³⁸ “When a man or woman has white spots on the skin, ³⁹ the priest is to examine them, and if the spots are dull white, it is a harmless rash that has broken out on the skin; they are clean.

⁴⁰ “A man who has lost his hair and is bald^(A) is clean. ⁴¹ If he has lost his hair from the front of his scalp and has a bald forehead, he is clean. ⁴² But if he has a reddish-white sore on his bald head or forehead, it is a defiling disease breaking out on his head or forehead. ⁴³ The priest is to examine him, and if the swollen sore on his head or forehead is reddish-white like a defiling skin disease, ⁴⁴ the man is diseased and is unclean. The priest shall pronounce him unclean because of the sore on his head.

⁴⁵ “Anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes,^(B) let their hair be unkempt,^[a] cover the lower part of their face^(C) and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’^{(D) 46} As long as they have the disease they remain unclean. They must live alone; they must live outside the camp.^(E)

Elijah Taken Up to Heaven

2 When the Lord was about to take^(A) Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind,^(B) Elijah and Elisha^(C) were on their way from Gilgal.^{(D) 2} Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here;^(E) the Lord has sent me to Bethel.”

But Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.”^(F) So they went down to Bethel.

³ The company^(G) of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?”

“Yes, I know,” Elisha replied, “so be quiet.”

⁴ Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha; the Lord has sent me to Jericho.^(H)”

And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went to Jericho.

⁵ The company^(I) of the prophets at Jericho went up to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?”

“Yes, I know,” he replied, “so be quiet.”

⁶ Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here;^(J) the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.”^(K)

And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.”^(L) So the two of them walked on.

⁷ Fifty men from the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. ⁸ Elijah took his cloak,^(M) rolled it up and struck^(N) the water with it. The water divided^(O) to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry^(P) ground.

⁹ When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?”

“Let me inherit a double^(Q) portion of your spirit,”^(R) Elisha replied.

¹⁰ “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.”

¹¹ As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire^(S) and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven^(T) in a whirlwind.^{(U) 12} Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots^(V) and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore^(W) it in two.

God’s Razor of Judgment

5 “Now, son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber’s razor^(A) to shave^(B) your head and your beard.^(C) Then take a set of scales and divide up the hair. ² When the days of your siege come to an end, burn^(D) a third^(E) of the hair inside the city. Take a third and strike it with the sword all around the city. And scatter a third to the wind.^(F) For I will pursue them with drawn sword.^{(G) 3} But take a few hairs and tuck them away in the folds of your garment.^{(H) 4} Again, take a few of these and throw them into the fire^(I) and burn them up. A fire will spread from there to all Israel.

⁵ “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: This is Jerusalem, which I have set in the center of the nations, with countries all around her.^{(J) 6} Yet in her wickedness she has rebelled against my laws and decrees more than the nations and countries around her. She has rejected my laws and has not followed my decrees.^(K)

⁷ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: You have been more unruly than the nations around you and have not followed my decrees or kept my laws. You have not even^[a] conformed to the standards of the nations around you.^(L)

⁸ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself am against you, Jerusalem, and I will inflict punishment on you in the sight of the nations.^{(M) 9} Because of all your detestable idols, I will do to you what I have never done before and will never do again.^{(N) 10} Therefore in your midst parents will eat their children, and children will eat their parents.^(O) I will inflict punishment on you and will scatter all your survivors to the winds.^{(P) 11} Therefore as surely as I live,^(Q) declares the Sovereign^(R) Lord, because you have defiled my sanctuary^(S) with all your vile images^(T) and detestable practices,^(U) I myself will shave you; I will not look on you with pity or spare you.^{(V) 12} A third of your people will die of the plague or perish by famine inside you; a third will fall by the sword outside your walls; and a third I will scatter to the winds^(W) and pursue with drawn sword.^(X)

¹³ “Then my anger will cease and my wrath^(Y) against them will subside, and I will be avenged.^(Z) And when I have spent my wrath on them, they will know that I the Lord have spoken in my zeal.^(AA)

¹⁴ “I will make you a ruin and a reproach among the nations around you, in the sight of all who pass by.^{(AB) 15} You will be a reproach^(AC) and a taunt, a warning^(AD) and an object of horror to the nations around you when I inflict punishment on you in anger and in wrath and with stinging rebuke.^(AE) I the Lord have spoken.^{(AF) 16} When I shoot at you with my deadly and destructive arrows of famine, I will shoot to destroy you. I will bring more and more famine upon you and cut off your supply of food.^{(AG) 17} I will send famine and wild beasts^(AH) against you, and they will leave you childless. Plague and bloodshed^(AI) will sweep through you, and I will bring the sword against you. I the Lord have spoken.^(AJ)”

BOOK IV

Psalms 90–106

Psalm 90

A prayer of Moses the man of God.

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath^(A)

6 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels.^{(B) 2} Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”^(C)

³ Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?^{(D) 4} He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is lawful only for priests to eat.^(E) And he also gave some to his companions.” ⁵ Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man^(F) is Lord of the Sabbath.”

⁶ On another Sabbath^(G) he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. ⁷ The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely^(H) to see if he would heal on the Sabbath.^{(I) 8} But Jesus knew what they were thinking^(J) and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there.

⁹ Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”

¹⁰ He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored. ¹¹ But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious^(K) and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

Good Order in Worship

²⁶ What then shall we say, brothers and sisters?^(A) When you come together, each of you^(B) has a hymn,^(C) or a word of instruction,^(D) a revelation, a tongue^(E) or an interpretation.^(F) Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.^{(G) 27} If anyone speaks in a tongue, two—or at the most three—should speak, one at a time, and someone must interpret. ²⁸ If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and to God.

²⁹ Two or three prophets^(H) should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.^{(I) 30} And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. ³¹ For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged. ³² The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets.^{(J) 33} For God is not a God of disorder^(K) but of peace^(L)—as in all the congregations^(M) of the Lord’s people.^(N)

³⁴ Women^[a] should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak,^(O) but must be in submission,^(P) as the law^(Q) says. ³⁵ If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.^[b]

³⁶ Or did the word of God^(R) originate with you? Or are you the only people it has reached? ³⁷ If anyone thinks they are a prophet^(S) or otherwise gifted by the Spirit,^(T) let them acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command.^{(U) 38} But if anyone ignores this, they will themselves be ignored.^[c]

³⁹ Therefore, my brothers and sisters, be eager^(V) to prophesy,^(W) and do not forbid speaking in tongues. ⁴⁰ But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly^(X) way.