Book of Common Prayer

²¹ Then a strong angel took up a very heavy stone and threw it into the sea. He said, `So hard will Babylon the big city be thrown down. It will not be seen again.

²² People will not hear music in you again. No harps, no singing, no pipes or horns will ever be heard in you again. No one will make things in you again. The noise of people grinding grain will not be heard in you again.

²³ No lamp will shine in you again. No one will hear the voice of people being married. Your traders were the big people of the world. All the countries were fooled by your witch doctors.

²⁴ The blood of prophets and of God's people and of all who have been killed on earth was found in that city.'

²⁹ Many people came to him. They brought sick people with them. Some were lame. Some were hurt. Some were blind. Some could not talk. And there were many others. They laid them down in front of Jesus. And he healed them.

³⁰ The people were surprised. They saw that people who had not been able to talk were talking. They saw that people who were hurt were made well. They saw that lame people were walking. They saw that blind people could see. And they praised the God of Israel.

³¹ Jesus called his disciples to him. He said, `I share the suffering of the people. They have been with me for three days and they have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry. If they go away hungry, they will get weak and fall on the way.'

³² The disciples said to him, `Where can we get enough food in this lonely place to feed so many people?'

³³ Jesus said to them, `How many loaves of bread have you?' They said, `We have seven, and a few small fish.'

³⁴ He told the people to sit down on the ground.

³⁵ Then he took the seven loaves of bread and the fish. He thanked God for them. Then he broke the bread and gave it to the disciples. The disciples gave it to the people.

³⁶ They all ate and had enough. They gathered seven baskets full of pieces that were left.

³⁷ The number of people who ate was about four thousand men, besides some women and children.

³⁸ Jesus sent the people away. Then he got in the boat and went to the country around Magadan.