Do Not Quarrel Along The Way – Ministry Lehlevo

Genesis 45:23-25 NRSV-CI
[23] To his father he sent the following: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provision for his father on the journey. [24] Then he sent his brothers on their way, and as they were leaving he said to them, “Do not quarrel along the way.” [25] So they went up out of Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan.

1 Kings 18:21-40 NRSV-CI
[21] Elijah then came near to all the people, and said, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” The people did not answer him a word. [22] Then Elijah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord; but Baal’s prophets number four hundred fifty. [23] Let two bulls be given to us; let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it; I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. [24] Then you call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the Lord; the god who answers by fire is indeed God.” All the people answered, “Well spoken!” [25] Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many; then call on the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” [26] So they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, crying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no answer. They limped about the altar that they had made. [27] At noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud! Surely he is a god; either he is meditating, or he has wandered away, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” [28] Then they cried aloud and, as was their custom, they cut themselves with swords and lances until the blood gushed out over them. [29] As midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice, no answer, and no response. [30] Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come closer to me”; and all the people came closer to him. First he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down; [31] Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name”; [32] with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. Then he made a trench around the altar, large enough to contain two measures of seed. [33] Next he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood. He said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” [34] Then he said, “Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. Again he said, “Do it a third time”; and they did it a third time, [35] so that the water ran all around the altar, and filled the trench also with water. [36] At the time of the offering of the oblation, the prophet Elijah came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your bidding. [37] Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.” [38] Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering, the wood, the stones, and the dust, and even licked up the water that was in the trench. [39] When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord indeed is God; the Lord indeed is God.” [40] Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; do not let one of them escape.” Then they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Wadi Kishon, and killed them there.

1 Kings 19:1-18 NRSV-CI
[1] Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. [2] Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life like the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” [3] Then he was afraid; he got up and fled for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah; he left his servant there. [4] But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” [5] Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, “Get up and eat.” [6] He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. He ate and drank, and lay down again. [7] The angel of the Lord came a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.” [8] He got up, and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God. [9] At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there. Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” [10] He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” [11] He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; [12] and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. [13] When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” [14] He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” [15] Then the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. [16] Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. [17] Whoever escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall kill; and whoever escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall kill. [18] Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

Job 29:1-25 NRSV-CI
[1] Job again took up his discourse and said: [2] “Oh, that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me; [3] when his lamp shone over my head, and by his light I walked through darkness; [4] when I was in my prime, when the friendship of God was upon my tent; [5] when the Almighty was still with me, when my children were around me; [6] when my steps were washed with milk, and the rock poured out for me streams of oil! [7] When I went out to the gate of the city, when I took my seat in the square, [8] the young men saw me and withdrew, and the aged rose up and stood; [9] the nobles refrained from talking, and laid their hands on their mouths; [10] the voices of princes were hushed, and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths. [11] When the ear heard, it commended me, and when the eye saw, it approved; [12] because I delivered the poor who cried, and the orphan who had no helper. [13] The blessing of the wretched came upon me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy. [14] I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; my justice was like a robe and a turban. [15] I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. [16] I was a father to the needy, and I championed the cause of the stranger. [17] I broke the fangs of the unrighteous, and made them drop their prey from their teeth. [18] Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days like the phoenix; [19] my roots spread out to the waters, with the dew all night on my branches; [20] my glory was fresh with me, and my bow ever new in my hand.’ [21] “They listened to me, and waited, and kept silence for my counsel. [22] After I spoke they did not speak again, and my word dropped upon them like dew. [23] They waited for me as for the rain; they opened their mouths as for the spring rain. [24] I smiled on them when they had no confidence; and the light of my countenance they did not extinguish. [25] I chose their way, and sat as chief, and I lived like a king among his troops, like one who comforts mourners.

Job 30:1-30 NRSV-CI
[1] “But now they make sport of me, those who are younger than I, whose fathers I would have disdained to set with the dogs of my flock. [2] What could I gain from the strength of their hands? All their vigor is gone. [3] Through want and hard hunger they gnaw the dry and desolate ground, [4] they pick mallow and the leaves of bushes, and to warm themselves the roots of broom. [5] They are driven out from society; people shout after them as after a thief. [6] In the gullies of wadis they must live, in holes in the ground, and in the rocks. [7] Among the bushes they bray; under the nettles they huddle together. [8] A senseless, disreputable brood, they have been whipped out of the land. [9] “And now they mock me in song; I am a byword to them. [10] They abhor me, they keep aloof from me; they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me. [11] Because God has loosed my bowstring and humbled me, they have cast off restraint in my presence. [12] On my right hand the rabble rise up; they send me sprawling, and build roads for my ruin. [13] They break up my path, they promote my calamity; no one restrains them. [14] As through a wide breach they come; amid the crash they roll on. [15] Terrors are turned upon me; my honor is pursued as by the wind, and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud. [16] “And now my soul is poured out within me; days of affliction have taken hold of me. [17] The night racks my bones, and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest. [18] With violence he seizes my garment; he grasps me by the collar of my tunic. [19] He has cast me into the mire, and I have become like dust and ashes. [20] I cry to you and you do not answer me; I stand, and you merely look at me. [21] You have turned cruel to me; with the might of your hand you persecute me. [22] You lift me up on the wind, you make me ride on it, and you toss me about in the roar of the storm. [23] I know that you will bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living. [24] “Surely one does not turn against the needy, when in disaster they cry for help. [25] Did I not weep for those whose day was hard? Was not my soul grieved for the poor? [26] But when I looked for good, evil came; and when I waited for light, darkness came. [27] My inward parts are in turmoil, and are never still; days of affliction come to meet me. [28] I go about in sunless gloom; I stand up in the assembly and cry for help. [29] I am a brother of jackals, and a companion of ostriches. [30] My skin turns black and falls from me, and my bones burn with heat.

