Four Fishermen Called as Disciples^(A)

^18 (B)And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon ^(C)called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and ^(D)I will make you fishers of men.” ^20 (E)They immediately left their nets and followed Him.

^21 (F)Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, ²² and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

Jesus Heals a Great Multitude^(G)

²³ And Jesus went about all Galilee, ^(H)teaching in their synagogues, preaching ^(I)the gospel of the kingdom, ^(J)and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. ²⁴ Then ^[a]His fame went throughout all Syria; and they ^(K)brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. ^25 (L)Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from ^[b]Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

Imprisoned Apostles Freed

^17 (A)Then the high priest rose up, and all those who were with him (which is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with ^[a]indignation, ^18 (B)and laid their hands on the apostles and put them in the common prison. ¹⁹ But at night ^(C)an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, ²⁰ “Go, stand in the temple and speak to the people ^(D)all the words of this life.”

²¹ And when they heard that, they entered the temple early in the morning and taught. ^(E)But the high priest and those with him came and called the ^[b]council together, with all the ^[c]elders of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.

Apostles on Trial Again

²² But when the officers came and did not find them in the prison, they returned and reported, ²³ saying, “Indeed we found the prison shut securely, and the guards standing ^[d]outside before the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside!” ²⁴ Now when ^[e]the high priest, ^(F)the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these things, they wondered what the outcome would be. ²⁵ So one came and told them, ^[f]saying, “Look, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!”

²⁶ Then the captain went with the officers and brought them without violence, ^(G)for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned. ²⁷ And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, ²⁸ saying, ^(H)“Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, ^(I)and intend to bring this Man’s ^(J)blood on us!”

²⁹ But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: ^(K)“We ought to obey God rather than men. ^30 (L)The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by ^(M)hanging on a tree. ^31 (N)Him God has exalted to His right hand to be ^(O)Prince and ^(P)Savior, ^(Q)to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. ³² And ^(R)we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit ^(S)whom God has given to those who obey Him.”

Gamaliel’s Advice

³³ When they heard this, they were ^(T)furious^[g] and plotted to kill them. ³⁴ Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named ^(U)Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. ³⁵ And he said to them: “Men of Israel, ^[h]take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men. ³⁶ For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, ^[i]joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. ³⁷ After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed. ³⁸ And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; ^39 (V)but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found ^(W)to fight against God.”

⁴⁰ And they agreed with him, and when they had ^(X)called for the apostles ^(Y)and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. ⁴¹ So they departed from the presence of the council, ^(Z)rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for ^[j]His name. ⁴² And daily ^(AA)in the temple, and in every house, ^(AB)they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.

Prayer and Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Righteous Judgments

To the Chief Musician. To the tune of ^[a]“Death of the Son.” A Psalm of David.

A Bride for Isaac

24 Now Abraham ^(A)was old, well advanced in age; and the Lord ^(B)had blessed Abraham in all things. ² So Abraham said ^(C)to the oldest servant of his house, who ^(D)ruled over all that he had, “Please, ^(E)put your hand under my thigh, ³ and I will make you ^(F)swear^[a] by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that ^(G)you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; ^4 (H)but you shall go ^(I)to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.”

⁵ And the servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I take your son back to the land from which you came?”

⁶ But Abraham said to him, “Beware that you do not take my son back there. ⁷ The Lord God of heaven, who ^(J)took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ^(K)‘To your ^[b]descendants I give this land,’ ^(L)He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. ⁸ And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then ^(M)you will be released from this oath; only do not take my son back there.” ⁹ So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.

¹⁰ Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, ^(N)for all his master’s goods were in his hand. And he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to ^(O)the city of Nahor. ¹¹ And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at evening time, the time ^(P)when women go out to draw water. ¹² Then he ^(Q)said, “O Lord God of my master Abraham, please ^(R)give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. ¹³ Behold, here ^(S)I stand by the well of water, and ^(T)the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. ¹⁴ Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And ^(U)by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”

¹⁵ And it happened, ^(V)before he had finished speaking, that behold, ^(W)Rebekah,^[c] who was born to Bethuel, son of ^(X)Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her pitcher on her shoulder. ¹⁶ Now the young woman ^(Y)was very beautiful to behold, a virgin; no man had known her. And she went down to the well, filled her pitcher, and came up. ¹⁷ And the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please let me drink a little water from your pitcher.”

