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47 Then he [my guide] brought me again to the door of the house [of the Lord—the temple], and behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the front of the temple was toward the east; and the waters came down from under, from the right side of the temple, on the south side of the altar.
2 Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around outside to the outer gate by the way that faces east, and behold, waters were running out on the right side.(A)
3 And when the man went on eastward with the measuring line in his hand, he measured a thousand cubits, and he caused me to pass through the waters, waters that were ankle-deep.
4 Again he measured a thousand cubits and caused me to pass through the waters, waters that reached to the knees. Again he measured a thousand cubits and caused me to pass through the waters, waters that reached to the loins.
5 Afterward he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the waters had risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over or through.
6 And he said to me, Son of man, have you seen this? Then he led me and caused me to return to the bank of the river.
7 Now when I had returned, behold, on the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other.
8 Then he said to me, These waters pour out toward the eastern region and go down into the Arabah (the Jordan Valley) and on into the Dead Sea. And when they shall enter into the sea [the sea of putrid waters], the waters shall be healed and made fresh.
9 And wherever the double river shall go, every living creature which swarms shall live. And there shall be a very great number of fish, because these waters go there that [the waters of the sea] may be healed and made fresh; and everything shall live wherever the river goes.
10 The fishermen shall stand on [the banks of the Dead Sea]; from En-gedi even to En-eglaim shall be a place to spread nets; their fish shall be of very many kinds, as the fish of the Great or Mediterranean Sea.
11 But its swamps and marshes will not become wholesome for animal life; they shall [as the river subsides] be left encrusted with salt and given over to it.
12 And on the banks of the river on both its sides, there shall grow all kinds of trees for food; their leaf shall not fade nor shall their fruit fail [to meet the demand]. Each tree shall bring forth new fruit every month, [these supernatural qualities being] because their waters came from out of the sanctuary. And their fruit shall be for food and their leaves for healing.
13 Thus says the Lord God: These shall be the boundaries by which you shall divide the land among the twelve tribes of Israel: Joseph shall have two portions.
14 And you shall divide it equally. I lifted up My hand and swore to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance.
15 And this shall be the boundary of the land on the north side: from the Great or Mediterranean Sea by way of Hethlon to the entrance of Zedad,
16 Hamath, Berothah, Sibraim, which is on the border between Damascus and Hamath, as far as Hazer-hatticon on the border of Hauran.
17 So the boundary shall extend from the [Mediterranean] Sea to Hazar-enan, at the boundary of Damascus on the north, together with the boundary of Hamath to the north. This is the north side.
18 And on the east side you shall measure the boundary from between Hauran and Damascus, and Gilead on one side and the land of Israel on the other, with the Jordan forming the boundary down to the East or Dead Sea. And this [from Damascus to the Dead Sea and including it] is the east side.
19 And the south side [boundary] southward, from Tamar [near the Dead Sea] shall run as far as the waters of Meribath-kadesh, then along the Brook of Egypt to the Great or Mediterranean Sea. And this is the south side.
20 On the west side [the boundary] shall be the Great or Mediterranean Sea to a point opposite the entrance of Hamath [north of Mount Hermon]. This is the west side.
21 So you shall divide this land among you according to the tribes of Israel.
22 You shall divide it by allotment as an inheritance for yourselves and for the foreigners who reside among you and shall have children born among you. They shall be to you as those born in the country among the children of Israel; they shall inherit with you among the tribes of Israel.
23 In whatever tribe the foreigner resides, there shall you give him his inheritance, says the Lord God.
48 Now these are the names of the tribes: From the north end, beside the way of Hethlon to the entrance of Hamath as far as Hazar-enan, which is on the northern border of Damascus opposite Hamath, and reaching from the east border to the west, Dan, one [portion].
2 And beside the border of Dan, from the east side to the west side, Asher, one [portion].
3 And beside the border of Asher, from the east side to the west side, Naphtali, one [portion].
4 And beside the border of Naphtali, from the east side to the west side, Manasseh, one [portion].
5 And beside the border of Manasseh, from the east side to the west side, Ephraim, one [portion].
6 And beside the border of Ephraim, from the east side to the west side, Reuben, one [portion].
7 And beside the border of Reuben, from the east side to the west side, Judah, one [portion].
8 And beside the border of Judah, from the east side to the west side, shall be the offering of land which you shall offer: 25,000 reeds in breadth, and in length as one of the tribal portions from the east side to the west side; and the sanctuary shall be in the midst of it.
9 The portion of land that you shall set apart and offer to the Lord shall be 25,000 [measures] in length and 10,000 in breadth [for each of the two districts].
