The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the CEB. Switch to the CEB to read along with the audio.
8 Then came Amalek [descendants of Esau] and fought with Israel at Rephidim.
9 And Moses said to Joshua, Choose us out men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.
10 So Joshua did as Moses said and fought with Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the hilltop.
11 When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and when he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed.
12 But Moses’ hands were heavy and grew weary. So [the other men] took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Then Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side and one on the other side; so his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.
13 And Joshua mowed down and disabled Amalek and his people with the sword.
14 And the Lord said to Moses, Write this for a memorial in the book and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under the heavens.(A)
15 And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord is my Banner;
16 And he said, Because [theirs] is a hand against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.
18 Now Jethro [Reuel], the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, and that the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.
2 Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after Moses had sent her back [to her father],
3 And her two sons, of whom the name of the one was Gershom [ expulsion, or a stranger there], for Moses said, I have been an alien in a strange land;
4 And the name of the other was Eliezer [God is help], for the God of my father, said Moses, was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.
5 And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with Moses’ sons and his wife to the wilderness where he was encamped at the mount of God [Horeb, or Sinai].
6 And he said [in a message] to Moses, I, your father-in-law Jethro, am come to you and your wife and her two sons with her.
7 And Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed in homage and kissed him; and each asked the other of his welfare and they came into the tent.
8 Moses told his father-in-law all the Lord had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel’s sake and all the hardships that had come upon them by the way and how the Lord delivered them.
9 Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness the Lord had done to Israel in that He had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians.
10 Jethro said, Blessed be the Lord, Who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh, Who has delivered the people [Israel] from under the hand of the Egyptians.
11 Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods. Yes, in the [very] thing in which they dealt proudly [He showed Himself infinitely superior to all their gods].
12 And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices [to offer] to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.
13 Next day Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood around Moses from morning till evening.
14 When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, What is this that you do for the people? Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand around you from morning till evening?
15 Moses said to his father-in-law, Because the people come to me to inquire of God.
16 When they have a dispute they come to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make them know the statutes of God and His laws.
17 Moses’ father-in-law said to him, The thing that you are doing is not good.
18 You will surely wear out both yourself and this people with you, for the thing is too heavy for you; you are not able to perform it all by yourself.
19 Listen now to [me]; I will counsel you, and God will be with you. You shall represent the people before God, bringing their cases and causes to Him,
20 Teaching them the decrees and laws, showing them the way they must walk and the work they must do.
21 Moreover, you shall choose able men from all the people—God-fearing men of truth who hate unjust gain—and place them over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, to be their rulers.
22 And let them judge the people at all times; every great matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they shall judge. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you.
23 If you will do this, and God so commands you, you will be able to endure [the strain], and all these people also will go to their [tents] in peace.
24 So Moses listened to and heeded the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said.
25 Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.
26 And they judged the people at all times; the hard cases they brought to Moses, but every small matter they decided themselves.
27 Then Moses let his father-in-law depart, and he went his way into his own land.
19 In the third month after the Israelites left the land of Egypt, the same day, they came into the Wilderness of Sinai.
2 When they had departed from Rephidim and had come to the Wilderness of Sinai, they encamped there before the mountain.
3 And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him out of the mountain, Say this to the house of Jacob and tell the Israelites:
4 You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself.
5 Now therefore, if you will obey My voice in truth and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own peculiar possession and treasure from among and above all peoples; for all the earth is Mine.
6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation [consecrated, set apart to the worship of God]. These are the words you shall speak to the Israelites.
7 So Moses called for the elders of the people and told them all these words which the Lord commanded him.
8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord has spoken we will do. And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.
9 And the Lord said to Moses, Behold, I come to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you and believe you and remain steadfast forever. Then Moses told the words of the people to the Lord.
10 And the Lord said to Moses, Go and sanctify the people [set them apart for God] today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes
11 And be ready by the third day, for the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai [in the cloud] in the sight of all the people.
12 And you shall set bounds for the people round about, saying, Take heed that you go not up into the mountain or touch the border of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.
13 No hand shall touch it [or the offender], but he shall surely be stoned or shot [with arrows]; whether beast or man, he shall not live. When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.(B)
14 So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified them [set them apart for God], and they washed their clothes.
15 And he said to the people, Be ready by the day after tomorrow; do not go near a woman.
34 Now when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced ([a]muzzled) the Sadducees, they gathered together.
35 And one of their number, a lawyer, asked Him a question to test Him.
36 Teacher, which [b]kind of commandment is great and important (the principal kind) in the Law? [Some commandments are light—which are heavy?]
37 And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intellect).(A)
38 This is the great (most important, principal) and first commandment.
39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself.(B)
40 These two commandments [c]sum up and upon them depend all the Law and the Prophets.
41 Now while the Pharisees were still assembled there, Jesus asked them a question,
42 Saying, What do you think of the Christ? Whose Son is He? They said to Him, The Son of David.
43 He said to them, How is it then that David, under the influence of the [Holy] Spirit, calls Him Lord, saying,
44 The Lord said to My Lord, Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies under Your feet?(C)
45 If then David thus calls Him Lord, how is He his Son?
46 And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day did anyone venture or dare to question Him.
23 Then Jesus said to the multitudes and to His disciples,
2 The scribes and Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat [of authority].
3 So observe and practice all they tell you; but do not do what they do, for they preach, but do not practice.
4 They tie up heavy loads, hard to bear, and place them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not lift a finger to help bear them.
5 They do all their works to be seen of men; for they make wide their phylacteries ([d]small cases enclosing certain Scripture passages, worn during prayer on the left arm and forehead) and make long their fringes [worn by all male Israelites, according to the command].(D)
6 And they [e]take pleasure in and [thus] love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues,
7 And to be greeted with honor in the marketplaces and to have people call them rabbi.
8 But you are not to be called rabbi (teacher), for you have one Teacher and you are all brothers.
9 And do not call anyone [in the church] on earth father, for you have one Father, Who is in heaven.
10 And you must not be called masters (leaders), for you have one Master (Leader), the Christ.
11 He who is greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 Whoever exalts himself [[f]with haughtiness and empty pride] shall be humbled (brought low), and whoever humbles himself [whoever has a modest opinion of himself and behaves accordingly] shall be [g]raised to honor.
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; have mercy and be gracious to me and answer me!
8 You have said, Seek My face [inquire for and require My presence as your vital need]. My heart says to You, Your face (Your presence), Lord, will I seek, inquire for, and require [of necessity and on the authority of Your Word].
9 Hide not Your face from me; turn not Your servant away in anger, You Who have been my help! Cast me not off, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation!
10 Although my father and my mother have forsaken me, yet the Lord will take me up [adopt me as His child].(A)
11 Teach me Your way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain and even path because of my enemies [those who lie in wait for me].
12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen up against me; they breathe out cruelty and violence.
13 [What, what would have become of me] had I not believed that I would see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living!
14 Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.
27 Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned?
28 Can one go upon hot coals and his feet not be burned?
29 So he who cohabits with his neighbor’s wife [will be tortured with evil consequences and just retribution]; he who touches her shall not be innocent or go unpunished.
30 Men do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry;
31 But if he is found out, he must restore seven times [what he stole]; he must give the whole substance of his house [if necessary—to meet his fine].
32 But whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks heart and understanding (moral principle and prudence); he who does it is destroying his own life.
33 Wounds and disgrace will he get, and his reproach will not be wiped away.
34 For jealousy makes [the wronged] man furious; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance [upon the detected one].
35 He will not consider any ransom [offered to buy him off from demanding full punishment]; neither will he be satisfied, though you offer him many gifts and bribes.
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation