Numbers 32, 33
1 Now the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad had a very great multitude of cattle, and they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead; and they saw the place was a place for cattle. 2 So the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad came and spoke to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the rulers of the congregation, saying, 3 “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Shebam, Nebo, and Beon, 4 the country the Lord delivered over to the children of Israel, is a land appropriate for feeding cattle; and your servants have cattle.” 5 Therefore they said, “If we have found grace in your sight, let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not make us cross over the Jordan.” 6 Then Moses said to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben, “Your brothers go to war, and shall you sit here? 7 Now why do you pervert the minds of the children of Israel from crossing over into the land the Lord gives to them? 8 Did not your fathers act in this way when I sent them away from Kadesh Barnea to spy out the land? 9 For they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and spied out the land; and they turned aside the heart of the children of Israel so they would not enter the land the Lord gave them. 10 So the Lord was very angry that day, and swore an oath, saying, 11 ‘Surely these men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and above and who know good and evil, shall not see the land I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; for they did not follow after Me, 12 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who separated himself, and Joshua the son of Nun; for they followed after the Lord.’ 13 So the Lord was very angry with Israel; and He made them wander in the desert forty years, until all the generation that did evil before the Lord was utterly destroyed. 14 Behold, You rose up in your fathers’ place, a body of sinful men, to increase still more the fierce anger of the Lord against Israel. 15 For you will turn away from Him by again leaving Him in the desert, and you will act lawlessly against this entire congregation.”
16 They came to Moses and said, “We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our children; 17 but we will arm ourselves as the advance guard before the sons of Israel until we bring them to their own place; and our children will dwell in the fortified cities because of the land’s inhabitants. 18 Let us not return to our homes until each of the sons of Israel should be distributed to his inheritance. 19 Therefore, let us not inherit with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because we are receiving in full our portions on this eastern side of the Jordan.”
20 Then Moses said to them, “If you do according to this word, if you arm yourselves before the Lord for the war, 21 and all your armed men cross over the Jordan before the Lord until His enemy is destroyed before His face; 22 and the land is subdued before the Lord, then afterward you shall return, and be blameless before the Lord and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the Lord. 23 But if you should not do so, you shall be guilty before the Lord; and you will know your sin when evils overtake you. 24 So you shall build cities for yourselves and for your children, and walled enclosures for your cattle, and do what proceeded out of your mouth.” 25 Then the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben spoke to Moses, saying, “Your servants will do as our Lord commands. 26 Our children, our wives, and all our cattle will be there in the cities of Gilead; 27 but your servants will cross over, all armed and arrayed for battle before the Lord into the war, in the manner our lord says.”
28 So Moses appointed for them Eleazar the priest, Joshua the son of Nun, and rulers of families in the tribes of Israel. 29 Again Moses said to them, “If the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben cross over the Jordan with you, every man armed for war before the Lord, and you subdue the land before you, then you shall give them the land of Gilead as a possession. 30 But if they do not cross over with you armed for war, you shall carry across their children, their wives, and their cattle before you into the land of Canaan.” 31 Then the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben answered, saying, “Whatever our Lord says to your servants, so we will do. 32 We will cross over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan, but you shall give us our possession on the other side of the Jordan.” 33 So Moses gave to the sons of Gad, the sons of Reuben, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land and its cities with its borders, the cities of the surrounding country.
34 Then the sons of Gad built Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, 35 Shophan, and Jazer, which they raised up, 36 along with Beth Nimrah and Beth Haran, fortified cities and walled enclosures for sheep. 37 The sons of Reuben built Heshbon, Elealeh, Kirjathaim, 38 and Baal Meon, encircled with walls, and Shibmah; and they named the cities they built after their names. 39 Then the son of Machir the son of Manasseh went to Gilead and took it, and destroyed the Amorites dwelling in it. 40 So Moses gave Gilead to Machir the son of Manasseh, and he dwelt there. 41 Also Jair the son of Manasseh went and took their farming villages, and named them Havoth Jair. 42 Then Nobah went and took Kenath and its villages, and he named them Nobah, after his own name.
Israel’s Journey from Egypt to Moab
1 Now these are the stages in the journeys of the children of Israel who went out from the land of Egypt by their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron. 2 So Moses wrote their departures and the stages in their journeys by the word of the Lord.
3 They departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the day after Pascha, the children of Israel went out with a high hand before all the Egyptians. 4 But the Egyptians were burying from among themselves all who died, whom the Lord struck down, every firstborn in the land of Egypt; and the Lord executed vengeance on their gods. 5 Then the children of Israel departed from Rameses and camped in Succoth. 6 They departed from Succoth and camped in Etham, which is part of the desert. 7 They departed from Etham and camped at the mouth of Hahiroth, which is opposite Baal Zephon; and they camped opposite Migdol. 8 They departed opposite Hahiroth and passed through the midst of the sea into the desert; and they went three days’ journey through the desert and camped at Marah. 9 They departed from Marah and came to Elim. At Elim there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees; so they camped there by the water. 10 They departed from Elim and camped by the Red Sea. 11 They departed from the Red Sea and camped in the Desert of Sin. 12 They departed from the Desert of Sin and camped at Dophkah. 13 They departed from Dophkah and camped at Alush. 14 They departed from Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.
