Matthew 2 Cross References - MSB

¹ After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, ² asking, “Where is the One who has been born King of the Jews? We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” ³ When Herod the King heard this, he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ And when he had assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. ⁵ “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: ⁶ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of My people Israel.’” ⁷ Then Herod called the Magi secretly and learned from them the exact time the star had appeared. ⁸ And sending them to Bethlehem, he said: “Go and search carefully for the Child, and when you find Him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship Him.” ⁹ After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stood over the place where the Child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with great delight. ¹¹ On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. ¹² And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they withdrew to their country by another route. ¹³ When the Magi had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.” ¹⁴ So he got up, took the Child and His mother by night, and withdrew to Egypt, ¹⁵ where he stayed until the death of Herod. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called My Son.” ¹⁶ When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was filled with rage. Sending orders, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, according to the time he had learned from the Magi. ¹⁷ Then what was spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: ¹⁸ “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” ¹⁹ After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. ²⁰ “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.” ²¹ So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and went to the land of Israel. ²² But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, ²³ and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

³⁰ Their territory extended from Mesha to Sephar, in the eastern hill country.

⁶ But while he was still alive, Abraham gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east.

¹⁰ The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.

³⁰ Solomon’s wisdom was greater than that of all the men of the East, greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.

³ and he owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and a very large number of servants. Job was the greatest man of all the people of the East.

⁹ May the nomads bow before him, and his enemies lick the dust. ¹⁰ May the kings of Tarshish and distant shores bring tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts. ¹¹ May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him. ¹² For he will deliver the needy who cry out and the afflicted who have no helper.

¹⁰ On that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples. The nations will seek Him, and His place of rest will be glorious.

¹ Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. ² For behold, darkness covers the earth, and thick darkness is over the peoples; but the LORD will rise upon you, and His glory will appear over you. ³ Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. ⁴ Lift up your eyes and look around: They all gather and come to you; your sons will come from afar, and your daughters will be carried on the arm. ⁵ Then you will look and be radiant, and your heart will tremble and swell with joy, because the riches of the sea will be brought to you, and the wealth of the nations will come to you. ⁶ Caravans of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah, and all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and frankincense and proclaiming the praises of the LORD. ⁷ All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered to you; the rams of Nebaioth will serve you and go up on My altar with acceptance; I will adorn My glorious house. ⁸ Who are these who fly like clouds, like doves to their shelters? ⁹ Surely the islands will wait for Me, with the ships of Tarshish in the lead, to bring your children from afar, with their silver and gold, to the honor of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you. ¹⁰ Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you. Although I struck you in anger, yet in favor I will show you mercy. ¹¹ Your gates will always stand open; they will never be shut, day or night, so that the wealth of the nations may be brought into you, with their kings being led in procession. ¹² For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; it will be utterly destroyed. ¹³ The glory of Lebanon will come to you—its cypress, elm, and boxwood together—to adorn the place of My sanctuary, and I will glorify the place of My feet. ¹⁴ The sons of your oppressors will come and bow down to you; all who reviled you will fall facedown at your feet and call you the City of the LORD, Zion of the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁵ Whereas you have been forsaken and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you an everlasting pride, a joy from age to age. ¹⁶ You will drink the milk of nations and nurse at the breasts of royalty; you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. ¹⁷ Instead of bronze I will bring you gold; I will bring silver in place of iron, bronze instead of wood, and iron instead of stones. I will appoint peace as your governor and righteousness as your ruler. ¹⁸ No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders. But you will name your walls Salvation and your gates Praise. ¹⁹ No longer will the sun be your light by day, nor the brightness of the moon shine on your night; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your splendor. ²⁰ Your sun will no longer set, and your moon will not wane; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and the days of your sorrow will cease. ²¹ Then all your people will be righteous; they will possess the land forever; they are the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, so that I may be glorified. ²² The least of you will become a thousand, and the smallest a mighty nation. I am the LORD; in its time I will accomplish it quickly.

²⁴ Seventy weeks are decreed for your people and your holy city to stop their transgression, to put an end to sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place. ²⁵ Know and understand this: From the issuance of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, until the Messiah, the Prince, there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of distress.

² But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.

⁶ For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. ⁷ I will shake all the nations, and they will come with all their treasures, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of Hosts. ⁸ The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine, declares the LORD of Hosts. ⁹ The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former, says the LORD of Hosts. And in this place I will provide peace, declares the LORD of Hosts.”

