The Birth of Samson

1 And the people of Israel again ^udid what was evil in the sight of the Lord, so the Lord gave them ^vinto the hand of the Philistines for forty years.

2 There was a certain man of ^wZorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. ^xAnd his wife was barren and had no children. 3 ^yAnd the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are barren and have not borne children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. 4 Therefore be careful ^zand drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, 5 for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. ^aNo razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be ^za Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall ^bbegin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” 6 Then the woman came and told her husband, ^c“A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like the appearance of the angel of God, very awesome. ^dI did not ask him where he was from, and he did not tell me his name, 7 but he said to me, ^e‘Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. So then drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb to the day of his death.’”

8 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent come again to us and teach us what we are to do with the child who will be born.” 9 And God listened to the voice of Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman as she sat in the field. But Manoah her husband was not with her. 10 So the woman ran quickly and told her husband, “Behold, the man who came to me the other day has appeared to me.” 11 And Manoah arose and went after his wife and came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man who spoke to this woman?” And he said, “I am.” 12 And Manoah said, “Now when your words come true, ^fwhat is to be the child’s manner of life, and what is his mission?” 13 And the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, “Of all that I said to the woman let her be careful. 14 She may not eat of anything that comes from the vine, ^gneither let her drink wine or strong drink, or eat any unclean thing. All that I commanded her let her observe.”

15 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “Please let us detain you and ^hprepare a young goat for you.” 16 And the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, “If you detain me, I will not eat of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, then offer it to the Lord.” (For Manoah did not know that he was the angel of the Lord.) 17 And Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, ⁱ“What is your name, so that, when your words come true, we may honor you?” 18 And the angel of the Lord said to him, ^j“Why do you ask my name, seeing ^kit is wonderful?” 19 So ^lManoah took the young goat with the grain offering, and offered it on the rock to the Lord, to the one who works¹ wonders, and Manoah and his wife were watching. 20 And when the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar. Now Manoah and his wife were watching, ^mand they fell on their faces to the ground.

21 The angel of the Lord appeared no more to Manoah and to his wife. ⁿThen Manoah knew that he was the angel of the Lord. 22 And Manoah said to his wife, ⁿ“We shall surely die, for we have seen God.” 23 But his wife said to him, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering at our hands, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us such things as these.” 24 And the woman bore a son and called his name Samson. ^oAnd the young man grew, and the Lord blessed him. 25 ^pAnd the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him in Mahaneh-dan, between ^qZorah and Eshtaol.

Paul and Silas in Thessalonica

1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to ^gThessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 And Paul went in, ^has was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them ⁱfrom the Scriptures, 3 ^jexplaining and proving that it was necessary for ^kthe Christ to suffer and ^lto rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4 And ^msome of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did ⁿa great many of the devout ^oGreeks and not a few of the leading women. 5 ^pBut the Jews^{1 q}were jealous, and taking ^rsome wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. 6 And when they could not find them, ^sthey dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7 and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against ^tthe decrees of Caesar, saying that there is ^uanother king, Jesus.” 8 And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. 9 And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Paul and Silas in Berea

10 ^vThe brothers² immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they ^wwent into the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, ^xexamining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. 12 ^yMany of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek ^zwomen of high standing as well as men. 13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, ^aagitating and stirring up the crowds. 14 Then the brothers ^bimmediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and ^cTimothy remained there. 15 ^dThose who conducted Paul brought him as far as ^eAthens, and after receiving a command ^ffor Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.

Paul in Athens

16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was ^gprovoked within him as he saw that the city was ^hfull of idols. 17 So ⁱhe reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. 18 Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, ^j“What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities”—because ^khe was preaching ^lJesus and the resurrection. 19 And they took him and brought him to ^mthe Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this ⁿnew teaching is that you are presenting? 20 For you bring some ^ostrange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.” 21 Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.

Paul Addresses the Areopagus

22 So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ^p‘To the unknown god.’ ^pWhat therefore you worship ^qas unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24 ^rThe God who made the world and everything in it, being ^sLord of heaven and earth, ^tdoes not live in temples made by man,³ 25 nor is he served by human hands, ^uas though he needed anything, since he himself ^vgives to all mankind ^wlife and breath and everything. 26 And ^xhe made from one man every nation of mankind to live ^yon all the face of the earth, ^zhaving determined allotted periods and ^athe boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 ^bthat they should seek God, ^cand perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. ^dYet he is actually not far from each one of us, 28 for

as even some of ^fyour own poets have said,

29 ^gBeing then God’s offspring, ^hwe ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. 30 ⁱThe times of ignorance ^jGod overlooked, but ^know he ^lcommands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed ^ma day on which ⁿhe will judge the world ^oin righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and ^pof this he has given assurance to all ^qby raising him from the dead.”

32 Now when they heard of ^rthe resurrection of the dead, ^ssome mocked. But others said, ^t“We will hear you again about this.” 33 So Paul went out from their midst. 34 But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius ^uthe Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

Jeremiah Threatened with Death

1 ^tIn the beginning of the reign of ^uJehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord: 2 “Thus says the Lord: ^vStand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah that come to worship in the house of the Lord ^wall the words that I command you to speak to them; ^xdo not hold back a word. 3 ^yIt may be they will listen, and every one turn from his evil way, ^zthat I may relent of the disaster that I intend to do to them ^abecause of their evil deeds. 4 You shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^bIf you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, 5 ^cand to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you ^curgently, ^cthough you have not listened, 6 then I will make this house ^dlike Shiloh, and I will make this city ^ea curse for all the nations of the earth.’”

7 ^fThe priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. 8 And when Jeremiah had finished speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, then ^fthe priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, “You shall die! 9 Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house shall be ^dlike Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, ^gwithout inhabitant’?” And all the people gathered around Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.

10 When ^hthe officials of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and took their seat in the ⁱentry of the New Gate of the house of the Lord. 11 Then ^fthe priests and the prophets said to the officials and to all the people, ^j“This man deserves the sentence of death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.”

12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and this city all the words you have heard. 13 Now therefore ^kmend your ways and your deeds, ^land obey the voice of the Lord your God, ^zand the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you. 14 ^mBut as for me, behold, I am in your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you. 15 Only know for certain that if you put me to death, ⁿyou will bring innocent blood upon yourselves and upon this city and its inhabitants, for in truth the Lord sent me to you to speak all these words in your ears.”

Jeremiah Spared from Death

16 ^oThen the officials and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, ^p“This man does not deserve the sentence of death, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.” 17 ^qAnd certain of ^rthe elders of the land arose and spoke to all the assembled people, saying, 18 “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and said to all the people of Judah: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts,

19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? ^tDid he not fear the Lord and entreat the favor of the Lord, ^uand did not the Lord relent of the disaster that he had pronounced against them? ^vBut we are about to bring great disaster upon ourselves.”

20 There was another man who prophesied in the name of the Lord, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from ^wKiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like those of Jeremiah. 21 And when ^xKing Jehoiakim, with all his warriors and all the officials, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death. But when Uriah heard of it, he was afraid and fled and escaped to Egypt. 22 Then ^xKing Jehoiakim sent to Egypt certain men, ^yElnathan the son of ^zAchbor and others with him, 23 and they took Uriah from Egypt and brought him to King Jehoiakim, ^awho struck him down with the sword and dumped his dead body into the burial place of the common people.

24 But the hand of ^bAhikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah so that he was not given over to the people to be put to death.

The Parable of the Tenants

1 ^bAnd he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted ^ca vineyard ^dand put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and ^eleased it to tenants and ^fwent into another country. 2 When the season came, he sent a servant¹ to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 ^gAnd they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 ^gAgain ^hhe sent to them another servant, and ⁱthey struck him on the head and ^jtreated him shamefully. 5 ^gAnd he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. 6 He had still one other, ^ka beloved son. ^lFinally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenants said to one another, ^m‘This is the heir. Come, ⁿlet us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 And they took him and killed him and ^othrew him out of the vineyard. 9 What will the owner of the vineyard do? ^pHe will ^qcome and destroy the tenants and ^rgive the vineyard to others. 10 ^sHave you not read ^tthis Scripture:

12 And ^vthey were seeking to arrest him ^wbut feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they ^xleft him and went away.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

13 ^yAnd they sent to him some of ^zthe Pharisees and some of ^zthe Herodians, to ^atrap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, ^bwe know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For ^cyou are not swayed by appearances,³ but truly teach ^dthe way of God. Is it lawful to pay ^etaxes to ^fCaesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 15 But, knowing ^gtheir hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why ^hput me to the test? Bring me ⁱa denarius⁴ and let me look at it.” 16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.” 17 Jesus said to them, ^j“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they marveled at him.

The Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection

18 And ^kSadducees came to him, ^lwho say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that ^mif a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man⁵ must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. 21 And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.”

24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because ⁿyou know neither the Scriptures nor ^othe power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither ^pmarry nor ^pare given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 And as for the dead being raised, ^qhave you not read in ^rthe book of Moses, in ^sthe passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ^t‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”

The Great Commandment

28 ^uAnd one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ^v‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, ^wthe Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 ^xThe second is this: ^y‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment ^zgreater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that ^whe is one, and ^athere is no other besides him. 33 And to love him with all the heart and with all ^bthe understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, ^cis much more than all ^dwhole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” ^eAnd after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Whose Son Is the Christ?

35 ^fAnd as ^gJesus taught in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that ^hthe Christ is the son of David? 36 David himself, ⁱin the Holy Spirit, declared,

37 David himself calls him Lord. So ^lhow is he his son?” And the great throng ^mheard him gladly.

Beware of the Scribes

38 ⁿAnd in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces 39 and have the best seats in the synagogues and ^othe places of honor at feasts, 40 ^pwho devour widows’ houses and ^qfor a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

The Widow’s Offering

41 ^rAnd he sat down opposite ^sthe treasury and watched the people ^tputting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two ^usmall copper coins, which make a penny.⁶ 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, ^vthis poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her ^wpoverty has put in everything she had, all ^xshe had to live on.”