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VERSES DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND
I've found that there's a lot of truth in saying that the Bible is generally easy to understand. Most of it is pretty straightforward, you know? But, yeah, every now and then you stumble across a passage that really makes you scratch your head. Figuring out what those tricky parts mean can be a real challenge.
Thankfully, I'd say 99% of Scripture is clear as a bell. And that's the stuff we really need to focus on living out. The Bible itself talks about how God's word is meant to be understandable, accessible to everyone.
But let's be real, sometimes we run into those verses that feel a bit murky. Even with all the great commentaries and resources we have available today, including stuff online, even theologians will tell you some passages are just tough nuts to crack.
But I believe that with God's help, and by digging a little deeper with the tools available to us, we can gain a better understanding of even those difficult verses. He'll give us the wisdom we need if we seek it.
And no one has ascended to heaven, except the one who descended from heaven: the Son of man who is in heaven.
Then it happened that the beggar died, and he was carried by the Angels into the bosom of Abraham. Now the wealthy man also died, and he was entombed in Hell.
For the living know that they themselves will die, yet truly the dead know nothing anymore, nor do they have any recompense. For the memory of them is forgotten.
And crying out, he said: 'Father Abraham, take pity on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water to refresh my tongue. For I am tortured in this fire.'
But the animal nature of man does not perceive these things that are of the Spirit of God. For it is foolishness to him, and he is not able to understand it, because it must be examined spiritually.
And when men began to be multiplied upon the earth, and daughters were born to them,And he conceived three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.Yet the earth was corrupted before the eyes of God, and it was filled with iniquity.And when God had seen that the earth had been corrupted, (indeed, all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth)he said to Noah: "The end of all flesh has arrived in my sight. The earth has been filled with iniquity by their presence, and I will destroy them, along with the earth.Make yourself an ark from smoothed wood. You shall make little dwelling places in the ark, and you shall smear pitch on the interior and exterior.And thus shall you make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.You shall make a window in the ark, and you shall complete it within a cubit of the top. Then you shall set the door of the ark at its side. You shall make in it: a lower part, upper rooms, and a third level.Behold, I shall bring the waters of a great flood upon the earth, so as to put to death all flesh in which there is the breath of life under heaven. All things that are on the earth shall be consumed.And I shall establish my covenant with you, and you shall enter the ark, you and your sons, your wife and the wives of your sons with you.And from every living thing of all that is flesh, you shall lead pairs into the ark, so that they may survive with you: from the male sex and the female,the sons of God, seeing that the daughters of men were beautiful, took to themselves wives from all whom they chose.from birds, according to their kind, and from beasts, in their kind, and from among all animals on earth, according to their kind; pairs from each shall enter with you, so that they may be able to live.Therefore, you shall take with you from all the foods that are able to be eaten, and you shall carry these with you. And these shall be used as food, some for you, and the rest for them."And so Noah did all things just as God had instructed him.And God said: "My spirit shall not remain in man forever, because he is flesh. And so his days shall be one hundred and twenty years."Now giants were upon the earth in those days. For after the sons of God went in to the daughters of men, and they conceived, these became the powerful ones of ancient times, men of renown.
You shall not adore them, nor shall you worship them. I am the Lord your God: strong, zealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the sons to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,
something that none of the leaders of this world have known. For if they had known it, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory.
But whatever certainly chews over again, but has a hoof that is not divided, such as the camel and others, these you shall not eat, and you shall consider them to be among what is unclean.And whoever will have eaten or carried anything of these shall wash his clothes, and he shall be unclean until evening.All that creeps across the earth shall be abominable, neither shall it taken up as food.Whatever advances by four feet upon the chest, or that has many feet, or that drags across the soil, you shall not eat, because it is abominable.Do not be willing to contaminate your souls, nor shall you touch any of these, lest you become unclean.For I am the Lord your God. Be holy, for I am Holy. Do not pollute your souls with any creeping thing, which moves across the land.For I am the Lord, who led you away from the land of Egypt, so that I would be your God; you shall be holy, for I am Holy.This is the law of animals and flying things, and of every living soul that moves in the waters or creeps upon the land,so that you may know the difference between clean and unclean, and so that you may know what you ought to eat, and what you ought to refuse.The rock rabbit which chews over again, and whose hoof is not divided, is unclean,and so also is the hare, for it too chews over again, yet its hoof is not divided,and also the swine, which, though its hoof is divided, does not chew over again.The flesh of these you shall not eat, nor shall you touch their carcasses, because they are unclean to you.
And the Lord said to him: "Make a bronze serpent, and place it as a sign. Whoever, having been struck, gazes upon it, shall live."Therefore, Moses made a bronze serpent, and he placed it as a sign. When those who had been struck gazed upon it, they were healed.
But if you are not willing to listen to the voice of the Lord your God, so as to keep and do all his commandments and ceremonies, which I instruct to you this day, all these curses shall come to you, and take hold of you.Cursed shall you be in the city, cursed in the field.Cursed shall be your barn, and cursed your storehouses.Cursed shall be the fruit of your loins, and the fruit of your land, the herds of your oxen, and the flocks of your sheep.Cursed shall you be entering, and cursed departing.And all these blessings shall come to you and take hold of you, but only if you listen to his precepts.The Lord will send famine and hunger upon you, and a rebuke upon all the works that you do, until he quickly crushes and perishes you, because of your very wicked innovations, by which you have forsaken me.May the Lord join a pestilence to you, until he consumes you from the land, which you shall enter so as to possess.May the Lord strike you with destitution, with fever and cold, with burning and heat, and with polluted air and rot, and may he pursue you until you perish.May the heavens which are above you be of brass, and may the ground upon which you tread be of iron.May the Lord give you dust instead of rain upon your land, and may ashes descend from heaven over you, until you have been wiped away.May the Lord hand you over to fall before your enemies. May you go forth against them by one way, and flee by seven ways, and may you be scattered across all the kingdoms of the earth.And may your carcass be food for all the flying things of the air and the wild beasts of the land, and may there be no one to drive them away.May the Lord strike you with the ulcer of Egypt, and may he strike the part of your body, through which the dung goes out, with disease as well as itch, so much so that you are unable to be cured.May the Lord strike you with frenzy and blindness and a madness of the mind.And may you grope at midday, just as a blind man is accustomed to grope in darkness, and may your paths not be straight. And at all times may you suffer slander and be oppressed with violence, and may you have no one who may free you.Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed in the field.May you take a wife, though another sleeps with her. May you build a house, but not live within it. May you plant a vineyard, and not gather its vintage.May your ox be immolated before you, though you do not eat from it. May your donkey be seized in your sight, and not restored to you. May your sheep be given to your enemies, and may there be no one who may help you.May your sons and your daughters be handed over to another people, as your eyes watch and languish at the sight of them throughout the day, and may there be no strength in your hand.May a people you do not know eat the fruits of your land and of all your labors. And may you continually suffer from slander and oppression every day.And may you be stupefied at the terror of the things your eyes will see.May the Lord strike you with a very grievous ulcer in the knees and in the legs, and may you be unable to attain health, from the sole of the foot to the top of the head.May the Lord lead you and your king, whom you will have appointed over yourself, into a nation which you and your fathers have not known. And there you will serve foreign gods, of wood and of stone.And you will become nothing but a proverb and a fable to all the peoples to whom the Lord will lead you.You will sow much seed upon the ground, but you will harvest little. For the locusts will devour everything.You will dig and plant a vineyard, but you will not drink the wine, nor gather anything at all from it. For it will be devastated by worms.Blessed shall be the fruit of your loins, and the fruit of your land, and the fruit of your cattle, the droves of your herds, and the folds of your sheep.You will have olive trees in all your borders, but you will not be anointed with the oil. For the olives will fall off and perish.You will conceive sons and daughters, and you will not enjoy them. For they will be led into captivity.Rot will consume all the trees, as well as the fruits of your land.The new arrival who lives with you in the land will ascend over you, and be higher. But you will descend, and be lower.He will lend to you, and you will not lend to him. He will be as the head, and you will be as the tail.And all these curses shall come to you, and shall pursue you, and shall take hold of you, until you pass away, because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and you would not serve his commandments and