The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the NLT. Switch to the NLT to read along with the audio.
6 Then the Eternal One told Moses:
Eternal One: 2 The following are instructions regarding liars and cheaters: Anytime someone commits a sin and violates his covenant duties to Me by deceiving his neighbor in financial or security matters, by stealing or by extortion, 3 or if a person finds something that is lost and lies about it and makes a false claim, or in anything that someone does, 4 and if he has sinned and comes to realize it, he will give back what he has stolen or extorted, or the deposit entrusted to him, or the lost object he found, 5 or any other object he lied about. He will repay it entirely plus ⅕ of its value. He must give it to its rightful owner the very day he gives his guilt offering. 6 He is to bring to the priest an unblemished ram or its equivalent value as his guilt offering to Me. 7 The priest will make atonement and cover the guilty person’s wrong before Me, and the guilty will be forgiven for anything that he did wrong.
8 The Eternal One spoke again to Moses.
Eternal One: 9 Give Aaron and his sons these instructions regarding the ritual of the burnt offering: The burnt offering must stay on the wood-fire all night until morning arrives. The fire on the altar is to be tended and kept burning during the night. 10 The priest must dress in his ritual linen clothes and undergarments, and he must take the ashes from the burnt offering on top of the altar and place them next to the altar. 11 Then the priest must remove his ritual clothes and dress in other clothes to transport the ashes to a ritually clean space outside the camp. 12 The fire on the altar must burn continually; it must not be allowed to go out. The priests are to feed wood to the fire every morning, arrange the burnt offering on the fire, and offer up the fat portions of the peace offerings. 13 The fire on the altar must burn continually; it must not be allowed to go out.
14 Here are the instructions for the ritual of the grain offering: Aaron’s sons must offer it to Me in front of the altar. 15 A priest is to take a handful of the finest flour from the grain offering, together with the oil and frankincense that are part of the grain offering, and offer it as a memorial portion on the altar. The smoke of the sacrifice will rise and be a pleasant aroma to Me. 16 Aaron and his sons get to eat whatever is left over. They must eat it without yeast in the holy place or in the courtyard around the sanctuary. 17 It must not be baked with yeast. I am assigning this as their portion of the fire-offerings. Their portion is most sacred in the same way that the purification offering and guilt offering are sacred. 18 All of Aaron’s male descendants are allowed to eat of it. It will be their portion of the fire-offerings presented to Me. This directive stands throughout all generations. Anything that touches them will become holy.
Holiness is contagious. We’re accustomed to thinking about it in the negative. “A bad apple spoils the barrel,” our Western wisdom instructs us. But the Scriptures are clear that holiness, too, spreads from contact. Essentially, holiness refers to whatever is set apart for God’s purpose and use. The act of setting apart creates a reality that can transform anything it touches. Holy bread consumed in the holy place by holy priests created a holiness that could spread throughout the community.
19 The Eternal One continued to Moses.
Eternal One: 20 Here are instructions for the ritual sacrifice which Aaron and his sons are to offer Me on the day Aaron is anointed high priest: bring four pints of the finest flour as a grain offering. Offer half of it in the morning and the other half in the evening. 21 Prepare it with oil and bake it on a griddle. After it has been mixed with the oil and thoroughly cooked,[a] offer it as a pleasant aroma to Me. 22 This directive stands for all time. The priest from Aaron’s line who is selected to be his successor must bring this same offering when he is anointed, and all of it must be burned. 23 The grain offering from the priest is not to be eaten; all of it must be consumed on the altar.
24 The Eternal One continued to Moses.
Eternal One: 25 Go, talk with Aaron and his sons, and give them these commands for the ritual of the purification offering for sin: The purification offering is to be slaughtered in My presence in the same place where the burnt offering is slaughtered; it is most sacred. 26 The priest who presents the purification offering is to eat his portion of it in a sacred place inside the courtyard around the sanctuary. 27 Anything that comes in contact with the flesh of the sacrifice will be made holy. When the blood of the sacrifice gets on any clothing, you must wash the bloodstain out in a sacred place. 28 If a clay pot is used to boil the sacrifice, it must be shattered and discarded. If it was boiled in a bronze bowl, however, then it must be scrubbed and rinsed with water. 29 Every man who is a priest may eat it; it is most sacred. 30 But none of the offerings from which blood is brought inside the congregation tent as a covering for sin may be eaten. All of it must be consumed on the altar.
