Jesus Enters Jerusalem

(Mark 11.1-11; Luke 19.28-38; John 12.12-19)

21 When Jesus and his disciples came near Jerusalem, he went to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives and sent two of them on ahead. ² He told them, “Go into the next village, where you will at once find a donkey and her colt. Untie the two donkeys and bring them to me. ³ If anyone asks why you are doing this, just say, ‘The Lord^[a] needs them.’ He will at once let you have the donkeys.”

⁴ So God's promise came true, just as the prophet had said,

⁶ The disciples left and did what Jesus had told them to do. ⁷ They brought the donkey and its colt and laid some clothes on their backs. Then Jesus got on.

⁸ Many people spread clothes in the road, while others put down branches^[b] which they had cut from trees. ^9 (B) Some people walked ahead of Jesus and others followed behind. They were all shouting,

¹⁰ When Jesus came to Jerusalem, everyone in the city was excited and asked, “Who can this be?”

¹¹ The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Jesus in the Temple

(Mark 11.15-19; Luke 19.45-48; John 2.13-22)

¹² Jesus went into the temple and chased out everyone who was selling or buying. He turned over the tables of the moneychangers and the benches of the ones who were selling doves. ^13 (C) He told them, “The Scriptures say, ‘My house should be called a place of worship.’ But you have turned it into a place where robbers hide.”

¹⁴ Blind and lame people came to Jesus in the temple, and he healed them. ¹⁵ But the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses were angry when they saw his miracles and heard the children shouting praises to the Son of David.^{[e] 16 (D)} The men said to Jesus, “Don't you hear what those children are saying?”

“Yes, I do!” Jesus answered. “Don't you know that the Scriptures say, ‘Children and infants will sing praises’?” ¹⁷ Then Jesus left the city and went out to the village of Bethany, where he spent the night.

Jesus Puts a Curse on a Fig Tree

(Mark 11.12-14,20-24)

¹⁸ When Jesus got up the next morning, he was hungry. He started out for the city, ¹⁹ and along the way he saw a fig tree. But when he came to it, he found only leaves and no figs. So he told the tree, “You will never again grow any fruit!” Right then the fig tree dried up.

²⁰ The disciples were shocked when they saw how quickly the tree had dried up. ^21 (E) But Jesus said to them, “If you have faith and don't doubt, I promise you can do what I did to this tree. And you will be able to do even more. You can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. ²² If you have faith when you pray, you will be given whatever you ask for.”

A Question about Jesus' Authority

(Mark 11.27-33; Luke 20.1-8)

²³ Jesus had gone into the temple and was teaching when the chief priests and the leaders of the people came up to him. They asked, “What right do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?”

²⁴ Jesus answered, “I have just one question to ask you. If you answer it, I will tell you where I got the right to do these things. ²⁵ Who gave John the right to baptize? Was it God in heaven or merely some human being?”

They thought it over and said to each other, “We can't say God gave John this right. Jesus will ask us why we didn't believe John. ²⁶ On the other hand, these people think John was a prophet, and we are afraid of what they might do to us. That's why we can't say it was merely some human who gave John the right to baptize.” ²⁷ So they told Jesus, “We don't know.”

Jesus said, “Then I won't tell you who gave me the right to do what I do.”

Aaron's Walking Stick Blooms and Produces Almonds

17 The Lord told Moses:

^2-3 Call together the twelve tribes of Israel and tell the leader of each tribe to write his name on the walking stick he carries as a symbol of his authority. Make sure Aaron's name is written on the one from the Levi tribe, then collect all the sticks.

⁴ Place these sticks in the tent right in front of the sacred chest where I appear to you. ⁵ I will then choose a man to be my priest, and his stick will sprout. After that happens, I won't have to listen to any more complaints about you.

⁶ Moses told the people what the Lord had commanded, and they gave him the walking sticks from the twelve tribal leaders, including Aaron's from the Levi tribe. ⁷ Moses took them and placed them in the Lord's sacred tent.

^8 (A) The next day when Moses went into the tent, flowers and almonds were already growing on Aaron's stick. ⁹ Moses brought the twelve sticks out of the tent and showed them to the people. Each of the leaders found his own and took it.

¹⁰ But the Lord told Moses, “Put Aaron's stick back! Let it stay near the sacred chest as a warning to anyone who might think of rebelling. If these people don't stop their grumbling about me, I will wipe them out.” ¹¹ Moses did what he was told.

¹² The Israelites cried out to Moses, “We're done for ¹³ and doomed if we even go near the sacred tent!”

