Jesus Cleanses a Leper^(A)

8 When He had come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. ^2 (B)And behold, a leper came and ^(C)worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”

³ Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy ^(D)was cleansed.

⁴ And Jesus said to him, ^(E)“See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that ^(F)Moses ^(G)commanded, as a testimony to them.”

Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant^(H)

^5 (I)Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a ^(J)centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, ⁶ saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.”

⁷ And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

⁸ The centurion answered and said, “Lord, ^(K)I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only ^(L)speak a word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹ For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

¹⁰ When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! ¹¹ And I say to you that ^(M)many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. ¹² But ^(N)the sons of the kingdom ^(O)will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ¹³ Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

Peter’s Mother-in-Law Healed^(P)

^14 (Q)Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw ^(R)his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. ¹⁵ So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served ^[a]them.

Many Healed in the Evening^(S)

^16 (T)When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, ¹⁷ that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

The Cost of Discipleship^(V)

¹⁸ And when Jesus saw great multitudes about Him, He gave a command to depart to the other side. ^19 (W)Then a certain scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.”

²⁰ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

^21 (X)Then another of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, ^(Y)let me first go and bury my father.”

²² But Jesus said to him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Wind and Wave Obey Jesus^(Z)

²³ Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. ^24 (AA)And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. ²⁵ Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!”

²⁶ But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then ^(AB)He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. ²⁷ So the men marveled, saying, ^[b]“Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Two Demon-Possessed Men Healed^(AC)

^28 (AD)When He had come to the other side, to the country of the ^[c]Gergesenes, there met Him two demon-possessed men, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one could pass that way. ²⁹ And suddenly they cried out, saying, “What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?”

³⁰ Now a good way off from them there was a herd of many swine feeding. ³¹ So the demons begged Him, saying, “If You cast us out, ^[d]permit us to go away into the herd of swine.”

³² And He said to them, “Go.” So when they had come out, they went into the herd of swine. And suddenly the whole herd of swine ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and perished in the water.

³³ Then those who kept them fled; and they went away into the city and told everything, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. ³⁴ And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, ^(AE)they begged Him to depart from their region.

Honor Is Not Fitting for a Fool

Old Testament Examples

10 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under ^(A)the cloud, all passed through ^(B)the sea, ² all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, ³ all ate the same ^(C)spiritual food, ⁴ and all drank the same ^(D)spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. ⁵ But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies ^(E)were scattered in the wilderness.

⁶ Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as ^(F)they also lusted. ^7 (G)And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, ^(H)“The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” ^8 (I)Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as ^(J)some of them did, and ^(K)in one day twenty-three thousand fell; ⁹ nor let us ^[a]tempt Christ, as ^(L)some of them also tempted, and ^(M)were destroyed by serpents; ¹⁰ nor complain, as ^(N)some of them also complained, and ^(O)were destroyed by ^(P)the destroyer. ¹¹ Now ^[b]all these things happened to them as examples, and ^(Q)they were written for our ^[c]admonition, ^(R)upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

¹² Therefore ^(S)let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. ¹³ No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but ^(T)God is faithful, ^(U)who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to ^[d]bear it.

Flee from Idolatry

¹⁴ Therefore, my beloved, ^(V)flee from idolatry. ¹⁵ I speak as to ^(W)wise men; judge for yourselves what I say. ^16 (X)The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the ^[e]communion of the blood of Christ? ^(Y)The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? ¹⁷ For ^(Z)we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.

¹⁸ Observe ^(AA)Israel ^(AB)after the flesh: ^(AC)Are not those who eat of the sacrifices ^[f]partakers of the altar? ¹⁹ What am I saying then? ^(AD)That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything? ²⁰ Rather, that the things which the Gentiles ^(AE)sacrifice ^(AF)they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. ^21 (AG)You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and ^(AH)the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the ^(AI)Lord’s table and of the table of demons. ²² Or do we ^(AJ)provoke the Lord to jealousy? ^(AK)Are we stronger than He?

