Leviticus 15-27
New King James Version
The Law Concerning Bodily Discharges
15 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: (A)‘When any man has a discharge from his body, his discharge is unclean. 3 And this shall be his uncleanness in regard to his discharge—whether his body runs with his discharge, or his body is stopped up by his discharge, it is his uncleanness. 4 Every bed is [a]unclean on which he who has the discharge lies, and everything on which he sits shall be unclean. 5 And whoever (B)touches his bed shall (C)wash his clothes and (D)bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 6 He who sits on anything on which he who has the (E)discharge sat shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 7 And he who touches the body of him who has the discharge shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 8 If he who has the discharge (F)spits on him who is clean, then he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 9 Any saddle on which he who has the discharge rides shall be unclean. 10 Whoever touches anything that was under him shall be unclean until evening. He who carries any of those things shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 11 And whomever the one who has the discharge touches, and has not rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 12 The (G)vessel of earth that he who has the discharge touches shall be broken, and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
13 ‘And when he who has a discharge is cleansed of his discharge, then (H)he shall count for himself seven days for his cleansing, wash his clothes, and bathe his body in running water; then he shall be clean. 14 On the eighth day he shall take for himself (I)two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and come before the Lord, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and give them to the priest. 15 Then the priest shall offer them, (J)the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. (K)So the priest shall make [b]atonement for him before the Lord because of his discharge.
16 (L)‘If any man has an emission of semen, then he shall wash all his body in water, and be unclean until evening. 17 And any garment and any leather on which there is semen, it shall be washed with water, and be unclean until evening. 18 Also, when a woman lies with a man, and there is an emission of semen, they shall bathe in water, and (M)be unclean until evening.
19 (N)‘If a woman has a discharge, and the discharge from her body is blood, she shall be [c]set apart seven days; and whoever touches her shall be unclean until evening. 20 Everything that she lies on during her impurity shall be unclean; also everything that she sits on shall be unclean. 21 Whoever touches her bed shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 22 And whoever touches anything that she sat on shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 23 If anything is on her bed or on anything on which she sits, when he touches it, he shall be unclean until evening. 24 And (O)if any man lies with her at all, so that her impurity is on him, he shall be [d]unclean seven days; and every bed on which he lies shall be unclean.
25 ‘If (P)a woman has a discharge of blood for many days, other than at the time of her customary impurity, or if it runs beyond her usual time of impurity, all the days of her unclean discharge shall be as the days of her customary impurity. She shall be unclean. 26 Every bed on which she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her as the bed of her impurity; and whatever she sits on shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her impurity. 27 Whoever touches those things shall be unclean; he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.
28 ‘But (Q)if she is cleansed of her discharge, then she shall count for herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean. 29 And on the eighth day she shall take for herself two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and bring them to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 30 Then the priest shall offer the one as a sin offering and the other as a (R)burnt offering, and the priest shall make atonement for her before the Lord for the discharge of her uncleanness.
31 ‘Thus you shall (S)separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness, lest they die in their uncleanness when they (T)defile My tabernacle that is among them. 32 (U)This is the law for one who has a discharge, (V)and for him who emits semen and is unclean thereby, 33 (W)and for her who is indisposed because of her customary impurity, and for one who has a discharge, either man (X)or woman, (Y)and for him who lies with her who is unclean.’ ”
The Day of Atonement
16 Now the Lord spoke to Moses after (Z)the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered profane fire before the Lord, and died; 2 and the Lord said to Moses: “Tell Aaron your brother (AA)not to come at just any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, lest he die; for (AB)I will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat.
3 [e]“Thus Aaron shall (AC)come into the Holy Place: (AD)with the blood of a young bull as a sin offering, and of a ram as a burnt offering. 4 He shall put the (AE)holy linen tunic and the linen trousers on his body; he shall be girded with a linen sash, and with the linen turban he shall be attired. These are holy garments. Therefore (AF)he shall wash his body in water, and put them on. 5 And he shall take from (AG)the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering, and one ram as a burnt offering.
6 “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, and (AH)make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 He shall take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 8 Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9 And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord’s lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering. 10 But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make (AI)atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness.
11 “And Aaron shall bring the bull of the sin offering, which is for (AJ)himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house, and shall kill the bull as the sin offering which is for himself. 12 Then he shall take (AK)a censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before the Lord, with his hands full of (AL)sweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil. 13 (AM)And he shall put the incense on the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of incense may cover the (AN)mercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest he (AO)die. 14 (AP)He shall take some of the blood of the bull and (AQ)sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
15 (AR)“Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood (AS)inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. 16 So he shall (AT)make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 There shall be (AU)no man in the tabernacle of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the Holy Place, until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself, for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel. 18 And he shall go out to the altar that is before the Lord, and make atonement for (AV)it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around. 19 Then he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, cleanse it, and (AW)consecrate[f] it from the [g]uncleanness of the children of Israel.
20 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. 21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, (AX)confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, (AY)putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. 22 The goat [h]shall (AZ)bear on itself all their iniquities to an [i]uninhabited land; and he shall (BA)release the goat in the wilderness.
23 “Then Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of meeting, (BB)shall take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the Holy Place, and shall leave them there. 24 And he shall wash his body with water in a holy place, put on his garments, come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make [j]atonement for himself and for the people. 25 (BC)The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar. 26 And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes (BD)and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 27 (BE)The bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. And they shall burn in the fire their skins, their flesh, and their offal. 28 Then he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.
29 “This shall be a statute forever for you: (BF)In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall [k]afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who [l]dwells among you. 30 For on that day the priest shall make [m]atonement for you, to (BG)cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord. 31 (BH)It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. 32 (BI)And the priest, who is anointed and (BJ)consecrated to minister as priest in his father’s place, shall make atonement, and put on the linen clothes, the holy garments; 33 then he shall make [n]atonement for [o]the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 (BK)This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel, for all their sins, (BL)once a year.” And he did as the Lord commanded Moses.
The Sanctity of Blood
17 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron, to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘This is the thing which the Lord has commanded, saying: 3 “Whatever man of the house of Israel who (BM)kills an ox or lamb or goat in the camp, or who kills it outside the camp, 4 and does not bring it to the door of the tabernacle of meeting to offer an offering to the Lord before the tabernacle of the Lord, the guilt of bloodshed shall be (BN)imputed to that man. He has shed blood; and that man shall be [p]cut off from among his people, 5 to the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices (BO)which they offer in the open field, that they may bring them to the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, to the priest, and offer them as peace offerings to the Lord. 6 And the priest (BP)shall sprinkle the blood on the altar of the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and (BQ)burn the fat for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 7 They shall no more offer their sacrifices (BR)to [q]demons, after whom they (BS)have played the harlot. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.” ’
8 “Also you shall say to them: ‘Whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, (BT)who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, 9 and does not (BU)bring it to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, to offer it to the Lord, that man shall be [r]cut off from among his people.
10 (BV)‘And whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who eats any blood, (BW)I will set My face against that person who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people. 11 For the (BX)life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar (BY)to make atonement for your souls; for (BZ)it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.’ 12 Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘No one among you shall eat blood, nor shall any stranger who dwells among you eat blood.’
13 “Whatever man of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who (CA)hunts and catches any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall (CB)pour out its blood and (CC)cover it with dust; 14 (CD)for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.’
15 (CE)“And every person who eats what died naturally or what was torn by beasts, whether he is a native of your own country or a stranger, (CF)he shall both wash his clothes and (CG)bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. Then he shall be clean. 16 But if he does not wash them or bathe his body, then (CH)he shall bear his [s]guilt.”
Laws of Sexual Morality
18 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: (CI)‘I am the Lord your God. 3 (CJ)According to [t]the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do; and (CK)according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do; nor shall you walk in their [u]ordinances. 4 (CL)You shall observe My judgments and keep My ordinances, to walk in them: I am the Lord your God. 5 You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the Lord.
6 ‘None of you shall approach anyone who is near of kin to him, to uncover his nakedness: I am the Lord. 7 The nakedness of your father or the nakedness of your mother you shall not uncover. She is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness. 8 The nakedness of your (CM)father’s wife you shall not uncover; it is your father’s nakedness. 9 (CN)The nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or elsewhere, their nakedness you shall not uncover. 10 The nakedness of your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter, their nakedness you shall not uncover; for theirs is your own nakedness. 11 The nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, begotten by your father—she is your sister—you shall not uncover her nakedness. 12 (CO)You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is near of kin to your father. 13 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is near of kin to your mother. 14 (CP)You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother. You shall not approach his wife; she is your aunt. 15 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law—she is your son’s wife—you shall not uncover her nakedness. 16 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife; it is your brother’s nakedness. 17 You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her (CQ)daughter, nor shall you take her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness. They are near of kin to her. It is wickedness. 18 Nor shall you take a woman (CR)as a rival to her sister, to uncover her nakedness while the other is alive.
19 ‘Also you shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness as (CS)long as she is in her (CT)customary impurity. 20 (CU)Moreover you shall not lie carnally with your (CV)neighbor’s wife, to defile yourself with her. 21 And you shall not let any of your descendants (CW)pass through (CX)the fire to (CY)Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. 22 You shall not lie with (CZ)a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. 23 Nor shall you mate with any (DA)animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion.
