⁴ Now the ^(A)rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also ^(B)wept again and said, ^(C)“Oh that we had meat to eat! ^5 (D)We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. ⁶ But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

¹⁰ Moses heard the people ^(A)weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. ^11 (B)Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? ¹² Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ^(C)‘Carry them in your bosom, as a ^(D)nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land ^(E)that you swore to give their fathers? ^13 (F)Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ ^14 (G)I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. ¹⁵ If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

Elders Appointed to Aid Moses

¹⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me ^(H)seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and ^(I)officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. ^17 (J)And I will come down and talk with you there. And ^(K)I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and ^(L)they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.

²⁴ So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. ^(A)And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. ²⁵ Then ^(B)the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.

²⁶ Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the Spirit rested on them. They were among those registered, but they ^(C)had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. ²⁷ And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” ²⁸ And ^(D)Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, said, “My lord Moses, ^(E)stop them.” ²⁹ But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? ^(F)Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!”

The Law of the Lord Is Perfect

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

⁷ Submit yourselves therefore to God. ^(A)Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ^8 (B)Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. ^(C)Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and ^(D)purify your hearts, ^(E)you double-minded. ^9 (F)Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ^10 (G)Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

^11 (H)Do not speak evil against one another, brothers.^[a] The one who speaks against a brother or ^(I)judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. ¹² There is only ^(J)one lawgiver and ^(K)judge, he who is able to save and ^(L)to destroy. But ^(M)who are you to judge your neighbor?

⁶ You have condemned and ^(A)murdered ^(B)the righteous person. He does not resist you.

Patience in Suffering

⁷ Be patient, therefore, brothers,^[a] until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives ^(C)the early and the late rains. ⁸ You also, be patient. ^(D)Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord ^(E)is at hand. ⁹ Do not grumble against one another, brothers, ^(F)so that you may not be judged; behold, ^(G)the Judge is standing ^(H)at the door. ¹⁰ As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take ^(I)the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. ¹¹ Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of ^(J)the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen ^(K)the purpose of the Lord, how ^(L)the Lord is compassionate and merciful.

¹² But above all, my brothers, ^(M)do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

The Prayer of Faith

¹³ Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him ^(N)sing praise. ¹⁴ Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, ^(O)anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And ^(P)if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. ¹⁶ Therefore, ^(Q)confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, ^(R)that you may be healed. ^(S)The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.^{[b] 17} Elijah was a man ^(T)with a nature like ours, and ^(U)he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for ^(V)three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. ^18 (W)Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.

¹⁹ My brothers, ^(X)if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone ^(Y)brings him back, ²⁰ let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering ^(Z)will save his soul from death and ^(AA)will cover a multitude of sins.

Anyone Not Against Us Is for Us

^38 (A)John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone ^(B)casting out demons in your name,^[a] and ^(C)we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. ^40 (D)For the one who is not against us is for us. ⁴¹ For truly, I say to you, ^(E)whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.

Temptations to Sin

^42 (F)“Whoever causes one of ^(G)these little ones who believe in me to sin,^{[b] (H)}it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. ^43 (I)And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to ^(J)hell,^[c] to ^(K)the unquenchable fire.^{[d] 45 (L)}And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into ^(M)hell. ^47 (N)And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into ^(O)hell, ⁴⁸ ‘where ^(P)their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’