The Siege of Jerusalem Symbolized

4 “And you, ^(A)son of man, ^(B)take a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem. ^2 (C)And put siegeworks against it, ^(D)and build a siege wall against it, ^(E)and cast up a mound against it. Set camps also against it, ^(F)and plant battering rams against it all around. ³ And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; ^(G)and set your face toward it, ^(H)and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is ^(I)a sign for the house of Israel.

⁴ “Then lie on your left side, and place the punishment^[a] of the house of Israel upon it. For the number of the days that you lie on it, ^(J)you shall bear their punishment. ⁵ For I assign to you a number of days, ^(K)390 days, ^(L)equal to the number of the years of their punishment. ^(M)So long shall you bear ^(N)the punishment of the house of Israel. ⁶ And when you have completed these, you shall lie down a second time, but on your right side, and ^(O)bear ^(P)the punishment of the house of Judah. ^(Q)Forty days I assign you, a day for each year. ^7 (R)And you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem, ^(S)with your arm bared, and you shall prophesy against the city. ⁸ And behold, ^(T)I will place cords upon you, so that you cannot turn from one side to the other, till you have completed ^(U)the days of your siege.

⁹ “And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and emmer,^[b] and put them into a single vessel and make your ^(V)bread from them. ^(W)During the number of days that you lie on your side, ^(X)390 days, you shall eat it. ¹⁰ And your food that you eat shall be ^(Y)by weight, ^(Z)twenty shekels^[c] a day; from day to day^[d] you shall eat it. ¹¹ And water you shall drink ^(AA)by measure, the sixth part of a hin;^[e] from day to day you shall drink. ¹² And you shall eat it as a barley cake, baking it ^(AB)in their sight on human dung.” ¹³ And the Lord said, “Thus shall the people of Israel eat ^(AC)their bread unclean, among the nations where I will drive them.” ¹⁴ Then I said, ^(AD)“Ah, Lord God! Behold, I have never defiled myself.^{[f] (AE)}From my youth up till now I have never eaten ^(AF)what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has ^(AG)tainted meat come into my mouth.” ¹⁵ Then he said to me, “See, I assign to you cow's dung instead of human dung, on which you may prepare your bread.” ¹⁶ Moreover, he said to me, ^(AH)“Son of man, behold, ^(AI)I will break the supply^[g] of bread in Jerusalem. They shall eat bread ^(AJ)by weight and with anxiety, and they shall drink water ^(AK)by measure and in dismay. ¹⁷ I will do this that they may lack bread and water, and ^(AL)look at one another in dismay, and ^(AM)rot away because of their punishment.

Jerusalem Will Be Destroyed

5 “And you, ^(AN)O son of man, take a ^(AO)sharp sword. Use it as ^(AP)a barber's razor and ^(AQ)pass it over your head and your beard. Then take balances for weighing and divide the hair. ^2 (AR)A third part you shall burn in the fire ^(AS)in the midst of the city, ^(AT)when the days of the siege are completed. And a third part you shall take and strike with the sword all around the city. ^(AU)And a third part you shall scatter to the wind, and ^(AV)I will unsheathe the sword after them. ^3 (AW)And you shall take from these a small number and bind them in the skirts of your robe. ^4 (AX)And of these again you shall take some and cast them into the midst of the fire and burn them in the fire. From there a fire will come out into all the house of Israel.

⁵ “Thus says the Lord God: ^(AY)This is Jerusalem. I have set her ^(AZ)in the center of the nations, with countries all around her. ⁶ And she has rebelled against my rules by doing wickedness ^(BA)more than the nations, and against my statutes more than ^(BB)the countries all around her; for they have rejected my rules and have not walked in my statutes. ⁷ Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you are ^(BC)more turbulent than the nations that are all around you, ^(BD)and have not walked in my statutes or obeyed my rules, ^(BE)and have not^[h] even acted according to the rules of the nations that are all around you, ⁸ therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, even I, ^(BF)am against you. ^(BG)And I will execute judgments^[i] in your midst ^(BH)in the sight of the nations. ⁹ And because of all your abominations I will do with you ^(BI)what I have never yet done, and the like of which I will never do again. ¹⁰ Therefore ^(BJ)fathers shall eat their sons in your midst, and sons shall eat their fathers. ^(BK)And I will execute judgments on you, ^(BL)and any of you who survive I will scatter to all the winds. ¹¹ Therefore, ^(BM)as I live, declares the Lord God, surely, ^(BN)because you have defiled my sanctuary ^(BO)with all your detestable things and with all your ^(BP)abominations, ^(BQ)therefore I will withdraw.^{[j] (BR)}My eye will not spare, and I will have no pity. ^12 (BS)A third part of you shall die of pestilence and be consumed with famine in your midst; ^(BT)a third part shall fall by the sword all around you; ^(BU)and a third part I will scatter to all the winds and will unsheathe the sword after them.