15 They departed from Rephidim and camped in the Sinai Desert. 16 They moved from the Sinai Desert and camped at Graves of Lust. 17 They departed from Graves of Lust and camped at Hazeroth. 18 They departed from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah. 19 They departed from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon Perez. 20 They departed from Rimmon Perez and camped at Libnah. 21 They departed from Libnah and camped at Rissah. 22 They departed from Rissah and camped at Kehelathah. 23 They departed from Kehelathah and camped at Shepher. 24 They departed from Shepher and camped at Haradah. 25 They departed from Haradah and camped at Makheloth. 26 They departed from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. 27 They departed from Tahath and camped at Terah. 28 They departed from Terah and camped at Mithkah. 29 They departed from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah. 30 They departed from Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth. 31 They departed from Moseroth and camped at Bene Jaakan. 32 They departed from Bene Jaakan and camped at Hor Hagidgad. 33 They departed from Hor Hagidgad and camped at Jotbathah. 34 They departed from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. 35 They departed from Abronah and camped at Ezion Geber. 36 They departed from Ezion Geber and camped in the Desert of Sin; and they departed from the Desert of Sin and camped in the Desert of Paran (this is Kadesh). 37 They departed from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, near the land of Edom.
38 Then Aaron the priest went up at the command of the Lord and died there, in the fortieth year of the exodus of the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first day of the month. 39 Aaron was one hundred and twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor. 40 Now this was the time when the Canaanite king of Arad (and this man dwelt in the land of Canaan) heard the children of Israel were coming.
41 Then they departed from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah. 42 They departed from Zalmonah and camped at Punon. 43 They departed from Punon and camped at Oboth. 44 They departed from Oboth and camped at Ije Abarim, at the borders of Moab. 45 They departed from Ije Abarim and camped at Dibon Gad. 46 They departed from Dibon Gad and camped at Almon Diblathaim. 47 They departed from Almon Diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo. 48 They departed from the mountains of Abarim and camped west of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho. 49 They camped by the Jordan between Beth Jesimoth as far as the Abel Acacia Grove, west of Moab.
Instructions on Crossing the Jordan, Entering Canaan
50 Now the Lord spoke to Moses west of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho, saying, 51 “Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘You are crossing over the Jordan into the land of Canaan. 52 Then you shall destroy all the inhabitants of the land before your face; and you shall remove their high places, and as for all their molten idols, you shall destroy these; and you shall remove all their pillars. 53 You shall also destroy all the inhabitants of the land and dwell in it, for I give you their land as an inheritance. 54 Therefore you shall inherit their land by lot among your tribes; to the larger you shall give a larger inheritance, and to the smaller you shall give a smaller inheritance; there everyone’s inheritance shall be whatever falls to him by lot. You shall inherit according to the tribes of your fathers. 55 But if you do not destroy the inhabitants of the land from before your face, it shall be that those whom you let remain shall be thorns in your eyes and arrows in your sides; and they shall be at enmity with you in the land where you dwell. 56 Moreover, it shall be that I will do to you as I thought to do to them.’ ”
Psalm 50:11–21
11 Turn Your face from my sins,
And blot out all my transgressions.
12 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a right spirit within me.
13 Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
14 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me with Your guiding Spirit.
15 I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And the ungodly shall turn back to You.
16 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation,
And my tongue shall greatly rejoice in Your righteousness.
17 O Lord, You shall open my lips,
And my mouth will declare Your praise.
18 For if You desired sacrifice, I would give it;
You will not be pleased with whole burnt offerings.
19 A sacrifice to God is a broken spirit,
A broken and humbled heart God will not despise.
20 Do good, O Lord, in Your good pleasure to Zion,
And let the walls of Jerusalem be built;
21 Then You will be pleased with a sacrifice of righteousness,
With offerings and whole burnt offerings;
Then shall they offer young bulls on Your altar.
Proverbs 10:28–33
28 The fear of the Lord increases days,
But the years of the ungodly will be shortened.
29 Gladness continues for the righteous,
But the hope of the ungodly perishes.
30 The fear of the Lord is the stronghold of a holy man,
But destruction is for those who work evil.
31 A righteous man will never fail,
But the ungodly shall not inhabit the earth.
32 The mouth of a righteous man distills wisdom,
But the tongue of an unrighteous man utterly destroys.
33 The lips of righteous men distill grace,
But the mouth of the ungodly is perverse.
Mark 6:1–29
1 Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him.
2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, “Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands!
3 “Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they were offended at Him.
4 But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.”
5 Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.
6 And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.
Sending Out the Twelve
7 And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.
8 He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts—
9 but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.
10 Also He said to them, “In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place.
11 “And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”
12 So they went out and preached that people should repent.
13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.
John the Baptist Beheaded
14 Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, “John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.”
15 Others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets.”
16 But when Herod heard, he said, “This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!”
17 For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife; for he had married her.
18 Because John had said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
19 Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not;
20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.
21 Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.
22 And when Herodias’ daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”
23 He also swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”
24 So she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist!”
25 Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
26 And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.
27 Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison,
28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.29 When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.