Numbers 30, 31
1 Now Moses told the children of Israel everything, as the Lord commanded Moses.
2 Then Moses spoke to the rulers of the tribes of Israel, saying, “This is the word the Lord commanded: 3 If any man should vow a vow to the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his soul with an obligation, he may not defile his word; he shall do everything that proceeds out of his mouth. 4 But if a woman should vow a vow to the Lord and bind herself with an obligation while in her father’s house in her youth, 5 and her father should hear her vows and obligations with which she bound her soul, and her father should pass over it in silence, then all her vows and every obligation with which she bound her soul shall stand, and remain in force for her. 6 But if on the day her father should hear and disapprove all her vows and obligations with which she bound her soul, then her vows shall not stand; therefore the Lord will consider her blameless, because her father disapproved.
7 “But if she should actually be married, and she binds her soul with vows made by an explicit statement of her own lips, 8 and her husband should hear and pass over it in silence the day he hears, then all her vows and obligations with which she bound her soul shall stand. 9 But if her husband should disapprove on the day he hears, then all her vows and obligations with which she bound her soul shall not remain in force, because her husband disapproved of her; therefore the Lord will consider her blameless. 10 Also any vow of a widow or a divorced woman, whatever she should vow concerning her soul, shall remain in force for her. 11 But if her vow should be made in her husband’s house, or if her obligation concerning her soul should be made with an oath, 12 and her husband should hear and pass over it in silence and not disapprove her, then all her vows shall stand, and every obligation with which she bound her soul shall stand. 13 But if her husband should cancel them on the day he hears, then whatever proceeded from her lips concerning her vows or obligations binding her soul, they shall not remain in force; for her husband canceled them; therefore the Lord will consider her blameless. 14 Every vow and binding oath to afflict her soul, her husband shall establish, or her husband shall cancel. 15 But if her husband should remain silent for more than a single day, then he shall establish all her vows for her; and he shall establish for her the obligations binding her, because he remained silent regarding her on the day he heard them. 16 But if he should cancel them the day after he heard them, then he shall bear her guilt.” 17 These are the ordinances the Lord commanded Moses between a husband and his wife, and between a father and his daughter in her youth in her father’s house.
The War against the Midianites
1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Exact vengeance from the Midianites for the children of Israel. Afterward you shall be added to your people.” 3 So Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm some of your men to stand in battle array before the Lord against Midian, to repay vengeance from the Lord on Midian. 4 From all the tribes of Israel you shall send a thousand from each tribe to stand in battle array.”
5 So from the thousands of Israel they counted a thousand from each tribe, twelve thousand armed for the battle line. 6 Then Moses sent them, a thousand from each tribe with their army, and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest with the holy vessels and the trumpets for signaling in his hands. 7 So they arrayed themselves in battle against Midian, as the Lord commanded Moses, and they killed every male. 8 They killed the kings of Midian, together with their slain people: Evi, Zur, Rekem, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword, along with their slain people. 9 They also took as plunder the women of Midian, with their households, their cattle, all their possessions; and they plundered their army. 10 They also set on fire all the cities where they dwelt and all their unwalled villages. 11 They took as well all their booty and spoils from man to cattle. 12 Then they brought the captives, the spoils, and the booty to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, to the camp in the Araboth of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho.
The Winning Army Returns
13 Then Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the rulers of the congregation went to meet them outside the camp. 14 But Moses was angry with the overseers of the army, with the captains over thousands and rulers over hundreds, who were coming from the battle line of the war. 15 So Moses said to them, “Why did you take every female alive? 16 For on account of Balaam’s counsel, they were with the sons of Israel and caused them to depart from and despise the Lord’s word in the incident at Peor, when there was a plague among the congregation of the Lord. 17 Now therefore, kill every male among all the little ones, and every woman who slept with a man. 18 But keep alive for yourselves all the young girls who have not slept with a man. 19 But you remain outside the camp seven days, and everyone who killed or touched someone killed, both you and your captives, shall be purified on the third day and the seventh day. 20 Purify every garment, everything made of leather, everything woven of goats’ hair, and everything made of wood.”
21 Then Eleazar the priest said to the men in the army who came from the battle lines of the war, “This is the ordinance of the law, which the Lord commanded Moses: 22 Besides the gold, the silver, the brass, the iron, the lead, and the tin, 23 everything that can pass through fire shall be purified; otherwise, it shall be purified with the water of purification. Therefore whatever cannot pass through the fire shall pass through the water. 24 You shall also wash your clothes on the seventh day and be clean, and afterward you may come into the camp.”