²⁵ But he had no union with her until she gave birth to her firstborn Son. And he gave Him the name Jesus.

³ When Herod the King heard this, he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

⁵ “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

¹⁹ After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.

⁵ In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah, and whose wife Elizabeth was a daughter of Aaron.

⁴ So Joseph also went up from Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, since he was from the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to him in marriage and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for her Child to be born. ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

¹¹ Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

⁴² Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Christ will come from the line of David and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”

¹⁷ I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come forth from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel. He will crush the skulls of Moab and strike down all the sons of Sheth.

⁶ “I have installed My King on Zion, upon My holy mountain.”

¹¹ and the king will desire your beauty; bow to him, for he is your lord.

⁶ For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.

¹ Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. ² Each will be like a shelter from the wind, a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in a dry land, like the shadow of a great rock in an arid land.

³ Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

⁵ Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He will reign wisely as King and will administer justice and righteousness in the land.

⁹ Instead, they will serve the LORD their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

⁹ Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your King comes to you, righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with great delight. ¹¹ On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.

⁵ “Say to the Daughter of Zion, ‘See, your King comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

¹¹ Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, who questioned Him: “Are You the King of the Jews?” “You have said so,” Jesus replied.

⁷⁸ because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the Dawn has visited us from on high, ⁷⁹ to shine on those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

³⁸ “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

³ So Pilate asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” “You have said so,” Jesus replied.

³⁸ Above Him was posted an inscription written in Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

⁴⁹ “Rabbi,” Nathanael answered, “You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”

²³ so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

³⁸ “Lord, I believe,” he said. And he worshiped Jesus.

¹³ They took palm branches and went out to meet Him, crying out: “Hosanna!” “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the King of Israel!”

³⁷ “Then You are a king!” Pilate said. “You say that I am a king,” Jesus answered. “For this reason I was born and have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to My voice.”

¹² From then on, Pilate tried to release Him, but the Jews kept crying out, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who declares himself a king is defying Caesar.” ¹³ When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat on the judgment seat at a place called the Stone Pavement, which in Hebrew is Gabbatha. ¹⁴ It was the day of Preparation for the Passover, about the sixth hour. And Pilate said to the Jews, “Here is your King!” ¹⁵ At this, they shouted, “Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!” “Shall I crucify your King?” Pilate asked. “We have no king but Caesar,” replied the chief priests.

¹⁹ Pilate also had a notice posted on the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

²⁸ Thomas replied, “My Lord and my God!”

⁶ And again, when God brings His firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all God’s angels worship Him.”

¹⁶ “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.”

¹⁷ When Ahab saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, O troubler of Israel?” ¹⁸ “I have not troubled Israel,” Elijah replied, “but you and your father’s house have, for you have forsaken the commandments of the LORD and have followed the Baals.

²⁹ “What do You want with us, Jesus, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have You come here to torture us before the appointed time?”

³⁷ O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

⁴⁷ Then the chief priests and Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and said, “What are we to do? This man is performing many signs. ⁴⁸ If we let Him go on like this, everyone will believe in Him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”

² greatly disturbed that they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.

²⁴ When the believers heard this, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “You are God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them. ²⁵ You spoke through the mouth of Your servant, David: ‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? ²⁶ The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against His Anointed One.’ ²⁷ In fact, Herod and Pontius Pilate conspired with the Gentiles and the people of Israel against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed.

²⁴ When the high priest and the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests heard this account, they were perplexed as to what was happening. ²⁵ Then someone came in and announced, “Look, the men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people!” ²⁶ At that point, the captain went with the officers and brought the apostles—but not by force, for fear the people would stone them. ²⁷ They brought them in and made them stand before the Sanhedrin, where the high priest interrogated them. ²⁸ “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us responsible for this man’s blood.”

²⁰ They brought them to the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews and are throwing our city into turmoil ²¹ by promoting customs that are unlawful for us Romans to adopt or practice.”

⁶ But when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have now come here, ⁷ and Jason has welcomed them into his home. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, named Jesus!”

