The Previous Command to Enter Canaan

1 These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel ^(A)on this side of the Jordan in the wilderness, in the ^[a]plain opposite ^[b]Suph, between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab. ² It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by way of Mount Seir ^(B)to Kadesh Barnea. ³ Now it came to pass ^(C)in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spoke to the children of Israel according to all that the Lord had given him as commandments to them, ^4 (D)after he had killed Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who dwelt at Ashtaroth ^(E)in^[c] Edrei.

⁵ On this side of the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying, ⁶ “The Lord our God spoke to us ^(F)in Horeb, saying: ‘You have dwelt long ^(G)enough at this mountain. ⁷ Turn and take your journey, and go to the mountains of the Amorites, to all the neighboring places in the ^[d]plain, in the mountains and in the lowland, in the South and on the seacoast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates. ⁸ See, I have set the land before you; go in and possess the land which the Lord ^[e]swore to your fathers—to ^(H)Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—to give to them and their descendants after them.’

Tribal Leaders Appointed^(I)

⁹ “And ^(J)I spoke to you at that time, saying: ‘I ^[f]alone am not able to bear you. ¹⁰ The Lord your God has multiplied you, ^(K)and here you are today, as the stars of heaven in multitude. ^11 (L)May the Lord God of your fathers make you a thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you ^(M)as He has promised you! ^12 (N)How can I alone bear your problems and your burdens and your complaints? ¹³ Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them ^[g]heads over you.’ ¹⁴ And you answered me and said, ‘The thing which you have told us to do is good.’ ¹⁵ So I took ^(O)the heads of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and ^[h]made them heads over you, leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifties, leaders of tens, and officers for your tribes.

¹⁶ “Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, ‘Hear the cases between your brethren, and ^(P)judge righteously between a man and his ^(Q)brother or the stranger who is with him. ^17 (R)You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid in any man’s presence, for ^(S)the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, ^(T)bring to me, and I will hear it.’ ¹⁸ And I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do.

Israel’s Refusal to Enter the Land^(U)

¹⁹ “So we departed from Horeb, ^(V)and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the Lord our God had commanded us. Then ^(W)we came to Kadesh Barnea. ²⁰ And I said to you, ‘You have come to the mountains of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. ²¹ Look, the Lord your God has set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the Lord God of your fathers has spoken to you; ^(X)do not fear or be discouraged.’

²² “And every one of you came near to me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, and let them search out the land for us, and bring back word to us of the way by which we should go up, and of the cities into which we shall come.’

²³ “The plan pleased me well; so ^(Y)I took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe. ^24 (Z)And they departed and went up into the mountains, and came to the Valley of Eshcol, and spied it out. ²⁵ They also took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us; and they brought back word to us, saying, ‘It is a ^(AA)good land which the Lord our God is giving us.’

^26 (AB)“Nevertheless you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; ²⁷ and you ^(AC)complained in your tents, and said, ‘Because the Lord ^(AD)hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. ²⁸ Where can we go up? Our brethren have ^[i]discouraged our hearts, saying, ^(AE)“The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; moreover we have seen the sons of the ^(AF)Anakim there.” ’

²⁹ “Then I said to you, ‘Do not be terrified, ^(AG)or afraid of them. ^30 (AH)The Lord your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, ³¹ and in the wilderness where you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a ^(AI)man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ ³² Yet, for all that, ^(AJ)you did not believe the Lord your God, ^33 (AK)who went in the way before you ^(AL)to search out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day.

The Penalty for Israel’s Rebellion^(AM)

³⁴ “And the Lord heard the sound of your words, and was angry, ^(AN)and took an oath, saying, ^35 (AO)‘Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I ^[j]swore to give to your fathers, ^36 (AP)except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and his children I am giving the land on which he walked, because ^(AQ)he ^[k]wholly followed the Lord.’ ^37 (AR)The Lord was also angry with me for your sakes, saying, ‘Even you shall not go in there. ^38 (AS)Joshua the son of Nun, ^(AT)who stands before you, he shall go in there. ^(AU)Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

^39 (AV)‘Moreover your little ones and your children, who ^(AW)you say will be victims, who today ^(AX)have no knowledge of good and evil, they shall go in there; to them I will give it, and they shall possess it. ^40 (AY)But as for you, turn and take your journey into the wilderness by the Way of the Red Sea.’

