Do You Want to Walk with God?

PRAY OVER THIS

“And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” Genesis 5:24

 

PONDER THIS

Faith is not guessing at the will of God. Faith is hearing from God through the Word of God, learning the will of God, and believing God. You don’t name it and claim it; God speaks, and you believe it. Without faith, it’s impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6).

You want to walk with God? Walking with God is not just about coming to church. It’s not only learning the facts. Would you like for God to be more real to you than the person sitting next to you? This walk with God begins with faith. Enoch walked with God because he believed God.

How does the Word of God reveal the will of God?

What would it look like for you to walk with God in faith this week?

PRACTICE THIS

Write a list of things you know to be the will of God according to His Word. Reflect on this list throughout the week.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

God Cares for You

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6–7)

Why is anxiety about the future a form of pride?

God’s answer would sound something like this (paraphrasing Isaiah 51:12):

I — the Lord, your Maker — I am he who comforts you, who promises to take care of you; and those who threaten you are mere men who die. So, your fear must mean that you do not trust me — and even though you are not sure that your own resources will take care of you, yet you opt for fragile self-reliance, rather than faith in my future grace. So, all your trembling — weak as it is — reveals pride.

The remedy? Turn from self-reliance to God-reliance, and put your faith in the all-sufficient power of the promise of his future grace.

You can see that anxiety is a form of pride in 1 Peter 5:6–7. Notice the grammatical connection between the verses. “Humble yourselves . . . under the mighty hand of God . . . [now, verse 7] casting all your anxieties on him.” Verse 7 is not a new sentence. It’s a subordinate clause. It starts with a participle: “Humble yourselves . . . [by] casting all your anxieties on him.”

This means that casting your anxieties on God is a way of humbling yourself under God’s mighty hand. It’s like saying, “Eat politely . . . chewing with your mouth shut.” Or, “Drive carefully . . . keeping your eyes on the road.” Or, “Be generous . . . inviting someone over on Thanksgiving.” Or, “Humble yourselves . . . casting your fears on God.”

One way to humble ourselves is to cast all our anxieties on God. Which means that one hindrance to casting your anxieties on God is pride. Which means that undue worry is a form of pride. No matter how weak it looks or feels.

Now, why is casting our anxieties on the Lord the opposite of pride? Because pride does not like to admit that it has any anxieties. Or that we can’t take care of them ourselves. And if pride has to admit that its fears are unmanageable, it still does not like to admit that the remedy might be trusting someone else who is wiser and stronger.

In other words, pride is a form of unbelief and does not like to trust in God for his future grace. Faith, on the other hand, admits the need for help. Pride won’t. Faith banks on God to give help. Pride won’t. Faith casts anxieties on God. Pride won’t.

Therefore, the way to battle the unbelief of pride is to admit freely that you have anxieties, and to cherish the promise of future grace in the words, “He cares for you.” And then unload your fears onto his strong shoulders.

John Piper 

March 9

Matthew 24:1-14

Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple

[1] Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. [2] But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

Signs of the End of the Age

[3] As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” [4] And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. [5] For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. [6] And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. [7] For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. [8] All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.

[9] “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. [10] And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. [11] And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. [12] And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. [13] But the one who endures to the end will be saved. [14] And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Romans 6:15-23

Slaves to Righteousness

[15] What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! [16] Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? [17] But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, [18] and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. [19] I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

[20] For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. [21] But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. [22] But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. [23] For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 56

In God I Trust

To the choirmaster: according to The Dove on Far-off Terebinths. A Miktam of David, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

    [1] Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me;

        all day long an attacker oppresses me; 

    [2] my enemies trample on me all day long,

        for many attack me proudly. 

    [3] When I am afraid,

        I put my trust in you. 

    [4] In God, whose word I praise,

        in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

        What can flesh do to me?

    [5] All day long they injure my cause;

        all their thoughts are against me for evil. 

    [6] They stir up strife, they lurk;

        they watch my steps,

        as they have waited for my life. 

