The Angel of the Lord at Bokim

2 The angel of the Lord^(A) went up from Gilgal^(B) to Bokim^(C) and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt^(D) and led you into the land I swore to give to your ancestors.^(E) I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you,^{(F) 2} and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land,^(G) but you shall break down their altars.^(H)’ Yet you have disobeyed^(I) me. Why have you done this? ³ And I have also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you;^(J) they will become traps^(K) for you, and their gods will become snares^(L) to you.’”

⁴ When the angel of the Lord had spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud,^{(M) 5} and they called that place Bokim.^[a](N) There they offered sacrifices to the Lord.

Disobedience and Defeat^(O)

⁶ After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to their own inheritance. ⁷ The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.^(P)

⁸ Joshua son of Nun,^(Q) the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. ⁹ And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heres^[b](R) in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

¹⁰ After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.^{(S) 11} Then the Israelites did evil^(T) in the eyes of the Lord^(U) and served the Baals.^{(V) 12} They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods^(W) of the peoples around them.^(X) They aroused^(Y) the Lord’s anger^{(Z) 13} because they forsook^(AA) him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.^{(AB) 14} In his anger^(AC) against Israel the Lord gave them into the hands^(AD) of raiders who plundered^(AE) them. He sold them^(AF) into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist.^{(AG) 15} Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the Lord was against them^(AH) to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress.^(AI)

¹⁶ Then the Lord raised up judges,^[c](AJ) who saved^(AK) them out of the hands of these raiders. ¹⁷ Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted^(AL) themselves to other gods^(AM) and worshiped them.^(AN) They quickly turned^(AO) from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands.^{(AP) 18} Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved^(AQ) them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the Lord relented^(AR) because of their groaning^(AS) under those who oppressed and afflicted^(AT) them. ¹⁹ But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt^(AU) than those of their ancestors,^(AV) following other gods and serving and worshiping them.^(AW) They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn^(AX) ways.

²⁰ Therefore the Lord was very angry^(AY) with Israel and said, “Because this nation has violated the covenant^(AZ) I ordained for their ancestors and has not listened to me, ²¹ I will no longer drive out^(BA) before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. ²² I will use them to test^(BB) Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the Lord and walk in it as their ancestors did.” ²³ The Lord had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.^(BC)

²⁵ In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.^(A)

17 Do not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep that has any defect^(A) or flaw in it, for that would be detestable^(B) to him.^(C)

² If a man or woman living among you in one of the towns the Lord gives you is found doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God in violation of his covenant,^{(D) 3} and contrary to my command^(E) has worshiped other gods,^(F) bowing down to them or to the sun^(G) or the moon or the stars in the sky,^{(H) 4} and this has been brought to your attention, then you must investigate it thoroughly. If it is true^(I) and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done in Israel,^{(J) 5} take the man or woman who has done this evil deed to your city gate and stone that person to death.^{(K) 6} On the testimony of two or three witnesses a person is to be put to death, but no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.^{(L) 7} The hands of the witnesses must be the first in putting that person to death,^(M) and then the hands of all the people.^(N) You must purge the evil^(O) from among you.

Law Courts

⁸ If cases come before your courts that are too difficult for you to judge^(P)—whether bloodshed, lawsuits or assaults^(Q)—take them to the place the Lord your God will choose.^{(R) 9} Go to the Levitical^(S) priests and to the judge^(T) who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict.^{(U) 10} You must act according to the decisions they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they instruct you to do. ¹¹ Act according to whatever they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left.^{(V) 12} Anyone who shows contempt^(W) for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering^(X) there to the Lord your God is to be put to death.^(Y) You must purge the evil from Israel.^{(Z) 13} All the people will hear and be afraid, and will not be contemptuous again.^(AA)

The King

¹⁴ When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession^(AB) of it and settled in it,^(AC) and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,”^{(AD) 15} be sure to appoint^(AE) over you a king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your fellow Israelites.^(AF) Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not an Israelite. ¹⁶ The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses^(AG) for himself^(AH) or make the people return to Egypt^(AI) to get more of them,^(AJ) for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.”^{(AK) 17} He must not take many wives,^(AL) or his heart will be led astray.^(AM) He must not accumulate^(AN) large amounts of silver and gold.^(AO)