24 (DB)‘Do not defile yourselves with any of these things; (DC)for by all these the nations are defiled, which I am casting out before you. 25 For (DD)the land is defiled; therefore I (DE)visit[v] the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land (DF)vomits out its inhabitants. 26 (DG)You shall therefore [w]keep My statutes and My judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations, either any of your own nation or any stranger who dwells among you 27 (for all these abominations the men of the land have done, who were before you, and thus the land is defiled), 28 lest (DH)the land vomit you out also when you defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you. 29 For whoever commits any of these abominations, the persons who commit them shall be [x]cut off from among their people.
30 ‘Therefore you shall keep My [y]ordinance, so (DI)that you do not commit any of these abominable customs which were committed before you, and that you do not defile yourselves by them: (DJ)I am the Lord your God.’ ”
Moral and Ceremonial Laws
19 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: (DK)‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.
3 (DL)‘Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and (DM)keep My Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.
4 (DN)‘Do not turn to idols, (DO)nor make for yourselves [z]molded gods: I am the Lord your God.
5 ‘And (DP)if you offer a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, you shall offer it of your own free will. 6 It shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and on the next day. And if any remains until the third day, it shall be burned in the fire. 7 And if it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination. It shall not be accepted. 8 Therefore everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the hallowed offering of the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from his people.
9 (DQ)‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 And you shall not glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather every grape of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the stranger: I am the Lord your God.
11 (DR)‘You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, (DS)nor lie to one another. 12 And you shall not (DT)swear by My name falsely, (DU)nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.
13 (DV)‘You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. (DW)The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning. 14 You shall not curse the deaf, (DX)nor put a stumbling block before the blind, but shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
15 ‘You shall do no injustice in (DY)judgment. You shall not (DZ)be partial to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In righteousness you shall judge your neighbor. 16 You shall not go about as a (EA)talebearer among your people; nor shall you (EB)take a stand against the life of your neighbor: I am the Lord.
17 (EC)‘You shall not hate your brother in your heart. (ED)You shall surely [aa]rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him. 18 (EE)You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, (EF)but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
19 ‘You shall keep My statutes. You shall not let your livestock breed with another kind. You shall not sow your field with mixed seed. Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you.
20 ‘Whoever lies carnally with a woman who is (EG)betrothed to a man as a concubine, and who has not at all been redeemed nor given her freedom, for this there shall be [ab]scourging; but they shall not be put to death, because she was not free. 21 And he shall bring his trespass offering to the Lord, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, a ram as a trespass offering. 22 The priest shall make [ac]atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the Lord for his sin which he has committed. And the sin which he has committed shall be forgiven him.
23 ‘When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as [ad]uncircumcised. Three years it shall be as uncircumcised to you. It shall not be eaten. 24 But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, a praise to the Lord. 25 And in the fifth year you may eat its fruit, that it may yield to you its increase: I am the Lord your God.
26 ‘You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor shall you practice divination or soothsaying. 27 You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard. 28 You shall not (EH)make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the Lord.
29 (EI)‘Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of wickedness.
30 ‘You shall [ae]keep My Sabbaths and (EJ)reverence My sanctuary: I am the Lord.
31 ‘Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after (EK)them, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.
32 (EL)‘You shall [af]rise before the gray headed and honor the presence of an old man, and (EM)fear your God: I am the Lord.
33 ‘And (EN)if a stranger dwells with you in your land, you shall not mistreat him. 34 (EO)The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as [ag]one born among you, and (EP)you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
35 ‘You shall do no injustice in judgment, in measurement of length, weight, or volume. 36 You shall have (EQ)honest scales, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
37 (ER)‘Therefore you shall observe all My statutes and all My judgments, and perform them: I am the Lord.’ ”
Penalties for Breaking the Law
20 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 (ES)“Again, you shall say to the children of Israel: (ET)‘Whoever of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who [ah]dwell in Israel, who gives any of his descendants to Molech, he shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall (EU)stone him with stones. 3 (EV)I will set My face against that man, and will [ai]cut him off from his people, because he has given some of his descendants to Molech, to defile My sanctuary and profane My holy name. 4 And if the people of the land should in any way [aj]hide their eyes from the man, when he gives some of his descendants to Molech, and they do not kill him, 5 then I will set My face against that man and against his family; and I will cut him off from his people, and all who prostitute themselves with him to commit harlotry with Molech.
6 ‘And (EW)the person who turns to mediums and familiar spirits, to prostitute himself with them, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from his people. 7 (EX)Consecrate[ak] yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. 8 And you shall keep (EY)My statutes, and perform them: (EZ)I am the Lord who [al]sanctifies you.
9 ‘For (FA)everyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother. (FB)His blood shall be upon him.
10 (FC)‘The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death. 11 The man who lies with his (FD)father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. 12 If a man lies with his (FE)daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death. They have committed perversion. Their blood shall be upon them. 13 (FF)If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. 14 If a man marries a woman and her (FG)mother, it is wickedness. They shall be burned with fire, both he and they, that there may be no wickedness among you. 15 If a man mates with an (FH)animal, he shall surely be put to death, and you shall kill the animal. 16 If a woman approaches any animal and mates with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood is upon them.
17 ‘If a man takes his (FI)sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, and sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a wicked thing. And they shall be [am]cut off in the sight of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness. He shall bear his [an]guilt. 18 (FJ)If a man lies with a woman during her [ao]sickness and uncovers her nakedness, he has [ap]exposed her flow, and she has uncovered the flow of her blood. Both of them shall be [aq]cut off from their people.
19 ‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your (FK)mother’s sister nor of your (FL)father’s sister, for that would uncover his near of kin. They shall bear their guilt. 20 If a man lies with his (FM)uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness. They shall bear their sin; they shall die childless. 21 If a man takes his (FN)brother’s wife, it is an [ar]unclean thing. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be childless.
22 ‘You shall therefore keep all My (FO)statutes and all My judgments, and perform them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell (FP)may not vomit you out. 23 (FQ)And you shall not walk in the statutes of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they commit all these things, and (FR)therefore I abhor them. 24 But (FS)I have said to you, “You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the Lord your God, (FT)who has separated you from the peoples. 25 (FU)You shall therefore distinguish between clean animals and unclean, between unclean birds and clean, (FV)and you shall not make yourselves [as]abominable by beast or by bird, or by any kind of living thing that creeps on the ground, which I have separated from you as [at]unclean. 26 And you shall be holy to Me, (FW)for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be Mine.
27 (FX)‘A man or a woman who is a medium, or who has familiar spirits, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stones. Their blood shall be upon them.’ ”
Regulations for Conduct of Priests(FY)
21 And the Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: (FZ)‘None shall defile himself for the dead among his people, 2 except for his relatives who are nearest to him: his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, and his brother; 3 also his virgin sister who is near to him, who has had no husband, for her he may defile himself. 4 Otherwise he shall not defile himself, being a [au]chief man among his people, to profane himself.
5 (GA)‘They shall not make any bald place on their heads, nor shall they shave the edges of their beards nor make any cuttings in their flesh. 6 They shall be (GB)holy to their God and not profane the name of their God, for they offer the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and the (GC)bread of their God; (GD)therefore they shall be holy. 7 (GE)They shall not take a wife who is a harlot or a defiled woman, nor shall they take a woman (GF)divorced from her husband; for [av]the priest is holy to his God. 8 Therefore you shall [aw]consecrate him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for (GG)I the Lord, who (GH)sanctify you, am holy. 9 The daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the harlot, she profanes her father. She shall be (GI)burned with fire.
10 ‘He who is the high priest among his brethren, on whose head the anointing oil was (GJ)poured and who is consecrated to wear the garments, shall not (GK)uncover[ax] his head nor tear his clothes; 11 nor shall he go (GL)near any dead body, nor defile himself for his father or his mother; 12 (GM)nor shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the (GN)consecration of the anointing oil of his God is upon him: I am the Lord. 13 And he shall take a wife in her virginity. 14 A widow or a divorced woman or a defiled woman or a harlot—these he shall not marry; but he shall take a virgin of his own people as wife. 15 Nor shall he profane his posterity among his people, for I the Lord sanctify him.’ ”
16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Speak to Aaron, saying: ‘No man of your descendants in succeeding generations, who has any defect, may approach to offer the bread of his God. 18 For any man who has a (GO)defect shall not approach: a man blind or lame, who has a marred face or any limb (GP)too long, 19 a man who has a broken foot or broken hand, 20 or is a hunchback or a dwarf, or a man who has a defect in his eye, or eczema or scab, or is a eunuch. 21 No man of the descendants of Aaron the priest, who has a defect, shall come near to offer the offerings made by fire to the Lord. He has a defect; he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. 22 He may eat the bread of his God, both the most holy and the holy; 23 only he shall not go near the (GQ)veil or approach the altar, because he has a defect, lest (GR)he profane My sanctuaries; for I the Lord sanctify them.’ ”
24 And Moses told it to Aaron and his sons, and to all the children of Israel.
The Holiness of the Offerings
22 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, that they (GS)separate[ay] themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, and that they (GT)do not profane My holy name by what they (GU)dedicate to Me: I am the Lord. 3 Say to them: ‘Whoever of all your descendants throughout your generations, who goes near the holy things which the children of Israel dedicate to the Lord, (GV)while he has [az]uncleanness upon him, that person shall be cut off from My presence: I am the Lord.
4 ‘Whatever man of the descendants of Aaron, who is a (GW)leper or has (GX)a discharge, shall not eat the holy offerings (GY)until he is clean. And (GZ)whoever touches anything made unclean by a corpse, or (HA)a man who has had an emission of semen, 5 or (HB)whoever touches any creeping thing by which he would be made unclean, or (HC)any person by whom he would become unclean, whatever his uncleanness may be— 6 the person who has touched any such thing shall be unclean until evening, and shall not eat the holy offerings unless he (HD)washes his body with water. 7 And when the sun goes down he shall be clean; and afterward he may eat the holy offerings, because (HE)it is his food. 8 (HF)Whatever dies naturally or is torn by beasts he shall not eat, to defile himself with it: I am the Lord.
