The One Year Bible TLB (113 page)
Read The One Year Bible TLB Online
Authors: Tyndale
A sensible son gladdens his father. A rebellious son saddens his mother.
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21
If a man enjoys folly, something is wrong! The sensible stay on the pathways of right.
May 20Now the men from Ziph came back to Saul at Gibeah to tell him that David had returned to the wilderness and was hiding on Hachilah Hill.
2
So Saul took his elite corps of three thousand troops and went to hunt him down.
3-4
Saul camped along the road at the edge of the wilderness where David was hiding, but David knew of Saul’s arrival and sent out spies to watch his movements.
5-7
David slipped over to Saul’s camp one night to look around. King Saul and General Abner were sleeping inside a ring formed by the slumbering soldiers.
“Any volunteers to go down there with me?” David asked Ahimelech (the Hittite) and Abishai (Joab’s brother and the son of Zeruiah).
“I’ll go with you,” Abishai replied. So David and Abishai went to Saul’s camp and found him asleep, with his spear in the ground beside his head.
8
“God has put your enemy within your power this time for sure,” Abishai whispered to David. “Let me go and put that spear through him. I’ll pin him to the earth with it—I’ll not need to strike a second time!”
9
“No,” David said. “Don’t kill him, for who can remain innocent after attacking the Lord’s chosen king?
10
Surely God will strike him down some day, or he will die in battle or of old age.
11
But God forbid that I should kill the man he has chosen to be king! But I’ll tell you what—we’ll take his spear and his jug of water and then get out of here!”
12
So David took the spear and jug of water, and they got away without anyone seeing them or even waking up, because the Lord had put them sound asleep.
13
They climbed the mountain slope opposite the camp until they were at a safe distance.
14
Then David shouted down to Abner and Saul, “Wake up, Abner!”
“Who is it?” Abner demanded.
15
“Well, Abner, you’re a great fellow, aren’t you?” David taunted. “Where in all Israel is there anyone as wonderful? So why haven’t you guarded your master the king when someone came to kill him?
16
This isn’t good at all! I swear by the Lord that you ought to die for your carelessness. Where is the king’s spear and the jug of water that was beside his head? Look and see!”
17-18
Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is that you, my son David?”
And David replied, “Yes, sir, it is. Why are you chasing me? What have I done? What is my crime?
19
If the Lord has stirred you up against me, then let him accept my peace offering. But if this is simply the scheme of a man, then may he be cursed by God. For you have driven me out of my home so that I can’t be with the Lord’s people, and you have sent me away to worship heathen gods.
20
Must I die on foreign soil, far from the presence of Jehovah? Why should the king of Israel come out to hunt my life like a partridge on the mountains?”
21
Then Saul confessed, “I have done wrong. Come back home, my son, and I’ll no longer try to harm you; for you saved my life today. I have been a fool, and very, very wrong.”
22
“Here is your spear, sir,” David replied. “Let one of your young men come over and get it.
23
The Lord gives his own reward for doing good and for being loyal, and I refused to kill you even when the Lord placed you in my power.
24
Now may the Lord save my life, even as I have saved yours today. May he rescue me from all my troubles.”
25
And Saul said to David, “Blessings on you, my son David. You shall do heroic deeds and be a great conqueror.”
Then David went away and Saul returned home.
27:
1
But David kept thinking to himself, “Someday Saul is going to get me. I’ll try my luck among the Philistines until Saul gives up and quits hunting for me; then I will finally be safe again.”
2-3
So David took his six hundred men and their families to live at Gath under the protection of King Achish. He had his two wives with him—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, Nabal’s widow.
4
Word soon reached Saul that David had fled to Gath, so he quit hunting for him.
5
One day David said to Achish, “My lord, if it is all right with you, we would rather live in one of the country towns instead of here in the royal city.”
6
So Achish gave him Ziklag (which still belongs to the kings of Judah to this day),
7
and they lived there among the Philistines for a year and four months.
8
He and his men spent their time raiding the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites—people who had lived near Shur along the road to Egypt ever since ancient times.