⁴¹ “Then you answered and said to me, ^(AZ)‘We have sinned against the Lord; we will go up and fight, just as the Lord our God commanded us.’ And when everyone of you had girded on his weapons of war, you were ready to go up into the mountain.

⁴² “And the Lord said to me, ‘Tell them, ^(BA)“Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; lest you be defeated before your enemies.” ’ ⁴³ So I spoke to you; yet you would not listen, but ^(BB)rebelled against the command of the Lord, and ^(BC)presumptuously^[l] went up into the mountain. ⁴⁴ And the Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you ^(BD)as bees do, and drove you back from Seir to Hormah. ⁴⁵ Then you returned and wept before the Lord, but the Lord would not listen to your voice nor give ear to you.

^46 (BE)“So you remained in Kadesh many days, according to the days that you spent there.

The Desert Years

2 “Then we turned and ^(BF)journeyed into the wilderness of the Way of the Red Sea, ^(BG)as the Lord spoke to me, and we ^[m]skirted Mount Seir for many days.

² “And the Lord spoke to me, saying: ³ ‘You have skirted this mountain ^(BH)long enough; turn northward. ⁴ And command the people, saying, ^(BI)“You are about to pass through the territory of ^(BJ)your brethren, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. Therefore watch yourselves carefully. ⁵ Do not meddle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as one footstep, ^(BK)because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. ⁶ You shall buy food from them with money, that you may eat; and you shall also buy water from them with money, that you may drink.

⁷ “For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your ^[n]trudging through this great wilderness. ^(BL)These forty years the Lord your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.” ’

⁸ “And when we passed beyond our brethren, the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir, away from the road of the plain, away from ^(BM)Elath and Ezion Geber, we ^(BN)turned and passed by way of the Wilderness of Moab. ⁹ Then the Lord said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given ^(BO)Ar to ^(BP)the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ”

^10 (BQ)(The Emim had dwelt there in times past, a people as great and numerous and tall as ^(BR)the Anakim. ¹¹ They were also regarded as ^[o]giants, like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim. ^12 (BS)The Horites formerly dwelt in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their ^[p]place, just as Israel did to the land of their possession which the Lord gave them.)

¹³ “ ‘Now rise and cross over ^(BT)the ^[q]Valley of the Zered.’ So we crossed over the Valley of the Zered. ¹⁴ And the time we took to come ^(BU)from Kadesh Barnea until we crossed over the Valley of the Zered was thirty-eight years, ^(BV)until all the generation of the men of war ^[r]was consumed from the midst of the camp, ^(BW)just as the Lord had sworn to them. ¹⁵ For indeed the hand of the Lord was against them, to destroy them from the midst of the camp until they ^[s]were consumed.

¹⁶ “So it was, when all the men of war had finally perished from among the people, ¹⁷ that the Lord spoke to me, saying: ¹⁸ ‘This day you are to cross over at Ar, the boundary of Moab. ¹⁹ And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to ^(BX)the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ ”

²⁰ (That was also regarded as a land of ^[t]giants; giants formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them ^(BY)Zamzummim, ^21 (BZ)a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the Lord destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, ²² just as He had done for the descendants of Esau, ^(CA)who dwelt in Seir, when He destroyed ^(CB)the Horites from before them. They dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, even to this day. ²³ And ^(CC)the Avim, who dwelt in villages as far as Gaza—^(CD)the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and dwelt in their place.)

²⁴ “ ‘Rise, take your journey, and ^(CE)cross over the River Arnon. Look, I have given into your hand ^(CF)Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin ^[u]to possess it, and engage him in battle. ^25 (CG)This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon the nations ^[v]under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you, and shall ^(CH)tremble and be in anguish because of you.’

King Sihon Defeated^(CI)

²⁶ “And I ^(CJ)sent messengers from the Wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon, ^(CK)with words of peace, saying, ^27 (CL)‘Let me pass through your land; I will keep strictly to the road, and I will turn neither to the right nor to the left. ²⁸ You shall sell me food for money, that I may eat, and give me water for money, that I may drink; ^(CM)only let me pass through on foot, ^29 (CN)just as the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir and the Moabites who dwell in Ar did for me, until I cross the Jordan to the land which the Lord our God is giving us.’

