The Daily Audio Bible

²⁹ “It is to be a statute to you forever, that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you are to afflict your souls, and do no kind of work—both the native-born and the outsider dwelling among you. ³⁰ For on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. From all your sins you will be clean before Adonai. ³¹ It is a Shabbat of solemn rest to you, and you are to afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. ³² The kohen who is anointed and who is consecrated to be kohen in his father’s place will make the atonement, and put on the linen garments, the holy garments. ³³ He is to make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, for the Tent of Meeting, for the altar, for the kohanim, and for all the people of the assembly.

³⁴ “This will be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for Bnei-Yisrael once in the year because of all their sins.” It was done as Adonai commanded Moses.

Sacrifice of Life in Blood

17 Then Adonai spoke to Moses, saying: ² “Speak to Aaron, to his sons, and to all Bnei-Yisrael, and say to them: This is the word which Adonai has commanded. ³ Anyone from the house of Israel who slaughters a bull, a lamb or a goat in the camp or outside the camp, ⁴ but has not brought it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to offer it as a sacrifice to Adonai before the Tabernacle—let bloodguilt be charged to that man. He has shed blood—that man is to be cut off from among his people. ⁵ Thus Bnei-Yisrael may bring their sacrifices that they were making in the open field to Adonai, at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to the kohen, and offer them as sacrifices of fellowship offerings to Adonai. ⁶ The kohen is to sprinkle the blood on the altar of Adonai at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and burn up the fat as smoke for a soothing aroma to Adonai. ⁷ They are no longer to offer their sacrifices to the goat-demons after which they play the prostitute. This will be a statute forever to them throughout their generations.

⁸ “Then you are to say to them: Anyone from the house of Israel, or from the outsiders dwelling among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice, ⁹ but does not bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting to sacrifice it to Adonai, is to be cut off from his people.

¹⁰ “Anyone from the house of Israel, or from the outsiders dwelling among them, who eats any kind of blood, I will set my face against that soul—the one who eats blood—and will cut him off from among his people. ¹¹ For the life of the creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your lives—for it is the blood that makes atonement because of the life. ¹² Therefore I have said to Bnei-Yisrael: No person among you may eat blood, nor may any outsider dwelling among you eat blood.

¹³ “Any person from Bnei-Yisrael, or from the outsiders dwelling among them, who hunts as game any animal or bird that may be eaten, must drain its blood and cover it with dust. ¹⁴ For the life of every creature, its blood is in its life. Therefore I said to Bnei-Yisrael: You are not to eat the blood of any kind of creature, for the life of every creature is its blood. Whoever eats it is to be cut off.

¹⁵ “Everyone who eats what dies naturally or is torn by animals—whether he is native-born or a foreigner—is to wash his clothes and bathe himself in water. He will be unclean until the evening, then he will be clean. ¹⁶ But if he does not wash them or bathe his body, then he will bear his iniquity.”

18 Adonai said to Moses: ² “Speak to Bnei-Yisrael and say to them: I am Adonai your God. ³ You are not to act as they do in the land of Egypt, where you used to live. Nor are you to act as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, nor are you to walk in their customs. ⁴ You are to obey My ordinances and keep My statutes and walk in them—I am Adonai your God. ⁵ So you are to keep My statutes and My ordinances. The one who does them will live by them. I am Adonai.

Incest Forbidden

⁶ “None of you is to come near anyone who is his close relatives to uncover their nakedness. I am Adonai.

⁷ “You are not to uncover the nakedness of your father or your mother. She is your mother. You shall not uncover her nakedness. ⁸ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife, for it is your father’s nakedness. ⁹ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or elsewhere. ¹⁰ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter, or of your daughter’s daughter, for theirs is your own nakedness. ¹¹ You are not to uncover the nakedness of the daughter of your father’s wife, conceived by your father, since she is your sister. ¹² You are not to uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister, for she is your father’s direct relative. ¹³ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s direct relative. ¹⁴ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother by approaching his wife, for she is your aunt. ¹⁵ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law, for she is your son’s wife. You are not to uncover her nakedness. ¹⁶ You are not to uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife, because that is your brother’s nakedness. ¹⁷ You are not to uncover the nakedness of both a woman and her daughter. You are not to take her son’s daughter, or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness, for they are direct relatives. That is wickedness. ¹⁸ You are not to marry your wife’s sister, to be a rival, uncovering her nakedness, while her sister is still alive.

