Amos 1-3
Christian Standard Bible
1 The words of Amos, who was one of the sheep breeders[a](A) from Tekoa(B)—what he saw regarding Israel in the days of King Uzziah(C) of Judah and Jeroboam(D) son of Jehoash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.(E)
2 He said:
The Lord roars(F) from Zion
and makes his voice heard from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds mourn,[b](G)
and the summit of Carmel(H) withers.
Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors
3 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Damascus(I)
for three crimes, even four,(J)
because they threshed Gilead with iron sledges.
4 Therefore, I will send fire against Hazael’s palace,
and it will consume Ben-hadad’s(K) citadels.
5 I will break down the gates[c](L) of Damascus.
I will cut off the ruler from the Valley of Aven,
and the one who wields the scepter from Beth-eden.
The people of Aram will be exiled to Kir.(M)
The Lord has spoken.
6 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Gaza(N)
for three crimes, even four,
because they exiled a whole community,
handing them over to Edom.
7 Therefore, I will send fire against the walls of Gaza,
and it will consume its citadels.
8 I will cut off the ruler from Ashdod,(O)
and the one who wields the scepter from Ashkelon.(P)
I will also turn my hand against Ekron,
and the remainder of the Philistines(Q) will perish.
The Lord God has spoken.
9 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Tyre(R)
for three crimes, even four,
because they handed over
a whole community of exiles to Edom
and broke[d] a treaty of brotherhood.(S)
10 Therefore, I will send fire(T) against the walls of Tyre,
and it will consume its citadels.
11 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Edom(U)
for three crimes, even four,
because he pursued his brother with the sword.(V)
He stifled his compassion,
his anger tore at him(W) continually,
and he harbored his rage incessantly.
12 Therefore, I will send fire against Teman,(X)
and it will consume the citadels of Bozrah.
13 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing the Ammonites(Y)
for three crimes, even four,
because they ripped open
the pregnant women of Gilead(Z)
in order to enlarge their territory.(AA)
14 Therefore, I will set fire to the walls of Rabbah,(AB)
and it will consume its citadels.
There will be shouting on the day of battle(AC)
and a violent wind on the day of the storm.(AD)
15 Their king and his princes
will go into exile together.(AE)
The Lord has spoken.
2 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Moab(AF)
for three crimes, even four,
because he burned the bones
of the king of Edom to lime.(AG)
2 Therefore, I will send fire against Moab,
and it will consume the citadels of Kerioth.(AH)
Moab will die with a tumult,(AI)
with shouting and the sound of the ram’s horn.
3 I will cut off the judge(AJ) from the land
and kill all its officials(AK) with him.
The Lord has spoken.
Judgment on Judah
4 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Judah(AL)
for three crimes, even four,
because they have rejected the instruction of the Lord(AM)
and have not kept his statutes.(AN)
The lies(AO) that their ancestors followed(AP)
have led them astray.
5 Therefore, I will send fire(AQ) against Judah,
and it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem.
Judgment on Israel
6 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Israel(AR)
for three crimes, even four,
because they sell a righteous person for silver
and a needy person for a pair of sandals.(AS)
7 They trample the heads of the poor(AT)
on the dust of the ground
and obstruct the path of the needy.(AU)
A man and his father have sexual relations
with the same girl,(AV)
profaning my holy name.(AW)
8 They stretch out beside every altar(AX)
on garments taken as collateral,(AY)
and in the house of their God
they drink wine obtained through fines.(AZ)
9 Yet I destroyed the Amorite(BA) as Israel advanced;
his height(BB) was like the cedars,
and he was as sturdy as the oaks;
I destroyed his fruit(BC) above and his roots beneath.
10 And I brought you from the land of Egypt(BD)
and led you forty years in the wilderness(BE)
in order to possess the land of the Amorite.(BF)
11 I raised up some of your sons as prophets(BG)
and some of your young men as Nazirites.(BH)
Is this not the case, Israelites?
This is the Lord’s declaration.
12 But you made the Nazirites drink wine
and commanded the prophets,
“Do not prophesy.”(BI)
13 Look, I am about to crush[e] you in your place(BJ)
as a wagon crushes when full of grain.
14 Escape will fail the swift,(BK)
the strong one will not maintain his strength,(BL)
and the warrior will not save his life.
15 The archer will not stand his ground,(BM)
the one who is swift of foot
will not save himself,
and the one riding a horse will not save his life.(BN)
16 Even the most courageous of the warriors
will flee naked on that day(BO)—
this is the Lord’s declaration.
God’s Reasons for Punishing Israel
3 Listen to this message that the Lord has spoken against you, Israelites, against the entire clan that I brought from the land of Egypt:(BP)
2 I have known only you(BQ)
out of all the clans of the earth;
therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities.(BR)
3 Can two walk together(BS)
without agreeing to meet?
4 Does a lion roar(BT) in the forest
when it has no prey?
Does a young lion growl from its lair
unless it has captured something?
5 Does a bird land in a trap on the ground
if there is no bait for it?
Does a trap spring from the ground
when it has caught nothing?
6 If a ram’s horn(BU) is blown in a city,
aren’t people afraid?(BV)
If a disaster(BW) occurs in a city,
hasn’t the Lord done it?(BX)
7 Indeed, the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his counsel
to his servants the prophets.(BY)
8 A lion has roared;(BZ)
who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken;(CA)
who will not prophesy?(CB)
9 Proclaim on the citadels in Ashdod(CC)
and on the citadels in the land of Egypt:
Assemble on the mountains of Samaria,(CD)
and see the great turmoil in the city
and the acts of oppression within it.(CE)
10 The people are incapable of doing right(CF)—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
those who store up violence and destruction(CG)
in their citadels.