^13 (BV)“Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that ^(BW)I am the Lord—that I have spoken in my jealousy—^(BX)when I spend my fury upon them. ¹⁴ Moreover, I will make you ^(BY)a desolation and ^(BZ)an object of reproach among ^(CA)the nations all around you and in the sight of all who pass by. ¹⁵ You shall be^[k] a reproach and a taunt, a warning ^(CB)and a horror, to ^(CC)the nations all around you, ^(CD)when I execute judgments on you in anger and fury, and ^(CE)with furious rebukes—I am the Lord; I have spoken— ¹⁶ when I send against you^{[l] (CF)}the deadly arrows of famine, arrows for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, and when I bring more and more famine upon ^(CG)you and break your supply^[m] of bread. ¹⁷ I will send famine and ^(CH)wild beasts against you, ^(CI)and they will rob you of your children. Pestilence and ^(CJ)blood shall pass through you, and I will bring the sword upon you. I am the Lord; I have spoken.”

The King of Glory

A Psalm of David.

The Word Became Flesh

1 ^(A)In the beginning was ^(B)the Word, and ^(C)the Word was with God, and ^(D)the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ^3 (E)All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. ^4 (F)In him was life,^[a] and ^(G)the life was the light of men. ^5 (H)The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

⁶ There was a man ^(I)sent from God, whose name was ^(J)John. ⁷ He came as a ^(K)witness, to bear witness about the light, ^(L)that all might believe through him. ^8 (M)He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

^9 (N)The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet ^(O)the world did not know him. ¹¹ He came to ^(P)his own,^[b] and ^(Q)his own people^{[c] (R)}did not receive him. ¹² But to all who did receive him, ^(S)who believed in his name, ^(T)he gave the right ^(U)to become ^(V)children of God, ¹³ who ^(W)were born, ^(X)not of blood ^(Y)nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

¹⁴ And ^(Z)the Word ^(AA)became flesh and ^(AB)dwelt among us, ^(AC)and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son^[d] from the Father, full of ^(AD)grace and ^(AE)truth. ¹⁵ (^(AF)John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ^(AG)‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) ¹⁶ For from ^(AH)his fullness we have all received, ^(AI)grace upon grace.^{[e] 17} For ^(AJ)the law was given through Moses; ^(AK)grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ^18 (AL)No one has ever seen God; ^(AM)God the only Son, who^[f] is at the Father's side,^{[g] (AN)}he has made him known.

The Testimony of John the Baptist

¹⁹ And this is the ^(AO)testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ^(AP)“Who are you?” ^20 (AQ)He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” ²¹ And they asked him, “What then? ^(AR)Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you ^(AS)the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” ²² So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” ²³ He said, “I am ^(AT)the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight^[h] the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

²⁴ (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) ²⁵ They asked him, ^(AU)“Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” ²⁶ John answered them, ^(AV)“I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, ²⁷ even ^(AW)he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” ²⁸ These things took place in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Behold, the Lamb of God

²⁹ The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, ^(AX)the Lamb of God, who ^(AY)takes away the sin ^(AZ)of the world! ³⁰ This is he of whom I said, ^(BA)‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ ³¹ I myself did not know him, but ^(BB)for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” ³² And John ^(BC)bore witness: ^(BD)“I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and ^(BE)it remained on him. ³³ I myself did not know him, but ^(BF)he who sent me to baptize ^(BG)with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, ^(BH)this is he who baptizes ^(BI)with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son^[i] of God.”

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

³⁵ The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶ and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, ^(BJ)the Lamb of God!” ³⁷ The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. ³⁸ Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, ^(BK)“What are you seeking?” And they said to him, ^(BL)“Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” ³⁹ He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.^{[j] 40 (BM)}One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus^[k] was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. ⁴¹ He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found ^(BN)the Messiah” (which means Christ). ⁴² He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of ^(BO)John. You shall be called ^(BP)Cephas” (which means ^(BQ)Peter^[l]).

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

^43 (BR)The next day Jesus decided ^(BS)to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” ⁴⁴ Now ^(BT)Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. ⁴⁵ Philip found ^(BU)Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom ^(BV)Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus ^(BW)of Nazareth, ^(BX)the son of Joseph.” ⁴⁶ Nathanael said to him, ^(BY)“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” ⁴⁷ Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, ^(BZ)an Israelite indeed, ^(CA)in whom there is no deceit!” ⁴⁸ Nathanael said to him, “How ^(CB)do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” ⁴⁹ Nathanael answered him, ^(CC)“Rabbi, ^(CD)you are the Son of God! You are the ^(CE)King of Israel!” ⁵⁰ Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” ⁵¹ And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you,^[m] you will see ^(CF)heaven opened, and ^(CG)the angels of God ascending and descending on ^(CH)the Son of Man.”