9 ‘They shall therefore keep (HG)My [ba]ordinance, (HH)lest they bear sin for it and die thereby, if they profane it: I the Lord sanctify them.
10 (HI)‘No outsider shall eat the holy offering; one who [bb]dwells with the priest, or a hired servant, shall not eat the holy thing. 11 But if the priest (HJ)buys a person with his money, he may eat it; and one who is born in his house may eat his food. 12 If the priest’s daughter is married to an outsider, she may not eat of the holy offerings. 13 But if the priest’s daughter is a widow or divorced, and has no child, and has returned to her father’s house as in her youth, she may eat her father’s food; but no outsider shall eat it.
14 ‘And if a man eats the holy offering unintentionally, then he shall restore a holy offering to the priest, and add one-fifth to it. 15 They shall not profane the (HK)holy offerings of the children of Israel, which they offer to the Lord, 16 or allow them to bear the guilt of trespass when they eat their holy offerings; for I the Lord sanctify them.’ ”
Offerings Accepted and Not Accepted
17 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them: (HL)‘Whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, who [bc]offers his sacrifice for any of his vows or for any of his freewill offerings, which they offer to the Lord as a burnt offering— 19 (HM)you shall offer of your own free will a male without blemish from the cattle, from the sheep, or from the goats. 20 (HN)Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it shall not be acceptable on your behalf. 21 And (HO)whoever offers a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, (HP)to fulfill his vow, or a freewill offering from the cattle or the sheep, it must be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it. 22 (HQ)Those that are blind or broken or maimed, or have an [bd]ulcer or eczema or scabs, you shall not offer to the Lord, nor make (HR)an offering by fire of them on the altar to the Lord. 23 Either a bull or a lamb that has any limb (HS)too long or too short you may offer as a freewill offering, but for a vow it shall not be accepted.
24 ‘You shall not offer to the Lord what is bruised or crushed, or torn or cut; nor shall you make any offering of them in your land. 25 Nor (HT)from a foreigner’s hand shall you offer any of these as (HU)the bread of your God, because their (HV)corruption is in them, and defects are in them. They shall not be accepted on your behalf.’ ”
26 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 27 (HW)“When a bull or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall be seven days with its mother; and from the eighth day and thereafter it shall be accepted as an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28 Whether it is a cow or ewe, do not kill both her (HX)and her young on the same day. 29 And when you (HY)offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord, offer it of your own free will. 30 On the same day it shall be eaten; you shall leave (HZ)none of it until morning: I am the Lord.
31 (IA)“Therefore you shall keep My commandments, and perform them: I am the Lord. 32 (IB)You shall not profane My holy name, but (IC)I will be [be]hallowed among the children of Israel. I am the Lord who (ID)sanctifies you, 33 (IE)who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord.”
Feasts of the Lord
23 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be (IF)holy convocations, these are My feasts.
The Sabbath
3 (IG)‘Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it; it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings.
The Passover and Unleavened Bread(IH)
4 (II)‘These are the feasts of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at their appointed times. 5 (IJ)On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the Lord’s Passover. 6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; seven days you must eat unleavened bread. 7 (IK)On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no [bf]customary work on it. 8 But you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord for seven days. The seventh day shall be a holy convocation; you shall do no customary work on it.’ ”
The Feast of Firstfruits
9 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: (IL)‘When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of (IM)the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest. 11 He shall (IN)wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 And you shall offer on that day, when you wave the sheaf, a male lamb of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering to the Lord. 13 Its grain offering shall be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire to the Lord, for a [bg]sweet aroma; and its drink offering shall be of wine, one-fourth of a hin. 14 You shall eat neither bread nor parched grain nor fresh grain until the same day that you have brought an offering to your God; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
The Feast of Weeks(IO)
15 ‘And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. 16 Count (IP)fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer (IQ)a new grain offering to the Lord. 17 You shall bring from your dwellings two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven. They are (IR)the firstfruits to the Lord. 18 And you shall offer with the bread seven lambs of the first year, without blemish, one young bull, and two rams. They shall be as a burnt offering to the Lord, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the Lord. 19 Then you shall sacrifice (IS)one kid of the goats as a sin offering, and two male lambs of the first year as a sacrifice of a (IT)peace offering. 20 The priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits as a wave offering before the Lord, with the two lambs. (IU)They shall be holy to the Lord for the priest. 21 And you shall proclaim on the same day that it is a holy convocation to you. You shall do no customary work on it. It shall be a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
22 (IV)‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the Lord your God.’ ”
The Feast of Trumpets(IW)
23 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 24 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘In the (IX)seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, (IY)a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. 25 You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.’ ”
The Day of Atonement(IZ)
26 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 27 (JA)“Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the Day of Atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you; you shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28 And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, (JB)to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. 29 For any person who is not (JC)afflicted in soul on that same day (JD)shall be cut off from his people. 30 And any person who does any work on that same day, (JE)that person I will destroy from among his people. 31 You shall do no manner of work; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 32 It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall [bh]afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall [bi]celebrate your sabbath.”
The Feast of Tabernacles(JF)
33 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 34 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: (JG)‘The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days to the Lord. 35 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it. 36 For seven days you shall offer an (JH)offering made by fire to the Lord. (JI)On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation, and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. It is a (JJ)sacred[bj] assembly, and you shall do no customary work on it.
37 (JK)‘These are the feasts of the Lord which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the Lord, a burnt offering and a grain offering, a sacrifice and drink offerings, everything on its day— 38 (JL)besides the Sabbaths of the Lord, besides your gifts, besides all your vows, and besides all your freewill offerings which you give to the Lord.
39 ‘Also on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have (JM)gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep the feast of the Lord for seven days; on the first day there shall be a sabbath-rest, and on the eighth day a sabbath-rest. 40 And (JN)you shall take for yourselves on the first day the [bk]fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; (JO)and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 (JP)You shall keep it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 (JQ)You shall dwell in [bl]booths for seven days. (JR)All who are native Israelites shall dwell in booths, 43 (JS)that your generations may (JT)know that I made the children of Israel dwell in booths when (JU)I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.’ ”
44 So Moses (JV)declared to the children of Israel the feasts of the Lord.
Care of the Tabernacle Lamps(JW)
24 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 (JX)“Command the children of Israel that they bring to you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to make the lamps burn continually. 3 Outside the veil of the Testimony, in the tabernacle of meeting, Aaron shall be in charge of it from evening until morning before the Lord continually; it shall be a statute forever in your generations. 4 He shall [bm]be in charge of the lamps on (JY)the pure gold lampstand before the Lord continually.
The Bread of the Tabernacle
5 “And you shall take fine flour and bake twelve (JZ)cakes with it. Two-tenths of an ephah shall be in each cake. 6 You shall set them in two rows, six in a row, (KA)on the pure gold table before the Lord. 7 And you shall put pure frankincense on each row, that it may be on the bread for a (KB)memorial, an offering made by fire to the Lord. 8 (KC)Every Sabbath he shall set it in order before the Lord continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant. 9 And (KD)it shall be for Aaron and his sons, (KE)and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy to him from the offerings of the Lord made by fire, by a perpetual statute.”
The Penalty for Blasphemy
10 Now the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and this Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought each other in the camp. 11 And the Israelite woman’s son (KF)blasphemed the name of the Lord and (KG)cursed; and so they (KH)brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) 12 Then they (KI)put him [bn]in custody, (KJ)that [bo]the mind of the Lord might be shown to them.
13 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Take outside the camp him who has cursed; then let all who heard him (KK)lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him.
15 “Then you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Whoever curses his God (KL)shall [bp]bear his sin. 16 And whoever (KM)blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall certainly stone him, the stranger as well as him who is born in the land. When he blasphemes the name of the Lord, he shall be put to death.
17 (KN)‘Whoever kills any man shall surely be put to death. 18 (KO)Whoever kills an animal shall make it good, animal for animal.
19 ‘If a man causes disfigurement of his neighbor, as (KP)he has done, so shall it be done to him— 20 fracture for (KQ)fracture, (KR)eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has caused disfigurement of a man, so shall it be done to him. 21 And whoever kills an animal shall restore it; but whoever kills a man shall be put to death. 22 You shall have (KS)the[bq] same law for the stranger and for one from your own country; for I am the Lord your God.’ ”
23 Then Moses spoke to the children of Israel; and they took outside the camp him who had cursed, and stoned him with stones. So the children of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses.
The Sabbath of the Seventh Year(KT)
25 And the Lord spoke to Moses on Mount (KU)Sinai, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall (KV)keep a sabbath to the Lord. 3 Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; 4 but in the (KW)seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn (KX)rest for the land, a sabbath to the Lord. You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard. 5 (KY)What grows of its own accord of your harvest you shall not reap, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine, for it is a year of rest for the land. 6 And the sabbath produce of the land shall be food for you: for you, your male and female servants, your hired man, and the stranger who dwells with you, 7 for your livestock and the beasts that are in your land—all its produce shall be for food.
The Year of Jubilee
8 ‘And you shall count seven sabbaths of years for yourself, seven times seven years; and the time of the seven sabbaths of years shall be to you forty-nine years. 9 Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month; (KZ)on the Day of Atonement you shall make the trumpet to sound throughout all your land. 10 And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and (LA)proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you; (LB)and each of you shall return to his possession, and each of you shall return to his family. 11 That fiftieth year shall be a Jubilee to you; in it (LC)you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of its own accord, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine. 12 For it is the Jubilee; it shall be holy to you; (LD)you shall eat its produce from the field.
