Jacob Returns to Bethel

35 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel^(A) and settle there, and build an altar^(B) there to God,^(C) who appeared to you^(D) when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”^(E)

² So Jacob said to his household^(F) and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods^(G) you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.^{(H) 3} Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God,^(I) who answered me in the day of my distress^(J) and who has been with me wherever I have gone.^(K)” ⁴ So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears,^(L) and Jacob buried them under the oak^(M) at Shechem.^{(N) 5} Then they set out, and the terror of God^(O) fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.^(P)

⁶ Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz^(Q) (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.^{(R) 7} There he built an altar,^(S) and he called the place El Bethel,^[a](T) because it was there that God revealed himself to him^(U) when he was fleeing from his brother.^(V)

⁸ Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse,^(W) died and was buried under the oak^(X) outside Bethel.^(Y) So it was named Allon Bakuth.^[b]

⁹ After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram,^[c](Z) God appeared to him again and blessed him.^{(AA) 10} God said to him, “Your name is Jacob,^[d] but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.^[e]”^(AB) So he named him Israel.

¹¹ And God said to him, “I am God Almighty^[f];^(AC) be fruitful and increase in number.^(AD) A nation^(AE) and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.^{(AF) 12} The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.^(AG)”^{(AH) 13} Then God went up from him^(AI) at the place where he had talked with him.

¹⁴ Jacob set up a stone pillar^(AJ) at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering^(AK) on it; he also poured oil on it.^{(AL) 15} Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel.^[g](AM)

²² But the Israelites encouraged one another and again took up their positions where they had stationed themselves the first day. ²³ The Israelites went up and wept before the Lord^(A) until evening,^(B) and they inquired of the Lord.^(C) They said, “Shall we go up again to fight^(D) against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites?”

The Lord answered, “Go up against them.”

²⁴ Then the Israelites drew near to Benjamin the second day. ²⁵ This time, when the Benjamites came out from Gibeah to oppose them, they cut down another eighteen thousand Israelites,^(E) all of them armed with swords.

²⁶ Then all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel, and there they sat weeping before the Lord.^(F) They fasted^(G) that day until evening and presented burnt offerings^(H) and fellowship offerings^(I) to the Lord.^{(J) 27} And the Israelites inquired of the Lord.^(K) (In those days the ark of the covenant of God^(L) was there, ²⁸ with Phinehas son of Eleazar,^(M) the son of Aaron, ministering before it.)^(N) They asked, “Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites, or not?”

The Lord responded, “Go, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands.^(O)”

²⁹ Then Israel set an ambush^(P) around Gibeah. ³⁰ They went up against the Benjamites on the third day and took up positions against Gibeah as they had done before. ³¹ The Benjamites came out to meet them and were drawn away^(Q) from the city. They began to inflict casualties on the Israelites as before, so that about thirty men fell in the open field and on the roads—the one leading to Bethel^(R) and the other to Gibeah. ³² While the Benjamites were saying, “We are defeating them as before,”^(S) the Israelites were saying, “Let’s retreat and draw them away from the city to the roads.”

³³ All the men of Israel moved from their places and took up positions at Baal Tamar, and the Israelite ambush charged out of its place^(T) on the west^[a] of Gibeah.^{[b] 34} Then ten thousand of Israel’s able young men made a frontal attack on Gibeah. The fighting was so heavy that the Benjamites did not realize^(U) how near disaster was.^{(V) 35} The Lord defeated Benjamin^(W) before Israel, and on that day the Israelites struck down 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with swords. ³⁶ Then the Benjamites saw that they were beaten.

Now the men of Israel had given way^(X) before Benjamin, because they relied on the ambush^(Y) they had set near Gibeah. ³⁷ Those who had been in ambush made a sudden dash into Gibeah, spread out and put the whole city to the sword.^{(Z) 38} The Israelites had arranged with the ambush that they should send up a great cloud of smoke^(AA) from the city,^{(AB) 39} and then the Israelites would counterattack.

The Benjamites had begun to inflict casualties on the Israelites (about thirty), and they said, “We are defeating them as in the first battle.”^{(AC) 40} But when the column of smoke began to rise from the city, the Benjamites turned and saw the whole city going up in smoke.^{(AD) 41} Then the Israelites counterattacked,^(AE) and the Benjamites were terrified, because they realized that disaster had come^(AF) on them. ⁴² So they fled before the Israelites in the direction of the wilderness, but they could not escape the battle. And the Israelites who came out of the towns cut them down there. ⁴³ They surrounded the Benjamites, chased them and easily^[c] overran them in the vicinity of Gibeah on the east. ⁴⁴ Eighteen thousand Benjamites fell, all of them valiant fighters.^{(AG) 45} As they turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon,^(AH) the Israelites cut down five thousand men along the roads. They kept pressing after the Benjamites as far as Gidom and struck down two thousand more.

⁴⁶ On that day twenty-five thousand Benjamite^(AI) swordsmen fell, all of them valiant fighters. ⁴⁷ But six hundred of them turned and fled into the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, where they stayed four months. ⁴⁸ The men of Israel went back to Benjamin and put all the towns to the sword, including the animals and everything else they found. All the towns they came across they set on fire.^(AJ)

Stubborn Israel

35 Then Elihu said:

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time^(A)

¹⁷ Now Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, ¹⁸ “We are going up to Jerusalem,^(B) and the Son of Man^(C) will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.^(D) They will condemn him to death ¹⁹ and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged^(E) and crucified.^(F) On the third day^(G) he will be raised to life!”^(H)

A Mother’s Request^(I)

²⁰ Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons^(J) came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down,^(K) asked a favor of him.

²¹ “What is it you want?” he asked.

She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”^(L)

²² “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup^(M) I am going to drink?”

“We can,” they answered.

²³ Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup,^(N) but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”

²⁴ When the ten heard about this, they were indignant^(O) with the two brothers. ²⁵ Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ²⁶ Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,^{(P) 27} and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— ²⁸ just as the Son of Man^(Q) did not come to be served, but to serve,^(R) and to give his life as a ransom^(S) for many.”

²⁵ “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom^(A) will ever see me again.^{(B) 26} Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you.^{(C) 27} For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.^{(D) 28} Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock^(E) of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.^(F) Be shepherds of the church of God,^[a](G) which he bought^(H) with his own blood.^{[b](I) 29} I know that after I leave, savage wolves^(J) will come in among you and will not spare the flock.^{(K) 30} Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples^(L) after them. ³¹ So be on your guard! Remember that for three years^(M) I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.^(N)

³² “Now I commit you to God^(O) and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance^(P) among all those who are sanctified.^{(Q) 33} I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.^{(R) 34} You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.^{(S) 35} In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

³⁶ When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed.^{(T) 37} They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.^{(U) 38} What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again.^(V) Then they accompanied him to the ship.^(W)