Genesis 33
Christian Standard Bible
Jacob Meets Esau
33 Now Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming toward him with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two slave women. 2 He put the slaves and their children first, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed to the ground(A) seven times until he approached his brother.
4 But Esau ran to meet him, hugged him, threw his arms around him, and kissed him. Then they wept.(B) 5 When Esau looked up and saw the women and children, he asked, “Who are these with you?”
He answered, “The children God has graciously given your servant.”(C) 6 Then the slaves and their children approached him and bowed down. 7 Leah and her children also approached and bowed down, and then Joseph and Rachel approached and bowed down.
8 So Esau said, “What do you mean by this whole procession[a] I met?” (D)
“To find favor with you, my lord,”(E) he answered.
9 “I have enough, my brother,” Esau replied. “Keep what you have.”
10 But Jacob said, “No, please! If I have found favor with you, take this gift from me. For indeed, I have seen your face, and it is like seeing God’s face, since you have accepted me. 11 Please take my present that was brought to you, because God has been gracious to me and I have everything I need.” So Jacob urged him until he accepted.
12 Then Esau said, “Let’s move on, and I’ll go ahead of you.”
13 Jacob replied, “My lord knows that the children are weak, and I have nursing flocks and herds. If they are driven hard for one day, the whole herd will die. 14 Let my lord go ahead of his servant. I will continue on slowly, at a pace suited to the livestock and the children, until I come to my lord at Seir.”
15 Esau said, “Let me leave some of my people with you.”
But he replied, “Why do that? Please indulge me,[b] my lord.”(F)
16 That day Esau started on his way back to Seir, 17 but Jacob went to Succoth. He built a house for himself and shelters for his livestock; that is why the place was called Succoth.[c](G)
18 After Jacob came from Paddan-aram, he arrived safely(H) at Shechem(I) in the land of Canaan and camped in front of the city. 19 He purchased a section of the field where he had pitched his tent from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of silver.[d](J) 20 And he set up an altar there and called it God, the God of Israel.[e]
Mark 4
Christian Standard Bible
The Parable of the Sower
4 Again(A) he began to teach(B) by the sea, and a very large crowd gathered around him. So he got into a boat on the sea and sat down, while the whole crowd was by the sea on the shore. 2 He taught them many things in parables,(C) and in his teaching(D) he said to them, 3 “Listen! Consider the sower who went out to sow.(E) 4 As he sowed, some seed fell along the path,(F) and the birds came and devoured(G) it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground where it didn’t have much soil, and it grew up quickly,(H) since the soil wasn’t deep. 6 When the sun came up, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away.(I) 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it didn’t produce fruit. 8 Still other seed fell on good ground and it grew up, producing fruit that increased(J) thirty, sixty, and a hundred times.”(K) 9 Then he said, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”(L)
Why Jesus Used Parables
10 When he was alone, those around him with the Twelve(M) asked him about the parables.(N) 11 He answered them, “The secret(O) of the kingdom of God(P) has been given to you, but to those outside,(Q) everything comes in parables 12 so that
they may indeed look,
and yet not perceive;
they may indeed listen,
and yet not understand;(R)
otherwise, they might turn back
and be forgiven.”[a][b] (S)
The Parable of the Sower Explained
13 Then(T) he said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable?(U) How then will you understand all of the parables? 14 The sower sows(V) the word.(W) 15 Some are like the word sown on the path.(X) When they hear, immediately Satan(Y) comes and takes away the word(Z) sown in them.[c] 16 And others are like seed sown on rocky ground. When they hear the word, immediately they receive it with joy.(AA) 17 But they have no root; they are short-lived. When distress(AB) or persecution comes because of the word, they immediately fall away.(AC) 18 Others are like seed sown among thorns; these are the ones who hear the word, 19 but the worries(AD) of this age,(AE) the deceitfulness[d](AF) of wealth,(AG) and the desires(AH) for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.(AI) 20 And those like seed sown on good ground hear the word,(AJ) welcome it, and produce fruit(AK) thirty, sixty, and a hundred times what was sown.”
Using Your Light
21 He(AL) also said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed?(AM) Isn’t it to be put on a lampstand?(AN) 22 For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed,(AO) and nothing concealed that will not be brought to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen.”(AP) 24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear. By the measure(AQ) you use,(AR) it will be measured to you—and more will be added(AS) to you. 25 For whoever has, more will be given to him, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”(AT)
The Parable of the Growing Seed
26 “The kingdom of God(AU) is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps(AV) and rises(AW) night(AX) and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop(AY) by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain(AZ) on the head. 29 As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle,(BA) because the harvest(BB) has come.”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 And(BC) he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God,(BD) or what parable(BE) can we use to describe it? 31 It’s like a mustard seed(BF) that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. 32 And when sown,(BG) it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants,(BH) and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky(BI) can nest in its shade.”