Psalms 69:1-36 NRSV-CI
[1] Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. [2] I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. [3] I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God. [4] More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; many are those who would destroy me, my enemies who accuse me falsely. What I did not steal must I now restore? [5] O God, you know my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you. [6] Do not let those who hope in you be put to shame because of me, O Lord God of hosts; do not let those who seek you be dishonored because of me, O God of Israel. [7] It is for your sake that I have borne reproach, that shame has covered my face. [8] I have become a stranger to my kindred, an alien to my mother’s children. [9] It is zeal for your house that has consumed me; the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me. [10] When I humbled my soul with fasting, they insulted me for doing so. [11] When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them. [12] I am the subject of gossip for those who sit in the gate, and the drunkards make songs about me. [13] But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love, answer me. With your faithful help [14] rescue me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. [15] Do not let the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the Pit close its mouth over me. [16] Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good; according to your abundant mercy, turn to me. [17] Do not hide your face from your servant, for I am in distress—make haste to answer me. [18] Draw near to me, redeem me, set me free because of my enemies. [19] You know the insults I receive, and my shame and dishonor; my foes are all known to you. [20] Insults have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. [21] They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. [22] Let their table be a trap for them, a snare for their allies. [23] Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and make their loins tremble continually. [24] Pour out your indignation upon them, and let your burning anger overtake them. [25] May their camp be a desolation; let no one live in their tents. [26] For they persecute those whom you have struck down, and those whom you have wounded, they attack still more. [27] Add guilt to their guilt; may they have no acquittal from you. [28] Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous. [29] But I am lowly and in pain; let your salvation, O God, protect me. [30] I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving. [31] This will please the Lord more than an ox or a bull with horns and hoofs. [32] Let the oppressed see it and be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive. [33] For the Lord hears the needy, and does not despise his own that are in bonds. [34] Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves in them. [35] For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah; and his servants shall live there and possess it; [36] the children of his servants shall inherit it, and those who love his name shall live in it.

Job 31:1-40 NRSV-CI
[1] “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I look upon a virgin? [2] What would be my portion from God above, and my heritage from the Almighty on high? [3] Does not calamity befall the unrighteous, and disaster the workers of iniquity? [4] Does he not see my ways, and number all my steps? [5] “If I have walked with falsehood, and my foot has hurried to deceit— [6] let me be weighed in a just balance, and let God know my integrity!— [7] if my step has turned aside from the way, and my heart has followed my eyes, and if any spot has clung to my hands; [8] then let me sow, and another eat; and let what grows for me be rooted out. [9] “If my heart has been enticed by a woman, and I have lain in wait at my neighbor’s door; [10] then let my wife grind for another, and let other men kneel over her. [11] For that would be a heinous crime; that would be a criminal offense; [12] for that would be a fire consuming down to Abaddon, and it would burn to the root all my harvest. [13] “If I have rejected the cause of my male or female slaves, when they brought a complaint against me; [14] what then shall I do when God rises up? When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him? [15] Did not he who made me in the womb make them? And did not one fashion us in the womb? [16] “If I have withheld anything that the poor desired, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail, [17] or have eaten my morsel alone, and the orphan has not eaten from it— [18] for from my youth I reared the orphan like a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow — [19] if I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, or a poor person without covering, [20] whose loins have not blessed me, and who was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep; [21] if I have raised my hand against the orphan, because I saw I had supporters at the gate; [22] then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder, and let my arm be broken from its socket. [23] For I was in terror of calamity from God, and I could not have faced his majesty. [24] “If I have made gold my trust, or called fine gold my confidence; [25] if I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, or because my hand had gotten much; [26] if I have looked at the sun when it shone, or the moon moving in splendor, [27] and my heart has been secretly enticed, and my mouth has kissed my hand; [28] this also would be an iniquity to be punished by the judges, for I should have been false to God above. [29] “If I have rejoiced at the ruin of those who hated me, or exulted when evil overtook them— [30] I have not let my mouth sin by asking for their lives with a curse— [31] if those of my tent ever said, ‘O that we might be sated with his flesh!’ — [32] the stranger has not lodged in the street; I have opened my doors to the traveler— [33] if I have concealed my transgressions as others do, by hiding my iniquity in my bosom, [34] because I stood in great fear of the multitude, and the contempt of families terrified me, so that I kept silence, and did not go out of doors— [35] Oh, that I had one to hear me! (Here is my signature! let the Almighty answer me!) Oh, that I had the indictment written by my adversary! [36] Surely I would carry it on my shoulder; I would bind it on me like a crown; [37] I would give him an account of all my steps; like a prince I would approach him. [38] “If my land has cried out against me, and its furrows have wept together; [39] if I have eaten its yield without payment, and caused the death of its owners; [40] let thorns grow instead of wheat, and foul weeds instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.

