Old/New Testament
47 Then he brought me back to the door of the Temple. I saw a stream flowing eastward from beneath the Temple and passing to the right of the altar, that is, on its south side. 2 Then he brought me outside the wall through the north passageway[a] and around to the eastern entrance, where I saw the stream flowing along on the south side of the eastern passageway. 3 Measuring as he went, he took me 1,500 feet east along the stream and told me to go across. At that point the water was up to my ankles. 4 He measured off another 1,500 feet and told me to cross again. This time the water was up to my knees. 5 Fifteen hundred feet after that it was up to my waist. Another 1,500 feet and it had become a river so deep I wouldn’t be able to get across unless I were to swim. It was too deep to cross on foot.
6 He told me to keep in mind what I had seen, then led me back along the bank. 7 And now, to my surprise,[b] many trees were growing on both sides of the river!
8 He told me: “This river flows east through the desert and the Jordan Valley to the Dead Sea, where it will heal the salty waters and make them fresh and pure. 9 Everything touching the water of this river shall live. Fish will abound in the Dead Sea, for its waters will be healed. Wherever this water flows, everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shores of the Dead Sea, fishing all the way from En-gedi to En-eglaim. The shores will be filled with nets drying in the sun. Fish of every kind will fill the Dead Sea just as they do the Mediterranean! 11 But the marshes and swamps will not be healed; they will still be salty. 12 All kinds of fruit trees will grow along the riverbanks. The leaves will never turn brown and fall, and there will always be fruit. There will be a new crop every month—without fail! For they are watered by the river flowing from the Temple. The fruit will be for food and the leaves for medicine.”
13 The Lord God says: “Here are the instructions for dividing the land to the twelve tribes of Israel: The tribe of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh)[c] shall be given two sections. 14 Otherwise, each tribe will have an equal share. I promised with hand raised in oath of truth to give the land to your fathers, and you shall inherit it now.
15 “The northern boundary will run from the Mediterranean toward Hethlon, then on through Labweh[d] to Zedad; 16 then to Berothah and Sibraim, which are on the border between Damascus and Hamath, and finally to Hazer-hatticon, on the border of Hauran. 17 So the northern border will be from the Mediterranean to Hazar-enan, on the border with Hamath to the north and Damascus to the south.
18 “The eastern border will run south from Hazar-enan to Mount Hauran, where it will bend westward to the Jordan at the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee, and down along the Jordan River separating Israel from Gilead, past the Dead Sea to Tamar.
19 “The southern border will go west from Tamar to the springs at Meribath-kadesh and then follow the course of the brook of Egypt (Wadi el-Arish) to the Mediterranean.
20 “On the west side, the Mediterranean itself will be your boundary, from the southern boundary to the point where the northern boundary begins.
21 “Divide the land within these boundaries among the tribes of Israel. 22 Distribute the land as an inheritance for yourselves and for the foreigners who live among you with their families. All children born in the land—whether or not their parents are foreigners—are to be considered citizens and have the same rights your own children have. 23 All these immigrants are to be given land according to the tribe where they now live.
48 “Here is the list of the tribes and the territory each is to get. For Dan: From the northwest boundary at the Mediterranean, across to Hethlon, then to Labweh, and then on to Hazar-enan on the border between Damascus to the south and Hamath to the north. Those are the eastern and western limits of the land. 2 Asher’s territory lies south of Dan’s and has the same east and west boundaries. 3 Naphtali’s land lies south of Asher’s, with the same boundary lines on the east and the west. 4 Then comes Manasseh, south of Naphtali, with the same eastern and western boundary lines. 5-7 Next, to the south, is Ephraim, and then Reuben and then Judah, all with the same boundaries on the east and the west.
8 “South of Judah is the land set aside for the Temple. It has the same eastern and western boundaries as the tribal units, with the Temple in the center. 9 This Temple area will be 8-1/3 miles long and 6-2/3 miles wide.
10 “A strip of land measuring 8-1/3 miles long by 3-1/3 miles wide, north to south, surrounds the Temple. 11 It is for the priests, that is, the sons of Zadok who obeyed me and didn’t go into sin when the people of Israel and the rest of their tribe of Levi did. 12 It is their special portion when the land is distributed, the most sacred land of all. Next to it lies the area where the other Levites will live. 13 It will be of the same size and shape as the first. Together they measure 8-1/3 miles by 6-2/3 miles. 14 None of this special land shall ever be sold or traded or used by others, for it belongs to the Lord; it is holy.
15 “The strip of land 8-1/3 miles long by 1-2/3 miles wide, south of the Temple section, is for public use—homes, pasture, and parks, with a city in the center. 16 The city itself is to be 1-1/2 miles square. 17 Open land for pastures shall surround the city for approximately a tenth of a mile.[e] 18 Outside the city, stretching east and west for three miles alongside the holy grounds, is garden area belonging to the city, for public use. 19 It is open to anyone working in the city, no matter where he comes from in Israel.
20 “The entire area—including sacred lands and city lands—is 8-1/3 miles square.
21-22 “The land on both sides of this area, extending clear out to the eastern and western boundaries of Israel, shall belong to the prince. This land, lying between the sections allotted to Judah and Benjamin, is 8-1/3 miles square on each side of the sacred and city lands.
23 “The sections given to the remaining tribes are as follows: Benjamin’s section extends across the entire country of Israel, from its eastern border clear across to the western border. 24 South of Benjamin’s area lies that of Simeon, also extending out to these same eastern and western borders. 25 Next is Issachar, with the same boundaries. 26 Then comes Zebulun, also extending all the way across. 27-28 Then Gad, with the same borders on east and west, while its south border runs from Tamar to the springs at Meribath-kadesh, and then follows the brook of Egypt (Wadi el-Arish) to the Mediterranean. 29 These are the allotments to be made to each tribe,” says the Lord God.
30-31 “Each city gate will be named in honor of one of the tribes of Israel. On the north side, with its 1-1/2-mile wall, there will be three gates, one named for Reuben, one for Judah, and one for Levi. 32 On the east side, with its 1-1/2-mile wall, the gates will be named for Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan. 33 The south wall, also the same length, will have the gates of Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun; 34 on the 1-1/2 miles of the west side, they will be named for Gad, Asher, and Naphtali.
35 “The entire circumference of the city is six miles. And the name of the city will be ‘The City of God.’”[f]
3 See how very much our heavenly Father loves us, for he allows us to be called his children—think of it—and we really are! But since most people don’t know God, naturally they don’t understand that we are his children. 2 Yes, dear friends, we are already God’s children, right now, and we can’t even imagine what it is going to be like later on. But we do know this, that when he comes we will be like him, as a result of seeing him as he really is. 3 And everyone who really believes this will try to stay pure because Christ is pure.
4 But those who keep on sinning are against God, for every sin is done against the will of God. 5 And you know that he became a man so that he could take away our sins, and that there is no sin in him, no missing of God’s will at any time in any way. 6 So if we stay close to him, obedient to him, we won’t be sinning either; but as for those who keep on sinning, they should realize this: They sin because they have never really known him or become his.
7 Oh, dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: if you are constantly doing what is good, it is because you are good, even as he is. 8 But if you keep on sinning, it shows that you belong to Satan, who since he first began to sin has kept steadily at it. But the Son of God came to destroy these works of the devil. 9 The person who has been born into God’s family does not make a practice of sinning because now God’s life is in him; so he can’t keep on sinning, for this new life has been born into him and controls him—he has been born again.
10 So now we can tell who is a child of God and who belongs to Satan. Whoever is living a life of sin and doesn’t love his brother shows that he is not in God’s family; 11 for the message to us from the beginning has been that we should love one another.
12 We are not to be like Cain, who belonged to Satan and killed his brother. Why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing wrong and he knew very well that his brother’s life was better than his. 13 So don’t be surprised, dear friends, if the world hates you.
14 If we love other Christians, it proves that we have been delivered from hell and given eternal life. But a person who doesn’t have love for others is headed for eternal death. 15 Anyone who hates his Christian brother is really a murderer at heart; and you know that no one wanting to murder has eternal life within. 16 We know what real love is from Christ’s example in dying for us. And so we also ought to lay down our lives for our Christian brothers.
17 But if someone who is supposed to be a Christian has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and won’t help him—how can God’s love be within him? 18 Little children, let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions. 19 Then we will know for sure, by our actions, that we are on God’s side, and our consciences will be clear, even when we stand before the Lord. 20 But if we have bad consciences and feel that we have done wrong, the Lord will surely feel it even more,[a] for he knows everything we do.
21 But, dearly loved friends, if our consciences are clear, we can come to the Lord with perfect assurance and trust, 22 and get whatever we ask for because we are obeying him and doing the things that please him. 23 And this is what God says we must do: Believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another. 24 Those who do what God says—they are living with God and he with them. We know this is true because the Holy Spirit he has given us tells us so.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.