Other Forbidden Relations

¹⁹ “You are not to approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is in the impurity of her niddah. ²⁰ You are not to lie sexually with your neighbor’s wife and defile yourself with her.

²¹ “You are not to give any of your children in sacrifice to Molech, and defile the Name of your God. I am Adonai.

²² “You are not to lie with a man, as with a woman—that is an abomination. ²³ You are not to lie with any animal to defile yourself with it, nor is any woman to give herself to an animal, to lie down with it—that is a perversion.

²⁴ “Do not defile yourselves in any of these things, for in all of these ways the nations which I am casting out before you were defiled. ²⁵ The land has become defiled, so I will punish its iniquity, and the land will vomit out its inhabitants. ²⁶ You, however, are to keep My statutes and My ordinances, and do none of these abominations, neither the native-born, nor the outsider dwelling among you.

²⁷ “For all these abominations were done by the men of the land who were before you, and the land became defiled. ²⁸ If you defile it, the land will vomit you out as it vomited out the nation that was before you. ²⁹ For whoever does any of these detestable things, the souls that do them are to be cut off from the midst of their people. ³⁰ Therefore you are to keep My charge, so that you do not practice any of these detestable customs that were practiced before you, so that you do not defile yourselves by them. I am Adonai your God.”

Miracles Touch Gentile Lives

²⁴ Yeshua got up and left from there to the region of Tyre. When He had entered a house, He didn’t want anyone to know; but He couldn’t escape notice. ²⁵ A woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard about Him. She came immediately and fell at His feet. ²⁶ The woman was a Greek, from Syrophoenicia. And she kept begging Yeshua to drive the demon out of her daughter.

²⁷ He was telling her, “First let the children get their fill, for it’s not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”

²⁸ “Yes, Master,” she said to Him, “but even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

²⁹ Then He said to her, “Because of this word, go your way! The demon has left your daughter.” ³⁰ She went home and found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

³¹ Again He left the region of Tyre and came through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, within the region of the Decapolis. ³² They bring Him a deaf man who had a speech impediment, and they beg Him to lay His hand on him. ³³ Yeshua took him aside from the crowd to a private place, and He put His fingers in the man’s ears. After spitting, He touched the man’s tongue. ³⁴ Looking up to heaven, He says to the man, “Ephphatha,”^[a] which means “Be opened!”

³⁵ Immediately the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak plainly. ³⁶ Yeshua ordered them not to tell anyone. But the more He ordered them, the more they continued proclaiming it. ³⁷ People were completely astounded, saying, “He has done all things well. He makes even the deaf hear and the mute speak!”

Do You Still Not Understand?

8 In those days, there was another large crowd with nothing to eat, and Yeshua called the disciples. He said to them, ² “I have compassion for the crowd, because they’ve stayed with Me for three days now and have nothing to eat. ³ If I send them home hungry they’ll pass out on the way, for some of them have come from very far away.”

⁴ His disciples answered Him, “How can anyone satisfy these people with bread here in a wasteland?”

⁵ “How many loaves do you have?” Yeshua was asking them.

“Seven,” they said.

⁶ He directed the crowd to recline on the ground. After taking the seven loaves and giving thanks, He broke them and began giving them to His disciples to serve; and they served them to the crowd. ⁷ They also had a few small fish and, after offering a bracha for them, He commanded these to be served as well. ⁸ They ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the broken pieces left over—seven baskets. ⁹ About four thousand^[b] were there, and Yeshua sent them away.

¹⁰ Right away, He got into the boat with His disciples and went to the area of Dalmanutha.

Even My Close Friend

Psalm 41