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Deuteronomy 11-12
Living Bible
Deuteronomy 11-12
Living Bible
11 “You must love the Lord your God and obey every one of his commands. 2 Listen! I am not talking now to your children who have never experienced the Lord’s punishments or seen his greatness and his awesome power. 3 They weren’t there to see the miracles he did in Egypt against Pharaoh and all his land. 4 They didn’t see what God did to the armies of Egypt and to their horses and chariots—how he drowned them in the Red Sea as they were chasing you, and how the Lord has kept them powerless against you until this very day! 5 They didn’t see how the Lord cared for you time and again through all the years you were wandering in the wilderness, until your arrival here. 6 They weren’t there when Dathan and Abiram (the sons of Eliab, descendants[a] of Reuben) sinned, and the earth opened up and swallowed them, with their households and tents and all their belongings, as all Israel watched!
7 “But you have seen these mighty miracles! 8 How carefully, then, you should obey these commandments I am going to give you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and possess the land you are about to enter. 9 If you obey the commandments, you will have a long and good life in the land the Lord promised to your ancestors and to you, their descendants—a wonderful land ‘flowing with milk and honey’! 10 For the land you are about to enter and possess is not like the land of Egypt where you have come from, where irrigation is necessary. 11 It is a land of hills and valleys with plenty of rain— 12 a land that the Lord your God personally cares for! His eyes are always upon it, day after day throughout the year!
13 “And if you will carefully obey all of his commandments that I am going to give you today, and if you will love the Lord your God with all your hearts and souls and will worship him, 14 then he will continue to send both the early and late rains that will produce wonderful crops of grain, grapes for your wine, and olive oil. 15 He will give you lush pastureland for your cattle to graze in, and you yourselves shall have plenty to eat and be fully content.
16 “But beware that your hearts do not turn from God to worship other gods. 17 For if you do, the anger of the Lord will be hot against you, and he will shut the heavens—there will be no rain and no harvest, and you will quickly perish from the good land the Lord has given you. 18 So keep these commandments carefully in mind. Tie them to your hand to remind you to obey them, and tie them to your forehead between your eyes! 19 Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are sitting at home, when you are out walking, at bedtime, and before breakfast! 20 Write them upon the doors of your houses and upon your gates, 21 so that as long as there is sky above the earth, you and your children will enjoy the good life awaiting you in the land the Lord has promised you.[b]
22 “If you carefully obey all the commandments I give you, loving the Lord your God, walking in all his ways, and clinging to him, 23 then the Lord will drive out all the nations in your land, no matter how much greater and stronger than you they might be. 24 Wherever you go, the land is yours. Your frontiers will stretch from the southern Negeb to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea. 25 No one will be able to stand against you, for the Lord your God will send fear and dread ahead of you wherever you go, just as he has promised.
26 “I am giving you the choice today between God’s blessing or God’s curse! 27 There will be blessing if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, 28 and a curse if you refuse them and worship the gods of these other nations. 29 When the Lord your God brings you into the land to possess it, a blessing shall be proclaimed from Mount Gerizim and a curse from Mount Ebal! 30 (Gerizim and Ebal are mountains west of the Jordan River, where the Canaanites live, in the wasteland near Gilgal, where the oaks of Moreh are.) 31 For you are to cross the Jordan and live in the land the Lord is giving you. 32 But you must obey all the laws I am giving you today.
12 “These are the laws you must obey when you arrive in the land that Jehovah, the God of your fathers, has given you forever:
2 “You must destroy all the heathen altars wherever you find them—high in the mountains, up in the hills, or under the trees. 3 Break the altars, smash the obelisks, burn the shameful images, cut down the metal idols, and leave nothing even to remind you of them!
4-5 “You must not make sacrifices to your God just anywhere, as the heathen sacrifice to their gods. Rather, you must build a sanctuary for him at a place he himself will select as his home. 6 There you shall bring to the Lord your burnt offerings and other sacrifices—your tithes, your offerings presented by the gesture of waving before the altar, your offerings to fulfill your vows, your freewill offerings, and your offerings of the firstborn animals of your flocks and herds. 7 There you and your families shall feast before the Lord your God and shall rejoice in all he has done for you.
8 “You will no longer go your own way as you do now, everyone doing whatever he thinks is right; 9 (for these laws don’t go into effect until you arrive in the place of rest the Lord will give to you). 10 But when you cross the Jordan River and live in the Promised Land, and the Lord gives you rest and keeps you safe from all your enemies, 11 then you must bring all your burnt sacrifices and other offerings to his sanctuary, the place he will choose as his home. 12 You shall rejoice there before the Lord with your sons and daughters and servants; and remember to invite the Levites to feast with you, for they have no land of their own.