ceremonies, which he has instructed to you.And there will be the signs and portents with you, and with your offspring, forever.Because you did not serve the Lord your God, with gladness and a joyful heart, over the abundance of all things.You will serve your enemy, whom the Lord will send to you, in hunger and thirst and nakedness, and in destitution of all things. And he will place an iron yoke upon your neck, until he has crushed you.The Lord will lead over you a nation from far away, even from the furthest parts of the earth, like an eagle flying with great force, whose language you are not able to understand:Blessed shall be your barns, and blessed your storehouses.a very insolent nation, which will show no deference to elders, nor take pity on little ones.And he will devour the fruit of your cattle, and the fruits of your land, until you have passed away, without leaving behind you wheat, or wine, or oil, or herds of oxen, or flocks of sheep: until he utterly destroys you.And he will crush you in all your cities. And your strong and lofty walls, in which you trusted, will be destroyed throughout all your land. You will be besieged within your gates throughout all your land, which the Lord your God will give to you.And you will eat the fruit of your womb, and the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, which the Lord your God will give to you, due to the anguish and devastation with which your enemy will oppress you.The man who is pampered and very self-indulgent among you will vie with his own brother, and with the wife who lies at his bosom,lest he give to them from the flesh of his sons, which he will eat. For he has nothing else due to the siege and the destitution, with which your enemies will devastate you within all your gates.The tender and pampered woman, who would not walk upon the soil, nor step firmly with her foot due to her very great softness and tenderness, will vie with her husband, who lies at her bosom, over the flesh of son and of daughter,and over the filth of the afterbirth, which goes forth from between her thighs, and over the children who are born in the same hour. For they will eat them secretly, due to the scarcity of all things during the siege and the devastation, with which your enemy will oppress you within your gates.If you will not keep and do all the words of this law, which have been written in this volume, and fear his glorious and terrible name, that is, the Lord your God,then the Lord will increase your plagues, and the plagues of your offspring, plagues great and long-lasting, infirmities very grievous and continuous.Blessed shall you be entering and departing.And he will turn back upon you all the afflictions of Egypt, which you fear, and these will cling to you.In addition, the Lord will lead over you all the diseases and plagues that are not written in the volume of this law, until he crushes you.And you will remain few in number, though you were before like the stars of heaven in multitude, because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God.And just as before, when the Lord rejoiced over you, doing good for you and multiplying you, so shall he rejoice, scattering and overturning you, so as to take you away from the land, which you shall enter in order to possess.The Lord will disperse you among all the peoples, from the heights of the earth to its furthest limits. And there you will serve foreign gods of wood and of stone, which you and your fathers did not know.Similarly, you will not have tranquility, even within those nations, nor will there be any rest for the steps of your feet. For the Lord will give to you in that place a fearful heart, and failing eyes, and a life consumed with grieving.And your life will be as if it were hanging before you. You will be afraid night and day, and you will not have confidence in your own life.In the morning you will say, 'Who will grant evening to me?' and at evening, 'Who will grant morning to me?' because of the dread of your heart, with which you will be terrified, and because of those things that you will see with your eyes.The Lord will lead you back into Egypt with a fleet of ships, along the way, about which he said to you that you would not see it again. In that place, you will be put up for sale as men and women servants to your enemies, but there will be no one willing to buy you."
But Jesus responded to them by saying: "You have gone astray by knowing neither the Scriptures, nor the power of God.
And Jesus responded by saying to them: "But have you not gone astray, by knowing neither the scriptures, nor the power of God?
he made a vow to the Lord, saying, "If you will deliver the sons of Ammon into my hands,whoever will be the first to depart from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, the same will I offer as a holocaust to the Lord."