All to the Glory of God^(AL)

²³ All things are lawful ^[g]for me, but not all things are ^(AM)helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things ^[h]edify. ²⁴ Let no one seek his own, but each one ^(AN)the other’s well-being.

^25 (AO)Eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no questions for conscience’ sake; ²⁶ for ^(AP)“the earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness.”

²⁷ If any of those who do not believe invites you to dinner, and you desire to go, ^(AQ)eat whatever is set before you, asking no question for conscience’ sake. ²⁸ But if anyone says to you, “This was offered to idols,” do not eat it ^(AR)for the sake of the one who told you, and for conscience’ sake; ^[i]for ^(AS)“the earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness.” ²⁹ “Conscience,” I say, not your own, but that of the other. For ^(AT)why is my liberty judged by another man’s conscience? ³⁰ But if I partake with thanks, why am I evil spoken of for the food ^(AU)over which I give thanks?

^31 (AV)Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. ^32 (AW)Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God, ³³ just ^(AX)as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.

Pride Promotes Strife

4 Where do ^[a]wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure ^(A)that war in your members? ² You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and ^[b]war. ^[c]Yet you do not have because you do not ask. ^3 (B)You ask and do not receive, ^(C)because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. ^4 [d]Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that ^(D)friendship with the world is enmity with God? ^(E)Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. ⁵ Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, ^(F)“The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?

⁶ But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:

Humility Cures Worldliness

⁷ Therefore submit to God. ^(H)Resist the devil and he will flee from you. ^8 (I)Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. ^(J)Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and ^(K)purify your hearts, you double-minded. ^9 (L)Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ^10 (M)Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

Do Not Judge a Brother

^11 (N)Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother ^(O)and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. ¹² There is one ^[e]Lawgiver, ^(P)who is able to save and to destroy. ^(Q)Who^[f] are you to judge ^[g]another?

Do Not Boast About Tomorrow

¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow ^[h]we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; ¹⁴ whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? ^(R)It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. ¹⁵ Instead you ought to say, ^(S)“If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ But now you boast in your arrogance. ^(T)All such boasting is evil.

¹⁷ Therefore, ^(U)to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

Isaac and Abimelech

26 There was a famine in the land, besides ^(A)the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to ^(B)Abimelech king of the Philistines, in Gerar.

² Then the Lord appeared to him and said: ^(C)“Do not go down to Egypt; live in ^(D)the land of which I shall tell you. ^3 (E)Dwell in this land, and ^(F)I will be with you and ^(G)bless you; for to you and your descendants ^(H)I give all these lands, and I will perform ^(I)the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. ⁴ And ^(J)I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; ^(K)and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; ^5 (L)because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”

⁶ So Isaac dwelt in Gerar. ⁷ And the men of the place asked about his wife. And ^(M)he said, “She is my sister”; for ^(N)he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” because he thought, “lest the men of the place kill me for Rebekah, because she is ^(O)beautiful to behold.” ⁸ Now it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked through a window, and saw, and there was Isaac, ^[a]showing endearment to Rebekah his wife. ⁹ Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Quite obviously she is your wife; so how could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”

Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘Lest I die on account of her.’ ”

¹⁰ And Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might soon have lain with your wife, and ^(P)you would have brought guilt on us.” ¹¹ So Abimelech charged all his people, saying, “He who ^(Q)touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

¹² Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year ^(R)a hundredfold; and the Lord ^(S)blessed him. ¹³ The man ^(T)began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; ¹⁴ for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the Philistines ^(U)envied him. ¹⁵ Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells ^(V)which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they had filled them with earth. ¹⁶ And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for ^(W)you are much mightier than we.”

¹⁷ Then Isaac departed from there and ^[b]pitched his tent in the Valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. ¹⁸ And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. ^(X)He called them by the names which his father had called them.

¹⁹ Also Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water there. ²⁰ But the herdsmen of Gerar ^(Y)quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well ^[c]Esek, because they quarreled with him. ²¹ Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also. So he called its name ^[d]Sitnah. ²² And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name ^[e]Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall ^(Z)be fruitful in the land.”