^18 (Z)So she said, “Drink, my lord.” Then she quickly let her pitcher down to her hand, and gave him a drink. ¹⁹ And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” ²⁰ Then she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, ran back to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. ²¹ And the man, wondering at her, remained silent so as to know whether ^(AA)the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

²² So it was, when the camels had finished drinking, that the man took a golden ^(AB)nose ring weighing half a shekel, and two bracelets for her wrists weighing ten shekels of gold, ²³ and said, “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, please, is there room in your father’s house for us ^[d]to lodge?”

²⁴ So she said to him, ^(AC)“I am the daughter of Bethuel, Milcah’s son, whom she bore to Nahor.” ²⁵ Moreover she said to him, “We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge.”

²⁶ Then the man ^(AD)bowed down his head and worshiped the Lord. ²⁷ And he said, ^(AE)“Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken ^(AF)His mercy and His truth toward my master. As for me, being on the way, the Lord ^(AG)led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” ²⁸ So the young woman ran and told her mother’s household these things.

²⁹ Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was ^(AH)Laban, and Laban ran out to the man by the well. ³⁰ So it came to pass, when he saw the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and when he heard the words of his sister Rebekah, saying, “Thus the man spoke to me,” that he went to the man. And there he stood by the camels at the well. ³¹ And he said, “Come in, ^(AI)O blessed of the Lord! Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.”

³² Then the man came to the house. And he unloaded the camels, and ^(AJ)provided straw and feed for the camels, and water to ^(AK)wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. ³³ Food was set before him to eat, but he said, ^(AL)“I will not eat until I have told about my errand.”

And he said, “Speak on.”

³⁴ So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. ³⁵ The Lord ^(AM)has blessed my master greatly, and he has become great; and He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys. ³⁶ And Sarah my master’s wife ^(AN)bore a son to my master when she was old; and ^(AO)to him he has given all that he has. ³⁷ Now my master ^(AP)made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell; ^38 (AQ)but you shall go to my father’s house and to my family, and take a wife for my son.’ ^39 (AR)And I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’ ^40 (AS)But he said to me, ‘The Lord, ^(AT)before whom I walk, will send His angel with you and ^[e]prosper your way; and you shall take a wife for my son from my family and from my father’s house. ^41 (AU)You will be clear from this oath when you arrive among my family; for if they will not give her to you, then you will be released from my oath.’

⁴² “And this day I came to the well and said, ^(AV)‘O Lord God of my master Abraham, if You will now prosper the way in which I go, ^43 (AW)behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass that when the virgin comes out to draw water, and I say to her, “Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,” ⁴⁴ and she says to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,”—let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.’

^45 (AX)“But before I had finished ^(AY)speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah, coming out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well and drew water. And I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ ⁴⁶ And she made haste and let her pitcher down from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels a drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels a drink also. ⁴⁷ Then I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the nose ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists. ^48 (AZ)And I bowed my head and worshiped the Lord, and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the way of truth to ^(BA)take the daughter of my master’s brother for his son. ⁴⁹ Now if you will ^(BB)deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

⁵⁰ Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, ^(BC)“The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot ^(BD)speak to you either bad or good. ^51 (BE)Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken.”

⁵² And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that ^(BF)he worshiped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. ⁵³ Then the servant brought out ^(BG)jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave ^(BH)precious things to her brother and to her mother.

⁵⁴ And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, ^(BI)“Send me away to my master.”

⁵⁵ But her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.”

⁵⁶ And he said to them, “Do not ^[f]hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.”

⁵⁷ So they said, “We will call the young woman and ask her personally.” ⁵⁸ Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?”

And she said, “I will go.”

⁵⁹ So they sent away Rebekah their sister ^(BJ)and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men. ⁶⁰ And they blessed Rebekah and said to her:

⁶¹ Then Rebekah and her maids arose, and they rode on the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and departed.

⁶² Now Isaac came from the way of ^(BM)Beer Lahai Roi, for he dwelt in the South. ⁶³ And Isaac went out ^(BN)to meditate in the field in the evening; and he lifted his eyes and looked, and there, the camels were coming. ⁶⁴ Then Rebekah lifted her eyes, and when she saw Isaac ^(BO)she dismounted from her camel; ⁶⁵ for she had said to the servant, “Who is this man walking in the field to meet us?”

The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took a veil and covered herself.

⁶⁶ And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. ⁶⁷ Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he ^(BP)took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac ^(BQ)was comforted after his mother’s death.