'Thus says the Lord of hosts: I have taken account of all that Amalek has done to Israel, how he stood against him in the way, when he ascended from Egypt.And Saul said to Samuel: "On the contrary, I did listen to the voice of the Lord, and I walked in the way along which the Lord sent me, and I led back Agag, the king of Amalek, and I put to death Amalek.But the people took some of the spoils, sheep and oxen, as the first-fruits of those things that were slain, to immolate to the Lord their God at Gilgal."And Samuel said: "Does the Lord want holocausts and victims, and not instead that the voice of the Lord should be obeyed? For obedience is better than sacrifice. And to heed is greater than to offer the fat of rams.Therefore, it is like the sin of paganism to rebel. And it is like the crime of idolatry to refuse to obey. For this reason, therefore, because you have rejected the word of the Lord, the Lord has also rejected you from being king."And Saul said to Samuel: "I have sinned, for I have transgressed the word of the Lord, and your words, by fearing the people and obeying their voice.But now, I beg you, to bear my sin, and to return with me, so that I may adore the Lord."And Samuel said to Saul: "I will not return with you. For you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel."And Samuel turned away, so that he might depart. But Saul took hold of the edge of his cloak, and it tore.And Samuel said to him: "The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you this day. And he has delivered it to your neighbor, who is better than you are.Moreover, the One who triumphs within Israel will not spare, and he will not be moved to repentance. For he is not a man, that he should repent."Now therefore, go and strike Amalek, and demolish all that is his. You shall not spare him, and you shall not covet anything out of the things that are his. Instead, kill from man even to woman, and little ones as well as infants, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.' "
And after they had arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah extended his hand to the ark of God, and he touched it, because the oxen were kicking and had caused it to tip.And the indignation of the Lord was enraged against Uzzah. And he struck him for his temerity. And there he died, beside the ark of God.
Jesus responded and said to him: "What I am doing, you do not now understand. But you shall understand it afterward."
And as they continued on, they were conversing while walking. And behold, a fiery chariot with fiery horses divided the two. And Elijah ascended by a whirlwind into heaven.
Now he supposed that his brothers would understand that God would grant them salvation through his hand. But they did not understand it.
Do not respond to the foolish according to his folly, lest you become like him.Respond to the foolish according to his folly, lest he imagine himself to be wise.
For this reason, the passing away of man and of beasts is one, and the condition of both is equal. For as a man dies, so also do they die. All things breathe similarly, and man has nothing more than beast; for all these are subject to vanity.A time to be born, and a time to die. A time to plant, and a time to pull up what was planted.And all things continue on to one place; for from the earth they were made, and unto the earth they shall return together.
In the year in which king Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, sublime and exalted, and the things that were under him filled the temple.Blind the heart of this people. Make their ears heavy and close their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and then I would heal them."
But he himself was wounded because of our iniquities. He was bruised because of our wickedness. The discipline of our peace was upon him. And by his wounds, we are healed.
For I know the thoughts that I think over you, says the Lord: thoughts of peace and not of affliction, so that I may give you patience and an end.
The hand of the Lord was set upon me, and he led me away in the Spirit of the Lord, and he released me in the midst of a plain which was full of bones.And I prophesied, just as he had instructed me. And spirit entered into them, and they lived. And they stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.And he said to me: "Son of man: All these bones are the house of Israel. They say: 'Our bones are dried out, and our hope has perished, and we have been cut off.'Because of this, prophesy, and you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your tombs, and I will lead you away from your sepulchers, O my people. And I will lead you into the land of Israel.And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have opened your sepulchers, and when I will have led you away from your tombs, O my people.And I will place my Spirit within you, and you shall live. And I will cause you to rest upon your own soil. And you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and acted, says the Lord God."
Seventy weeks of years are concentrated on your people and on your holy city, so that transgression shall be finished, and sin shall reach an end, and iniquity shall be wiped away, and so that everlasting justice shall be brought in, and vision and prophecy shall be fulfilled, and the Saint of saints shall be anointed.Therefore, know and take heed: from the going forth of the word to build up Jerusalem again, until the Christ leader, there will be seven weeks of years, and sixty-two weeks of years; and the wide path will be built again, and the walls, in a time of anguish.And after sixty-two weeks of years, the Christ leader will be slain. And the people who have denied him will not be his. And the people, when their leader arrives, will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will be devastation, and, after the end of the war, the desolation will be set up.But he will confirm a covenant with many for one week of years; and for half of the week of years, victim and sacrifice will nearly cease; but there will be in the temple the abomination of desolation. And the desolation will continue even to the consummation and the end."
The beginning of the Lord's conversation with Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea: "Go, take to yourself a wife of fornications, and make for yourself sons of fornications, because, by fornicating, the land will fornicate away from the Lord."And he went out and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; and she conceived and bore him a son.
Will the trumpet sound in a city, and the people not become frightened? Will there be disaster in a city, which the Lord has not done?