Using Parables
33 He was speaking the word(BJ) to them with many parables(BK) like these, as they were able to understand.(BL) 34 He did not speak to them without a parable. Privately, however, he explained everything to his own disciples.(BM)
Wind and Waves Obey Jesus
35 On(BN) that day, when evening had come, he told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.” 36 So they left the crowd and took him along since he was in the boat. And other boats were with him. 37 A great windstorm(BO) arose, and the waves(BP) were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 He was in the stern, sleeping(BQ) on the cushion. So they woke him up(BR) and said to him, “Teacher! Don’t you care that we’re going to die?” (BS)
39 He got up, rebuked(BT) the wind, and said to the sea, “Silence!(BU) Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 Then he said to them, “Why are you afraid?(BV) Do you still have no faith?”
41 And they were terrified[e](BW) and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey(BX) him!” (BY)
Esther 9-10
Christian Standard Bible
Victories of the Jews
9 The king’s command and law(A) went into effect on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month,(B) the month Adar. On the day when the Jews’ enemies(C) had hoped to overpower them, just the opposite happened. The Jews overpowered those who hated them.(D) 2 In each of King Ahasuerus’s provinces(E) the Jews assembled in their cities to attack those who intended to harm them.[a] Not a single person could withstand them; fear of them(F) fell on every nationality.(G)
3 All the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and the royal civil administrators[b](H) aided the Jews because they feared Mordecai.(I) 4 For Mordecai exercised great power in the palace,(J) and his fame spread throughout the provinces as he became more and more powerful.(K)
5 The Jews put all their enemies to the sword, killing and destroying them.(L) They did what they pleased to those who hated them. 6 In the fortress of Susa(M) the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men, 7 including Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. 10 They killed these ten sons(N) of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews.(O) However, they did not seize[c] any plunder.(P)
11 On that day the number of people killed in the fortress of Susa was reported to the king. 12 The king said to Queen Esther, “In the fortress of Susa the Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men, including Haman’s ten sons. What have they done in the rest of the royal provinces? Whatever you ask will be given to you. Whatever you seek will also be done.”(Q)
13 Esther answered, “If it pleases the king, may the Jews who are in Susa also have tomorrow(R) to carry out today’s law,(S) and may the bodies of Haman’s ten sons(T) be hung on the gallows.”(U) 14 The king gave the orders for this to be done, so a law was announced in Susa, and they hung the bodies of Haman’s ten sons. 15 The Jews in Susa assembled again on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar(V) and killed three hundred men in Susa, but they did not seize any plunder.(W)
16 The rest of the Jews in the royal provinces assembled, defended themselves, and gained relief from their enemies. They killed seventy-five thousand[d] of those who hated them,(X) but they did not seize any plunder. 17 They fought on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar and rested on the fourteenth, and it became a day of feasting and rejoicing.
18 But the Jews in Susa had assembled on the thirteenth and the fourteenth days of the month. They rested on the fifteenth day of the month, and it became a day of feasting and rejoicing.(Y) 19 This explains why the rural Jews who live in villages observe the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a time of rejoicing and feasting. It is a holiday when they send gifts to one another.(Z)
20 Mordecai(AA) recorded these events and sent letters to all the Jews in all of King Ahasuerus’s provinces, both near and far. 21 He ordered(AB) them to celebrate the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar every year 22 because during those days the Jews gained relief from(AC) their enemies. That was the month when their sorrow was turned into rejoicing and their mourning into a holiday.(AD) They were to be days of feasting,(AE) rejoicing, and of sending gifts to one another and to the poor.
23 So the Jews agreed to continue the practice they had begun, as Mordecai had written them to do. 24 For Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews,(AF) had plotted against the Jews to destroy them. He cast the pur—that is, the lot—to crush and destroy them.(AG) 25 But when the matter was brought before the king,(AH) he commanded by letter that the evil plan Haman had devised against the Jews return on his own head(AI) and that he should be hanged with his sons on the gallows.(AJ) 26 For this reason these days are called Purim, from the word pur.(AK) Because of all the instructions in this letter as well as what they had witnessed and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews bound themselves, their descendants, and all who joined(AL) with them to a commitment that they would not fail to celebrate these two days each and every year according to the written instructions and according to the time appointed. 28 These days are remembered and celebrated by every generation, family, province, and city, so that these days of Purim will not lose their significance in Jewish life[e] and their memory will not fade from their descendants.(AM)
29 Queen Esther, daughter of Abihail,(AN) along with Mordecai the Jew,(AO) wrote this second letter with full authority(AP) to confirm the letter about Purim. 30 He sent letters with assurances of peace and security[f] to all the Jews who were in the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, 31 in order to confirm these days of Purim at their proper time just as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had established them and just as they had committed themselves and their descendants to the practices of fasting(AQ) and lamentation.(AR) 32 So Esther’s command confirmed these customs of Purim, which were then written into the record.