⁴ Since more leaders were found among Eleazar’s descendants than those of Ithamar, they were divided accordingly. There were sixteen heads of families from the descendants of Eleazar and eight from the descendants of Ithamar. ⁵ Thus they were divided by lot, for there were officers of the sanctuary and officers of God among both Eleazar’s and Ithamar’s descendants. ⁶ The scribe, Shemaiah son of Nethanel, a Levite, recorded their names in the presence of the king and of the officers: Zadok the priest, Ahimelech son of Abiathar, and the heads of families of the priests and the Levites—one family being taken from Eleazar, and then one from Ithamar. ⁷ The first lot fell to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah, ⁸ the third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim, ⁹ the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin, ¹⁰ the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah, ¹¹ the ninth to Jeshua, the tenth to Shecaniah, ¹² the eleventh to Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim, ¹³ the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab, ¹⁴ the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer, ¹⁵ the seventeenth to Hezir, the eighteenth to Happizzez, ¹⁶ the nineteenth to Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezkel, ¹⁷ the twenty-first to Jachin, the twenty-second to Gamul, ¹⁸ the twenty-third to Delaiah, and the twenty-fourth to Maaziah. ¹⁹ This was their appointed order for service when they entered the house of the LORD, according to the regulations prescribed for them by their forefather Aaron, as the LORD, the God of Israel, had commanded him.

¹³ were over the laborers and supervised all who did the work, task by task. Some of the Levites were secretaries, officers, and gatekeepers.

¹⁵ And Hilkiah said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD!” And he gave it to Shaphan.

¹⁴ Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people multiplied their unfaithful deeds, following all the abominations of the nations, and they defiled the house of the LORD, which He had consecrated in Jerusalem.

⁶ this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted Ezra all his requests, for the hand of the LORD his God was upon him.

¹¹ This is the text of the letter King Artaxerxes had given to Ezra the priest and scribe, an expert in the commandments and statutes of the LORD to Israel: ¹² Artaxerxes, king of kings. To Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Greetings.

⁵ So Ezra got up and made the leading priests, Levites, and all Israel take an oath to do what had been said. And they took the oath.

⁷ Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the leaders of the priests and their associates in the days of Jeshua.

² The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the LORD and against His Anointed One:

⁸ How can you say, ‘We are wise, and the Law of the LORD is with us,’ when in fact the lying pen of the scribes has produced a deception?

⁷ For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the LORD of Hosts.

²⁹ because He taught as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

⁵² Then He told them, “For this reason, every scribe who has been discipled in the kingdom of heaven is like a homeowner who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”

¹⁵ But the chief priests and scribes were indignant when they saw the wonders He performed and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”

²³ When Jesus returned to the temple courts and began to teach, the chief priests and elders of the people came up to Him. “By what authority are You doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave You this authority?”

³ At that time the chief priests, scribes, and elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas,

⁴⁷ While Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived, accompanied by a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and elders of the people.

¹ When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death.

³¹ Then He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and that He must be killed and after three days rise again.

¹⁹ When the chief priests and scribes realized that Jesus had spoken this parable against them, they sought to arrest Him that very hour. But they were afraid.

¹⁰ Meanwhile, the chief priests and scribes stood there, vehemently accusing Him.

¹⁰ “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and you do not understand these things?

³² When the Pharisees heard the crowd whispering these things about Jesus, they and the chief priests sent officers to arrest Him.

³ The scribes and Pharisees, however, brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before them

³ So Judas brought a band of soldiers and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees. They arrived at the garden carrying lanterns, torches, and weapons.

⁵ The next day the rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem,

¹² So they stirred up the people, elders, and scribes and confronted Stephen. They seized him and brought him before the Sanhedrin,

⁹ A great clamor arose, and some scribes from the party of the Pharisees got up and contended sharply, “We find nothing wrong with this man. If a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, let us not fight against God.”

¹⁹ So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

¹⁵ It also included Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem. There were twelve cities, along with their villages.

¹ In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. And a certain man from Bethlehem in Judah, with his wife and two sons, went to reside in the land of Moab.

¹⁹ So Naomi and Ruth traveled until they came to Bethlehem. When they entered Bethlehem, the whole city was stirred because of them, and the women of the city exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?”

⁴ Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and said to the harvesters, “The LORD be with you.” “The LORD bless you,” they replied.

¹¹ “We are witnesses,” said the elders and all the people at the gate. “May the LORD make the woman entering your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you be prosperous in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem.

¹ Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have selected from his sons a king for Myself.”

¹⁹ A ruler will come from Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city.”

² Even in times past, while Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them back. And to you the LORD said, ‘You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be ruler over them.’”

² And though Judah prevailed over his brothers and a ruler came from him, the birthright belonged to Joseph.

¹ Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? ² The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the LORD and against His Anointed One: ³ “Let us break Their chains and cast away Their cords.” ⁴ The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord taunts them. ⁵ Then He rebukes them in His anger, and terrifies them in His fury: ⁶ “I have installed My King on Zion, upon My holy mountain.”

