Book of Common Prayer

⁴ Then they traveled from Mount Hor on the road toward the Sea of Suf in order to go around the land of Edom; but the people’s tempers grew short because of the detour. ⁵ The people spoke against God and against Moshe: “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt? To die in the desert? There’s no real food, there’s no water, and we’re sick of this miserable stuff we’re eating!”

(LY: vi) ⁶ In response, Adonai sent poisonous snakes among the people; they bit the people, and many of Isra’el’s people died. ⁷ The people came to Moshe and said, “We sinned by speaking against Adonai and against you. Pray to Adonai that he rid us of these snakes.” Moshe prayed for the people, ⁸ and Adonai answered Moshe: “Make a poisonous snake and put it on a pole. When anyone who has been bitten sees it, he will live.” ⁹ Moshe made a bronze snake and put it on the pole; if a snake had bitten someone, then, when he looked toward the bronze snake, he stayed alive.

(RY: iv, LY: vii) ²¹ Isra’el sent messengers to Sichon, king of the Emori, with this message: ²² “Let me pass through your land. We won’t turn aside into fields or vineyards, and we won’t drink any water from the wells. We will go along the King’s Highway until we have left your territory.” ²³ But Sichon would not allow Isra’el to pass through his territory. Instead, Sichon mustered all his people and went out into the desert to fight Isra’el. On reaching Yachatz, he fought Isra’el. ²⁴ Isra’el defeated him by force of arms and took control of his land from the Arnon to the Yabok River, but only as far as the people of ‘Amon, because the territory of the people of ‘Amon was well defended. ²⁵ Isra’el took all these cities — Isra’el lived in all the cities of the Emori, in Heshbon and all its surrounding towns. ²⁶ Heshbon was the city of Sichon, the king of the Emori, who had fought against the former king of Mo’av and conquered all his land up to the Arnon. ²⁷ This is why the storytellers say,

³¹ Thus Isra’el lived in the land of the Emori.

³² Moshe sent men to reconnoiter Ya‘zer; they captured its towns and drove out the Emori who were there.

³³ Then they turned and went up along the road to Bashan; and ‘Og, the king of Bashan, marched out against them, he with all his people, to fight at Edre‘i. (LY: Maftir) ³⁴ Adonai said to Moshe, “Don’t be afraid of him, for I have handed him over to you with all his people and his land. You will treat him just as you did Sichon, king of the Emori, who lived at Heshbon.” ³⁵ So they struck him down, with his sons and all his people, until there was no one left alive; and then they took control of his land.

¹² Many of them came to trust, as did a number of prominent Greek women and not a few Greek men.

¹³ But when the unbelieving Jews of Thessalonica learned that the word of God had been proclaimed by Sha’ul in Berea as well, they went there too to make trouble and agitate the crowds. ¹⁴ The brothers sent Sha’ul away at once to go down to the seacoast, while Sila and Timothy stayed behind. ¹⁵ Sha’ul’s escort went with him as far as Athens, then left with instructions for Sila and Timothy to come as quickly as they could.

¹⁶ While Sha’ul was waiting for them in Athens, his spirit within him was disturbed at the sight of the city full of idols. ¹⁷ So he began holding discussions in the synagogue with the Jews and the “God-fearers,” and in the market square every day with the people who happened to be there.

¹⁸ Also a group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers started meeting with him. Some asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others, because he proclaimed the Good News about Yeshua and the resurrection, said, “He sounds like a propagandist for foreign gods.” ¹⁹ They took and brought him before the High Council, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? ²⁰ Some of the things we are hearing from you strike us as strange, and we would like to know what they mean.” ²¹ (All the Athenians and the foreigners living there used to spend their spare time talking or hearing about the latest intellectual fads.)

²² Sha’ul stood up in the Council meeting and said, “Men of Athens: I see how very religious you are in every way! ²³ For as I was walking around, looking at your shrines, I even found an altar which had been inscribed, ‘To An Unknown God.’ So, the one whom you are already worshipping in ignorance — this is the one I proclaim to you.

²⁴ “The God who made the universe and everything in it, and who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in man-made temples; ²⁵ nor is he served by human hands, as if he lacked something; since it is he himself who gives life and breath and everything to everyone.

²⁶ “From one man he made every nation living on the entire surface of the earth, and he fixed the limits of their territories and the periods when they would flourish. ²⁷ God did this so that people would look for him and perhaps reach out and find him although in fact, he is not far from each one of us, ²⁸ ‘for in him we live and move and exist.’ Indeed, as some of the poets among you have said, ‘We are actually his children.’ ²⁹ So, since we are children of God, we shouldn’t suppose that God’s essence resembles gold, silver or stone shaped by human technique and imagination.

³⁰ “In the past, God overlooked such ignorance; but now he is commanding all people everywhere to turn to him from their sins. ³¹ For he has set a Day when he will judge the inhabited world, and do it justly, by means of a man whom he has designated. And he has given public proof of it by resurrecting this man from the dead.”

³² At the mention of a resurrection of dead people, some began to scoff; while others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” ³³ So Sha’ul left the meeting. ³⁴ But some men stayed with him and came to trust, including the High Council member Dionysius; there was also a woman named Damaris; and others came to trust along with them.

¹⁰ Yeshua was teaching in one of the synagogues on Shabbat. ¹¹ A woman came up who had a spirit which had crippled her for eighteen years; she was bent double and unable to stand erect at all. ¹² On seeing her, Yeshua called her and said to her, “Lady, you have been set free from your weakness!” ¹³ He put his hands on her, and at once she stood upright and began to glorify God.

¹⁴ But the president of the synagogue, indignant that Yeshua had healed on Shabbat, spoke up and said to the congregation, “There are six days in the week for working; so come during those days to be healed, not on Shabbat!” ¹⁵ However, the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Each one of you on Shabbat — don’t you unloose your ox or your donkey from the stall and lead him off to drink? ¹⁶ This woman is a daughter of Avraham, and the Adversary kept her tied up for eighteen years! Shouldn’t she be freed from this bondage on Shabbat?” ¹⁷ By these words, Yeshua put to shame the people who opposed him; but the rest of the crowd were happy about all the wonderful things that were taking place through him.