The Daily Audio Bible
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29 “This law will always continue for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month, you must not eat. You must not do any work. The travelers or foreigners living with you must not work either. 30 On this day the priests make you clean so you will belong to the Lord again. All your sins will be removed. 31 This is a very important day of rest for you. And you must not eat. This law will continue forever.
32 “So the appointed priest will perform the acts for making things ready for service to the Lord. He is the priest on whom oil was poured. He is appointed to take his father’s place. That priest must put on the holy linen clothes. 33 He must make the Most Holy Place ready for service to the Lord. He must make the Meeting Tent and the altar ready for service to the Lord. He must remove the sins of himself and all the people of Israel so they will belong to the Lord. 34 That law for removing the sins of the Israelites so they will belong to the Lord will continue forever. You will do these things once a year.”
So they did the things the Lord had commanded Moses.
Offering Sacrifices
17 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to Aaron, his sons and all the people of Israel. Tell them: ‘This is what the Lord has commanded: 3 An Israelite might sacrifice an ox, a lamb or a goat. He might kill it inside the camp or outside it. 4 But he should have brought the animal to the entrance to the Meeting Tent. He should have given the animal as a gift to the Lord. If he didn’t, he is guilty of killing. He must be separated from his people. 5 This rule is so people will bring their sacrifices to the Lord. They have been sacrificing in the open fields. But they must bring those animals to the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. They must bring them to the priest and offer them as fellowship offerings. 6 Then the priest will sprinkle the blood from those animals on the Lord’s altar. It is near the entrance to the Meeting Tent. And the priest will burn the fat from those animals on the altar. This smell will be pleasing to the Lord. 7 They must not offer any more sacrifices to their goat idols. They have chased after those other gods. In that way they have acted like prostitutes. These rules will continue for people from now on.’
8 “Tell the people this: ‘Someone might offer a burnt offering or sacrifice. He might be a citizen of Israel. Or he might be a traveler or foreigner living with you. 9 That person must take his sacrifice to the entrance to the Meeting Tent. There he may offer it to the Lord. If he does not do this, he must be separated from his people.
10 “‘I will be against anyone who eats blood. It does not matter if it is a citizen of Israel or a foreigner living with you. I will separate that person from his people. 11 This is because the life of the body is in the blood. And I have given you rules for pouring that blood on the altar. You must do this to remove your sins so you will belong to the Lord. It is the blood that removes the sins from your life so you will belong to the Lord. 12 So I tell the people of Israel this: “None of you may eat blood. And no foreigner living among you may eat blood.”
13 “‘Someone may catch a wild animal or bird that can be eaten. The person may be a citizen of Israel or a foreigner living among you. He must pour the blood on the ground and cover it with dirt. 14 This is because if blood is still in the meat, the animal’s life is still in it. So I give this command to the people of Israel: “Don’t eat meat that still has blood in it. Anyone who eats blood must be separated from his people.”
15 “‘Someone may eat an animal that died by itself. Or he may eat an animal that was killed by another animal. The person may be a citizen of Israel or a foreigner living among you. If he eats the animal, he will be unclean until evening. He must wash his clothes and whole body with water. 16 If he does not wash his clothes and bathe his body, he will be guilty of sin.’”
Rules About Physical Relations
18 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God. 3 In the past you lived in Egypt. You must not do what was done in that country. And you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you. Do not follow their customs. 4 You must obey my rules and follow them. I am the Lord your God. 5 Obey my laws and rules. A person who obeys my laws and rules will live because of them. I am the Lord.
6 “‘You must never have physical relations with your close relatives. I am the Lord.
7 “‘You must not shame your father by having physical relations with your mother. She is your mother. Do not have physical relations with her. 8 You must not have physical relations with your father’s wife. That would shame your father.
9 “‘You must not have physical relations with your sister. She may be the daughter of your father or your mother. It doesn’t matter if she was born in your house or somewhere else.
10 “‘You must not have physical relations with your granddaughter. She may be your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter. That would bring shame on you.
11 “‘If your father and his wife have a daughter, she is your sister. You must not have physical relations with her.
12 “‘You must not have physical relations with your father’s sister. She is your father’s close relative. 13 You must not have physical relations with your mother’s sister. She is your mother’s close relative. 14 You must not have physical relations with the wife of your father’s brother. This would shame him. His wife is your aunt.
15 “‘You must not have physical relations with your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife. Do not have physical relations with her.
16 “‘You must not have physical relations with your brother’s wife. That would shame your brother.
17 “‘You must not have physical relations with both a woman and her daughter. And do not have physical relations with this woman’s granddaughter. It may be the daughter of her son or her daughter. They are her close relatives. It is evil to do this.
18 “‘While your wife is still living, you must not take her sister as another wife. Do not have physical relations with her.
19 “‘You must not go near a woman to have physical relations with her during her monthly period. She is unclean during this time.