13 (LE)‘In this Year of Jubilee, each of you shall return to his possession. 14 And if you sell anything to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor’s hand, you shall not (LF)oppress one another. 15 (LG)According to the number of years after the Jubilee you shall buy from your neighbor, and according to the number of years of crops he shall sell to you. 16 According to the multitude of years you shall increase its price, and according to the fewer number of years you shall diminish its price; for he sells to you according to the number of the years of the crops. 17 Therefore (LH)you shall not [br]oppress one another, (LI)but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God.
Provisions for the Seventh Year
18 (LJ)‘So you shall observe My statutes and keep My judgments, and perform them; (LK)and you will dwell in the land in safety. 19 Then the land will yield its fruit, and (LL)you will eat your fill, and dwell there in safety.
20 ‘And if you say, (LM)“What shall we eat in the seventh year, since (LN)we shall not sow nor gather in our produce?” 21 Then I will (LO)command My blessing on you in the (LP)sixth year, and it will bring forth produce enough for three years. 22 (LQ)And you shall sow in the eighth year, and eat (LR)old produce until the ninth year; until its produce comes in, you shall eat of the old harvest.
Redemption of Property
23 ‘The land shall not be sold permanently, for (LS)the land is Mine; for you are (LT)strangers and sojourners with Me. 24 And in all the land of your possession you shall grant redemption of the land.
25 (LU)‘If one of your brethren becomes poor, and has sold some of his possession, and if (LV)his redeeming relative comes to redeem it, then he may redeem what his brother sold. 26 Or if the man has no one to redeem it, but he himself becomes able to redeem it, 27 then (LW)let him count the years since its sale, and restore the remainder to the man to whom he sold it, that he may return to his possession. 28 But if he is not able to have it restored to himself, then what was sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it until the Year of Jubilee; (LX)and in the Jubilee it shall be released, and he shall return to his possession.
29 ‘If a man sells a house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; within a full year he may redeem it. 30 But if it is not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house in the walled city shall belong permanently to him who bought it, throughout his generations. It shall not be released in the Jubilee. 31 However the houses of villages which have no wall around them shall be counted as the fields of the country. They may be redeemed, and they shall be released in the Jubilee. 32 Nevertheless (LY)the cities of the Levites, and the houses in the cities of their possession, the Levites may redeem at any time. 33 And if a man purchases a house from the Levites, then the house that was sold in the city of his possession shall be released in the Jubilee; for the houses in the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel. 34 But (LZ)the field of the common-land of their cities may not be (MA)sold, for it is their perpetual possession.
Lending to the Poor
35 ‘If one of your brethren becomes poor, and [bs]falls into poverty among you, then you shall (MB)help him, like a stranger or a sojourner, that he may live with you. 36 (MC)Take no usury or interest from him; but (MD)fear your God, that your brother may live with you. 37 You shall not lend him your money for usury, nor lend him your food at a profit. 38 (ME)I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.
The Law Concerning Slavery
39 ‘And if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave. 40 As a hired servant and a sojourner he shall be with you, and shall serve you until the Year of Jubilee. 41 And then he shall depart from you—he and his children (MF)with him—and shall return to his own family. He shall return to the possession of his fathers. 42 For they are (MG)My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves. 43 (MH)You shall not rule over him (MI)with [bt]rigor, but you (MJ)shall fear your God. 44 And as for your male and female slaves whom you may have—from the nations that are around you, from them you may buy male and female slaves. 45 Moreover you may buy (MK)the children of the strangers who dwell among you, and their families who are with you, which they beget in your land; and they shall become your property. 46 And (ML)you may take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession; they shall be your permanent slaves. But regarding your brethren, the children of Israel, you shall not rule over one another with rigor.
47 ‘Now if a sojourner or stranger close to you becomes rich, and one of your brethren who dwells by him becomes poor, and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner close to you, or to a member of the stranger’s family, 48 after he is sold he may be redeemed again. One of his brothers may redeem him; 49 or his uncle or his uncle’s son may redeem him; or anyone who is near of kin to him in his family may redeem him; or if he is able he may redeem himself. 50 Thus he shall reckon with him who bought him: The price of his release shall be according to the number of years, from the year that he was sold to him until the Year of Jubilee; it shall be (MM)according to the time of a hired servant for him. 51 If there are still many years remaining, according to them he shall repay the price of his redemption from the money with which he was bought. 52 And if there remain but a few years until the Year of Jubilee, then he shall reckon with him, and according to his years he shall repay him the price of his redemption. 53 He shall be with him as a yearly hired servant, and he shall not rule with rigor over him in your sight. 54 And if he is not redeemed in these years, then he shall be released in the Year of Jubilee—he and his children with him. 55 For the children of Israel are servants to Me; they are My servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Promise of Blessing and Retribution(MN)
26 ‘You shall (MO)not make idols for yourselves;
neither a carved image nor a sacred pillar shall you rear up for yourselves;
nor shall you set up an engraved stone in your land, to bow down to it;
for I am the Lord your God.
2 (MP)You shall [bu]keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary:
I am the Lord.
3 (MQ)‘If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them,
4 (MR)then I will give you rain in its season, (MS)the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.
5 (MT)Your threshing shall last till the time of vintage, and the vintage shall last till the time of sowing;
you shall eat your bread to the full, and (MU)dwell in your land safely.
6 (MV)I will give peace in the land, and (MW)you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid;
I will rid the land of (MX)evil[bv] beasts,
and (MY)the sword will not go through your land.
7 You will chase your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you.
8 (MZ)Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight;
your enemies shall fall by the sword before you.
9 ‘For I will (NA)look on you favorably and (NB)make you fruitful, multiply you and confirm My (NC)covenant with you.
10 You shall eat the (ND)old harvest, and clear out the old because of the new.
11 (NE)I will set My [bw]tabernacle among you, and My soul shall not abhor you.
12 (NF)I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.
13 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves;
I have broken the bands of your (NG)yoke and made you walk [bx]upright.
14 ‘But if you do not obey Me, and do not observe all these commandments,
15 and if you despise My statutes, or if your soul abhors My judgments, so that you do not perform all My commandments, but break My covenant,
16 I also will do this to you:
I will even appoint terror over you, (NH)wasting disease and fever which shall (NI)consume the eyes and (NJ)cause sorrow of heart.
And (NK)you shall sow your seed [by]in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.
17 I will [bz]set (NL)My face against you, and (NM)you shall be defeated by your enemies.
(NN)Those who hate you shall reign over you, and you shall (NO)flee when no one pursues you.
18 ‘And after all this, if you do not obey Me, then I will punish you (NP)seven times more for your sins.
19 I will (NQ)break the pride of your power;
I (NR)will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze.
20 And your (NS)strength shall be spent in vain;
for your (NT)land shall not yield its produce, nor shall the trees of the land yield their fruit.
21 ‘Then, if you walk contrary to Me, and are not willing to obey Me, I will bring on you seven times more plagues, according to your sins.
22 (NU)I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few in number;
and (NV)your highways shall be desolate.
23 ‘And if (NW)by these things you are not reformed by Me, but walk contrary to Me,
24 (NX)then I also will walk contrary to you, and I will punish you yet seven times for your sins.
25 And (NY)I will bring a sword against you that will execute the vengeance of the covenant;
when you are gathered together within your cities (NZ)I will send pestilence among you;
and you shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.
26 (OA)When I have cut off your supply of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall bring back your bread by weight, (OB)and you shall eat and not be satisfied.
27 ‘And after all this, if you do not obey Me, but walk contrary to Me,
28 then I also will walk contrary to you in fury;
and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.
29 (OC)You[ca] shall eat the flesh of your sons, and you shall eat the flesh of your daughters.
30 (OD)I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars, and cast your carcasses on the lifeless forms of your idols;
and My soul shall abhor you.
31 I will lay your (OE)cities waste and (OF)bring your sanctuaries to desolation, and I will not (OG)smell the fragrance of your [cb]sweet aromas.
32 (OH)I will bring the land to desolation, and your enemies who dwell in it shall be astonished at it.
33 (OI)I will scatter you among the nations and draw out a sword after you;
your land shall be desolate and your cities waste.
34 (OJ)Then the land shall enjoy its sabbaths as long as it lies desolate and you are in your enemies’ land;
then the land shall rest and enjoy its sabbaths.
35 As long as it lies desolate it shall rest—
for the time it did not rest on your (OK)sabbaths when you dwelt in it.
36 ‘And as for those of you who are left, I will send (OL)faintness[cc] into their hearts in the lands of their enemies;
the sound of a shaken leaf shall cause them to flee;
they shall flee as though fleeing from a sword, and they shall fall when no one pursues.
37 (OM)They shall stumble over one another, as it were before a sword, when no one pursues;
and (ON)you shall have no power to stand before your enemies.
38 You shall (OO)perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up.
39 And those of you who are left (OP)shall [cd]waste away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands;
also in their (OQ)fathers’ iniquities, which are with them, they shall waste away.
40 ‘But (OR)if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me,
41 and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies;
if their (OS)uncircumcised hearts are (OT)humbled, and they (OU)accept their guilt—
42 then I will (OV)remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember;
I will (OW)remember the land.
43 (OX)The land also shall be left empty by them, and will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies desolate without them;
they will accept their guilt, because they (OY)despised My judgments and because their soul abhorred My statutes.
