The Daily Audio Bible
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The Perpetual Statute
29 “This is to be a perpetual statute for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month, you (including both the native born and the resident alien) are to humble yourselves by not doing any work, 30 because on that day, atonement will be made[a] for you to cleanse you from all your sins. You are to be clean in the Lord’s presence. 31 It’s the Sabbath of all Sabbaths for you, so humble yourselves. This is to be a perpetual statute. 32 The priest who has been anointed and consecrated to be priest after his father is to make the atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen clothing 33 and make atonement for the sacred sanctuary, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar where atonement is carried out. He is also to make atonement for the priests and the people of the entire assembly. 34 This will be a perpetual statute for you as you make atonement once a year for the Israelis on account of all their sins.”
So Moses did just as the Lord had commanded him.
Ritual Animal Slaughter
17 The Lord told Moses, 2 “Speak to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelis and tell them that this is what the Lord has commanded: 3 When a person from the house of Israel slaughters an ox, a lamb, or a goat (whether in the camp or outside the camp), 4 but fails to bring it to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting as an offering in the presence of the tent of the Lord, that person will incur bloodguilt. Because he has shed blood, that person is to be eliminated from contact with[b] his people.”
Centralized Sacrificial Slaughter
5 “This statute is required so that[c] the Israelis may bring their sacrifices that they have been sacrificing to the Lord in the open field to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, where they are to slaughter their peace offering to the Lord. 6 The priest is to sprinkle the blood on the Lord’s altar at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and incinerate the fat, making a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 7 They are no longer to slaughter their sacrifices to the goat demons, with whom they have been committing prostitution. This will be a perpetual statute for you throughout your generations. 8 Tell them that if a person from the house of Israel or a resident alien who lives among you brings a whole burnt offering or a sacrifice 9 to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, but fails to bring it to offer[d] it to the Lord, that person[e] is to be eliminated from contact with[f] his people.”
Prohibitions against Eating Blood
10 “If anyone from the house of Israel or a resident alien who lives among you eats any form of blood, I’ll oppose[g] that person who ate the blood and eliminate him from his people, 11 because the life of the flesh is in the blood itself, and I myself have given it to you all so that atonement may be made for your souls on the altar, since the blood itself makes atonement through the life that is in it. 12 This is why I’ve told the Israelis that no person[h] among you is to eat blood. Even the resident alien who lives among you is not to eat blood.
13 “If a person from the house of Israel or a resident alien who lives among you has hunted live game or a bird that may be eaten, he is to extract its blood and cover it with soil, 14 because the life of any flesh is the blood itself. Therefore, I’m saying to the Israelis that the blood of any flesh is not to be eaten, because the life of any flesh is in its blood. Anyone who eats of it is to be eliminated from contact with his people.[i]
15 “Any person who eats a carcass or an animal that was torn by beasts (whether that person is native born or is a resident alien), is to wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and he will remain unclean until evening, and then he’ll become clean. 16 But if he doesn’t wash or bathe his body, then he is to bear the punishment of his iniquity.”
Sexual Relations with Relatives Prohibited
18 The Lord told Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelis that I am the Lord your God. 3 You are not to do what you used to do in the land of Egypt where you lived. You are not to do what Canaan does, where I’m about to bring you, so that you live according to their statutes. 4 Obey[j] my ordinances and keep my statutes by living by them. I am the Lord your God. 5 Keep my statutes and my ordinances, which a person[k] is to obey in order to live in them. I am the Lord.
6 “A person is not to approach a near blood relative for sexual relations.[l] I am the Lord.
7 “Neither your father’s nakedness nor your mother’s nakedness is to be exposed. She’s your mother, so you are not to have sexual relations with her.
8 “You are not to have sexual relations with your father’s wife. It’s your own father’s nakedness.
9 “You are not to have sexual relations with your sister, whether she’s your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she’s born in your home or outside your home. You are not to have sexual relations with her.
10 “You are not to have sexual relations with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter. You are not to have sexual relations with them, because their nakedness is your own nakedness.
11 “You are not to have sexual relations with the daughter of your father’s wife. Born of your father, she’s your sister, so you are not to have sexual relations with her.
12 “You are not to have sexual relations with your father’s sister. She’s your father’s near blood relative.
13 “You are not to have sexual relations with your mother’s sister. She’s your mother’s near blood relative.
14 “You are not to expose the nakedness of your father’s brother by having sexual relations with his wife. She’s your aunt.
15 “You are not to expose the nakedness of your daughter-in-law. She’s the wife of your son. You are not to have sexual relations with her.
16 “You are not to have sexual relations with your brother’s wife. She’s the nakedness of your brother.
17 “You are not to have sexual relations with a woman and her daughter.
“You are not to have sexual relations with her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter. They’re near blood relatives. It’s wickedness.
18 “You are not to marry a woman and then have sexual relations with her sister as a rival when your wife[m] is still alive.
19 “You are not to approach a menstruating woman to have sexual relations with her.[n]
20 “You are not to have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and thereby become ceremonially unclean with her.”
