The One Year Bible TLB (14 page)
Read The One Year Bible TLB Online
Authors: Tyndale
That man is a fool who says to himself, “There is no God!” Anyone who talks like that is warped and evil and cannot really be a good person at all.
2
The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who are wise, who want to please God.
3
But no, all have strayed away; all are rotten with sin. Not one is good, not one!
4
They eat my people like bread and wouldn’t think of praying! Don’t they really know any better?
5
Terror shall grip them, for God is with those who love him.
6
He is the refuge of the poor and humble when evildoers are oppressing them.
7
Oh, that the time of their rescue were already here, that God would come from Zion now to save his people. What gladness when the Lord has rescued Israel!
The Lord’s wisdom founded the earth; his understanding established all the universe and space.
20
The deep fountains of the earth were broken open by his knowledge, and the skies poured down rain.
January 17“Move on to Bethel now, and settle there,” God said to Jacob, “and build an altar to worship me—the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”
2
So Jacob instructed all those in his household to destroy the idols they had brought with them, and to wash themselves and to put on fresh clothing.
3
“For we are going to Bethel,” he told them, “and I will build an altar there to the God who answered my prayers in the day of my distress, and was with me on my journey.”
4
So they gave Jacob all their idols and their earrings, and he buried them beneath the oak tree near Shechem.
5
Then they started on again. And the terror of God was upon all the cities they journeyed through, so that they were not attacked.
6
Finally they arrived at Luz (also called Bethel), in Canaan.
7
And Jacob erected an altar there and named it “the altar to the God who met me here at Bethel”
*
because it was there at Bethel that God appeared to him when he was fleeing from Esau.
8
Soon after this
*
Rebekah’s old nurse, Deborah, died and was buried beneath the oak tree in the valley below Bethel. And ever after it was called “The Oak of Weeping.”
9
Upon Jacob’s arrival at Bethel, en route from Paddan-aram, God appeared to him once again and blessed him.
10
And God said to him, “You shall no longer be called Jacob (‘Grabber’), but Israel (‘One who prevails with God’).
11
I am God Almighty,” the Lord said to him, “and I will cause you to be fertile and to multiply and to become a great nation, yes, many nations; many kings shall be among your descendants.
12
And I will pass on to you the land I gave to Abraham and Isaac. Yes, I will give it to you and to your descendants.”
13-14
Afterwards Jacob built a stone pillar at the place where God had appeared to him; and he poured wine over it as an offering to God and then anointed the pillar with olive oil.
15
Jacob named the spot Bethel (“House of God”), because God had spoken to him there.
16
Leaving Bethel, he and his household traveled on toward Ephrath (Bethlehem). But Rachel’s pains of childbirth began while they were still a long way away.
17
After a very hard delivery, the midwife finally exclaimed, “Wonderful—another boy!”
18
And with Rachel’s last breath (for she died) she named him “Ben-oni” (“Son of my sorrow”); but his father called him “Benjamin” (“Son of my right hand”).
19
So Rachel died, and was buried near the road to Ephrath (also called Bethlehem).
20
And Jacob set up a monument of stones upon her grave, and it is there to this day.
21
Then Israel journeyed on and camped beyond the Tower of Eder.
22
It was while he was there that Reuben slept with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and someone told Israel about it.
Here are the names of the twelve sons of Jacob:
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The sons of Leah: Reuben, Jacob’s oldest child, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun.
24
The sons of Rachel: Joseph, Benjamin.
25
The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant girl: Dan, Naphtali.
26
The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant girl: Gad, Asher.
All these were born to him at Paddan-aram.
27
So Jacob came at last to Isaac his father at Mamre in Kiriath-arba (now called Hebron), where Abraham too had lived.
28-29
Isaac died soon afterwards, at the ripe old age of 180. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
36:
1
Here is a list of the descendants of Esau (also called Edom):
2-3
Esau married three local girls from Canaan: Adah (daughter of Elon the Hethite), Oholibamah (daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite), Basemath (his cousin
*
—she was a daughter of Ishmael—the sister of Nebaioth).
4
Esau and Adah had a son named Eliphaz. Esau and Basemath had a son named Reuel.
5
Esau and Oholibamah had sons named Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. All these sons were born to Esau in the land of Canaan.
6-8
Then Esau took his wives, children, household servants, cattle and flocks—all the wealth he had gained in the land of Canaan—and moved away from his brother Jacob to Mount Seir. (For there was not land enough to support them both because of all their cattle.)
9
Here are the names of Esau’s descendants, the Edomites, born to him in Mount Seir:
10-12
Descended from his wife Adah, born to her son Eliphaz were: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, Kenaz, Amalek (born to Timna, Eliphaz’ concubine).
13-14
Esau also had grandchildren from his wife Basemath. Born to her son Reuel were: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, Mizzah.
15-16
Esau’s grandchildren
*
became the heads of clans, as listed here: the clan of Teman, the clan of Omar, the clan of Zepho, the clan of Kenaz, the clan of Korah, the clan of Gatam, the clan of Amalek.
The above clans were the descendants of Eliphaz, the oldest son of Esau and Adah.
