Numbers 24-25
Easy-to-Read Version
Balaam’s Third Message
24 Balaam saw that the Lord wanted to bless Israel, so he did not try to change that by using any kind of magic. But Balaam turned and looked toward the desert. 2 He looked out across the desert and saw all the Israelites. They were camped with the tribes in their different areas. Then the Spirit of God came on him, 3 and he gave this message:
“This message is from Balaam son of Beor.
I am speaking about things I see clearly.
4 These are the words I heard from God.
I saw what God All-Powerful[a] showed me.
I humbly tell what I clearly see.
5 “People of Jacob, your tents are beautiful!
Israelites, your homes are beautiful!
6 You are like rows of palm trees planted by the streams.
You are like gardens growing by the rivers.
You are like sweet-smelling bushes planted by the Lord.
You are like cedar trees growing by the water.
7 You will always have enough water,
enough water for your seeds to grow.
Your king will be greater than King Agag.
Your kingdom will be very great.
8 “God brought them out of Egypt.
They are as strong as a wild ox.
They will defeat all their enemies.
They will break their bones and shatter their arrows.
9 Israel is like a lion,
curled up and lying down.
Yes, they are like a young lion,
and no one wants to wake him!
Anyone who blesses you will be blessed.
And anyone who curses you will have great troubles.”
10 When Balak heard this, he angrily struck his fist against his hand and said to Balaam, “I called you to come and curse my enemies. But you have blessed them. You have blessed them three times. 11 Now leave and go home! I told you that I would give you a very good payment, but the Lord has caused you to lose your reward.”
12 Balaam said to Balak, “You sent men to ask me to come. Don’t you remember what I told them? I said, 13 ‘Even if Balak gives me his most beautiful house filled with silver and gold, I can still say only what the Lord commands me to say. I cannot do anything myself, good or bad. I must say what the Lord commands.’ 14 Now I am going back to my own people. But I will give you this warning. I will tell you what these Israelites will do to you and your people in the future.”
Balaam’s Last Message
15 Then Balaam gave this message:
“This message is from Balaam son of Beor.
I am speaking about things I see clearly.
16 I heard this message from God.
I learned what God Most High taught me.
I saw what God All-Powerful showed me.
I humbly tell what I clearly see.
17 “I see him coming, but not now.
I see him coming, but not soon.
A star will come from the family of Jacob.
A new ruler will come from the Israelites.
He will smash the heads of the Moabites
and crush the heads of all the sons of Sheth.[b]
18 Israel will grow strong!
He will get the land of Edom.
He will get the land of Seir,[c] his enemy.
19 “A new ruler will come from the family of Jacob.
That ruler will destroy the people left alive in that city.”
20 Then Balaam saw the Amalekites and said this:
“Amalek is the strongest of all nations,
but even Amalek will be destroyed!”
21 Then Balaam saw the Kenites and said this:
“You believe that your country is safe,
like a bird’s nest[d] high on a mountain.
22 But you Kenites will be destroyed,
just as the Lord destroyed Cain.
Assyria will make you prisoners.”
23 Then Balaam said this:
“No one can live when God does this.
24 Ships will come from Cyprus.[e]
They will defeat Assyria and Eber,[f]
but those ships will also be destroyed.”
25 Then Balaam got up and went back home, and Balak went his own way.
Israel at Peor
25 While the Israelites were camped near Acacia, the men committed sexual sins[g] with Moabite women. 2-3 The Moabite women invited the men to come and join in their sacrifices to their false gods. So the Israelites joined in worshiping these false gods—they ate the sacrifices and worshiped these gods. There the Israelites began worshiping the false god, Baal of Peor. And the Lord became very angry with them.
4 The Lord said to Moses, “Get all the leaders of these people. Then kill them so that all the people can see.[h] Lay their bodies before the Lord. Then the Lord will not show his anger against all the Israelites.”
5 So Moses said to Israel’s judges, “Each of you must find the men in your tribe who have led people to worship the false god, Baal of Peor. Then you must kill these men.”
