The Daily Audio Bible

Gifts Given When a Person Sins without Meaning To

4 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to the people of Israel, ‘If a person sins without meaning to, by not obeying what the Lord has told us to do, these are the rules he must follow. ³ If the chosen religious leader sins and so brings guilt on the people, let him give to the Lord a bull that is perfect. It is a sin gift for the sin he has done. ⁴ He will bring the bull to the door of the meeting tent before the Lord. He will lay his hand on the head of the bull, and kill the bull before the Lord. ⁵ Then the chosen religious leader is to take some of the bull’s blood and bring it to the meeting tent. ⁶ The religious leader will put his finger in the blood and put some of the blood seven times before the Lord and in front of the curtain of the holy place. ⁷ And the religious leader will put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of sweet-smelling perfume in the meeting tent before the Lord. Then he will pour out all of the bull’s blood at the base of the altar of burnt gifts at the door of the meeting tent. ⁸ He will take from it all the fat of the bull of the sin gift, the fat that covers the inside parts, and all the fat that is on the inside parts, ⁹ and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them, and the part on the liver, which he will take off with the kidneys, ¹⁰ just as these are taken from the bull of the peace gift. The religious leader is to burn them on the altar of burnt gifts. ¹¹ But the bull’s skin and all its flesh, its head, legs, inside parts and its waste, ¹² all the rest of the bull, he is to bring to a clean place away from the tents, where the ashes are poured out. There he will burn it on wood with fire. It will be burned where the ashes are poured out.

¹³ ‘If all the people of Israel sin and do not obey what the Lord has told them, without meaning to and without knowing about it, they are guilty. ¹⁴ When their sin becomes known, the people will give a bull from the herd for a sin gift. They will bring it in front of the meeting tent. ¹⁵ Then the leaders of the people will lay their hands on the bull’s head before the Lord. And the bull will be killed before the Lord. ¹⁶ The chosen religious leader will take some of the bull’s blood to the meeting tent. ¹⁷ There the religious leader will put his finger in the blood and put it seven times before the Lord and in front of the curtains. ¹⁸ He will put some of the blood on the horns of the altar before the Lord in the meeting tent. And he will pour out all the blood at the base of the altar of burnt gifts at the door of the meeting tent. ¹⁹ He will take all its fat from it and burn it on the altar. ²⁰ He will do the same with the bull as he did with the bull of the sin gift. So the religious leader will pay for their sins. And they will be forgiven. ²¹ Then he will bring the bull away from the tents and burn it as he burned the first bull. It is the sin gift for all the people.

²² ‘When a leader sins without meaning to, by doing any of all the things the Lord God has told us not to do, he becomes guilty. ²³ If his sin is made known to him, he will bring for his gift a male goat that is perfect. ²⁴ He will lay his hand on the head of the male goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt gifts before the Lord. It is a sin gift. ²⁵ Then the religious leader will take some of the blood of the sin gift with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt gifts. He will pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of burnt gifts. ²⁶ He will burn all its fat on the altar like the fat of the peace gifts. So the religious leader will pay the price for the man’s sin. And he will be forgiven.

²⁷ ‘If anyone among the people of the land sins without meaning to, by doing any of the things the Lord said not to do, he becomes guilty. ²⁸ If his sin is made known to him, he will bring for his gift a female goat that is perfect, for the sin he has done. ²⁹ He will lay his hand on the head of the sin gift, and kill the sin gift at the place of burnt gifts. ³⁰ The religious leader will take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt gifts. He will pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. ³¹ Then he will take all its fat, just as the fat was taken from the peace gifts. And the religious leader will burn it on the altar for a pleasing smell to the Lord. So the religious leader will pay for his sin. And he will be forgiven.

³² ‘If he brings a lamb for a sin gift, he will bring a female lamb that is perfect. ³³ He will lay his hand on the head of the sin gift, and kill it for a sin gift in the place where they kill the burnt gifts. ³⁴ The religious leader will take some of the blood of the sin gift with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt gifts. He will pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. ³⁵ Then he will take all its fat, just as the lamb’s fat is taken from the peace gifts. The religious leader will burn it on the altar, on the gifts by fire to the Lord. So the religious leader will pay for him the price for the sin he has done. And he will be forgiven.

5 ‘If a person sins by saying nothing when he is told in court to tell what he knows or what he has seen, he will become guilty. ² If a person touches anything that is unclean, the dead body of a wild animal, or of cattle, or of anything that moves on the earth that is unclean, even without knowing it, then he will be unclean and will be guilty. ³ Or if he touches a human who is unclean for whatever reason, without knowing it, when he learns about it, he will be guilty. ⁴ If a person without thinking swears he will do something, whether bad or good, any foolish promise a person may swear, when he learns about it, he will be guilty. ⁵ When a person is guilty in any of these, he should tell of the sin he has done. ⁶ He should bring his guilt gift to the Lord for the sin he has done, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin gift. And the religious leader will pay the price for him for his sin.

⁷ ‘But if he does not have enough money for a lamb, he should bring to the Lord as his guilt gift for his sin two turtle-doves or two young pigeons. One will be for a sin gift, and the other for a burnt gift. ⁸ He will bring them to the religious leader, who will give the sin gift first. He will break its neck without taking off its head. ⁹ Then he will put some of the blood of the sin gift on the side of the altar. He will pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. It is a sin gift. ¹⁰ Then he will make the second bird ready for a burnt gift, by following the Law. So the religious leader will pay the price for him for the sin he has done. And he will be forgiven.

