Hope in the Lord’s Forgiving Love.

A Song of Ascents.

The Whole Creation Invoked to Praise the Lord.

²⁷ Now these are the records of the generations of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and ^(A)Haran fathered ^(B)Lot. ²⁸ Haran died ^[a]during the lifetime of his father Terah in the land of his birth, in ^(C)Ur of the Chaldeans. ²⁹ Abram and ^(D)Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was ^(E)Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was ^(F)Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah ^[b]and Iscah. ^30 (G)Sarai was unable to conceive; she did not have a child.

³¹ Now Terah took his son Abram, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they departed ^[c]together from ^(H)Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan; and they went as far as Haran and ^[d]settled there. ³² The days of Terah were 205 years; and Terah died in Haran.

Abram Journeys to Egypt

12 Now ^(I)the Lord said to Abram,

⁴ So Abram went away as the Lord had spoken to him; and ^(O)Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. ⁵ Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, and all their ^(P)possessions which they had accumulated, and ^(Q)the ^[g]people which they had acquired in Haran, and they ^[h]set out for the land of Canaan; ^(R)so they came to the land of Canaan. ⁶ Abram passed through the land as far as the site of ^(S)Shechem, to the ^[i]oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanites were in the land at that time. ⁷ And the Lord ^(T)appeared to Abram and said, “^(U)To your ^[j]descendants I will give this land.” So he built ^(V)an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. ⁸ Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with ^(W)Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and ^(X)called upon the name of the Lord.

Melchizedek’s Priesthood like Christ’s

7 For this ^(A)Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the ^(B)Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, ² to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace. ³ Without father, without mother, ^(C)without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like ^(D)the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually.

⁴ Now observe how great this man was to whom Abraham, the ^(E)patriarch, ^(F)gave a tenth of the choicest spoils. ⁵ And those indeed of ^(G)the sons of Levi who receive the priest’s office have a commandment ^[a]in the Law to collect ^[b]a tenth from the people, that is, from their countrymen, although they ^[c]are descended from Abraham. ⁶ But the one ^(H)whose genealogy is not traced from them ^(I)collected ^[d]a tenth from Abraham and ^[e](J)blessed the one who ^(K)had the promises. ⁷ But without any dispute the lesser person is blessed by the greater. ⁸ In this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case one receives them, ^(L)of whom it is witnessed that he lives on. ⁹ And, so to speak, through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes, has paid tithes, ¹⁰ for he was still in the loins of his ^[f]forefather when Melchizedek met him.

^11 (M)So if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it ^(N)the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise ^(O)according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron? ¹² For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also. ¹³ For ^(P)the one about whom ^(Q)these things are said belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar. ¹⁴ For it is evident that our Lord ^[g]was ^(R)descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses said nothing concerning priests. ¹⁵ And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek, ¹⁶ who has become a priest not on the basis of a law of ^[h](S)physical requirement, but according to the power of ^(T)an indestructible life. ¹⁷ For it is attested of Him,

¹⁶ He *said to her, “Go, call your husband and come here.” ¹⁷ The woman answered and said to Him, “I have no husband.” Jesus *said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’; ¹⁸ for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this which you have said is true.” ¹⁹ The woman *said to Him, “^[a]Sir, I perceive that You are ^(A)a prophet. ^20 (B)Our fathers worshiped on ^(C)this mountain, and yet you Jews say that ^(D)in Jerusalem is the place where one must worship.” ²¹ Jesus *said to her, “Believe Me, woman, that ^[b](E)a time is coming when you will worship the Father ^(F)neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. ^22 (G)You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, because ^(H)salvation is from the Jews. ²³ But ^[c](I)a time is coming, and ^[d]even now has arrived, when the true worshipers will worship the Father ^(J)in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be ^[e]His worshipers. ²⁴ God is ^[f]spirit, and those who worship Him must worship ^(K)in spirit and truth.” ²⁵ The woman *said to Him, “I know that ^(L)Messiah is coming (^(M)He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.” ²⁶ Jesus *said to her, “^(N)I am He, the One speaking to you.”