44 Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, (OZ)I will not cast them away, nor shall I abhor them, to utterly destroy them and break My covenant with them;
for I am the Lord their God.
45 But (PA)for their sake I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, (PB)whom I brought out of the land of Egypt (PC)in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God:
I am the Lord.’ ”
46 (PD)These are the statutes and judgments and laws which the Lord made between Himself and the children of Israel (PE)on Mount Sinai by the hand of Moses.
Redeeming Persons and Property Dedicated to God
27 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: (PF)‘When a man [ce]consecrates by a vow certain persons to the Lord, according to your [cf]valuation, 3 if your valuation is of a male from twenty years old up to sixty years old, then your valuation shall be fifty shekels of silver, (PG)according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 4 If it is a female, then your valuation shall be thirty shekels; 5 and if from five years old up to twenty years old, then your valuation for a male shall be twenty shekels, and for a female ten shekels; 6 and if from a month old up to five years old, then your valuation for a male shall be five shekels of silver, and for a female your valuation shall be three shekels of silver; 7 and if from sixty years old and above, if it is a male, then your valuation shall be fifteen shekels, and for a female ten shekels.
8 ‘But if he is too poor to pay your valuation, then he shall present himself before the priest, and the priest shall set a value for (PH)him; according to the ability of him who vowed, the priest shall value him.
9 ‘If it is an animal that men may bring as an offering to the Lord, all that anyone gives to the Lord shall be holy. 10 He shall not substitute it or exchange it, good for bad or bad for good; and if he at all exchanges animal for animal, then both it and the one exchanged for it shall be (PI)holy. 11 If it is an unclean animal which they do not offer as a sacrifice to the Lord, then he shall present the animal before the priest; 12 and the priest shall set a value for it, whether it is good or bad; as you, the priest, value it, so it shall be. 13 (PJ)But if he wants at all to redeem it, then he must add one-fifth to your valuation.
14 ‘And when a man [cg]dedicates his house to be holy to the Lord, then the priest shall set a value for it, whether it is good or bad; as the priest values it, so it shall stand. 15 If he who dedicated it wants to [ch]redeem his house, then he must add one-fifth of the money of your valuation to it, and it shall be his.
16 ‘If a man [ci]dedicates to the Lord part of a field of his possession, then your valuation shall be according to the seed for it. A homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver. 17 If he dedicates his field from the Year of Jubilee, according to your valuation it shall stand. 18 But if he dedicates his field after the Jubilee, then the priest shall (PK)reckon to him the money due according to the years that remain till the Year of Jubilee, and it shall be deducted from your valuation. 19 And if he who dedicates the field ever wishes to redeem it, then he must add one-fifth of the money of your valuation to it, and it shall belong to him. 20 But if he does not want to redeem the field, or if he has sold the field to another man, it shall not be redeemed anymore; 21 but the field, (PL)when it is released in the Jubilee, shall be holy to the Lord, as a (PM)devoted field; it shall be (PN)the possession of the priest.
22 ‘And if a man dedicates to the Lord a field which he has bought, which is not the field of (PO)his possession, 23 then the priest shall reckon to him the worth of your valuation, up to the Year of Jubilee, and he shall give your valuation on that day as a holy offering to the Lord. 24 (PP)In the Year of Jubilee the field shall return to him from whom it was bought, to the one who owned the land as a possession. 25 And all your valuations shall be according to the shekel of the sanctuary: (PQ)twenty gerahs to the shekel.
26 ‘But the (PR)firstborn of the animals, which should be the Lord’s firstborn, no man shall dedicate; whether it is an ox or sheep, it is the Lord’s. 27 And if it is an unclean animal, then he shall redeem it according to your valuation, and (PS)shall add one-fifth to it; or if it is not redeemed, then it shall be sold according to your valuation.
28 (PT)‘Nevertheless no [cj]devoted offering that a man may devote to the Lord of all that he has, both man and beast, or the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed; every devoted offering is most holy to the Lord. 29 (PU)No person under the ban, who may become doomed to destruction among men, shall be redeemed, but shall surely be put to death. 30 And (PV)all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s. It is holy to the Lord. 31 (PW)If a man wants at all to redeem any of his tithes, he shall add one-fifth to it. 32 And concerning the tithe of the herd or the flock, of whatever (PX)passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the Lord. 33 He shall not inquire whether it is good or bad, (PY)nor shall he exchange it; and if he exchanges it at all, then both it and the one exchanged for it shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed.’ ”
34 (PZ)These are the commandments which the Lord commanded Moses for the children of Israel on Mount (QA)Sinai.
Footnotes
- Leviticus 15:4 defiled
- Leviticus 15:15 Lit. covering
- Leviticus 15:19 Lit. in her impurity
- Leviticus 15:24 defiled
- Leviticus 16:3 Lit. With this
- Leviticus 16:19 set it apart
- Leviticus 16:19 impurity
- Leviticus 16:22 shall carry
- Leviticus 16:22 solitary land
- Leviticus 16:24 Lit. covering
- Leviticus 16:29 humble yourselves
- Leviticus 16:29 As a resident alien
- Leviticus 16:30 Lit. covering
- Leviticus 16:33 Lit. covering
- Leviticus 16:33 The Most Holy Place
- Leviticus 17:4 Put to death
- Leviticus 17:7 Having the form of a goat or satyr
- Leviticus 17:9 Put to death
- Leviticus 17:16 iniquity
- Leviticus 18:3 what is done in
- Leviticus 18:3 statutes
- Leviticus 18:25 bring judgment for
- Leviticus 18:26 obey
- Leviticus 18:29 Put to death
- Leviticus 18:30 charge
- Leviticus 19:4 molten
- Leviticus 19:17 reprove
- Leviticus 19:20 punishment
- Leviticus 19:22 Lit. covering
- Leviticus 19:23 unclean
- Leviticus 19:30 observe
- Leviticus 19:32 rise to give honor
- Leviticus 19:34 native among you
- Leviticus 20:2 As resident aliens
- Leviticus 20:3 Put him to death
- Leviticus 20:4 disregard
- Leviticus 20:7 Set yourselves apart for the Lord
- Leviticus 20:8 sets you apart
- Leviticus 20:17 Put to death
- Leviticus 20:17 iniquity
- Leviticus 20:18 Or customary impurity
- Leviticus 20:18 Lit. made bare
- Leviticus 20:18 Put to death
- Leviticus 20:21 indecent, impure
- Leviticus 20:25 detestable or loathsome
- Leviticus 20:25 defiled
- Leviticus 21:4 Lit. master or husband
- Leviticus 21:7 Lit. he
- Leviticus 21:8 set him apart
- Leviticus 21:10 In mourning
- Leviticus 22:2 keep themselves apart from
- Leviticus 22:3 defilement
- Leviticus 22:9 charge
- Leviticus 22:10 As a visitor
- Leviticus 22:18 brings his offering
- Leviticus 22:22 running sore
- Leviticus 22:32 treated as holy
- Leviticus 23:7 occupational
- Leviticus 23:13 pleasing
- Leviticus 23:32 humble yourselves
- Leviticus 23:32 observe your sabbath
- Leviticus 23:36 solemn
- Leviticus 23:40 foliage
- Leviticus 23:42 tabernacles; shelters made of boughs
- Leviticus 24:4 arrange or set in order
- Leviticus 24:12 under guard
- Leviticus 24:12 Lit. it might be declared to them from the mouth of the Lord
- Leviticus 24:15 be responsible for
- Leviticus 24:22 one standard of judgment
- Leviticus 25:17 mistreat
- Leviticus 25:35 Lit. his hand fails
- Leviticus 25:43 severity
- Leviticus 26:2 observe
- Leviticus 26:6 wild beasts
- Leviticus 26:11 dwelling place
- Leviticus 26:13 erect
- Leviticus 26:16 without profit
- Leviticus 26:17 oppose you
- Leviticus 26:29 In time of famine
- Leviticus 26:31 pleasing
- Leviticus 26:36 fear
- Leviticus 26:39 rot away
- Leviticus 27:2 Or makes a difficult or extraordinary vow
- Leviticus 27:2 appraisal
- Leviticus 27:14 sets apart
- Leviticus 27:15 buy back
- Leviticus 27:16 sets apart
- Leviticus 27:28 Given exclusively and irrevocably
Numbers 1-2
New King James Version
The First Census of Israel(A)
1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses (B)in the Wilderness of Sinai, (C)in the tabernacle of meeting, on the (D)first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 (E)“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male (F)individually, 3 from (G)twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies. 4 And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house.
5 “These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; 6 from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; 7 from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; 8 from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; 9 from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; 14 from Gad, Eliasaph the son of (H)Deuel;[a] 15 from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.” 16 (I)These were (J)chosen[b] from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, (K)heads of the divisions in Israel.
17 Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been [c]mentioned (L)by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their (M)ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually. 19 As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai.
20 Now the (N)children of Reuben, Israel’s oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 21 those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred.
22 From the (O)children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 23 those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
24 From the (P)children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 25 those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.
26 From the (Q)children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 27 those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were (R)seventy-four thousand six hundred.
28 From the (S)children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 29 those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred.
30 From the (T)children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 31 those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.
32 From the sons of Joseph, the (U)children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 33 those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred.
34 From the (V)children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 35 those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred.
36 From the (W)children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 37 those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred.
38 From the (X)children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 39 those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
40 From the (Y)children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 41 those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred.
42 From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: 43 those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred.
44 (Z)These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house. 45 So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel— 46 all who were numbered were (AA)six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.