10 And for these, even for the priests, shall be this holy offering of land: toward the north 25,000 [measures] in length, and toward the west 10,000 in breadth, and toward the east 10,000 in breadth, and toward the south 25,000 in length, and the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in the midst of it.
11 The set-apart and sacred portion shall be for the consecrated priests of the sons of Zadok, who have kept My charge and who did not go astray when the children of Israel went astray, as the other Levites did.
12 And this land offering shall be for the priests as a thing most holy beside the border of the [other] Levites.
13 And opposite the border of the priests the [other] Levites shall have 25,000 [measures] in length and 10,000 in breadth. The whole length shall be 25,000 and the breadth 10,000.
14 And they shall not sell any of it or exchange it; they shall not convey or transfer this the firstfruits of the land, for it has been offered to the Lord and is holy to Him.
15 And the remaining strip of 5,000 [measures] in breadth and 25,000 in length shall be for the city’s secular use, for a place in which to dwell and for open country or suburbs. The city shall be in the midst of the plot.
16 And these shall be the dimensions of it: the north side 4,500 [measures] and the south side 4,500, the east side 4,500 and the west side 4,500.(B)
17 And the city shall have suburbs or open country: toward the north 250 [measures] and toward the south 250, toward the east 250 and toward the west 250.
18 The remainder of the length along beside the holy portion shall be 10,000 [measures] to the east and 10,000 to the west, and it shall be along beside the holy portion. The produce from it shall be for food for those who work in the city.
19 And the workers of the city from all the tribes of Israel shall till the open land.
20 The whole portion that you shall set apart as an offering to God shall be 25,000 [measures] by 25,000; you shall set apart the holy portion foursquare, together with the property of the city.
21 And what is left unallotted, on both sides of the holy portion and of that possessed by the city, shall belong to the prince. Reaching eastward from the 25,000 [measures] of the holy portion to the east border, and westward from the 25,000 [measures] to the west border, parallel to the tribal allotments, it belongs to the prince. The holy portion with the sanctuary of the temple in its midst,
22 And the possession of the Levites and the property of the city [of Jerusalem] shall be in the midst of that which belongs to the prince. What lies between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin shall be for the prince.
23 As for the rest of the tribes, from the east side to the west side, Benjamin, one [portion].
24 And beside the border of Benjamin, from the east side to the west side, Simeon, one [portion].
25 And beside the border of Simeon, from the east side to the west side, Issachar, one [portion].
26 And beside the border of Issachar, from the east side to the west side, Zebulun, one [portion].
27 And beside the border of Zebulun, from the east side to the west side, Gad, one [portion].
28 And beside the border of Gad, at the south side southward, the border shall extend from Tamar to the waters of Meribath-kadesh and on along the Brook [of Egypt] to the Great or Mediterranean Sea.
29 This is the land which you shall divide by allotment among the tribes of Israel as their inheritance, and these are their several portions, says the Lord God.
30 And these shall be the exits of the city: On the north side, which is to extend 4,500 measures,
31 Three gates: one gate of Reuben, one gate of Judah, one gate of Levi, the gates of the city being called after the names of the tribes of Israel;
32 And on the east side’s 4,500 measures, three gates: one gate of Joseph, one gate of Benjamin, one gate of Dan;
33 And on the south side’s 4,500 measures, three gates: one gate of Simeon, one gate of Issachar, one gate of Zebulun;
34 On the west side’s 4,500 measures, three gates: one gate of Gad, one gate of Asher, one gate of Naphtali.
35 The distance around the city shall be 18,000 [4 x 4,500] measures; and the name of the city from that day and ever after shall be, the lord is there.(C)
11 Beloved, I implore you as aliens and strangers and exiles [in this world] to abstain from the sensual urges (the evil desires, the passions of the flesh, your lower nature) that wage war against the soul.
12 Conduct yourselves properly (honorably, righteously) among the Gentiles, so that, although they may slander you as evildoers, [yet] they may by witnessing your good deeds [come to] glorify God in the day of inspection [[a]when God shall look upon you wanderers as a pastor or shepherd looks over his flock].
13 Be submissive to every human institution and authority for the sake of the Lord, whether it be to the emperor as supreme,
14 Or to governors as sent by him to bring vengeance (punishment, justice) to those who do wrong and to encourage those who do good service.
15 For it is God’s will and intention that by doing right [your good and honest lives] should silence (muzzle, gag) the ignorant charges and ill-informed criticisms of foolish persons.