    [7] For their crime will they escape?

        In wrath cast down the peoples, O God!

    [8] You have kept count of my tossings;

        put my tears in your bottle.

        Are they not in your book? 

    [9] Then my enemies will turn back

        in the day when I call.

        This I know, that God is for me. 

    [10] In God, whose word I praise,

        in the LORD, whose word I praise, 

    [11] in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

        What can man do to me?

    [12] I must perform my vows to you, O God;

        I will render thank offerings to you. 

    [13] For you have delivered my soul from death,

        yes, my feet from falling,

    that I may walk before God

        in the light of life.

Numbers 21

Arad Destroyed

[1] When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negeb, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, he fought against Israel, and took some of them captive. [2] And Israel vowed a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I will devote their cities to destruction.” [3] And the LORD heeded the voice of Israel and gave over the Canaanites, and they devoted them and their cities to destruction. So the name of the place was called Hormah.

The Bronze Serpent

[4] From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. [5] And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” [6] Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. [7] And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. [8] And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” [9] So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.

The Song of the Well

[10] And the people of Israel set out and camped in Oboth. [11] And they set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness that is opposite Moab, toward the sunrise. [12] From there they set out and camped in the Valley of Zered. [13] From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that extends from the border of the Amorites, for the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. [14] Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of the LORD, 

    “Waheb in Suphah, and the valleys of the Arnon, 

    [15] and the slope of the valleys

    that extends to the seat of Ar,

    and leans to the border of Moab.”

    [16] And from there they continued to Beer; that is the well of which the LORD said to Moses, “Gather the people together, so that I may give them water.” [17] Then Israel sang this song: 

    “Spring up, O well!—Sing to it!—

    [18] the well that the princes made,

    that the nobles of the people dug,

    with the scepter and with their staffs.”

    And from the wilderness they went on to Mattanah,  [19] and from Mattanah to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel to Bamoth, [20] and from Bamoth to the valley lying in the region of Moab by the top of Pisgah that looks down on the desert.

King Sihon Defeated

[21] Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, saying, [22] “Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into field or vineyard. We will not drink the water of a well. We will go by the King’s Highway until we have passed through your territory.” [23] But Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his territory. He gathered all his people together and went out against Israel to the wilderness and came to Jahaz and fought against Israel. [24] And Israel defeated him with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as to the Ammonites, for the border of the Ammonites was strong. [25] And Israel took all these cities, and Israel settled in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all its villages. [26] For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and taken all his land out of his hand, as far as the Arnon. [27] Therefore the ballad singers say, 

    “Come to Heshbon, let it be built;

        let the city of Sihon be established. 

    [28] For fire came out from Heshbon,

        flame from the city of Sihon.

    It devoured Ar of Moab,

        and swallowed the heights of the Arnon. 

    [29] Woe to you, O Moab!

        You are undone, O people of Chemosh!

    He has made his sons fugitives,

        and his daughters captives,

        to an Amorite king, Sihon. 

    [30] So we overthrew them;

        Heshbon, as far as Dibon, perished;

        and we laid waste as far as Nophah;

        fire spread as far as Medeba.”

    King Og Defeated

[31] Thus Israel lived in the land of the Amorites. [32] And Moses sent to spy out Jazer, and they captured its villages and dispossessed the Amorites who were there. [33] Then they turned and went up by the way to Bashan. And Og the king of Bashan came out against them, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. [34] But the LORD said to Moses, “Do not fear him, for I have given him into your hand, and all his people, and his land. And you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon.” [35] So they defeated him and his sons and all his people, until he had no survivor left. And they possessed his land.

Numbers 22

Balak Summons Balaam

[1] Then the people of Israel set out and camped in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan at Jericho. [2] And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. [3] And Moab was in great dread of the people, because they were many. Moab was overcome with fear of the people of Israel. [4] And Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will now lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.” So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, [5] sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the people of Amaw, to call him, saying, “Behold, a people has come out of Egypt. They cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me. [6] Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them from the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

[7] So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the fees for divination in their hand. And they came to Balaam and gave him Balak’s message. [8] And he said to them, “Lodge here tonight, and I will bring back word to you, as the LORD speaks to me.” So the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam. [9] And God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?” [10] And Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me, saying, [11] ‘Behold, a people has come out of Egypt, and it covers the face of the earth. Now come, curse them for me. Perhaps I shall be able to fight against them and drive them out.’” [12] God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them. You shall not curse the people, for they are blessed.” [13] So Balaam rose in the morning and said to the princes of Balak, “Go to your own land, for the LORD has refused to let me go with you.” [14] So the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak and said, “Balaam refuses to come with us.”

[15] Once again Balak sent princes, more in number and more honorable than these. [16] And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak the son of Zippor: ‘Let nothing hinder you from coming to me, [17] for I will surely do you great honor, and whatever you say to me I will do. Come, curse this people for me.’” [18] But Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the command of the LORD my God to do less or more. [19] So you, too, please stay here tonight, that I may know what more the LORD will say to me.” [20] And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men have come to call you, rise, go with them; but only do what I tell you.” [21] So Balaam rose in the morning and saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab.

Balaam’s Donkey and the Angel

[22] But God’s anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him. [23] And the donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road, with a drawn sword in his hand. And the donkey turned aside out of the road and went into the field. And Balaam struck the donkey, to turn her into the road. [24] Then the angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on either side. [25] And when the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she pushed against the wall and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall. So he struck her again. [26] Then the angel of the LORD went ahead and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left. [27] When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. [28] Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” [29] And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a fool of me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would kill you.” [30] And the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden all your life long to this day? Is it my habit to treat you this way?” And he said, “No.”

[31] Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way, with his drawn sword in his hand. And he bowed down and fell on his face. [32] And the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me. [33] The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let her live.” [34] Then Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you stood in the road against me. Now therefore, if it is evil in your sight, I will turn back.” [35] And the angel of the LORD said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but speak only the word that I tell you.” So Balaam went on with the princes of Balak.

[36] When Balak heard that Balaam had come, he went out to meet him at the city of Moab, on the border formed by the Arnon, at the extremity of the border. [37] And Balak said to Balaam, “Did I not send to you to call you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not able to honor you?” [38] Balaam said to Balak, “Behold, I have come to you! Have I now any power of my own to speak anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that must I speak.” [39] Then Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kiriath-huzoth. [40] And Balak sacrificed oxen and sheep, and sent for Balaam and for the princes who were with him.

[41] And in the morning Balak took Balaam and brought him up to Bamoth-baal, and from there he saw a fraction of the people.

God’s People Were Prepared

PRAY OVER THIS

“And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.” Hebrews 9:22

 

PONDER THIS

Pavlov, the Russian psychologist, did experiments in what we call “conditioned response.” He had his dogs, and he would ring a bell, feed the dogs, ring a bell, feed the dogs, ring a bell, feed the dogs. He conditioned the dogs so that all he had to do was ring a bell and they’d begin to drool. They began to salivate because they knew that the bell meant food. What was God doing in the Old Testament with all the sacrifices, beginning with the skins that clothed Adam and Eve and continuing with Abel’s offering? He was conditioning His people. When they saw the blood, they were reminded repeatedly that sin meant death. Therefore, God’s people were ready for the death of the Lord Jesus Christ upon the cross. For, “without shedding of blood there is no remission.”

As you read God’s Word, how do the Old Testament sacrifices help you look for the coming sacrifice of Jesus?

How does it change your perspective of the Old Testament to read it in this way?

PRACTICE THIS

Take time in prayer to thank God for the sacrifices of the Old Testament that continually pointed to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Open the Windows of Your Heart

A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench. (Isaiah 42:3)

Probably the most encouraging words I have heard in weeks came from a prophecy in Isaiah 42:1–3 about how Jesus will use his spiritual power.

Do you feel like “a bruised reed” — like one of those big top-heavy Easter lilies whose stem has been squashed so that the flower flops to the ground and gets no sap? Do you ever feel like your faith is just a little spark instead of a flame — like that little red dot at the end of the wick after you blow out the birthday candle?

Take heart! The Spirit of Christ is the Spirit of encouragement: he will not snap off your flower; he will not snuff out your spark.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me . . . to proclaim good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18). “The sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings” (Malachi 4:2). “[He is] gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14).

It may be a grief to us that we are only a spark instead of a flaming fire. But listen! And be encouraged: Yes, there is a big difference between a spark and a fire. But there is an infinite difference between a spark and no spark! A mustard seed of faith is infinitely closer to being a mountain of faith than it is to being no faith.

Open the window of God’s promises and let the Spirit blow into every room of your heart. The Holy Wind of God will not break or quench. He will lift up your head and fan your spark into a flame. He is the Spirit of encouragement.

John Piper 

March 8

Matthew 23:25-39

[25] “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. [26] You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

[27] “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. [28] So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

[29] “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, [30] saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ [31] Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. [32] Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. [33] You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? [34] Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, [35] so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. [36] Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

Lament over Jerusalem

[37] “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! [38] See, your house is left to you desolate. [39] For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Romans 6:1-14

Dead to Sin, Alive to God

[1] What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? [2] By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? [3] Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? [4] We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

[5] For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. [6] We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. [7] For one who has died has been set free from sin. [8] Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. [9] We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. [10] For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. [11] So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

[12] Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. [13] Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. [14] For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Psalm 55

Cast Your Burden on the LORD

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

    [1] Give ear to my prayer, O God,

        and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! 

    [2] Attend to me, and answer me;

        I am restless in my complaint and I moan, 

    [3] because of the noise of the enemy,

        because of the oppression of the wicked.

    For they drop trouble upon me,

        and in anger they bear a grudge against me.

    [4] My heart is in anguish within me;

        the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 

    [5] Fear and trembling come upon me,

        and horror overwhelms me. 

    [6] And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!

        I would fly away and be at rest; 

    [7] yes, I would wander far away;

        I would lodge in the wilderness; Selah 

    [8] I would hurry to find a shelter

        from the raging wind and tempest.”

    [9] Destroy, O Lord, divide their tongues;

        for I see violence and strife in the city. 

    [10] Day and night they go around it

        on its walls,

    and iniquity and trouble are within it; 

    [11]     ruin is in its midst;

    oppression and fraud

        do not depart from its marketplace.

    [12] For it is not an enemy who taunts me—

        then I could bear it;

    it is not an adversary who deals insolently with me—

        then I could hide from him. 

    [13] But it is you, a man, my equal,

        my companion, my familiar friend. 

    [14] We used to take sweet counsel together;

        within God’s house we walked in the throng. 

    [15] Let death steal over them;

        let them go down to Sheol alive;

        for evil is in their dwelling place and in their heart.

    [16] But I call to God,

        and the LORD will save me. 

    [17] Evening and morning and at noon

        I utter my complaint and moan,

        and he hears my voice. 

    [18] He redeems my soul in safety

        from the battle that I wage,

        for many are arrayed against me. 

    [19] God will give ear and humble them,

        he who is enthroned from of old, Selah

    because they do not change

        and do not fear God.

    [20] My companion stretched out his hand against his friends;

        he violated his covenant. 

    [21] His speech was smooth as butter,

        yet war was in his heart;

    his words were softer than oil,

        yet they were drawn swords.

    [22] Cast your burden on the LORD,

        and he will sustain you;

    he will never permit

        the righteous to be moved.

    [23] But you, O God, will cast them down

        into the pit of destruction;

    men of blood and treachery

        shall not live out half their days.

    But I will trust in you.

Numbers 18

Duties of Priests and Levites

[1] So the LORD said to Aaron, “You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall bear iniquity connected with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear iniquity connected with your priesthood. [2] And with you bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may join you and minister to you while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony. [3] They shall keep guard over you and over the whole tent, but shall not come near to the vessels of the sanctuary or to the altar lest they, and you, die. [4] They shall join you and keep guard over the tent of meeting for all the service of the tent, and no outsider shall come near you. [5] And you shall keep guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel. [6] And behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the people of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to the LORD, to do the service of the tent of meeting. [7] And you and your sons with you shall guard your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood as a gift, and any outsider who comes near shall be put to death.”

[8] Then the LORD spoke to Aaron, “Behold, I have given you charge of the contributions made to me, all the consecrated things of the people of Israel. I have given them to you as a portion and to your sons as a perpetual due. [9] This shall be yours of the most holy things, reserved from the fire: every offering of theirs, every grain offering of theirs and every sin offering of theirs and every guilt offering of theirs, which they render to me, shall be most holy to you and to your sons. [10] In a most holy place shall you eat it. Every male may eat it; it is holy to you. [11] This also is yours: the contribution of their gift, all the wave offerings of the people of Israel. I have given them to you, and to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual due. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it. [12] All the best of the oil and all the best of the wine and of the grain, the firstfruits of what they give to the LORD, I give to you. [13] The first ripe fruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to the LORD, shall be yours. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it. [14] Every devoted thing in Israel shall be yours. [15] Everything that opens the womb of all flesh, whether man or beast, which they offer to the LORD, shall be yours. Nevertheless, the firstborn of man you shall redeem, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem. [16] And their redemption price (at a month old you shall redeem them) you shall fix at five shekels in silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs. [17] But the firstborn of a cow, or the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat, you shall not redeem; they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar and shall burn their fat as a food offering, with a pleasing aroma to the LORD. [18] But their flesh shall be yours, as the breast that is waved and as the right thigh are yours. [19] All the holy contributions that the people of Israel present to the LORD I give to you, and to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual due. It is a covenant of salt forever before the LORD for you and for your offspring with you.” [20] And the LORD said to Aaron, “You shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the people of Israel.

[21] “To the Levites I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service that they do, their service in the tent of meeting, [22] so that the people of Israel do not come near the tent of meeting, lest they bear sin and die. [23] But the Levites shall do the service of the tent of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity. It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations, and among the people of Israel they shall have no inheritance. [24] For the tithe of the people of Israel, which they present as a contribution to the LORD, I have given to the Levites for an inheritance. Therefore I have said of them that they shall have no inheritance among the people of Israel.”

[25] And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, [26] “Moreover, you shall speak and say to the Levites, ‘When you take from the people of Israel the tithe that I have given you from them for your inheritance, then you shall present a contribution from it to the LORD, a tithe of the tithe. [27] And your contribution shall be counted to you as though it were the grain of the threshing floor, and as the fullness of the winepress. [28] So you shall also present a contribution to the LORD from all your tithes, which you receive from the people of Israel. And from it you shall give the LORD’s contribution to Aaron the priest. [29] Out of all the gifts to you, you shall present every contribution due to the LORD; from each its best part is to be dedicated.’ [30] Therefore you shall say to them, ‘When you have offered from it the best of it, then the rest shall be counted to the Levites as produce of the threshing floor, and as produce of the winepress. [31] And you may eat it in any place, you and your households, for it is your reward in return for your service in the tent of meeting. [32] And you shall bear no sin by reason of it, when you have contributed the best of it. But you shall not profane the holy things of the people of Israel, lest you die.’”

Numbers 19

Laws for Purification

[1] Now the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, [2] “This is the statute of the law that the LORD has commanded: Tell the people of Israel to bring you a red heifer without defect, in which there is no blemish, and on which a yoke has never come. [3] And you shall give it to Eleazar the priest, and it shall be taken outside the camp and slaughtered before him. [4] And Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, and sprinkle some of its blood toward the front of the tent of meeting seven times. [5] And the heifer shall be burned in his sight. Its skin, its flesh, and its blood, with its dung, shall be burned. [6] And the priest shall take cedarwood and hyssop and scarlet yarn, and throw them into the fire burning the heifer. [7] Then the priest shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. But the priest shall be unclean until evening. [8] The one who burns the heifer shall wash his clothes in water and bathe his body in water and shall be unclean until evening. [9] And a man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and deposit them outside the camp in a clean place. And they shall be kept for the water for impurity for the congregation of the people of Israel; it is a sin offering. [10] And the one who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. And this shall be a perpetual statute for the people of Israel, and for the stranger who sojourns among them.

[11] “Whoever touches the dead body of any person shall be unclean seven days. [12] He shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day, and so be clean. But if he does not cleanse himself on the third day and on the seventh day, he will not become clean. [13] Whoever touches a dead person, the body of anyone who has died, and does not cleanse himself, defiles the tabernacle of the LORD, and that person shall be cut off from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown on him, he shall be unclean. His uncleanness is still on him.

[14] “This is the law when someone dies in a tent: everyone who comes into the tent and everyone who is in the tent shall be unclean seven days. [15] And every open vessel that has no cover fastened on it is unclean. [16] Whoever in the open field touches someone who was killed with a sword or who died naturally, or touches a human bone or a grave, shall be unclean seven days. [17] For the unclean they shall take some ashes of the burnt sin offering, and fresh water shall be added in a vessel. [18] Then a clean person shall take hyssop and dip it in the water and sprinkle it on the tent and on all the furnishings and on the persons who were there and on whoever touched the bone, or the slain or the dead or the grave. [19] And the clean person shall sprinkle it on the unclean on the third day and on the seventh day. Thus on the seventh day he shall cleanse him, and he shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and at evening he shall be clean.

[20] “If the man who is unclean does not cleanse himself, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly, since he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD. Because the water for impurity has not been thrown on him, he is unclean. [21] And it shall be a statute forever for them. The one who sprinkles the water for impurity shall wash his clothes, and the one who touches the water for impurity shall be unclean until evening. [22] And whatever the unclean person touches shall be unclean, and anyone who touches it shall be unclean until evening.”

Numbers 20

The Death of Miriam

[1] And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there.

The Waters of Meribah

[2] Now there was no water for the congregation. And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. [3] And the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD! [4] Why have you brought the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? [5] And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” [6] Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them, [7] and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, [8] “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” [9] And Moses took the staff from before the LORD, as he commanded him.

Moses Strikes the Rock

[10] Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” [11] And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. [12] And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” [13] These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the LORD, and through them he showed himself holy.

Edom Refuses Passage

[14] Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom: “Thus says your brother Israel: You know all the hardship that we have met: [15] how our fathers went down to Egypt, and we lived in Egypt a long time. And the Egyptians dealt harshly with us and our fathers. [16] And when we cried to the LORD, he heard our voice and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt. And here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your territory. [17] Please let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or vineyard, or drink water from a well. We will go along the King’s Highway. We will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory.” [18] But Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through, lest I come out with the sword against you.” [19] And the people of Israel said to him, “We will go up by the highway, and if we drink of your water, I and my livestock, then I will pay for it. Let me only pass through on foot, nothing more.” [20] But he said, “You shall not pass through.” And Edom came out against them with a large army and with a strong force. [21] Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory, so Israel turned away from him.

The Death of Aaron

[22] And they journeyed from Kadesh, and the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came to Mount Hor. [23] And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron at Mount Hor, on the border of the land of Edom, [24] “Let Aaron be gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land that I have given to the people of Israel, because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. [25] Take Aaron and Eleazar his son and bring them up to Mount Hor. [26] And strip Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son. And Aaron shall be gathered to his people and shall die there.” [27] Moses did as the LORD commanded. And they went up Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation. [28] And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son. And Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. [29] And when all the congregation saw that Aaron had perished, all the house of Israel wept for Aaron thirty days.