Chapter 68 of 257

Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the meek,

who devour the houses of widows and pray lengthy prayers for the sake of appearance. These will receive more severe condemnation!”

For never did we come with a word of flattery, just as you know, nor with a pretext of greediness (God is witness),

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you travel around the sea and the dry land to make one convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are!

Blessed are the meek,

because they will inherit the earth.

Offspring of vipers! How are you able to say good things when you are evil? For from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

Serpents! Offspring of vipers! How will you escape from the condemnation to hell?

You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father! That one was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth, because truth is not in him. Whenever he speaks the lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing! But whoever swears by the gold of the temple is bound by his oath.’ 17 Fools and blind people! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that makes the gold holy? 18 And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing! But whoever swears by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.’ 19 Blind people! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift holy? 20 Therefore the one who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything that is on it. 21 And the one who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22 And the one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by the one who sits on it.

Blessed are the ones who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

because they will be satisfied.

Let them! They are blind guides of the blind. And if the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”

Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying, 2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat a meal.” 3 So he answered and said to them, “Why do you also break the commandment of God because of your tradition? 4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and ‘The one who speaks evil of father or mother must certainly die.’ 5 But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or his mother, “Whatever benefit you would have received from me is a gift to God,” 6 need not honor his father,’ and you make void the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7 Hypocrites! Isaiah correctly prophesied about you saying,

8 ‘This people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far, far away from me,

9 and they worship me in vain,

teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”

For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘The one who speaks evil of father or mother must certainly die.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or to his mother, “Whatever benefit you would have received from me is corban” (that is, a gift to God), 12 you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother, 13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down, and you do many similar things such as this.”

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you pay a tenth of mint and dill and cumin, and neglect the more important matters of the law—justice and mercy and faithfulness! It was necessary to do these things while not neglecting those. 24 Blind guides who filter out a gnat and swallow a camel!

Blessed are the merciful,

because they will be shown mercy.

Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the governor’s residence. Now it was early, and they did not enter into the governor’s residence so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover.

“ ‘And any tithe of the land from the land’s seed or from the fruit of the trees is for Yahweh; it is a holy object for Yahweh.

“Certainly you must give a tithe of all the yield of your seed, which comes forth from your field year after year. 23 And you shall eat before Yahweh your God in the place that he will choose to make to dwell his name there the tithe of your grain, your wine and your olive oil and the firsthng of your herd and your flock, so that you may learn to revere Yahweh your God always. 24 But if the distance is too great for you, so that you are not able to transport it, because the place that Yahweh your God will choose to set his name there, it is too far from you, when Yahweh your God will bless you, 25 then in that case you may exchange for money, and you shall take the money to your hand and go to the place that Yahweh your God will choose. 26 You may spend the money for anything that you desire, for oxen or for sheep or for wine or for strong drink or for anything that you desire, and you shall eat it there before Yahweh your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household. 27 And as to the Levite who is in your towns, you shall not neglect him, because there is not a plot of ground for him and an inheritance along with you.

28 “At the end of three years you shall bring out all of the tithe of your yield for that year, and you shall store it in your towns. 29 And so the Levite may come, because there is no plot of ground for him or an inheritance with you, and the alien also may come and the orphan and the widow that are in your towns, and they may eat their fill, so that Yahweh your God may bless you in all of the work of your hand that you undertake.”

And blessed be God Most High

who delivered your enemies into your hand.”

And he gave to him a tenth of everything.

And Jacob made a vow saying, “If God will be with me and protect me on this way that I am going, and gives me food to eat and clothing to wear, 21 and if I return in peace to the house of my father, then Yahweh will become my God. 22 And this stone that I have set up as a pillar shall be the house of God, and of all that you give to me I will certainly give a tenth to you.”

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence! 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.

27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and of everything unclean! 28 In the same way, on the outside you also appear righteous to people, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

because they will see God.

But Yahweh said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For God does not see what man sees, for a man looks on the outward appearance, but Yahweh looks on the heart.”

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence!

“ ‘The one who touches a corpse of any person will be unclean for seven days. 12 He will purify himself on the third day, and on the seventh day he will be clean. If he does not purify himself on the third day, he will not be clean on the seventh day. 13 Anyone who touches a corpse, the person of a human being who died, and does not purify himself, defiles the tabernacle of Yahweh, and that person will be cut off from Israel because the waters of impurity were not sprinkled on him. He will still be unclean, and uncleanness is on him.