Job 38:1-41 NRSV-CI
[1] Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind: [2] “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? [3] Gird up your loins like a man, I will question you, and you shall declare to me. [4] “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. [5] Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? [6] On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone [7] when the morning stars sang together and all the heavenly beings shouted for joy? [8] “Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb?— [9] when I made the clouds its garment, and thick darkness its swaddling band, [10] and prescribed bounds for it, and set bars and doors, [11] and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stopped’? [12] “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, [13] so that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it? [14] It is changed like clay under the seal, and it is dyed like a garment. [15] Light is withheld from the wicked, and their uplifted arm is broken. [16] “Have you entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep? [17] Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness? [18] Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this. [19] “Where is the way to the dwelling of light, and where is the place of darkness, [20] that you may take it to its territory and that you may discern the paths to its home? [21] Surely you know, for you were born then, and the number of your days is great! [22] “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, or have you seen the storehouses of the hail, [23] which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war? [24] What is the way to the place where the light is distributed, or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth? [25] “Who has cut a channel for the torrents of rain, and a way for the thunderbolt, [26] to bring rain on a land where no one lives, on the desert, which is empty of human life, [27] to satisfy the waste and desolate land, and to make the ground put forth grass? [28] “Has the rain a father, or who has begotten the drops of dew? [29] From whose womb did the ice come forth, and who has given birth to the hoarfrost of heaven? [30] The waters become hard like stone, and the face of the deep is frozen. [31] “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades, or loose the cords of Orion? [32] Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season, or can you guide the Bear with its children? [33] Do you know the ordinances of the heavens? Can you establish their rule on the earth? [34] “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, so that a flood of waters may cover you? [35] Can you send forth lightnings, so that they may go and say to you, ‘Here we are’? [36] Who has put wisdom in the inward parts, or given understanding to the mind? [37] Who has the wisdom to number the clouds? Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens, [38] when the dust runs into a mass and the clods cling together? [39] “Can you hunt the prey for the lion, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, [40] when they crouch in their dens, or lie in wait in their covert? [41] Who provides for the raven its prey, when its young ones cry to God, and wander about for lack of food?

Job 39:1-30 NRSV-CI
[1] “Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Do you observe the calving of the deer? [2] Can you number the months that they fulfill, and do you know the time when they give birth, [3] when they crouch to give birth to their offspring, and are delivered of their young? [4] Their young ones become strong, they grow up in the open; they go forth, and do not return to them. [5] “Who has let the wild ass go free? Who has loosed the bonds of the swift ass, [6] to which I have given the steppe for its home, the salt land for its dwelling place? [7] It scorns the tumult of the city; it does not hear the shouts of the driver. [8] It ranges the mountains as its pasture, and it searches after every green thing. [9] “Is the wild ox willing to serve you? Will it spend the night at your crib? [10] Can you tie it in the furrow with ropes, or will it harrow the valleys after you? [11] Will you depend on it because its strength is great, and will you hand over your labor to it? [12] Do you have faith in it that it will return, and bring your grain to your threshing floor? [13] “The ostrich’s wings flap wildly, though its pinions lack plumage. [14] For it leaves its eggs to the earth, and lets them be warmed on the ground, [15] forgetting that a foot may crush them, and that a wild animal may trample them. [16] It deals cruelly with its young, as if they were not its own; though its labor should be in vain, yet it has no fear; [17] because God has made it forget wisdom, and given it no share in understanding. [18] When it spreads its plumes aloft, it laughs at the horse and its rider. [19] “Do you give the horse its might? Do you clothe its neck with mane? [20] Do you make it leap like the locust? Its majestic snorting is terrible. [21] It paws violently, exults mightily; it goes out to meet the weapons. [22] It laughs at fear, and is not dismayed; it does not turn back from the sword. [23] Upon it rattle the quiver, the flashing spear, and the javelin. [24] With fierceness and rage it swallows the ground; it cannot stand still at the sound of the trumpet. [25] When the trumpet sounds, it says ‘Aha!’ From a distance it smells the battle, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting. [26] “Is it by your wisdom that the hawk soars, and spreads its wings toward the south? [27] Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up and makes its nest on high? [28] It lives on the rock and makes its home in the fastness of the rocky crag. [29] From there it spies the prey; its eyes see it from far away. [30] Its young ones suck up blood; and where the slain are, there it is.”

Job 40:1-24 NRSV-CI
[1] And the Lord said to Job: [2] “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Anyone who argues with God must respond.” [3] Then Job answered the Lord: [4] “See, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth. [5] I have spoken once, and I will not answer; twice, but will proceed no further.” [6] Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind: [7] “Gird up your loins like a man; I will question you, and you declare to me. [8] Will you even put me in the wrong? Will you condemn me that you may be justified? [9] Have you an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like his? [10] “Deck yourself with majesty and dignity; clothe yourself with glory and splendor. [11] Pour out the overflowings of your anger, and look on all who are proud, and abase them. [12] Look on all who are proud, and bring them low; tread down the wicked where they stand. [13] Hide them all in the dust together; bind their faces in the world below. [14] Then I will also acknowledge to you that your own right hand can give you victory. [15] “Look at Behemoth, which I made just as I made you; it eats grass like an ox. [16] Its strength is in its loins, and its power in the muscles of its belly. [17] It makes its tail stiff like a cedar; the sinews of its thighs are knit together. [18] Its bones are tubes of bronze, its limbs like bars of iron. [19] “It is the first of the great acts of God— only its Maker can approach it with the sword. [20] For the mountains yield food for it where all the wild animals play. [21] Under the lotus plants it lies, in the covert of the reeds and in the marsh. [22] The lotus trees cover it for shade; the willows of the wadi surround it. [23] Even if the river is turbulent, it is not frightened; it is confident though Jordan rushes against its mouth. [24] Can one take it with hooks or pierce its nose with a snare?

Job 41:1-34 NRSV-CI
[1] “Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook, or press down its tongue with a cord? [2] Can you put a rope in its nose, or pierce its jaw with a hook? [3] Will it make many supplications to you? Will it speak soft words to you? [4] Will it make a covenant with you to be taken as your servant forever? [5] Will you play with it as with a bird, or will you put it on leash for your girls? [6] Will traders bargain over it? Will they divide it up among the merchants? [7] Can you fill its skin with harpoons, or its head with fishing spears? [8] Lay hands on it; think of the battle; you will not do it again! [9] Any hope of capturing it will be disappointed; were not even the gods overwhelmed at the sight of it? [10] No one is so fierce as to dare to stir it up. Who can stand before it? [11] Who can confront it and be safe? —under the whole heaven, who? [12] “I will not keep silence concerning its limbs, or its mighty strength, or its splendid frame. [13] Who can strip off its outer garment? Who can penetrate its double coat of mail? [14] Who can open the doors of its face? There is terror all around its teeth. [15] Its back is made of shields in rows, shut up closely as with a seal. [16] One is so near to another that no air can come between them. [17] They are joined one to another; they clasp each other and cannot be separated. [18] Its sneezes flash forth light, and its eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn. [19] From its mouth go flaming torches; sparks of fire leap out. [20] Out of its nostrils comes smoke, as from a boiling pot and burning rushes. [21] Its breath kindles coals, and a flame comes out of its mouth. [22] In its neck abides strength, and terror dances before it. [23] The folds of its flesh cling together; it is firmly cast and immovable. [24] Its heart is as hard as stone, as hard as the lower millstone. [25] When it raises itself up the gods are afraid; at the crashing they are beside themselves. [26] Though the sword reaches it, it does not avail, nor does the spear, the dart, or the javelin. [27] It counts iron as straw, and bronze as rotten wood. [28] The arrow cannot make it flee; slingstones, for it, are turned to chaff. [29] Clubs are counted as chaff; it laughs at the rattle of javelins. [30] Its underparts are like sharp potsherds; it spreads itself like a threshing sledge on the mire. [31] It makes the deep boil like a pot; it makes the sea like a pot of ointment. [32] It leaves a shining wake behind it; one would think the deep to be white-haired. [33] On earth it has no equal, a creature without fear. [34] It surveys everything that is lofty; it is king over all that are proud.”

Job 42:1-17 NRSV-CI
[1] Then Job answered the Lord: [2] “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. [3] ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. [4] ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.’ [5] I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; [6] therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” [7] After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. [8] Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly; for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has done.” [9] So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the Lord had told them; and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer. [10] And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he had prayed for his friends; and the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. [11] Then there came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and they ate bread with him in his house; they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him; and each of them gave him a piece of money and a gold ring. [12] The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; and he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand donkeys. [13] He also had seven sons and three daughters. [14] He named the first Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. [15] In all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters; and their father gave them an inheritance along with their brothers. [16] After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children, and his children’s children, four generations. [17] And Job died, old and full of days.

Isaiah 6:1-10 NRSV-CI
[1] In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. [2] Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. [3] And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory.” [4] The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. [5] And I said: “Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” [6] Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. [7] The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.” [8] Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!” [9] And he said, “Go and say to this people: ‘Keep listening, but do not comprehend; keep looking, but do not understand.’ [10] Make the mind of this people dull, and stop their ears, and shut their eyes, so that they may not look with their eyes, and listen with their ears, and comprehend with their minds, and turn and be healed.”

Jeremiah 31:1-30 NRSV-CI
[1] At that time, says the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people. [2] Thus says the Lord: The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness; when Israel sought for rest, [3] the Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. [4] Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel! Again you shall take your tambourines, and go forth in the dance of the merrymakers. [5] Again you shall plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant, and shall enjoy the fruit. [6] For there shall be a day when sentinels will call in the hill country of Ephraim: “Come, let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.” [7] For thus says the Lord: Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and raise shouts for the chief of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, “Save, O Lord, your people, the remnant of Israel.” [8] See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north, and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth, among them the blind and the lame, those with child and those in labor, together; a great company, they shall return here. [9] With weeping they shall come, and with consolations I will lead them back, I will let them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble; for I have become a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn. [10] Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare it in the coastlands far away; say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd a flock.” [11] For the Lord has ransomed Jacob, and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him. [12] They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion, and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord, over the grain, the wine, and the oil, and over the young of the flock and the herd; their life shall become like a watered garden, and they shall never languish again. [13] Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy, I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow. [14] I will give the priests their fill of fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my bounty, says the Lord. [15] Thus says the Lord: A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more. [16] Thus says the Lord: Keep your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for there is a reward for your work, says the Lord: they shall come back from the land of the enemy; [17] there is hope for your future, says the Lord: your children shall come back to their own country. [18] Indeed I heard Ephraim pleading: “You disciplined me, and I took the discipline; I was like a calf untrained. Bring me back, let me come back, for you are the Lord my God. [19] For after I had turned away I repented; and after I was discovered, I struck my thigh; I was ashamed, and I was dismayed because I bore the disgrace of my youth.” [20] Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he the child I delight in? As often as I speak against him, I still remember him. Therefore I am deeply moved for him; I will surely have mercy on him, says the Lord. [21] Set up road markers for yourself, make yourself guideposts; consider well the highway, the road by which you went. Return, O virgin Israel, return to these your cities. [22] How long will you waver, O faithless daughter? For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth: a woman encompasses a man. [23] Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Once more they shall use these words in the land of Judah and in its towns when I restore their fortunes: “The Lord bless you, O abode of righteousness, O holy hill!” [24] And Judah and all its towns shall live there together, and the farmers and those who wander with their flocks. [25] I will satisfy the weary, and all who are faint I will replenish. [26] Thereupon I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me. [27] The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of humans and the seed of animals. [28] And just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord. [29] In those days they shall no longer say: “The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.” [30] But all shall die for their own sins; the teeth of everyone who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge.

Jeremiah 1:4-12 NRSV-CI
[4] Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, [5] “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” [6] Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.” [7] But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you, [8] Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.” [9] Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me, “Now I have put my words in your mouth. [10] See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” [11] The word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.” [12] Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.”

Matthew 10:16-23 NRSV-CI
[16] “See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. [17] Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; [18] and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. [19] When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; [20] for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. [21] Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; [22] and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. [23] When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next; for truly I tell you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

Romans 8:22-30 NRSV-CI
[22] We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; [23] and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. [24] For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? [25] But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. [26] Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. [27] And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. [28] We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. [29] For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. [30] And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.

Exodus 3:1-22 NRSV-CI
[1] Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. [2] There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. [3] Then Moses said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.” [4] When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” [5] Then he said, “Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” [6] He said further, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. [7] Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, [8] and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. [9] The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. [10] So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.” [11] But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” [12] He said, “I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain.” [13] But Moses said to God, “If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” [14] God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” [15] God also said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’: This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations. [16] Go and assemble the elders of Israel, and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying: I have given heed to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt. [17] I declare that I will bring you up out of the misery of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.’ [18] They will listen to your voice; and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; let us now go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ [19] I know, however, that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. [20] So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all my wonders that I will perform in it; after that he will let you go. [21] I will bring this people into such favor with the Egyptians that, when you go, you will not go empty-handed; [22] each woman shall ask her neighbor and any woman living in the neighbor’s house for jewelry of silver and of gold, and clothing, and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters; and so you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

Exodus 4:1-16 NRSV-CI
[1] Then Moses answered, “But suppose they do not believe me or listen to me, but say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’ ” [2] The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” [3] And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw the staff on the ground, and it became a snake; and Moses drew back from it. [4] Then the Lord said to Moses, “Reach out your hand, and seize it by the tail”—so he reached out his hand and grasped it, and it became a staff in his hand— [5] “so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” [6] Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” He put his hand into his cloak; and when he took it out, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. [7] Then God said, “Put your hand back into your cloak”—so he put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored like the rest of his body— [8] “If they will not believe you or heed the first sign, they may believe the second sign. [9] If they will not believe even these two signs or heed you, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground; and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” [10] But Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” [11] Then the Lord said to him, “Who gives speech to mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? [12] Now go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak.” [13] But he said, “O my Lord, please send someone else.” [14] Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses and he said, “What of your brother Aaron, the Levite? I know that he can speak fluently; even now he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you his heart will be glad. [15] You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth; and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. [16] He indeed shall speak for you to the people; he shall serve as a mouth for you, and you shall serve as God for him.

