Exodus 34; Exodus 35; Matthew 22:23-46

Exodus 34

1 The LORD said to Moses, "Cut out two stone tablets that are just like the first ones. I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke.

2 "Be ready in the morning. Then come up on Mount Sinai. Meet with me there on top of the mountain.

3 No one must come with you. No one must be seen anywhere on the mountain. Not even the flocks and herds must be allowed to eat grass in front of the mountain."

4 So Moses carved out two stone tablets that were just like the first ones. Early in the morning he went up Mount Sinai. He carried the two tablets in his hands. He did as the LORD had commanded him to do.

5 Then the LORD came down in the cloud. He stood there with Moses and announced his name, The Lord.

6 As he passed in front of Moses, he called out. He said, "I am the Lord, the Lord. I am a God who is tender and kind. I am gracious. I am slow to get angry. I am faithful and full of love.

7 I continue to show my love to thousands of people. I forgive those who do evil. I forgive those who refuse to obey. And I forgive those who sin. But I do not let guilty people go without punishing them. I punish the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren for the sin of their parents."

8 Moses bowed down to the ground at once and worshiped.

9 "Lord," he said, "if you are pleased with me, then go with us. Even though these people are stubborn, forgive the evil things we have done. Forgive our sin. And accept us as your people."

10 Then the LORD said, "I am making a covenant with you. I will do wonderful things in front of all of your people. I will do miracles that have never been done before in any nation in the whole world. The people you live among will see the things that I, the Lord, will do for you. And they will see how wonderful those things really are.

11 "Obey what I command you today. I will drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites to make room for you.

12 "Be careful. Do not make a peace treaty with those who live in the land where you are going. They will be a trap to you.

13 Tear down their altars. Smash their sacred stones. Cut down the poles they use to worship the goddess Asherah.

14 Do not worship any other god. I am a jealous God. In fact, my name is Jealous.

15 "Be careful not to make a peace treaty with those who live in the land. They commit sin by offering sacrifices to their gods. They will invite you to eat their sacrifices.

16 You will choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons. And those daughters will commit sin by worshiping their gods. Then they will lead your sons to do the same thing.

17 "Do not make statues of gods.

18 "Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days eat bread that is made without yeast, just as I commanded you. Do it at the appointed time in the month of Abib. You came out of Egypt in that month.

19 "Every male animal that is born first to its mother belongs to me. That includes your livestock. It includes herds and flocks alike.

20 Sacrifice a lamb to buy back every male donkey that is born first to its mother. But if you do not buy the donkey back, break its neck. Buy back every oldest son. "You must not come to worship me with your hands empty.

21 "Do your work in six days. But you must rest on the seventh day. Even when you are plowing your land or gathering your crops, you must rest on the seventh day.

22 "Celebrate the Feast of Weeks. Bring the first share of your wheat crop. "Celebrate the Feast of Booths. Hold it in the fall.

23 "Three times a year all of your men must come to worship me. I am your LORD and King, the God of Israel.

24 I will drive out nations ahead of you. I will increase your territory. Go up three times a year to worship me. While you are doing that, I will keep others from wanting to take any of your land for themselves. I am the LORD your God.

25 "Do not include anything that is made with yeast when you offer me the blood of a sacrifice. You must not keep any of the meat from the sacrifice of the Passover Feast until morning.

26 "Bring the best of the first share of your crops to my house. I am the LORD your God. "Do not cook a young goat in its mother's milk."

27 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write down the words I have spoken. I have made a covenant with you and with Israel in keeping with those words."

28 Moses was there with the LORD for 40 days and 40 nights. He didn't eat any food or drink any water. The LORD wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant. Those words are the Ten Commandments.

29 Moses came down from Mount Sinai. He had the two tablets of the covenant in his hands. His face was shining because he had spoken with the Lord. But he didn't realize it.

30 Aaron and all of the people of Israel saw Moses. His face was shining. So they were afraid to come near him.

31 But Moses called out to them. So Aaron and all of the leaders of the community came to him. And Moses spoke to them.

32 After that, all of the people came near him. And he gave them all of the commands the LORD had given him on Mount Sinai.

33 Moses finished speaking to them. Then he put a veil over his face.

34 But when he would go to speak with the Lord, he would remove the veil. He would keep it off until he came out. Then he would tell the people what the LORD had commanded.

35 They would see that his face was shining. So Moses would put the veil back over his face. He would keep it on until he went in again to speak with the Lord.

Exodus 35

1 Moses gathered the whole community of Israel together. He said to them, "Here are the things the LORD has commanded you to do.

2 You must do your work in six days. But the seventh day will be your holy day. It will be a Sabbath in the LORD's honor. You must rest on it. Anyone who does any work on it must be put to death.

