Night Watch Devotion

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.
¹ Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!
² O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame? How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? Selah
³ But know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself; the LORD hears when I call to him.
⁴ Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah
⁵ Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the LORD.
⁶ There are many who say, “Who will show us some good? Lift up the light of your face upon us, O LORD!”
⁷ You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound.
⁸ In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. (ESV)

To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy. A Miktam of David, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.
¹ Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; protect me from those who rise up against me;
² deliver me from those who work evil, and save me from bloodthirsty men.
³ For behold, they lie in wait for my life; fierce men stir up strife against me. For no transgression or sin of mine, O LORD,
⁴ for no fault of mine, they run and make ready. Awake, come to meet me, and see!
⁵ You, LORD God of hosts, are God of Israel. Rouse yourself to punish all the nations; spare none of those who treacherously plot evil. Selah
⁶ Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city.
⁷ There they are, bellowing with their mouths with swords in their lips— for “Who,” they think, “will hear us?”
⁸ But you, O LORD, laugh at them; you hold all the nations in derision.
⁹ O my Strength, I will watch for you, for you, O God, are my fortress.
¹⁰ My God in his steadfast love will meet me; God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
¹¹ Kill them not, lest my people forget; make them totter by your power and bring them down, O Lord, our shield!
¹² For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride. For the cursing and lies that they utter,
¹³ consume them in wrath; consume them till they are no more, that they may know that God rules over Jacob to the ends of the earth. Selah
¹⁴ Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city.
¹⁵ They wander about for food and growl if they do not get their fill.
¹⁶ But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.
¹⁷ O my Strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love. (ESV)

A Psalm of Asaph.
¹ God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
² “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
³ Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
⁴ Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
⁵ They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
⁶ I said, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you;
⁷ nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.”
⁸ Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!

A Song. A Psalm of Asaph.
¹ O God, do not keep silence; do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
² For behold, your enemies make an uproar; those who hate you have raised their heads.
³ They lay crafty plans against your people; they consult together against your treasured ones.
⁴ They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation; let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”
⁵ For they conspire with one accord; against you they make a covenant—
⁶ the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, Moab and the Hagrites,
⁷ Gebal and Ammon and Amalek, Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
⁸ Asshur also has joined them; they are the strong arm of the children of Lot. Selah
⁹ Do to them as you did to Midian, as to Sisera and Jabin at the river Kishon,
¹⁰ who were destroyed at En-dor, who became dung for the ground.
¹¹ Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,
¹² who said, “Let us take possession for ourselves of the pastures of God.”
¹³ O my God, make them like whirling dust, like chaff before the wind.
¹⁴ As fire consumes the forest, as the flame sets the mountains ablaze,
¹⁵ so may you pursue them with your tempest and terrify them with your hurricane!
¹⁶ Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek your name, O LORD.
¹⁷ Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever; let them perish in disgrace,
¹⁸ that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth.

To the choirmaster: according to The Gittith. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.
¹ How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!
² My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.
³ Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.
⁴ Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! Selah
⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
⁶ As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools.
⁷ They go from strength to strength; each one appears before God in Zion.
⁸ O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah
⁹ Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed!
¹⁰ For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
¹¹ For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.
¹² O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you! (ESV)

¹ Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you.
² For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
³ While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
⁴ But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief.
⁵ For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.
⁶ So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober.
⁷ For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. (ESV)

¹ After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”
² But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”
³ And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.”
⁴ And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.”
⁵ And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
⁶ And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
⁷ And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
⁸ But he said, “O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?”
⁹ He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
¹⁰ And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half.
¹¹ And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
¹² As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
¹³ Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
¹⁴ But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.
¹⁵ As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.
¹⁶ And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
¹⁷ When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
¹⁸ On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,
¹⁹ the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,
²⁰ the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
²¹ the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.” (ESV)

²¹ And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea.
²² Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet
²³ and implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.”
²⁴ And he went with him. And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him.
²⁵ And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years,
²⁶ and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse.
²⁷ She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment.
²⁸ For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.”
²⁹ And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.
³⁰ And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?”
³¹ And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’”
³² And he looked around to see who had done it.
³³ But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth.
³⁴ And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
³⁵ While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler’s house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”
³⁶ But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”
³⁷ And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John the brother of James.
³⁸ They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly.
³⁹ And when he had entered, he said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but sleeping.”
⁴⁰ And they laughed at him. But he put them all outside and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was.
⁴¹ Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.”
⁴² And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement.
⁴³ And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat. (ESV)

¹ And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
² “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If anyone sins unintentionally in any of the LORD’s commandments about things not to be done, and does any one of them,
³ if it is the anointed priest who sins, thus bringing guilt on the people, then he shall offer for the sin that he has committed a bull from the herd without blemish to the LORD for a sin offering.
⁴ He shall bring the bull to the entrance of the tent of meeting before the LORD and lay his hand on the head of the bull and kill the bull before the LORD.
⁵ And the anointed priest shall take some of the blood of the bull and bring it into the tent of meeting,
⁶ and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle part of the blood seven times before the LORD in front of the veil of the sanctuary.
⁷ And the priest shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense before the LORD that is in the tent of meeting, and all the rest of the blood of the bull he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting.
⁸ And all the fat of the bull of the sin offering he shall remove from it, the fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that is on the entrails
⁹ and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins and the long lobe of the liver that he shall remove with the kidneys
¹⁰ (just as these are taken from the ox of the sacrifice of the peace offerings); and the priest shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering.
¹¹ But the skin of the bull and all its flesh, with its head, its legs, its entrails, and its dung—
¹² all the rest of the bull—he shall carry outside the camp to a clean place, to the ash heap, and shall burn it up on a fire of wood. On the ash heap it shall be burned up.
¹³ “If the whole congregation of Israel sins unintentionally and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they do any one of the things that by the LORD’s commandments ought not to be done, and they realize their guilt,
¹⁴ when the sin which they have committed becomes known, the assembly shall offer a bull from the herd for a sin offering and bring it in front of the tent of meeting.
¹⁵ And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands on the head of the bull before the LORD, and the bull shall be killed before the LORD.
¹⁶ Then the anointed priest shall bring some of the blood of the bull into the tent of meeting,
¹⁷ and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times before the LORD in front of the veil.
¹⁸ And he shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar that is in the tent of meeting before the LORD, and the rest of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting.
¹⁹ And all its fat he shall take from it and burn on the altar.
²⁰ Thus shall he do with the bull. As he did with the bull of the sin offering, so shall he do with this. And the priest shall make atonement for them, and they shall be forgiven.
²¹ And he shall carry the bull outside the camp and burn it up as he burned the first bull; it is the sin offering for the assembly.
²² “When a leader sins, doing unintentionally any one of all the things that by the commandments of the LORD his God ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt,
²³ or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring as his offering a goat, a male without blemish,
²⁴ and shall lay his hand on the head of the goat and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering before the LORD; it is a sin offering.
²⁵ Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering.
²⁶ And all its fat he shall burn on the altar, like the fat of the sacrifice of peace offerings. So the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin, and he shall be forgiven.
²⁷ “If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the LORD’s commandments ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt,
²⁸ or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has committed.
²⁹ And he shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and kill the sin offering in the place of burnt offering.
³⁰ And the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar.
³¹ And all its fat he shall remove, as the fat is removed from the peace offerings, and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a pleasing aroma to the LORD. And the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven.
³² “If he brings a lamb as his offering for a sin offering, he shall bring a female without blemish
³³ and lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and kill it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt offering.
³⁴ Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar.
³⁵ And all its fat he shall remove as the fat of the lamb is removed from the sacrifice of peace offerings, and the priest shall burn it on the altar, on top of the LORD’s food offerings. And the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.

¹ “If anyone sins in that he hears a public adjuration to testify, and though he is a witness, whether he has seen or come to know the matter, yet does not speak, he shall bear his iniquity;
² or if anyone touches an unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean wild animal or a carcass of unclean livestock or a carcass of unclean swarming things, and it is hidden from him and he has become unclean, and he realizes his guilt;
³ or if he touches human uncleanness, of whatever sort the uncleanness may be with which one becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and realizes his guilt;
⁴ or if anyone utters with his lips a rash oath to do evil or to do good, any sort of rash oath that people swear, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and he realizes his guilt in any of these;
⁵ when he realizes his guilt in any of these and confesses the sin he has committed,
⁶ he shall bring to the LORD as his compensation for the sin that he has committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin.
⁷ “But if he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring to the LORD as his compensation for the sin that he has committed two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.
⁸ He shall bring them to the priest, who shall offer first the one for the sin offering. He shall wring its head from its neck but shall not sever it completely,
⁹ and he shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar, while the rest of the blood shall be drained out at the base of the altar; it is a sin offering.
¹⁰ Then he shall offer the second for a burnt offering according to the rule. And the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin that he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.
¹¹ “But if he cannot afford two turtledoves or two pigeons, then he shall bring as his offering for the sin that he has committed a tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering. He shall put no oil on it and shall put no frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering.
¹² And he shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take a handful of it as its memorial portion and burn this on the altar, on the LORD’s food offerings; it is a sin offering.
¹³ Thus the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which he has committed in any one of these things, and he shall be forgiven. And the remainder shall be for the priest, as in the grain offering.” (ESV)

¹³ And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them.
¹⁴ But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.
¹⁵ Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”
¹⁶ And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
¹⁷ And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
¹⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.
¹⁹ You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’”
²⁰ And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.”
²¹ And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
²² Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
²³ And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”
²⁴ And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God!
²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
²⁶ And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?”
²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”
²⁸ Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.”
²⁹ Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel,
³⁰ who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.
³¹ But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” (ESV)