7 Eternal One (to Moses): Here are the instructions for the ritual of the guilt offering; it is most sacred. 2 The slaughter of the guilt offering must take place where the burnt offering is slaughtered, and the priest must splatter its blood against the sides of the altar. 3 Then the priest is to offer all of its fat, the fat tail, the fat covering and surrounding the organs, 4 the two kidneys and the fat on them near the loins, and the lobe of the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys). 5 The priest must offer it all up on the altar as a fire-offering to Me. It is a guilt offering. 6 Every man who is a priest may eat of it, as long as he eats in a holy place; it is most sacred.
7 The guilt offering is similar to the purification offering for sin. The instructions are the same for both rituals. The priest who makes the atoning sacrifice is allowed to have some of it. 8 Also, the priest who presents anyone’s burnt offering gets to keep the skin from what he has offered for himself. 9 In the same way, any grain offering that is oven-baked or cooked in a pan or griddle belongs to the priest who offered it. 10 Any other grain offering—whether it is dry or mixed with oil—is to be shared equally among Aaron’s sons after the ritual is completed.
There are three kinds of peace offerings described: (a) thanksgiving, expressing gratitude for God’s favor; (b) votive, fulfilling a promise made to God; (c) freewill, made out of appreciation but not obligation.
Eternal One (to Moses): 11 Here are the instructions for the various kinds of the peace offerings that one may offer to Me. 12 If someone offers a sacrifice out of thanksgiving, then in addition to the sacrifice he must offer loaves of unleavened bread mixed with oil, unleavened wafers topped with oil, and loaves of the finest flour mixed with oil. 13 Along with the peace offerings for thanksgiving, a person must include loaves of leavened bread. 14 He must present one of each kind of bread as a gift to Me; it will belong to the priest who officiates the sacrifice and splatters the blood of the peace offerings against the sides of the altar.
15 The meat of the sacrifice for the thanksgiving peace offering must be eaten on the day it is offered. None of it is to be left over for the next day. 16 If the sacrifice for a peace offering accompanies a vow or comes simply as an act of free will, it is to be eaten on the day it is offered; but if any remains on the next day, it may still be eaten. 17 But all the meat from the sacrifice left over on the third day is to be burned completely so that none is left. 18 If any of the leftover meat from the peace offering is eaten on the third day, then the person who offered it will not be accepted and will receive no benefit from the sacrifice. By then it has become foul, and the person who eats from it will bear his guilt and suffer the consequences.
19 Do not eat meat that comes in contact with any impure thing. Burn it up completely. As for any remaining meat that is pure, people who are ritually clean may eat it. 20 Any person who eats meat from the sacrifice of My peace offering during a time when he is impure must be cut off from his people. 21 Also a person who comes into contact with something impure—whether it pertains to human or animal impurity or some totally detestable creatures—and then eats some of the meat from the sacrifice of My peace offerings must be cut off from his people.
As hard as it may be for us to understand, being “cut off from your people” is another way of saying “death penalty.” God is tough on disobedience because sin and impurity is a contagion that can ruin and ultimately destroy His people. To deal with these matters decisively requires decisive action. Like a deadly disease, sin has to be quarantined.
22 The Eternal One continued to Moses.
Eternal One: 23 Go, talk with the Israelites, and tell them not to eat any fat from an ox, sheep, or goat. 24 If an animal dies a natural death or is killed by another animal, then you are allowed to make use of its fat, but under no condition are you allowed to eat any of it. 25 Whoever eats animal fat from a fire-offering to Me must be cut off from his people. 26 Be sure not to consume any animal or bird blood regardless of where you live. 27 Anyone who consumes animal or bird blood must be cut off from his people.