^30 (CO)“But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for ^(CP)the Lord your God ^(CQ)hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as it is this day.

³¹ “And the Lord said to me, ‘See, I have begun to ^(CR)give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to possess it, that you may inherit his land.’ ^32 (CS)Then Sihon and all his people came out against us to fight at Jahaz. ³³ And ^(CT)the Lord our God delivered him ^[w]over to us; so ^(CU)we defeated him, his sons, and all his people. ³⁴ We took all his cities at that time, and we ^(CV)utterly destroyed the men, women, and little ones of every city; we left none remaining. ³⁵ We took only the livestock as plunder for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took. ^36 (CW)From Aroer, which is on the bank of the River Arnon, and from ^(CX)the city that is in the ravine, as far as Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us; ^(CY)the Lord our God delivered all to us. ³⁷ Only you did not go near the land of the people of Ammon—anywhere along the River ^(CZ)Jabbok, or to the cities of the mountains, or ^(DA)wherever the Lord our God had forbidden us.

The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers^(A)

12 Then ^(B)He began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower. And he leased it to ^[a]vinedressers and went into a far country. ² Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers. ³ And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ⁴ Again he sent them another servant, ^[b]and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated. ⁵ And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, ^(C)beating some and killing some. ⁶ Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ⁷ But those ^[c]vinedressers said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸ So they took him and ^(D)killed him and cast him out of the vineyard.

⁹ “Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰ Have you not even read this Scripture:

^12 (F)And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them. So they left Him and went away.

The Pharisees: Is It Lawful to Pay Taxes to Caesar?^(G)

^13 (H)Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words. ¹⁴ When they had come, they said to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and ^[d]care about no one; for You do not ^[e]regard the person of men, but teach the ^(I)way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? ¹⁵ Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?”

But He, knowing their ^(J)hypocrisy, said to them, “Why do you test Me? Bring Me a denarius that I may see it.” ¹⁶ So they brought it.

And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.”

¹⁷ And Jesus answered and said to them, ^[f]“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to ^(K)God the things that are God’s.”

And they marveled at Him.

The Sadducees: What About the Resurrection?^(L)

^18 (M)Then some Sadducees, ^(N)who say there is no resurrection, came to Him; and they asked Him, saying: ¹⁹ “Teacher, ^(O)Moses wrote to us that if a man’s brother dies, and leaves his wife behind, and leaves no children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. ²⁰ Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife; and dying, he left no offspring. ²¹ And the second took her, and he died; nor did he leave any offspring. And the third likewise. ²² So the seven had her and left no offspring. Last of all the woman died also. ²³ Therefore, in the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be? For all seven had her as wife.”

²⁴ Jesus answered and said to them, “Are you not therefore ^[g]mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God? ²⁵ For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but ^(P)are like angels in heaven. ²⁶ But concerning the dead, that they ^(Q)rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, ^(R)‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? ²⁷ He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly ^[h]mistaken.”

The Scribes: Which Is the First Commandment of All?^(S)

^28 (T)Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, ^[i]perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the ^[j]first commandment of all?”

²⁹ Jesus answered him, “The ^[k]first of all the commandments is: ^(U)‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. ³⁰ And you shall ^(V)love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ ^[l]This is the first commandment. ³¹ And the second, like it, is this: ^(W)‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than ^(X)these.”

³² So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, ^(Y)and there is no other but He. ³³ And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, ^[m]with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, ^(Z)is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

³⁴ Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

^(AA)But after that no one dared question Him.

Jesus: How Can David Call His Descendant Lord?^(AB)

^35 (AC)Then Jesus answered and said, while He taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David? ³⁶ For David himself said ^(AD)by the Holy Spirit:

³⁷ Therefore David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; how is He then his ^(AF)Son?”

And the common people heard Him gladly.

Beware of the Scribes^(AG)

³⁸ Then ^(AH)He said to them in His teaching, ^(AI)“Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, ^(AJ)love greetings in the marketplaces, ³⁹ the ^(AK)best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, ^40 (AL)who devour widows’ houses, and ^[n]for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”

The Widow’s Two Mites^(AM)

^41 (AN)Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money ^(AO)into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. ⁴² Then one poor widow came and threw in two ^[o]mites, which make a ^[p]quadrans. ⁴³ So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that ^(AP)this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; ⁴⁴ for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, ^(AQ)her whole livelihood.”