6 At the time Moses and all the elders of Israel were gathered together at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. An Israelite man brought a Midianite woman home to his brothers.[i] He did this where Moses and all the leaders could see. Moses and the leaders were very sad. 7 Phinehas was the son of Eleazar and the grandson of Aaron the priest. Phinehas saw this man bring the woman into camp. So he left the meeting and got his spear. 8 He followed the Israelite into the tent. Then he used the spear to kill the Israelite man and the Midianite woman in her tent.[j] He pushed the spear through both of their bodies. At that time there was a great sickness among the Israelites. But when Phinehas killed these two people, the sickness stopped. 9 A total of 24,000 people died from that sickness.
10 The Lord said to Moses, 11 “I was so angry with the Israelites that I wanted to kill them. But Phinehas, son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest, has saved them from my anger. He did this by showing that he feels strongly, just as I do, that my people must worship only me. 12 Tell Phinehas that I am making a peace agreement with him. 13 This is the agreement: He and all of his family who live after him will always be priests, because he had strong feelings for his God. And he did what was needed to make the Israelites pure.”
14 The Israelite man who was killed with the Midianite woman was named Zimri son of Salu. He was the leader of a family in the tribe of Simeon. 15 And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi.[k] She was the daughter of Zur. Zur was the head of a family and leader of a Midianite tribe.
16 The Lord said to Moses, 17 “The Midianites are your enemies. You must kill them. 18 They have already made you their enemies. They tricked you at Peor. And they tricked you with the woman named Cozbi. She was the daughter of a Midianite leader, but she was killed when the sickness came to the Israelites. That sickness was caused because the people were tricked into worshiping the false god Baal of Peor.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 24:4 God All-Powerful Literally, “El Shaddai.” Also in verse 16.
- Numbers 24:17 sons of Sheth Or “Seth.” Seth was Adam’s third son. This might be like the phrases “son of Man” (Adam) and “son of Enosh” and mean simply “all these people.”
- Numbers 24:18 Seir Another name for Edom.
- Numbers 24:21 nest, Kenite, Cain A play on words. The names “Cain” and “Kenite” are like the Hebrew word meaning “nest.”
- Numbers 24:24 Cyprus Literally, “Kittim.” This might be Cyprus, Crete, or other places west of Israel in the Mediterranean Sea.
- Numbers 24:24 Eber This might mean the people living west of the Euphrates River, or it might mean the “Hebrews,” the descendants of Eber. See Gen. 10:21.
- Numbers 25:1 sexual sins Sexual sin was often connected with temples for false gods. So this can mean that the men were unfaithful to their wives and also that they were unfaithful to God by going to their temples.
- Numbers 25:4 so that all the people can see Literally, “before the sun.”
- Numbers 25:6 brothers Or “family.”
- Numbers 25:8 her tent This was probably a special tent that showed this woman was a prostitute serving the false god, Baal of Peor.
- Numbers 25:15 Cozbi This name is like the Hebrew word meaning “my lie.”
Luke 2:1-35
Easy-to-Read Version
The Birth of Jesus Christ(A)
2 It was about that same time that Augustus Caesar sent out an order to all people in the countries that were under Roman rule. The order said that everyone’s name must be put on a list. 2 This was the first counting of all the people while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 Everyone traveled to their own hometowns to have their name put on the list.
4 So Joseph left Nazareth, a town in Galilee, and went to the town of Bethlehem in Judea. It was known as the town of David. Joseph went there because he was from the family of David. 5 Joseph registered with Mary because she was engaged to marry him. (She was now pregnant.) 6 While Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem, the time came for her to have the baby. 7 She gave birth to her first son. She wrapped him up well and laid him in a box where cattle are fed. She put him there because the guest room was full.
Some Shepherds Hear About Jesus
8 That night, some shepherds were out in the fields near Bethlehem watching their sheep. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord was shining around them. The shepherds were very afraid. 10 The angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid. I have some very good news for you—news that will make everyone happy. 11 Today your Savior was born in David’s town. He is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This is how you will know him: You will find a baby wrapped in pieces of cloth and lying in a feeding box.”
13 Then a huge army of angels from heaven joined the first angel, and they were all praising God, saying,
14 “Praise God in heaven,
and on earth let there be peace to the people who please him.”
15 The angels left the shepherds and went back to heaven. The shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this great event the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they went running and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the feeding box. 17 When they saw the baby, they told what the angels said about this child. 18 Everyone was surprised when they heard what the shepherds told them. 19 Mary continued to think about these things, trying to understand them. 20 The shepherds went back to their sheep, praising God and thanking him for everything they had seen and heard. It was just as the angel had told them.
21 When the baby was eight days old, he was circumcised, and he was named Jesus. This name was given by the angel before the baby began to grow inside Mary.
Jesus Is Presented in the Temple
22 The time came for Mary and Joseph to do the things the Law of Moses taught about being made pure.[a] They brought Jesus to Jerusalem so that they could present him to the Lord. 23 It is written in the law of the Lord: “When a mother’s first baby is a boy, he shall be called ‘special for the Lord.’”[b] 24 The law of the Lord also says that people must give a sacrifice: “You must sacrifice two doves or two young pigeons.”[c] So Joseph and Mary went to Jerusalem to do this.
Simeon Sees Jesus
25 A man named Simeon lived in Jerusalem. He was a good man who was devoted to God. He was waiting for the time when God would come to help Israel. The Holy Spirit was with him. 26 The Holy Spirit told him that he would not die before he saw the Messiah from the Lord. 27 The Spirit led Simeon to the Temple. So he was there when Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to do what the Jewish law said they must do. 28 Simeon took the baby in his arms and thanked God:
29 “Now, Lord, you can let me, your servant, die in peace as you said.
30 I have seen with my own eyes how you will save your people.
31 Now all people can see your plan.
32 He is a light to show your way to the other nations.
And he will bring honor to your people Israel.”
33 Jesus’ father and mother were amazed at what Simeon said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, “Many Jews will fall and many will rise because of this boy. He will be a sign from God that some will not accept. 35 So the secret thoughts of many will be made known. And the things that happen will be painful for you—like a sword cutting through your heart.”
Read full chapter
Psalm 59
Easy-to-Read Version
To the director: To the tune “Don’t Destroy.” A miktam of David written when Saul sent people to watch David’s house to try to kill him.
59 God, save me from my enemies.
Protect me from those who stand against me.
2 Save me from those who do wrong.
Save me from those murderers.
3 Look, powerful men are waiting for me.
Lord, they are waiting to kill me,
even though I did not sin or commit a crime.
4 I have done nothing wrong, but they are rushing to attack me.
Come and see for yourself!
5 You are the Lord God All-Powerful, the God of Israel!
Get up and punish them.
Don’t show any mercy to those traitors. Selah
6 Those evil men are like dogs
that come into town in the evening,
growling and roaming the streets.
7 Listen to their threats and insults.
They say such cruel things,
and they don’t care who hears them.
8 Lord, laugh at them.
Make fun of them all.
9 God, my strength, I look to you for help.[a]
You are my place of safety, high in the mountains.
10 God loves me, and he will help me win.
He will help me defeat my enemies.
11 Don’t just kill them, or my people might forget.
My Lord and Protector, scatter and defeat them with your strength.
12 Those evil people curse and tell lies.
Punish them for what they said.
Let their pride trap them.
13 Destroy them in your anger.
Destroy them completely!
Then people all over the world will know
that God rules over the people of Jacob. Selah
14 Those evil men are like dogs
that come into town in the evening, growling and roaming the streets.
15 They roam around looking for food,
but even if they eat their fill, they still growl and complain.
16 But I will sing about your strength.
I will rejoice in your love every morning.
You have been my place of safety,
the place I can run to when troubles come.
17 I will sing praises to you, my source of strength.
You, God, are my place of safety.
You are the God who loves me!
Footnotes
- Psalm 59:9 God … help Or “I will sing my songs of praise to you.” See Ps. 59:17.
Proverbs 11:14
Easy-to-Read Version
14 A nation without wise leaders will fall. Many good advisors make a nation safe.
Read full chapterCopyright © 2006 by Bible League International
Bible Gateway Recommends