Child Sacrifice Prohibited
21 “You are not to present any of your children to Molech as a sacrifice.[o] That way, you won’t defile the name of your God.”
Same Sex Unions Prohibited
“I am the Lord. 22 You are not to have sexual relations[p] with a male as you would with a woman. It’s detestable.”
Sexual Relations with Animals Prohibited
23 “You are not to present yourself to an animal in order to have sexual relations with it and by doing so to defile yourself. A woman is not to present herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it. It’s detestable.
24 “You are not to defile yourselves by doing any of these things, since all of these nations that I’m casting out before you have defiled themselves this way. 25 The land has been defiled, so I brought the punishment of its iniquity to it. As a result, the land is vomiting out its inhabitants.
26 “Therefore, keep my statutes and ordinances. You are not to do any of these detestable things—this applies to the native born and the resident alien who lives among you— 27 because the inhabitants[q] of the land did all of these detestable things and by doing so defiled the land before you. 28 So you are not to let the land vomit you up because of your uncleanness as it is vomiting the nations that were here before you. 29 Anyone who does any of these detestable things—whoever the person[r] may be—is to be eliminated from contact with his people.[s] 30 Therefore, keep my injunctions so that you won’t practice these detestable things that have been done before you, and so that you won’t be defiled in them. I am the Lord.”
A Canaanite Woman’s Faith(A)
24 Jesus[a] left that place and went to the territory of Tyre and Sidon.[b] He went into a house, not wanting anyone to know he was there. However, it couldn’t be kept a secret. 25 In fact, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him and came and fell down at his feet. 26 Now the woman happened to be a Greek, born in Phoenicia in Syria. She kept asking him to drive the demon out of her daughter. 27 But he kept telling her, “First let the children be filled. It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the puppies.”
28 But she answered him, “Yes,[c] Lord. Yet even the puppies under the table eat some of the children’s crumbs.”
29 Then he told her, “Because you have said this, go! The demon has left your daughter.” 30 So she went home and found her child lying in bed, and the demon was gone.
Jesus Heals a Deaf Man with a Speech Impediment
31 Then Jesus[d] left the territory of Tyre and passed through Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the territory of the Decapolis.[e] 32 Some people[f] brought him a deaf man who also had a speech impediment. They begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 Jesus[g] took him away from the crowd to be alone with him. Putting his fingers into the man’s[h] ears, he touched the man’s[i] tongue with saliva.
34 Then he looked up to heaven, sighed, and told him, “Ephphatha,”[j] that is, “Be opened!” 35 The man’s[k] hearing and speech were restored at once, and he began to talk normally. 36 Jesus[l] ordered the people[m] not to tell anyone, but the more he kept ordering them, the more they kept spreading the news.
37 Amazed beyond measure, they kept on saying, “He does everything well! He even makes deaf people hear and mute people talk!”
Jesus Feeds More than Four Thousand People(B)
8 At that time, after a large crowd again had gathered together with nothing to eat, Jesus[n] called his disciples and told them, 2 “I have compassion for the crowd, because they’ve already been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them away to their homes hungry, they’ll faint on the road. Some of them have come a long distance.”
4 His disciples answered him, “Where could anyone get enough bread to feed these people out here in the wilderness?”
5 He asked them, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
“Seven,” they said.
6 So he ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and gave thanks. He broke them in pieces and kept giving them to his disciples to distribute. So they served them to the crowd. 7 They also had a few small fish. He blessed them and said that the fish[o] should also be distributed. 8 The people[p] ate and were filled. Then the disciples[q] picked up the leftover pieces—seven large baskets full. 9 Now about 4,000 men were there. Then he sent them on their way. 10 Immediately he got into a boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.[r]
To the Director: A Davidic Psalm.
When Things Go Wrong
41 Blessed is the one who is considerate of the destitute;[a]
the Lord will deliver him when the times are evil.
2 The Lord will protect him and keep him alive;
he will be blessed in the land;
and he will not be handed over to the desires of his enemies.
3 The Lord will uphold him even on his sickbed;
you will transform his bed of illness into health.
4 As for me, I said,
“Lord, be gracious to me!
Heal me, for I have sinned against you!”
5 As for my enemies, with malice they said,
“When will he die and memory of[b] his name perish?”
6 The one who comes to visit me speaks lies;
in his heart he thinks slanderous things about me
and goes around spreading them.
7 As for all who hate me,
they whisper together against me;
they desire to do me harm.
8 They say, “Wickedness is entrenched in him.
Once he is brought low,
he will not rise again.”
9 As for my best friend,
the one in whom I trusted,
the one who ate my bread,
even he has insulted[c] me!
10 But you, Lord, be gracious to me and raise me up
so that I may pay them back!
11 In this way I will know that you are pleased with me,
and that my enemies will not shout in triumph over me.
12 As for me, you will maintain my just cause,
and you will cause me to stand in your presence forever.
13 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
from eternity to eternity.
Amen and amen!
15 The rich hide within the fortress that is their wealth,
but the poor are dismayed due to their poverty.
16 Honorable wages lead[a] to life;
the salaries of the wicked, to retribution.
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