3 Do not even light a fire in any of your homes on the Sabbath day."

4 Moses spoke to the whole community of Israel. He said, "Here is what the LORD has commanded.

5 Take an offering for the LORD from what you have. Those who want to can bring an offering to the Lord. Here is what they can bring. "gold, silver and bronze

6 blue, purple and bright red yarn and fine linen goat hair

7 ram skins that are dyed red the hides of sea cows acacia wood

8 olive oil for the lights spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet-smelling incense

9 onyx stones and other jewels for the linen apron and the chest cloth

10 "All of the skilled workers among you must come. They must make everything the LORD has commanded

11 for the holy tent and its covering. Here is what they must make. "hooks frames crossbars posts bases

12 the ark of the covenant the poles and cover for the ark the curtain that screens the ark

13 the table for the holy bread the poles and all of the articles for the table the holy bread

14 the lampstand for light and everything that is used with it the lamps and the olive oil that gives light

15 the altar for burning incense the poles for the altar the anointing oil the sweet-smelling incense the curtain for the entrance to the holy tent

16 the altar for burnt offerings with its bronze grate its poles and all of its tools the large bronze bowl with its stand

17 the curtains of the courtyard with their posts and bases the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard

18 the ropes and tent stakes for the holy tent and for the courtyard

19 the sacred clothes for Aaron the priest the clothes for his sons when they serve as priests"

20 Then the whole community of Israel left Moses.

21 Everyone who wanted to give offerings to the LORD brought them to him. The offerings were for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for the sacred clothes, and for any other purpose there.

22 Every man and woman who wanted to give came. They brought gold jewelry of all kinds. They brought pins, earrings, rings and other jewelry. All of them gave their gold as a wave offering to the Lord.

23 People brought what they had. They brought blue, purple or bright red yarn or fine linen. They brought goat hair, ram skins that were dyed red, or the hides of sea cows.

24 Some brought silver or bronze as an offering to the Lord. Others brought acacia wood for any part of the work.

25 All of the skilled women spun yarn with their hands. They brought blue, purple or bright red yarn or fine linen.

26 All of the skilled women who wanted to spin the goat hair did so.

27 The leaders brought onyx stones and other jewels for the linen apron and the chest cloth.

28 They also brought spices and olive oil. They brought them for the light, for the anointing oil, and for the sweet-smelling incense.

29 All of the men and women of Israel who wanted to bring offerings to the LORD brought them to him. The offerings were for all of the work the LORD had commanded Moses to tell them to do.

30 Then Moses spoke to the people of Israel. He said, "The LORD has chosen Bezalel, the son of Uri. Uri is the son of Hur. Bezalel is from the tribe of Judah.

31 The LORD has filled him with the Spirit of God. He has filled him with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts.

32 He can make beautiful patterns in gold, silver and bronze.

33 He can cut and set stones. He can work with wood. In fact, he can work in all kinds of arts and crafts.

34 "And the LORD has given both him and Oholiab the ability to teach others. Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, is from the tribe of Dan.

35 "The LORD has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work. They carve things and make patterns. They sew skillfully with blue, purple and bright red yarn and on fine linen. They use thread to make beautiful cloth. They have the skill to work in all kinds of crafts.

Matthew 22:23-46

23 That same day the Sadducees came to Jesus with a question. They do not believe that people rise from the dead.

24 "Teacher," they said, "here is what Moses told us. If a man dies without having children, his brother must get married to the widow. He must have children to carry on his brother's name.

25 There were seven brothers among us. The first one got married and died. Since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother.

26 The same thing happened to the second and third brothers. It happened right on down to the seventh brother.

27 Finally, the woman died.

28 Now then, when the dead rise, whose wife will she be? All seven of them were married to her."

29 Jesus replied, "You are mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures. And you do not know the power of God.

30 When the dead rise, they won't get married. And their parents won't give them to be married. They will be like the angels in heaven.

31 "What about the dead rising? Haven't you read what God said to you?

32 He said, 'I am the God of Abraham. I am the God of Isaac. And I am the God of Jacob.'(Exodus 3:6) He is not the God of the dead. He is the God of the living."

33 When the crowds heard this, they were amazed by what he taught.

34 The Pharisees heard that the Sadducees weren't able to answer Jesus. So the Pharisees got together.

35 One of them was an authority on the law. So he tested Jesus with a question.

36 "Teacher," he asked, "which is the most important commandment in the Law?"

37 Jesus replied, " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Love him with all your mind.'(Deuteronomy 6:5)

38 This is the first and most important commandment.

39 And the second is like it. 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself.'(Leviticus 19:18)

40 Everything that is written in the Law and the Prophets is based on these two commandments."

41 The Pharisees were gathered together. Jesus asked them,

42 "What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" "The son of David," they replied.

43 He said to them, "Then why does David call him 'Lord'? The Holy Spirit spoke through David himself. David said,

44 " 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your control." ' (Psalm 110:1)

45 So if David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be David's son?"

46 No one could answer him with a single word. From that day on, no one dared to ask him any more questions.