Elimelech’s Family Goes to Moab

1 Now it came to pass, in the days when ^(A)the judges ^[a]ruled, that there was ^(B)a famine in the land. And a certain man of ^(C)Bethlehem, Judah, went to ^[b]dwell in the country of ^(D)Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. ² The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion—^(E)Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they went ^(F)to the country of Moab and remained there. ³ Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. ⁴ Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they ^[c]dwelt there about ten years. ⁵ Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband.

Naomi Returns with Ruth

⁶ Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had ^(G)visited^[d] His people by ^(H)giving them bread. ⁷ Therefore she went out from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. ⁸ And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, ^(I)“Go, return each to her mother’s house. ^(J)The Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt ^(K)with the dead and with me. ⁹ The Lord grant that you may find ^(L)rest, each in the house of her husband.”

So she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. ¹⁰ And they said to her, “Surely we will return with you to your people.”

¹¹ But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb, ^(M)that they may be your husbands? ¹² Turn back, my daughters, go—for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, if I should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons, ¹³ would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes that ^(N)the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!”

¹⁴ Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth ^(O)clung to her.

Vision of the Horses

⁷ On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet: ⁸ I saw by night, and behold, ^(A)a man riding on a red horse, and it stood among the myrtle trees in the hollow; and behind him were ^(B)horses: red, sorrel, and white. ⁹ Then I said, ^(C)“My lord, what are these?” So the angel who talked with me said to me, “I will show you what they are.”

¹⁰ And the man who stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, ^(D)“These are the ones whom the Lord has sent to walk to and fro throughout the earth.”

^11 (E)So they answered the Angel of the Lord, who stood among the myrtle trees, and said, “We have walked to and fro throughout the earth, and behold, all the earth is ^[a]resting quietly.”

The Lord Will Comfort Zion

¹² Then the Angel of the Lord answered and said, “O Lord of hosts, ^(F)how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which You were angry ^(G)these seventy years?”

¹³ And the Lord answered the angel who talked to me, with ^(H)good and comforting words. ¹⁴ So the angel who spoke with me said to me, ^[b]“Proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts:

¹⁶ ‘Therefore thus says the Lord:

¹⁷ “Again proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts:

A House Divided Cannot Stand^(A)

^14 (B)And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; and the multitudes marveled. ¹⁵ But some of them said, ^(C)“He casts out demons by ^[a]Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”

¹⁶ Others, testing Him, ^(D)sought from Him a sign from heaven. ^17 (E)But ^(F)He, knowing their thoughts, said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls. ¹⁸ If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub. ¹⁹ And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. ²⁰ But if I cast out demons ^(G)with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.

Greeting

1 Paul, ^(A)called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ ^(B)through the will of God, and ^(C)Sosthenes our brother,

² To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who ^(D)are ^[a]sanctified in Christ Jesus, ^(E)called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ ^(F)our Lord, ^(G)both theirs and ours:

^3 (H)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Gifts at Corinth

^4 (I)I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, ⁵ that you were enriched in everything by Him ^(J)in all ^[b]utterance and all knowledge, ⁶ even as ^(K)the testimony of Christ was confirmed ^[c]in you, ⁷ so that you come short in no gift, eagerly ^(L)waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, ^8 (M)who will also confirm you to the end, ^(N)that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ^9 (O)God is faithful, by whom you were called into ^(P)the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Sectarianism Is Sin

¹⁰ Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, ^(Q)that you all ^[d]speak the same thing, and that there be no ^[e]divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. ¹¹ For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are ^[f]contentions among you. ¹² Now I say this, that ^(R)each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of ^(S)Apollos,” or “I am of ^(T)Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” ^13 (U)Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

¹⁴ I thank God that I baptized ^(V)none of you except ^(W)Crispus and ^(X)Gaius, ¹⁵ lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name. ¹⁶ Yes, I also baptized the household of ^(Y)Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. ¹⁷ For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, ^(Z)not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.

Christ the Power and Wisdom of God^(AA)

¹⁸ For the ^[g]message of the cross is ^(AB)foolishness to ^(AC)those who are perishing, but to us ^(AD)who are being saved it is the ^(AE)power of God. ¹⁹ For it is written:

^20 (AG)Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the ^[h]disputer of this age? ^(AH)Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? ²¹ For since, in the ^(AI)wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. ²² For ^(AJ)Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; ²³ but we preach Christ crucified, ^(AK)to the Jews a ^[i]stumbling block and to the ^[j]Greeks ^(AL)foolishness, ²⁴ but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ ^(AM)the power of God and ^(AN)the wisdom of God. ²⁵ Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Glory Only in the Lord

²⁶ For ^[k]you see your calling, brethren, ^(AO)that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many ^[l]noble, are called. ²⁷ But ^(AP)God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; ²⁸ and the ^[m]base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, ²⁹ that no flesh should glory in His presence. ³⁰ But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and ^(AQ)righteousness and sanctification and redemption— ³¹ that, as it is written, ^(AR)“He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”