The Duties of the Priests and Levites

18 The Lord said to Aaron:

You, your sons, and the other Levites of the Kohath clan, are responsible for what happens at the sacred tent.^[a] And you and your sons will be responsible for what the priests do. ² The Levites are your relatives and are here to help you in your service at the tent. ³ You must see that they perform their duties. But if they go near any of the sacred objects or the altar, all of you will die. ⁴ No one else is allowed to take care of the sacred tent or do anything connected with it. ⁵ Follow these instructions, so I won't become angry and punish the Israelites ever again.

⁶ I alone chose the Levites from all the other tribes to belong to me, and I have given them to you as your helpers. ⁷ But only you and your sons can serve as priests at the altar and in the most holy place. Your work as priests is a gift from me, and anyone else who tries to do that work must be put to death.

The Priests' Share of Offerings Given to the Lord

(Deuteronomy 18.1-8)

^8-9 The Lord said to Aaron:

I have put you in charge of the sacred gifts and sacrifices that the Israelites bring to me. And from now on, you, your sons, and your descendants will receive part of the sacrifices for sin, as well as part of the grain sacrifices, and the sacrifices to make things right. Your share of these sacrifices will be the parts not burned on the altar. ¹⁰ Since these things are sacred, they must be eaten near the sacred tent, but only men are allowed to eat them.

¹¹ You will also receive part of the special gifts and offerings that the Israelites bring to me. Any member of your family who is clean and acceptable for worship can eat these things. ¹² For example, when the Israelites bring me the first batches of oil, wine, and grain, you can have the best parts of those gifts. ¹³ And the first part of the crops from their fields and vineyards also belongs to you. The people will offer this to me, then anyone in your family who is clean may have some of it.

^14 (B) Everything in Israel that has been completely dedicated to me^[b] will now belong to you.

¹⁵ The first-born son in every Israelite family, as well as the first-born males of their flocks and herds, belong to me. But every first-born son and first-born donkey^[c] must be bought back from me. ¹⁶ The price for a first-born son who is at least one month old will be five pieces of silver, weighed according to the official standards. ¹⁷ However, all first-born cattle, sheep, and goats belong to me and cannot be bought back. Splatter their blood on the altar and send their fat up in smoke, so I can smell it and be pleased. ¹⁸ You are allowed to eat the meat of those animals, just as you can eat the choice ribs and the right hind leg of the special sacrifices.

¹⁹ From now on, the sacred offerings that the Israelites give to me will belong to you, your sons, and your daughters. This is my promise to you and your descendants, and it will never change.

²⁰ You will not receive any land in Israel as your own. I am the Lord, and I will give you whatever you need.

What the Levites Receive

The Lord said to Aaron:

^21 (C) Ten percent of the Israelites' crops and one out of every ten of their newborn animals belong to me. But I am giving all this to the Levites as their pay for the work they do at the sacred tent. ^22-23 They are the only ones allowed to work at the tent, and they must not let anyone else come near it. Those who do come near must be put to death, and the Levites will also be punished. This law will never change.

Since the Levites won't be given any land in Israel as their own, ²⁴ they will be given the crops and newborn animals that the Israelites offer to me.

What the Levites Must Give

²⁵ The Lord told Moses ²⁶ to say to the Levites:

When you receive from the people of Israel ten percent of their crops and newborn animals, you must offer a tenth of that to me. ²⁷ Just as the Israelites give me part of their grain and wine, you must set aside part of what you receive ²⁸ as an offering to me. That amount must then be given to Aaron, ²⁹ so the best of what you receive will be mine.

³⁰ After you have dedicated the best parts to me, you can eat the rest, just as the Israelites eat part of their grain and wine after offering them to me.^{[d] 31} Your share may be eaten anywhere by anyone in your family, because it is your pay for working at the sacred tent. ³² You won't be punished for eating it, as long as you have already offered the best parts to me.

The gifts and sacrifices brought by the people must remain sacred, and if you eat any part of them before they are offered to me, you will be put to death.

It Pays To Work Hard

⁵ No one can explain how a baby breathes before it is born.^[b] So how can anyone explain what God does? After all, God created everything.

⁶ Plant your seeds early in the morning and keep working in the field until dark. Who knows? Your work might pay off, and your seeds might produce.

Youth and Old Age

⁷ Nothing on earth is more beautiful than the morning sun. ⁸ Even if you have a very long life, you should try to enjoy each day, because darkness will come and will last a long time. Nothing makes sense.^[c]