Joshua 9
Christian Standard Bible
Deception by Gibeon
9 When all the kings heard about Jericho and Ai, those who were west of the Jordan in the hill country,(A) in the Judean foothills,[a] and all along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea(B) toward Lebanon—the Hethites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites— 2 they formed a unified alliance to fight against Joshua and Israel.
3 When the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,(C) 4 they acted deceptively. They gathered provisions[b] and took worn-out sacks on their donkeys and old wineskins, cracked and mended. 5 They wore old, patched sandals on their feet and threadbare clothing on their bodies. Their entire provision of bread was dry and crumbly. 6 They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant land. Please make a treaty with us.”(D)
7 The men of Israel replied to the Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us. How can we make a treaty with you?” (E)
8 They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.”(F)
Then Joshua asked them, “Who are you and where do you come from?”
9 They replied to him, “Your servants have come from a faraway land because of the reputation of the Lord your God. For we have heard of his fame, and all that he did in Egypt, 10 and all that he did to the two Amorite kings beyond the Jordan—King Sihon of Heshbon and King Og of Bashan, who was in Ashtaroth. 11 So our elders and all the inhabitants of our land told us, ‘Take provisions with you for the journey; go and meet them and say, “We are your servants. Please make a treaty with us.”’ 12 This bread of ours was warm when we took it from our houses as food on the day we left to come to you; but see, it is now dry and crumbly. 13 These wineskins were new when we filled them; but see, they are cracked. And these clothes and sandals of ours are worn out from the extremely long journey.” 14 Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions, but did not seek the Lord’s decision.(G) 15 So Joshua established peace with them and made a treaty to let them live, and the leaders of the community swore an oath to them.(H)
Gibeon’s Deception Discovered
16 Three days after making the treaty with them, they heard that the Gibeonites were their neighbors, living among them. 17 So the Israelites set out and reached the Gibeonite cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.(I) 18 But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the community had sworn an oath(J) to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. Then the whole community grumbled against the leaders.
19 All the leaders answered them, “We have sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, and now we cannot touch them. 20 This is how we will treat them: we will let them live, so that no wrath will fall on us because of the oath we swore to them.” 21 They also said, “Let them live.” So the Gibeonites became woodcutters and water carriers(K) for the whole community, as the leaders had promised them.
22 Joshua summoned the Gibeonites and said to them, “Why did you deceive us by telling us you live far away from us, when in fact you live among us? 23 Therefore you are cursed and will always be slaves—woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”
24 The Gibeonites answered him, “It was clearly communicated to your servants that the Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you. We greatly feared for our lives because of you, and that is why we did this.(L) 25 Now we are in your hands. Do to us whatever you think is right.”(M) 26 This is what Joshua did to them: he rescued them from the Israelites, and they did not kill them. 27 On that day he made them woodcutters and water carriers—as they are today—for the community and for the Lord’s altar at the place he would choose.(N)
Psalm 140-141
Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 140
Prayer for Rescue
For the choir director. A psalm of David.
1 Rescue me, Lord, from evil men.
Keep me safe from violent men(A)
2 who plan evil in their hearts.
They stir up wars all day long.(B)
3 They make their tongues
as sharp as a snake’s bite;
viper’s venom is under their lips.(C)Selah
4 Protect me, Lord,
from the power of the wicked.(D)
Keep me safe from violent men
who plan to make me stumble.[a](E)
5 The proud hide a trap with ropes for me;
they spread a net along the path
and set snares for me.(F)Selah
6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
Listen, Lord, to my cry for help.(G)
7 Lord, my Lord, my strong Savior,
you shield my head on the day of battle.(H)
8 Lord, do not grant the desires of the wicked;
do not let them achieve their goals.
Otherwise, they will become proud.(I)Selah
9 When those who surround me rise up,[b]
may the trouble their lips cause overwhelm them.(J)
10 Let hot coals fall on them.
Let them be thrown into the fire,
into the abyss, never again to rise.(K)
11 Do not let a slanderer stay in the land.
Let evil relentlessly[c] hunt down a violent man.(L)
12 I[d] know that the Lord upholds
the just cause of the poor,
justice for the needy.(M)
13 Surely the righteous will praise your name;
the upright will live in your presence.(N)
Psalm 141
Protection from Sin and Sinners
A psalm of David.
