The Daily Audio Bible
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16 Now Sarai the wife of Abram, had brought forth no children; but having a handmaid, an Egyptian, named Agar,
2 She said to her husband: Behold, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: go in unto my handmaid, it may be I may have children of her at least. And when he agreed to her request,
3 She took Agar the Egyptian her handmaid, ten years after they first dwelt in the land of Chanaan, and gave her to her husband to wife.
4 And he went in to her. But she, perceiving that she was with child, despised her mistress.
5 And Sarai said to Abram: Thou dost unjustly with me: I gave my handmaid into thy bosom, and she perceiving herself to be with child, despiseth me. The Lord judge between me and thee.
6 And Abram made answer, and said to her: Behold thy handmaid is in thy own hand, use her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai afflicted her, she ran away.
7 And the angel of the Lord having found her, by a fountain of water in the wilderness, which is in the way to Sur in the desert,
8 He said to her: Agar, handmaid of Sarai, whence comest thou? and whither goest thou? And she answered: I flee from the face of Sarai, my mistress.
9 And the angel of the Lord said to her: Return to thy mistress, and humble thyself under her hand.
10 And again he said: I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, and it shall not be numbered for multitude.
11 And again: Behold, said he, thou art with child, and thou shalt bring forth a son: and thou shalt call his name Ismael, because the Lord hath heard thy affliction.
12 He shall be a wild man: his hand will be against all men, and all men's hands against him: and he shall pitch his tents over against all his brethren.
13 And she called the name of the Lord that spoke unto her: Thou the God who hast seen me. For she said: Verily here have I seen the hinder parts of him that seeth me.
14 Therefore she called that well, The well of him that liveth and seeth me. The same is between Cades and Barad.
15 And Agar brought forth a son to Abram: who called his name Ismael.
16 Abram was fourscore and six years old when Agar brought him forth Ismael.
17 And after he began to be ninety and nine years old, the Lord appeared to him: and said unto him: I am the Almighty God: walk before me, and be perfect.
2 And I will make my covenant between me and thee: and I will multiply thee exceedingly.
3 Abram fell flat on his face.
4 And God said to him: I AM, and my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
5 Neither shall thy name be called any more Abram: but thou shalt be called Abraham: because I have made thee a father of many nations.
6 And I will make thee increase, exceedingly, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee, and between thy seed after thee in their generations, by a perpetual covenant: to be a God to thee, and to thy seed after thee.
8 And I will give to thee, and to thy seed, the land of thy sojournment, all the land of Chanaan for a perpetual possession, and I will be their God.
9 Again God said to Abraham: And thou therefore shalt keep my covenant, and thy seed after thee in their generations.
10 This is my covenant which you shall observe, between me and you, and thy seed after thee: All the male kind of you shall be circumcised:
11 And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, that it may be for a sign of the covenant between me and you.
12 An infant of eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations: he that is born in the house, as well as the bought servant shall be circumcised, and whosoever is not of your stock:
13 And my covenant shall be in your flesh for a perpetual covenant.
14 The male, whose flesh of his foreskin shall not be circumcised, that soul shall be destroyed out of his people: because he hath broken my covenant.
15 God said also to Abraham: Sarai thy wife thou shalt not call Sarai, but Sara.
16 And I will bless her, and of her I will give thee a son, whom I will bless, and he shall become nations, and kings of people shall spring from him.
17 Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, saying in his heart: Shall a son, thinkest thou, be born to him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sara that is ninety years old bring forth?
18 And he said to God: O that Ismael may live before thee.
19 And God said to Abraham: Sara thy wife shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name Isaac, and I will establish my covenant with him for a perpetual covenant, and with his seed after him.
20 And as for Ismael I have also heard thee. Behold, I will bless him, and increase, and multiply him exceedingly: he shall beget twelve chiefs, and I will make him a great nation.
21 But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sara shall bring forth to thee at this time in the next year.
22 And when he had left off speaking with him, God went up from Abraham.
23 And Abraham took Ismael his son, and all that were born in his house: and all whom he had bought, every male among the men of his house: and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskin forthwith the very same day, as God had commanded him.
24 Abraham was ninety and nine years old, when he circumcised the flesh of his foreskin.
25 And Ismael his son was full thirteen years old at the time of his circumcision.
26 The selfsame day was Abraham circumcised and Ismael his son.
27 And all the men of his house, as well they that were born in his house, as the bought servants and strangers were circumcised with him.
18 And the Lord appeared to him in the vale of Mambre as he was sitting at the door of his tent, in the very heat of the day.
2 And when he had lifted up his eyes, there appeared to him three men standing near him: and as soon as he saw them he ran to meet them from the door of his tent, and adored down to the ground.
3 And he said: Lord, if I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away from thy servant:
4 But I will fetch a little water, and wash ye your feet, and rest ye under the tree.
5 And I will set a morsel of bread, and strengthen ye your heart, afterwards you shall pass on: for therefore are you come aside to your servant. And they said: Do as thou hast spoken.
6 Abraham made haste into the tent to Sara, and said to her: Make haste, temper together three measures of flour, and make cakes upon the hearth.
7 And he himself ran to the herd, and took from thence a calf very tender and very good, and gave it to a young man: who made haste and boiled it.
8 He took also butter and milk, and the calf which he had boiled, and set before them: but he stood by them under the tree.
9 And when they had eaten, they said to him: Where is Sara thy wife? He answered: Lo, she is in the tent.
10 And he said to him: I will return and come to thee at this time, life accompanying and Sara thy wife shall have a son. Which when Sara heard, she laughed behind the door of the tent.
11 Now they were both old, and far advanced in years, and it had ceased to be with Sara after the manner of women.
12 And she laughed secretly, saying: After I am grown old and my lord is an old man, shall I give myself to pleasure?
13 And the Lord said to Abraham: Why did Sara laugh, saying: Shall I who am an old woman bear a child indeed?
14 Is there any thing hard to God? According to appointment I will return to thee at this same time, life accompanying, and Sara shall have a son.
15 Sara denied, saying: I did not laugh: for she was afraid. But the Lord said, Nay: but thou didst laugh:
6 Take heed that you do not your justice before men, to be seen by them: otherwise you shall not have a reward of your Father who is in heaven.
2 Therefore when thou dost an almsdeed, sound not a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honoured by men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward.
3 But when thou dost alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth.
4 That thy alms may be in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee.
5 And when ye pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, that love to stand and pray in the synagogues and corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men: Amen I say to you, they have received their reward.
6 But thou when thou shalt pray, enter into thy chamber, and having shut the door, pray to thy Father in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret will repay thee.
7 And when you are praying, speak not much, as the heathens. For they think that in their much speaking they may be heard.
8 Be not you therefore like to them, for your Father knoweth what is needful for you, before you ask him.
9 Thus therefore shall you pray: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our supersubstantial bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil. Amen.
14 For if you will forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father will forgive you also your offences.
15 But if you will not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive you your offences.
16 And when you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward.
17 But thou, when thou fastest anoint thy head, and wash thy face;
18 That thou appear not to men to fast, but to thy Father who is in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret, will repay thee.
19 Lay not up to yourselves treasures on earth: where the rust, and moth consume, and where thieves break through and steal.
20 But lay up to yourselves treasures in heaven: where neither the rust nor moth doth consume, and where thieves do not break through, nor steal.
21 For where thy treasure is, there is thy heart also.
22 The light of thy body is thy eye. If thy eye be single, thy whole body shall be lightsome.
23 But if thy eye be evil thy whole body shall be darksome. If then the light that is in thee, be darkness: the darkness itself how great shall it be!
24 No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
7 The psalm of David which he sung to the Lord for the words of Chusi the son of Jemini. [2 Kings 16.]
2 O Lord my God, in thee have I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me.
3 Lest at any time he seize upon my soul like a lion, while there is no one to redeem me, nor to save.
4 O Lord my God, if I have done this thing, if there be iniquity in my hands:
5 If I have rendered to them that repaid me evils, let me deservedly fall empty before my enemies.
6 Let the enemy pursue my soul, and take it, and tread down my life on the earth, and bring down my glory to the dust.
7 Rise up, O Lord, in thy anger: and be thou exalted in the borders of my enemies. And arise, O Lord my God, in the precept which thou hast commanded:
8 And a congregation of people shall surround thee. And for their sakes return thou on high.
9 The Lord judgeth the people. Judge me, O Lord, according to my justice, and according to my innocence in me.
10 The wickedness of sinners shall be brought to nought: and thou shalt direct the just: the searcher of hearts and reins is God.
11 Just is my help from the Lord: who saveth the upright of heart.
12 God is a just judge, strong and patient: is he angry every day?
13 Except you will be converted, he will brandish his sword: he hath bent his bow and made it ready.
14 And in it he hath prepared the instruments of death, he hath made ready his arrows for them that burn.
15 Behold he hath been in labour with injustice; he hath conceived sorrow, and brought forth iniquity.
16 He hath opened a pit and dug it; and he is fallen into the hole he made.
17 His sorrow shall be turned on his own head: and his iniquity shall comedown upon his crown.
18 I will give glory to the Lord according to his justice: and will sing to the name of the Lord the most high.
2 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and wilt hide my commandments with thee,
2 That thy ear may hearken to wisdom: Incline thy heart to know prudence:
3 For if thou shalt call for wisdom, and incline thy heart to prudence:
4 If thou shalt seek her as money, and shalt dig for her as for a treasure:
5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and shalt find the knowledge of God.
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