Exodus 16:1-4 NRSV-CI
[1] The whole congregation of the Israelites set out from Elim; and Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. [2] The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. [3] The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” [4] Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.

Exodus 17:1-6 NRSV-CI
[1] From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. [2] The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” [3] But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” [4] So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” [5] The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. [6] I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Numbers 11:1-35 NRSV-CI
[1] Now when the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, the Lord heard it and his anger was kindled. Then the fire of the Lord burned against them, and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. [2] But the people cried out to Moses; and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire abated. [3] So that place was called Taberah, because the fire of the Lord burned against them. [4] The rabble among them had a strong craving; and the Israelites also wept again, and said, “If only we had meat to eat! [5] We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; [6] but now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.” [7] Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its color was like the color of gum resin. [8] The people went around and gathered it, ground it in mills or beat it in mortars, then boiled it in pots and made cakes of it; and the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. [9] When the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna would fall with it. [10] Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, all at the entrances of their tents. Then the Lord became very angry, and Moses was displeased. [11] So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you treated your servant so badly? Why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? [12] Did I conceive all this people? Did I give birth to them, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a sucking child,’ to the land that you promised on oath to their ancestors? [13] Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they come weeping to me and say, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ [14] I am not able to carry all this people alone, for they are too heavy for me. [15] If this is the way you are going to treat me, put me to death at once—if I have found favor in your sight—and do not let me see my misery.” [16] So the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tent of meeting, and have them take their place there with you. [17] I will come down and talk with you there; and I will take some of the spirit that is on you and put it on them; and they shall bear the burden of the people along with you so that you will not bear it all by yourself. [18] And say to the people: Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wailed in the hearing of the Lord, saying, ‘If only we had meat to eat! Surely it was better for us in Egypt.’ Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. [19] You shall eat not only one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, [20] but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you—because you have rejected the Lord who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, ‘Why did we ever leave Egypt?’ ” [21] But Moses said, “The people I am with number six hundred thousand on foot; and you say, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat for a whole month’! [22] Are there enough flocks and herds to slaughter for them? Are there enough fish in the sea to catch for them?” [23] The Lord said to Moses, “Is the Lord’s power limited? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.” [24] So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent. [25] Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again. [26] Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. [27] And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” [28] And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, “My lord Moses, stop them!” [29] But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!” [30] And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp. [31] Then a wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quails from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day’s journey on this side and a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, about two cubits deep on the ground. [32] So the people worked all that day and night and all the next day, gathering the quails; the least anyone gathered was ten homers; and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. [33] But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague. [34] So that place was called Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had the craving. [35] From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to Hazeroth.

Numbers 14:1-5 NRSV-CI
[1] Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. [2] And all the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron; the whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! [3] Why is the Lord bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become booty; would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” [4] So they said to one another, “Let us choose a captain, and go back to Egypt.” [5] Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the Israelites.

Jonah 3:1-10 NRSV-CI
[1] The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, [2] “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” [3] So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. [4] Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” [5] And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. [6] When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. [7] Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. [8] Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. [9] Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.” [10] When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

Jonah 4:1-11 NRSV-CI
[1] But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry. [2] He prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. [3] And now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” [4] And the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?” [5] Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city. [6] The Lord God appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. [7] But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. [8] When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” [9] But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?” And he said, “Yes, angry enough to die.” [10] Then the Lord said, “You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. [11] And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?”

1 Samuel 1:1-20 NRSV-CI
[1] There was a certain man of Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham son of Elihu son of Tohu son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. [2] He had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. [3] Now this man used to go up year by year from his town to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. [4] On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters; [5] but to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. [6] Her rival used to provoke her severely, to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. [7] So it went on year by year; as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. [8] Her husband Elkanah said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?” [9] After they had eaten and drunk at Shiloh, Hannah rose and presented herself before the Lord. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. [10] She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord, and wept bitterly. [11] She made this vow: “O Lord of hosts, if only you will look on the misery of your servant, and remember me, and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a male child, then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head.” [12] As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. [13] Hannah was praying silently; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard; therefore Eli thought she was drunk. [14] So Eli said to her, “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Put away your wine.” [15] But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman deeply troubled; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. [16] Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation all this time.” [17] Then Eli answered, “Go in peace; the God of Israel grant the petition you have made to him.” [18] And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your sight.” Then the woman went to her quarters, ate and drank with her husband, and her countenance was sad no longer. [19] They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. Elkanah knew his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. [20] In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, “I have asked him of the Lord.”