1 Lord, I call on you; hurry to help me.
Listen to my voice when I call on you.(O)
2 May my prayer be set before you as incense,(P)
the raising of my hands as the evening offering.(Q)
3 Lord, set up a guard for my mouth;
keep watch at the door of my lips.(R)
4 Do not let my heart turn to any evil thing
or perform wicked acts with evildoers.
Do not let me feast on their delicacies.(S)
5 Let the righteous one strike me—
it is an act of faithful love;
let him rebuke me—
it is oil for my head;
let me[e] not refuse it.(T)
Even now my prayer is against
the evil acts of the wicked.[f](U)
6 When their rulers[g] will be thrown off
the sides of a cliff,
the people[h] will listen to my words,
for they are pleasing.(V)
7 As when one plows and breaks up the soil,
turning up rocks,
so our[i] bones have been scattered
at the mouth of Sheol.(W)
Jeremiah 3
Christian Standard Bible
Wages of Apostasy
3 If[a] a man divorces his wife
and she leaves him to marry another,
can he ever return to her?(A)
Wouldn’t such a land[b] become totally defiled?
But you!
You have prostituted yourself with many partners(B)—
can you return to me?(C)
This is the Lord’s declaration.
2 Look to the barren heights(D) and see.
Where have you not been immoral?
You sat waiting for them beside the highways(E)
like a nomad in the desert.
You have defiled the land
with your prostitution and wickedness.(F)
3 This is why the showers haven’t come(G)—
why there has been no spring rain.
You have the brazen look(H) of a prostitute[c]
and refuse to be ashamed.(I)
4 Haven’t you recently called to me, “My Father!(J)
You were my friend in my youth.(K)
5 Will he bear a grudge forever?(L)
Will he be endlessly infuriated?”
This is what you have said,
but you have done the evil things
you are capable of.
Unfaithful Israel, Treacherous Judah
6 In the days of King Josiah the Lord asked me, “Have you seen what unfaithful Israel has done? She has ascended every high hill and gone under every green tree to prostitute herself there.(M) 7 I thought, ‘After she has done all these things, she will return to me.’(N) But she didn’t return, and her treacherous sister Judah(O) saw it. 8 I[d] observed that it was because unfaithful Israel had committed adultery that I had sent her away and had given her a certificate of divorce.(P) Nevertheless, her treacherous sister Judah was not afraid but also went and prostituted herself.(Q) 9 Indifferent to[e] her prostitution, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones(R) and trees.(S) 10 Yet in spite of all this, her treacherous sister Judah didn’t return to me with all her heart(T)—only in pretense.”
This is the Lord’s declaration.
11 The Lord announced to me, “Unfaithful Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.(U) 12 Go, proclaim these words to the north, and say,
‘Return, unfaithful Israel.(V)
This is the Lord’s declaration.
I will not look on you with anger,[f]
for I am unfailing in my love.(W)
This is the Lord’s declaration.
I will not be angry forever.(X)
13 Only acknowledge your guilt(Y)—
you have rebelled against the Lord your God.(Z)
You have scattered your favors to strangers
under every green tree(AA)
and have not obeyed me.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
14 “‘Return, you faithless children(AB)—this is the Lord’s declaration—for I am your master,[g](AC) and I will take you,(AD) one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. 15 I will give you shepherds who are loyal to me,[h](AE) and they will shepherd you with knowledge and skill. 16 When you multiply and increase in the land,(AF) in those days—this is the Lord’s declaration—no one will say again, “The ark of the Lord’s covenant.”(AG) It will never come to mind, and no one will remember or miss it. Another one will not be made.[i] 17 At that time Jerusalem will be called The Lord’s Throne,(AH) and all the nations will be gathered to it,(AI) to the name of the Lord in Jerusalem.(AJ) They will cease to follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts. 18 In those days the house of Judah will join with the house of Israel,(AK) and they will come together from the land of the north to the land I have given your ancestors to inherit.’”(AL)
True Repentance
19 I thought, “How I long to make you my sons
and give you a desirable land,
the most beautiful inheritance(AM) of all the nations.”
I thought, “You will call me ‘My Father’
and never turn away from me.”
