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!” ³⁰ And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.

Quail and a Plague

³¹ Then a ^(G)wind from the Lord sprang up, and it brought quail from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day's journey on this side and a day's journey on the other side, around the camp, and about two cubits^[a] above the ground. ³² And the people rose all that day and all night and all the next day, and gathered the quail. Those who gathered least gathered ten ^(H)homers.^[b] And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. ^33 (I)While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and ^(J)the Lord struck down the people with a very great plague. ³⁴ Therefore the name of that place was called ^(K)Kibroth-hattaavah,^[c] because there they buried the people who had the craving. ^35 (L)From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to ^(M)Hazeroth, and they remained at ^(N)Hazeroth.

²⁸ And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, ^(A)God gave them up to ^(B)a debased mind to do ^(C)what ought not to be done. ²⁹ They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, ³⁰ slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, ³¹ foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. ³² Though they know ^(D)God's righteous decree that those who practice such things ^(E)deserve to die, they not only do them but ^(F)give approval to those who practice them.

God's Righteous Judgment

2 Therefore you have ^(G)no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For ^(H)in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. ² We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. ³ Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? ⁴ Or do you presume on ^(I)the riches of his kindness and ^(J)forbearance and ^(K)patience, ^(L)not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? ⁵ But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are ^(M)storing up ^(N)wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed.

^6 (O)He will render to each one according to his works: ⁷ to those who ^(P)by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; ⁸ but for those who are self-seeking^[a] and ^(Q)do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. ⁹ There will be tribulation and distress ^(R)for every human being who does evil, the Jew ^(S)first and also the Greek, ¹⁰ but glory and honor and ^(T)peace for everyone who does good, ^(U)the Jew first and also the Greek. ¹¹ For ^(V)God shows no partiality.

Who Is the Greatest?

18 ^(A)At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” ² And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them ³ and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you ^(B)turn and ^(C)become like children, you ^(D)will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ^4 (E)Whoever humbles himself like this child is the ^(F)greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

^5 (G)“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, ⁶ but ^(H)whoever causes one of these ^(I)little ones who believe in me to sin,^[a] it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

Temptations to Sin

⁷ “Woe to the world for ^(J)temptations to sin!^{[b] (K)}For it is necessary that temptations come, ^(L)but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! ^8 (M)And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into ^(N)the eternal fire. ^9 (O)And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the ^(P)hell^[c] of fire.