Division of the Spoils
25 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Take the sum of the spoils of the captives, from man to cattle, you and Eleazar the priest and the rulers of the families in the congregation; 27 and divide the spoils between the warriors who went out into the battle lines and all the congregation. 28 And levy a tribute for the Lord on the men of war who went out to the battle lines, one soul of every five hundred men, and of the cattle, the oxen, the sheep, and the goats. 29 Then you shall take their tribute and give it to Eleazar the priest as a firstfruits to the Lord. 30 But from the children of Israel’s half you shall take one of every fifty of the men, the oxen, the sheep, the donkeys, and from all the cattle, and give them to the Levites who keep charge in the tabernacle of the Lord.” 31 So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.
32 The booty remaining from the plunder which the men of war took was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep, 33 seventy-two thousand oxen, 34 sixty-one thousand donkeys, 35 and thirty-two thousand human souls, that is, the women who had not slept with a man. 36 And the half, the portion for those who had gone out to war, was in number three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep; 37 and the Lord’s tribute of the sheep was six hundred seventy-five. 38 The oxen were thirty-six thousand, of which the Lord’s tribute was seventy-two. 39 The donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred, of which the Lord’s tribute was sixty-one. 40 The human souls were sixteen thousand, of which the Lord’s tribute was thirty-two souls. 41 So Moses gave the Lord’s tribute, God’s choice portion, to Eleazar the priest, as the Lord commanded Moses. 42 Then from the children of Israel’s half, which Moses divided from the men of war— 43 that is, the half belonging to the congregation, was three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, 44 thirty-six thousand oxen, 45 thirty thousand five hundred donkeys, 46 and sixteen thousand human souls— 47 and from the children of Israel’s half Moses took one of every fifty, from men to cattle, and gave them to the Levites who kept charge of the tabernacle of the Lord, in the manner the Lord commanded Moses.
48 Then all those established in positions as commanders in the army, the captains over thousands and rulers over hundreds, came near to Moses; 49 and they said to Moses, “Your servants took the sum of the men of war with us, and not a man of us is missing. 50 Therefore we have brought a gift to the Lord, what every man found of articles of gold: bracelets, rings, armlets, and hair-clasps, to make atonement for us before the Lord.” 51 So Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them, every crafted article. 52 So every choice portion of gold which they dedicated to the Lord, from the captains over thousands and rulers over hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred fifty shekels. 53 (Now each of the men of war had taken plunder for himself.) 54 So Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from the captains over thousands and rulers over hundreds and brought these into the tabernacle of testimony, as a memorial for the children of Israel before the Lord.
Psalm 50:1–10
1 For the End; a psalm by David;
2 when Nathan the prophet came to him, at the time he went in to Bathsheba.
3 Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy;
And according to the abundance of Your compassion, blot out my transgression.
4 Wash me thoroughly from my lawlessness
And cleanse me from my sin.
5 For I know my lawlessness,
And my sin is always before me.
6 Against You only have I sinned
And done evil in Your sight;
That You may be justified in Your words,
And overcome when You are judged.
7 For behold, I was conceived in transgressions,
And in sins my mother bore me.
8 Behold, You love truth;
You showed me the unknown and secret things of Your wisdom.
9 You shall sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be cleansed;
You shall wash me, and I will be made whiter than snow.
10 You shall make me hear joy and gladness;
My bones that were humbled shall greatly rejoice.
Proverbs 10:23–27
23 The blessing of the Lord is upon the head of a righteous man;
It enriches him, and grief of heart will not be added to it.
24 A man without discernment does evil things with laughter,
But wisdom gives birth to discernment in a man.
25 The ungodly man is carried about in destruction,
But the desire of the righteous man is acceptable.
26 The ungodly man is destroyed by the passing storm,
But the righteous man turns aside and shall be saved forever.
27 As an unripe grape is harmful to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
So is a lawless woman to the men who use her.
Mark 5:21–43
21 Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea.
22 And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet
23 and begged Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.”
24 So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.
25 Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years,
26 and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.
27 When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment.
28 For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”
29 Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.
30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?”
31 But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’ ”
32 And He looked around to see her who had done this thing.
33 But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.
34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”
35 While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”
36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not be afraid; only believe.”
37 And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.
38 Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly.
39 When He came in, He said to them, “Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping.”
40 And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying.
41 Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, “Talitha, cumi,” which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.”
42 Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age. And they were overcome with great amazement.43 But He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said that something should be given her to eat.