⁷¹ from tending the ewes He brought him to be shepherd of His people Jacob, of Israel His inheritance. ⁷² So David shepherded them with integrity of heart and guided them with skillful hands.

¹¹ He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes.

⁴ I will raise up shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or dismayed, nor will any go missing, declares the LORD. ⁵ Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He will reign wisely as King and will administer justice and righteousness in the land. ⁶ In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is His name by which He will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.

²³ I will appoint over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will feed them. He will feed them and be their shepherd. ²⁴ I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David will be a prince among them. I, the LORD, have spoken. ²⁵ I will make with them a covenant of peace and rid the land of wild animals, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the forest.

²⁴ My servant David will be king over them, and there will be one shepherd for all of them. They will follow My ordinances and keep and observe My statutes. ²⁵ They will live in the land that I gave to My servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They will live there forever with their children and grandchildren, and My servant David will be their prince forever. ²⁶ And I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary among them forever.

¹ After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,

¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.

¹⁶ Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of Jonah, do you love Me?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus told him, “Shepherd My sheep.”

²² And God put everything under His feet and made Him head over everything for the church,

¹⁸ And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and firstborn from among the dead, so that in all things He may have preeminence.

²⁷ He will rule them with an iron scepter and shatter them like pottery—just as I have received authority from My Father.

¹⁵ Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.”

¹⁰ Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase even more; and if a war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.”

²¹ “I will give her to David,” Saul thought, “so that she may be a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “For a second time now you can be my son-in-law.”

⁹ He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket; he lurks to seize the oppressed; he catches the lowly in his net. ¹⁰ They are crushed and beaten down; the hapless fall prey to his strength.

²¹ His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.

⁴ ambushing the innocent in seclusion, shooting suddenly, without fear. ⁵ They hold fast to their evil purpose; they speak of hiding their snares. “Who will see them?” they say. ⁶ They devise injustice and say, “We have perfected a secret plan.” For the inner man and the heart are mysterious.

³ With cunning they scheme against Your people and conspire against those You cherish, ⁴ saying, “Come, let us erase them as a nation; may the name of Israel be remembered no more.”

⁵ For Aram, along with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has plotted your ruin, saying: ⁶ ‘Let us invade Judah, terrorize it, and divide it among ourselves. Then we can install the son of Tabeal over it as king.’ ⁷ But this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘It will not arise; it will not happen.

¹⁰ This is what the Lord GOD says: On that day, thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will devise an evil plan. ¹¹ You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will come against a tranquil people who dwell securely, all of them living without walls or bars or gates—

³ At that time the chief priests, scribes, and elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, ⁴ and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him. ⁵ “But not during the feast,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”

¹ And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed in the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. ² She was pregnant and crying out in the pain and agony of giving birth. ³ Then another sign appeared in heaven: a huge red dragon with seven heads, ten horns, and seven royal crowns on his heads. ⁴ His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky, tossing them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, ready to devour her child as soon as she gave birth. ⁵ And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was caught up to God and to His throne.

¹⁵ Then from the mouth of the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent.

²² Please go and prepare further. Investigate and watch carefully where he goes and who has seen him there, for I am told that he is extremely cunning. ²³ Observe and find out all the places where he hides. Then come back to me with certainty, and I will go with you. If he is in the land, I will search him out among all the clans of Judah.”

⁷ After four years had passed, Absalom said to the king, “Please let me go to Hebron to fulfill a vow I have made to the LORD. ⁸ For your servant made a vow while dwelling in Geshur of Aram, saying: ‘If indeed the LORD brings me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the LORD in Hebron.’” ⁹ “Go in peace,” said the king. So Absalom got up and went to Hebron. ¹⁰ Then Absalom sent spies throughout the tribes of Israel with this message: “When you hear the sound of the horn, you are to say, ‘Absalom reigns in Hebron!’” ¹¹ Two hundred men from Jerusalem accompanied Absalom. They had been invited as guests and they went along innocently, for they knew nothing about the matter. ¹² While Absalom was offering the sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, to come from his hometown of Giloh. So the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept increasing.

¹⁴ Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had purposed to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.

² So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like the lives of those you killed!”

¹⁸ Then Jehu brought all the people together and said, “Ahab served Baal a little, but Jehu will serve him a lot. ¹⁹ Now, therefore, summon to me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests. See that no one is missing, for I have a great sacrifice for Baal. Whoever is missing will not live.” But Jehu was acting deceptively in order to destroy the servants of Baal.