I will reveal to you, O man, what is good, and what the Lord requires from you, and how to act with judgment, and to love mercy, and to walk carefully with your God.
Awake, O spear, against my shepherd and against the man that clings to me, says the Lord of hosts. Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered. And I will turn my hand to the little ones.And there will be in all the earth, says the Lord, two parts in it will be scattered and will pass away, and the third part will be left behind.And I will lead the third part through fire, and I will burn them just as silver is burned, and I will test them just as gold is tested. They will call on my name, and I will heed them. I will say, "You are my people." And they will say, "The Lord is my God."
And if your right eye causes you to sin, root it out and cast it away from you. For it is better for you that one of your members perish, than that your whole body be cast into Hell."Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it away from you. For it is better for you that one of your members perish, than that your whole body go into Hell.
Do not think that I came to send peace upon the earth. I came, not to send peace, but the sword.For I came to divide a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.And the enemies of a man will be those of his own household.
So if your hand or your foot leads you to sin, cut it off and cast it away from you. It is better for you to enter into life disabled or lame, than to be sent into eternal fire having two hands or two feet.And if your eye leads you to sin, root it out and cast it away from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, than to be sent into the fires of Hell having two eyes.
And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for the wealthy to enter into the kingdom of heaven."
And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying: "Eli, Eli, lamma sabacthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"
And he said to them: "To you, it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But to those who are outside, everything is presented in parables:'so that, seeing, they may see, and not perceive; and hearing, they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they may be converted, and their sins would be forgiven them.' "
"If anyone comes to me, and does not hate his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, and yes, even his own life, he is not able to be my disciple.
And the Lord said: "Simon, Simon! Behold, Satan has asked for you, so that he may sift you like wheat.But I have prayed for you, so that your faith may not fail, and so that you, once converted, may confirm your brothers."
Therefore, the Jews debated among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"And so, Jesus said to them: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you will not have life in you.Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.Just as the living Father has sent me and I live because of the Father, so also whoever eats me, the same shall live because of me.
But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a field,Immediately, she fell down before his feet and expired. Then the young men entered and found her dead. And they carried her out and buried her next to her husband.And a great fear came over the entire Church and over all who heard these things.
But God has chosen the foolish of the world, so that he may confound the wise. And God has chosen the weak of the world, so that he may confound the strong.And God has chosen the ignoble and contemptible of the world, those who are nothing, so that he may reduce to nothing those who are something.So then, nothing that is of the flesh should glory in his sight.
For whoever eats and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks a sentence against himself, not discerning it to be the body of the Lord.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the directors of this world of darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in high places.
For this has been given to you on behalf of Christ, not only so that you may believe in him, but even so that you may suffer with him,
Let no one seduce you, preferring base things and a religion of Angels, walking according to what he has not seen, being vainly inflated by the sensations of his flesh,and not holding up the head, with which the whole body, by its underlying joints and ligaments, is joined together and grows with an increase that is of God.
Yet she will be saved by bearing children, if she has continued in faith and love, and in sanctification accompanied by self-restraint.
All Scripture, having been divinely inspired, is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in justice,
For it is impossible for those who were once illuminated, and have even tasted of the heavenly gift, and have become sharers in the Holy Spirit,who, despite having tasted the good Word of God and the virtues of the future age, have yet fallen away,to be renewed again to penance, since they are crucifying again in themselves the Son of God and are still maintaining pretenses.
And in the Spirit, he preached to those who were in prison, going to those soulsas they consider with fear your chaste behavior.who had been unbelieving in past times, while they waited for the patience of God, as in the days of Noah, when the ark was being built. In that ark, a few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water.
Anyone who realizes that his brother has sinned, with a sin that is not unto death, let him pray, and life shall be given to him who has sinned not unto death. There is a sin which is unto death. I am not saying that anyone should ask on behalf of that sin.
I know your works: that you are neither cold, nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot.But because you are lukewarm and are neither cold nor hot, I will begin to vomit you out of my mouth.
And all who inhabit the earth worshiped the beast, those whose names have not been written, from the origin of the world, in the Book of Life of the Lamb who was slain.
who preserves mercy a thousand fold, who takes away iniquity, and wickedness, and also sin; and with you no one, in and of himself, is innocent. You render the iniquity of the fathers to the sons, and also to their descendents to the third and fourth generation."
'The Lord is patient and full of mercy, taking away iniquity and wickedness, and forsaking no one who is harmless. He visits the sins of the fathers upon the sons, to the third and fourth generation.'
If a man produces a disobedient and reckless son, who will not listen to the orders of his father or mother, and, having been corrected, shows contempt for obedience:they shall take him and lead him to the elders of the city and to the gate of judgment.your judges and those greater by birth shall go out and measure, from the place of the corpse, the distance to each of the surrounding cities.And they shall say to them: 'This our son is reckless and disobedient. He shows contempt when listening to our admonitions. He occupies himself with carousing, and self-indulgence, and feasting.'Then the people of the city shall stone him to death. And he shall die, so that you may take away the evil from your midst. And so may all of Israel, upon hearing it, be very afraid.
But they were not willing to agree to his words. So the man, discerning this, led out his mate to them, and he delivered her to their sexual abuse. And when they had abused her for the entire night, they released her in the morning.But the woman, as darkness was receding, came to the door of the house, where her lord was staying, and there she fell down.When morning came, the man arose, and he opened the door, so that he might complete the journey that he had begun. And behold, his mate was lying before the door, with her hands reaching out to the threshold.And he, thinking that she was resting, said to her, "Get up, and let us walk." But since she gave no response, realizing that she had died, he took her up, and he laid her on his donkey, and he returned to his house.And when he had arrived, he took up a sword, and he cut into pieces the dead body of his wife, with her bones, into twelve parts. And he sent the pieces into all the parts of Israel.And her husband followed her, wishing to be reconciled with her, and to speak kindly to her, and to lead her back with him. And he had with him a servant and two donkeys. And she received him, and brought him into the house of her father. And when his father-in-law had heard about this, and had seen him, he met him with joy.And when each one had seen this, they were crying out together, "Never has such a thing been done in Israel, from the day that our fathers ascended from Egypt, even to the present time. Let a sentence be brought and let us decide in common what ought to be done."
While these things were taking place, David happened to arise from his bed after midday, and he walked upon the terrace of the king's house. And he saw, across from his terrace, a woman washing herself. And the woman was very beautiful.if you see him to be angry, and if he says: 'Why did you draw near to the wall in order to fight? Are you ignorant that many darts are thrown from above the wall?Who struck down Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal? Did not a woman throw a fragment of a millstone upon him from the wall, and so kill him at Thebez? Why did you approach beside the wall?' then you shall say: 'Your servant Uriah, the Hittite, also lies dead.' "Therefore, the messenger departed. And he went and described to David all that Joab had instructed him.And the messenger said to David: "The men prevailed against us, and they went out to us in the field. Then we pursued them, making an assault, even to the gate of the city.And the archers directed their arrows at your servants from the wall above. And some of the king's servants died, and then also your servant Uriah the Hittite died."And David said to the messenger: "You shall say these things to Joab: 'Do not let this matter dishearten you. For varied are the events of war. Now this one, and now that one, is consumed by the sword. Encourage your warriors against the city and exhort them, so that you may destroy it.' "Then the wife of Uriah heard that her husband Uriah had died, and she mourned for him.But when the lamentation was completed, David sent and brought her into his house, and she became his wife, and she bore a son to him. And this word, which David had done, was displeasing in the sight of the Lord.Therefore, the king sent and inquired who the woman might be. And it was reported to him that she was Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah, the Hittite.And so, David sent messengers, and he took her. And when she had entered to him, he slept with her. And presently, she was purified from her uncleanness.And she returned to her house, having conceived an unborn child. And sending, she informed David, and she said, "I have conceived."
