On Life and Conduct

Conflicts to Come

11 “In the ^(A)first year of Darius the Mede, ^[a]I arose to be of ^[b]assistance and a protection for him. ² And now I will tell you the ^(B)truth. Behold, three more kings are going to arise ^[c]in Persia. Then a fourth will gain far more riches than all of them; as soon as he becomes strong through his riches, ^[d]he will stir up the entire empire against the realm of ^[e](C)Greece. ³ And a ^(D)mighty king will arise, and he will rule with great authority and ^(E)do as he pleases. ⁴ But as soon as he has arisen, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out ^(F)toward the ^(G)four ^[f]points of the compass, though not to his own descendants, nor according to his authority which he wielded, because his sovereignty will be ^(H)removed and given to others besides ^[g]them.

⁵ “Then the ^(I)king of the South will grow strong, ^[h]along with one of his princes ^[i]who will gain ascendancy over him and rule; his domain will be a great realm indeed. ⁶ And after some years they will form an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the South will come to the ^(J)king of the North to reach an agreement. But she will not keep her ^[j]position of power, nor will he remain with his ^[k]power, but she will be given up, along with those who brought her in and the one who fathered her as well as he who supported her in those times. ⁷ But one of the ^[l]descendants of her line will arise in his place, and he will come against their army and enter the ^(K)fortress of the king of the North, and he will deal with them and prevail. ⁸ And he will also take into captivity to Egypt their ^(L)gods with their cast metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold, and he on his part will ^[m]refrain from attacking the king of the North for some years. ⁹ Then ^[n]the latter will enter the realm of the king of the South, but will return to his own land.

¹⁰ “And his sons will mobilize and assemble a multitude of great forces; and one of them will keep on coming and ^(M)overflow and pass through, so that he may ^[o]again wage war up to his fortress. ¹¹ And the ^(N)king of the South will be enraged and go out and fight ^[p]with the king of the North. Then the latter will raise a great multitude, but that multitude will be handed over to ^[q]the former. ¹² When the multitude is carried away, his heart will ^[r]be haughty, and he will cause tens of thousands to fall; yet he will not prevail. ¹³ For the king of the North will again raise a greater multitude than the former, and ^[s]after an ^(O)interval of some years he will ^[t]press on with a great army and much equipment.

¹⁴ “Now in those times many will rise up against the king of the South; the violent ones among your people will also raise themselves up to fulfill the vision, but they will ^[u]fall down. ¹⁵ Then the king of the North will come, pile up an ^(P)assault ramp, and capture a well-fortified city; and the forces of the South will not stand their ground, not even ^[v]their choicest troops, for there will be no strength to make a stand. ¹⁶ But he who comes against him will ^(Q)do as he pleases, and ^(R)no one will be able to withstand him; he will also stay for a time in the ^[w](S)Beautiful Land, with destruction in his hand. ¹⁷ And he will ^(T)set his ^[x]mind on coming with the power of his entire kingdom, ^[y]bringing with him ^[z]a proposal of peace which he will put into effect; he will also give him the daughter of women to ruin it. But she will not take a stand for him or be ^[aa]on his side. ¹⁸ Then he will turn his face to the ^(U)coastlands and capture many. But a commander will put a stop to his taunting against him; moreover, he will ^(V)repay him for his taunting. ¹⁹ So he will turn his face toward the fortresses of his own land, but he will ^(W)stumble and fall and not be ^(X)found.

²⁰ “Then in his place one will arise who will ^(Y)allow an ^[ab]oppressor to pass through the ^[ac]Jewel of his kingdom; yet within a few days he will be broken, though not in anger nor in battle. ²¹ And in his place a despicable person will arise, on whom the majesty of kingship has not been conferred; but he will come in a time of tranquility and ^(Z)seize the kingdom by intrigue. ²² And the overflowing ^(AA)forces will be flooded away from him and smashed, and also the prince of the covenant. ²³ After an alliance is made with him he will practice deception, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people. ^24 [ad]In a time of tranquility he will enter the ^(AB)richest parts of the ^[ae]realm, and he will accomplish what his fathers did not, nor his ^[af]ancestors; he will distribute plunder, spoils, and possessions among them, and he will devise his schemes against strongholds, but only for a time. ²⁵ And he will stir up his strength and ^[ag]courage against the ^(AC)king of the South with a large army; so the king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army for war; but he will not stand, because schemes will be devised against him. ²⁶ Those who eat his choice food will ^[ah]destroy him, and his army will ^[ai](AD)overflow, but many will fall down slain. ²⁷ As for both kings, their hearts will be intent on ^(AE)evil, and they will ^(AF)speak lies to each other at the same table; but it will not succeed, because the ^(AG)end is still to come at the appointed time. ²⁸ Then he will return to his land with much ^[aj]plunder; but his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action and then return to his own land.

²⁹ “At the appointed time he will return and come into the South, but ^[ak]this last time it will not turn out the way it did before. ³⁰ For ships of ^[al](AH)Kittim will come against him; therefore he will withdraw in fear and will return and curse the holy covenant and take action; so he will come back and pay attention to those who abandon the holy covenant. ³¹ Forces from him will arise, ^(AI)desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the ^(AJ)abomination ^[am]of desolation. ³² And by ^(AK)smooth words he will ^[an]turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will be ^(AL)strong and take action. ³³ And ^[ao](AM)those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; yet they will ^(AN)fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days. ³⁴ Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will ^(AO)join with them in ^(AP)hypocrisy. ³⁵ And some of ^[ap]those who have insight will fall, to ^(AQ)refine, ^(AR)purge, and ^[aq](AS)cleanse them until the ^(AT)end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time.

³⁶ “Then the king will ^(AU)do as he pleases, and he will exalt himself and ^(AV)boast against every god and will ^(AW)speak ^[ar]dreadful things against the ^(AX)God of gods; and he will be successful until the ^(AY)indignation is finished, because that which is ^(AZ)determined will be done. ³⁷ And he will show no regard for the ^[as]gods of his fathers or for the ^[at]desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will boast against them all. ³⁸ But ^[au]instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, precious stones, and treasures. ³⁹ And he will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to ^[av]those who acknowledge him and will make them rulers over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.

⁴⁰ “And at the ^(BA)end time the ^(BB)king of the South will wage war with him, and the ^(BC)king of the North will ^(BD)storm against him with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he will enter countries, ^(BE)overflow them, and pass through. ⁴¹ He will also enter the ^[aw](BF)Beautiful Land, and many countries will fall; but these will be rescued out of his hand: Edom, ^(BG)Moab, and the foremost of the sons of ^(BH)Ammon. ⁴² Then he will reach out with his hand against other countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape. ⁴³ But he will ^[ax]gain control over the hidden treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; and ^(BI)Libyans and ^(BJ)Ethiopians will follow at his ^[ay]heels. ⁴⁴ But rumors from the East and from the North will terrify him, and he will go out with great wrath to eliminate and ^[az]annihilate many. ⁴⁵ And he will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful ^(BK)Holy Mountain; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.

The Time of the End

12 “Now at that time ^(A)Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a ^(B)time of distress ^(C)such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the ^(D)book, will be rescued. ² And ^(E)many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, ^(F)these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting ^[a]contempt. ³ And ^[b]those who have ^(G)insight will ^(H)shine like the glow of the ^[c]expanse of heaven, and those who ^[d](I)lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. ⁴ But as for you, Daniel, ^(J)keep these words secret and ^(K)seal up the book until the ^(L)end of time; ^(M)many will roam about, and knowledge will increase.”

⁵ Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others were standing, one on this bank of the stream and the other on that bank of the stream. ⁶ And ^(N)someone said to the man ^(O)dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, “^(P)How long will it be until the end of these wonders?” ⁷ And I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, ^[e]as he ^(Q)raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by ^(R)Him who lives forever that it would be for a ^[f](S)time, ^[g]times, and half a ^[h]time; and as soon as ^[i]they finish ^(T)smashing the ^[j]power of the holy people, all these events will be completed. ⁸ But as for me, I heard but did not understand; so I said, “My lord, what will be the ^[k]outcome of these events?” ⁹ And he said, “Go your way, Daniel, for these words will be kept secret and ^(U)sealed up until the end time. ^10 (V)Many will be purged, ^[l]cleansed, and refined, but the ^(W)wicked will act wickedly; and none of the wicked will understand, but ^[m]those who ^(X)have insight will understand. ¹¹ And from the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished and the ^(Y)abomination ^[n]of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. ^12 (Z)Blessed is the one who is patient and attains to the ^(AA)1,335 days! ¹³ But as for you, go your way to the ^[o]end; then you will ^(AB)rest and ^[p]rise for your ^(AC)allotted portion at the end of the ^[q]age.”

