assembled and came and set up camp at Shunem,^(E) while Saul gathered all Israel and set up camp at Gilboa.^{(F) 5} When Saul saw the Philistine army, he was afraid; terror^(G) filled his heart. ⁶ He inquired^(H) of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him by dreams^(I) or Urim^(J) or prophets.^{(K) 7} Saul then said to his attendants, “Find me a woman who is a medium,^(L) so I may go and inquire of her.”

“There is one in Endor,^(M)” they said.

⁸ So Saul disguised^(N) himself, putting on other clothes, and at night he and two men went to the woman. “Consult^(O) a spirit for me,” he said, “and bring up for me the one I name.”

⁹ But the woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done. He has cut off^(P) the mediums and spiritists from the land. Why have you set a trap^(Q) for my life to bring about my death?”

¹⁰ Saul swore to her by the Lord, “As surely as the Lord lives, you will not be punished for this.”

¹¹ Then the woman asked, “Whom shall I bring up for you?”

“Bring up Samuel,” he said.

¹² When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice and said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me?^(R) You are Saul!”

¹³ The king said to her, “Don’t be afraid. What do you see?”

The woman said, “I see a ghostly figure^[a] coming up out of the earth.”^(S)

¹⁴ “What does he look like?” he asked.

“An old man wearing a robe^(T) is coming up,” she said.

Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.

¹⁵ Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?”

“I am in great distress,” Saul said. “The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has departed^(U) from me. He no longer answers^(V) me, either by prophets or by dreams.^(W) So I have called on you to tell me what to do.”

¹⁶ Samuel said, “Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? ¹⁷ The Lord has done what he predicted through me. The Lord has torn^(X) the kingdom out of your hands and given it to one of your neighbors—to David. ¹⁸ Because you did not obey^(Y) the Lord or carry out his fierce wrath^(Z) against the Amalekites,^(AA) the Lord has done this to you today. ¹⁹ The Lord will deliver both Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons^(AB) will be with me. The Lord will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.”

²⁰ Immediately Saul fell full length on the ground, filled with fear because of Samuel’s words. His strength was gone, for he had eaten nothing all that day and all that night.

²¹ When the woman came to Saul and saw that he was greatly shaken, she said, “Look, your servant has obeyed you. I took my life^(AC) in my hands and did what you told me to do. ²² Now please listen to your servant and let me give you some food so you may eat and have the strength to go on your way.”

²³ He refused^(AD) and said, “I will not eat.”

But his men joined the woman in urging him, and he listened to them. He got up from the ground and sat on the couch.

²⁴ The woman had a fattened calf^(AE) at the house, which she butchered at once. She took some flour, kneaded it and baked bread without yeast. ²⁵ Then she set it before Saul and his men, and they ate. That same night they got up and left.

Drought, Famine, Sword

14 This is the word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:^(A)

¹⁰ This is what the Lord says about this people:

¹¹ Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray^(X) for the well-being of this people. ¹² Although they fast, I will not listen to their cry;^(Y) though they offer burnt offerings^(Z) and grain offerings,^(AA) I will not accept^(AB) them. Instead, I will destroy them with the sword,^(AC) famine^(AD) and plague.”^(AE)

Psalm 28

Of David.

Jesus Calls Levi and Eats With Sinners^(A)

¹³ Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him,^(B) and he began to teach them. ¹⁴ As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,”^(C) Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

¹⁵ While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. ¹⁶ When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees^(D) saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”^(E)

¹⁷ On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”^(F)

Jesus Questioned About Fasting^(G)

¹⁸ Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting.^(H) Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”

¹⁹ Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. ²⁰ But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them,^(I) and on that day they will fast.

²¹ “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. ²² And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath^(J)(K)

²³ One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain.^{(L) 24} The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”^(M)

²⁵ He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? ²⁶ In the days of Abiathar the high priest,^(N) he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat.^(O) And he also gave some to his companions.”^(P)

²⁷ Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man,^(Q) not man for the Sabbath.^{(R) 28} So the Son of Man^(S) is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

¹² But these people blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like unreasoning animals, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like animals they too will perish.^(A)

¹³ They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight.^(B) They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you.^{[a](C) 14} With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce^(D) the unstable;^(E) they are experts in greed^(F)—an accursed brood!^{(G) 15} They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam^(H) son of Bezer,^[b] who loved the wages of wickedness. ¹⁶ But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.^(I)

¹⁷ These people are springs without water^(J) and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.^{(K) 18} For they mouth empty, boastful words^(L) and, by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh, they entice people who are just escaping^(M) from those who live in error. ¹⁹ They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”^{(N) 20} If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing^(O) our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ^(P) and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.^{(Q) 21} It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.^{(R) 22} Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,”^[c](S) and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.”