Bible Readings for March 6, 2015

Today our passages are Numbers 6:1–7:89; Mark 12:38–13:13; Psalm 49:1-20; and Proverbs 10:27-28. The readings are the Contemporary English Version.  

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Numbers 6-7:89 (Contemporary English Version)

Numbers 6

Rules for Nazirites

 ¹The LORD told Moses ²to say to the people of Israel:    If any of you want to dedicate yourself to me by vowing to become a Nazirite, ³you must no longer drink any wine or beer or use any kind of vinegar. Don't drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins-- ⁴not even the seeds or skins.
    ⁵Even the hair of a Nazirite is sacred to me, and as long as you are a Nazirite, you must never cut your hair.
    ⁶During the time that you are a Nazirite, you must never go close to a dead body, ^7-8not even that of your father, mother, brother, or sister. That would make you unclean. Your hair is the sign that you are dedicated to me, so remain holy.
    ⁹If someone suddenly dies near you, your hair is no longer sacred, and you must shave it seven days later during the ceremony to make you clean. ¹⁰Then on the next day, bring two doves or two pigeons to the priest at the sacred tent. ¹¹He will offer one of the birds as a sacrifice for sin and the other as a sacrifice to please me. ^[a] You will then be forgiven for being too near a dead body, and your hair will again become sacred. ¹²But the dead body made you unacceptable, so you must make another vow to become a Nazirite and be dedicated once more. Finally, a year-old ram must be offered as the sacrifice to make things right. ¹³When you have completed your promised time of being a Nazirite, go to the sacred tent ¹⁴and offer three animals that have nothing wrong with them: a year-old ram as a sacrifice to please me, a year-old female lamb as a sacrifice for sin, and a full-grown ram as a sacrifice to ask my blessing. ^{[b] 15}Wine offerings and grain sacrifices must also be brought with these animals. Finally, you are to bring a basket of bread made with your finest flour and olive oil, but without yeast. Also bring some thin wafers brushed with oil. ¹⁶The priest will take these gifts to my altar and offer them, so that I will be pleased and will forgive you. ¹⁷Then he will sacrifice the ram and offer the wine, grain, and bread.
    ¹⁸After that, you will stand at the entrance to the sacred tent, shave your head, and put the hair in the fire where the priest has offered the sacrifice to ask my blessing.
    ¹⁹Once the meat from the ram's shoulder has been boiled, the priest will take it, along with one loaf of bread and one wafer brushed with oil, and give them to you. ²⁰You will hand them back to the priest, who will lift them up ^[c] in dedication to me. Then he can eat the meat from the ram's shoulder, its choice ribs, and its hind leg, because this is his share of the sacrifice. After this, you will no longer be a Nazirite and will be free to drink wine. ²¹These are the requirements for Nazirites. However, if you can afford to offer more, you must do so.
   

The Blessing for the People

 ²²The LORD told Moses, ²³" When Aaron and his sons bless the people of Israel, they must say:     ²⁴I pray that the LORD
   will bless and protect you,
    ²⁵and that he will show you mercy
   and kindness.
    ²⁶May the LORD be good to you
   and give you peace."
    ²⁷Then the LORD said, " If Aaron and his sons ask me to bless the Israelites, I will give them my blessing."
   

Numbers 7

The Leaders Bring Gifts to the Sacred Tent

 ¹When Moses had finished setting up the sacred tent, he dedicated it to the LORD, together with its furnishings, the altar, and its equipment. ²Then the twelve tribal leaders of Israel, the same men who had been in charge of counting the people, ^[d] came to the tent ³with gifts for the LORD. They brought six strong carts and twelve oxen--one ox from each leader and a cart from every two. ⁴The LORD said to Moses, ⁵" Accept these gifts, so the Levites can use them here at the sacred tent for carrying the sacred things."     ⁶Then Moses took the carts and oxen and gave them to the Levites, ^7-8who were under the leadership of Ithamar son of Aaron. Moses gave two carts and four oxen to the Gershonites for their work, and four carts and eight oxen to the Merarites for their work. ⁹But Moses did not give any to the Kohathites, because they were in charge of the sacred objects that had to be carried on their shoulders.
    ¹⁰On the day the altar was dedicated, the twelve leaders brought offerings for its dedication. ¹¹The LORD said to Moses, " Each day one leader is to give his offering for the dedication."
    ^12-83So each leader brought the following gifts:
   a silver bowl that weighed over three pounds and a silver sprinkling bowl weighing almost two pounds, both of them filled with flour and olive oil as grain sacrifices and weighed according to the official standards;
   a small gold dish filled with incense;
   a young bull, a full-grown ram, and a year-old ram as sacrifices to please the LORD; ^[e] a goat ^[f] as a sacrifice for sin; and two bulls, five full-grown rams, five goats, and five rams a year old as sacrifices to ask the LORD's blessing. ^[g] The tribal leaders brought their gifts and offerings in the following order:
   On the first day
   Nahshon from Judah,
   on the second day
   Nethanel from Issachar,
   on the third day
   Eliab from Zebulun,
   on the fourth day
   Elizur from Reuben,
   on the fifth day
   Shelumiel from Simeon,
   on the sixth day
   Eliasaph from Gad,
   on the seventh day
   Elishama from Ephraim,
   on the eighth day
   Gamaliel from Manasseh,
   on the ninth day
   Abidan from Benjamin,
   on the tenth day
   Ahiezer from Dan,
   on the eleventh day
   Pagiel from Asher,
   on the twelfth day
   Ahira from Naphtali.
    ^84-88And so when the altar was dedicated to the LORD, these twelve leaders brought the following gifts:
   twelve silver bowls and twelve silver sprinkling bowls, weighing a total of about sixty pounds, according to the official standards;
   twelve gold dishes filled with incense and weighing about three pounds;
   twelve bulls, twelve full-grown rams, and twelve rams a year old as sacrifices to please the LORD, along with the proper grain sacrifices;
   twelve goats as sacrifices for sin;
   and twenty-four bulls, sixty full-grown rams, sixty goats, and sixty rams a year old as sacrifices to ask the LORD's blessing.
    ⁸⁹Whenever Moses needed to talk with the LORD, he went into the sacred tent, where he heard the LORD's voice coming from between the two winged creatures above the lid of the sacred chest.
   

Footnotes:

1. Numbers 6:11 sacrifice to please me: This sacrifice has traditionally been called a " whole burnt offering," because the whole animal was burned on the altar. A main purpose of such a sacrifice was to please the LORD with the smell of the sacrifice, and so in the CEV it is often called " a sacrifice to please the LORD."
2. Numbers 6:14 sacrifice to ask my blessing: This sacrifice has traditionally been called a " peace offering" or an " offering of well-being." A main purpose of such a sacrifice was to ask the LORD's blessing, and so in the CEV it is often called a " sacrifice to ask the LORD's blessing."
3. Numbers 6:20 lift them up: See the note at 5.25.
4. Numbers 7:2 the same men. . . the people: See 1.1-19.
5. Numbers 7:12 sacrifices to please the LORD: See the note at 6.11.
6. Numbers 7:12 goat: Hebrew " male goat."
7. Numbers 7:12 sacrifices to ask the LORD's blessing: See the note at 6.14.

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Mark 12:38-13:13 (Contemporary English Version)

Jesus Condemns the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law of Moses

(Matthew 23.1-36; Luke 20.45-47)

 ³⁸As Jesus was teaching, he said:    Guard against the teachers of the Law of Moses! They love to walk around in long robes and be greeted in the market. ³⁹They like the front seats in the meeting places and the best seats at banquets. ⁴⁰But they cheat widows out of their homes and pray long prayers just to show off. They will be punished most of all.
   

A Widow's Offering

(Luke 21.1-4)

 ⁴¹Jesus was sitting in the temple near the offering box and watching people put in their gifts. He noticed that many rich people were giving a lot of money. ⁴²Finally, a poor widow came up and put in two coins that were worth only a few pennies. ⁴³Jesus told his disciples to gather around him. Then he said:    I tell you that this poor widow has put in more than all the others. ⁴⁴Everyone else gave what they didn't need. But she is very poor and gave everything she had. Now she doesn't have a cent to live on.
   

