Baal Worship at Peor
1 lWhile Israel lived in mShittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 2 These ninvited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 3 So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 4 And the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and ohang1 them in the sun before the Lord, pthat the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” 5 And Moses said to the judges of Israel, q“Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.”
6 And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. 7 When rPhinehas the son of sEleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, the rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand 8 and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the uplague on the people of Israel was stopped. 9 Nevertheless, vthose who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.
The Zeal of Phinehas
10 And the Lord said to Moses, 11 “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. 12 Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my wcovenant of xpeace, 13 and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a yperpetual priesthood, because he was zjealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’”
14 The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father’s house belonging to the Simeonites. 15 And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of aZur, who was the tribal head of a father’s house in Midian.
16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, 18 for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.”
The Proverbs of Solomon
1 The gproverbs of Solomon.
hA wise son makes a glad ifather,
but ja foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.
2 kTreasures gained lby wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from death.
3 mThe Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,
but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
4 nA slack hand causes poverty,
obut the hand of the diligent makes rich.
5 He who gathers pin summer is a prudent son,
but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.
6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
qbut the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.1
7 rThe memory of the righteous is a blessing,
but the name of the wicked will rot.
8 The wise of heart will receive commandments,
but sa babbling fool will come to ruin.
9 Whoever twalks in integrity uwalks securely,
but he who makes his ways vcrooked will be found out.
10 Whoever wwinks the eye causes trouble,
and a babbling fool will come to ruin.
11 The mouth of the righteous xis a fountain of life,
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
12 Hatred stirs up ystrife,
but love zcovers all offenses.
13 On the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found,
but aa rod is for the back of him who lacks sense.
14 The wise lay up knowledge,
bbut the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.
15 cA rich man’s wealth is his strong city;
the poverty of the poor is their ruin.
16 dThe wage of the righteous leads to elife,
the gain of the wicked to sin.
17 Whoever heeds finstruction is on the path to life,
but he who rejects reproof leads others astray.
18 The one who gconceals hatred has hlying lips,
and whoever utters slander is a fool.
19 iWhen words are many, transgression is not lacking,
but jwhoever restrains his lips is prudent.
20 The tongue of the righteous is kchoice silver;
the heart of the wicked is of little worth.
21 The lips of the righteous feed many,
but fools die for lack of sense.
22 The blessing of the Lord makes rich,
and he adds no sorrow with it.2
23 Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool,
but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.
24 What the wicked dreads will come upon him,
but lthe desire of the righteous will be granted.
25 mWhen the tempest passes, the wicked is no more,
but the righteous is established forever.
26 Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.
27 The fear of the Lord nprolongs life,
but the years of the wicked will be short.
28 oThe hope of the righteous brings joy,
but pthe expectation of the wicked will perish.
29 The way of the Lord is a stronghold to the blameless,
qbut destruction to evildoers.
30 rThe righteous will never be removed,
but the wicked will not dwell in the land.
31 sThe mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,
but the tperverse tongue will be cut off.
32 The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,
but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.
The Throne in Heaven
1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, fwhich I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, g“Come up here, and I will show you hwhat must take place after this.” 2 At once I was iin the Spirit, jand behold, a kthrone stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. 3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a lrainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were mtwenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. 5 From the throne came nflashes of lightning, and rumblings1 and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are othe seven spirits of God, 6 and before the throne there was as it were a psea of glass, like qcrystal.
And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are rfour living creatures, sfull of eyes in front and behind: 7 tthe first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. 8 And the four living creatures, ueach of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and vday and night they never cease to say,
w“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
xwho was and is and is to come!”
9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders yfall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
11 z“Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they existed and were created.”
The Scroll and the Lamb
1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne aa scroll written within and on the back, bsealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, 4 and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5 And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, cthe Lion dof the tribe of Judah, the eRoot of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”
6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a fLamb standing, as though it had been gslain, with seven horns and with hseven eyes, which are ithe seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. 8 And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the jtwenty-four elders kfell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, lwhich are the prayers of the saints. 9 And they sang a mnew song, saying,
“Worthy are you to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you nransomed people for God
from every otribe and language and people and nation,
10 and you have made them a kingdom and ppriests to our God,
and they shall qreign on the earth.”
11 Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of rmany angels, snumbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice,
t“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”
14 And the four living creatures said, u“Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
The Seven Seals
1 Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 And I looked, and behold, a vwhite horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out wconquering, and to conquer.
3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 And out came another horse, xbright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.
5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a yblack horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, z“A quart2 of wheat for a denarius,3 and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and ado not harm the oil and wine!”
7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 And I looked, and behold, a bpale horse! And its rider’s name was Death, cand Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill dwith sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth.
9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the ealtar fthe souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, gholy and true, how long before you will judge and havenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then they were each given a iwhite robe and told to jrest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers4 should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
12 When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great kearthquake, and lthe sun became mblack as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, 13 and nthe stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. 14 oThe sky vanished like a scroll that is being prolled up, and qevery mountain and island was removed from its place. 15 Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave5 and free, rhid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, 16 calling to the mountains and rocks, s“Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 for the tgreat day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”