11 Therefore, the Lord God says:
An enemy(CH) will surround the land;
he will destroy(CI) your strongholds
and plunder your citadels.(CJ)
12 The Lord says:
As the shepherd snatches two legs
or a piece of an ear
from the lion’s mouth,(CK)
so the Israelites who live in Samaria
will be rescued
with only the corner of a bed(CL)
or the[f] cushion[g] of a couch.[h](CM)
13 Listen and testify(CN) against the house of Jacob—
this is the declaration of the Lord God,
the God of Armies.
14 I will punish the altars of Bethel(CO)
on the day I punish Israel for its crimes;
the horns of the altar(CP) will be cut off
and fall to the ground.(CQ)
15 I will demolish the winter house(CR)
and the summer house;(CS)
the houses inlaid with ivory(CT) will be destroyed,
and the great houses(CU) will come to an end.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
Matthew 13
Christian Standard Bible
The Parable of the Sower
13 On that day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea.(A) 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, while the whole crowd stood on the shore.(B)
3 Then he told them many things in parables,(C) saying, “Consider the sower who went out to sow. 4 As he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground where it didn’t have much soil, and it grew up quickly since the soil wasn’t deep. 6 But when the sun came up, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it. 8 Still other seed fell on good ground and produced fruit: some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what was sown.(D) 9 Let anyone who has ears[a] listen.”(E)
Why Jesus Used Parables
10 Then the disciples(F) came up and asked him, “Why are you speaking to them in parables?” (G)
11 He answered, “Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven have been given for you to know,(H) but it has not been given to them. 12 For whoever has, more will be given to him, and he will have more than enough; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.(I) 13 That is why I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see,(J) and hearing they do not listen or understand.(K) 14 Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:
You will listen and listen,
but never understand;
you will look and look,
but never perceive.(L)
15 For this people’s heart has grown callous;
their ears are hard of hearing,
and they have shut their eyes;
otherwise they might see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears, and
understand with their hearts,
and turn back—
and I would heal them.[b](M)
16 “Blessed are your eyes(N) because they do see, and your ears because they do hear.(O) 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see but didn’t see them, to hear the things you hear but didn’t hear them.(P)
The Parable of the Sower Explained
18 “So listen to the parable of the sower: (Q) 19 When anyone hears the word about the kingdom and doesn’t understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the one sown along the path.(R) 20 And the one sown on rocky ground—this is one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy.(S) 21 But he has no root and is short-lived. When distress or persecution(T) comes because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 Now the one sown among the thorns—this is one who hears the word, but the worries of this age(U) and the deceitfulness[c] of wealth(V) choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 23 But the one sown on the good ground—this is one who hears and understands the word, who does produce fruit and yields: some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty times what was sown.”
The Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds
24 He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.(W) 25 But while people were sleeping, his enemy came, sowed weeds among the wheat, and left. 26 When the plants sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also appeared. 27 The landowner’s servants(X) came to him and said, ‘Master, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?’
28 “‘An enemy did this,’ he told them.
“‘So, do you want us to go and pull them up?’ the servants asked him.
29 “‘No,’ he said. ‘When you pull up the weeds, you might also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I’ll tell the reapers: Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles to burn them, but collect the wheat in my barn.’”
The Parables of the Mustard Seed and of the Leaven
31 He(Y) presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven(Z) is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It’s the smallest of all the seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”(AA)
33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven[d] that a woman took and mixed into fifty pounds[e] of flour until all of it was leavened.”(AB)
Using Parables Fulfills Prophecy
34 Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables, and he did not tell them anything without a parable,(AC) 35 so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled:
I will open my mouth in parables;
I will declare things kept secret
from the foundation of the world.[f][g](AD)
Jesus Interprets the Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds
36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”(AE)
37 He replied, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; 38 the field is the world; and the good seed—these are the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one,(AF) 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.(AG) 40 Therefore, just as the weeds are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.(AH) 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom all who cause sin[h] and those guilty of lawlessness.[i](AI) 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace(AJ) where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.(AK) 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father’s kingdom. Let anyone who has ears[j] listen.(AL)
The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and of the Priceless Pearl
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field.(AM)
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. 46 When he found one priceless[k] pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.(AN)
The Parable of the Net
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea. It collected every kind of fish,(AO) 48 and when it was full, they dragged it ashore, sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, but threw out the worthless ones. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out, separate the evil people from the righteous,(AP) 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.(AQ)
The Storehouse of Truth
51 “Have you understood all these things?”[l]
They answered him, “Yes.”
52 “Therefore,” he said to them, “every teacher of the law[m] who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom treasures new and old.”(AR)
Rejection at Nazareth
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he left there. 54 He went to his hometown(AS) and began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?(AT) 55 Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?(AU) Isn’t his mother called Mary, and his brothers James,(AV) Joseph,[n] Simon, and Judas?(AW) 56 And his sisters, aren’t they all with us? So where does he get all these things?” 57 And they were offended by him.
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his household.”(AX) 58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.
Footnotes
- 13:9 Other mss add to hear
- 13:14–15 Is 6:9–10
- 13:22 Or pleasure
- 13:33 Or yeast
- 13:33 Lit three sata; about forty liters
- 13:35 Some mss omit of the world
- 13:35 Ps 78:2
- 13:41 Or stumbling
- 13:41 Or those who do lawlessness
- 13:43 Other mss add to hear
- 13:46 Or very precious
- 13:51 Other mss add Jesus asked them
- 13:52 Or every scribe
- 13:55 Other mss read Joses; Mk 6:3
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
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