⁷ Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!
⁸ You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, LORD, do I seek.”
⁹ Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!
¹⁰ For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in.
¹¹ Teach me your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
¹² Give me not up to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and they breathe out violence.
¹³ I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living!
¹⁴ Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD! (ESV)

¹ After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.
² And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
³ Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.
⁴ Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road.
⁵ Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’
⁶ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you.
⁷ And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house.
⁸ Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you.
⁹ Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’
¹⁰ But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say,
¹¹ ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’
¹² I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
¹³ “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
¹⁴ But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.
¹⁵ And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades.
¹⁶ “The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
¹⁷ The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”
¹⁸ And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
¹⁹ Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.
²⁰ Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
²¹ In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.
²² All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
²³ Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see!
²⁴ For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
²⁵ And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
²⁶ He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”
²⁷ And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”
²⁸ And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
²⁹ But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
³⁰ Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.
³¹ Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.
³² So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
³³ But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.
³⁴ He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.
³⁵ And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’
³⁶ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”
³⁷ He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”
³⁸ Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house.
³⁹ And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching.
⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.”
⁴¹ But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,
⁴² but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

¹ Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”
² And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come.
³ Give us each day our daily bread,
⁴ and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.”
⁵ And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves,
⁶ for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’;
⁷ and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’?
⁸ I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs.
⁹ And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.
¹¹ What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent;
¹² or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?
¹³ If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
¹⁴ Now he was casting out a demon that was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the people marveled.
¹⁵ But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons,”
¹⁶ while others, to test him, kept seeking from him a sign from heaven.
¹⁷ But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls.
¹⁸ And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul.
¹⁹ And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges.
²⁰ But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
²¹ When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are safe;
²² but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil.
²³ Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
²⁴ “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and finding none it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’
²⁵ And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order.
²⁶ Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first.”
²⁷ As he said these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!”
²⁸ But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
²⁹ When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.
³⁰ For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
³¹ The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
³² The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
³³ “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.
³⁴ Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness.
³⁵ Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness.
³⁶ If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”
³⁷ While Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him, so he went in and reclined at table.
³⁸ The Pharisee was astonished to see that he did not first wash before dinner.
³⁹ And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.
⁴⁰ You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also?
⁴¹ But give as alms those things that are within, and behold, everything is clean for you.
⁴² “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.
⁴³ Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.
⁴⁴ Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it.”
⁴⁵ One of the lawyers answered him, “Teacher, in saying these things you insult us also.”
⁴⁶ And he said, “Woe to you lawyers also! For you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.
⁴⁷ Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed.
⁴⁸ So you are witnesses and you consent to the deeds of your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their tombs.
⁴⁹ Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’
⁵⁰ so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation,
⁵¹ from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be required of this generation.
⁵² Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.”
⁵³ As he went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press him hard and to provoke him to speak about many things,
⁵⁴ lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say.

¹ In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
² Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.
³ Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.
⁴ “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do.
⁵ But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!
⁶ Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God.
⁷ Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.
⁸ “And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God,
⁹ but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God.
¹⁰ And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
¹¹ And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say,
¹² for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
¹⁴ But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?”
¹⁵ And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
¹⁶ And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully,
¹⁷ and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’
¹⁸ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’
²⁰ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’
²¹ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
²² And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.
²³ For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
²⁴ Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!
²⁵ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?
²⁶ If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?
²⁷ Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
²⁸ But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!
²⁹ And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried.
³⁰ For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them.
³¹ Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
³² “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
³³ Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
³⁴ For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
³⁵ “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning,
³⁶ and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.
³⁷ Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.
³⁸ If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants!
³⁹ But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into.
⁴⁰ You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
⁴¹ Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?”
⁴² And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time?
⁴³ Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
⁴⁴ Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.
⁴⁵ But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk,
⁴⁶ the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful.
⁴⁷ And that servant who knew his master’s will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating.
⁴⁸ But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.
⁴⁹ “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled!
⁵⁰ I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!
⁵¹ Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.
⁵² For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three.
⁵³ They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
⁵⁴ He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens.
⁵⁵ And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens.
⁵⁶ You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?
⁵⁷ “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?
⁵⁸ As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison.
⁵⁹ I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”

¹ There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
² And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way?
³ No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
⁴ Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?
⁵ No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
⁶ And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.
⁷ And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’
⁸ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure.
⁹ Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”
¹⁰ Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.
¹¹ And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself.
¹² When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.”
¹³ And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God.
¹⁴ But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.”
¹⁵ Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it?
¹⁶ And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?”
¹⁷ As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.
¹⁸ He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it?
¹⁹ It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”
²⁰ And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God?
²¹ It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”
²² He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem.
²³ And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them,
²⁴ “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
²⁵ When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’
²⁶ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’
²⁷ But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’
²⁸ In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.
²⁹ And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God.
³⁰ And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
³¹ At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.”
³² And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.
³³ Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’
³⁴ 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!
³⁵ Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’” (ESV)