Daniel Interprets the Second Dream

¹⁹ Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was severely distressed for a while. His thoughts terrified him. The king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or the interpretation terrify you.” Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for your enemies!^{(A) 20} The tree that you saw, which grew great and strong so that its top reached to heaven and was visible to the whole earth,^{(B) 21} whose foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, and which provided food for all, under which animals of the field lived and in whose branches the birds of the air had nests— ²² it is you, O king! You have grown great and strong. Your greatness has increased and reaches to heaven, and your sovereignty to the ends of the earth.^{(C) 23} And whereas the king saw a holy watcher coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Cut down the tree and destroy it, but leave its stump and roots in the ground, with a band of iron and bronze, in the grass of the field, and let him be bathed with the dew of heaven, and let his lot be with the animals of the field, until seven times pass over him’^(D)— ²⁴ this is the interpretation, O king, and it is a decree of the Most High that has come upon my lord the king: ²⁵ You shall be driven away from human society, and your dwelling shall be with the wild animals. You shall be made to eat grass like oxen, you shall be bathed with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, until you have learned that the Most High has sovereignty over the kingdom of mortals and gives it to whom he will.^{(E) 26} As it was commanded to leave the stump and roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be reestablished for you from the time that you learn that Heaven is sovereign.^{(F) 27} Therefore, O king, may my counsel be acceptable to you: atone for^[a] your sins with righteousness and your iniquities with mercy to the oppressed, so that your prosperity may be prolonged.”^(G)

¹⁹ And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him^{(A) 20} whenever our hearts condemn us, for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. ²¹ Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God, ²² and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.^(B)

²³ And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.^{(C) 24} All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.^(D)

Testing the Spirits

4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.^{(E) 2} By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ and every spirit that does not confess Jesus^[a] is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.^{(F) 4} Little children, you are from God and have conquered them, for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. ⁵ They are from the world; therefore what they say is from the world, and the world listens to them. ⁶ We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us, and whoever is not from God does not listen to us. From this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.^(G)

The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry

¹⁴ Then Jesus, in the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding region.^{(A) 15} He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.^(B)

The Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth

¹⁶ When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read,^{(C) 17} and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

²⁰ And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.^{(F) 21} Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” ²² All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”^{(G) 23} He said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.’ ”^{(H) 24} And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in his hometown.^{(I) 25} But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months and there was a severe famine over all the land,^{(J) 26} yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. ²⁷ There were also many with a skin disease in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”^{(K) 28} When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. ²⁹ They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff.^{(L) 30} But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.^(M)