The Daily Audio Bible
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The Tablets of the Law Replaced
34 The Lord told Moses, “Cut out for yourself two stone tablets like the first ones, and I’ll write on the tablets the words which were on the first tablets that you broke. 2 Be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning on Mount Sinai, where you are to present yourself to me there on the top of the mountain. 3 No one is to come up with you, nor is anyone to be seen anywhere on the mountain. Also, the sheep and cattle are not to graze in front of that mountain.”
4 So Moses[a] carved out two stone tablets like the first ones, got up early in the morning, and climbed Mount Sinai, just as the Lord had commanded him. He took with him the two stone tablets. 5 The Lord came down in a cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed the name of the Lord.[b] 6 The Lord passed in front of him and proclaimed,
“The Lord, the Lord God,
compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger,
and filled with[c] gracious love and truth.
7 He graciously loves thousands,
and forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin.
But he does not leave the guilty unpunished,
visiting the iniquity of the ancestors on their children,
and on their children’s children
to the third and fourth generation.”
8 Moses quickly bowed to the ground and prostrated himself in worship. 9 He said, “If I’ve found favor in your sight, Lord, please, Lord, walk among us. Certainly this is an obstinate people, but pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your own inheritance.”
The Covenant Promises Repeated
10 Then the Lord said, “I’m now going to make a covenant. I’ll do miraculous deeds in full view of your people that haven’t been done[d] in all the earth or in any nation. All the people among whom you live will see the work of the Lord, because it’s an awesome thing that I’ll do with you. 11 Obey[e] what I am commanding you today and I’ll drive out from before you the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
12 “Be very careful not to make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land to which you are going, so they won’t be a snare among you. 13 Rather, you are to tear down their altars, you are to smash their sacred pillars, and you are to cut down their sacred poles[f]— 14 indeed, you are not to bow down in worship to any other god, because the Lord’s name is Jealous—he’s a jealous God— 15 Otherwise, you may make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land and when they prostitute themselves with their gods and offer sacrifices to their gods, someone may invite you and then you may eat some of their sacrifices.
16 “You are not to take any of their daughters for your sons. Otherwise, when their daughters prostitute themselves with their gods, they may cause your sons to prostitute themselves with their gods.
17 “You are not to make molten gods for yourselves.
18 “You are to observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread. For seven days, at the appointed time in the month Abib, you are to eat unleavened bread as I commanded you, for in the month Abib you came out of Egypt.
19 “Everything firstborn[g] belongs to me: all the males of your herds, the firstborn of both cattle and sheep. 20 You are to redeem the firstborn of a donkey with a sheep, and if you don’t redeem it, you are to break its neck. You are to redeem every firstborn of your sons, and no one is to appear before me empty-handed.
21 “For six days you are to work, but on the seventh day you are to rest; even during plowing time and harvest you are to rest.
22 “You are to observe the Festival of Weeks, the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Festival of Tabernacles[h] at the turn of the year. 23 Three times during the year all your males are to appear in the presence of the Lord God of Israel, 24 since I’m going to drive out nations before you, and enlarge your borders, and no one will covet your land, when you go up to appear in the presence of the Lord your God three times a year.
25 “You are not to offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, nor are you to allow the sacrifice of the Festival of Passover to remain until morning.
26 “You are to bring the best[i] of the first fruits of the ground to the house of the Lord your God.
“You are not to boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
27 Then the Lord told Moses, “Write down these words, because I’m making a covenant with you and with Israel according to these words.”
28 While Moses[j] was there with the Lord for 40 days and 40 nights, he did not eat or drink.[k] He wrote the Ten Commandments, the words of the covenant, on the tablets.
Moses’ Face Shines
29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, he had the two tablets in his hand,[l] and he did not know that the skin of his face was ablaze with light because he had been speaking with God.[m] 30 Aaron and all the Israelis saw Moses and immediately noticed that the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 When Moses called to them, Aaron and the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and he spoke to them. 32 Afterwards all the Israelis came near and he gave them everything the Lord told him on Mount Sinai as commandments. 33 When Moses finished speaking with them he put a veil over his face, 34 and then whenever Moses would come in the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he would remove the veil until he left the Lord’s presence.[n] When he went out, he would tell the Israelis what he had been commanded. 35 The Israelis would see the face of Moses and that the skin of his face shone; then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with God.[o]
The Israelis Collect Material for the Tent
35 Moses assembled the entire congregation of the Israelis and told them, “These are the things that the Lord has commanded you to do:[p] 2 For six days work is to be done, but on the seventh day you are to have a holy day, a Sabbath of complete rest in dedication to the Lord. Anyone who does work on that day is to be executed. 3 You are not to light a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath.”
4 Then Moses told the entire congregation of the Israelis, “This is what the Lord has commanded, 5 ‘Take from among yourselves an offering for the Lord. Everyone whose heart is willing is to bring as an offering for the Lord: gold, silver, and bronze; 6 blue, purple, and scarlet material;[q] fine linen and goat hair; 7 ram skins dyed red,[r] dolphin[s] skins, acacia wood, 8 oil for lighting, spices for the anointing oil and for aromatic incense, 9 onyx stones, and stones for setting in the ephod and the breast piece.
Jesus is Sentenced to Death(A)
15 At every festival[a] the governor had a custom of releasing to the crowd any prisoner whom they wanted. 16 At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner named Barabbas.[b] 17 So when the people[c] had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which man do you want me to release for you—Barabbas,[d] or Jesus who is called ‘the Messiah’?”[e] 18 He did this[f] because he knew that they had handed him over out of jealousy.
19 While he was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him a message[g] that said, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, because today I have suffered terribly due to a dream I had about him.”
20 But the high priests and elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to demand that Jesus be put to death. 21 So the governor asked them, “Which of the two men do you want me to release for you?”
“Barabbas!” they replied.
22 Pilate asked them, “Then what should I do with Jesus, who is called the Messiah?”[h]
They all said, “Let him be crucified!”
23 He asked, “What has he done wrong?”
But they kept shouting louder and louder, “Let him be crucified!”
24 Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that a riot was about to break out instead. So he took some water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s[i] blood. Attend to that yourselves.”
25 All the people answered, “Let his blood be on us and our children!” 26 Then he released Barabbas for them, but he had Jesus whipped and handed over to be crucified.
The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus(B)
27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the imperial headquarters[j] and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped[k] him and put a scarlet robe on him. 29 Twisting some thorns into a victor’s crown, they placed it on his head and put[l] a stick in his right hand. They knelt down in front of him and began making fun of him, saying, “Long live the king of the Jews!” 30 Then they spit on him and took the stick and hit him repeatedly on his head. 31 When they had finished making fun of him, they stripped him of the robe, put his own clothes back on him, and led him away to crucify him.
12 How blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he has chosen as his own inheritance.
13 When the Lord looks down from heaven,
he observes every human being.
14 From his dwelling place,
he looks down on all the inhabitants of the earth.
15 He formed the hearts of them all;
he understands everything they do.
16 A king is not saved by a large army;
a mighty soldier is not delivered by his great strength.
17 It is vain to trust in a horse for deliverance,
even with its great strength, it cannot deliver.
18 Indeed, the Lord watches those who fear him;
those who trust in his gracious love
19 to deliver them from death;
to keep them alive in times of famine.
20 We wait on the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
21 Indeed, our heart will rejoice in him,
because we have placed our trust in his holy name.
22 Lord, may your gracious love be upon us,
even as we hope in you.
Wisdom’s Invitation
9 Wisdom[a] has built her house;
she has hewn out her seven pillars.
2 She has prepared her food,[b]
she has spiced[c] her wine,
and she also has set her dining table.
3 She has sent out her young women,
while calling out from the heights of the city,
4 “Let whoever is naïve, turn in here.”
To anyone lacking sense, she says,
5 “Come! Eat my food,
and drink the wine that I have mixed.
6 Leave your naïve ways, and live.
Walk in the path of understanding.”
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