Offerings for the Feast of Weeks

26 “On (A)the day of the firstfruits, when you offer a grain offering of new grain to the Lord at your Feast of Weeks, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work, 27 but offer a burnt offering, with a pleasing aroma to the Lord: (B)two bulls from the herd, one ram, seven male lambs a year old; 28 also their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah for each bull, two tenths for one ram, 29 a tenth for each of the seven lambs; 30 with (C)one male goat, to make atonement for you. 31 Besides the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, you shall offer them and their drink offering. (D)See that they are without blemish.

Offerings for the Feast of Trumpets

29 “On the first day of the seventh month you shall have a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work. (E)It is a day for you to blow the trumpets, and you shall offer a burnt offering, for a pleasing aroma to the Lord: one bull from the herd, one ram, seven male lambs a year old without blemish; also their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah[a] for the bull, two tenths for the ram, and one tenth for each of the seven lambs; with (F)one male goat for a sin offering, to make atonement for you; besides (G)the burnt offering of the new moon, and its grain offering, and (H)the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, and their drink offering, according to the rule for them, for a pleasing aroma, a food offering to the Lord.

Offerings for the Day of Atonement

(I)“On the tenth day of this seventh month you shall have a holy convocation and (J)afflict yourselves.[b] You shall do no work, but you shall offer a burnt offering to the Lord, a pleasing aroma: one bull from the herd, one ram, seven male lambs a year old: (K)see that they are without blemish. And their grain offering shall be of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah for the bull, two tenths for the one ram, 10 a tenth for each of the seven lambs: 11 also (L)one male goat for a sin offering, besides (M)the sin offering of atonement, and the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, and their drink offerings.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 29:3 An ephah was about 3/5 bushel or 22 liters
  2. Numbers 29:7 Or and fast

The Festival of Weeks(A)

26 “‘On the day of firstfruits,(B) when you present to the Lord an offering of new grain during the Festival of Weeks,(C) hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.(D) 27 Present a burnt offering of two young bulls, one ram and seven male lambs a year old as an aroma pleasing to the Lord.(E) 28 With each bull there is to be a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with oil; with the ram, two-tenths;(F) 29 and with each of the seven lambs, one-tenth.(G) 30 Include one male goat(H) to make atonement for you. 31 Offer these together with their drink offerings, in addition to the regular burnt offering(I) and its grain offering. Be sure the animals are without defect.

The Festival of Trumpets(J)

29 “‘On the first day of the seventh month hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.(K) It is a day for you to sound the trumpets. As an aroma pleasing to the Lord,(L) offer a burnt offering(M) of one young bull, one ram and seven male lambs a year old,(N) all without defect.(O) With the bull offer a grain offering(P) of three-tenths of an ephah[a] of the finest flour mixed with olive oil; with the ram, two-tenths[b]; and with each of the seven lambs, one-tenth.[c](Q) Include one male goat(R) as a sin offering[d] to make atonement for you. These are in addition to the monthly(S) and daily burnt offerings(T) with their grain offerings(U) and drink offerings(V) as specified. They are food offerings presented to the Lord, a pleasing aroma.(W)

The Day of Atonement(X)

“‘On the tenth day of this seventh month hold a sacred assembly. You must deny yourselves[e](Y) and do no work.(Z) Present as an aroma pleasing to the Lord a burnt offering of one young bull, one ram and seven male lambs a year old, all without defect.(AA) With the bull offer a grain offering(AB) of three-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with oil; with the ram, two-tenths;(AC) 10 and with each of the seven lambs, one-tenth.(AD) 11 Include one male goat(AE) as a sin offering, in addition to the sin offering for atonement and the regular burnt offering(AF) with its grain offering, and their drink offerings.(AG)

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 29:3 That is, probably about 11 pounds or about 5 kilograms; also in verses 9 and 14
  2. Numbers 29:3 That is, probably about 7 pounds or about 3.2 kilograms; also in verses 9 and 14
  3. Numbers 29:4 That is, probably about 3 1/2 pounds or about 1.6 kilograms; also in verses 10 and 15
  4. Numbers 29:5 Or purification offering; also elsewhere in this chapter
  5. Numbers 29:7 Or must fast