7 Meanwhile Jesus and His followers traveled to the shore of the Sea of Galilee; as always, a huge crowd from Galilee and Judea gathered. 8 People had come from miles to see this man they were hearing so much about. They came from the big cities, including Jerusalem of Judea, Tyre and Sidon of Phoenicia, and from the region of Idumea, south of Judea. 9-10 Since Jesus had healed so many, the sick and the infirm pushed forward constantly to touch Him, to be healed, and to ask His blessing. The crowd pressed so closely around Jesus that He asked His disciples to get a boat He could board if the crush became too great.
11 Most wanted to be near Him, except for those possessed by unclean spirits. Those people fell down before Him.
Unclean Spirits: You are the Son of God.
12 But He ordered them not to reveal His true identity.
13 Jesus called together a select group of His followers and led them up onto a mountain. 14 There He commissioned them the twelve. [Later He calls them His emissaries.][a] He wanted them to be with Him. He sent them out to spread the good news 15 and to cast out evil spirits [and heal diseases].[b] 16 Here are the names of the original twelve: Simon (whom Jesus called Peter, meaning “the rock”), 17 James and John (the sons of Zebedee, whom Jesus called “the Sons of Thunder”), 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew (the tax collector, also called Levi), Thomas, James (the son of Alphaeus), Thaddaeus, Simon of Canaan (who was also called “the Zealot”), 19 and Judas Iscariot (who one day would betray Jesus to the authorities in Jerusalem so God’s purpose could be fulfilled).
20 Jesus and His disciples went into a house to eat, but so many people pressed in to see Jesus that they could not be served. 21 When Jesus’ family heard about this craziness, they went to drag Him out of that place.
Jesus’ Family (to one another): Jesus has lost His mind.
22 The scribes, for their part, came down from Jerusalem and spread the slander that Jesus was in league with the devil.
Scribes: That’s how He casts out demons. He’s casting them out by the power of Beelzebul—the ancient Philistine god—the prince of demons.
23 When Jesus heard this, He tried to reason with them using parables.
Jesus: Listen. How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 A kingdom that makes war against itself will collapse. 25 A household divided against itself cannot stand. 26 If Satan opposes himself, he cannot stand and is finished.
27 If you want to break into the house of a strong man and plunder it, you have to bind him first. Then you can do whatever you want with his possessions. 28 Listen, the truth is that people can be forgiven of almost anything. God has been known to forgive many things, even blasphemy. 29 But speaking evil of the Spirit of God is an unforgivable sin that will follow you into eternity.
30 He said this because the scribes were telling people that Jesus got His power from dark forces instead of from God.
Psalm 37[a]
A song of David.
1 Don’t be worried with evil workers
or envy the gains of people with all-wrong-upside-down ways.
2 Soon enough they will wither like grass,
like green herbs fading in summer’s heat.
3 Believe in the Eternal, and do what is good—
live in the land He provides; roam, and rest in God’s faithfulness.
4 Take great joy in the Eternal!
His gifts are coming, and they are all your heart desires!
5 Commit your path to the Eternal; let Him direct you.
Put your confidence in Him, and He will follow through with you.
6 He will spread out righteousness for you
as a sunrise spreads radiance over the land;
He will deliver justice for you into the light of the high sun.
7 Be still. Be patient. Expect the Eternal to arrive and set things right.
Don’t get upset when you see the worldly ones rising up the ladder.
Don’t be bothered by those who are anchored in wicked ways.
8 So turn from anger. Don’t rage,
and don’t worry—these ways frame the doorway to evil.
9 Besides, those who act from evil motives will be cut off from the land;
but those who wait, hoping in the Eternal, will enjoy its riches.
10 You’ll see . . . the wicked won’t know what hit them;
you’ll blink, and they’ll be gone;
you’ll go out looking for them, but you won’t find them.
11 But the humble-hearted will inherit the land;
they will take pleasure in its peace and enjoy its abundance.
3 The Eternal does not allow the right-living to go hungry,
but He will frustrate the plans of the wicked.
4 A slack hand produces nothing but poverty,
but an industrious hand soon takes hold of riches.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.