16 [Live] as free people, [yet] without employing your freedom as a pretext for wickedness; but [live at all times] as servants of God.
17 Show respect for all men [treat them honorably]. Love the brotherhood (the Christian fraternity of which Christ is the Head). Reverence God. Honor the emperor.
18 [You who are] household servants, be submissive to your masters with all [proper] respect, not only to those who are kind and considerate and reasonable, but also to those who are surly (overbearing, unjust, and crooked).
19 For one is regarded favorably (is approved, acceptable, and thankworthy) if, as in the sight of God, he endures the pain of unjust suffering.
20 [After all] what [b]kind of glory [is there in it] if, when you do wrong and are punished for it, you take it patiently? But if you bear patiently with suffering [which results] when you do right and that is undeserved, it is acceptable and pleasing to God.
21 For even to this were you called [it is inseparable from your vocation]. For Christ also suffered for you, leaving you [His personal] example, so that you should follow in His footsteps.
22 He was guilty of no sin, neither was deceit (guile) ever found on His lips.(A)
23 When He was reviled and insulted, He did not revile or offer insult in return; [when] He was abused and suffered, He made no threats [of vengeance]; but he trusted [Himself and everything] to Him Who judges fairly.
24 He personally bore our sins in His [own] body on the tree [c][as on an altar and offered Himself on it], that we might die (cease to exist) to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed.
25 For you were going astray like [so many] sheep, but now you have come back to the Shepherd and Guardian ([d]the Bishop) of your souls.(B)
3 In like manner, you married women, be submissive to your own husbands [subordinate yourselves as being secondary to and dependent on them, and adapt yourselves to them], so that even if any do not obey the Word [of God], they may be won over not by discussion but by the [godly] lives of their wives,
2 When they observe the pure and modest way in which you conduct yourselves, together with your [e]reverence [for your husband; you are to feel for him all that reverence includes: to respect, defer to, revere him—to honor, esteem, appreciate, prize, and, in the human sense, to adore him, that is, to admire, praise, be devoted to, deeply love, and enjoy your husband].
3 Let not yours be the [merely] external adorning with [elaborate] [f]interweaving and knotting of the hair, the wearing of jewelry, or changes of clothes;
4 But let it be the inward adorning and beauty of the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible and unfading charm of a gentle and peaceful spirit, which [is not anxious or wrought up, but] is very precious in the sight of God.
5 For it was thus that the pious women of old who hoped in God were [accustomed] to beautify themselves and were submissive to their husbands [adapting themselves to them as themselves secondary and dependent upon them].
6 It was thus that Sarah obeyed Abraham [following his guidance and acknowledging his headship over her by] calling him lord (master, leader, authority). And you are now her true daughters if you do right and let nothing terrify you [not giving way to hysterical fears or letting anxieties unnerve you].
7 In the same way you married men should live considerately with [your wives], with an [g]intelligent recognition [of the marriage relation], honoring the woman as [physically] the weaker, but [realizing that you] are joint heirs of the grace (God’s unmerited favor) of life, in order that your prayers may not be hindered and cut off. [Otherwise you cannot pray effectively.]
49 Remember [fervently] the word and promise to Your servant, in which You have caused me to hope.
50 This is my comfort and consolation in my affliction: that Your word has revived me and given me life.(A)
51 The proud have had me greatly in derision, yet have I not declined in my interest in or turned aside from Your law.
52 When I have [earnestly] recalled Your ordinances from of old, O Lord, I have taken comfort.
53 Burning indignation, terror, and sadness seize upon me because of the wicked, who forsake Your law.
54 Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage.
55 I have [earnestly] remembered Your name, O Lord, in the night, and I have observed Your law.
56 This I have had [as the gift of Your grace and as my reward]: that I have kept Your precepts [hearing, receiving, loving, and obeying them].
57 You are my portion, O Lord; I have promised to keep Your words.
58 I entreated Your favor with my whole heart; be merciful and gracious to me according to Your promise.
59 I considered my ways; I turned my feet to [obey] Your testimonies.
60 I made haste and delayed not to keep Your commandments.
61 Though the cords of the wicked have enclosed and ensnared me, I have not forgotten Your law.
62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You because of Your righteous ordinances.
63 I am a companion of all those who fear, revere, and worship You, and of those who observe and give heed to Your precepts.
64 The earth, O Lord, is full of Your mercy and loving-kindness; teach me Your statutes.
12 When the [uncompromisingly] righteous triumph, there is great glory and celebration; but when the wicked rise [to power], men hide themselves.
13 He who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes his sins will obtain mercy.(A)
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation