Four Fishermen Called as Disciples^(A)

5 So ^(B)it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to ^(C)hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, ² and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. ³ Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He ^(D)sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.

⁴ When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, ^(E)“Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”

⁵ But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught ^(F)nothing; nevertheless ^(G)at Your word I will let down the net.” ⁶ And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. ⁷ So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸ When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ^(H)“Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!”

⁹ For he and all who were with him were ^(I)astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken; ¹⁰ and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. ^(J)From now on you will catch men.” ¹¹ So when they had brought their boats to land, ^(K)they ^[a]forsook all and followed Him.

Jesus Cleanses a Leper^(L)

^12 (M)And it happened when He was in a certain city, that behold, a man who was full of ^(N)leprosy saw Jesus; and he fell on his face and ^[b]implored Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”

¹³ Then He put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” ^(O)Immediately the leprosy left him. ^14 (P)And He charged him to tell no one, “But go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as a testimony to them, ^(Q)just as Moses commanded.”

¹⁵ However, ^(R)the report went around concerning Him all the more; and ^(S)great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities. ^16 (T)So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and ^(U)prayed.

Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralytic^(V)

¹⁷ Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present ^[c]to heal them. ^18 (W)Then behold, men brought on a bed a man who was paralyzed, whom they sought to bring in and lay before Him. ¹⁹ And when they could not find how they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the housetop and let him down with his bed through the tiling into the midst ^(X)before Jesus.

²⁰ When He saw their faith, He said to him, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”

^21 (Y)And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? ^(Z)Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

²² But when Jesus ^(AA)perceived their thoughts, He answered and said to them, “Why are you reasoning in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk’? ²⁴ But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—He said to the man who was paralyzed, ^(AB)“I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.”

²⁵ Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, ^(AC)glorifying God. ²⁶ And they were all amazed, and they ^(AD)glorified God and were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen strange things today!”

Matthew the Tax Collector^(AE)

^27 (AF)After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ^(AG)“Follow Me.” ²⁸ So he left all, rose up, and ^(AH)followed Him.

^29 (AI)Then Levi gave Him a great feast in his own house. And ^(AJ)there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them. ^30 [d]And their scribes and the Pharisees ^[e]complained against His disciples, saying, ^(AK)“Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

³¹ Jesus answered and said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^32 (AL)I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

Jesus Is Questioned About Fasting^(AM)

³³ Then they said to Him, ^(AN)“Why^[f] do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?”

³⁴ And He said to them, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the ^(AO)bridegroom is with them? ³⁵ But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in those days.”

^36 (AP)Then He spoke a parable to them: “No one ^[g]puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. ³⁷ And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into new wineskins, ^[h]and both are preserved. ³⁹ And no one, having drunk old wine, ^[i]immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is ^[j]better.’ ”

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath^(AQ)

6 Now ^(AR)it happened ^[k]on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands. ² And some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why are you doing ^(AS)what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?”

³ But Jesus answering them said, “Have you not even read this, ^(AT)what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: ⁴ how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, ^(AU)which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?” ⁵ And He said to them, “The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.”

Healing on the Sabbath^(AV)

^6 (AW)Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered. ⁷ So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would ^(AX)heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an ^(AY)accusation against Him. ⁸ But He ^(AZ)knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, “Arise and stand here.” And he arose and stood. ⁹ Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one thing: ^(BA)Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or ^[l]to destroy?” ¹⁰ And when He had looked around at them all, He said to ^[m]the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored ^[n]as whole as the other. ¹¹ But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

The Twelve Apostles^(BB)

¹² Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in ^(BC)prayer to God. ¹³ And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; ^(BD)and from them He chose ^(BE)twelve whom He also named apostles: ¹⁴ Simon, ^(BF)whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; ¹⁵ Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; ¹⁶ Judas ^(BG)the son of James, and ^(BH)Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.

Jesus Heals a Great Multitude^(BI)

¹⁷ And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples ^(BJ)and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, ¹⁸ as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. ¹⁹ And the whole multitude ^(BK)sought to ^(BL)touch Him, for ^(BM)power went out from Him and healed them all.

