Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
27 And as Jesus passed on from there, htwo blind men followed him, crying aloud, “Have mercy on us, iSon of David.” 28 When he entered the house, the blind men came to him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” 29 Then he touched their eyes, saying, j“According to your faith let it be done to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, k“See that no one knows about it.” 31 lBut they went away and spread his fame through all that district.
Jesus Heals a Man Unable to Speak
32 As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mmute was brought to him. 33 And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds nmarveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” 34 But the Pharisees said, o“He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”
The Harvest Is Plentiful, the Laborers Few
35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and pproclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had qcompassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like rsheep swithout a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, t“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Paul and Barnabas at Iconium
1 Now at Iconium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great pnumber of both qJews and Greeks believed. 2 But the unbelieving Jews rstirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.1 3 So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who sbore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. 4 But the people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews and some with the apostles. 5 When an attempt was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them, 6 they learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding country, 7 and there they continued to tpreach the gospel.
Paul and Barnabas at Lystra
8 Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was ucrippled from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul speaking. And Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith to be made well,2 10 said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.” And he vsprang up and began walking. 11 And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, w“The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” 12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. 13 And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and wanted to offer xsacrifice with the crowds. 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, 15 “Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should yturn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. 16 In zpast generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways. 17 Yet he did not leave himself awithout witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.” 18 Even with these words they scarcely restrained the people from offering sacrifice to them.
Paul Stoned at Lystra
19 But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, bthey stoned Paul and cdragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. 20 But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and entered the city, and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe. 21 When they had preached the gospel to that city and had dmade many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, 22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many etribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. 23 And when they had fappointed elders for them in every church, gwith hprayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.
Paul and Barnabas Return to Antioch in Syria
24 Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. 25 And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, 26 and from there they sailed to Antioch, iwhere they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. 27 And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had jopened a door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they remained no little time with the disciples.
12 Many bulls encompass me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;
13 they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring olion.
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast;
15 my strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.
16 For pdogs encompass me;
a company of evildoers encircles me;
they have qpierced my hands and feet1—
17 I can count all my bones—
they stare and gloat over me;
18 rthey divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.
19 But you, O Lord, do not be far off!
O you my help, scome quickly to my aid!
20 Deliver my soul from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dog!
21 Save me from the mouth of the tlion!
You have rescued2 me from the horns of the wild oxen!
22 uI will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, vglorify him,
and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For he has not despised or abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted,
and he has not hidden his face from him,
but has heard, when he cried to him.
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will wperform before those who fear him.
26 The afflicted3 shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord!
May your hearts live forever!
27 All the xends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;
before him shall bow all who go down yto the dust,
even the one who could not keep himself alive.
30 Posterity shall serve him;
it shall be ztold of the Lord to the coming generation;
31 they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people ayet unborn,
that he has done it.
Jacob Blesses His Sons
1 xThen Jacob called his sons and said, y“Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come.
2 “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob,
listen to Israel your father.
3 “Reuben, you are zmy firstborn,
my might, and athe firstfruits of my strength,
preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
4 Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence,
because byou went up to your father’s bed;
then you defiled it—he went up to my couch!
5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers;
weapons of violence are their swords.
6 Let my soul come not into their council;
O my glory, be not joined to their company.
cFor in their anger they killed men,
and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen.
7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce,
and their wrath, for it is cruel!
dI will divide them in Jacob
and escatter them in Israel.
8 “Judah, your brothers shall fpraise you;
your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He stooped down; he crouched as a lion
and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?
10 iThe scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him;1
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
11 Binding his foal to the vine
and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
he has washed his garments in wine
and his vesture in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes are darker than wine,
and his teeth whiter than milk.
13 j“Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea;
he shall become a haven for ships,
and his border shall be at Sidon.
14 “Issachar is a strong donkey,
crouching between the sheepfolds.2
15 He saw that a resting place was good,
and that the land was pleasant,
so he bowed his shoulder to bear,
and became a servant at forced labor.
16 “Dan shall kjudge his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.
17 lDan shall be a serpent in the way,
a viper by the path,
that bites the horse’s heels
so that his rider falls backward.
18 I wait for your salvation, O Lord.
19 “Raiders shall raid Gad,3
but he shall mraid at their heels.
20 “Asher’s food shall be nrich,
and he shall yield royal delicacies.
21 “Naphtali is a doe let loose
that bears beautiful fawns.4
22 “Joseph is a ofruitful bough,
a fruitful bough by a spring;
his branches run over the wall.5
23 pThe archers bitterly attacked him,
shot at him, and harassed him severely,
24 yet his bow remained unmoved;
his arms6 were made agile
by the hands of qthe Mighty One of Jacob
(from there is the rShepherd,7 the Stone of Israel),
25 by the God of your father who will help you,
by the Almighty8 swho will bless you
with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that crouches beneath,
blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
26 The blessings of your father
are mighty beyond the blessings of my parents,
up to the bounties of the everlasting hills.9
May they be on the head of Joseph,
and on the brow of him who was set apart from his brothers.
27 “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf,
in the morning tdevouring the prey
and at evening dividing the spoil.”
Jacob’s Death and Burial
28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing suitable to him. 29 Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people; ubury me with my fathers vin the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying place. 31 wThere they buried Abraham and xSarah his wife. yThere they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah— 32 the field and the cave that is in it were bought from the Hittites.” 33 When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.