¹⁸ When he takes the throne^(AP) of his kingdom, he is to write^(AQ) for himself on a scroll a copy^(AR) of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. ¹⁹ It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life^(AS) so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees^{(AT) 20} and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law^(AU) to the right or to the left.^(AV) Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.^(AW)

Israel Asks for a King

8 When Samuel grew old, he appointed^(A) his sons as Israel’s leaders.^{[a] 2} The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah,^(B) and they served at Beersheba.^{(C) 3} But his sons^(D) did not follow his ways. They turned aside^(E) after dishonest gain and accepted bribes^(F) and perverted^(G) justice.

⁴ So all the elders^(H) of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah.^{(I) 5} They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king^(J) to lead^[b](K) us, such as all the other nations^(L) have.”

⁶ But when they said, “Give us a king^(M) to lead us,” this displeased^(N) Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. ⁷ And the Lord told him: “Listen^(O) to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected,^(P) but they have rejected me as their king.^{(Q) 8} As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking^(R) me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. ⁹ Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know^(S) what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”

¹⁰ Samuel told^(T) all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. ¹¹ He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take^(U) your sons and make them serve^(V) with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots.^{(W) 12} Some he will assign to be commanders^(X) of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. ¹³ He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. ¹⁴ He will take the best of your^(Y) fields and vineyards^(Z) and olive groves and give them to his attendants.^{(AA) 15} He will take a tenth^(AB) of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. ¹⁶ Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle^[c] and donkeys he will take for his own use. ¹⁷ He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. ¹⁸ When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the Lord will not answer^(AC) you in that day.^(AD)”

¹⁹ But the people refused^(AE) to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We want^(AF) a king^(AG) over us. ²⁰ Then we will be like all the other nations,^(AH) with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.”

²¹ When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated^(AI) it before the Lord. ²² The Lord answered, “Listen^(AJ) to them and give them a king.”

Then Samuel said to the Israelites, “Everyone go back to your own town.”

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King^(A)(B)

21 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives,^(C) Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”

⁴ This took place to fulfill^(D) what was spoken through the prophet:

⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. ⁸ A very large crowd spread their cloaks^(F) on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,

¹⁰ When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”

¹¹ The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet^(J) from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Jesus at the Temple^(K)

¹² Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying^(L) and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers^(M) and the benches of those selling doves.^{(N) 13} “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’^[e](O) but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’^[f]”^(P)

¹⁴ The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.^{(Q) 15} But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,”^(R) they were indignant.^(S)

¹⁶ “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.

“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,

¹⁷ And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany,^(U) where he spent the night.

Jesus Curses a Fig Tree^(V)

¹⁸ Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. ¹⁹ Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.^(W)

²⁰ When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.

²¹ Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt,^(X) not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²² If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for^(Y) in prayer.”

The Authority of Jesus Questioned^(Z)

²³ Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority^(AA) are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”

²⁴ Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. ²⁵ John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ ²⁶ But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”^(AB)

²⁷ So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

The Parable of the Two Sons

²⁸ “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’^(AC)

²⁹ “‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.

³⁰ “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.

³¹ “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”

“The first,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors^(AD) and the prostitutes^(AE) are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. ³² For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness,^(AF) and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors^(AG) and the prostitutes^(AH) did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent^(AI) and believe him.

The Parable of the Tenants^(AJ)

³³ “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted^(AK) a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower.^(AL) Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.^{(AM) 34} When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants^(AN) to the tenants to collect his fruit.

³⁵ “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.^{(AO) 36} Then he sent other servants^(AP) to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. ³⁷ Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.

³⁸ “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir.^(AQ) Come, let’s kill him^(AR) and take his inheritance.’^{(AS) 39} So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

⁴⁰ “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”

⁴¹ “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,”^(AT) they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants,^(AU) who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”

⁴² Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

⁴³ “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you^(AW) and given to a people who will produce its fruit. ⁴⁴ Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”^[i](AX)

⁴⁵ When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. ⁴⁶ They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.^(AY)