²³ Then he went up from there to Beersheba. ²⁴ And the Lord ^(AA)appeared to him the same night and said, ^(AB)“I am the God of your father Abraham; ^(AC)do not fear, for ^(AD)I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.” ²⁵ So he ^(AE)built an altar there and ^(AF)called on the name of the Lord, and he pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

²⁶ Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath, one of his friends, ^(AG)and Phichol the commander of his army. ²⁷ And Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, ^(AH)since you hate me and have ^(AI)sent me away from you?”

²⁸ But they said, “We have certainly seen that the Lord ^(AJ)is with you. So we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, between you and us; and let us make a ^[f]covenant with you, ²⁹ that you will do us no harm, since we have not touched you, and since we have done nothing to you but good and have sent you away in peace. ^(AK)You are now the blessed of the Lord.’ ”

^30 (AL)So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. ³¹ Then they arose early in the morning and ^(AM)swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

³² It came to pass the same day that Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” ³³ So he called it ^[g]Shebah. ^(AN)Therefore the name of the city is ^[h]Beersheba to this day.

^34 (AO)When Esau was forty years old, he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. ³⁵ And ^(AP)they were a grief of mind to Isaac and Rebekah.

The Tabernacle^(A)

26 “Moreover ^(B)you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim you shall weave them. ² The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. And every one of the curtains shall have ^[a]the same measurements. ³ Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. ⁴ And you shall make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set, and likewise you shall do on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set. ⁵ Fifty loops you shall make in the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is on the end of the second set, that the loops may be clasped to one another. ⁶ And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains together with the clasps, so that it may be one tabernacle.

^7 (C)“You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair, to be a tent over the tabernacle. You shall make eleven curtains. ⁸ The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; and the eleven curtains shall all have the same measurements. ⁹ And you shall couple five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves, and you shall double over the sixth curtain at the forefront of the tent. ¹⁰ You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain of the second set. ¹¹ And you shall make fifty bronze clasps, put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one. ¹² The remnant that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. ¹³ And a cubit on one side and a cubit on the other side, of what remains of the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and on that side, to cover it.

^14 (D)“You shall also make a covering of ram skins dyed red for the tent, and a covering of badger skins above that.

¹⁵ “And for the tabernacle you shall ^(E)make the boards of acacia wood, standing upright. ¹⁶ Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half shall be the width of each board. ¹⁷ Two ^[b]tenons shall be in each board for binding one to another. Thus you shall make for all the boards of the tabernacle. ¹⁸ And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side. ¹⁹ You shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under each of the boards for its two tenons. ²⁰ And for the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, there shall be twenty boards ²¹ and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under each of the boards. ²² For the far side of the tabernacle, westward, you shall make six boards. ²³ And you shall also make two boards for the two back corners of the tabernacle. ²⁴ They shall be ^[c]coupled together at the bottom and they shall be coupled together at the top by one ring. Thus it shall be for both of them. They shall be for the two corners. ²⁵ So there shall be eight boards with their sockets of silver—sixteen sockets—two sockets under each of the boards.

²⁶ “And you shall make bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle, ²⁷ five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the far side westward. ²⁸ The ^(F)middle bar shall pass through the midst of the boards from end to end. ²⁹ You shall overlay the boards with gold, make their rings of gold as holders for the bars, and overlay the bars with gold. ³⁰ And you shall raise up the tabernacle ^(G)according to its pattern which you were shown on the mountain.

^31 (H)“You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. ³² You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. ³³ And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring ^(I)the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between ^(J)the holy place and the Most Holy. ^34 (K)You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy. ^35 (L)You shall set the table outside the veil, and ^(M)the lampstand across from the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and you shall put the table on the north side.

^36 (N)“You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. ³⁷ And you shall make for the screen ^(O)five pillars of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be gold, and you shall cast five sockets of bronze for them.

A Prayer for Divine Scrutiny and Redemption

A Psalm of David.