13 “You are not to sacrifice your burnt offerings just anywhere; 14 you may only do so in the place the Lord will choose. He will pick a place in the territory allotted to one of the tribes. Only there may you offer your sacrifices and bring your offerings. 15 However, the meat you eat may be butchered anywhere, just as you do now with gazelle and deer. Eat as much of this meat as you wish and as often as you are able to obtain it, because the Lord has prospered you. Those who are ceremonially defiled may eat it too. 16 The only restriction is that you are not to eat the blood—pour it out on the ground, like water.
17 “But none of the offerings may be eaten at home. Neither the tithe of your grain and new wine and olive oil, nor the firstborn of your flocks and herds, nor anything you have vowed to give the Lord, nor your freewill offerings, nor the offerings to be presented to the Lord by waving them before his altar. 18 All these must be brought to the central altar where you, your children, and the Levites shall eat them before the Lord your God. He will tell you where this altar must be located. Rejoice before the Lord your God in everything you do. 19 (By the way, be very careful not to forget about the Levites. Share with them.)
20-23 “If, when the Lord enlarges your borders, the central altar is too far away from you, then your flocks and herds may be butchered on your own farms, just as you do now with gazelle and deer. And even persons who are ceremonially defiled may eat them. The only restriction is never to eat the blood, for the blood is the life, and you shall not eat the life with the meat. 24-25 Instead, pour the blood out upon the earth. If you do, all will be well with you and your children. 26-27 Only your gifts to the Lord, and the offerings you have promised in your vows, and your burnt offerings need be taken to the central altar. These may only be sacrificed upon the altar of the Lord your God. The blood will be poured out upon the altar, and you will eat the meat.
28 “Be careful to obey all of these commandments. If you do what is right in the eyes of the Lord your God, all will go well with you and your children forever. 29 When he destroys the nations in the land where you will live, 30 don’t follow their example in worshiping their gods. Do not ask, ‘How do these nations worship their gods?’ and then go and worship as they do! 31 You must not insult the Lord your God like that! These nations have done horrible things that he hates, all in the name of their religion. They have even roasted their sons and daughters in front of their gods. 32 Obey all the commandments I give you. Do not add to or subtract from them.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 11:6 descendants, literally, “sons.”
- Deuteronomy 11:21 you, literally, “your fathers.”
Deuteronomy 11-12
New International Version
Deuteronomy 11-12
New International Version
Love and Obey the Lord
11 Love(A) the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always.(B) 2 Remember today that your children(C) were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the Lord your God:(D) his majesty,(E) his mighty hand, his outstretched arm;(F) 3 the signs he performed and the things he did in the heart of Egypt, both to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his whole country;(G) 4 what he did to the Egyptian army, to its horses and chariots,(H) how he overwhelmed them with the waters of the Red Sea[a](I) as they were pursuing you, and how the Lord brought lasting ruin on them. 5 It was not your children who saw what he did for you in the wilderness until you arrived at this place, 6 and what he did(J) to Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened(K) its mouth right in the middle of all Israel and swallowed them up with their households, their tents and every living thing that belonged to them. 7 But it was your own eyes that saw all these great things the Lord has done.(L)
8 Observe therefore all the commands(M) I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess,(N) 9 and so that you may live long(O) in the land the Lord swore(P) to your ancestors to give to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey.(Q) 10 The land you are entering to take over is not like the land of Egypt,(R) from which you have come, where you planted your seed and irrigated it by foot as in a vegetable garden. 11 But the land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys(S) that drinks rain from heaven.(T) 12 It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes(U) of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end.
13 So if you faithfully obey(V) the commands I am giving you today—to love(W) the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul(X)— 14 then I will send rain(Y) on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains,(Z) so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. 15 I will provide grass(AA) in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.(AB)
16 Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them.(AC) 17 Then the Lord’s anger(AD) will burn against you, and he will shut up(AE) the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce,(AF) and you will soon perish(AG) from the good land the Lord is giving you. 18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.(AH) 19 Teach them to your children,(AI) talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.(AJ) 20 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates,(AK) 21 so that your days and the days of your children may be many(AL) in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.(AM)
22 If you carefully observe(AN) all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love(AO) the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to hold fast(AP) to him— 23 then the Lord will drive out(AQ) all these nations(AR) before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you.(AS) 24 Every place where you set your foot will be yours:(AT) Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River(AU) to the Mediterranean Sea. 25 No one will be able to stand against you. The Lord your God, as he promised you, will put the terror(AV) and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go.(AW)
26 See, I am setting before you today a blessing(AX) and a curse(AY)— 27 the blessing(AZ) if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; 28 the curse if you disobey(BA) the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods,(BB) which you have not known. 29 When the Lord your God has brought you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim(BC) the blessings, and on Mount Ebal(BD) the curses.(BE) 30 As you know, these mountains are across the Jordan, westward, toward the setting sun, near the great trees of Moreh,(BF) in the territory of those Canaanites living in the Arabah in the vicinity of Gilgal.(BG) 31 You are about to cross the Jordan to enter and take possession(BH) of the land the Lord your God is giving(BI) you. When you have taken it over and are living there, 32 be sure that you obey all the decrees and laws I am setting before you today.
The One Place of Worship
12 These are the decrees(BJ) and laws you must be careful to follow in the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you to possess—as long as you live in the land.(BK) 2 Destroy completely all the places on the high mountains,(BL) on the hills and under every spreading tree,(BM) where the nations you are dispossessing worship their gods. 3 Break down their altars, smash(BN) their sacred stones and burn(BO) their Asherah(BP) poles in the fire; cut down the idols of their gods and wipe out their names(BQ) from those places.
4 You must not worship the Lord your God in their way.(BR) 5 But you are to seek the place the Lord your God will choose from among all your tribes to put his Name(BS) there for his dwelling.(BT) To that place you must go; 6 there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes(BU) and special gifts, what you have vowed(BV) to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.(BW) 7 There, in the presence(BX) of the Lord your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice(BY) in everything you have put your hand to, because the Lord your God has blessed you.
8 You are not to do as we do here today, everyone doing as they see fit,(BZ) 9 since you have not yet reached the resting place(CA) and the inheritance(CB) the Lord your God is giving you. 10 But you will cross the Jordan and settle in the land the Lord your God is giving(CC) you as an inheritance, and he will give you rest(CD) from all your enemies around you so that you will live in safety. 11 Then to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name(CE)—there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all the choice possessions you have vowed to the Lord.(CF) 12 And there rejoice(CG) before the Lord your God—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites(CH) from your towns who have no allotment or inheritance(CI) of their own. 13 Be careful not to sacrifice your burnt offerings anywhere you please.(CJ) 14 Offer them only at the place the Lord will choose(CK) in one of your tribes, and there observe everything I command you.
15 Nevertheless, you may slaughter your animals in any of your towns and eat as much of the meat as you want, as if it were gazelle or deer,(CL) according to the blessing the Lord your God gives you. Both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it. 16 But you must not eat the blood;(CM) pour(CN) it out on the ground like water.(CO) 17 You must not eat in your own towns the tithe(CP) of your grain and new wine and olive oil,(CQ) or the firstborn of your herds and flocks, or whatever you have vowed to give,(CR) or your freewill offerings or special gifts.(CS) 18 Instead, you are to eat(CT) them in the presence of the Lord your God at the place the Lord your God will choose(CU)—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites from your towns—and you are to rejoice(CV) before the Lord your God in everything you put your hand to. 19 Be careful not to neglect the Levites(CW) as long as you live in your land.(CX)
20 When the Lord your God has enlarged your territory(CY) as he promised(CZ) you, and you crave meat(DA) and say, “I would like some meat,” then you may eat as much of it as you want. 21 If the place where the Lord your God chooses to put his Name(DB) is too far away from you, you may slaughter animals from the herds and flocks the Lord has given you, as I have commanded you, and in your own towns you may eat as much of them as you want.(DC) 22 Eat them as you would gazelle or deer.(DD) Both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat. 23 But be sure you do not eat the blood,(DE) because the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat.(DF) 24 You must not eat the blood; pour it out on the ground like water.(DG) 25 Do not eat it, so that it may go well(DH) with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is right(DI) in the eyes of the Lord.
26 But take your consecrated things and whatever you have vowed to give,(DJ) and go to the place the Lord will choose. 27 Present your burnt offerings(DK) on the altar of the Lord your God, both the meat and the blood. The blood of your sacrifices must be poured beside the altar of the Lord your God, but you may eat(DL) the meat. 28 Be careful to obey all these regulations I am giving you, so that it may always go well(DM) with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord your God.
29 The Lord your God will cut off(DN) before you the nations you are about to invade and dispossess. But when you have driven them out and settled in their land,(DO) 30 and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared(DP) by inquiring about their gods, saying, “How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.”(DQ) 31 You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates.(DR) They even burn their sons(DS) and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.(DT)
32 See that you do all I command you; do not add(DU) to it or take away from it.[b]
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 11:4 Or the Sea of Reeds
- Deuteronomy 12:32 In Hebrew texts this verse (12:32) is numbered 13:1.