¹ When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel, ² they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the families, saying, “Let us build with you because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to Him since the time of King Esar-haddon of Assyria, who brought us here.”

¹² He thwarts the schemes of the crafty, so that their hands find no success. ¹³ He catches the wise in their craftiness, and sweeps away the plans of the cunning.

² They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart. ³ May the LORD cut off all flattering lips and every boastful tongue.

¹⁰ The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations; He thwarts the devices of the peoples. ¹¹ The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the purposes of His heart to all generations.

¹¹ Destruction is within; oppression and deceit never leave the streets. ¹² For it is not an enemy who insults me; that I could endure. It is not a foe who rises against me; from him I could hide. ¹³ But it is you, a man like myself, my companion and close friend. ¹⁴ We shared sweet fellowship together; we walked with the crowd into the house of God. ¹⁵ Let death seize them by surprise; let them go down to Sheol alive, for evil is with them in their homes.

³⁰ There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.

²⁴ A hateful man disguises himself with his speech, but he lays up deceit in his heart. ²⁵ When he speaks graciously, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart.

⁵ eighty men who had shaved off their beards, torn their garments, and cut themselves came from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, carrying grain offerings and frankincense for the house of the LORD. ⁶ And Ishmael son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he went. When Ishmael encountered the men, he said, “Come to Gedaliah son of Ahikam.” ⁷ And when they came into the city, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the men with him slaughtered them and threw them into a cistern.

³⁷ Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has ordained it?

⁴⁸ Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The One I kiss is the man; arrest Him.” ⁴⁹ Going directly to Jesus, he said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed Him.

²⁰ So they watched Him closely and sent spies who pretended to be sincere. They were hoping to catch Him in His words in order to hand Him over to the rule and authority of the governor. ²¹ “Teacher,” they inquired, “we know that You speak and teach correctly. You show no partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.

¹⁹ For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.” ²⁰ And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”

¹² Who is the man who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the path chosen for him.

¹ My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you, ² if you incline your ear to wisdom and direct your heart to understanding, ³ if you truly call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, ⁴ if you seek it like silver and search it out like hidden treasure, ⁵ then you will discern the fear of the LORD and discover the knowledge of God. ⁶ For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

¹⁷ I love those who love me, and those who seek me early shall find me.

² asking, “Where is the One who has been born King of the Jews? We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

¹⁹ We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

¹³ He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him the produce of the field. He nourished him with honey from the rock and oil from the flinty crag,

⁴ Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for You judge the peoples justly and lead the nations of the earth. Selah

³ Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people:

²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, which was just as the angel had told them.

⁴⁶ Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. ⁴⁷ For this is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’” ⁴⁸ When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the word of the Lord, and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

⁹ so that the Gentiles may glorify God for His mercy. As it is written: “Therefore I will praise You among the Gentiles; I will sing hymns to Your name.” ¹⁰ Again, it says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people.” ¹¹ And again: “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and extol Him, all you peoples.” ¹² And once more, Isaiah says: “The Root of Jesse will appear, One who will arise to rule over the Gentiles; in Him the Gentiles will put their hope.” ¹³ Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

¹¹ Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your packs and carry them down as a gift for the man—a little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, pistachios and almonds.

²³ “Take the finest spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, half that amount (250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon, 250 shekels of fragrant cane,

³⁴ The LORD also said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense—in equal measures,

¹ “When anyone brings a grain offering to the LORD, his offering must consist of fine flour. He is to pour olive oil on it, put frankincense on it, ² and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the frankincense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

¹⁵ The priest is to remove a handful of fine flour and olive oil, together with all the frankincense from the grain offering, and burn the memorial portion on the altar as a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

¹⁴ one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense;

⁸⁶ The twelve gold dishes filled with incense weighed ten shekels each, according to the sanctuary shekel. The total weight of the gold dishes was a hundred and twenty shekels.

²⁷ But some worthless men said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him and brought him no gifts; but Saul remained silent about it.

² She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan—with camels bearing spices, gold in great abundance, and precious stones. So she came to Solomon and spoke to him all that was on her mind.

¹⁰ Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again was such an abundance of spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

¹² Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you perish in your rebellion, when His wrath ignites in an instant. Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.

⁸ All your garments are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia; from palaces of ivory the harps make you glad.

¹⁰ May the kings of Tarshish and distant shores bring tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.

¹⁵ Long may he live! May gold from Sheba be given him. May people ever pray for him; may they bless him all day long.