Then two women harlots went to the king, and they stood before him.And one of them said: "I beg you, my lord, I and this woman were living in one house, and I gave birth, with her in the room.Then, on the third day after I gave birth, she also gave birth. And we were together, with no other person with us in the house, only the two of us.Then this woman's son died in the night. For while sleeping, she smothered him.But still the people immolated in the high places. For no temple had been built to the name of the Lord, even to that day.And rising up in the silent depths of the night, she took my son from my side, while I, your handmaid, was sleeping, and she set him in her bosom. Then she placed her dead son in my bosom.And when I had arisen in the morning, so that I might give milk to my son, he appeared to be dead. But gazing upon him more diligently in the light of day, I realized that he was not mine, whom I had born."And the other woman responded: "It is not such as you say. Instead, your son is dead, but mine is alive." To the contrary, she said: "You are lying. For my son lives, and your son is dead." And in this manner, they were contending before the king.Then said the king: "This one says, 'My son is alive, and your son is dead.' And the other responds, 'No, instead your son is dead, but mine lives.' "Therefore the king said, "Bring a sword to me." And when they had brought a sword before the king,he said, "Divide the living infant in two parts, and give a half part to the one and a half part to the other."But the woman, whose son was alive, said to the king, for her heart was moved concerning her son, "I beg you, my lord, give the living infant to her, and do not kill him." To the contrary, the other said, "Let it be neither for me, nor for you, instead divide it."The king responded and said: "Give the living infant to this woman, and do not kill it. For she is his mother."Then all of Israel heard about the judgment that the king had judged, and they feared the king, seeing that the wisdom of God was in him to accomplish judgment.
Then he went up from there into Bethel. And as he was ascending along the way, little boys departed from the city. And they were mocking him, saying: "Go up, bald head! Go up, bald head!"And when he had looked back, he saw them, and he cursed them in the name of the Lord. And two bears went out from the forest, and they wounded forty-two boys among them.
Man, born of woman, living for a short time, is filled with many miseries.Truly, when a man dies, and has been left unprotected, and has decayed, I ask you where is he?It is as if the waters had receded from the sea and an emptied river had dried up;just so, when a man is fallen asleep, he will not rise again, until the heavens are worn away; he will not awaken, nor rise from his sleep.Who will grant this to me, that you will protect me in the underworld, and hide me until your fury passes by, and establish a time for me, in which you will remember me?Do you suppose that a dead man will live again? On each of the days in which I now battle, I wait until my transformation occurs.You will call me and I will answer you; to the work of your hands, you will extend your right hand.Indeed, you have numbered my steps, but you have been lenient with my sins.You have sealed up my offenses, as if in a purse, but you have cured my iniquity.A falling mountain flows away, and a stone is transferred from its place.Waters wear away stones, and with a flood the land is reduced little by little; and similarly, you will destroy man.He comes forth like a flower, and is crushed, and he flees, as if a shadow, and never remains in the same state.
Do not allow the humble to be turned away in confusion. The poor and the needy will praise your name.Rise up, O God, judge your own case. Call to mind the accusations against you, which are made by the foolish all day long.
I know that the Lord will accomplish justice for the needy and vindication for the poor.So then, truly, the just will confess your name, and the upright will dwell with your countenance.
The beginning of wisdom is to obtain wisdom, and, with all that you possess, to acquire prudence.
Ecclesiastes said: Vanity of vanities! Vanity of vanities, and all is vanity!What more does a man have from all his labor, as he labors under the sun?
CAPH. For, if he has cast down, he will also have compassion, according to the multitude of his mercies.CAPH. For he has not humiliated from his heart, nor has he thrown aside the sons of men,
Seventy weeks of years are concentrated on your people and on your holy city, so that transgression shall be finished, and sin shall reach an end, and iniquity shall be wiped away, and so that everlasting justice shall be brought in, and vision and prophecy shall be fulfilled, and the Saint of saints shall be anointed.
