The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ Also He spoke this parable to some ^(A)who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee ^(B)stood and prayed thus with himself, ^(C)‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ ¹³ And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ ¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; ^(D)for everyone who exalts himself will be ^[a]humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Jesus Blesses Little Children^(E)

^15 (F)Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called them to Him and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for ^(G)of such is the kingdom of God. ^17 (H)Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

The Man of God and the Word of God

^10 (A)But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, ¹¹ persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me ^(B)at Antioch, ^(C)at Iconium, ^(D)at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And ^(E)out of them all the Lord delivered me. ¹² Yes, and ^(F)all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. ^13 (G)But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. ¹⁴ But you must ^(H)continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, ¹⁵ and that from childhood you have known ^(I)the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

^16 (J)All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, ^(K)and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for ^[a]instruction in righteousness, ^17 (L)that the man of God may be complete, ^(M)thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Wisdom Loves Righteousness

The People Who Sealed the Covenant

10 Now those who placed their seal on the document were:

Nehemiah the ^[a]governor, ^(A)the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah, ^2 (B)Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah, ³ Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah, ⁴ Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch, ⁵ Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah, ⁶ Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch, ⁷ Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin, ⁸ Maaziah, Bilgai, and Shemaiah. These were the priests.

⁹ The Levites: Jeshua the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, and Kadmiel.

¹⁰ Their brethren: Shebaniah, Hodijah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan, ¹¹ Micha, Rehob, Hashabiah, ¹² Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah, ¹³ Hodijah, Bani, and Beninu.

¹⁴ The leaders of the people: ^(C)Parosh, Pahath-Moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani, ¹⁵ Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, ¹⁶ Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin, ¹⁷ Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur, ¹⁸ Hodijah, Hashum, Bezai, ¹⁹ Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai, ²⁰ Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir, ²¹ Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua, ²² Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah, ²³ Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub, ²⁴ Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek, ²⁵ Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah, ²⁶ Ahijah, Hanan, Anan, ²⁷ Malluch, Harim, and Baanah.

The Covenant That Was Sealed

^28 (D)Now the rest of the people—the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the Nethinim, ^(E)and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, everyone who had knowledge and understanding— ²⁹ these joined with their brethren, their nobles, ^(F)and entered into a curse and an oath ^(G)to walk in God’s Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes: ³⁰ We would not give ^(H)our daughters as wives to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons; ^31 (I)if the peoples of the land brought ^[b]wares or any grain to sell on the Sabbath day, we would not buy it from them on the Sabbath, or on a holy day; and we would forego the ^(J)seventh year’s produce and the ^(K)exacting^[c] of every debt.

³² Also we made ordinances for ourselves, to exact from ourselves yearly ^(L)one-third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: ³³ for ^(M)the showbread, for the regular grain offering, for the ^(N)regular burnt offering of the Sabbaths, the New Moons, and the set feasts; for the holy things, for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and all the work of the house of our God. ³⁴ We cast lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, ^(O)for bringing the wood offering into the house of our God, according to our fathers’ houses, at the appointed times year by year, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God ^(P)as it is written in the Law.

³⁵ And we made ordinances ^(Q)to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, year by year, to the house of the Lord; ³⁶ to bring the ^(R)firstborn of our sons and our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and our flocks, to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God; ^37 (S)to bring the firstfruits of our dough, our offerings, the fruit from all kinds of trees, the new wine and oil, to the priests, to the storerooms of the ^[d]house of our God; and to bring ^(T)the tithes of our land to the Levites, for the Levites should receive the tithes in all our farming communities. ³⁸ And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, shall be with the Levites ^(U)when the Levites receive tithes; and the Levites shall bring up a tenth of the tithes to the house of our God, to ^(V)the rooms of the storehouse.

³⁹ For the children of Israel and the children of Levi ^(W)shall bring the offering of the grain, of the new wine and the oil, to the storerooms where the articles of the sanctuary are, where the priests who minister and the gatekeepers ^(X)and the singers are; and we will not ^(Y)neglect the house of our God.