Matthew 19:1-15; Numbers 9; Numbers 10; Ecclesiastes 7

Matthew 19:1-15

1 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.

2 And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.

3 The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"

4 And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,'

5 and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?

6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."

7 They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"

8 He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.

9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."

10 His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."

11 But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:

12 For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

13 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them.

14 But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."

15 And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.

Numbers 9

1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying:

2 "Let the children of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time.

3 On the fourteenth day of this month, at twilight, you shall keep it at its appointed time. According to all its rites and ceremonies you shall keep it."

4 So Moses told the children of Israel that they should keep the Passover.

5 And they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month, at twilight, in the Wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did.

6 Now there were certain men who were defiled by a human corpse, so that they could not keep the Passover on that day; and they came before Moses and Aaron that day.

7 And those men said to him, "We became defiled by a human corpse. Why are we kept from presenting the offering of the Lord at its appointed time among the children of Israel?"

8 And Moses said to them, "Stand still, that I may hear what the Lord will command concerning you."

9 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

10 "Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'If anyone of you or your posterity is unclean because of a corpse, or is far away on a journey, he may still keep the Lord's Passover.

11 On the fourteenth day of the second month, at twilight, they may keep it. They shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

12 They shall leave none of it until morning, nor break one of its bones. According to all the ordinances of the Passover they shall keep it.

13 But the man who is clean and is not on a journey, and ceases to keep the Passover, that same person shall be cut off from among his people, because he did not bring the offering of the Lord at its appointed time; that man shall bear his sin.

14 And if a stranger dwells among you, and would keep the Lord's Passover, he must do so according to the rite of the Passover and according to its ceremony; you shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger and the native of the land.' "

15 Now on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the Testimony; from evening until morning it was above the tabernacle like the appearance of fire.

16 So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night.

17 Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, after that the children of Israel would journey; and in the place where the cloud settled, there the children of Israel would pitch their tents.

18 At the command of the Lord the children of Israel would journey, and at the command of the Lord they would camp; as long as the cloud stayed above the tabernacle they remained encamped.

19 Even when the cloud continued long, many days above the tabernacle, the children of Israel kept the charge of the Lord and did not journey.

20 So it was, when the cloud was above the tabernacle a few days: according to the command of the Lord they would remain encamped, and according to the command of the Lord they would journey.

21 So it was, when the cloud remained only from evening until morning: when the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they would journey; whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud was taken up, they would journey.

22 Whether it was two days, a month, or a year that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would remain encamped and not journey; but when it was taken up, they would journey.

23 At the command of the Lord they remained encamped, and at the command of the Lord they journeyed; they kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

Numbers 10

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

2 "Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for calling the congregation and for directing the movement of the camps.

3 When they blow both of them, all the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

4 But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the heads of the divisions of Israel, shall gather to you.

5 When you sound the advance, the camps that lie on the east side shall then begin their journey.

6 When you sound the advance the second time, then the camps that lie on the south side shall begin their journey; they shall sound the call for them to begin their journeys.

7 And when the assembly is to be gathered together, you shall blow, but not sound the advance.

8 The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you as an ordinance forever throughout your generations.

9 When you go to war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies.

10 Also in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God."

11 Now it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle of the Testimony.

12 And the children of Israel set out from the Wilderness of Sinai on their journeys; then the cloud settled down in the Wilderness of Paran.

13 So they started out for the first time according to the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

14 The standard of the camp of the children of Judah set out first according to their armies; over their army was Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

15 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Issachar was Nethanel the son of Zuar.

16 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Zebulun was Eliab the son of Helon.

17 Then the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari set out, carrying the tabernacle.

18 And the standard of the camp of Reuben set out according to their armies; over their army was Elizur the son of Shedeur.

19 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Simeon was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

20 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Gad was Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

21 Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the holy things. (The tabernacle would be prepared for their arrival.)

22 And the standard of the camp of the children of Ephraim set out according to their armies; over their army was Elishama the son of Ammihud.

23 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Manasseh was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

24 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Benjamin was Abidan the son of Gideoni.

25 Then the standard of the camp of the children of Dan (the rear guard of all the camps) set out according to their armies; over their army was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

26 Over the army of the tribe of the children of Asher was Pagiel the son of Ocran.

27 And over the army of the tribe of the children of Naphtali was Ahira the son of Enan.

28 Thus was the order of march of the children of Israel, according to their armies, when they began their journey.

29 Now Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, "We are setting out for the place of which the Lord said, 'I will give it to you.' Come with us, and we will treat you well; for the Lord has promised good things to Israel."

30 And he said to him, "I will not go, but I will depart to my own land and to my relatives."

31 So Moses said, "Please do not leave, inasmuch as you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you can be our eyes.

32 And it shall be, if you go with us--indeed it shall be--that whatever good the Lord will do to us, the same we will do to you."

33 So they departed from the mountain of the Lord on a journey of three days; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them for the three days' journey, to search out a resting place for them.

34 And the cloud of the Lord was above them by day when they went out from the camp.

35 So it was, whenever the ark set out, that Moses said: "Rise up, O Lord! Let Your enemies be scattered, And let those who hate You flee before You."

36 And when it rested, he said: "Return, O Lord, To the many thousands of Israel."

Ecclesiastes 7

1 A good name is better than precious ointment, And the day of death than the day of one's birth;

2 Better to go to the house of mourning Than to go to the house of feasting, For that is the end of all men; And the living will take it to heart.

3 Sorrow is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made better.

4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

5 It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise Than for a man to hear the song of fools.

6 For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, So is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.

7 Surely oppression destroys a wise man's reason, And a bribe debases the heart.

8 The end of a thing is better than its beginning; The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

9 Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools.

10 Do not say, "Why were the former days better than these?" For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.

11 Wisdom is good with an inheritance, And profitable to those who see the sun.

12 For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.

13 Consider the work of God; For who can make straight what He has made crooked?

14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him.

15 I have seen everything in my days of vanity: There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness, And there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness.

16 Do not be overly righteous, Nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself?

17 Do not be overly wicked, Nor be foolish: Why should you die before your time?

18 It is good that you grasp this, And also not remove your hand from the other; For he who fears God will escape them all.

19 Wisdom strengthens the wise More than ten rulers of the city.

20 For there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.

21 Also do not take to heart everything people say, Lest you hear your servant cursing you.

22 For many times, also, your own heart has known That even you have cursed others.

23 All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, "I will be wise"; But it was far from me.

24 As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep, Who can find it out?

25 I applied my heart to know, To search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things, To know the wickedness of folly, Even of foolishness and madness.

26 And I find more bitter than death The woman whose heart is snares and nets, Whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God shall escape from her, But the sinner shall be trapped by her.

27 "Here is what I have found," says the Preacher, "Adding one thing to the other to find out the reason,

28 Which my soul still seeks but I cannot find: One man among a thousand I have found, But a woman among all these I have not found.

29 Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes."