Numbers 24

New International Version

24 Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel,^(A) he did not resort to divination^(B) as at other times, but turned his face toward the wilderness.^(C) ²When Balaam looked out and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came on him^(D) ³and he spoke his message:

“The prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,
    the prophecy of one whose eye sees clearly,^(E)
⁴the prophecy of one who hears the words of God,^(F)
    who sees a vision from the Almighty,^[a]^(G)
    who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:

⁵“How beautiful are your tents,^(H) Jacob,
your dwelling places, Israel!

⁶“Like valleys they spread out,
    like gardens beside a river,^(I)
like aloes^(J) planted by the Lord,
    like cedars beside the waters.^(K)
⁷Water will flow from their buckets;
    their seed will have abundant water.

“Their king will be greater than Agag;^(L)
their kingdom will be exalted.^(M)

⁸“God brought them out of Egypt;
    they have the strength of a wild ox.
They devour hostile nations
    and break their bones in pieces;^(N)
    with their arrows they pierce them.^(O)
⁹Like a lion they crouch and lie down,
    like a lioness^(P)—who dares to rouse them?

“May those who bless you be blessed^(Q)
and those who curse you be cursed!”^(R)

¹⁰Then Balak’s anger burned^(S) against Balaam. He struck his hands together^(T) and said to him, “I summoned you to curse my enemies,^(U) but you have blessed them^(V) these three times.^(W) ¹¹Now leave at once and go home!^(X) I said I would reward you handsomely,^(Y) but the Lord has kept you from being rewarded.”

¹²Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not tell the messengers you sent me,^(Z) ¹³‘Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the command of the Lord^(AA)—and I must say only what the Lord says’?^(AB) ¹⁴Now I am going back to my people, but come, let me warn you of what this people will do to your people in days to come.”^(AC)

Balaam’s Fourth Message

¹⁵Then he spoke his message:

“The prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,
    the prophecy of one whose eye sees clearly,
¹⁶the prophecy of one who hears the words^(AD) of God,
    who has knowledge from the Most High,^(AE)
who sees a vision from the Almighty,
    who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:

¹⁷“I see him, but not now;
    I behold him, but not near.^(AF)
A star will come out of Jacob;^(AG)
    a scepter will rise out of Israel.^(AH)
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,^(AI)
    the skulls^[b]^(AJ) of^[c] all the people of Sheth.^[d]
¹⁸Edom^(AK) will be conquered;
    Seir,^(AL) his enemy, will be conquered,^(AM)
    but Israel^(AN) will grow strong.
¹⁹A ruler will come out of Jacob^(AO)
    and destroy the survivors of the city.”

Balaam’s Fifth Message

²⁰Then Balaam saw Amalek^(AP) and spoke his message:

“Amalek was first among the nations,
but their end will be utter destruction.”^(AQ)

Balaam’s Sixth Message

²¹Then he saw the Kenites^(AR) and spoke his message:

“Your dwelling place is secure,^(AS)
your nest is set in a rock;
²²yet you Kenites will be destroyed
when Ashur^(AT) takes you captive.”

Balaam’s Seventh Message

²³Then he spoke his message:

“Alas! Who can live when God does this?^[e]
²⁴ Ships will come from the shores of Cyprus;^(AU)
they will subdue Ashur^(AV) and Eber,^(AW)
but they too will come to ruin.^(AX)”

²⁵Then Balaam^(AY) got up and returned home, and Balak went his own way.

Footnotes

Numbers 24:4 Hebrew Shaddai; also in verse 16
Numbers 24:17 Samaritan Pentateuch (see also Jer. 48:45); the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
Numbers 24:17 Or possibly Moab, / batter
Numbers 24:17 Or all the noisy boasters
Numbers 24:23 Masoretic Text; with a different word division of the Hebrew The people from the islands will gather from the north.

Psalm 105

New International Version

Psalm 105^(A)

¹Give praise to the Lord,^(B) proclaim his name;^(C)
    make known among the nations what he has done.
²Sing to him,^(D) sing praise to him;^(E)
    tell of all his wonderful acts.^(F)
³Glory in his holy name;^(G)
    let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
⁴Look to the Lord and his strength;
    seek his face^(H) always.

⁵Remember the wonders^(I) he has done,
    his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,^(J)
⁶you his servants, the descendants of Abraham,^(K)
    his chosen^(L) ones, the children of Jacob.
⁷He is the Lord our God;
    his judgments are in all the earth.

⁸He remembers his covenant^(M) forever,
    the promise he made, for a thousand generations,
⁹the covenant he made with Abraham,^(N)
    the oath he swore to Isaac.
¹⁰He confirmed it^(O) to Jacob as a decree,
    to Israel as an everlasting covenant:^(P)
¹¹“To you I will give the land of Canaan^(Q)
    as the portion you will inherit.”^(R)

¹²When they were but few in number,^(S)
    few indeed, and strangers in it,^(T)
¹³they wandered from nation to nation,^(U)
    from one kingdom to another.
¹⁴He allowed no one to oppress^(V) them;
    for their sake he rebuked kings:^(W)
¹⁵“Do not touch^(X) my anointed ones;
    do my prophets^(Y) no harm.”

