⁶ So these officers and chief administrators ganged together and went to the king. They said to him, “Long live King Darius! ⁷ All the officers of the kingdom, the ministers, the chief administrators, the royal associates, and the governors advise the king to issue an edict and enforce a law, that for thirty days anyone who says prayers to any god or human being except you, Your Majesty, will be thrown into a pit of lions. ⁸ Now, Your Majesty, issue the law and sign the document so that it cannot be changed, as per the law of Media and Persia, which cannot be annulled.” ⁹ Because of this, King Darius signed the document containing the law.

Daniel prays

¹⁰ When Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went to his house. Now his upper room had open windows that faced Jerusalem. Daniel knelt down, prayed, and praised his God three times that day, just like he always did. ¹¹ Just then these men, all ganged together, came upon Daniel praying and seeking mercy from his God. ¹² They then went and talked to the king about the law: “Your Majesty! Didn’t you sign a law, that for thirty days any person who prays to any god or human being besides you, Your Majesty, would be thrown into a pit of lions?”

The king replied, “The decision is absolutely firm in accordance with the law of Media and Persia, which cannot be annulled.”

¹³ So they said to the king, “One of the Judean exiles, Daniel, has ignored you, Your Majesty, as well as the law you signed. He says his prayers three times a day!”

¹⁴ When the king heard this report, he was very unhappy. He decided to rescue Daniel and did everything he could do to save Daniel before the sun went down. ¹⁵ But these men, all ganged together, came and said to the king, “You must realize, Your Majesty, that the law of Media and Persia, including every law and edict the king has issued, cannot be changed.”

Daniel in the lions’ pit

¹⁶ So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and hurled him into the pit of lions.

The king said to Daniel: “Your God—the one you serve so consistently—will rescue you.”^[a]

¹⁷ A single stone was brought and placed over the entrance to the pit. The king sealed it with his own ring and with those of his princes so that Daniel’s situation couldn’t be changed. ¹⁸ The king then went home to his palace and fasted through the night. No pleasures^[b] were brought to him, and he couldn’t sleep. ¹⁹ At dawn, at the first sign of light, the king rose and rushed to the lions’ pit.

²⁰ As he approached it, he called out to Daniel, worried: “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God—the one you serve so consistently—able to rescue you from the lions?”

²¹ Then Daniel answered the king: “Long live the king! ²² My God sent his messenger, who shut the lions’ mouths. They haven’t touched me because I was judged innocent before my God. I haven’t done anything wrong to you either, Your Majesty.”

²³ The king was thrilled. He commanded that Daniel be brought up out of the pit, and Daniel was lifted out. Not a scratch was found on him, because he trusted in his God. ²⁴ The king then ordered that the men who had accused Daniel be brought and thrown into the lions’ pit—including their wives and children. They hadn’t even reached the bottom of the pit before the lions overpowered them, crushing all their bones.

New decree

²⁵ Then King Darius wrote the following decree:

Psalm 99

²⁰ “When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you will know that its destruction is close at hand. ²¹ At that time, those in Judea must flee to the mountains, those in the city must escape, and those in the countryside must not enter the city. ²² These are the days of punishment, when everything written will find its fulfillment. ²³ How terrible it will be at that time for women who are pregnant or for women who are nursing their children. There will be great agony on the earth and angry judgment on this people. ²⁴ They will fall by the edge of the sword and be taken away as captives among all nations. Jerusalem will be plundered by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are concluded.

²⁵ “There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars. On the earth, there will be dismay among nations in their confusion over the roaring of the sea and surging waves. ²⁶ The planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken, causing people to faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world. ²⁷ Then they will see the Human One^[a] coming on a cloud with power and great splendor. ²⁸ Now when these things begin to happen, stand up straight and raise your heads, because your redemption is near.”

The ceremony upon entering the land

26 Once you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you take possession of it and are settled there, ² take some of the early produce of the fertile ground that you have harvested from the land the Lord your God is giving you, and put it in a basket. Then go to the location the Lord your God selects for his name to reside. ³ Go to the priest who is in office at that time and say to him: “I am declaring right now before the Lord my^[a] God that I have indeed arrived in the land the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us.”

⁴ The priest will then take the basket from you and place it before the Lord your God’s altar. ⁵ Then you should solemnly state before the Lord your God:

“My father was a starving Aramean. He went down to Egypt, living as an immigrant there with few family members, but that is where he became a great nation, mighty and numerous. ⁶ The Egyptians treated us terribly, oppressing us and forcing hard labor on us. ⁷ So we cried out for help to the Lord, our ancestors’ God. The Lord heard our call. God saw our misery, our trouble, and our oppression. ⁸ The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, with awesome power, and with signs and wonders. ⁹ He brought us to this place and gave us this land—a land full of milk and honey. ¹⁰ So now I am bringing the early produce of the fertile ground that you, Lord, have given me.”

Set the produce before the Lord your God, bowing down before the Lord your God. ¹¹ Then celebrate all the good things the Lord your God has done for you and your family—each one of you along with the Levites and the immigrants who are among you.

Psalm 100

A psalm of thanks.

⁴ Be glad in the Lord always! Again I say, be glad! ⁵ Let your gentleness show in your treatment of all people. The Lord is near. ⁶ Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. ⁷ Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.

⁸ From now on, brothers and sisters, if anything is excellent and if anything is admirable, focus your thoughts on these things: all that is true, all that is holy, all that is just, all that is pure, all that is lovely, and all that is worthy of praise. ⁹ Practice these things: whatever you learned, received, heard, or saw in us. The God of peace will be with you.

²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

Bread of life

²⁶ Jesus replied, “I assure you that you are looking for me not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate all the food you wanted. ²⁷ Don’t work for the food that doesn’t last but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Human One^[a] will give you. God the Father has confirmed him as his agent to give life.”

²⁸ They asked, “What must we do in order to accomplish what God requires?”

²⁹ Jesus replied, “This is what God requires, that you believe in him whom God sent.”

³⁰ They asked, “What miraculous sign will you do, that we can see and believe you? What will you do? ³¹ Our ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”^[b]

³² Jesus told them, “I assure you, it wasn’t Moses who gave the bread from heaven to you, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ The bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

³⁴ They said, “Sir,^[c] give us this bread all the time!”

³⁵ Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.