The Wedding at Cana

2 On ^(CI)the third day there was a wedding at ^(CJ)Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. ² Jesus also was invited to the wedding with ^(CK)his disciples. ³ When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” ⁴ And Jesus said to her, ^(CL)“Woman, ^(CM)what does this have to do with me? ^(CN)My hour has not yet come.” ⁵ His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

⁶ Now there were six stone water jars there ^(CO)for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty ^(CP)gallons.^{[n] 7} Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. ⁸ And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. ⁹ When the master of the feast tasted ^(CQ)the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom ¹⁰ and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” ¹¹ This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested ^(CR)his glory. And ^(CS)his disciples believed in him.

¹² After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and ^(CT)his brothers^[o] and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

^13 (CU)The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus ^(CV)went up to Jerusalem. ^14 (CW)In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. ¹⁵ And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. ¹⁶ And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make ^(CX)my Father's house a house of trade.” ¹⁷ His disciples remembered that it was written, ^(CY)“Zeal for your house will consume me.”

¹⁸ So the Jews said to him, ^(CZ)“What sign do you show us for doing these things?” ¹⁹ Jesus answered them, ^(DA)“Destroy this temple, and in three days ^(DB)I will raise it up.” ²⁰ The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple,^[p] and will you raise it up in three days?” ²¹ But he was speaking about ^(DC)the temple of his body. ²² When therefore he was raised from the dead, ^(DD)his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed ^(DE)the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

Jesus Knows What Is in Man

²³ Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name ^(DF)when they saw the signs that he was doing. ²⁴ But Jesus ^(DG)on his part did not entrust himself to them, because ^(DH)he knew all people ²⁵ and needed no one to bear witness about man, for ^(DI)he himself knew what was in man.

You Must Be Born Again

3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named ^(DJ)Nicodemus, ^(DK)a ruler of the Jews. ² This man came to Jesus^{[q] (DL)}by night and said to him, ^(DM)“Rabbi, ^(DN)we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do ^(DO)unless God is with him.” ³ Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is ^(DP)born ^(DQ)again^[r] he cannot ^(DR)see the kingdom of God.” ⁴ Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” ⁵ Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born ^(DS)of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ^6 (DT)That which is born of the flesh is ^(DU)flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.^{[s] 7 (DV)}Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You^[t] must be born ^(DW)again.’ ^8 (DX)The wind^[u] blows ^(DY)where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

⁹ Nicodemus said to him, ^(DZ)“How can these things be?” ¹⁰ Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel ^(EA)and yet you do not understand these things? ¹¹ Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(EB)we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but ^(EC)you^[v] do not receive our testimony. ¹² If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? ^13 (ED)No one has ^(EE)ascended into heaven except ^(EF)he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.^{[w] 14} And ^(EG)as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man ^(EH)be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes ^(EI)in him ^(EJ)may have eternal life.^[x]

For God So Loved the World

¹⁶ “For ^(EK)God so loved ^(EL)the world,^{[y] (EM)}that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not ^(EN)perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For ^(EO)God did not send his Son into the world ^(EP)to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. ^18 (EQ)Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not ^(ER)believed in the name of the only Son of God. ^19 (ES)And this is the judgment: ^(ET)the light has come into the world, and ^(EU)people loved the darkness rather than the light because ^(EV)their works were evil. ^20 (EW)For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, ^(EX)lest his works should be exposed. ²¹ But whoever ^(EY)does what is true ^(EZ)comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

John the Baptist Exalts Christ

²² After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and ^(FA)was baptizing. ²³ John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized ²⁴ (for ^(FB)John had not yet been put in prison).

²⁵ Now a discussion arose between some of John's disciples and a Jew over ^(FC)purification. ²⁶ And they came to John and said to him, ^(FD)“Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, ^(FE)to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and ^(FF)all are going to him.” ²⁷ John answered, ^(FG)“A person cannot receive even one thing ^(FH)unless it is given him ^(FI)from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ^(FJ)‘I am not the Christ, but ^(FK)I have been sent before him.’ ^29 (FL)The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. ^(FM)The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, ^(FN)rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. ^30 (FO)He must increase, but I must decrease.”^[z]

^31 (FP)He who comes from above ^(FQ)is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and ^(FR)speaks in an earthly way. ^(FS)He who comes from heaven ^(FT)is above all. ^32 (FU)He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, ^(FV)yet no one receives his testimony. ³³ Whoever receives his testimony ^(FW)sets his seal to this, ^(FX)that God is true. ³⁴ For he whom ^(FY)God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit ^(FZ)without measure. ^35 (GA)The Father loves the Son and ^(GB)has given all things into his hand. ^36 (GC)Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; ^(GD)whoever does not obey the Son shall not ^(GE)see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.