⁶ O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.

⁶ Caravans of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah, and all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and frankincense and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.

¹¹ For My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place, incense and pure offerings will be presented in My name, because My name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD of Hosts.

⁹ “All this I will give You,” he said, “if You will fall down and worship me.” ¹⁰ “Get behind Me, Satan!” Jesus declared. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”

³³ Then those who were in the boat came and worshipped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God!”

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the Baby, who was lying in the manger.

²⁶ The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. ²⁷ Led by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for Him what was customary under the Law, ²⁸ Simeon took Him in his arms and blessed God, saying: ²⁹ “Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You now dismiss Your servant in peace. ³⁰ For my eyes have seen Your salvation, ³¹ which You have prepared in the sight of all people, ³² a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to Your people Israel.”

³⁸ Coming forward at that moment, she gave thanks to the Lord and spoke about the Child to all who were waiting for redemption in Jerusalem.

²² Furthermore, the Father judges no one, but has assigned all judgment to the Son, ²³ so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

²⁵ As Peter was about to enter, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet to worship him. ²⁶ But Peter helped him up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”

⁸ When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

¹⁰ So I fell at his feet to worship him. But he told me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who rely on the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

⁸ And I am John, who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. ⁹ But he said to me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” ¹⁰ Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book, because the time is near.

⁶ Then God said to Abimelech in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against Me. That is why I did not let you touch her. ⁷ Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet; he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not restore her, be aware that you will surely die—you and all who belong to you.”

²⁴ But that night God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream and warned him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”

¹⁷ The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had instructed; they let the boys live.

¹⁵ In a dream, in a vision in the night, when deep sleep falls upon men as they slumber on their beds, ¹⁶ He opens their ears and terrifies them with warnings ¹⁷ to turn a man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride,

¹⁹ During the night, the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision, and he blessed the God of heaven

²⁰ But after he had pondered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace Mary as your wife, for the One conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

¹³ When the Magi had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”

²² But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee,

¹⁹ While Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered terribly in a dream today because of Him.”

¹⁹ But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than God.

²⁹ But Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.

¹⁹ For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

⁷ By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in godly fear built an ark to save his family. By faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

²² Then Pharaoh commanded all his people: “Every son born to the Hebrews you must throw into the Nile, but every daughter you may allow to live.”

² and she conceived and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a beautiful child, she hid him for three months. ³ But when she could no longer hide him, she got him a papyrus basket and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in the basket and set it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.

¹³ When the feet of the priests who carry the ark of the LORD—the Lord of all the earth—touch down in the waters of the Jordan, its flowing waters will be cut off and will stand up in a heap.”

¹⁷ The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel crossed over the dry ground, until the entire nation had crossed the Jordan.

¹⁰ Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until the people had completed everything the LORD had commanded Joshua to tell them, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried across,

¹⁸ When the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up out of the Jordan and their feet touched the dry land, the waters of the Jordan returned to their course and overflowed all the banks as before.

¹⁵ In a dream, in a vision in the night, when deep sleep falls upon men as they slumber on their beds,

¹⁷ to turn a man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride,

²⁵ “Look!” he exclaimed. “I see four men, unbound and unharmed, walking around in the fire—and the fourth looks like a son of the gods!” ²⁶ Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the door of the blazing fiery furnace and called out, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fire,

¹² And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they withdrew to their country by another route.

¹⁶ When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was filled with rage. Sending orders, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, according to the time he had learned from the Magi.

¹⁹ After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. ²⁰ “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.”

²³ When they persecute you in one town, flee to another. Truly I tell you, you will not reach all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

¹⁹ But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out, saying,

¹⁹ He exploited our people and oppressed our fathers, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die.

⁷ When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among his attendants.

²² “Cornelius the centurion has sent us,” they said. “He is a righteous and God-fearing man with a good reputation among the whole Jewish nation. A holy angel instructed him to request your presence in his home so he could hear a message from you.”

¹¹ Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from Herod’s grasp and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating.”

³⁶ The jailer informed Paul: “The magistrates have sent orders to release you. Now you may go on your way in peace.”

¹³ Yet to which of the angels did God ever say: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet”? ¹⁴ Are not the angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

⁴ His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky, tossing them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, ready to devour her child as soon as she gave birth.

⁶ And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place for her to be nourished for 1,260 days.

¹⁴ But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle to fly from the presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and embraced Mary as his wife.

²⁰ “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.” ²¹ So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and went to the land of Israel.

²¹ For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me.