The Beatitudes^(BN)

²⁰ Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said:

Jesus Pronounces Woes

Love Your Enemies^(CE)

^27 (CF)“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ^28 (CG)bless those who curse you, and ^(CH)pray for those who spitefully use you. ^29 (CI)To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. ^(CJ)And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. ^30 (CK)Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. ^31 (CL)And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

^32 (CM)“But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ^34 (CN)And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. ³⁵ But ^(CO)love your enemies, ^(CP)do good, and ^(CQ)lend, ^[r]hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and ^(CR)you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. ^36 (CS)Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

Do Not Judge^(CT)

^37 (CU)“Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. ^(CV)Forgive, and you will be forgiven. ^38 (CW)Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your ^(CX)bosom. For ^(CY)with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

³⁹ And He spoke a parable to them: ^(CZ)“Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch? ^40 (DA)A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. ^41 (DB)And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye? ⁴² Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye.

A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit^(DC)

^43 (DD)“For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. ⁴⁴ For ^(DE)every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. ^45 (DF)A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil ^[s]treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out ^(DG)of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Build on the Rock^(DH)

^46 (DI)“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? ^47 (DJ)Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: ⁴⁸ He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was ^[t]founded on the rock. ⁴⁹ But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it ^[u]fell. And the ruin of that house was great.”

Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant^(DK)

7 Now when He concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He ^(DL)entered Capernaum. ² And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die. ³ So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant. ⁴ And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, ⁵ “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.”

⁶ Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. ⁷ Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But ^(DM)say the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁸ For I also am a man placed under ^(DN)authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

⁹ When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!” ¹⁰ And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well ^[v]who had been sick.

Jesus Raises the Son of the Widow of Nain

¹¹ Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd. ¹² And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. ¹³ When the Lord saw her, He had ^(DO)compassion on her and said to her, ^(DP)“Do not weep.” ¹⁴ Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, ^(DQ)arise.” ¹⁵ So he who was dead ^(DR)sat up and began to speak. And He ^(DS)presented him to his mother.

^16 (DT)Then fear ^[w]came upon all, and they ^(DU)glorified God, saying, ^(DV)“A great prophet has risen up among us”; and, ^(DW)“God has visited His people.” ¹⁷ And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region.

John the Baptist Sends Messengers to Jesus^(DX)

^18 (DY)Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things. ¹⁹ And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to ^[x]Jesus, saying, “Are You ^(DZ)the Coming One, or ^[y]do we look for another?”

²⁰ When the men had come to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’ ” ²¹ And that very hour He cured many of ^[z]infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.

^22 (EA)Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: ^(EB)that the blind ^(EC)see, the lame ^(ED)walk, the lepers are ^(EE)cleansed, the deaf ^(EF)hear, the dead are raised, ^(EG)the poor have the gospel preached to them. ²³ And blessed is he who is not ^[aa]offended because of Me.”

^24 (EH)When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the multitudes concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ²⁵ But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. ²⁶ But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. ²⁷ This is he of whom it is written:

²⁸ For I say to you, among those born of women there is ^[ab]not a ^(EJ)greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

²⁹ And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors ^[ac]justified God, ^(EK)having been baptized with the baptism of John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and ^[ad]lawyers rejected ^(EL)the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.

^31 [ae]And the Lord said, ^(EM)“To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying:

³³ For ^(EN)John the Baptist came ^(EO)neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ ³⁴ The Son of Man has come ^(EP)eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a ^[af]winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ ^35 (EQ)But wisdom is justified by all her children.”

A Sinful Woman Forgiven

^36 (ER)Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him. And He went to the Pharisee’s house, and sat down to eat. ³⁷ And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, ³⁸ and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil. ³⁹ Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, ^(ES)“This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.”

⁴⁰ And Jesus answered and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

So he said, “Teacher, say it.”

⁴¹ “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred ^(ET)denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴² And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?”

⁴³ Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.”

And He said to him, “You have rightly judged.” ⁴⁴ Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no ^(EU)water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. ⁴⁵ You gave Me no ^(EV)kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. ^46 (EW)You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil. ^47 (EX)Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”

⁴⁸ Then He said to her, ^(EY)“Your sins are forgiven.”

