Matthew 9:1-17; Leviticus 3; Leviticus 4; Proverbs 20

Matthew 9:1-17

1 So He got into a boat, crossed over, and came to His own city.

2 Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you."

3 And at once some of the scribes said within themselves, "This Man blasphemes!"

4 But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts?

5 For which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise and walk'?

6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"--then He said to the paralytic, "Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house."

7 And he arose and departed to his house.

8 Now when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power to men.

9 As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, "Follow Me." So he arose and followed Him.

10 Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples.

11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, "Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

12 When Jesus heard that, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.

13 But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."

14 Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?"

15 And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.

16 No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse.

17 Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."

Leviticus 3

1 'When his offering is a sacrifice of a peace offering, if he offers it of the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the Lord.

2 And he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of meeting; and Aaron's sons, the priests, shall sprinkle the blood all around on the altar.

3 Then he shall offer from the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire to the Lord. The fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that is on the entrails,

4 the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove;

5 and Aaron's sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is on the wood that is on the fire, as an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord.

6 'If his offering as a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord is of the flock, whether male or female, he shall offer it without blemish.

7 If he offers a lamb as his offering, then he shall offer it before the Lord.

8 And he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering, and kill it before the tabernacle of meeting; and Aaron's sons shall sprinkle its blood all around on the altar.

9 Then he shall offer from the sacrifice of the peace offering, as an offering made by fire to the Lord, its fat and the whole fat tail which he shall remove close to the backbone. And the fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that is on the entrails,

10 the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove;

11 and the priest shall burn them on the altar as food, an offering made by fire to the Lord.

12 'And if his offering is a goat, then he shall offer it before the Lord.

13 He shall lay his hand on its head and kill it before the tabernacle of meeting; and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle its blood all around on the altar.

14 Then he shall offer from it his offering, as an offering made by fire to the Lord. The fat that covers the entrails and all the fat that is on the entrails,

15 the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove;

16 and the priest shall burn them on the altar as food, an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma; all the fat is the Lord's.

17 'This shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwellings: you shall eat neither fat nor blood.' "

Leviticus 4

1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2 "Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'If a person sins unintentionally against any of the commandments of the Lord in anything which ought not to be done, and does any of them,

3 if the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, then let him offer to the Lord for his sin which he has sinned a young bull without blemish as a sin offering.

4 He shall bring the bull to the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, lay his hand on the bull's head, and kill the bull before the Lord.

5 Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull's blood and bring it to the tabernacle of meeting.

6 The priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle some 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 sweet incense before the Lord, which is in the tabernacle of meeting; and he shall pour the remaining blood of the bull at the base of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

8 He shall take from it all the fat of the bull as the sin offering. The fat that covers the entrails and all the fat which is on the entrails,

9 the two kidneys and the fat that is on them by the flanks, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver above the kidneys, he shall remove,

10 as it was taken from the bull of the sacrifice of the peace offering; and the priest shall burn them on the altar of the burnt offering.

11 But the bull's hide and all its flesh, with its head and legs, its entrails and offal--

12 the whole bull he shall carry outside the camp to a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn it on wood with fire; where the ashes are poured out it shall be burned.

13 'Now if the whole congregation of Israel sins unintentionally, and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done something against any of the commandments of the Lord in anything which should not be done, and are guilty;

14 when the sin which they have committed becomes known, then the assembly shall offer a young bull for the sin, and bring it before the tabernacle of meeting.

15 And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands on the head of the bull before the Lord. Then the bull shall be killed before the Lord.

16 The anointed priest shall bring some of the bull's blood to the tabernacle of meeting.

17 Then 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 which is before the Lord, which is in the tabernacle of meeting; and he shall pour the remaining blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

19 He shall take all the fat from it and burn it on the altar.

20 And he shall do with the bull as he did with the bull as a sin offering; thus he shall do with it. So the priest shall make atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them.

21 Then he shall carry the bull outside the camp, and burn it as he burned the first bull. It is a sin offering for the assembly.

22 'When a ruler has sinned, and done something unintentionally against any of the commandments of the Lord his God in anything which should not be done, and is guilty,

23 or if his sin which he has committed comes to his knowledge, he shall bring as his offering a kid of the goats, a male without blemish.

24 And he shall lay his hand on the head of the goat, and kill it at the place where they kill the burnt offering before the Lord. It is a sin offering.

25 The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and pour its blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering.

26 And he shall burn all its fat on the altar, like the fat of the sacrifice of the peace offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him.

27 'If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally by doing something against any of the commandments of the Lord in anything which ought not to be done, and is guilty,

28 or if his sin which he has committed comes to his knowledge, then he shall bring as his offering a kid of the goats, 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 at the place of the burnt offering.

30 Then the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and pour all the remaining blood at the base of the altar.

31 He shall remove all its fat, as fat is removed from the sacrifice of the peace offering; and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a sweet aroma to the Lord. So the priest shall make atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him.

32 'If he brings a lamb as his sin offering, he shall bring a female without blemish.

33 Then he shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering, and kill it as a sin offering at the place where they kill the burnt offering.

34 The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and pour all the remaining blood at the base of the altar.

35 He shall remove all its fat, as the fat of the lamb is removed from the sacrifice of the peace offering. Then the priest shall burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire to the Lord. So the priest shall make atonement for his sin that he has committed, and it shall be forgiven him.

Proverbs 20

1 Wine is a mocker, Strong drink is a brawler, And whoever is led astray by it is not wise.

2 The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion; Whoever provokes him to anger sins against his own life.

3 It is honorable for a man to stop striving, Since any fool can start a quarrel.

4 The lazy man will not plow because of winter; He will beg during harvest and have nothing.

5 Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water, But a man of understanding will draw it out.

6 Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, But who can find a faithful man?

7 The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him.

8 A king who sits on the throne of judgment Scatters all evil with his eyes.

9 Who can say, "I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin"?

10 Diverse weights and diverse measures, They are both alike, an abomination to the Lord.

11 Even a child is known by his deeds, Whether what he does is pure and right.

12 The hearing ear and the seeing eye, The Lord has made them both.

13 Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty; Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with bread.

14 "It is good for nothing," cries the buyer; But when he has gone his way, then he boasts.

15 There is gold and a multitude of rubies, But the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

16 Take the garment of one who is surety for a stranger, And hold it as a pledge when it is for a seductress.

17 Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel.

18 Plans are established by counsel; By wise counsel wage war.

19 He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets; Therefore do not associate with one who flatters with his lips.

20 Whoever curses his father or his mother, His lamp will be put out in deep darkness.

21 An inheritance gained hastily at the beginning Will not be blessed at the end.

22 Do not say, "I will recompense evil"; Wait for the Lord, and He will save you.

23 Diverse weights are an abomination to the Lord, And dishonest scales are not good.

24 A man's steps are of the Lord; How then can a man understand his own way?

25 It is a snare for a man to devote rashly something as holy, And afterward to reconsider his vows.

26 A wise king sifts out the wicked, And brings the threshing wheel over them.

27 The spirit of a man is the lamp of the Lord, Searching all the inner depths of his heart.

28 Mercy and truth preserve the king, And by lovingkindness he upholds his throne.

29 The glory of young men is their strength, And the splendor of old men is their gray head.

30 Blows that hurt cleanse away evil, As do stripes the inner depths of the heart.