²² Then tell Pharaoh that this is what the LORD says: ‘Israel is My firstborn son,

⁸ God brought him out of Egypt with strength like a wild ox, to devour hostile nations and crush their bones, to pierce them with arrows.

¹ When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:

¹⁷ Then what was spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

²³ and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

¹⁴ to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: ¹⁵ “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—

¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took on our infirmities and carried our diseases.”

¹⁶ warning them not to make Him known. ¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: ¹⁸ “Here is My Servant, whom I have chosen, My beloved, in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will proclaim justice to the nations.

⁴ All this took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

⁵⁴ But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen this way?”

⁵⁶ But this has all happened so that the writings of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted Him and fled.

³⁵ When they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments by casting lots.

⁴⁴ Jesus said to them, “These are the words I spoke to you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms.”

²⁸ After this, knowing that everything had now been accomplished, and to fulfill the Scripture, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.”

³⁶ Now these things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: “Not one of His bones will be broken.”

¹⁶ “Brothers, this Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit foretold through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide for those who arrested Jesus.

¹ About that time, King Herod reached out to harm some who belonged to the church. ² He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. ³ And seeing that this pleased the Jews, Herod proceeded to seize Peter during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. ⁴ He arrested him and put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out to the people after the Passover.

²³ Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. ²⁴ But the word of God continued to spread and multiply.

¹⁴ she called her household servants. “Look,” she said, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, but I screamed as loud as I could.

¹⁷ Then she told him the same story: “The Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me,

⁷ Cursed be their anger, for it is strong, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will disperse them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.

²⁹ Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now!”

¹⁰ Then Balak’s anger burned against Balaam, and he struck his hands together and said to Balaam, “I summoned you to curse my enemies, but behold, you have persisted in blessing them these three times.

¹⁰ Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me and lied to me! Now please tell me how you can be tied up.”

¹² “Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites,” Elisha replied. “You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little ones to pieces, and rip open their pregnant women.”

⁴ I am a laughingstock to my friends, though I called on God, and He answered. The righteous and upright man is a laughingstock.

³ A stone is heavy and sand is a burden, but aggravation from a fool outweighs them both. ⁴ Wrath is cruel and anger is like a flood, but who can withstand jealousy?

¹⁵ Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a helpless people.

¹⁷ A man burdened by bloodguilt will flee into the Pit; let no one support him.

²¹ For behold, the LORD is coming out of His dwelling to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth will reveal her bloodshed and will no longer conceal her slain.

⁷ Their feet run to evil; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful thoughts; ruin and destruction lie in their wake.

¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar, furious with rage, summoned Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king,

¹⁹ At this, Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders to heat the furnace seven times hotter than usual, ²⁰ and he commanded some mighty men of valor in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing fiery furnace.

¹⁴ the roar of battle will rise against your people, so that all your fortresses will be demolished as Shalman devastated Beth-arbel in the day of battle, when mothers were dashed to pieces along with their children.

⁶ I could see that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and witnesses for Jesus. And I was utterly amazed at the sight of her.

¹⁶ Later, they set out from Bethel, and while they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth, and her labor was difficult. ¹⁷ During her severe labor, the midwife said to her, “Do not be afraid, for you are having another son.” ¹⁸ And with her last breath—for she was dying—she named him Ben-oni. But his father called him Benjamin. ¹⁹ So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). ²⁰ Jacob set up a pillar on her grave; it marks Rachel’s tomb to this day.

³⁰ returned to his brothers, and said, “The boy is gone! What am I going to do?”

³³ His father recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!” ³⁴ Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days. ³⁵ All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.

³⁶ Their father Jacob said to them, “You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is no more. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is going against me!”

¹⁰ But a man dies and is laid low; he breathes his last, and where is he?

³¹ For I hear a cry like a woman in labor, a cry of anguish like one bearing her first child—the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands to say, “Woe is me, for my soul faints before the murderers!”

¹⁷ This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Take note, and summon the wailing women; send for the most skillful among them. ¹⁸ Let them come quickly and take up a lament over us, that our eyes may overflow with tears, and our eyelids may gush with water. ¹⁹ For the sound of wailing is heard from Zion: ‘How devastated we are! How great is our shame! For we have abandoned the land because our dwellings have been torn down.’” ²⁰ Now, O women, hear the word of the LORD. Open your ears to the word of His mouth. Teach your daughters to wail, and one another to lament. ²¹ For death has climbed in through our windows; it has entered our fortresses to cut off the children from the streets, the young men from the town squares.