20 However, as a woman may betray her lover,[j]
so you have betrayed(AN) me, house of Israel.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
21 A sound is heard on the barren heights:
the children of Israel weeping and begging for mercy,
for they have perverted their way;
they have forgotten the Lord their God.(AO)
22 Return, you faithless children.
I will heal your unfaithfulness.(AP)
“Here we are, coming to you,
for you are the Lord our God.
23 Surely, falsehood comes from the hills,
commotion from the mountains,(AQ)
but the salvation of Israel
is only in the Lord our God.(AR)
24 From the time of our youth
the shameful one[k] has consumed
what our ancestors have worked for—
their flocks and their herds,
their sons and their daughters.
25 Let us lie down in our shame;
let our disgrace cover us.(AS)
We have sinned against the Lord our God,(AT)
both we and our ancestors,
from the time of our youth even to this day.(AU)
We have not obeyed the Lord our God.”
Footnotes
- 3:1 One Hb ms, LXX, Syr; other Hb mss read Saying: If
- 3:1 LXX reads woman
- 3:3 Lit have a prostitute’s forehead
- 3:8 One Hb ms, Syr read She
- 3:9 Lit From the lightness of
- 3:12 Lit not cause my face to fall on you
- 3:14 Or husband
- 3:15 Lit shepherds according to my heart
- 3:16 Or It will no longer be done
- 3:20 Lit friend
- 3:24 = Baal
Matthew 17
Christian Standard Bible
The Transfiguration
17 After six days(A) Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John and led them up on a high mountain by themselves.(B) 2 He was transfigured in front of them, and his face shone like the sun; his clothes became as white as the light.(C) 3 Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with him. 4 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it’s good for us to be here. If you want, I will set up[a] three shelters here: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”(D)
5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud covered[b] them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased. Listen to him!” (E) 6 When the disciples(F) heard this, they fell facedown and were terrified.
7 Jesus came up, touched them, and said, “Get up; don’t be afraid.”(G) 8 When they looked up they saw no one except Jesus alone.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them,(H) “Don’t tell anyone about the vision until the Son of Man is raised[c] from the dead.”
10 So the disciples asked him, “Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” (I)
11 “Elijah is coming[d] and will restore everything,” he replied.[e](J) 12 “But I tell you: Elijah has already come, and they didn’t recognize him. On the contrary, they did whatever they pleased to him. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.”(K) 13 Then the disciples understood that he had spoken to them about John the Baptist.
The Power of Jesus over a Demon
14 When they reached the crowd,(L) a man approached and knelt down before him. 15 “Lord,” he said, “have mercy on my son, because he has seizures[f] and suffers terribly. He often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn’t heal him.”(M)
17 Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.”(N) 18 Then Jesus rebuked the demon,[g] and it[h] came out of him,(O) and from that moment[i] the boy was healed.
19 Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
20 “Because of your little faith,” he[j] told them. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of [k] a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move.(P) Nothing will be impossible for you.”[l](Q)
The Second Prediction of His Death
22 As(R) they were gathering together[m] in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men. 23 They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised up.” And they were deeply distressed.
Paying the Temple Tax
24 When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the temple tax approached Peter and said, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?” (S)
25 “Yes,” he said.
When he went into the house, Jesus spoke to him first,[n] “What do you think, Simon? From whom do earthly kings collect tariffs or taxes? From their sons or from strangers?”[o](T)
26 “From strangers,” he said.[p]
“Then the sons are free,” Jesus told him. 27 “But, so we won’t offend them, go to the sea, cast in a fishhook, and take the first fish that you catch. When you open its mouth you’ll find a coin.[q] Take it and give it to them for me and you.”(U)
Footnotes
- 17:4 Other mss read Let’s make
- 17:5 Or enveloped; Ex 40:34–35
- 17:9 Other mss read Man has risen
- 17:11 Other mss add first
- 17:11 Other mss read Jesus said to them
- 17:15 Lit he is moonstruck; thought to be a form of epilepsy
- 17:18 Lit rebuked him, or it
- 17:18 Lit the demon
- 17:18 Lit hour
- 17:20 Other mss read your unbelief, Jesus
- 17:20 Lit faith like
- 17:20 Some mss include v. 21: “However, this kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting.”
- 17:22 Other mss read were staying
- 17:25 Lit Jesus anticipated him by saying
- 17:25 Or foreigners
- 17:26 Other mss read Peter said to him
- 17:27 Gk stater, worth 2 double-drachmas
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
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