Levi

6 ^[a]The sons of Levi:

The temple musicians

³¹ These are the men David put in charge of the music in the house of the Lord after the ark came to rest there. ³² They ministered with music before the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, until Solomon built the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. They performed their duties according to the regulations laid down for them.

³³ Here are the men who served, together with their sons:

⁴⁸ Their fellow Levites were assigned to all the other duties of the tabernacle, the house of God. ⁴⁹ But Aaron and his descendants were the ones who presented offerings on the altar of burnt offering and on the altar of incense in connection with all that was done in the Most Holy Place, making atonement for Israel, in accordance with all that Moses the servant of God had commanded.

⁵⁴ These were the locations of their settlements allotted as their territory (they were assigned to the descendants of Aaron who were from the Kohathite clan, because the first lot was for them):

⁵⁵ they were given Hebron in Judah with its surrounding pasture-lands. ⁵⁶ But the fields and villages around the city were given to Caleb son of Jephunneh.

⁵⁷ So the descendants of Aaron were given Hebron (a city of refuge), and Libnah,^[h] Jattir, Eshtemoa, ⁵⁸ Hilen, Debir, ⁵⁹ Ashan, Juttah^[i] and Beth Shemesh, together with their pasture-lands. ⁶⁰ And from the tribe of Benjamin they were given Gibeon,^[j] Geba, Alemeth and Anathoth, together with their pasture-lands.

The total number of towns distributed among the Kohathite clans came to thirteen.

⁶¹ The rest of Kohath’s descendants were allotted ten towns from the clans of half the tribe of Manasseh.

⁶² The descendants of Gershon, clan by clan, were allotted thirteen towns from the tribes of Issachar, Asher and Naphtali, and from the part of the tribe of Manasseh that is in Bashan.

⁶³ The descendants of Merari, clan by clan, were allotted twelve towns from the tribes of Reuben, Gad and Zebulun.

⁶⁴ So the Israelites gave the Levites these towns and their pasture-lands. ⁶⁵ From the tribes of Judah, Simeon and Benjamin they allotted the previously named towns.

⁶⁶ Some of the Kohathite clans were given as their territory towns from the tribe of Ephraim.

⁶⁷ In the hill country of Ephraim they were given Shechem (a city of refuge), and Gezer,^{[k] 68} Jokmeam, Beth Horon, ⁶⁹ Aijalon and Gath Rimmon, together with their pasture-lands.

⁷⁰ And from half the tribe of Manasseh the Israelites gave Aner and Bileam, together with their pasture-lands, to the rest of the Kohathite clans.

A lament over Israel’s princes

19 ‘Take up a lament concerning the princes of Israel ² and say:

‘This is a lament and is to be used as a lament.’

The parable of the shrewd manager

16 Jesus told his disciples: ‘There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. ² So he called him in and asked him, “What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.”

³ ‘The manager said to himself, “What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg – ⁴ I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.”

⁵ ‘So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, “How much do you owe my master?”

⁶ ‘“Three thousand litres of olive oil,” he replied.

‘The manager told him, “Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifteen hundred.”

⁷ ‘Then he asked the second, “And how much do you owe?”

‘“Thirty tons of wheat,” he replied.

‘He told him, “Take your bill and make it twenty-four.”

⁸ ‘The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. ⁹ I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

¹⁰ ‘Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. ¹¹ So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? ¹² And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

¹³ ‘No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.’

¹⁴ The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. ¹⁵ He said to them, ‘You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.

Additional teachings

¹⁶ ‘The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it. ¹⁷ It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.

¹⁸ ‘Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

The rich man and Lazarus

¹⁹ ‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. ²⁰ At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores ²¹ and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

²² ‘The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. ²⁴ So he called to him, “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.”

²⁵ ‘But Abraham replied, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. ²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.”

²⁷ ‘He answered, “Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, ²⁸ for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.”

²⁹ ‘Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.”

³⁰ ‘“No, father Abraham,” he said, “but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.”

³¹ ‘He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”’