47 But (AB)the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe; 48 for the Lord had spoken to Moses, saying: 49 (AC)“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel; 50 (AD)but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it (AE)and camp around the tabernacle. 51 (AF)And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it (AG)up. (AH)The outsider who comes near shall be put to death. 52 The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, (AI)everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies; 53 (AJ)but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no (AK)wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall (AL)keep[d] charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.”
54 Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they did.
The Tribes and Leaders by Armies
2 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2 (AM)“Everyone of the children of Israel shall camp by his own [e]standard, beside the emblems of his father’s house; they shall camp (AN)some distance from the tabernacle of meeting. 3 On the (AO)east side, toward the rising of the sun, those of the standard of the forces with Judah shall camp according to their armies; and (AP)Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be the leader of the children of Judah.” 4 And his army was numbered at seventy-four thousand six hundred.
5 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, and Nethanel the son of Zuar shall be the leader of the children of Issachar.” 6 And his army was numbered at fifty-four thousand four hundred.
7 “Then comes the tribe of Zebulun, and Eliab the son of Helon shall be the leader of the children of Zebulun.” 8 And his army was numbered at fifty-seven thousand four hundred. 9 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Judah, one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred—(AQ)these shall [f]break camp first.
10 “On the (AR)south side shall be the standard of the forces with Reuben according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur.” 11 And his army was numbered at forty-six thousand five hundred.
12 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, and the leader of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.” 13 And his army was numbered at fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
14 “Then comes the tribe of Gad, and the leader of the children of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of [g]Reuel.” 15 And his army was numbered at forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty. 16 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Reuben, one hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty—(AS)they shall [h]be the second to break camp.
17 (AT)“And the tabernacle of meeting shall move out with the [i]camp of the Levites (AU)in the middle of the [j]camps; as they camp, so they shall move out, everyone in his place, by their [k]standards.
18 “On the west side shall be the standard of the forces with Ephraim according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud.” 19 And his army was numbered at forty thousand five hundred.
20 “Next to him comes the tribe of Manasseh, and the leader of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.” 21 And his army was numbered at thirty-two thousand two hundred.
22 “Then comes the tribe of Benjamin, and the leader of the children of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni.” 23 And his army was numbered at thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24 “All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces with Ephraim, one hundred and eight thousand one hundred—(AV)they shall [l]be the third to break camp.
25 “The [m]standard of the forces with Dan shall be on the north side according to their armies, and the leader of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.” 26 And his army was numbered at sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
27 “Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, and the leader of the children of Asher shall be Pagiel the son of Ocran.” 28 And his army was numbered at forty-one thousand five hundred.
29 “Then comes the tribe of Naphtali, and the leader of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan.” 30 And his army was numbered at fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31 “All who were numbered of the forces with Dan, one hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred—(AW)they shall [n]break camp last, with their [o]standards.”
32 These are the ones who were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses. (AX)All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. 33 But (AY)the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
34 Thus the children of Israel (AZ)did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses; (BA)so they camped by their [p]standards and so they broke camp, each one by his family, according to their fathers’ houses.
Footnotes
- Numbers 1:14 Reuel, Num. 2:14
- Numbers 1:16 called
- Numbers 1:17 designated
- Numbers 1:53 have in their care
- Numbers 2:2 banner
- Numbers 2:9 Lit. set forth
- Numbers 2:14 Deuel, Num. 1:14; 7:42
- Numbers 2:16 Lit. set forth second
- Numbers 2:17 company
- Numbers 2:17 whole company
- Numbers 2:17 banners
- Numbers 2:24 Lit. set forth third
- Numbers 2:25 banner
- Numbers 2:31 Lit. set forth last
- Numbers 2:31 banners
- Numbers 2:34 banners
Psalm 13
New King James Version
Trust in the Salvation of the Lord
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
13 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
(A)How long will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
(B)Enlighten my eyes,
(C)Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
4 Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”;
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
5 But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalm 24-26
New King James Version
The King of Glory and His Kingdom
A Psalm of David.
24 The (A)earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness,
The world and those who dwell therein.
2 For He has (B)founded it upon the seas,
And established it upon the [a]waters.
3 (C)Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
4 He who has (D)clean hands and (E)a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,
Nor (F)sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive blessing from the Lord,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is Jacob, the generation of those who (G)seek Him,
Who seek Your face. Selah
7 (H)Lift up your heads, O you gates!
And be lifted up, you everlasting doors!
(I)And the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in (J)battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates!
Lift up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
10 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
He is the King of glory. Selah
A Plea for Deliverance and Forgiveness
A Psalm of David.
25 To (K)You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, I (L)trust in You;
Let me not be ashamed;
(M)Let not my enemies triumph over me.
3 Indeed, let no one who [b]waits on You be ashamed;
Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.
4 (N)Show me Your ways, O Lord;
Teach me Your paths.
5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
For You are the God of my salvation;
On You I wait all the day.
6 Remember, O Lord, (O)Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses,
For they are from of old.
7 Do not remember (P)the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions;
(Q)According to Your mercy remember me,
For Your goodness’ sake, O Lord.
8 Good and upright is the Lord;
Therefore He teaches sinners in the way.
9 The humble He guides in justice,
And the humble He teaches His way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth,
To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.
11 (R)For Your name’s sake, O Lord,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.
12 Who is the man that fears the Lord?
(S)Him shall [c]He teach in the way He chooses.
13 (T)He himself shall dwell in [d]prosperity,
And (U)his descendants shall inherit the earth.
14 (V)The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him,
And He will show them His covenant.
15 (W)My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
For He shall [e]pluck my feet out of the net.
16 (X)Turn Yourself to me, and have mercy on me,
For I am [f]desolate and afflicted.
17 The troubles of my heart have enlarged;
Bring me out of my distresses!
18 (Y)Look on my affliction and my pain,
And forgive all my sins.
19 Consider my enemies, for they are many;
And they hate me with [g]cruel hatred.
20 Keep my soul, and deliver me;
Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.
21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
For I wait for You.
22 (Z)Redeem Israel, O God,
Out of all their troubles!
A Prayer for Divine Scrutiny and Redemption
A Psalm of David.
26 Vindicate (AA)me, O Lord,
For I have (AB)walked in my integrity.
(AC)I have also trusted in the Lord;
I shall not slip.
2 (AD)Examine me, O Lord, and [h]prove me;
Try my mind and my heart.
3 For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And (AE)I have walked in Your truth.
4 I have not (AF)sat with idolatrous mortals,
Nor will I go in with hypocrites.
5 I have (AG)hated the assembly of evildoers,
And will not sit with the wicked.
6 I will wash my hands in innocence;
So I will go about Your altar, O Lord,
7 That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving,
And tell of all Your wondrous works.
8 Lord, (AH)I have loved the habitation of Your house,
And the place [i]where Your glory dwells.
9 (AI)Do[j] not gather my soul with sinners,
Nor my life with bloodthirsty men,
10 In whose hands is a sinister scheme,
And whose right hand is full of (AJ)bribes.
11 But as for me, I will walk in my integrity;
Redeem me and be merciful to me.
12 (AK)My foot stands in an even place;
In the congregations I will bless the Lord.
Footnotes
- Psalm 24:2 Lit. rivers
- Psalm 25:3 Waits for You in faith
- Psalm 25:12 Or he
- Psalm 25:13 Lit. goodness
- Psalm 25:15 Lit. bring out
- Psalm 25:16 lonely
- Psalm 25:19 violent hatred
- Psalm 26:2 test me
- Psalm 26:8 Lit. of the tabernacle of Your glory
- Psalm 26:9 Do not take away
Acts 18-24
New King James Version
Ministering at Corinth
18 After these things Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth. 2 And he found a certain Jew named (A)Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla (because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome); and he came to them. 3 So, because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them (B)and worked; for by occupation they were tentmakers. 4 (C)And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks.
5 (D)When Silas and Timothy had come from Macedonia, Paul was (E)compelled [a]by the Spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. 6 But (F)when they opposed him and blasphemed, (G)he shook his garments and said to them, (H)“Your blood be upon your own heads; (I)I am clean. (J)From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” 7 And he departed from there and entered the house of a certain man named [b]Justus, one who worshiped God, whose house was next door to the synagogue. 8 (K)Then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household. And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized.
9 Now (L)the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; 10 (M)for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city.” 11 And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
12 When Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him to the [c]judgment seat, 13 saying, “This fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to the law.”
14 And when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrongdoing or wicked crimes, O Jews, there would be reason why I should bear with you. 15 But if it is a (N)question of words and names and your own law, look to it yourselves; for I do not want to be a judge of such matters.” 16 And he drove them from the judgment seat. 17 Then [d]all the Greeks took (O)Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. But Gallio took no notice of these things.
Paul Returns to Antioch
18 So Paul still remained [e]a good while. Then he took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him. (P)He had his hair cut off at (Q)Cenchrea, for he had taken a vow. 19 And he came to Ephesus, and left them there; but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent, 21 but took leave of them, saying, (R)“I[f] must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem; but I will return again to you, (S)God willing.” And he sailed from Ephesus.
22 And when he had landed at (T)Caesarea, and [g]gone up and greeted the church, he went down to Antioch. 23 After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of (U)Galatia and Phrygia [h]in order, (V)strengthening all the disciples.
Ministry of Apollos
24 (W)Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. 25 This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being (X)fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, (Y)though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. 27 And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, (Z)he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; 28 for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, (AA)showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
Paul at Ephesus
19 And it happened, while (AB)Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through (AC)the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples 2 he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
So they said to him, (AD)“We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?”