¹¹ ‘But if he does not have enough money for two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, he should bring one- tenth part of a basket of fine flour for a sin gift. He should not put oil or special perfume on it, for it is a sin gift. ¹² He will bring it to the religious leader, who will take a handful of it as a part to be remembered. And he will burn this part of the flour on the altar with the gifts made by fire to the Lord. It is a sin gift. ¹³ So the religious leader will pay the price for him for the sin he has done in any of these things. And he will be forgiven. The rest of the flour will be for the religious leader, as in the grain gift.’”

Making Things Right

¹⁴ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁵ “If a person is not faithful and sins against the holy things of the Lord without meaning to, he should bring his guilt gift to the Lord. It should be a ram that is perfect from the flock, worth money the same as the weight of silver decided upon for the holy place. It is a guilt gift. ¹⁶ He should pay for his sin against the holy thing, and add one-fifth part to it, and give it to the religious leader. Then the religious leader will give for his sin the ram of the guilt gift as the price for his sin. And he will be forgiven.

¹⁷ “If a person sins by doing any of the things the Lord has told him not to do, even without meaning to, he is guilty and must pay for his sin. ¹⁸ He will bring to the religious leader a ram that is perfect from the flock, that is decided to be the right price for a guilt gift. So the religious leader will pay the price for him for the sin he had done without meaning to. And he will be forgiven. ¹⁹ It is a guilt gift. For sure he has sinned against the Lord.”

Jesus Calls Matthew ^(A)

¹³ Jesus walked along the sea-shore again. Many people came together and He taught them. ¹⁴ He walked farther and saw Levi (Matthew) the son of Alphaeus. Levi was sitting at his work gathering taxes. Jesus said to him, “Follow Me.” Levi got up and followed Him.

Jesus Eats with Tax-Gatherers and Sinners

¹⁵ Jesus ate in Levi’s house. Many men who gather taxes and others who were sinners came and sat down with Jesus and His followers. There were many following Him. ¹⁶ The teachers of the Law and the proud religious law-keepers saw Jesus eat with men who gather taxes and others who were sinners. They said to His followers, “Why does He eat and drink with men who gather taxes and with sinners?” ¹⁷ Jesus heard it and said to them, “People who are well do not need a doctor. Only those who are sick need a doctor. I have not come to call those who are right with God. I have come to call those who are sinners.”

Jesus Teaches about Going without Food So You Can Pray Better ^(B)

¹⁸ The followers of John and the proud religious law-keepers were not eating food so they could pray better. Some people came to Jesus and said, “Why do the followers of John and the proud religious law-keepers go without food so they can pray better, but Your followers do not?” ¹⁹ Jesus said to them, “Can the friends at a wedding go without food when the man just married is with them? As long as they have him with them, they will not go without food. ²⁰ The days will come when the man just married will be taken from them. Then they will not eat food so they can pray better. ²¹ No man sews a piece of new cloth on an old coat. If it comes off, it will make the hole bigger. ²² No man puts new wine into old skin bags. The skin would break and the wine would run out. The bags would be no good. New wine must be put into new skin bags.”

Jesus Teaches about the Day of Rest ^(C)

²³ At that time Jesus walked through the grain-fields on the Day of Rest. As they went, His followers began to take some of the grain. ²⁴ The proud religious law-keepers said to Jesus, “See! Why are they doing what the Law says should not be done on the Day of Rest?” ²⁵ He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he and his men were hungry? ²⁶ He went into the house of God when Abiathar was head religious leader of the Jews. He ate the special bread used in the religious worship. The Law says only the Jewish religious leaders may eat that. David gave some to those who were with him also.” ²⁷ Jesus said to them, “The Day of Rest was made for the good of man. Man was not made for the Day of Rest. ²⁸ The Son of Man is Lord of the Day of Rest also.”

Jesus Heals on the Day of Rest ^(D)

3 Jesus went into the Jewish place of worship again. A man was there with a dried-up hand. ² The proud religious law-keepers watched Jesus to see if He would heal the man on the Day of Rest. They wanted to have something to say against Jesus. ³ Jesus said to the man with the dried-up hand, “Stand up.” ⁴ Then Jesus said to the proud religious law-keepers, “Does the Law say to do good on the Day of Rest or to do bad, to save life or to kill?” But they said nothing. ⁵ Jesus looked around at them with anger. He was sad because of their hard hearts. Then He said to the man, “Put out your hand.” He put it out and his hand was healed. It was as good as the other. ⁶ The proud religious law-keepers went out and made plans with the followers of King Herod how they might kill Jesus.

Sinful Men—Loving God

36 Sin speaks to the sinful man within his heart. There is no fear of God in his eyes. ² For he makes much of himself in his own eyes. So his sin is not known and hated. ³ The words of his mouth are sinful and false. He has stopped being wise and doing good. ⁴ He plans wrong-doing upon his bed. He sets himself on a path that is not good. He does not hate what is bad.

⁵ O Lord, Your loving-kindness goes to the heavens. You are as faithful as the sky is high. ⁶ You are as right and good as mountains are big. You are as fair when You judge as a sea is deep. O Lord, You keep safe both man and animal. ⁷ Of what great worth is Your loving-kindness, O God! The children of men come and are safe in the shadow of Your wings. ⁸ They are filled with the riches of Your house. And You give them a drink from Your river of joy. ⁹ All life came from You. In Your light we see light.

¹⁰ Keep on giving Your loving-kindness to those who know You. Keep on being right and good to the pure in heart. ¹¹ Do not let the foot of pride come near me. Do not let the hand of the sinful push me away. ¹² There have the wrong-doers fallen. They have been thrown down, and cannot rise.

The Wise Sayings of Solomon, Chapters 10 through 29

10 The sayings of Solomon:

A wise son makes a father glad, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.

² Riches taken by wrong-doing do no good, but doing what is right and good saves from death.