Sarah’s Death and Burial

1 Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. 2 And Sarah died at ^dKiriath-arba (that is, ^eHebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3 And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites,¹ 4 ^f“I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; ^ggive me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 5 The Hittites answered Abraham, 6 “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God² among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.” 7 Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. 8 And he said to them, “If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron the son of Zohar, 9 that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns; it is at the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.”

10 Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who ^hwent in at the gate of his city, 11 “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.” 12 Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. 13 And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me: I give the price of the field. Accept it from me, that I may bury my dead there.” 14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “My lord, listen to me: a piece of land worth four hundred ⁱshekels³ of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” 16 Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham ^jweighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the merchants.

17 So ^kthe field of Ephron in Machpelah, which was to the east of Mamre, the field with the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, throughout its whole area, was made over 18 to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city. 19 After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 The field and the cave that is in it ^lwere made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites.

Isaac and Rebekah

1 Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the Lord ^mhad blessed Abraham in all things. 2 And Abraham said to his servant, ⁿthe oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he had, ^o“Put your hand under my thigh, 3 that I may make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that ^pyou will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, 4 ^qbut will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” 6 Abraham said to him, “See to it that you do not take my son back there. 7 The Lord, the God of heaven, ^rwho took me from my father’s house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and swore to me, ^s‘To your offspring I will give this land,’ ^the will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 8 But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then ^uyou will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant ^vput his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning this matter.

10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, taking all sorts of choice gifts from his master; and he arose and went to ^wMesopotamia¹ to the city of Nahor. 11 And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when ^xwomen go out to draw water. 12 And he said, “O Lord, ^yGod of my master Abraham, ^zplease grant me success today and show steadfast love to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, ^aI am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac. ^bBy this² I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.”

15 Before he had finished speaking, behold, Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel the son of ^cMilcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her water jar on her shoulder. 16 The young woman ^dwas very attractive in appearance, a maiden³ whom no man had known. She went down to the spring and filled her jar and came up. 17 Then the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water to drink from your jar.” 18 She said, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly let down her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink. 19 When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough and ran again to the well to draw water, and she drew for all his camels. 21 The man gazed at her in silence to learn whether the Lord had prospered his journey or not.

22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing a half shekel,⁴ and two bracelets for her arms weighing ten gold shekels, 23 and said, “Please tell me whose daughter you are. Is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?” 24 She said to him, ^e“I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.” 25 She added, “We have plenty of both straw and fodder, and room to spend the night.” 26 ^fThe man bowed his head and worshiped the Lord 27 and said, “Blessed be the Lord, ^gthe God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken ^hhis steadfast love and his faithfulness toward my master. As for me, the Lord ⁱhas led me in the way to the house of my master’s kinsmen.” 28 Then the young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.

29 Rebekah had a brother whose name was ^jLaban. Laban ran out toward the man, to the spring. 30 As soon as he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and heard the words of Rebekah his sister, “Thus the man spoke to me,” he went to the man. And behold, he was standing by the camels at the spring. 31 He said, “Come in, ^kO blessed of the Lord. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.” 32 So the man came to the house and unharnessed the camels, and gave ^lstraw and fodder to the camels, and there was ^mwater to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33 Then food was set before him to eat. But he said, “I will not eat until I have said what I have to say.” He said, “Speak on.”

34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord ⁿhas greatly blessed my master, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, camels and donkeys. 36 And Sarah my master’s wife ^obore a son to my master when she was old, and ^pto him he has given all that he has. 37 ^qMy master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell, 38 but you shall go to my father’s house and to my clan and take a wife for my son.’ 39 I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’ 40 But he said to me, ‘The Lord, ^rbefore whom I have walked, will send his angel with you and ^sprosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son from my clan and from my father’s house. 41 Then you will be free from my oath, when you come to my clan. And if they will not give her to you, you will be free from my oath.’

42 “I came today to the spring and said, ^t‘O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, if now you ^sare prospering the way that I go, 43 behold, I am standing ^uby the spring of water. Let the virgin who comes out to draw water, to whom I shall say, “Please give me a little water from your jar to drink,” 44 ^vand who will say to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,” let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.’