Genesis 29:4-12 NRSV-CI
[4] Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where do you come from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” [5] He said to them, “Do you know Laban son of Nahor?” They said, “We do.” [6] He said to them, “Is it well with him?” “Yes,” they replied, “and here is his daughter Rachel, coming with the sheep.” [7] He said, “Look, it is still broad daylight; it is not time for the animals to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them.” [8] But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and the stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.” [9] While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep; for she kept them. [10] Now when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of his mother’s brother Laban, and the sheep of his mother’s brother Laban, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of his mother’s brother Laban. [11] Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and wept aloud. [12] And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son; and she ran and told her father.

Genesis 30:29-35 NRSV-CI
[29] Jacob said to him, “You yourself know how I have served you, and how your cattle have fared with me. [30] For you had little before I came, and it has increased abundantly; and the Lord has blessed you wherever I turned. But now when shall I provide for my own household also?” [31] He said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything; if you will do this for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it: [32] let me pass through all your flock today, removing from it every speckled and spotted sheep and every black lamb, and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and such shall be my wages. [33] So my honesty will answer for me later, when you come to look into my wages with you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, shall be counted stolen.” [34] Laban said, “Good! Let it be as you have said.” [35] But that day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white on it, and every lamb that was black, and put them in charge of his sons;

Genesis 31:1-16 NRSV-CI
[1] Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s; he has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.” [2] And Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him as favorably as he did before. [3] Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your ancestors and to your kindred, and I will be with you.” [4] So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was, [5] and said to them, “I see that your father does not regard me as favorably as he did before. But the God of my father has been with me. [6] You know that I have served your father with all my strength; [7] yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times, but God did not permit him to harm me. [8] If he said, ‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore speckled; and if he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped. [9] Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father, and given them to me. [10] “During the mating of the flock I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats that leaped upon the flock were striped, speckled, and mottled. [11] Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am!’ [12] And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the goats that leap on the flock are striped, speckled, and mottled; for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. [13] I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and return to the land of your birth.’ ” [14] Then Rachel and Leah answered him, “Is there any portion or inheritance left to us in our father’s house? [15] Are we not regarded by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and he has been using up the money given for us. [16] All the property that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children; now then, do whatever God has said to you.”

Genesis 31:38-42 NRSV-CI
[38] These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your flocks. [39] That which was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it myself; of my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. [40] It was like this with me: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes. [41] These twenty years I have been in your house; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times. [42] If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night.”

John 11:21-27 NRSV-CI
[21] Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. [22] But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.” [23] Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” [24] Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” [25] Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, [26] and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” [27] She said to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.”

John 11:33-44 NRSV-CI
[33] When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. [34] He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” [35] Jesus began to weep. [36] So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” [37] But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” [38] Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. [39] Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.” [40] Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” [41] So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. [42] I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” [43] When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” [44] The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Psalms 22:1-31 NRSV-CI
[1] My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning? [2] O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night, but find no rest. [3] Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. [4] In you our ancestors trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. [5] To you they cried, and were saved; in you they trusted, and were not put to shame. [6] But I am a worm, and not human; scorned by others, and despised by the people. [7] All who see me mock at me; they make mouths at me, they shake their heads; [8] “Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver— let him rescue the one in whom he delights!” [9] Yet it was you who took me from the womb; you kept me safe on my mother’s breast. [10] On you I was cast from my birth, and since my mother bore me you have been my God. [11] Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help. [12] Many bulls encircle me, strong bulls of Bashan surround me; [13] they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion. [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 mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. [16] For dogs are all around me; a company of evildoers encircles me. My hands and feet have shriveled; [17] I can count all my bones. They stare and gloat over me; [18] they divide my clothes among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots. [19] But you, O Lord, do not be far away! O my help, come quickly to my aid! [20] Deliver my soul from the sword, my life from the power of the dog! [21] Save me from the mouth of the lion! From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued me. [22] I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you: [23] You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him; stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel! [24] For he did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; he did not hide his face from me, but heard when I cried to him. [25] From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will pay before those who fear him. [26] The poor shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord. May your hearts live forever! [27] All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord; and all the families of the nations shall worship before him. [28] For dominion belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations. [29] To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, and I shall live for him. [30] Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord, [31] and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn, saying that he has done it.

Matthew 27:41-53 NRSV-CI
[41] In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, [42] “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. [43] He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said, ‘I am God’s Son.’ ” [44] The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way. [45] From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. [46] And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” [47] When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” [48] At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. [49] But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” [50] Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. [51] At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. [52] The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. [53] After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many.