⁴⁹ And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, ^(EZ)“Who is this who even forgives sins?”

⁵⁰ Then He said to the woman, ^(FA)“Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”

Many Women Minister to Jesus

8 Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and ^[ag]bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, ² and ^(FB)certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and ^[ah]infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, ^(FC)out of whom had come seven demons, ³ and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for ^[ai]Him from their ^[aj]substance.

The Parable of the Sower^(FD)

^4 (FE)And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable: ⁵ “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it. ⁶ Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture. ⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it. ⁸ But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded ^[ak]a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, ^(FF)“He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The Purpose of Parables^(FG)

^9 (FH)Then His disciples asked Him, saying, “What does this parable mean?”

¹⁰ And He said, “To you it has been given to know the ^[al]mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that

The Parable of the Sower Explained^(FJ)

^11 (FK)“Now the parable is this: The seed is the ^(FL)word of God. ¹² Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. ¹³ But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of ^[am]temptation fall away. ¹⁴ Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, ^(FM)riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. ¹⁵ But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with ^(FN)patience.^[an]

The Parable of the Revealed Light^(FO)

^16 (FP)“No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the ^(FQ)light. ^17 (FR)For nothing is secret that will not be ^(FS)revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light. ¹⁸ Therefore take heed how you hear. ^(FT)For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he ^[ao]seems to ^(FU)have will be taken from him.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers Come to Him^(FV)

^19 (FW)Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd. ²⁰ And it was told Him by some, who said, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You.”

²¹ But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.”

Wind and Wave Obey Jesus^(FX)

^22 (FY)Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side of the lake.” And they launched out. ²³ But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in ^[ap]jeopardy. ²⁴ And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”

Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. ²⁵ But He said to them, ^(FZ)“Where is your faith?”

And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, ^(GA)“Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!”

A Demon-Possessed Man Healed^(GB)

^26 (GC)Then they sailed to the country of the ^[aq]Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee. ²⁷ And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons ^[ar]for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs. ²⁸ When he saw Jesus, he ^(GD)cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, ^(GE)“What have I to do with ^(GF)You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!” ²⁹ For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.

³⁰ Jesus asked him, saying, “What is your name?”

And he said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered him. ³¹ And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out ^(GG)into the abyss.

³² Now a herd of many ^(GH)swine was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them. ³³ Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.

³⁴ When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. ³⁵ Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, ^(GI)sitting at the ^(GJ)feet of Jesus, clothed and in his ^(GK)right mind. And they were afraid. ³⁶ They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was ^[as]healed. ^37 (GL)Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the ^[at]Gadarenes ^(GM)asked Him to ^(GN)depart from them, for they were seized with great ^(GO)fear. And He got into the boat and returned.

³⁸ Now ^(GP)the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, ³⁹ “Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you.” And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed

⁴⁰ So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him. ^41 (GQ)And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue. And he fell down at Jesus’ feet and begged Him to come to his house, ⁴² for he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she ^(GR)was dying.

But as He went, the multitudes thronged Him. ^43 (GS)Now a woman, having a ^(GT)flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any, ⁴⁴ came from behind and ^(GU)touched the border of His garment. And immediately her flow of blood stopped.

⁴⁵ And Jesus said, “Who touched Me?”

When all denied it, Peter ^[au]and those with him said, “Master, the multitudes throng and press You, ^[av]and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’ ”

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Somebody touched Me, for I perceived ^(GV)power going out from Me.” ⁴⁷ Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately.

⁴⁸ And He said to her, “Daughter, ^[aw]be of good cheer; ^(GW)your faith has made you well. ^(GX)Go in peace.”

^49 (GY)While He was still speaking, someone came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house, saying to him, “Your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the ^[ax]Teacher.”

⁵⁰ But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, “Do not be afraid; ^(GZ)only believe, and she will be made well.” ⁵¹ When He came into the house, He permitted no one to go ^[ay]in except ^[az]Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of the girl. ⁵² Now all wept and mourned for her; but He said, ^(HA)“Do not weep; she is not dead, ^(HB)but sleeping.” ⁵³ And they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead.