45 “Before I had finished ^wspeaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her water jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46 She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels drink also. 47 Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ ^xSo I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her arms. 48 ^yThen I bowed my head and worshiped the Lord and blessed the Lord, ^tthe God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way⁵ to take ^zthe daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. 49 Now then, if you are going to ^ashow steadfast love and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, “The thing has come from the Lord; we cannot ^bspeak to you bad or good. 51 Behold, Rebekah is before you; take her and go, and let her be the wife of your master’s son, ^cas the Lord has spoken.”

52 When Abraham’s servant heard their words, ^yhe bowed himself to the earth before the Lord. 53 And the servant brought out jewelry of silver and of gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave to her brother and to her mother costly ornaments. 54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. When they arose in the morning, he said, ^d“Send me away to my master.” 55 Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman remain with us a while, at least ten days; after that she may go.” 56 But he said to them, “Do not delay me, since the Lord has prospered my way. Send me away that I may go to my master.” 57 They said, “Let us call the young woman and ask her.” 58 And they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will go.” 59 So they sent away Rebekah their sister and ^eher nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,

61 Then Rebekah and her young women arose and rode on the camels and followed the man. Thus the servant took Rebekah and went his way.

62 Now Isaac had returned from ^hBeer-lahai-roi and was dwelling in the Negeb. 63 And Isaac went out ⁱto meditate in the field toward evening. And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were camels coming. 64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from the camel 65 and said to the servant, “Who is that man, walking in the field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. 66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother and took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was ^jcomforted after his mother’s ^kdeath.

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Apostles

1 ^mAnd he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 ⁿand he sent them out to ^oproclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. 3 ^pAnd he said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, ^qno staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics.¹ 4 And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. 5 And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town ^rshake off the dust from your feet ^sas a testimony ^tagainst them.” 6 ^uAnd they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.

Herod Is Perplexed by Jesus

7 ^vNow ^wHerod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that ^xJohn had been raised from the dead, 8 ^xby some that Elijah had appeared, and ^xby others that one of the prophets of old had risen. 9 Herod said, “John I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And ^yhe sought to see him.

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

10 On their return ^zthe apostles told him all that they had done. ^aAnd he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. 11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he ^bwelcomed them and ^cspoke to them of the kingdom of God and ^ccured those who had need of healing. 12 Now ^dthe day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, ^e“Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place.” 13 But he said to them, ^f“You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than ^gfive loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.” 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, ^hhe looked up to heaven and ⁱsaid a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

18 ^jNow it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” 19 And they answered, ^k“John the Baptist. But others say, ^lElijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.” 20 Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, ^m“The Christ of God.”

Jesus Foretells His Death

21 ⁿAnd he strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, 22 ^osaying, ^p“The Son of Man must ^qsuffer many things and ^rbe rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on ^sthe third day be raised.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him ^tdeny himself and ^utake up his cross ^vdaily and follow me. 24 For ^uwhoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 ^wFor what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? 26 For ^xwhoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed ^ywhen he comes in ^zhis glory and the glory of the Father and of ^athe holy angels. 27 But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not ^btaste death ^cuntil they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

28 ^dNow about eight days after these sayings he took with him ^ePeter and John and James and ^fwent up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was ^galtered, and ^hhis clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,² which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and those who were with him ⁱwere heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake ^jthey saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three ^ktents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—^lnot knowing what he said. 34 As he was saying these things, ^ma cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 And ^ma voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, ⁿmy Chosen One;^{3 o}listen to him!” 36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. ^pAnd they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

37 ^qOn the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for ^rhe is my only child. 39 And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but ^sthey could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “O ^tfaithless and twisted generation, ^uhow long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was coming, the demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus ^vrebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy, and ^wgave him back to his father. 43 And all were astonished at ^xthe majesty of God.

Jesus Again Foretells His Death

^yBut while they were all marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus⁴ said ^zto his disciples, 44 “Let these words sink into your ears: ^zThe Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” 45 ^aBut they did not understand this saying, and ^bit was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.

Who Is the Greatest?

46 ^cAn argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. 47 But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side 48 and said to them, ^d“Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and ^dwhoever receives me receives him who sent me. For ^ehe who is least among you all is the one who is great.”

Anyone Not Against Us Is For Us

49 ^fJohn answered, “Master, we saw someone ^gcasting out demons in your name, and ^hwe tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” 50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, ⁱfor the one who is not against you is for you.”