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

6 ^(A)Now it happened that ^[a]Jesus was passing through some grainfields on a Sabbath, and His disciples ^(B)were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. ² But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what ^(C)is not lawful on the Sabbath?” ³ And Jesus, answering them, said, “Have you not even read ^(D)what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him, ⁴ how he entered the house of God, and took and ate the ^[b]consecrated bread, which ^(E)is not lawful for anyone to eat except the priests alone, and gave it to his companions?” ⁵ And He was saying to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

^6 (F)On another Sabbath He entered ^(G)the synagogue and taught; and a man was there ^[c]whose right hand was withered. ⁷ Now the scribes and the Pharisees ^(H)were watching Him ^[d]closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse Him. ⁸ But He ^(I)knew ^[e]what they were thinking, and He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and ^[f]come forward!” And he got up and ^[g]came forward. ⁹ And Jesus said to them, “I ask you whether it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do harm, to save a life or to destroy it?” ¹⁰ And after ^(J)looking around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand!” And he did so; and his hand was restored. ¹¹ But they themselves were filled with senseless rage, and began discussing together what they might do to Jesus.

Choosing the Twelve

¹² Now it was ^[h]at this time that He went off to ^(K)the mountain to ^(L)pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer with God. ¹³ And when day came, ^(M)He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as ^(N)apostles: ¹⁴ Simon, whom He also named Peter, and his brother Andrew; and ^[i]James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; ¹⁵ and ^(O)Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; ¹⁶ Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

¹⁷ And then Jesus ^(P)came down with them and stood on a level place; and there was ^(Q)a large crowd of His disciples, and a great multitude of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the coastal region of ^(R)Tyre and Sidon, ¹⁸ who had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled by unclean spirits were being cured. ¹⁹ And all the ^[j]people were trying to ^(S)touch Him, because ^(T)power was coming from Him and healing them all.

The Beatitudes

²⁰ And He raised His eyes toward His disciples and began saying, “^(U)Blessed are ^[k]you who are poor, for ^(V)yours is the kingdom of God. ²¹ Blessed are ^[l]you who are hungry now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are ^[m]you who weep now, for you will laugh. ^22 (W)Blessed are you when the people hate you, and when they ^[n](X)exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man. ²³ Rejoice on that day and ^(Y)jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers used to ^[o]treat the prophets ^(Z)the same way. ²⁴ But woe to ^(AA)you who are rich, for ^(AB)you are receiving your comfort in full. ²⁵ Woe to you who ^[p]are well-fed now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. ²⁶ Woe to you when all the people speak well of you; for their fathers used to ^[q]treat the ^(AC)false prophets the same way.

²⁷ “But I say to you who hear, ^(AD)love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, ^(AE)pray for those who are abusive to you. ^29 (AF)Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your ^[r]cloak, do not withhold your ^[s]tunic from him either. ³⁰ Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. ^31 [t](AG)Treat people the same way you want them to ^[u]treat you. ^32 (AH)If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ^34 (AI)And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. ³⁵ But ^(AJ)love your enemies and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be ^(AK)sons of ^(AL)the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil people. ^36 [v]Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

³⁷ “^(AM)Do not ^[w]judge, and you will not be judged; and do not ^[x]condemn, and you will not be condemned; ^[y](AN)pardon, and you will be pardoned. ³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you. They will ^[z]pour ^(AO)into your lap a ^(AP)good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”

³⁹ Now He also spoke a parable to them: “^(AQ)A person who is blind cannot guide another who is blind, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit? ^40 (AR)A ^[aa]student is not above the teacher; but everyone, when he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher. ⁴¹ Why do you look at the ^[ab]speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴² How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the ^[ac]speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the ^[ad]speck that is in your brother’s eye. ^43 (AS)For there is no good tree that bears bad fruit, nor, ^[ae]on the other hand, a bad tree that bears good fruit. ^44 (AT)For each tree is known by its own fruit. For people do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they pick grapes from a briar bush. ^45 (AU)The good person out of the good ^[af]treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; ^(AV)for his mouth speaks from ^[ag]that which fills his heart.

The Parable of the Builders

⁴⁶ “Now ^(AW)why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? ^47 (AX)Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and ^[ah]acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: ⁴⁸ he is like a man building a house, who ^[ai]dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when there was a flood, the river burst against that house and yet it could not shake it, because it had been well built. ⁴⁹ But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation; and the river burst against it and it immediately collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”