Mark 13

The Temple Will Be Destroyed

(Matthew 24.1,2; Luke 21.5,6)

 ¹As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Teacher, look at these beautiful stones and wonderful buildings!"     ²Jesus replied, "Do you see these huge buildings? They will certainly be torn down! Not one stone will be left in place."
   

Warning about Trouble

(Matthew 24.3-14; Luke 21.7-19)

 ³Later, as Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives across from the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew came to him in private. ⁴They asked, "When will these things happen? What will be the sign that they are about to take place?"     ⁵Jesus answered:
   Watch out and don't let anyone fool you! ⁶Many will come and claim to be me. They will use my name and fool many people.
    ⁷When you hear about wars and threats of wars, don't be afraid. These things will have to happen first, but that isn't the end. ⁸Nations and kingdoms will go to war against each other. There will be earthquakes in many places, and people will starve to death. But this is just the beginning of troubles.
    ⁹Be on your guard! You will be taken to courts and beaten with whips in their meeting places. And because of me, you will have to stand before rulers and kings to tell about your faith. ¹⁰But before the end comes, the good news must be preached to all nations.
    ¹¹When you are arrested, don't worry about what you will say. You will be given the right words when the time comes. But you will not really be the ones speaking. Your words will come from the Holy Spirit.
    ¹²Brothers and sisters will betray each other and have each other put to death. Parents will betray their own children, and children will turn against their parents and have them killed. ¹³Everyone will hate you because of me. But if you keep on being faithful right to the end, you will be saved.

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Psalm 49:1-20 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 49

(A psalm for the people of Korah and for the music leader.)

Don't Depend on Wealth

 ¹Everyone on this earth,    now listen to what I say!
    ²Listen, no matter who you are,
   rich or poor.
    ³I speak words of wisdom,
   and my thoughts make sense.
    ⁴I have in mind a mystery
   that I will explain
   while playing my harp.
    ⁵Why should I be afraid
   in times of trouble,
   when I am surrounded
   by vicious enemies?
    ⁶They trust in their riches
   and brag about
   all of their wealth.
    ⁷You cannot buy back your life
   or pay off God!
    ⁸It costs far too much
   to buy back your life.
   You can never pay God enough
    ⁹to stay alive forever
   and safe from death.
    ¹⁰We see that wise people die,
   and so do stupid fools.
   Then their money is left
   for someone else.
    ¹¹The grave ^[a] will be their home forever and ever,
   although they once had land
   of their own.
    ¹²Our human glory disappears,
   and, like animals, we die.
    ¹³Here is what happens to fools
   and to those who trust
   the words of fools:
    ¹⁴They are like sheep
   with death as their shepherd,
   leading them to the grave. ^[b] In the morning God's people
   will walk all over them,
   as their bodies lie rotting
   in their home, the grave.
    ¹⁵But God will rescue me
   from the power of death.
    ¹⁶Don't let it bother you
   when others get rich
   and live in luxury.
    ¹⁷Soon they will die
   and all of their wealth
   will be left behind.
    ¹⁸We humans are praised
   when we do well,
   and all of us are glad
   to be alive.
    ¹⁹But we each will go down
   to our ancestors,
   never again to see
   the light of day.
    ²⁰Our human glory disappears,
   and, like animals, we die.
   

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 49:11 The grave: Some ancient translations; Hebrew " Their inward thoughts."
2. Psalm 49:14 as their. . . grave: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

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Proverbs 10:27-28 (Contemporary English Version)

²⁷If you respect the LORD,
   you will live longer;
   if you keep doing wrong,
   your life will be cut short.
    ²⁸If you obey the Lord,
   you will be happy,
   but there is no future
   for the wicked.

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Verse of the Day

“[A Prayer of Thanks to God]You, LORD, are my God! I will praise you for doing the wonderful things you had planned and promised since ancient times.” - Isaiah 25:1

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

 

19th-century American humorist, Josh Billings wrote, “There are lots of people who mistake their imagination for their memory.”