⁵⁴ But He ^[ba]put them all outside, took her by the hand and called, saying, “Little girl, ^(HC)arise.” ⁵⁵ Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately. And He commanded that she be given something to eat. ⁵⁶ And her parents were astonished, but ^(HD)He charged them to tell no one what had happened.

A Prescribed Place of Worship

12 “These ^(A)are the statutes and judgments which you shall be careful to observe in the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you to possess, ^(B)all^[a] the days that you live on the earth. ^2 (C)You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess served their gods, ^(D)on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. ³ And ^(E)you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their ^[b]wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their gods and destroy their names from that place. ⁴ You shall not ^(F)worship the Lord your God with such things.

⁵ “But you shall seek the ^(G)place where the Lord your God chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His name for His ^(H)dwelling^[c] place; and there you shall go. ^6 (I)There you shall take your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, your vowed offerings, your freewill offerings, and the ^(J)firstborn of your herds and flocks. ⁷ And ^(K)there you shall eat before the Lord your God, and ^(L)you shall rejoice in ^[d]all to which you have put your hand, you and your households, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.

⁸ “You shall not at all do as we are doing here today—^(M)every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes— ⁹ for as yet you have not come to the ^(N)rest^[e] and the inheritance which the Lord your God is giving you. ¹⁰ But when you cross over the Jordan and dwell in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to inherit, and He gives you ^(O)rest from all your enemies round about, so that you dwell in safety, ¹¹ then there will be the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. There you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, and all your choice offerings which you vow to the Lord. ¹² And ^(P)you shall rejoice before the Lord your God, you and your sons and your daughters, your male and female servants, and the ^(Q)Levite who is within your gates, since he has no portion nor inheritance with you. ¹³ Take heed to yourself that you do not offer your burnt offerings in every place that you see; ¹⁴ but in the place which the Lord chooses, in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you.

¹⁵ “However, ^(R)you may slaughter and eat meat within all your gates, whatever your heart desires, according to the blessing of the Lord your God which He has given you; ^(S)the unclean and the clean may eat of it, ^(T)of the gazelle and the deer alike. ^16 (U)Only you shall not eat the blood; you shall pour it on the earth like water. ¹⁷ You may not eat within your gates the tithe of your grain or your new wine or your oil, of the firstborn of your herd or your flock, of any of your offerings which you vow, of your freewill offerings, or of the ^[f]heave offering of your hand. ¹⁸ But you must eat them before the Lord your God in the place which the Lord your God chooses, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, and the Levite who is within your gates; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God in ^[g]all to which you put your hands. ^19 [h]Take heed to yourself that you do not forsake the Levite as long as you live in your land.

²⁰ “When the Lord your God ^(V)enlarges your border as He has promised you, and you say, ‘Let me eat meat,’ because you long to eat meat, you may eat as much meat as your heart desires. ²¹ If the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far from ^(W)you, then you may slaughter from your herd and from your flock which the Lord has given you, just as I have commanded you, and you may eat within your gates as much as your heart desires. ²² Just as the gazelle and the deer are eaten, so you may eat them; the unclean and the clean alike may eat them. ²³ Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, ^(X)for the blood is the life; you may not eat the life with the meat. ²⁴ You shall not eat it; you shall pour it on the earth like water. ²⁵ You shall not eat it, ^(Y)that it may go well with you and your children after you, ^(Z)when you do what is right in the sight of the Lord. ²⁶ Only the ^(AA)holy things which you have, and your vowed offerings, you shall take and go to the place which the Lord chooses. ²⁷ And ^(AB)you shall offer your burnt offerings, the meat and the blood, on the altar of the Lord your God; and the blood of your sacrifices shall be poured out on the altar of the Lord your God, and you shall eat the meat. ²⁸ Observe and obey all these words which I command you, ^(AC)that it may go well with you and your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the Lord your God.

Beware of False Gods

²⁹ “When ^(AD)the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, ³⁰ take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.’ ^31 (AE)You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every ^[i]abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for ^(AF)they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

³² “Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; ^(AG)you shall not add to it nor take away from it.