Woe to those who desire the day of the Lord. What is it to you? The day of the Lord is this: darkness and not light.It is as if a man flees from the face of a lion, only to have a bear meet him; or, he enters a house and leans with his hand against the wall, only to have a snake bite him.The virgin of Israel has been thrown onto her land, there is no one who can raise her up.Will not the day of the Lord be darkness and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
A certain man was wealthy, and he was clothed in purple and in fine linen. And he feasted splendidly every day.And he called him and said to him: 'What is this that I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship. For you can no longer be my steward.'And there was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who lay at his gate, covered with sores,wanting to be filled with the crumbs which were falling from the wealthy man's table. But no one gave it to him. And even the dogs came and licked his sores.Then it happened that the beggar died, and he was carried by the Angels into the bosom of Abraham. Now the wealthy man also died, and he was entombed in Hell.Then lifting up his eyes, while he was in torments, he saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.And crying out, he said: 'Father Abraham, take pity on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water to refresh my tongue. For I am tortured in this fire.'And Abraham said to him: 'Son, recall that you received good things in your life, and in comparison, Lazarus received bad things. But now he is consoled, and truly you are tormented.And besides all this, between us and you a great chaos has been established, so that those who might want to cross from here to you are not able, nor can someone cross from there to here.'And he said: 'Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers,so that he may testify to them, lest they also come into this place of torments.'And Abraham said to him: 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'And the steward said within himself: 'What shall I do? For my lord is taking the stewardship away from me. I am not strong enough to dig. I am too ashamed to beg.So he said: 'No, father Abraham. But if someone were to go to them from the dead, they would repent.'But he said to him: 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe even if someone has resurrected from the dead.' "
For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that all who believe in him may not perish, but may have eternal life.For God did not send his Son into the world, in order to judge the world, but in order that the world may be saved through him.Whoever believes in him is not judged. But whoever does not believe is already judged, because he does not believe in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.
And he has made, out of one, every family of man: to live upon the face of the entire earth, determining the appointed seasons and the limits of their habitation,
when the children had not yet been born, and had not yet done anything good or bad (such that the purpose of God might be based on their choice),and not because of deeds, but because of a calling, it was said to her: "The elder shall serve the younger."So also it was written: "I have loved Jacob, but I have hated Esau."
Oh, the depths of the richness of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How incomprehensible are his judgments, and how unsearchable are his ways!For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?Or who first gave to him, so that repayment would be owed?For from him, and through him, and in him are all things. To him is glory, for all eternity. Amen.
But this is just as it has been written: "The eye has not seen, and the ear has not heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, what things God has prepared for those who love him."
Otherwise, what will those who are being baptized for the dead do, if the dead do not rise again at all? Why then are they being baptized for them?
There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither servant nor free; there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, so that we would be holy and immaculate in his sight, in charity.
Yet truly, I consider everything to be a loss, because of the preeminent knowledge of Jesus Christ, my Lord, for whose sake I have suffered the loss of everything, considering it all to be like dung, so that I may gain Christ,and so that you may be found in him, not having my justice, which is of the law, but that which is of the faith of Christ Jesus, the justice within faith, which is of God.
For the Father is well-pleased that all fullness reside in him,to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ Jesus who are at Colossae.and that, through him, all things be reconciled to himself, making peace through the blood of his cross, for the things that are on earth, as well as the things that are in heaven.
For when they will say, "Peace and security!" then destruction will suddenly overwhelm them, like the labor pains of a woman with child, and they will not escape.
And it is clearly great, this mystery of piety, which was manifested in the flesh, which was justified in the Spirit, which has appeared to Angels, which has been preached to the Gentiles, which is believed in the world, which has been taken up in glory.
Be solicitous in the task of presenting yourself before God as a proven and unashamed worker who has handled the Word of Truth correctly.
For there are, indeed, many who are disobedient, who speak empty words, and who deceive, especially those who are of the circumcision.These must be reproved, for they subvert entire houses, teaching things which should not be taught, for the favor of shameful gain.
Now whoever has observed the whole law, yet who offends in one matter, has become guilty of all.
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, an acquired people, so that you may announce the virtues of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
If we claim that we have no sin, then we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
Whoever prevails, so shall he be clothed in white vestments. And I will not delete his name from the Book of Life. And I will confess his name in the presence of my Father and in the presence of his Angels.
And I saw a great white throne, and One sitting upon it, from whose sight earth and heaven fled, and no place was found for them.And I saw the dead, great and small, standing in view of the throne. And books were opened. And another Book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged by those things that had been written in the books, according to their works.And the sea gave up the dead who were in it. And death and Hell gave up their dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.And Hell and death were cast into the pool of fire. This is the second death.And whoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the pool of fire.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. And death shall be no more. And neither mourning, nor crying out, nor grief shall be anymore. For the first things have passed away."
For I call as witnesses all listeners of the words of the prophecy of this book. If anyone will have added to these, God will add upon him the afflictions written in this book.And if anyone will have taken away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his portion from the Book of Life, and from the Holy City, and from these things which have been written in this book.