Solomon's Wealth

13 (A)Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold, 14 besides that which the explorers and merchants brought. (B)And all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land brought gold and silver to Solomon. 15 King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold; 600 shekels[a] of beaten gold went into each shield. 16 And he made 300 shields of beaten gold; (C)300 shekels of gold went into each shield; and the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 17 The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with pure gold. 18 The throne had six steps and a footstool of gold, which were attached to the throne, and on each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests, 19 while twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. Nothing like it was ever made for any kingdom. 20 All King Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. Silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon. 21 For the king's ships went to (D)Tarshish with the servants of Hiram. Once every three years the ships of Tarshish used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.[b]

22 Thus King Solomon (E)excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 23 And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. 24 Every one of them brought his present, articles of silver and of gold, garments, myrrh,[c] spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year. 25 And Solomon had (F)4,000 stalls for horses and chariots, and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 26 (G)And he ruled over all the kings (H)from the Euphrates[d] to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt. 27 (I)And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephelah. 28 (J)And horses were imported for Solomon from Egypt and from all lands.

Solomon's Death

29 (K)Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, from (L)first to last, are they not written in the history of (M)Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of (N)Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of (O)Iddo (P)the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat? 30 Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 31 And Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in (Q)the city of David his father, and Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 9:15 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
  2. 2 Chronicles 9:21 Or baboons
  3. 2 Chronicles 9:24 Or armor
  4. 2 Chronicles 9:26 Hebrew the River

Solomon’s Splendor(A)

13 The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,[a] 14 not including the revenues brought in by merchants and traders. Also all the kings of Arabia(B) and the governors of the territories brought gold and silver to Solomon.

15 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels[b] of hammered gold went into each shield. 16 He also made three hundred small shields(C) of hammered gold, with three hundred shekels[c] of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.(D)

17 Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory(E) and overlaid with pure gold. 18 The throne had six steps, and a footstool of gold was attached to it. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 19 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 20 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s day. 21 The king had a fleet of trading ships[d] manned by Hiram’s[e] servants. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.

22 King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.(F) 23 All the kings(G) of the earth sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. 24 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift(H)—articles of silver and gold, and robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.

25 Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots,(I) and twelve thousand horses,[f] which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 26 He ruled(J) over all the kings from the Euphrates River(K) to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt.(L) 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from all other countries.

Solomon’s Death(M)

29 As for the other events of Solomon’s reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the records of Nathan(N) the prophet, in the prophecy of Ahijah(O) the Shilonite and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam(P) son of Nebat? 30 Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 31 Then he rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David(Q) his father. And Rehoboam his son succeeded him as king.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 9:13 That is, about 25 tons or about 23 metric tons
  2. 2 Chronicles 9:15 That is, about 15 pounds or about 6.9 kilograms
  3. 2 Chronicles 9:16 That is, about 7 1/2 pounds or about 3.5 kilograms
  4. 2 Chronicles 9:21 Hebrew of ships that could go to Tarshish
  5. 2 Chronicles 9:21 Hebrew Huram, a variant of Hiram
  6. 2 Chronicles 9:25 Or charioteers

Daniel's Vision of the Ram and the Goat

In the third year of the reign of (A)King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, (B)after that which appeared to me (C)at the first. And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in (D)Susa the citadel, which is in the province of (E)Elam. And (F)I saw in the vision, (G)and I was at the (H)Ulai canal. I raised my eyes and saw, and behold, (I)a ram standing on the bank of the canal. It had two horns, and both horns were high, but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last. I saw (J)the ram charging westward and northward and southward. No (K)beast (L)could stand before him, (M)and there was no one who could rescue from his power. (N)He did as he pleased and (O)became great.

As I was considering, behold, a (P)male goat came from the west across the face of the whole earth, without touching the ground. And the goat had (Q)a conspicuous horn between his eyes. He came to (R)the ram with the two horns, which I had seen standing on the bank of the canal, (S)and he ran at him in his powerful wrath. I saw him come close to the ram, (T)and he was enraged against him and struck the ram and broke his two horns. (U)And the ram had no power to stand before him, but he (V)cast him down to the ground and trampled on him. And there was no one who could rescue the ram from his power. Then (W)the goat (X)became exceedingly great, but when he was strong, the great horn was broken, and instead of it there came up four (Y)conspicuous horns toward (Z)the four winds of heaven.

Out of one of them came (AA)a little horn, which grew exceedingly great toward (AB)the south, toward the east, and toward (AC)the glorious land. 10 (AD)It grew great, (AE)even to the host of heaven. And some of the host (AF)and some[a] of (AG)the stars it threw down to the ground and (AH)trampled on them. 11 (AI)It became great, even as great as (AJ)the Prince of the host. (AK)And the regular burnt offering was taken away from him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown. 12 And a host will be given over to it together with the regular burnt offering because of transgression,[b] and it will throw truth to the ground, and (AL)it will act and prosper. 13 Then I heard (AM)a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the one who spoke, (AN)“For how long is the vision concerning the regular burnt offering, (AO)the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled underfoot?” 14 And he said to me,[c] “For 2,300 (AP)evenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.”

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Footnotes

  1. Daniel 8:10 Or host, that is, some
  2. Daniel 8:12 Or in an act of rebellion
  3. Daniel 8:14 Hebrew; Septuagint, Theodotion, Vulgate to him

Daniel’s Vision of a Ram and a Goat

In the third year of King Belshazzar’s(A) reign, I, Daniel, had a vision,(B) after the one that had already appeared to me. In my vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa(C) in the province of Elam;(D) in the vision I was beside the Ulai Canal. I looked up,(E) and there before me was a ram(F) with two horns, standing beside the canal, and the horns were long. One of the horns was longer than the other but grew up later. I watched the ram as it charged toward the west and the north and the south. No animal could stand against it, and none could rescue from its power.(G) It did as it pleased(H) and became great.

As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between its eyes came from the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground. It came toward the two-horned ram I had seen standing beside the canal and charged at it in great rage. I saw it attack the ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering its two horns. The ram was powerless to stand against it; the goat knocked it to the ground and trampled on it,(I) and none could rescue the ram from its power.(J) The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off,(K) and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven.(L)

Out of one of them came another horn, which started small(M) but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land.(N) 10 It grew until it reached(O) the host of the heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth(P) and trampled(Q) on them. 11 It set itself up to be as great as the commander(R) of the army of the Lord;(S) it took away the daily sacrifice(T) from the Lord, and his sanctuary was thrown down.(U) 12 Because of rebellion, the Lord’s people[a] and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.(V)

13 Then I heard a holy one(W) speaking, and another holy one said to him, “How long will it take for the vision to be fulfilled(X)—the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes desolation, the surrender of the sanctuary and the trampling underfoot(Y) of the Lord’s people?”

14 He said to me, “It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the sanctuary will be reconsecrated.”(Z)

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Footnotes

  1. Daniel 8:12 Or rebellion, the armies

The Blessings of Wisdom

Does not (A)wisdom call?
    Does not (B)understanding raise her voice?
On (C)the heights beside the way,
    at the crossroads she takes her stand;
beside (D)the gates in front of (E)the town,
    at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud:
“To you, O (F)men, I call,
    and my cry is to (G)the children of man.
O (H)simple ones, learn (I)prudence;
    O (J)fools, learn sense.
Hear, for I will speak (K)noble things,
    and from my lips will come (L)what is right,
for my (M)mouth will utter truth;
    wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
All the words of my mouth are righteous;
    there is nothing (N)twisted or crooked in them.
They are all (O)straight to him who understands,
    and right to those who find knowledge.
10 (P)Take my instruction instead of silver,
    and knowledge rather than choice gold,
11 (Q)for wisdom is better than jewels,
    and (R)all that you may desire cannot compare with her.

