The Daily Audio Bible
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Universal Language, Babel, Confusion
11 Now the whole earth [a]used the same language and [b]the same words. 2 It came about as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land (A)of Shinar and [c]settled there. 3 They said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” And they used brick for stone, and they used (B)tar for mortar. 4 They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top (C)will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves (D)a name, otherwise we (E)will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” 5 (F)The Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. 6 The Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have [d](G)the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be [e]impossible for them. 7 Come, (H)let Us go down and there (I)confuse their [f]language, so that they will not understand one another’s [g]speech.” 8 So the Lord (J)scattered them abroad from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. 9 Therefore its name was called [h](K)Babel, because there the Lord confused the [i]language of the whole earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth.
Descendants of Shem
10 (L)These are the records of the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old, and [j]became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood; 11 and Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpachshad, and he had other sons and daughters.
12 Arpachshad lived thirty-five years, and became the father of Shelah; 13 and Arpachshad lived four hundred and three years after he became the father of Shelah, and he had other sons and daughters.
14 Shelah lived thirty years, and became the father of Eber; 15 and Shelah lived four hundred and three years after he became the father of Eber, and he had other sons and daughters.
16 Eber lived thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg; 17 and Eber lived four hundred and thirty years after he became the father of Peleg, and he had other sons and daughters.
18 Peleg lived thirty years, and became the father of Reu; 19 and Peleg lived two hundred and nine years after he became the father of Reu, and he had other sons and daughters.
20 Reu lived thirty-two years, and became the father of Serug; 21 and Reu lived two hundred and seven years after he became the father of Serug, and he had other sons and daughters.
22 Serug lived thirty years, and became the father of Nahor; 23 and Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor, and he had other sons and daughters.
24 Nahor lived twenty-nine years, and became the father of (M)Terah; 25 and Nahor lived one hundred and nineteen years after he became the father of Terah, and he had other sons and daughters.
26 Terah lived seventy years, and became (N)the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran.
27 Now these are the records of the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran; and (O)Haran became the father of (P)Lot. 28 Haran died [k]in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his birth, in (Q)Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 Abram and (R)Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was (S)Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife was (T)Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah [l]and Iscah. 30 (U)Sarai was barren; she had no child.
31 Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went out [m]together from (V)Ur of the Chaldeans in order to enter the land of Canaan; and they went as far as Haran, and [n]settled there. 32 The days of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran.
Abram Journeys to Egypt
12 Now (W)the Lord said to Abram,
“[o]Go forth from your country,
And from your relatives
And from your father’s house,
To the land which I will show you;
2 And (X)I will make you a great nation,
And (Y)I will bless you,
And make your name great;
And so [p](Z)you shall be a blessing;
3 And (AA)I will bless those who bless you,
And the one who [q]curses you I will [r]curse.
(AB)And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
4 So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him; and (AC)Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his nephew, and all their (AD)possessions which they had accumulated, and (AE)the [s]persons which they had acquired in Haran, and they [t]set out for the land of Canaan; (AF)thus they came to the land of Canaan. 6 Abram passed through the land as far as the site of (AG)Shechem, to the [u]oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanite was then in the land. 7 The Lord (AH)appeared to Abram and said, “(AI)To your [v]descendants I will give this land.” So he built (AJ)an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. 8 Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, with (AK)Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and (AL)called upon the name of the Lord. 9 Abram journeyed on, continuing toward (AM)the [w]Negev.
10 Now there was (AN)a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was (AO)severe in the land. 11 It came about when he [x]came near to Egypt, that he said to Sarai his wife, “See now, I know that you are a [y](AP)beautiful woman; 12 (AQ)and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife’; and they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13 Please say that you are (AR)my sister so that it may go well with me because of you, and that [z](AS)I may live on account of you.” 14 It came about when Abram came into Egypt, the Egyptians [aa]saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 Pharaoh’s officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh; and (AT)the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. 16 Therefore (AU)he treated Abram well for her sake; and [ab](AV)gave him sheep and oxen and donkeys and male and female servants and female donkeys and camels.