Mark 15:34-39 NRSV-CI
[34] At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” [35] When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “Listen, he is calling for Elijah.” [36] And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” [37] Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. [38] And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. [39] Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”

Luke 2:41-51 NRSV-CI
[41] Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. [42] And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. [43] When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. [44] Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. [45] When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. [46] After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. [47] And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. [48] When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” [49] He said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” [50] But they did not understand what he said to them. [51] Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

John 2:1-11 NRSV-CI
[1] On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. [2] Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. [3] When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” [4] And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” [5] His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” [6] Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. [7] Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. [8] He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. [9] When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom [10] and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” [11] Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

John 7:1-17 NRSV-CI
[1] After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He did not wish to go about in Judea because the Jews were looking for an opportunity to kill him. [2] Now the Jewish festival of Booths was near. [3] So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing; [4] for no one who wants to be widely known acts in secret. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” [5] (For not even his brothers believed in him.) [6] Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. [7] The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil. [8] Go to the festival yourselves. I am not going to this festival, for my time has not yet fully come.” [9] After saying this, he remained in Galilee. [10] But after his brothers had gone to the festival, then he also went, not publicly but as it were in secret. [11] The Jews were looking for him at the festival and saying, “Where is he?” [12] And there was considerable complaining about him among the crowds. While some were saying, “He is a good man,” others were saying, “No, he is deceiving the crowd.” [13] Yet no one would speak openly about him for fear of the Jews. [14] About the middle of the festival Jesus went up into the temple and began to teach. [15] The Jews were astonished at it, saying, “How does this man have such learning, when he has never been taught?” [16] Then Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine but his who sent me. [17] Anyone who resolves to do the will of God will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own.

Luke 4:16-28 NRSV-CI
[16] When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, [17] and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: [18] “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, [19] to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” [20] And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. [21] Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” [22] All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” [23] He said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.’ ” [24] And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. [25] But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; [26] yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. [27] There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” [28] When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage.

John 18:31-38 NRSV-CI
[31] Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law.” The Jews replied, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death.” [32] (This was to fulfill what Jesus had said when he indicated the kind of death he was to die.) [33] Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” [34] Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” [35] Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?” [36] Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.” [37] Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” [38] Pilate asked him, “What is truth?” After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them, “I find no case against him.

Luke 22:39-52 NRSV-CI
[39] He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him. [40] When he reached the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not come into the time of trial.” [41] Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, [42] “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.” [ [43] Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength. [44] In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.] [45] When he got up from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping because of grief, [46] and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not come into the time of trial.” [47] While he was still speaking, suddenly a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him; [48] but Jesus said to him, “Judas, is it with a kiss that you are betraying the Son of Man?” [49] When those who were around him saw what was coming, they asked, “Lord, should we strike with the sword?” [50] Then one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. [51] But Jesus said, “No more of this!” And he touched his ear and healed him. [52] Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple police, and the elders who had come for him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit?

Exodus 5:1-23 NRSV-CI
[1] Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, so that they may celebrate a festival to me in the wilderness.’ ” [2] But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should heed him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and I will not let Israel go.” [3] Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has revealed himself to us; let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness to sacrifice to the Lord our God, or he will fall upon us with pestilence or sword.” [4] But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their work? Get to your labors!” [5] Pharaoh continued, “Now they are more numerous than the people of the land and yet you want them to stop working!” [6] That same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people, as well as their supervisors, [7] “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as before; let them go and gather straw for themselves. [8] But you shall require of them the same quantity of bricks as they have made previously; do not diminish it, for they are lazy; that is why they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ [9] Let heavier work be laid on them; then they will labor at it and pay no attention to deceptive words.” [10] So the taskmasters and the supervisors of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. [11] Go and get straw yourselves, wherever you can find it; but your work will not be lessened in the least.’ ” [12] So the people scattered throughout the land of Egypt, to gather stubble for straw. [13] The taskmasters were urgent, saying, “Complete your work, the same daily assignment as when you were given straw.” [14] And the supervisors of the Israelites, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and were asked, “Why did you not finish the required quantity of bricks yesterday and today, as you did before?” [15] Then the Israelite supervisors came to Pharaoh and cried, “Why do you treat your servants like this? [16] No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ Look how your servants are beaten! You are unjust to your own people.” [17] He said, “You are lazy, lazy; that is why you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ [18] Go now, and work; for no straw shall be given you, but you shall still deliver the same number of bricks.” [19] The Israelite supervisors saw that they were in trouble when they were told, “You shall not lessen your daily number of bricks.” [20] As they left Pharaoh, they came upon Moses and Aaron who were waiting to meet them. [21] They said to them, “The Lord look upon you and judge! You have brought us into bad odor with Pharaoh and his officials, and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.” [22] Then Moses turned again to the Lord and said, “O Lord, why have you mistreated this people? Why did you ever send me? [23] Since I first came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has mistreated this people, and you have done nothing at all to deliver your people.”

Isaiah 53:1-12 NRSV-CI
[1] Who has believed what we have heard? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? [2] For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. [3] He was despised and rejected by others; a man of suffering and acquainted with infirmity; and as one from whom others hide their faces he was despised, and we held him of no account. [4] Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. [5] But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. [6] All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. [7] He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. [8] By a perversion of justice he was taken away. Who could have imagined his future? For he was cut off from the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people. [9] They made his grave with the wicked and his tomb with the rich, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. [10] Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him with pain. When you make his life an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring, and shall prolong his days; through him the will of the Lord shall prosper. [11] Out of his anguish he shall see light; he shall find satisfaction through his knowledge. The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. [12] Therefore I will allot him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out himself to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.