14 “ ‘This is the law of a person who dies in a tent: everyone who comes into the tent and all who are in the tent will be unclean seven days. 15 Every container that is opened that does not have a lid cord on it is unclean. 16 Anyone in the open field who touches one who has been slain, or a corpse, or a bone of a person, or a burial site, he will be unclean for seven days. 17 For the unclean person they will take from the powder of the burnt purification offering, and they will put running water into a container. 18 A clean person will take hyssop and dip it into the water and sprinkle it on the tent and on all the objects and persons who were there, and on one who touched the bone, or the one slain, or the dead, or the burial site. 19 The clean person will spatter the unclean on the third day and on the seventh day; and on the seventh day he will purify him, and he will wash his garments; he will bathe in the waters, and in the evening he will be clean. 20 But the man who is unclean and does not purify himself, that person will be cut off from the midst of the assembly because he defiled the sanctuary of Yahweh; the water of impurity was not sprinkled on him; he is unclean.

21 “ ‘It will be an eternal decree for them. The one who spatters the waters of impurity will wash his garments, and the one who touches the waters of impurity will be unclean until the evening. 22 Anything that the unclean person touches will be unclean, and the person who touches it will be unclean until the evening.’ ”

With all vigilance, keep your heart,

for from it comes the source of life.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous, 30 and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in the blood of the prophets!’ 31 Thus you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets! 32 And you—fill up the measure of your fathers! 33 Serpents! Offspring of vipers! How will you escape from the condemnation to hell?

Blessed are the peacemakers,

because they will be called sons of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

because theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are you

when they insult you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things against you, lying on account of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God indeed say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat, 3 but from the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, God said, ‘You shall not eat from it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die’.” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You shall not surely die. 5 For God knows that on the day you both eat from it, then your eyes will be opened and you both shall be like gods, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and the tree was desirable to make one wise, then she took from its fruit and she ate. And she gave it also to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed together fig leaves and they made for themselves coverings.

8 Then they heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden at the windy time of day. And the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. 9 And Yahweh God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 And he replied, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid because I am naked, so I hid myself.” 11 Then he asked, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I forbade you to eat?” 12 And the man replied, “The woman whom you gave to be with me—she gave to me from the tree and I ate.” 13 Then Yahweh God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 Then Yahweh God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

you will be cursed

more than any domesticated animal

and more than any wild animal.

On your belly you shall go

and dust you shall eat

all the days of your life.

15 And I will put hostility

between you and between the woman,

and between your offspring and between her offspring;

he will strike you on the head,

and you will strike him on the heel.”

16 To the woman he said,

“I will greatly increase

your pain in childbearing;

in pain you shall bear children.

And to your husband shall be your desire.

And he shall rule over you.”

17 And to Adam he said, “Because you listened to the voice of your wife and you ate from the tree from which I forbade you to eat,

the ground shall be cursed on your account.

In pain you shall eat from it

all the days of your life.

18 And thorns and thistles shall sprout for you,

and you shall eat the plants of the field.

19 By the sweat of your brow

you shall eat bread,

until your return to the ground.

For from it you were taken;

for you are dust,

and to dust you shall return.”

20 And the man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all life. 21 And Yahweh God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin, and he clothed them.

22 And Yahweh God said, “Look—the man has become as one of us, to know good and evil. What if he stretches out his hand and takes also from the tree of life and eats, and lives forever?” 23 And Yahweh God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. 24 So he drove the man out, and placed cherubim east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming, turning sword to guard the way to the tree of life.

and the field is the world. And the good seed—these are the sons of the kingdom, but the darnel are the sons of the evil one.

and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in the blood of the prophets!’

For this reason, behold, I am sending to you prophets and wise men and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues and will pursue from town to town,

Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain. And she said, “I have given birth to a man with the help of Yahweh.” 2 Then she bore his brother Abel. And Abel became a keeper of sheep, and Cain became a tiller of the ground. 3 And in the course of time Cain brought an offering from the fruit of the ground to Yahweh, 4 and Abel also brought an offering from the choicest firsthngs of his flock. And Yahweh looked with favor to Abel and to his offering, 5 but to Cain and to his offering he did not look with favor. And Cain became very angry, and his face fell. 6 And Yahweh said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why is your face fallen? 7 If you do well will I not accept you? But if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. And its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”

8 Then Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out into the field.” And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then Yahweh said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” 10 And he said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground. 11 So now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive the blood of your brother from your hand. 12 When you till the ground it shall no longer yield its strength to you. You shall be a wanderer and a fugitive on the earth.” 13 And Cain said to Yahweh, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Look, you have driven me out today from the face of the ground, and from your face I must hide. I will be a wanderer and a fugitive on the earth, and it will happen that whoever finds me will kill me.” 15 Then Yahweh said to him, “Therefore, whoever kills Cain will be avenged sevenfold.” Then Yahweh put a sign on Cain so that whoever found him would not kill him.

By this the children of God and the children of the devil are evident: everyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, namely, the one who does not love his brother.

11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning: that we should love one another, 12 not as Cain, who was of the evil one and violently murdered his brother. And for what reason did he violently murder him? Because his deeds were evil and the deeds of his brother were righteous.

13 Do not marvel, brothers, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed over from death to life because we love the brothers. The one who does not love remains in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that every murderer does not have eternal life residing in him.

Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people and said to them, “Thus says God: ‘Why are you transgressing the commandments of Yahweh so that you will not succeed? For you have forsaken Yahweh, so he will forsake you.’ ” 21 Then they conspired against him and stoned him with stones at the command of the king in the courtyard of the house of Yahweh. 22 So King Joash did not remember the loyal love that Jehoiada his father had shown to him, and he killed his son. And as he was dying he said, “May Yahweh see and avenge!”

Serpents! Offspring of vipers! How will you escape from the condemnation to hell?

And the fourth generation shall return here, for the guilt of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

And you—fill up the measure of your fathers!

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How many times I wanted to gather your children together the way a hen gathers her young together under her wings, and you were not willing! 38 Behold, your house has been left to you desolate! 39 For I tell you, you will never see me from now on until you say,

‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”

And you are not willing to come to me so that you may have life.

As an eagle stirs up its nest,

hovers over its young,

spreads out its wings, takes them,

carries them on its pinions,

He came to his own things, and his own people did not receive him.

And he said to them, “It is written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a cave of robbers!”

And as Jesus went out of the temple courts he was going along, and his disciples came up to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 But he answered and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone will be left here on another stone that will not be thrown down!”

Blessed is he who comes in the name of Yahweh.

We bless you from the house of Yahweh.

And the crowds who went ahead of him and the ones who followed were shouting, saying,

“Hosanna to the Son of David!

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

For I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of this mystery, so that you will not be wise in your own sight, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and so all Israel will be saved, just as it is written,

“The deliverer will come out of Zion;

he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob.

27 And this is the covenant from me with them

when I take away their sins.”

And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it!

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, the so-called uncircumcision by the so-called circumcision in the flesh, made by hands, 12 that you were at that time apart from Christ, alienated from the citizenship of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, not having hope, and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you, the ones who once were far away, have become near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who made both one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition, the enmity, in his flesh, 15 invalidating the law of commandments in ordinances, in order that he might create the two in himself into one new man, thus making peace, 16 and might reconcile both in one body to God through the cross, killing the enmity in himself. 17 And coming, he proclaimed the good news of peace to you who were far away and peace to the ones who were near, 18 because through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 Consequently, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but you are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are built up together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

Now we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you will not grieve as also the rest, who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, thus also God will bring those who have fallen asleep through Jesus together with him. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who remain until the Lord’s coming, will not possibly precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who remain, will be snatched away at the same time together with them in the clouds for a meeting with the Lord in the air, and thus we will be together with the Lord always. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

You worship what you do not know. We worship what we know, because salvation is from the Jews.

3 And as he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came up to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Watch out that no one deceives you! 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will deceive many. 6 And you are going to hear about wars and rumors of wars. See to it that you are not alarmed, for this must happen, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 But all these things are the beginning of birth pains.

9 “Then they will hand you over to persecution and will kill you, and you will be hated by all the nations because of my name. 10 And then many will be led into sin and will betray one another and will hate one another, 11 and many false prophets will appear and will deceive many, 12 and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end—this person will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed in the whole inhabited earth for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken about by the prophet Daniel standing in the holy place” (let the one who reads understand), 16 “then those in Judea must flee to the mountains! 17 The one who is on his housetop must not come down to take things out of his house, 18 and the one who is in the field must not turn back to pick up his cloak. 19 And woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! 20 But pray that your flight may not happen in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not happened from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will happen. 22 And unless those days had been shortened, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be shortened.

23 “At that time if anyone should say to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘Here he is,’ do not believe him! 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear, and will produce great signs and wonders in order to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 Behold, I have told you ahead of time! 26 Therefore if they say to you, ‘Behold, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or ‘Behold, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it! 27 For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so the coming of the Son of Man will be. 28 Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

29 “And immediately after the tribulation of those days,

‘the sun will be darkened

and the moon will not give its light,

and the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.’

30 And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man arriving on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect together from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other end of it.

32 “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: Whenever its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also you, when you see all these things, know that he is near, at the door. 34 Truly I say to you that this generation will never pass away until all these things take place! 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows—not even the angels of heaven nor the Son—except the Father alone. 37 For just as the days of Noah were, so the coming of the Son of Man will be. 38 For as in the days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered into the ark. 39 And they did not know anything until the deluge came and swept them all away. So also the coming of the Son of Man will be. 40 Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore be on the alert, because you do not know what day your Lord is coming! 43 But understand this: that if the master of the house had known what watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 For this reason you also must be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not think he will come.

“But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. 21 Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those inside it must depart, and those in the fields must not enter into it, 22 because these are days of vengeance, so that all the things that are written can be fulfilled. 23 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! For there will be great distress on the earth and wrath against this people, 24 and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

“And immediately after the tribulation of those days,

‘the sun will be darkened

and the moon will not give its light,

and the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.’

And Jesus answered and said to them, “Watch out that no one deceives you! 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will deceive many. 6 And you are going to hear about wars and rumors of wars. See to it that you are not alarmed, for this must happen, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 But all these things are the beginning of birth pains.

“then those in Judea must flee to the mountains!

But pray that your flight may not happen in winter or on a Sabbath.

“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken about by the prophet Daniel standing in the holy place” (let the one who reads understand),

Behold, I tell you a mystery: we will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For it is necessary for this perishable body to put on incorruptibility, and this mortal body to put on immortality. 54 But whenever this perishable body puts on incorruptibility and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will take place:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.

55 Where, O death, is your victory?

Where, O death, is your sting?

56 Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! 58 So then, my dear brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

On account of this I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles 2 —if indeed you have heard about the stewardship of God’s grace given to me for you. 3 According to revelation the mystery was made known to me, just as I wrote beforehand in brief, 4 so that you may be able when you read to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ 5 (which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit): 6 that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, and fellow members of the body, and fellow sharers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, 7 of which I became a servant, according to the gift of God’s grace given to me, according to the working of his power.

8 To me, the least of all the saints, was given this grace: to proclaim the good news of the fathomless riches of Christ to the Gentiles, 9 and to enlighten everyone as to what is the administration of the mystery hidden from the ages by God, who created all things, 10 in order that the many-sided wisdom of God might be made known now to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places through the church, 11 according to the purpose of the ages which he carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access in confidence through faith in him.

29 “And immediately after the tribulation of those days,

‘the sun will be darkened

and the moon will not give its light,

and the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.’

But all these things are the beginning of birth pains.

For at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not happened from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will happen.

“And immediately after the tribulation of those days,

‘the sun will be darkened

and the moon will not give its light,

and the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.’

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need of anything to be written to you, 2 for you yourselves well know that the day of the Lord is coming in the same way as a thief in the night. 3 Whenever they say “Peace and security,” then sudden destruction will overtake them like the birth pains of a pregnant woman, and they will not possibly escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not in the darkness, so that the day should catch you like a thief,

“Seventy weeks is decreed for your people and for your holy city, to put an end to the transgression and to seal up sin and to make atonement for guilt and to bring in everlasting righteousness and to seal vision and prophet and to anoint the most holy place. 25 And you must know and you must understand that from the time of the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem until an anointed one—a leader—will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be restored and will be built with streets and a moat, but in a time of oppression.

26 “And after the sixty and two weeks an anointed one shall be cut off, and he shall have nothing, and the people of the coming leader will destroy the city and the sanctuary, and its end will be with the flood and on to the end there shall be war; these desolations are determined. 27 And he will make a strong covenant with the many for one week, but in half of the week he will let cease sacrifice and offering and in its place a desolating abomination comes even until the determined complete destruction is poured out on the desolator.”

But all these things are the beginning of birth pains.

Wail, for the day of Yahweh is near;

it will come like destruction from Shaddai!

7 Therefore all hands will grow slack,

and every human heart will melt,

8 and they will be dismayed.

Pangs and labor pains will seize them;

they will tremble like a woman giving birth.

They will stare at one another,

their faces flushing.

9 Look! The day of Yahweh is coming,

cruel and wrath and the burning of anger,

to make the earth a desolation,

and he will destroy its sinners from it.

10 For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not flash forth their light;

the sun will keep back when it comes out,

and the moon will not cause its light to shine.

11 And I will punish the world for its evil

and the wicked for their iniquity.

And I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant,

and I will bring the haughtiness of tyrants low.

Whenever they say “Peace and security,” then sudden destruction will overtake them like the birth pains of a pregnant woman, and they will not possibly escape.

And Jesus answered and said to them, “Watch out that no one deceives you! 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will deceive many.

And I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying like the sound of thunder, “Come!” 2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse, and the one seated on it had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and in order that he might conquer.

And he will make a strong covenant with the many for one week, but in half of the week he will let cease sacrifice and offering and in its place a desolating abomination comes even until the determined complete destruction is poured out on the desolator.”

I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me. If another should come in his own name, you would accept that one!

And you are going to hear about wars and rumors of wars. See to it that you are not alarmed, for this must happen, but the end is not yet.

For nation will rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

And I heard something like a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not damage the olive oil and the wine!”

For nation will rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 But all these things are the beginning of birth pains.

“Then they will hand you over to persecution and will kill you, and you will be hated by all the nations because of my name.

And then many will be led into sin and will betray one another and will hate one another, 11 and many false prophets will appear and will deceive many, 12 and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end—this person will be saved.

and because lawlessness will increase, the love of many will grow cold.

But the one who endures to the end—this person will be saved.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed in the whole inhabited earth for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind could blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. 2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, holding the seal of the living God, and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels who were given permission to damage the earth and the sea, 3 saying, “Do not damage the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the slaves of our God on their foreheads.” 4 And I heard the number of the ones who were sealed, one hundred forty-four thousand sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:

5 from the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand sealed,

from the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Gad, twelve thousand,

6 from the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Naphtali, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Manasseh, twelve thousand,

7 from the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Issachar, twelve thousand,

8 from the tribe of Zebulun, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Joseph, twelve thousand,

from the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand were sealed.

“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken about by the prophet Daniel standing in the holy place” (let the one who reads understand), 16 “then those in Judea must flee to the mountains! 17 The one who is on his housetop must not come down to take things out of his house, 18 and the one who is in the field must not turn back to pick up his cloak. 19 And woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! 20 But pray that your flight may not happen in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not happened from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will happen. 22 And unless those days had been shortened, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be shortened.

And in the first year of Cyrus, the king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of Yahweh by the mouth of Jeremiah, Yahweh stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also in writing, saying: 23 “Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia: ‘Yahweh the God of heaven has given to me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has appointed me to build a house for him at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you from all his people, may Yahweh his God go up with him.’ ”

“And after the sixty and two weeks an anointed one shall be cut off, and he shall have nothing, and the people of the coming leader will destroy the city and the sanctuary, and its end will be with the flood and on to the end there shall be war; these desolations are determined.

Now we ask you, brothers, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our assembling to him, 2 that you not be easily shaken from your composure, nor be troubled either by a spirit or by a message or by a letter alleged to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has arrived. 3 Do not let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and who exalts himself over every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits down in the temple of God, proclaiming that he himself is God.

5 Do you not remember that while we were still with you, we were saying these things to you? 6 And you know that which restrains him now, so that he will be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is at work already; only the one who now restrains will do so until he is out of the way, 8 and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of his mouth, and wipe out by the appearance of his coming, 9 whose coming is in accordance with the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10 and with every unrighteous deception against those who are perishing, in place of which they did not accept the love of the truth, so that they would be saved. 11 And because of this, God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth, but delighted in unrighteousness.

Do not let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and who exalts himself over every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits down in the temple of God, proclaiming that he himself is God.

And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur, where the beast and the false prophet also are, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Again the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, 9 and he said to him, “I will give to you all these things, if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Go away, Satan, for it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’ ” 11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and began ministering to him.

“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken about by the prophet Daniel standing in the holy place” (let the one who reads understand),

And you will say, ‘I will go up against a land of open country; I will come to the people being at rest in safety, all of them dwelling without a wall and crossbars and without doors,

And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings, who have not yet received a kingdom, but they will receive authority as kings for one hour with the beast. 13 These have one opinion, and they will give their power and authority to the beast.

25 “And there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity from the noise of the sea and its surging, 26 people fainting from fear and expectation of what is coming on the inhabited earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will see the Son of Man arriving in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 But when these things begin to happen, stand up straight and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near!”

29 And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they put out foliage, now you see for yourselves and know that by this time the summer is near. 31 So also you, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly I say to you that this generation will never pass away until all things take place! 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

34 “But take care for yourselves, lest your hearts are weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of daily life, and that day come upon you suddenly 35 like a trap. For it will come upon all who reside on the face of the whole earth. 36 But be alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

37 So throughout the days he was teaching in the temple courts, and throughout the nights he was going out and spending the night on the hill that is called the Mount of Olives. 38 And all the people were getting up very early in the morning to come to him in the temple courts to listen to him.

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