17
The following clans were the descendants of Reuel, born to Esau and his wife Basemath while they lived in Canaan: the clan of Nahath, the clan of Zerah, the clan of Shammah, the clan of Mizzah.
18-19
And these are the clans named after the sons of Esau and his wife Oholibamah (daughter of Anah): the clan of Jeush, the clan of Jalam, the clan of Korah.
20-21
These are the names of the tribes that descended from Seir, the Horite—one of the native families of the land of Seir: the tribe of Lotan, the tribe of Shobal, the tribe of Zibeon, the tribe of Anah, the tribe of Dishon, the tribe of Ezer, the tribe of Dishan.
22
The children of Lotan (the son of Seir) were Hori and Heman. (Lotan had a sister, Timna.)
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The children of Shobal: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, Onam.
24
The children of Zibeon: Aiah, Anah. (This is the boy who discovered a hot springs in the wasteland while he was grazing his father’s donkeys.)
25
The children of Anah: Dishon, Oholibamah.
26
The children of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, Cheran.
27
The children of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, Akan.
28-30
The children of Dishan: Uz, Aran.
*
31-39
These are the names of the kings of Edom (before Israel had her first king):
King Bela (son of Beor), from Dinhabah in Edom.
Succeeded by:
*
King Jobab (son of BoZerah), from the city of Bozrah.
Succeeded by: King Husham, from the land of the Temanites.
Succeeded by: King Hadad (son of Bedad), the leader of the forces that defeated the army of Midian when it invaded Moab. His city was Avith.
Succeeded by: King Samlah, from Masrekah.
Succeeded by: King Shaul, from Rehoboth-by-the-River.
Succeeded by: King Baal-hanan (son of Achbor).
Succeeded by: King Hadad, from the city of Pau.
King Hadad’s wife was Mehetabel, daughter of Matred and granddaughter of Mezahab.
40-43
Here are the names of the subtribes of Esau, living in the localities named after themselves: the clan of Timna, the clan of Alvah, the clan of Jetheth, the clan of Oholibamah, the clan of Elah, the clan of Pinon, the clan of Kenaz, the clan of Teman, the clan of Mibzar, the clan of Magdiel, the clan of Iram.
These, then, are the names of the subtribes of Edom, each giving its name to the area it occupied. (All were Edomites, descendants of Esau.)
About that time, Jesus was walking one day through some grainfields with his disciples. It was on the Sabbath, the Jewish day of worship, and his disciples were hungry; so they began breaking off heads of wheat and eating the grain.
2
But some Pharisees saw them do it and protested, “Your disciples are breaking the law. They are harvesting on the Sabbath.”
3
But Jesus said to them,
“Haven’t you ever read what King David did when he and his friends were hungry?
4
He went into the Temple and they ate the special bread permitted to the priests alone. That was breaking the law too.
5
And haven’t you ever read in the law of Moses how the priests on duty in the Temple may work on the Sabbath?
6
And truly, one is here who is greater than the Temple!
7
But if you had known the meaning of this Scripture verse, ‘I want you to be merciful more than I want your offerings,’ you would not have condemned those who aren’t guilty!
8
For I, the Messiah,
*
am master even of the Sabbath.”
9
Then he went over to the synagogue
10
and noticed there a man with a deformed hand. The Pharisees
*
asked Jesus, “Is it legal to work by healing on the Sabbath day?” (They were, of course, hoping he would say yes, so they could arrest him!)
11
This was his answer:
“If you had just one sheep, and it fell into a well on the Sabbath, would you work to rescue it that day? Of course you would.
*
12
And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Yes, it is right to do good on the Sabbath.”
13
Then he said to the man,
“Stretch out your arm.”
And as he did, his hand became normal, just like the other one!
14
Then the Pharisees called a meeting to plot Jesus’ arrest and death.
15
But he knew what they were planning and left the synagogue, with many following him. He healed all the sick among them,
16
but he cautioned them against spreading the news about his miracles.
17
This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning him:
18
“Look at my Servant.
See my Chosen One.
He is my Beloved, in whom my soul delights.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
And he will judge the nations.
19
He does not fight nor shout;
He does not raise his voice!
20
He does not crush the weak,
Or quench the smallest hope;
He will end all conflict with his final victory,
21
And his name shall be the hope
Of all the world.”
*
Lord, who may go and find refuge and shelter in your tabernacle up on your holy hill?
2
Anyone who leads a blameless life and is truly sincere.
3
Anyone who refuses to slander others, does not listen to gossip, never harms his neighbor,
4
speaks out against sin, criticizes those committing it, commends the faithful followers of the Lord, keeps a promise even if it ruins him,
5
does not crush his debtors with high interest rates, and refuses to testify against the innocent despite the bribes offered him—such a man shall stand firm forever.
Have two goals: wisdom—that is, knowing and doing right—and common sense. Don’t let them slip away,
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for they fill you with living energy and bring you honor and respect.
*
23
They keep you safe from defeat and disaster and from stumbling off the trail.
24-26
With them on guard you can sleep without fear; you need not be afraid of disaster or the plots of wicked men, for the Lord is with you; he protects you.