Numbers 15; Numbers 16; Mark 6:1-29

1 The LORD said to Moses,

2 "Speak to the people of Israel. Say to them, 'You are going to enter the land I am giving you as a home.

3 When you do, you will give offerings that are made to the LORD with fire. The animals must come from your herd or flock. The offerings will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord. They can be either burnt offerings or sacrifices. They can be either for special promises or for feast offerings. Or they can be for offerings you choose to give.

4 " 'With each of the offerings, the one who brings it must give the LORD a grain offering. It must be eight cups of fine flour. It must be mixed with a quart of olive oil.

5 Also prepare a quart of wine as a drink offering. You must give it with each lamb that you bring for the burnt offering or the sacrifice.

6 " 'With a ram prepare a grain offering. It must be 16 cups of fine flour. It must be mixed with two and a half pints of olive oil.

7 You must bring two and a half pints of wine as a drink offering. Offer everything as a smell that is pleasant to the Lord.

8 " 'Suppose you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering or sacrifice. You prepare it to keep a special promise to the Lord. Or you prepare it to give as a friendship offering.

9 Then bring a grain offering with the bull. The grain offering must be 24 cups of fine flour. It must be mixed with two quarts of olive oil.

10 Also bring two quarts of wine as a drink offering. It will be an offering that is made with fire. It will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord.

11 " 'Each bull or ram must be prepared in the same way. Each lamb or young goat must also be prepared in that way.

12 Do it for each animal. Do it for as many animals as you prepare.

13 " 'Everyone in Israel must do those things in that way. He must do them when he brings an offering that is made with fire. Offerings like that give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord.

14 " 'Everyone must always do what the law requires. It does not matter whether he is an outsider or someone else who is living among you. He must do exactly as you do when he brings an offering that is made with fire. Offerings like that give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord.

15 " 'The community must have the same rules for you and for the outsider who is living among you. That law will last for all time to come. In the sight of the Lord, the law applies to you and the outsider alike.

16 The same laws and rules will apply to you and to the outsider who is living among you.' "

17 The LORD said to Moses,

18 "Speak to the people of Israel. Say to them, 'You are going to enter the land I am taking you to.

19 You will eat its food. When you do, bring part of it as an offering to the Lord.

20 Bring a loaf that is made from the first flour you grind. Give it as an offering from the threshing floor.

21 You must bring the offering to the Lord. You must give it from the first grain you grind. You must do it for all time to come.

22 " 'Suppose you fail to keep any of the commands the LORD gave Moses. And suppose you do it without meaning to.

23 That applies to any of the commands the LORD told Moses to give you. And they are in effect from the day the LORD gave them and for all time to come.

24 Suppose the community sins without meaning to. And suppose they do not know they have sinned. Then the whole community must offer a young bull. They must offer it for a burnt offering. It will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord. Along with it, they must offer its required grain offering and drink offering. They must also offer a male goat for a sin offering.

25 " 'With it the priest will pay for the sin of the whole community of Israel. Then they will be forgiven. They did not mean to commit that sin. And they have brought to the LORD an offering that is made with fire for the wrong thing they did. They have brought a sin offering with it.

26 " 'The LORD will forgive the whole community of Israel and the outsiders living among them. All of the people had a part in the sin, even though they did not mean to do it.

27 " 'But suppose just one person sins without meaning to. Then he must bring a female goat for a sin offering. It must be a year old.

28 With it the priest will pay for the person's sin in the sight of the Lord. He will do it for the one who did wrong by sinning without meaning to. When the sin is paid for, that person will be forgiven.

29 " 'The same law applies to everyone who sins without meaning to. It does not matter whether he is an Israelite or an outsider.

30 " 'But suppose someone sins on purpose. It does not matter whether he is an Israelite or an outsider. He speaks evil things against the Lord. He must be cut off from his people.

31 He has made fun of what the LORD has said. He has broken the LORD's commands. He must certainly be cut off. He is still guilty.' "

32 The people of Israel were in the desert. One Sabbath day, people saw a man gathering wood.

33 They brought him to Moses and Aaron and the whole community.

34 They kept him under guard. It wasn't clear what should be done to him.

35 Then the LORD said to Moses, "The man must die. The whole community must kill him by throwing stones at him. They must do it outside the camp."

36 So the people took the man outside the camp. There they killed him by throwing stones at him. They did just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

37 The LORD said to Moses,

38 "Speak to the people of Israel. Say to them, 'You must make tassels on the corners of your clothes. A blue cord must be on each tassel. You must do it for all time to come.

39 You will have the tassels to look at. They will remind you to obey all of the LORD's commands. Then you will be faithful to him. You will not go after what your own hearts and eyes long for.

40 " 'You will remember to obey all of my commands. And you will be set apart for your God.

41 I am the LORD your God. I brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD your God.' "

1 Korah was the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath. Kohath was the son of Levi. Korah and certain men from the tribe of Reuben turned against Moses. The men from Reuben were Dathan, Abiram and On. Dathan and Abiram were the sons of Eliab. On was the son of Peleth.

2 All of those men rose up against Moses. And 250 men of Israel joined them. All of them were known as leaders in the community. They had been appointed as members of the ruling body.

3 They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron. They said to Moses and Aaron, "You have gone too far! The whole community is holy. Every one in it is holy. And the LORD is with them. So why do you put yourselves above the LORD's people?"

4 When Moses heard what they said, he fell with his face to the ground.

5 Then he spoke to Korah and all of his followers. He said, "In the morning the LORD will show who belongs to him. He will show who is holy. He'll bring that person near him. He'll bring the man he chooses near him.

6 "Korah, here's what you and all of your followers must do. Get some shallow cups for burning incense.

7 Tomorrow put fire and incense in them. Offer it to the Lord. The man the LORD chooses will be the one who is holy. You Levites have gone too far!"

8 Moses also said to Korah, "Listen, you Levites!

9 The God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the community of Israel. He has brought you near him to work at the LORD's holy tent. He has given you to the people so that you can serve them. Isn't all of that enough for you?

10 He has already brought you and all of the other Levites near him. But now you want to be priests too.

11 You and all of your followers have joined together against the Lord. Why are you telling Aaron you aren't happy with him?"

12 Then Moses sent for Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, "We won't come!

13 You have brought us up out of a land that has plenty of milk and honey. You have brought us here to kill us in this desert. Isn't that enough? Now do you also want to act as if you were ruling over us?

14 "Besides, you haven't brought us into a land that has plenty of milk and honey. You haven't given us fields and vineyards of our own. Are you going to poke out the eyes of these men? No! We won't come!"

15 Then Moses became very angry. He said to the Lord, "Don't accept their offering. I haven't taken even a donkey from them. In fact, I haven't done anything wrong to any of them."

16 Moses said to Korah, "You and all of your followers must stand in front of the LORD tomorrow. You must appear there along with Aaron.

17 Each man must get his shallow cup. He must put incense in it. There will be a total of 250 incense cups. Each man must bring his cup to the Lord. You and Aaron must also bring your cups."

18 So each man got his cup. He put fire and incense in it. All of the men came with Moses and Aaron. They stood at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

19 Korah gathered all of his followers together at the entrance to the tent. They opposed Moses and Aaron. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to the whole community.

20 The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron. He said,

21 "Separate yourselves from these people. Then I can put an end to all of them at once."

22 But Moses and Aaron fell with their faces to the ground. They cried out, "God, you are the God who creates the spirits of all people. Will you be angry with the whole community when only one man sins?"

23 Then the LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

24 "Tell the community, 'Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.' "

25 Moses got up. He went to Dathan and Abiram. The elders of Israel followed him.

26 Moses warned the community. He said, "Move away from the tents of those evil men! Don't touch anything that belongs to them. If you do, the LORD will sweep you away because of all of their sins."

27 So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram had already come out. They were standing at the entrances to their tents. Their wives, children and little ones were standing there with them.

28 Then Moses said, "What is about to happen wasn't my idea. The LORD has sent me to do everything I'm doing. Here is how you will know I'm telling you the truth.

29 Those men won't die a natural death. Something will happen to them that doesn't usually happen to people. If what I'm telling you isn't true, then you will know that the LORD hasn't sent me.

30 "But the LORD will make something totally new happen. The ground will open its mouth and swallow them up. It will swallow up everything that belongs to them. They will go down into the grave alive. When that happens, you will know that those men have made fun of the Lord."

31 As soon as Moses finished speaking all of those words, what he had said came true. The ground under them broke open.

32 It opened its mouth. It swallowed up those men. In fact, it swallowed up everyone who lived in their houses. It swallowed all of Korah's men. And it swallowed up everything they owned.

33 They went down into the grave alive. Everything they owned went down with them. The ground closed over them. They died. And so they disappeared from the community.

34 All of the people of Israel who were around them heard their cries. They ran away from them. They shouted, "The ground is going to swallow us up too!"

35 Then the LORD sent down fire. It burned up the 250 men who were offering the incense.

36 The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

37 "Speak to the priest Eleazar. He is the son of Aaron. Remind him that the shallow cups are holy. He must take them out of the fire. He must scatter the burning coals away from there.

38 The men who sinned used those cups. And it cost them their lives. Hammer the cups into bronze sheets that will cover the altar. The cups were offered to the Lord. They have become holy. Let them serve as a warning to the people of Israel."

39 So the priest Eleazar collected the bronze incense cups. They had been brought by the men who had been burned up. He had them hammered out to cover the altar.

40 He did just as the LORD had directed Moses to tell him to do. The covering would be a reminder to the people of Israel. It would remind them that no one except a son of Aaron should come and burn incense to the Lord. If people other than priests did that, they would become like Korah and his followers.

41 The next day the whole community of Israel told Moses and Aaron they weren't happy with them. "You have killed the LORD's people," they said.

42 The community gathered together to oppose Moses and Aaron. The people walked toward the Tent of Meeting. Suddenly the cloud covered it. The glory of the LORD appeared.

43 Then Moses and Aaron went to the front of the Tent of Meeting.

44 The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

45 "Get away from these people. Then I can put an end to all of them at once." And Moses and Aaron fell with their faces to the ground.

46 Moses said to Aaron, "Take your incense cup. Put incense in it. And put fire from the altar in it. Then hurry to the people and pay for their sin. The LORD has sent his anger. The plague has started."

47 So Aaron did as Moses said. He ran in among the people. The plague had already started among them. But Aaron offered the incense and paid for their sin.

48 He stood between those who were alive and those who were dead. And the plague stopped.

49 But 14,700 people died from the plague. That doesn't include those who had died because of what Korah did.

50 Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. The plague had stopped.

1 Jesus left there and went to his hometown of Nazareth. His disciples went with him.

2 When the Sabbath day came, he began to teach in the synagogue. Many who heard him were amazed. "Where did this man get these things?" they asked. "What's this wisdom that has been given to him? He even does miracles!

3 Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son? Isn't this the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?" They were not pleased with him at all.

4 Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not honored in his hometown. He doesn't receive any honor among his relatives. And he doesn't receive any in his own home."

5 Jesus laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. But he could not do any other miracles there.

6 He was amazed because they had no faith. Jesus went around teaching from village to village.

7 He called the Twelve to him. Then he sent them out two by two. He gave them authority to drive out evil spirits.

8 Here were his orders. "Take only a walking stick for your trip. Do not take bread or a bag. Take no money in your belts.

9 Wear sandals. But do not take extra clothes.

10 When you are invited into a house, stay there until you leave town.

11 Some places may not welcome you or listen to you. If they don't, shake the dust off your feet when you leave. That will be a witness against the people living there."

12 They went out. And they preached that people should turn away from their sins.

13 They drove out many demons. They poured olive oil on many sick people and healed them.

14 King Herod heard about this. Jesus' name had become well known. Some were saying, "John the Baptist has been raised from the dead! That is why he has the power to do miracles."

15 Others said, "He is Elijah." Still others claimed, "He is a prophet. He is like one of the prophets of long ago."

16 But when Herod heard this, he said, "I had John's head cut off. And now he has been raised from the dead!"

17 In fact, it was Herod himself who had given orders to arrest John. He had him tied up and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias. She was the wife of Herod's brother Philip. But now Herod was married to her.

18 John had been saying to Herod, "It is against the Law for you to have your brother's wife."

19 Herodias held that against John. She wanted to kill him. But she could not,

20 because Herod was afraid of John. So he kept John safe. Herod knew John was a holy man who did what was right. When Herod heard him, he was very puzzled. But he liked to listen to him.

21 Finally the right time came. Herod gave a big dinner on his birthday. He invited his high officials and military leaders. He also invited the most important men in Galilee.

22 Then the daughter of Herodias came in and danced. She pleased Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, "Ask me for anything you want. I'll give it to you."

23 And he promised her with an oath, "Anything you ask for I will give you. I'll give you up to half of my kingdom."

24 She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" "The head of John the Baptist," she answered.

25 At once the girl hurried to ask the king. She said, "I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a big plate right now."

26 The king was very upset. But he thought of his promise and his dinner guests. So he did not want to say no to the girl.

27 He sent a man right away to bring John's head. The man went to the prison and cut off John's head.

28 He brought it back on a big plate. He gave it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother.

29 John's disciples heard about this. So they came and took his body. Then they placed it in a tomb.