¹⁵ This is what the LORD says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”

¹⁰ which He unrolled before me. And written on the front and back of it were words of lamentation, mourning, and woe.

¹³ And as I observed, I heard an eagle flying overhead, calling in a loud voice, “Woe! Woe! Woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the remaining three angels!”

¹⁰ Even the wrath of man shall praise You; with the survivors of wrath You will clothe Yourself.

⁷ Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence?

¹² “I, even I, am He who comforts you. Why should you be afraid of mortal man, of a son of man who withers like grass?

¹⁰ As for you, O Jacob My servant, do not be afraid, declares the LORD, and do not be dismayed, O Israel. For I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of their captivity! Jacob will return to quiet and ease, with no one to make him afraid.

¹⁶ Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’

²⁵ Through his craft and by his hand, he will cause deceit to prosper, and in his own mind he will make himself great. In a time of peace he will destroy many, and he will even stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be broken off, but not by human hands.

⁴⁵ He will pitch his royal tents between the sea and the beautiful holy mountain, but he will meet his end with no one to help him.

¹² And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they withdrew to their country by another route. ¹³ When the Magi had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”

¹⁹ Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who sought to kill you are dead.”

²¹ When Hadad heard in Egypt that David had rested with his fathers and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead, he said to Pharaoh, “Let me go, that I may return to my own country.”

⁴⁰ Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, where he remained until the death of Solomon.

¹ Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. ² When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about this, he was still in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon and had been living ever since. ³ So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel came to Rehoboam and said,

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶ in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

²² So Noah did everything precisely as God had commanded him.

⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, without knowing where he was going.

¹⁷ As soon as the men had brought them out, one of them said, “Run for your lives! Do not look back, and do not stop anywhere on the plain! Flee to the mountains, or you will be swept away!” ¹⁸ But Lot replied, “No, my lords, please! ¹⁹ Your servant has indeed found favor in your sight, and you have shown me great kindness by sparing my life. But I cannot run to the mountains; the disaster will overtake me, and I will die. ²⁰ Look, there is a town nearby where I can flee, and it is a small place. Please let me flee there—is it not a small place? Then my life will be saved.” ²¹ “Very well,” he answered, “I will grant this request as well, and will not demolish the town you indicate.

² “How can I go?” Samuel asked. “Saul will hear of it and kill me!” The LORD answered, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’

¹⁴ For this God is our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even till death.

²⁴ You guide me with Your counsel, and later receive me in glory.

⁶ Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. ⁷ He led them on a straight path to reach a city where they could live.

⁸ The LORD will watch over your coming and going, both now and forevermore.

²¹ And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.”

¹⁷ Thus says the LORD your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you for your benefit, who directs you in the way you should go. ¹⁸ If only you had paid attention to My commandments, your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like waves of the sea.

¹³ At that time Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John.

³⁹ When Jesus’ parents had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.

⁴¹ Others declared, “This is the Christ.” But still others asked, “How can the Christ come from Galilee? ⁴² Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Christ will come from the line of David and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”

⁵² “Aren’t you also from Galilee?” they replied. “Look into it, and you will see that no prophet comes out of Galilee.”

¹³ But Ananias answered, “Lord, many people have told me about this man and all the harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And now he is here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.”

¹³ Now this is the law of the Nazirite when his time of separation is complete: He must be brought to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting,

⁵ For behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son. And no razor shall come over his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”

¹¹ And she made a vow, pleading, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever come over his head.”

⁹ because zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult You have fallen on me. ¹⁰ I wept and fasted, but it brought me reproach.

¹ Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? ² He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.

¹⁰ And I brought you up from the land of Egypt and led you forty years in the wilderness, that you might take possession of the land of the Amorite. ¹¹ I raised up prophets from your sons and Nazirites from your young men. Is this not true, O children of Israel?” declares the LORD. ¹² “But you made the Nazirites drink wine and commanded the prophets not to prophesy.

⁷¹ When Peter had gone out to the gateway, another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This man was also with Jesus of Nazareth.”

²⁴ “Let us alone! What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”

²⁶ In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,

⁴⁵ Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the One Moses wrote about in the Law, the One the prophets foretold—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” ⁴⁶ “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.

⁵ “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. Jesus said, “I am He.” And Judas His betrayer was standing there with them.

⁷ So He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered.

²² Men of Israel, listen to this message: Jesus of Nazareth was a man certified by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through Him, as you yourselves know.

⁵ We have found this man to be a pestilence, stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,