So they said, (AE)“Into John’s baptism.”
4 Then Paul said, (AF)“John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”
5 When they heard this, they were baptized (AG)in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had (AH)laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and (AI)they spoke with tongues and prophesied. 7 Now the men were about twelve in all.
8 (AJ)And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading (AK)concerning the things of the kingdom of God. 9 But (AL)when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil (AM)of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. 10 And (AN)this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.
Miracles Glorify Christ
11 Now (AO)God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 (AP)so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. 13 (AQ)Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists (AR)took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, [i]“We [j]exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul (AS)preaches.” 14 Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.
15 And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”
16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, [k]overpowered them, and prevailed against [l]them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and (AT)fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. 18 And many who had believed came (AU)confessing and telling their deeds. 19 Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 (AV)So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
The Riot at Ephesus
21 (AW)When these things were accomplished, Paul (AX)purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through (AY)Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, (AZ)I must also see Rome.” 22 So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, (BA)Timothy and (BB)Erastus, but he himself stayed in Asia for a time.
23 And (BC)about that time there arose a great commotion about (BD)the Way. 24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of [m]Diana, brought (BE)no small profit to the craftsmen. 25 He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: “Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. 26 Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that (BF)they are not gods which are made with hands. 27 So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and [n]her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship.”
28 Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!” 29 So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one accord, having seized (BG)Gaius and (BH)Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul’s travel companions. 30 And when Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not allow him. 31 Then some of the [o]officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater. 32 Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And (BI)Alexander (BJ)motioned with his hand, and wanted to make his defense to the people. 34 But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”
35 And when the city clerk had quieted the crowd, he said: “Men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple guardian of the great goddess [p]Diana, and of the image which fell down from [q]Zeus? 36 Therefore, since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rashly. 37 For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of [r]your goddess. 38 Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a [s]case against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. 39 But if you have any other inquiry to make, it shall be determined in the lawful assembly. 40 For we are in danger of being [t]called in question for today’s uproar, there being no reason which we may give to account for this disorderly gathering.” 41 And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.
Journeys in Greece
20 After the uproar had ceased, Paul called the disciples to himself, embraced them, and (BK)departed to go to Macedonia. 2 Now when he had gone over that region and encouraged them with many words, he came to (BL)Greece 3 and stayed three months. And (BM)when the Jews plotted against him as he was about to sail to Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia. 4 And Sopater of Berea accompanied him to Asia—also (BN)Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians, and (BO)Gaius of Derbe, and (BP)Timothy, and (BQ)Tychicus and (BR)Trophimus of Asia. 5 These men, going ahead, waited for us at (BS)Troas. 6 But we sailed away from Philippi after (BT)the Days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days joined them (BU)at Troas, where we stayed seven days.
Ministering at Troas
7 Now on (BV)the first day of the week, when the disciples came together (BW)to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. 8 There were many lamps (BX)in the upper room where [u]they were gathered together. 9 And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Paul continued speaking, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. 10 But Paul went down, (BY)fell on him, and embracing him said, (BZ)“Do not trouble yourselves, for his life is in him.” 11 Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long while, even till daybreak, he departed. 12 And they brought the young man in alive, and they were not a little comforted.
From Troas to Miletus
13 Then we went ahead to the ship and sailed to Assos, there intending to take Paul on board; for so he had [v]given orders, intending himself to go on foot. 14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene. 15 We sailed from there, and the next day came opposite Chios. The following day we arrived at Samos and stayed at Trogyllium. The next day we came to Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for (CA)he was hurrying (CB)to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on (CC)the Day of Pentecost.
The Ephesian Elders Exhorted
17 From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18 And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, (CD)from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me (CE)by the plotting of the Jews; 20 how (CF)I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21 (CG)testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, (CH)repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 And see, now (CI)I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, 23 except that (CJ)the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. 24 [w]But (CK)none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, (CL)so that I may finish my [x]race with joy, (CM)and the ministry (CN)which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
25 “And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more. 26 Therefore I testify to you this day that I am (CO)innocent[y] of the blood of all men. 27 For I have not [z]shunned to declare to you (CP)the whole counsel of God. 28 (CQ)Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit (CR)has made you overseers, to shepherd the church [aa]of God (CS)which He purchased (CT)with His own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departure (CU)savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also (CV)from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking [ab]perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. 31 Therefore watch, and remember that (CW)for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.
32 “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and (CX)to the word of His grace, which is able (CY)to build you up and give you (CZ)an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. 34 [ac]Yes, you yourselves know (DA)that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. 35 I have shown you in every way, (DB)by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
36 And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. 37 Then they all (DC)wept [ad]freely, and (DD)fell on Paul’s neck and kissed him, 38 sorrowing most of all for the words which he spoke, that they would see his face no more. And they accompanied him to the ship.
Warnings on the Journey to Jerusalem
21 Now it came to pass, that when we had departed from them and set sail, running a straight course we came to Cos, the following day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. 2 And finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. 3 When we had sighted Cyprus, we passed it on the left, sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre; for there the ship was to unload her cargo. 4 And finding [ae]disciples, we stayed there seven days. (DE)They told Paul through the Spirit not to go up to Jerusalem. 5 When we had come to the end of those days, we departed and went on our way; and they all accompanied us, with wives and children, till we were out of the city. And (DF)we knelt down on the shore and prayed. 6 When we had taken our leave of one another, we boarded the ship, and they returned (DG)home.
7 And when we had finished our voyage from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, greeted the brethren, and stayed with them one day. 8 On the next day we [af]who were Paul’s companions departed and came to (DH)Caesarea, and entered the house of Philip (DI)the evangelist, (DJ)who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. 9 Now this man had four virgin daughters (DK)who prophesied. 10 And as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named (DL)Agabus came down from Judea. 11 When he had come to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, (DM)‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”
12 Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul answered, (DN)“What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
14 So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, (DO)“The will of the Lord be done.”
Paul Urged to Make Peace
15 And after those days we [ag]packed and went up to Jerusalem. 16 Also some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and brought with them a certain Mnason of Cyprus, an early disciple, with whom we were to lodge.
17 (DP)And when we had come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. 18 On the following day Paul went in with us to (DQ)James, and all the elders were present. 19 When he had greeted them, (DR)he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles (DS)through his ministry. 20 And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord. And they said to him, “You see, brother, how many myriads of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all (DT)zealous for the law; 21 but they have been informed about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. 22 [ah]What then? The assembly must certainly meet, for they will hear that you have come. 23 Therefore do what we tell you: We have four men who have taken a vow. 24 Take them and be purified with them, and pay their expenses so that they may (DU)shave their heads, and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law. 25 But concerning the Gentiles who believe, (DV)we have written and decided [ai]that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from [aj]sexual immorality.”
Arrested in the Temple
26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, (DW)entered the temple (DX)to announce the [ak]expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them.
27 Now when the seven days were almost ended, (DY)the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and (DZ)laid hands on him, 28 crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man (EA)who teaches all men everywhere against the people, the law, and this place; and furthermore he also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” 29 (For they had [al]previously seen (EB)Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)
30 And (EC)all the city was disturbed; and the people ran together, seized Paul, and dragged him out of the temple; and immediately the doors were shut. 31 Now as they were (ED)seeking to kill him, news came to the commander of the [am]garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32 (EE)He immediately took soldiers and centurions, and ran down to them. And when they saw the commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. 33 Then the (EF)commander came near and took him, and (EG)commanded him to be bound with two chains; and he asked who he was and what he had done. 34 And some among the multitude cried one thing and some another.
So when he could not ascertain the truth because of the tumult, he commanded him to be taken into the barracks. 35 When he reached the stairs, he had to be carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob. 36 For the multitude of the people followed after, crying out, (EH)“Away with him!”
Addressing the Jerusalem Mob(EI)
37 Then as Paul was about to be led into the barracks, he said to the commander, “May I speak to you?”
He replied, “Can you speak Greek? 38 (EJ)Are you not the Egyptian who some time ago stirred up a rebellion and led the four thousand assassins out into the wilderness?”
39 But Paul said, (EK)“I am a Jew from Tarsus, in Cilicia, a citizen of no [an]mean city; and I implore you, permit me to speak to the people.”
40 So when he had given him permission, Paul stood on the stairs and (EL)motioned with his hand to the people. And when there was a great silence, he spoke to them in the (EM)Hebrew language, saying,
Paul’s Defense at Jerusalem
22 “Brethren(EN) and fathers, hear my defense before you now.” 2 And when they heard that he spoke to them in the (EO)Hebrew language, they kept all the more silent.
Then he said: 3 (EP)“I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city (EQ)at the feet of (ER)Gamaliel, taught (ES)according to the strictness of our fathers’ law, and (ET)was zealous toward God (EU)as you all are today. 4 (EV)I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women, 5 as also the high priest bears me witness, and (EW)all the council of the elders, (EX)from whom I also received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus (EY)to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished.
6 “Now (EZ)it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. 7 And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ 8 So I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’
9 “And (FA)those who were with me indeed saw the light [ao]and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. 10 So I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.’ 11 And since I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus.
12 “Then (FB)a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, (FC)having a good testimony with all the (FD)Jews who dwelt there, 13 came to me; and he stood and said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that same hour I looked up at him. 14 Then he said, (FE)‘The God of our fathers (FF)has chosen you that you should (FG)know His will, and (FH)see the Just One, (FI)and hear the voice of His mouth. 15 (FJ)For you will be His witness to all men of (FK)what you have seen and heard. 16 And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, (FL)and wash away your sins, (FM)calling on the name of the Lord.’
17 “Now (FN)it happened, when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I was in a trance 18 and (FO)saw Him saying to me, (FP)‘Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, for they will not receive your testimony concerning Me.’ 19 So I said, ‘Lord, (FQ)they know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and (FR)beat those who believe on You. 20 (FS)And when the blood of Your martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by (FT)consenting [ap]to his death, and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’ 21 Then He said to me, ‘Depart, (FU)for I will send you far from here to the Gentiles.’ ”
Paul’s Roman Citizenship
22 And they listened to him until this word, and then they raised their voices and said, (FV)“Away with such a fellow from the earth, for (FW)he is not fit to live!” 23 Then, as they cried out and [aq]tore off their clothes and threw dust into the air, 24 the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks, and said that he should be examined under scourging, so that he might know why they shouted so against him. 25 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who stood by, (FX)“Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman, and uncondemned?”
26 When the centurion heard that, he went and told the commander, saying, “Take care what you do, for this man is a Roman.”
27 Then the commander came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?”
He said, “Yes.”
28 The commander answered, “With a large sum I obtained this citizenship.”
And Paul said, “But I was born a citizen.”
29 Then immediately those who were about to examine him withdrew from him; and the commander was also afraid after he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.
The Sanhedrin Divided
30 The next day, because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews, he released him from his bonds, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down and set him before them.
The Jerusalem Jews Plot to Kill Paul
23 Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, “Men and brethren, (FY)I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.” 2 And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him (FZ)to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and (GA)do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?”
4 And those who stood by said, “Do you revile God’s high priest?”
5 Then Paul said, (GB)“I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, (GC)‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’ ”
6 But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Men and brethren, (GD)I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; (GE)concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!”
7 And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees; and the assembly was divided. 8 (GF)For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection—and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both. 9 Then there arose a loud outcry. And the scribes of the Pharisees’ party arose and protested, saying, (GG)“We find no evil in this man; [ar]but (GH)if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, (GI)let us not fight against God.”
10 Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks.
The Plot Against Paul
11 But (GJ)the following night the Lord stood by him and said, [as]“Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in (GK)Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at (GL)Rome.”
12 And when it was day, (GM)some of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had (GN)killed Paul. 13 Now there were more than forty who had formed this conspiracy. 14 They came to the chief priests and (GO)elders, and said, “We have bound ourselves under a great oath that we will eat nothing until we have killed Paul. 15 Now you, therefore, together with the council, suggest to the commander that he be brought down to you [at]tomorrow, as though you were going to make further inquiries concerning him; but we are ready to kill him before he comes near.”
16 So when Paul’s sister’s son heard of their ambush, he went and entered the barracks and told Paul. 17 Then Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “Take this young man to the commander, for he has something to tell him.” 18 So he took him and brought him to the commander and said, “Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to bring this young man to you. He has something to say to you.”
19 Then the commander took him by the hand, went aside, and asked privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?”
20 And he said, (GP)“The Jews have agreed to ask that you bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire more fully about him. 21 But do not yield to them, for more than forty of them lie in wait for him, men who have bound themselves by an oath that they will neither eat nor drink till they have killed him; and now they are ready, waiting for the promise from you.”
22 So the commander let the young man depart, and commanded him, “Tell no one that you have revealed these things to me.”
Sent to Felix
23 And he called for two centurions, saying, “Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to (GQ)Caesarea at the third hour of the night; 24 and provide mounts to set Paul on, and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” 25 He wrote a letter in the following manner:
26 Claudius Lysias,
To the most excellent governor Felix:
Greetings.
27 (GR)This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them. Coming with the troops I rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman. 28 (GS)And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him, I brought him before their council. 29 I found out that he was accused (GT)concerning questions of their law, (GU)but had nothing charged against him deserving of death or chains. 30 And (GV)when it was told me that [au]the Jews lay in wait for the man, I sent him immediately to you, and (GW)also commanded his accusers to state before you the charges against him.
Farewell.
31 Then the soldiers, as they were commanded, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. 32 The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him, and returned to the barracks. 33 When they came to (GX)Caesarea and had delivered the (GY)letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. 34 And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. And when he understood that he was from (GZ)Cilicia, 35 he said, (HA)“I will hear you when your accusers also have come.” And he commanded him to be kept in (HB)Herod’s [av]Praetorium.
Accused of Sedition
24 Now after (HC)five days (HD)Ananias the high priest came down with the elders and a certain orator named Tertullus. These gave evidence to the governor against Paul.
2 And when he was called upon, Tertullus began his accusation, saying: “Seeing that through you we enjoy great peace, and [aw]prosperity is being brought to this nation by your foresight, 3 we accept it always and in all places, most noble Felix, with all thankfulness. 4 Nevertheless, not to be tedious to you any further, I beg you to hear, by your [ax]courtesy, a few words from us. 5 (HE)For we have found this man a plague, a creator of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. 6 (HF)He even tried to profane the temple, and we seized him, [ay]and wanted (HG)to judge him according to our law. 7 (HH)But the commander Lysias came by and with great violence took him out of our hands, 8 (HI)commanding his accusers to come to you. By examining him yourself you may ascertain all these things of which we accuse him.” 9 And the Jews also [az]assented, maintaining that these things were so.
The Defense Before Felix
10 Then Paul, after the governor had nodded to him to speak, answered: “Inasmuch as I know that you have been for many years a judge of this nation, I do the more cheerfully answer for myself, 11 because you may ascertain that it is no more than twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem (HJ)to worship. 12 (HK)And they neither found me in the temple disputing with anyone nor inciting the crowd, either in the synagogues or in the city. 13 Nor can they prove the things of which they now accuse me. 14 But this I confess to you, that according to (HL)the Way which they call a sect, so I worship the (HM)God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in (HN)the Law and in the Prophets. 15 (HO)I have hope in God, which they themselves also accept, (HP)that there will be a resurrection [ba]of the dead, both of the just and the unjust. 16 (HQ)This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men.
17 “Now after many years (HR)I came to bring alms and offerings to my nation, 18 (HS)in the midst of which some Jews from Asia found me (HT)purified in the temple, neither with a mob nor with tumult. 19 (HU)They ought to have been here before you to object if they had anything against me. 20 Or else let those who are here themselves say [bb]if they found any wrongdoing in me while I stood before the council, 21 unless it is for this one statement which I cried out, standing among them, (HV)‘Concerning the resurrection of the dead I am being judged by you this day.’ ”
Felix Procrastinates
22 But when Felix heard these things, having more accurate knowledge of the (HW)Way, he adjourned the proceedings and said, “When (HX)Lysias the commander comes down, I will make a decision on your case.” 23 So he commanded the centurion to keep Paul and to let him have liberty, and (HY)told him not to forbid any of his friends to provide for or visit him.
24 And after some days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the (HZ)faith in Christ. 25 Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.” 26 Meanwhile he also hoped that (IA)money would be given him by Paul, [bc]that he might release him. Therefore he sent for him more often and conversed with him.
27 But after two years Porcius Festus succeeded Felix; and Felix, (IB)wanting to do the Jews a favor, left Paul bound.
Footnotes
- Acts 18:5 Or in his spirit or in the Spirit
- Acts 18:7 NU Titius Justus
- Acts 18:12 Gr. bema
- Acts 18:17 NU they all
- Acts 18:18 Lit. many days
- Acts 18:21 NU omits I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem
- Acts 18:22 To Jerusalem
- Acts 18:23 successively
- Acts 19:13 NU I
- Acts 19:13 adjure, solemnly command
- Acts 19:16 M and they overpowered them
- Acts 19:16 NU both of them
- Acts 19:24 Gr. Artemis
- Acts 19:27 NU she be deposed from her magnificence
- Acts 19:31 Asiarchs, rulers of Asia, the province
- Acts 19:35 Gr. Artemis
- Acts 19:35 heaven
- Acts 19:37 NU our
- Acts 19:38 Lit. matter
- Acts 19:40 Or charged with rebellion concerning today
- Acts 20:8 NU, M we
- Acts 20:13 arranged it
- Acts 20:24 NU But I do not count my life of any value or dear to myself
- Acts 20:24 course
- Acts 20:26 Lit. clean
- Acts 20:27 avoided declaring
- Acts 20:28 M of the Lord and God
- Acts 20:30 misleading
- Acts 20:34 NU, M omit Yes
- Acts 20:37 Lit. much
- Acts 21:4 NU the disciples
- Acts 21:8 NU omits who were Paul’s companions
- Acts 21:15 made preparations
- Acts 21:22 NU What then is to be done? They will certainly hear
- Acts 21:25 NU omits that they should observe no such thing, except
- Acts 21:25 fornication
- Acts 21:26 completion
- Acts 21:29 M omits previously
- Acts 21:31 cohort
- Acts 21:39 insignificant
- Acts 22:9 NU omits and were afraid
- Acts 22:20 NU omits to his death
- Acts 22:23 Lit. threw
- Acts 23:9 NU what if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him? omitting the last clause
- Acts 23:11 Take courage
- Acts 23:15 NU omits tomorrow
- Acts 23:30 NU there would be a plot against the man
- Acts 23:35 Headquarters
- Acts 24:2 Or reforms are
- Acts 24:4 graciousness
- Acts 24:6 NU ends the sentence here and omits the rest of v. 6, all of v. 7, and the first clause of v. 8.
- Acts 24:9 NU, M joined the attack
- Acts 24:15 NU omits of the dead
- Acts 24:20 NU, M what wrongdoing they found
- Acts 24:26 NU omits that he might release him
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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