Psalm 2
Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 2
Coronation of the Son
1 Why(A) do the nations rage(B)
and the peoples plot in vain?(C)
2 The kings of the earth take their stand,(D)
and the rulers conspire together
against the Lord and his Anointed One:[a](E)
3 “Let’s tear off their chains
and throw their ropes off of us.”(F)
4 The one enthroned[b] in heaven laughs;
the Lord ridicules them.(G)
5 Then he speaks to them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath:(H)
6 “I have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”(I)
7 I will declare the Lord’s decree.
He said to me, “You are my Son;[c]
today I have become your Father.(J)
8 Ask of me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance
and the ends of the earth your possession.(K)
9 You will break them with an iron scepter;
you will shatter them like pottery.”(L)
10 So now, kings, be wise;
receive instruction, you judges of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with reverential awe
and rejoice with trembling.(M)
12 Pay homage to[d] the Son or he will be angry
and you will perish in your rebellion,[e](N)
for his anger may ignite at any moment.(O)
All who take refuge in him are happy.(P)
Matthew 11:16-24
Christian Standard Bible
An Unresponsive Generation
16 “To what should I compare this generation? It’s like children sitting in the marketplaces who call out to other children:
17 We played the flute for you,
but you didn’t dance;
we sang a lament,
but you didn’t mourn![a]
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’(A) 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard,(B) a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’(C) Yet wisdom is vindicated[b] by her deeds.”[c]
20 Then he proceeded to denounce the towns where most of his miracles were done, because they did not repent: 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin!(D) Woe to you, Bethsaida!(E) For if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,(F) they would have repented in sackcloth and ashes long ago. 22 But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment(G) than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will go down to Hades.(H) For if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until today. 24 But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”
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Numbers 24-25
Christian Standard Bible
24 Since Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go to seek omens as on previous occasions, but turned[a] toward the wilderness. 2 When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God(A) came on him, 3 and he proclaimed his poem:
The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eyes are opened,
4 the oracle of one who hears the sayings of God,
who sees a vision from the Almighty,(B)
who falls into a trance with his eyes uncovered:
5 How beautiful are your tents, Jacob,
your dwellings, Israel.
6 They stretch out like river valleys,[b]
like gardens beside a stream,
like aloes the Lord has planted,
like cedars beside the water.
7 Water will flow from his buckets,
and his seed will be by abundant water.
His king will be greater than Agag,(C)
and his kingdom will be exalted.
8 God brought him out of Egypt;
he is like[c] the horns of a wild ox for them.(D)
He will feed on enemy nations
and gnaw their bones;
he will strike them with his arrows.
9 He crouches, he lies down like a lion
or a lioness—who dares to rouse him?(E)
Those who bless you will be blessed,
and those who curse you will be cursed.(F)
10 Then Balak became furious with Balaam, struck his hands together, and said to him, “I summoned you to put a curse on my enemies, but instead, you have blessed them these three times. 11 Now go to your home! I said I would reward you richly,(G) but look, the Lord has denied you a reward.”
12 Balaam answered Balak, “Didn’t I previously tell the messengers you sent me: 13 If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go against the Lord’s command, to do anything good or bad of my own will? I will say whatever the Lord says.(H) 14 Now I am going back to my people, but first, let me warn you what these people will do to your people in the future.”
Balaam’s Fourth Oracle
15 Then he proclaimed his poem:
The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eyes are opened;
16 the oracle of one who hears the sayings of God
and has knowledge from the Most High,
who sees a vision from the Almighty,
who falls into a trance with his eyes uncovered:(I)
17 I see him, but not now;
I perceive him, but not near.
A star will come from Jacob,
and a scepter will arise from Israel.(J)
He will smash the forehead[d] of Moab
and strike down[e] all the Shethites.[f]
18 Edom will become a possession;
Seir(K) will become a possession of its enemies,
but Israel will be triumphant.
19 One who comes from Jacob will rule;
he will destroy the city’s survivors.
20 Then Balaam saw Amalek and proclaimed his poem:
Amalek was first among the nations,(L)
but his future is destruction.
21 Next he saw the Kenites and proclaimed his poem:
Your dwelling place is enduring;
your nest is set in the cliffs.
22 Kain will be destroyed
when Asshur takes you captive.
23 Once more he proclaimed his poem:
Ah, who can live when God does this?
24 Ships will come from the coast of Kittim;(M)
they will carry out raids against Asshur and Eber,(N)
but they too will come to destruction.
25 Balaam then arose and went back to his homeland, and Balak also went his way.
Israel Worships Baal
25 While Israel was staying in the Acacia Grove,[g](O) the people began to prostitute themselves with the women of Moab. 2 The women invited them to the sacrifices for their gods, and the people ate and bowed in worship to their gods.(P) 3 So Israel aligned itself with Baal of Peor,(Q) and the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.(R) 4 The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute[h] them in broad daylight before the Lord so that his burning anger may turn away from Israel.”
5 So Moses told Israel’s judges, “Kill each of the men who aligned themselves with Baal of Peor.”
Phinehas Intervenes
6 An Israelite man came bringing a Midianite woman to his relatives in the sight of Moses and the whole Israelite community while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 7 When Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw this, he got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand, 8 followed the Israelite man into the tent,[i] and drove it through both the Israelite man and the woman—through her belly. Then the plague on the Israelites was stopped, 9 but those who died in the plague numbered twenty-four thousand.(S)
10 The Lord spoke to Moses, 11 “Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the Israelites because he was zealous among them with my zeal,[j](T) so that I did not destroy the Israelites in my zeal. 12 Therefore declare: I grant him my covenant of peace.(U) 13 It will be a covenant of perpetual priesthood for him and his future descendants,(V) because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites.”
14 The name of the slain Israelite man, who was struck dead with the Midianite woman, was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family.[k] 15 The name of the slain Midianite woman was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, a tribal head of a family in Midian.
Vengeance against the Midianites
16 The Lord told Moses, 17 “Attack the Midianites and strike them dead. 18 For they attacked you with the treachery that they used against you in the Peor incident. They did the same in the case involving their sister Cozbi, daughter of the Midianite leader who was killed the day the plague came at Peor.”
Footnotes
- 24:1 Lit set his face
- 24:6 Or like date palms
- 24:8 Or he has
- 24:17 Or frontiers
- 24:17 Sam reads and the skulls of; Jr 48:45
- 24:17 Or Sethites
- 25:1 Or in Shittim
- 25:4 Or impale, or hang, or expose; Hb obscure
- 25:8 Perhaps a tent shrine or bridal tent
- 25:11 Or jealousy
- 25:14 Lit a father’s house, also in v. 15
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