Exodus 17; Luke 20; Job 35; 2 Corinthians 5

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Exodus 17

Water from the Rock

wAll the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. xTherefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, Give us water to drink. And Moses said to them, Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you ytest the Lord? But the people thirsted there for water, and zthe people grumbled against Moses and said, Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst? So Moses cried to the Lord, What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready ato stone me. And the Lord said to Moses, Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with bwhich you struck the Nile, and go. cBehold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink. And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the name of the place dMassah1 and eMeribah,2 because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, Is the Lord among us or not?

Israel Defeats Amalek

fThen Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to gJoshua, Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with hthe staff of God in my hand. 10 So gJoshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and iHur went up to the top of the hill. 11 Whenever Moses jheld up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. 12 But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and iHur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 And gJoshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of gJoshua, that kI will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. 15 And Moses lbuilt an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, 16 saying, A hand upon the throne3 of the Lord! kThe Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.


Luke 20

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

hOne day, ias Jesus1 was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, jthe chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to him, Tell us kby what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority. He answered them, I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, was the baptism of John lfrom heaven or from man? And they discussed it with one another, saying, If we say, From heaven, he will say, mWhy did you not believe him? But if we say, From man, all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was na prophet. So they answered that they did not know where it came from. And Jesus said to them, Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

oAnd he began to tell the people this parable: A man planted pa vineyard and qlet it out to tenants and rwent into another country for a long while. 10 When the time came, he sent a servant2 to the tenants, so that qthey would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. sBut the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 11 tAnd she sent another servant. But they also beat and utreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. 12 sAnd he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. 13 Then the owner of the vineyard said, What shall I do? I will send my vbeloved son; perhaps they will respect him. 14 But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, wThis is the heir. xLet us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours. 15 And they ythrew him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 zHe will acome and destroy those tenants and bgive the vineyard to others. When they heard this, they said, Surely not! 17 But he clooked directly at them and said, What then is this that is written:

dThe stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone?3

18 eEveryone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls fon anyone, it will crush him.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

19 hThe scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. 20 iSo they jwatched him and sent spies, who kpretended to be sincere, that they might lcatch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of mthe governor. 21 So they asked him, Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and oshow no partiality,4 but truly teach pthe way of God. 22 Is it lawful for us to give qtribute to rCaesar, or not? 23 But he perceived their scraftiness, and said to them, 24 Show me ta denarius.5 Whose likeness and inscription does it have? They said, Caesar’s. 25 He said to them, Then urender to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. 26 And they were not able in the presence of the people vto catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent.

Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection

27 There came to him wsome Sadducees, xthose who deny that there is a resurrection, 28 and they asked him a question, saying, Teacher, Moses wrote for us ythat if a man’s brother dies, having a wife but no children, the man6 must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. 30 And the second 31 and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. 32 Afterward the woman also died. 33 In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.

34 And Jesus said to them, zThe sons of this age amarry and aare given in marriage, 35 but those who are bconsidered worthy to attain to cthat age and to the resurrection from the dead dneither marry dnor are given in marriage, 36 for ethey cannot die anymore, because they are fequal to angels and gare hsons of God, being isons7 of the resurrection. 37 But that the dead are raised, jeven Moses showed, in kthe passage about the bush, where he calls lthe Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all mlive to him. 39 Then some of the scribes nanswered, Teacher, you have spoken well. 40 For othey no longer dared to ask him any question.

Whose Son Is the Christ?

41 pBut he said to them, How can they say that qthe Christ is qDavid’s son? 42 For David himself says in the Book of Psalms,

rThe Lord said to my Lord,

Sit at my right hand,

43  until I make your enemies syour footstool.

44 David thus calls him Lord, so thow is he his son?

Beware of the Scribes

45 uAnd in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, 46 Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and vthe places of honor at feasts, 47 wwho devour widows’ houses and xfor a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.


Job 35

Elihu Condemns Job

And Elihu answered and said:

Do you think this to be just?

Do you say, vIt is my right before God,

that you ask, wWhat advantage have I?

How am I better off than if I had sinned?

I will answer you

and xyour friends with you.

yLook at the heavens, and see;

and behold the clouds, which are higher than you.

If you have sinned, zwhat do you accomplish against him?

And if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?

aIf you are righteous, what do you give to him?

Or what does he receive from your hand?

Your wickedness concerns a man like yourself,

and your righteousness ba son of man.

Because of the multitude of coppressions people dcry out;

they call for help because of the arm of ethe mighty.1

10  But none says, Where is God my fMaker,

who gives gsongs in the night,

11  who teaches us hmore than the beasts of the earth

and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?

12  There they icry out, but he does not answer,

because of the pride of evil men.

13  Surely God does not hear an empty cry,

nor does the Almighty regard it.

14  How much less when you say that you jdo not see him,

that the case is before him, and you are kwaiting for him!

15  And now, because lhis anger does not punish,

and he does not take much note of transgression,2

16  Job opens his mouth in empty talk;

he mmultiplies words nwithout knowledge.


2 Corinthians 5

Our Heavenly Dwelling

For we know that if kthe tent that is lour earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, ma house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent nwe groan, longing to oput on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on1 we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdenednot that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal pmay be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, qwho has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

So we are always of good courage. We know that rwhile we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for swe walk by faith, not tby sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we uwould rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to vplease him. 10 For wwe must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, xso that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

The Ministry of Reconciliation

11 Therefore, knowing ythe fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But zwhat we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. 12 aWe are not commending ourselves to you again but bgiving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. 13 For if we care beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ dcontrols us, because we have concluded this: that eone has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, fthat those who live might no longer live for themselves but gfor him who for their sake died and was raised.

16 From now on, therefore, hwe regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is iin Christ, he is ja new creation.2 kThe old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, lwho through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us mthe ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling3 the world to himself, nnot counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us mthe message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, owe are ambassadors for Christ, pGod making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 qFor our sake he made him to be sin rwho knew no sin, so that in him we might become sthe righteousness of God.