Hagar and Ishmael

16 Now Sarai,^(A) Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.^(B) But she had an Egyptian slave^(C) named Hagar;^{(D) 2} so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children.^(E) Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”^(F)

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. ³ So after Abram had been living in Canaan^(G) ten years,^(H) Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar,^(I) and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.^{(J) 5} Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”^(K)

⁶ “Your slave is in your hands,^(L)” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated^(M) Hagar; so she fled from her.

⁷ The angel of the Lord^(N) found Hagar near a spring^(O) in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.^{(P) 8} And he said, “Hagar,^(Q) slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”^(R)

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

⁹ Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” ¹⁰ The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”^(S)

¹¹ The angel of the Lord^(T) also said to her:

¹³ She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,^(AA)” for she said, “I have now seen^[c] the One who sees me.”^{(AB) 14} That is why the well^(AC) was called Beer Lahai Roi^[d];^(AD) it is still there, between Kadesh^(AE) and Bered.

¹⁵ So Hagar^(AF) bore Abram a son,^(AG) and Abram gave the name Ishmael^(AH) to the son she had borne. ¹⁶ Abram was eighty-six years old^(AI) when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

Nehemiah Helps the Poor

5 Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their fellow Jews. ² Some were saying, “We and our sons and daughters are numerous; in order for us to eat and stay alive, we must get grain.”

³ Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields,^(A) our vineyards and our homes to get grain during the famine.”^(B)

⁴ Still others were saying, “We have had to borrow money to pay the king’s tax^(C) on our fields and vineyards. ⁵ Although we are of the same flesh and blood^(D) as our fellow Jews and though our children are as good as theirs, yet we have to subject our sons and daughters to slavery.^(E) Some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but we are powerless, because our fields and our vineyards belong to others.”^(F)

⁶ When I heard their outcry and these charges, I was very angry. ⁷ I pondered them in my mind and then accused the nobles and officials. I told them, “You are charging your own people interest!”^(G) So I called together a large meeting to deal with them ⁸ and said: “As far as possible, we have bought^(H) back our fellow Jews who were sold to the Gentiles. Now you are selling your own people, only for them to be sold back to us!” They kept quiet, because they could find nothing to say.^(I)

⁹ So I continued, “What you are doing is not right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God to avoid the reproach^(J) of our Gentile enemies? ¹⁰ I and my brothers and my men are also lending the people money and grain. But let us stop charging interest!^{(K) 11} Give back to them immediately their fields, vineyards, olive groves and houses, and also the interest^(L) you are charging them—one percent of the money, grain, new wine and olive oil.”

¹² “We will give it back,” they said. “And we will not demand anything more from them. We will do as you say.”

Then I summoned the priests and made the nobles and officials take an oath^(M) to do what they had promised. ¹³ I also shook^(N) out the folds of my robe and said, “In this way may God shake out of their house and possessions anyone who does not keep this promise. So may such a person be shaken out and emptied!”

At this the whole assembly said, “Amen,”^(O) and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.

¹⁴ Moreover, from the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes,^(P) when I was appointed to be their governor^(Q) in the land of Judah, until his thirty-second year—twelve years—neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor. ¹⁵ But the earlier governors—those preceding me—placed a heavy burden on the people and took forty shekels^[a] of silver from them in addition to food and wine. Their assistants also lorded it over the people. But out of reverence for God^(R) I did not act like that. ¹⁶ Instead,^(S) I devoted myself to the work on this wall. All my men were assembled there for the work; we^[b] did not acquire any land.

¹⁷ Furthermore, a hundred and fifty Jews and officials ate at my table, as well as those who came to us from the surrounding nations. ¹⁸ Each day one ox, six choice sheep and some poultry^(T) were prepared for me, and every ten days an abundant supply of wine of all kinds. In spite of all this, I never demanded the food allotted to the governor, because the demands were heavy on these people.

¹⁹ Remember^(U) me with favor, my God, for all I have done for these people.

Jesus and John the Baptist^(A)

11 After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples,^(B) he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.^[a]

² When John,^(C) who was in prison,^(D) heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples ³ to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come,^(E) or should we expect someone else?”

⁴ Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: ⁵ The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy^[b] are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.^{(F) 6} Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”^(G)

⁷ As John’s^(H) disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness^(I) to see? A reed swayed by the wind? ⁸ If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. ⁹ Then what did you go out to see? A prophet?^(J) Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰ This is the one about whom it is written:

¹¹ Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. ¹² From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence,^[d] and violent people have been raiding it. ¹³ For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John.^{(M) 14} And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.^{(N) 15} Whoever has ears, let them hear.^(O)

¹⁶ “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:

¹⁸ For John came neither eating^(P) nor drinking,^(Q) and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ ¹⁹ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’^(R) But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”

Woe on Unrepentant Towns^(S)

²⁰ Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. ²¹ “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!^(T) For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon,^(U) they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.^{(V) 22} But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.^{(W) 23} And you, Capernaum,^(X) will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.^[e](Y) For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. ²⁴ But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”^(Z)

The Father Revealed in the Son^(AA)

²⁵ At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father,^(AB) Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.^{(AC) 26} Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.

²⁷ “All things have been committed to me^(AD) by my Father.^(AE) No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.^(AF)

²⁸ “Come to me,^(AG) all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.^{(AH) 29} Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,^(AI) for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.^{(AJ) 30} For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”^(AK)