¹⁶He called down famine^(Z) on the land
    and destroyed all their supplies of food;
¹⁷and he sent a man before them—
    Joseph, sold as a slave.^(AA)
¹⁸They bruised his feet with shackles,^(AB)
    his neck was put in irons,
¹⁹till what he foretold^(AC) came to pass,
    till the word^(AD) of the Lord proved him true.
²⁰The king sent and released him,
    the ruler of peoples set him free.^(AE)
²¹He made him master of his household,
    ruler over all he possessed,
²²to instruct his princes^(AF) as he pleased
    and teach his elders wisdom.^(AG)

²³Then Israel entered Egypt;^(AH)
    Jacob resided^(AI) as a foreigner in the land of Ham.^(AJ)
²⁴The Lord made his people very fruitful;
    he made them too numerous^(AK) for their foes,
²⁵whose hearts he turned^(AL) to hate his people,
    to conspire^(AM) against his servants.
²⁶He sent Moses^(AN) his servant,
    and Aaron,^(AO) whom he had chosen.^(AP)
²⁷They performed^(AQ) his signs^(AR) among them,
    his wonders^(AS) in the land of Ham.
²⁸He sent darkness^(AT) and made the land dark—
    for had they not rebelled against^(AU) his words?
²⁹He turned their waters into blood,^(AV)
    causing their fish to die.^(AW)
³⁰Their land teemed with frogs,^(AX)
    which went up into the bedrooms of their rulers.
³¹He spoke,^(AY) and there came swarms of flies,^(AZ)
    and gnats^(BA) throughout their country.
³²He turned their rain into hail,^(BB)
    with lightning throughout their land;
³³he struck down their vines^(BC) and fig trees^(BD)
    and shattered the trees of their country.
³⁴He spoke,^(BE) and the locusts came,^(BF)
    grasshoppers^(BG) without number;^(BH)
³⁵they ate up every green thing in their land,
    ate up the produce of their soil.
³⁶Then he struck down all the firstborn^(BI) in their land,
    the firstfruits of all their manhood.
³⁷He brought out Israel, laden with silver and gold,^(BJ)
    and from among their tribes no one faltered.
³⁸Egypt was glad when they left,
    because dread of Israel^(BK) had fallen on them.

³⁹He spread out a cloud^(BL) as a covering,
    and a fire to give light at night.^(BM)
⁴⁰They asked,^(BN) and he brought them quail;^(BO)
    he fed them well with the bread of heaven.^(BP)
⁴¹He opened the rock,^(BQ) and water gushed out;
    it flowed like a river in the desert.

⁴²For he remembered his holy promise^(BR)
    given to his servant Abraham.
⁴³He brought out his people with rejoicing,^(BS)
    his chosen ones with shouts of joy;
⁴⁴he gave them the lands of the nations,^(BT)
    and they fell heir to what others had toiled^(BU) for—
⁴⁵that they might keep his precepts
    and observe his laws.^(BV)

Praise the Lord.^[a]^(BW)

Footnotes

Psalm 105:45 Hebrew Hallelu Yah

Luke 6

New International Version

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath^(A)

6 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels.^(B) ²Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”^(C)

³Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?^(D) ⁴He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is lawful only for priests to eat.^(E) And he also gave some to his companions.” ⁵Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man^(F) is Lord of the Sabbath.”

⁶On another Sabbath^(G) he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. ⁷The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely^(H) to see if he would heal on the Sabbath.^(I) ⁸But Jesus knew what they were thinking^(J) and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there.

⁹Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”

¹⁰He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored. ¹¹But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious^(K) and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

The Twelve Apostles^(L)

¹²One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.^(M) ¹³When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles:^(N) ¹⁴Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, ¹⁵Matthew,^(O) Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, ¹⁶Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

Blessings and Woes^(P)

¹⁷He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coastal region around Tyre and Sidon,^(Q) ¹⁸who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by impure spirits were cured, ¹⁹and the people all tried to touch him,^(R) because power was coming from him and healing them all.^(S)

²⁰Looking at his disciples, he said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
    for yours is the kingdom of God.^(T)
²¹Blessed are you who hunger now,
    for you will be satisfied.^(U)
Blessed are you who weep now,
    for you will laugh.^(V)
²²Blessed are you when people hate you,
    when they exclude you^(W) and insult you^(X)
    and reject your name as evil,
        because of the Son of Man.^(Y)

²³“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy,^(Z) because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.^(AA)

²⁴“But woe to you who are rich,^(AB)
    for you have already received your comfort.^(AC)
²⁵Woe to you who are well fed now,
    for you will go hungry.^(AD)
Woe to you who laugh now,
    for you will mourn and weep.^(AE)
²⁶Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you,
    for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.^(AF)

Love for Enemies^(AG)

²⁷“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,^(AH) ²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.^(AI) ²⁹If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. ³⁰Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.^(AJ) ³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you.^(AK)

³²“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?^(AL) Even sinners love those who love them. ³³And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. ³⁴And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you?^(AM) Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. ³⁵But love your enemies, do good to them,^(AN) and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children^(AO) of the Most High,^(AP) because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. ³⁶Be merciful,^(AQ) just as your Father^(AR) is merciful.

Judging Others^(AS)

³⁷“Do not judge, and you will not be judged.^(AT) Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.^(AU) ³⁸Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.^(AV) For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”^(AW)

³⁹He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit?^(AX) ⁴⁰The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.^(AY)

⁴¹“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴²How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

A Tree and Its Fruit^(AZ)

⁴³“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. ⁴⁴Each tree is recognized by its own fruit.^(BA) People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. ⁴⁵A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.^(BB)

The Wise and Foolish Builders^(BC)

⁴⁶“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’^(BD) and do not do what I say?^(BE) ⁴⁷As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice,^(BF) I will show you what they are like. ⁴⁸They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. ⁴⁹But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

New International Version (NIV)