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Moses in Midian
11 Years later,[a] after Moses had grown up, he went out to his own people[b] and observed their forced labor.(A) He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. 12 Looking all around and seeing no one, he struck the Egyptian dead and hid him in the sand. 13 The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you attacking your neighbor?”[c]
14 “Who made you a leader and judge over us?” the man replied. “Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”
Then Moses became afraid and thought: What I did is certainly known. 15 When Pharaoh heard about this, he tried to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in the land of Midian,(B) and sat down by a well.(C)
16 Now the priest of Midian(D) had seven daughters. They came to draw water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17 Then some shepherds arrived and drove them away, but Moses came to their rescue and watered their flock. 18 When they returned to their father Reuel[d](E) he asked, “Why have you come back so quickly today?”
19 They answered, “An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds. He even drew water for us and watered the flock.”
20 “So where is he?” he asked his daughters. “Why then did you leave the man behind? Invite him to eat dinner.”
21 Moses agreed to stay with the man, and he gave his daughter Zipporah(F) to Moses in marriage. 22 She gave birth to a son whom he named Gershom, for he said, “I have been a foreigner(G) in a foreign land.”[e]
23 After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned because of their difficult labor, and they cried out;(H) and their cry for help ascended to God because of the difficult labor. 24 So God heard their groaning, and He remembered(I) His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.(J) 25 God saw the Israelites, and He took notice.(K)
Moses and the Burning Bush
3 Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro,[f] the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb,[g] the mountain of God.(L) 2 Then the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire within a bush.(M) As Moses looked, he saw that the bush was on fire but was not consumed. 3 So Moses thought: I must go over and look at this remarkable sight. Why isn’t the bush burning up?
4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from the bush, “Moses, Moses!”
“Here I am,” he answered.
5 “Do not come closer,” He said. “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”(N) 6 Then He continued, “I am the God of your father,[h] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”(O) Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of My people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out(P) because of their oppressors, and I know about their sufferings. 8 I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them from that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey(Q)—the territory of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.(R) 9 The Israelites’ cry for help has come to Me, and I have also seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing(S) them. 10 Therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead My people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”
11 But Moses asked God, “Who am I(T) that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 He answered, “I will certainly be with you,(U) and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: when you bring the people out of Egypt, you will all worship[i] God at this mountain.”
13 Then Moses asked God, “If I go to the Israelites and say to them: The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ what should I tell them?”
14 God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.[j](V) This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the Israelites: Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever;(W) this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.
16 “Go and assemble the elders of Israel and say to them: Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has appeared to me and said: I have paid close attention to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt.(X) 17 And I have promised you that I will bring you up from the misery of Egypt(Y) to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey. 18 They will listen to what you say. Then you, along with the elders of Israel, must go to the king of Egypt and say to him: Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Now please let us go on a three-day trip into the wilderness so that we may sacrifice to Yahweh our God.(Z)
19 “However, I know that the king of Egypt will not allow you to go, unless he is forced by a strong hand.(AA) 20 I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My miracles that I will perform in it. After that, he will let you go.(AB) 21 And I will give these people such favor in the sight of the Egyptians that when you go, you will not go empty-handed.(AC) 22 Each woman will ask her neighbor and any woman staying in her house for silver and gold jewelry, and clothing, and you will put them on your sons and daughters. So you will plunder the Egyptians.”(AD)
10 So the disciples questioned Him, “Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”(A)
11 “Elijah is coming[a] and will restore everything,” He replied.[b](B) 12 “But I tell you: Elijah has already come, and they didn’t recognize him. On the contrary, they did whatever they pleased to him. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.”[c](C) 13 Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them about John the Baptist.
The Power of Faith over a Demon
14 When they reached the crowd,(D) a man approached and knelt down before Him. 15 “Lord,” he said, “have mercy on my son, because he has seizures[d] and suffers severely. He often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 I brought him to Your disciples, but they couldn’t heal him.”(E)
17 Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and rebellious[e] generation! How long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”(F) 18 Then Jesus rebuked the demon,[f] and it[g] came out of him,(G) and from that moment[h] the boy was healed.
19 Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
20 “Because of your little faith,” He[i] told them. “For I assure you: If you have faith the size of[j] a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move.(H) Nothing will be impossible for you.(I) [21 However, this kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting.]”[k]
The Second Prediction of His Death
22 As(J) they were meeting[l] in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men. 23 They will kill Him, and on the third day He will be raised up.” And they were deeply distressed.
Paying the Temple Tax
24 When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the double-drachma tax[m] approached Peter and said, “Doesn’t your Teacher pay the double-drachma tax?”(K)
25 “Yes,” he said.
When he went into the house, Jesus spoke to him first,[n] “What do you think, Simon? Who do earthly kings collect tariffs or taxes from? From their sons or from strangers?”[o](L)
26 “From strangers,” he said.[p]
“Then the sons are free,” Jesus told him. 27 “But, so we won’t offend them, go to the sea, cast in a fishhook, and take the first fish that you catch. When you open its mouth you’ll find a coin.[q] Take it and give it to them for Me and you.”(M)
Psalm 22
From Suffering to Praise
For the choir director: according to “The Deer of the Dawn.”[a] A Davidic psalm.
1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?(A)
Why are You so far from my deliverance(B)
and from my words of groaning?[b](C)
2 My God, I cry by day, but You do not answer,
by night, yet I have no rest.(D)
3 But You are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.(E)
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
they trusted, and You rescued them.(F)
5 They cried to You and were set free;
they trusted in You and were not disgraced.(G)
6 But I am a worm and not a man,(H)
scorned by men and despised by people.(I)
7 Everyone who sees me mocks me;
they sneer[c] and shake their heads:(J)
8 “He relies on[d] the Lord;
let Him rescue him;
let the Lord[e] deliver him,
since He takes pleasure in him.”(K)
9 You took me from the womb,
making me secure while at my mother’s breast.(L)
10 I was given over to You at birth;[f]
You have been my God from my mother’s womb.(M)
11 Do not be far from me, because distress is near
and there is no one to help.(N)
12 Many bulls surround me;
strong ones of Bashan encircle me.(O)
13 They open their mouths against me—
lions, mauling and roaring.(P)
14 I am poured out like water,(Q)
and all my bones are disjointed;(R)
my heart is like wax,
melting within me.(S)
15 My strength is dried up like baked clay;(T)
my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.(U)
You put me into the dust of death.(V)
16 For dogs have surrounded me;(W)
a gang of evildoers has closed in on me;
they pierced[g] my hands and my feet.(X)
17 I can count all my bones;
people[h] look and stare at me.(Y)
18 They divided my garments among themselves,
and they cast lots for my clothing.(Z)
7 So now, my sons, listen to me,
and don’t turn away from the words of my mouth.(A)
8 Keep your way far from her.
Don’t go near the door of her house.(B)
9 Otherwise, you will give up your vitality to others
and your years to someone cruel;
10 strangers will drain your resources,
and your earnings will end up in a foreigner’s house.
11 At the end of your life, you will lament
when your physical body has been consumed,
12 and you will say, “How I hated discipline,
and how my heart despised correction.(C)
13 I didn’t obey my teachers
or listen closely[a] to my mentors.
14 I am on the verge of complete ruin
before the entire community.”
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