The Lord Will Not Forsake His People

Keep the Sabbath Holy

¹⁹ Thus said the Lord to me: “Go and stand in the People's Gate, by which ^(A)the kings of Judah enter and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem, ²⁰ and say: ‘Hear the word of the Lord, ^(B)you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who enter by these gates. ²¹ Thus says the Lord: Take care for the sake of your lives, and ^(C)do not bear a burden on the Sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. ²² And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath ^(D)or do any work, but ^(E)keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers. ²³ Yet ^(F)they did not listen or incline their ear, ^(G)but stiffened their neck, that they ^(H)might not hear and receive instruction.

²⁴ “‘But if you listen to me, declares the Lord, and ^(I)bring in no burden by the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but ^(J)keep the Sabbath day holy and do no work on it, ²⁵ then ^(K)there shall enter by the gates of this city kings and princes who sit on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their officials, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And this city shall be inhabited forever. ²⁶ And people shall come from ^(L)the cities of Judah ^(M)and the places around Jerusalem, ^(N)from the land of Benjamin, ^(O)from the Shephelah, from the hill country, ^(P)and from ^(Q)the Negeb, bringing ^(R)burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and frankincense, and ^(S)bringing thank offerings to the house of the Lord. ²⁷ But if you do not listen to me, to ^(T)keep the Sabbath day holy, ^(U)and not to bear a burden and enter by the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will ^(V)kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall ^(W)devour the palaces of Jerusalem and ^(X)shall not be quenched.’”

¹³ Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. ¹⁴ For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, ^(A)sold under sin. ¹⁵ For I do not understand my own actions. For ^(B)I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. ¹⁶ Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with ^(C)the law, that it is good. ¹⁷ So now ^(D)it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. ¹⁸ For I know that nothing good dwells ^(E)in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. ^19 (F)For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want, ^(G)it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

²¹ So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. ²² For ^(H)I delight in the law of God, ^(I)in my inner being, ²³ but I see in my members ^(J)another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. ²⁴ Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from ^(K)this body of death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

Jesus Walks on Water

¹⁶ When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷ got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸ The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. ¹⁹ When they had rowed about three or four miles,^[a] they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. ^20 (A)But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” ²¹ Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

I Am the Bread of Life

²² On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only ^(B)one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. ²³ Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord ^(C)had given thanks. ^24 (D)So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and ^(E)went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, ^(F)“Rabbi, when did you come here?” ²⁶ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(G)you are seeking me, not because you saw ^(H)signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. ^27 (I)Do not work for the food that perishes, but for ^(J)the food that endures to eternal life, which ^(K)the Son of Man will give to you. For on ^(L)him God the Father has ^(M)set his seal.”