9
They didn’t leave one person alive in the villages they hit and took for themselves the sheep, oxen, donkeys, camels, and clothing before returning to their homes.
10
“Where did you make your raid today?” Achish would ask.
And David would reply, “Against the south of Judah and the people of Jerahmeel and the Kenites.”
11
No one was left alive to come to Gath and tell where he had really been. This happened again and again while he was living among the Philistines.
12
Achish believed David and thought that the people of Israel must hate him bitterly by now. “Now he will have to stay here and serve me forever!” the king thought.
28:
1
About that time the Philistines mustered their armies for another war with Israel.
“Come and help us fight,” King Achish said to David and his men.
2
“Good,” David agreed. “You will soon see what a help we can be to you.”
“If you are, you shall be my personal bodyguard for life,” Achish told him.
3
(Meanwhile, Samuel had died and all Israel had mourned for him. He was buried in Ramah, his hometown. King Saul had banned all mediums and wizards from the land of Israel.)
4
The Philistines set up their camp at Shunem, and Saul and the armies of Israel were at Gilboa.
5-6
When Saul saw the vast army of the Philistines, he was frantic with fear and asked the Lord what he should do. But the Lord refused to answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim,
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or by the prophets.
7-8
Saul then instructed his aides to try to find a medium so that he could ask her what to do, and they found one at Endor. Saul disguised himself by wearing ordinary clothing instead of his royal robes. He went to the woman’s home at night, accompanied by two of his men.
“I’ve got to talk to a dead man,” he pleaded. “Will you bring his spirit up?”
9
“Are you trying to get me killed?” the woman demanded. “You know that Saul has had all of the mediums and fortune-tellers executed. You are spying on me.”
10
But Saul took a solemn oath that he wouldn’t betray her.
11
Finally the woman said, “Well, whom do you want me to bring up?”
“Bring me Samuel,” Saul replied.
12
When the woman saw Samuel, she screamed, “You’ve deceived me! You are Saul!”
13
“Don’t be frightened!” the king told her. “What do you see?”
“I see a specter coming up out of the earth,” she said.
14
“What does he look like?”
“He is an old man wrapped in a robe.”
Saul realized that it was Samuel and bowed low before him.
15
“Why have you disturbed me by bringing me back?” Samuel asked Saul.
“Because I am in deep trouble,” he replied. “The Philistines are at war with us, and God has left me and won’t reply by prophets or dreams; so I have called for you to ask you what to do.”
16
But Samuel replied, “Why ask me if the Lord has left you and has become your enemy?
17
He has done just as he said he would and has taken the kingdom from you and given it to your rival, David.
18
All this has come upon you because you did not obey the Lord’s instructions when he was so angry with Amalek.
19
What’s more, the entire Israeli army will be routed and destroyed by the Philistines tomorrow, and you and your sons will be here with me.”
20
Saul now fell full length upon the ground, paralyzed with fright because of Samuel’s words. He was also faint with hunger, for he had eaten nothing all day.
21
When the woman saw how distraught he was, she said, “Sir, I obeyed your command at the risk of my life.
22
Now do what I say, and let me give you something to eat so you’ll regain your strength for the trip back.”
23
But he refused. The men who were with him added their pleas to that of the woman until he finally yielded and got up and sat on the bed.
24
The woman had been fattening a calf, so she hurried out and killed it and kneaded dough and baked unleavened bread.
25
She brought the meal to the king and his men, and they ate it. Then they went out into the night.
Do you remember Mary, who poured the costly perfume on Jesus’ feet and wiped them with her hair?
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Well, her brother Lazarus, who lived in Bethany with Mary and her sister Martha, was sick.
3
So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, “Sir, your good friend is very, very sick.”
4
But when Jesus heard about it he said,
“The purpose of his illness is not death, but for the glory of God. I, the Son of God, will receive glory from this situation.”
5
Although Jesus was very fond of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus,
6
he stayed where he was for the next two days and made no move to go to them.
7
Finally, after the two days, he said to his disciples,
“Let’s go to Judea.”
8
But his disciples objected. “Master,” they said, “only a few days ago the Jewish leaders in Judea were trying to kill you. Are you going there again?”
9
Jesus replied,
“There are twelve hours of daylight every day, and during every hour of it a man can walk safely and not stumble.
10
Only at night is there danger of a wrong step, because of the dark.”
11
Then he said,
“Our friend Lazarus has gone to sleep, but now I will go and waken him!”
12-13
The disciples, thinking Jesus meant Lazarus was having a good night’s rest, said, “That means he is getting better!” But Jesus meant Lazarus had died.
14
Then he told them plainly,
“Lazarus is dead.
15
And for your sake, I am glad I wasn’t there, for this will give you another opportunity to believe in me. Come, let’s go to him.”
16
Thomas, nicknamed “The Twin,” said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too—and die with him.”
17
When they arrived at Bethany, they were told that Lazarus had already been in his tomb for four days.
18
Bethany was only a couple of miles down the road from Jerusalem,
19
and many of the Jewish leaders had come to pay their respects and to console Martha and Mary on their loss.
20
When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him. But Mary stayed at home.
21
Martha said to Jesus, “Sir, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.
22
And even now it’s not too late, for I know that God will bring my brother back to life again, if you will only ask him to.”
23
Jesus told her,
“Your brother will come back to life again.”
24
“Yes,” Martha said, “when everyone else does, on Resurrection Day.”
25
Jesus told her,
“I am the one who raises the dead and gives them life again. Anyone who believes in me, even though he dies like anyone else, shall live again.
26
He is given eternal life for believing in me and shall never perish. Do you believe this, Martha?”
27
“Yes, Master,” she told him. “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one we have so long awaited.”
28
Then she left him and returned to Mary and, calling her aside from the mourners, told her, “He is here and wants to see you.”
29
So Mary went to him at once.
30
Now Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met him.
31
When the Jewish leaders who were at the house trying to console Mary saw her leave so hastily, they assumed she was going to Lazarus’ tomb to weep; so they followed her.
32
When Mary arrived where Jesus was, she fell down at his feet, saying, “Sir, if you had been here, my brother would still be alive.”
33
When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jewish leaders wailing with her, he was moved with indignation and deeply troubled.
34
“Where is he buried?”
he asked them.
They told him, “Come and see.”
35
Tears came to Jesus’ eyes.
36
“They were close friends,” the Jewish leaders said. “See how much he loved him.”
37-38
But some said, “This fellow healed a blind man—why couldn’t he keep Lazarus from dying?”
And again Jesus was moved with deep anger. Then they came to the tomb. It was a cave with a heavy stone rolled across its door.
39
“Roll the stone aside,”
Jesus told them.
But Martha, the dead man’s sister, said, “By now the smell will be terrible, for he has been dead four days.”
40
“But didn’t I tell you that you will see a wonderful miracle from God if you believe?”
Jesus asked her.
41
So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said,
“Father, thank you for hearing me.
42
(You always hear me, of course, but I said it because of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.)”
43
Then he shouted,
“Lazarus, come out!”
44
And Lazarus came—bound up in the gravecloth, his face muffled in a head swath. Jesus told them,
“Unwrap him and let him go!”
45
And so at last many of the Jewish leaders who were with Mary and saw it happen, finally believed on him.
46
But some went away to the Pharisees and reported it to them.
47
Then the chief priests and Pharisees convened a council to discuss the situation.
“What are we going to do?” they asked each other. “For this man certainly does miracles.
48
If we let him alone the whole nation will follow him—and then the Roman army will come and kill us and take over the Jewish government.”
49
And one of them, Caiaphas, who was High Priest that year, said, “You stupid idiots—
50
let this one man die for the people—why should the whole nation perish?”
51
This prophecy that Jesus should die for the entire nation came from Caiaphas in his position as High Priest—he didn’t think of it by himself, but was inspired to say it.
52
It was a prediction that Jesus’ death would not be for Israel only, but for all the children of God scattered around the world.
53
So from that time on the Jewish leaders began plotting Jesus’ death.
54
Jesus now stopped his public ministry and left Jerusalem; he went to the edge of the desert, to the village of Ephraim, and stayed there with his disciples.