20 “‘You must not commit adultery with your neighbor’s wife and make yourself unclean with her.
21 “‘You must not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech. This will show that you do not respect your God. I am the Lord.
22 “‘You must not have physical relations with a man as you would a woman. That is a hated sin.
23 “‘You must not have unnatural physical relations with an animal and make yourself unclean with it. Also a woman must not have unnatural physical relations with an animal. It is not natural.
24 “‘Don’t make yourself unclean by any of these wrong things. I am forcing nations out of their countries because they did these sins. And I am giving their land to you. 25 The land has become unclean. So I punished it for its sins. And the land is throwing out those people who live there.
26 “‘You must obey my laws and rules. You must not do any of these hated sins. These rules are for the citizens of Israel. They are also for the people who live with you. 27 The people who lived in the land before you did all these hated things. So the land became unclean. 28 If you do these things, you will also make the land unclean. And it will throw you out as it threw out the nations before you. 29 Anyone who does these hated sins must be separated from his people. 30 The people who lived in the land before you have done these hated sins. But you must not do them. You must obey my laws. Don’t make yourself unclean by these hated sins. I am the Lord your God.’”
Jesus Helps a Non-Jewish Woman
24 Jesus left that place and went to the area around Tyre.[a] He went into a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. But Jesus could not stay hidden. 25 A woman heard that he was there. Her little daughter had an evil spirit in her. So the woman quickly came to Jesus and fell at his feet. 26 She was not Jewish. She was Greek, born in Phoenicia, in Syria. She begged Jesus to force the demon out of her daughter.
27 Jesus told the woman: “It is not right to take the children’s bread and give it to the dogs. First let the children eat all they want.”
28 She answered, “That is true, Lord. But the dogs under the table can eat the pieces of food that the children don’t eat.”
29 Then Jesus said, “That is a very good answer. You may go. The demon has left your daughter.”
30 The woman went home and found her daughter lying in bed. The demon was gone.
Jesus Heals a Deaf Man
31 Then Jesus left the area around Tyre. He went through Sidon to Lake Galilee, to the area of the Ten Towns.[b] 32 While he was there, some people brought a man to him. This man was deaf and could not talk. The people begged Jesus to put his hand on the man to heal him.
33 Jesus led the man away from the crowd, to be alone with him. Jesus put his fingers in the man’s ears. Then Jesus spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34 Jesus looked up to heaven and took a deep breath. He said to the man, “Ephphatha!” (This means, “Be opened.”) 35 When Jesus did this, the man was able to hear. He was also able to use his tongue, and he spoke clearly.
36 Jesus commanded the people not to tell anyone about what happened. But the more he commanded them, the more they told about it. 37 They were really amazed. They said, “Jesus does everything well. He makes the deaf hear! And those who can’t talk—Jesus makes them able to speak.”
More Than 4,000 People Fed
8 Another time there was a great crowd with Jesus. They had nothing to eat. So Jesus called his followers to him. He said, 2 “I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me for three days, and now they have nothing to eat. 3 I cannot send them home hungry. If they leave without eating, they will faint on the way home. Some of them live a long way from here.”
4 Jesus’ followers answered, “But we are far away from any towns. Where can we get enough bread to feed all these people?”
5 Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
They answered, “We have seven loaves.”
6 Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and gave thanks to God. Jesus divided the bread and gave the pieces to his followers. He told them to pass out the bread to the people, and they did so. 7 The followers also had a few small fish. Jesus gave thanks for the fish and told his followers to give the fish to the people. 8 All the people ate and were satisfied. Then the followers filled seven baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. 9 There were about 4,000 men who ate. After they had eaten, Jesus told them to go home. 10 Then he went in a boat with his followers to the area of Dalmanutha.
A Prayer in Time of Sickness
For the director of music. A song of David.
41 Happy is the person who thinks about the poor.
When trouble comes, the Lord will save him.
2 The Lord will protect him and spare his life.
The Lord will bless him in the land.
The Lord will not let his enemies take him.
3 The Lord will give him strength when he is sick.
The Lord will make him well again.
4 I said, “Lord, be kind to me.
Heal me because I have sinned against you.”
5 My enemies are saying bad things about me.
They say, “When will he die and be forgotten?”
6 Some people come to see me.
But they lie.
They just come to get bad news.
Then they go and gossip.
7 All my enemies whisper about me.
They think the worst about me.
8 They say, “He has a terrible disease.
He will never get out of bed again.”
9 My best and truest friend ate at my table.
Now even he has turned against me.
10 Lord, have mercy on me.
Give me strength so I can pay them back.
11 My enemies do not defeat me.
That’s how I know you are pleased with me.
12 Because I am innocent, you support me.
You will let me be with you forever.
13 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel.
He has always been,
and he will always be.
Amen and amen.
15 Having lots of money protects the rich.
But having no money destroys the poor.
16 Good people are rewarded with life.
But evil people are paid back with punishment.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.