Pharaoh as a Felled Cedar of Lebanon

31 In the eleventh year,^(A) in the third month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me:^{(B) 2} “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes:

¹⁰ “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because the great cedar towered over the thick foliage, and because it was proud^(A) of its height, ¹¹ I gave it into the hands of the ruler of the nations, for him to deal with according to its wickedness. I cast it aside,^{(B) 12} and the most ruthless of foreign nations^(C) cut it down and left it. Its boughs fell on the mountains and in all the valleys;^(D) its branches lay broken in all the ravines of the land. All the nations of the earth came out from under its shade and left it.^{(E) 13} All the birds settled on the fallen tree, and all the wild animals lived among its branches.^{(F) 14} Therefore no other trees by the waters are ever to tower proudly on high, lifting their tops above the thick foliage. No other trees so well-watered are ever to reach such a height; they are all destined^(G) for death,^(H) for the earth below, among mortals who go down to the realm of the dead.^(I)

Psalm 92^[a]

A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day.

Awaiting the New Body

5 For we know that if the earthly^(A) tent^(B) we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. ² Meanwhile we groan,^(C) longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling,^{(D) 3} because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. ⁴ For while we are in this tent, we groan^(E) and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling,^(F) so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.^(G)

⁶ Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. ⁷ For we live by faith, not by sight.^{(H) 8} We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.^{(I) 9} So we make it our goal to please him,^(J) whether we are at home in the body or away from it. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us^(K) for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

The Parable of the Growing Seed

²⁶ He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like.^(A) A man scatters seed on the ground. ²⁷ Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. ²⁸ All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. ²⁹ As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”^(B)

The Parable of the Mustard Seed^(C)

³⁰ Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like,^(D) or what parable shall we use to describe it? ³¹ It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. ³² Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

³³ With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand.^{(E) 34} He did not say anything to them without using a parable.^(F) But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.