Mordecai’s Fame
10 King Ahasuerus imposed a tax throughout the land(AS) even to the farthest shores.[g](AT) 2 All of his powerful and magnificent accomplishments(AU) and the detailed account of Mordecai’s great rank with which the king had honored him,(AV) have they not been written in the Book of the Historical Events of the Kings of Media and Persia?(AW) 3 Mordecai the Jew was second only to King Ahasuerus.(AX) He was famous among the Jews and highly esteemed by many of his relatives.(AY) He continued to pursue prosperity for his people and to speak for the well-being of all his descendants.(AZ)
Footnotes
- 9:2 Lit cities to send out a hand against the seekers of their evil
- 9:3 Lit and those who do the king’s work; Est 3:9
- 9:10 Lit not put their hands on, also in vv. 15,16
- 9:16 Some LXX mss read 10,107; other LXX mss read 15,000
- 9:28 LXX reads will be celebrated into all times
- 9:30 Or of peace and faithfulness
- 10:1 Or imposed forced labor on the land and the coasts of the sea
Romans 4
Christian Standard Bible
Abraham Justified by Faith
4 What then will we say that Abraham, our forefather(A) according to the flesh, has found?[a] 2 If Abraham was justified[b] by works,(B) he has something to boast about—but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness.[c](C) 4 Now to the one who works,(D) pay is not credited as a gift, but as something owed. 5 But to the one who does not work, but believes on him who justifies the ungodly,(E) his faith is credited for righteousness.
David Celebrating the Same Truth
6 Likewise, David also speaks of the blessing of the person to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:
7 Blessed are those whose lawless acts are forgiven
and whose sins are covered.
8 Blessed is the person
the Lord will never charge with sin.[d](F)
Abraham Justified before Circumcision
9 Is this blessing only for the circumcised,(G) then? Or is it also for the uncircumcised? For we say, Faith was credited to Abraham for righteousness.[e](H) 10 In what way, then, was it credited—while he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? It was not while he was circumcised, but uncircumcised. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision(I) as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith[f](J) while still uncircumcised. This was to make him the father(K) of all who believe(L) but are not circumcised, so that righteousness may be credited to them also. 12 And he became the father of the circumcised, who are not only circumcised but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith our father Abraham had while he was still uncircumcised.
The Promise Granted through Faith
13 For the promise to Abraham(M) or to his descendants that he would inherit the world(N) was not through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 14 If those who are of the law are heirs,(O) faith is made empty and the promise nullified, 15 because the law produces wrath.(P) And where there is no law,(Q) there is no transgression.
16 This is why the promise is by faith, so that it may be according to grace,(R) to guarantee it to all the descendants(S)—not only to the one who is of the law[g] but also to the one who is of Abraham’s faith. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written: I have made you the father of many nations[h](T)—in the presence of the God in whom he believed,the one who gives life to the dead(U) and calls(V) things into existence that do not exist.(W) 18 He believed, hoping against hope, so that he became the father of many nations[i](X) according to what had been spoken: So will your descendants be.[j](Y) 19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered[k] his own body to be already dead(Z) (since he was about a hundred years old)(AA) and also the deadness of Sarah’s womb.(AB) 20 He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,(AC) 21 because he was fully convinced(AD) that what God had promised, he was also able to do.(AE) 22 Therefore, it was credited to him for righteousness.[l](AF) 23 Now it was credited to him[m] was not written for Abraham alone,(AG) 24 but also for us. It will be credited to us who believe in him(AH) who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.(AI) 25 He was delivered up for[n] our trespasses(AJ) and raised for our justification.(AK)
Footnotes
- 4:1 Or What then shall we say? Have we found Abraham to be our forefather according to the flesh? or What, then, shall we say that Abraham our forefather found according to the flesh?
- 4:2 Or was declared righteous, or was acquitted
- 4:3 Gn 15:6
- 4:7–8 Ps 32:1–2
- 4:9 Gn 15:6
- 4:11 Lit righteousness of faith, also in v. 13
- 4:16 Or not to the one who is of the law only
- 4:17 Gn 17:5
- 4:18 Gn 17:5
- 4:18 Gn 15:5
- 4:19 Other mss read He did not consider
- 4:22 Gn 15:6
- 4:23 Gn 15:6
- 4:25 Or because of
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