12 “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,
    and I find knowledge and (S)discretion.
13 (T)The fear of the Lord is (U)hatred of evil.
(V)Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
    and (W)perverted speech I hate.
14 I have (X)counsel and (Y)sound wisdom;
    I have insight; (Z)I have strength.
15 By me (AA)kings reign,
    and rulers decree what is just;
16 by me princes rule,
    and nobles, all who govern justly.[a]
17 (AB)I love those who love me,
    and (AC)those who seek me diligently find me.
18 (AD)Riches and honor are with me,
    (AE)enduring wealth and (AF)righteousness.
19 My fruit is (AG)better than (AH)gold, even fine gold,
    and my yield than (AI)choice silver.
20 I walk in the way of righteousness,
    in the paths of justice,
21 granting an inheritance to those who love me,
    and filling their treasuries.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 8:16 Most Hebrew manuscripts; many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint govern the earth

Wisdom’s Call

Does not wisdom call out?(A)
    Does not understanding raise her voice?
At the highest point along the way,
    where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
beside the gate leading into the city,
    at the entrance, she cries aloud:(B)
“To you, O people, I call out;(C)
    I raise my voice to all mankind.
You who are simple,(D) gain prudence;(E)
    you who are foolish, set your hearts on it.[a]
Listen, for I have trustworthy things to say;
    I open my lips to speak what is right.
My mouth speaks what is true,(F)
    for my lips detest wickedness.
All the words of my mouth are just;
    none of them is crooked or perverse.
To the discerning all of them are right;
    they are upright to those who have found knowledge.
10 Choose my instruction instead of silver,
    knowledge rather than choice gold,(G)
11 for wisdom is more precious(H) than rubies,
    and nothing you desire can compare with her.(I)

12 “I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence;
    I possess knowledge and discretion.(J)
13 To fear the Lord(K) is to hate evil;(L)
    I hate(M) pride and arrogance,
    evil behavior and perverse speech.
14 Counsel and sound judgment are mine;
    I have insight, I have power.(N)
15 By me kings reign
    and rulers(O) issue decrees that are just;
16 by me princes govern,(P)
    and nobles—all who rule on earth.[b]
17 I love those who love me,(Q)
    and those who seek me find me.(R)
18 With me are riches and honor,(S)
    enduring wealth and prosperity.(T)
19 My fruit is better than fine gold;(U)
    what I yield surpasses choice silver.(V)
20 I walk in the way of righteousness,(W)
    along the paths of justice,
21 bestowing a rich inheritance on those who love me
    and making their treasuries full.(X)

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 8:5 Septuagint; Hebrew foolish, instruct your minds
  2. Proverbs 8:16 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint; other Hebrew manuscripts all righteous rulers

You Must Be Born Again

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named (A)Nicodemus, (B)a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus[a] (C)by night and said to him, (D)“Rabbi, (E)we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do (F)unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is (G)born (H)again[b] he cannot (I)see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born (J)of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (K)That which is born of the flesh is (L)flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.[c] (M)Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You[d] must be born (N)again.’ (O)The wind[e] blows (P)where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Nicodemus said to him, (Q)“How can these things be?”

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Footnotes

  1. John 3:2 Greek him
  2. John 3:3 Or from above; the Greek is purposely ambiguous and can mean both again and from above; also verse 7
  3. John 3:6 The same Greek word means both wind and spirit
  4. John 3:7 The Greek for you is plural here
  5. John 3:8 The same Greek word means both wind and spirit

Jesus Teaches Nicodemus

Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus(A) who was a member of the Jewish ruling council.(B) He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi,(C) we know(D) that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs(E) you are doing if God were not with him.”(F)

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.[a](G)

“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.(H) Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit[b] gives birth to spirit.(I) You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You[c] must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”[d](J)

“How can this be?”(K) Nicodemus asked.

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Footnotes

  1. John 3:3 The Greek for again also means from above; also in verse 7.
  2. John 3:6 Or but spirit
  3. John 3:7 The Greek is plural.
  4. John 3:8 The Greek for Spirit is the same as that for wind.

Warning Against Apostasy

11 About this we have much to say, and it is (A)hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again (B)the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need (C)milk, not solid food, 13 for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is (D)a child. 14 But solid food is for (E)the mature, for those who have their powers (F)of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

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Warning Against Falling Away(A)

11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. 12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths(B) of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!(C) 13 Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant,(D) is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14 But solid food is for the mature,(E) who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.(F)

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