Luke 8:22-39
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Luke 8:22-39
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22 One day about that time, as he and his disciples were out in a boat, he suggested that they cross to the other side of the lake. 23 On the way across he lay down for a nap, and while he was sleeping the wind began to rise. A fierce storm developed that threatened to swamp them, and they were in real danger.
24 They rushed over and woke him up. “Master, Master, we are sinking!” they screamed.
So he spoke to the storm: “Quiet down,” he said, and the wind and waves subsided and all was calm! 25 Then he asked them, “Where is your faith?”
And they were filled with awe and fear of him and said to one another, “Who is this man, that even the winds and waves obey him?”
26 So they arrived at the other side, in the Gerasene country across the lake from Galilee. 27 As he was climbing out of the boat a man from the city of Gadara came to meet him, a man who had been demon-possessed for a long time. Homeless and naked, he lived in a cemetery among the tombs. 28 As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and fell to the ground before him, screaming, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of God Most High? Please, I beg you, oh, don’t torment me!”
29 For Jesus was already commanding the demon to leave him. This demon had often taken control of the man so that even when shackled with chains he simply broke them and rushed out into the desert, completely under the demon’s power. 30 “What is your name?” Jesus asked the demon. “Legion,” they replied—for the man was filled with thousands of them![a] 31 They kept begging Jesus not to order them into the Bottomless Pit.
32 A herd of pigs was feeding on the mountainside nearby, and the demons pled with him to let them enter into the pigs. And Jesus said they could. 33 So they left the man and went into the pigs, and immediately the whole herd rushed down the mountainside and fell over a cliff into the lake below, where they drowned. 34 The herdsmen rushed away to the nearby city, spreading the news as they ran.
35 Soon a crowd came out to see for themselves what had happened and saw the man who had been demon-possessed sitting quietly at Jesus’ feet, clothed and sane! And the whole crowd was badly frightened. 36 Then those who had seen it happen told how the demon-possessed man had been healed. 37 And everyone begged Jesus to go away and leave them alone (for a deep wave of fear had swept over them). So he returned to the boat and left, crossing back to the other side of the lake.
38 The man who had been demon-possessed begged to go too, but Jesus said no.
39 “Go back to your family,” he told him, “and tell them what a wonderful thing God has done for you.”
So he went all through the city telling everyone about Jesus’ mighty miracle.
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- Luke 8:30 with thousands of them, implied. A legion consisted of 6,000 troops. Whether the demons were speaking literally, of course, is unknown.
Luke 8:22-39
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Luke 8:22-39
New International Version
Jesus Calms the Storm(A)(B)
22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.
24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master,(C) we’re going to drown!”
He got up and rebuked(D) the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm.(E) 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples.
In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”
Jesus Restores a Demon-Possessed Man(F)(G)
26 They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes,[a] which is across the lake from Galilee. 27 When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town. For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell at his feet, shouting at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me,(H) Jesus, Son of the Most High God?(I) I beg you, don’t torture me!” 29 For Jesus had commanded the impure spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot and kept under guard, he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places.
30 Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”
“Legion,” he replied, because many demons had gone into him. 31 And they begged Jesus repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.(J)
32 A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside. The demons begged Jesus to let them go into the pigs, and he gave them permission. 33 When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake(K) and was drowned.
34 When those tending the pigs saw what had happened, they ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, 35 and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet,(L) dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. 36 Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed(M) man had been cured. 37 Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them,(N) because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the boat and left.
38 The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.
Footnotes
- Luke 8:26 Some manuscripts Gadarenes; other manuscripts Gergesenes; also in verse 37
Psalm 70
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Psalm 70
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70 Rescue me, O God! Lord, hurry to my aid! 2-3 They are after my life and delight in hurting me. Confuse them! Shame them! Stop them! Don’t let them keep on mocking me! 4 But fill the followers of God with joy. Let those who love your salvation exclaim, “What a wonderful God he is!” 5 But I am in deep trouble. Rush to my aid, for only you can help and save me. O Lord, don’t delay.
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Psalm 70
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Psalm 70
New International Version
Psalm 70[a](A)
For the director of music. Of David. A petition.
1 Hasten, O God, to save me;
come quickly, Lord, to help me.(B)
2 May those who want to take my life(C)
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin
be turned back in disgrace.(D)
3 May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”(E)
turn back because of their shame.
4 But may all who seek you(F)
rejoice and be glad(G) in you;
may those who long for your saving help always say,
“The Lord is great!”(H)
Footnotes
- Psalm 70:1 In Hebrew texts 70:1-5 is numbered 70:2-6.
Proverbs 12:4
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Proverbs 12:4
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4 A worthy wife is her husband’s joy and crown; the other kind corrodes his strength and tears down everything he does.
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Proverbs 12:4
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Proverbs 12:4
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