17 But the Lord (AW)struck Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 Then Pharaoh called Abram and said, “(AX)What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for my wife? Now then, [ac]here is your wife, take her and go.” 20 Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him; and they [ad]escorted him away, with his wife and all that belonged to him.
Abram and Lot
13 So Abram went up from Egypt to (AY)the [ae]Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot with him.
2 Now Abram was (AZ)very rich in livestock, in silver and in gold. 3 He went [af]on his journeys from the [ag]Negev as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, (BA)between Bethel and Ai, 4 to the place of the (BB)altar which he had made there formerly; and there Abram called on the name of the Lord.
The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes
5 (A)When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on (B)the [a]mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 (C)He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,
3 “[b](D)Blessed are the [c]poor in spirit, for (E)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 “Blessed are (F)those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are (G)the [d]gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are (H)those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7 “Blessed are (I)the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 “Blessed are (J)the pure in heart, for (K)they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for (L)they shall be called sons of God.
10 “Blessed are those who have been (M)persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for (N)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people (O)insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for (P)in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Disciples and the World
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but (Q)if the salt has become tasteless, how [e]can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.
14 “You are (R)the light of the world. A city set on a [f]hill cannot be hidden; 15 (S)nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a [g]basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may (T)see your good works, and (U)glorify your Father who is in heaven.
17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the (V)Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, (W)until heaven and earth pass away, not [h]the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches [i]others to do the same, shall be called least (X)in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever [j]keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 “For I say to you that unless your (Y)righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Personal Relationships
21 “(Z)You have heard that [k]the ancients were told, ‘(AA)You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be [l]liable to (AB)the court.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be [m]guilty before (AC)the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘[n]You good-for-nothing,’ shall be [o]guilty before [p](AD)the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be [q]guilty enough to go into the [r](AE)fiery hell. 23 Therefore if you are (AF)presenting your [s]offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your [t]offering there before the altar and go; first be (AG)reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your [u]offering. 25 (AH)Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I say to you, (AI)you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last [v]cent.
Prayer for Protection from the Wicked.
For the choir director; for [a]flute accompaniment. A Psalm of David.
5 (A)Give ear to my words, O Lord,
Consider my [b](B)groaning.
2 Heed (C)the sound of my cry for help, (D)my King and my God,
For to You I pray.
3 In the morning, O Lord, [c]You will hear my voice;
In the (E)morning I will order my [d]prayer to You and eagerly (F)watch.
4 For You are not a God (G)who takes pleasure in wickedness;
(H)No evil [e]dwells with You.
5 The (I)boastful shall not (J)stand before Your eyes;
You (K)hate all who do iniquity.
6 You (L)destroy those who speak falsehood;
The Lord abhors (M)the man of bloodshed and deceit.
7 But as for me, (N)by Your abundant lovingkindness I will enter Your house,
[f]At Your holy temple I will (O)bow in (P)reverence for You.
8 O Lord, (Q)lead me (R)in Your righteousness (S)because of [g]my foes;
Make Your way [h]straight before me.
9 There is (T)nothing [i]reliable in [j]what they say;
Their (U)inward part is destruction itself.
Their (V)throat is an open grave;
They [k]flatter with their tongue.
10 Hold them guilty, O God;
(W)By their own devices let them fall!
In the multitude of their transgressions (X)thrust them out,
For they are (Y)rebellious against You.
24 “Because (A)I called and you (B)refused,
I (C)stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
25 And you (D)neglected all my counsel
And did not (E)want my reproof;
26 I will also (F)laugh at your (G)calamity;
I will mock when your (H)dread comes,
27 When your dread comes like a storm
And your calamity comes like a (I)whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will (J)call on me, but I will not answer;
They will (K)seek me diligently but they will not find me,
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.