Exodus 16; Exodus 17; Exodus 18; Matthew 18:1-20

1 The whole community of Israelites moved from Elim and came to the desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai. This was on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left Egypt.

2 In the desert the whole community complained about Moses and Aaron.

3 The Israelites said to them, "If only the LORD had let us die in Egypt! There we sat by our pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted! You brought us out into this desert to let us all starve to death!"

4 The LORD said to Moses, "I'm going to send you food from heaven like rain. Each day the people should go out and gather only what they need for that day. In this way I will test them to see whether or not they will follow my instructions.

5 But on the sixth day when they prepare what they bring home, it should be twice as much as they gather on other days."

6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, "In the evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of Egypt.

7 In the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard you complaining about him. Why are you complaining about us?"

8 Moses also said, "The LORD will give you meat to eat in the evening and all the food you want in the morning. The LORD has heard you complaining about him. Who are we? You're not complaining about us but about the LORD."

9 Moses said to Aaron, "Tell the whole community of Israelites, 'Come into the LORD's presence. He has heard you complaining.'"

10 While Aaron was speaking to the whole community of Israelites, they looked toward the desert. Suddenly, they saw the glory of the LORD in the [column of] smoke.

11 The LORD said to Moses,

12 "I've heard the Israelites complaining. Tell them, 'At dusk you will eat meat, and in the morning you will eat all the food you want. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.'"

13 That evening quails came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp.

14 When the dew was gone, the ground was covered with a thin layer of flakes like frost on the ground.

15 When the Israelites saw it, they asked each other, "What is this?" because they didn't know what it was. Moses said to them, "It's the food the LORD has given you to eat.

16 This is what the LORD has commanded: Each of you should gather as much as you can eat. Take two quarts for each person in your tent."

17 So that is what the Israelites did. Some gathered more, some less.

18 They measured it into two-quart containers. Those who had gathered more didn't have too much. Those who had gathered less didn't have too little. They gathered as much as they could eat.

19 Then Moses said to them, "No one may keep any of it until morning."

20 But some of them didn't listen to Moses. They kept part of it until morning, and it was full of worms and smelled bad. So Moses was angry with them.

21 Each morning they gathered as much food as they could eat. When the sun was hot, it melted away.

22 But on the sixth day they gathered twice as much food, four quarts per person. All the leaders of the community came to Moses and told him about it.

23 He said to them, "This is what the LORD said: Tomorrow is a day of worship, a holy day of worship dedicated to the LORD. Bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil. Save all that's left over, and keep it until tomorrow morning."

24 So they saved it until the next morning as Moses had commanded, but it didn't smell or have worms in it.

25 "Eat it today," Moses said, "because today is a day of worship dedicated to the LORD. You won't find anything on the ground today.

26 You can gather food on six days, but on the seventh day, the day of worship, you won't find any."

27 On the seventh day some people went out to gather food, but they didn't find any.

28 The LORD said to Moses, "How long will you refuse to do what I have commanded and instructed you to do?

29 Remember: The LORD has given you this day of worship. That's why he gives you enough food on the sixth day for two days. On the seventh day you may not leave. Everyone, stay where you are."

30 So the people never worked on the seventh day of the week.

31 The Israelites called the food manna. It was like coriander seeds. It was white and tasted like wafers made with honey.

32 Moses said, "This is what the LORD has commanded: Take two quarts of manna to be kept for your descendants. This way they will see the food that I gave you to eat in the desert when I brought you out of Egypt."

33 Moses said to Aaron, "Take a jar, put two quarts of manna in it, and put it in the LORD's presence to be kept for your descendants."

34 Aaron put the jar of manna in front of the words of God's promise to be kept there, as the LORD commanded Moses.

35 The Israelites ate manna for 40 years until they came to a place to settle. They ate manna until they came to the border of Canaan.

36 (Now, the standard dry measure at that time held 20 quarts.)

1 The whole community of Israelites left the desert of Sin and traveled from place to place as the LORD commanded them. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

2 So they complained to Moses by saying, "Give us water to drink!" Moses said to them, "Why are you complaining to me? Why are you testing the LORD?"

3 But the people were thirsty for water there. They complained to Moses and asked, "Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Was it to make us, our children, and our livestock die of thirst?"

4 So Moses cried out to the LORD, "What should I do with these people? They're almost ready to stone me!"

5 The LORD answered Moses, "Bring some of the leaders of Israel with you, and go to where the people can see you. Take the staff you used to strike the Nile River.

6 I'll be standing in front of you there by a rock at Mount Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink." Moses did this while the leaders of Israel watched him.

7 He named that place Massah [Testing] and Meribah [Complaining] because the Israelites complained and because they tested the LORD, asking, "Is the LORD with us or not?"

8 The Amalekites fought Israel at Rephidim.

9 Moses said to Joshua, "Choose some of our men. Then fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill. I will hold in my hand the staff God told me to take along."

10 Joshua did as Moses told him and fought the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill.

11 As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel would win, but as soon as he put his hands down, the Amalekites would start to win.

12 Eventually, Moses' hands felt heavy. So Aaron and Hur took a rock, put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron held up one hand, and Hur held up the other. His hands remained steady until sunset.

13 So Joshua defeated the Amalekite army in battle.

14 The LORD said to Moses, "Write this reminder on a scroll, and make sure that Joshua hears it, too: I will completely erase any memory of the Amalekites from the earth."

15 Moses built an altar and called it The LORD Is My Banner.

16 He said, "Because a hand was lifted against the LORD's throne, he will be at war against the Amalekites from one generation to the next."

1 Moses' father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about everything God had done for Moses and his people Israel and how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

2 When Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro had taken her in,

3 along with her two sons. The one son was named Gershom [Foreigner], because Moses said, "I was a foreigner living in another country."

4 The name of the other was Eliezer [My God Is a Helper], because he said, "My father's God was my helper. He saved me from Pharaoh's death sentence."

5 Moses' father-in-law Jethro brought Moses' sons and wife to Moses in the desert where he was camped near the mountain of God.

6 Jethro had sent word to Moses, "I'm coming to [visit] you, [and I'm bringing] your wife and her two sons."

7 So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law. Moses bowed with his face touching the ground and kissed Jethro. After they asked each other how they were, they went into the tent.

8 Moses told his father-in-law everything the LORD had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel, all the hardships they had had on the way, and how the LORD had saved them.

9 Jethro was delighted [to hear] about all the good things the LORD had done for Israel in rescuing them from the Egyptians.

10 He said, "Thank the LORD! He rescued you from the Egyptians and their Pharaoh and rescued these people from the control of the Egyptians,

11 who treated Israel with contempt. Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods."

12 Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and other sacrifices to God. Aaron and all the leaders of Israel came to eat the meal with Moses' father-in-law in God's presence.

13 The next day Moses was settling disagreements among the people. The people stood around Moses from morning until evening.

14 When Moses' father-in-law saw everything Moses was doing for the people, he asked, "Why are you doing this for the people? Why do you sit here alone, while all the people stand around you from morning until evening?"

15 Moses answered his father-in-law, "Because the people come to me to find out God's will.

16 Whenever they have a disagreement and bring it to me, I decide which person is right, and I tell them God's laws and instructions."

17 Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you're doing is not good.

18 You and your people will wear yourselves out. This is too much work for you. You can't do it alone!

19 Now listen to me, and I'll give you some advice. May God be with you! You must be the people's representative to God and bring their disagreements to him.

20 You must instruct them in the laws and the teachings, show them how to live, and tell them what to do.

21 "But choose capable men from all the people, men who fear God, men you can trust, men who hate corruption. Put them in charge of groups of 1,000, or 100, or 50, or 10 people.

22 Let them be the ones who usually settle disagreements among the people. They should bring all important cases to you, but they should settle all minor cases themselves. Make it easier for yourself by letting them help you.

23 If God commands you, and you do this, you will be able to continue your work, and all these people will have their disagreements settled so that they can go home."

24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said.

25 Moses chose capable men from all the Israelites and put them in charge of groups of 1,000, or 100, or 50, or 10 people.

26 These men were the ones who usually settled disagreements among the people. They would bring difficult cases to Moses, but they settled all minor ones themselves.

27 Moses sent his father-in-law on his way. So Jethro went back to his own country.

1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"

2 He called a little child and had him stand among them.

3 Then he said to them, "I can guarantee this truth: Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

4 Whoever becomes like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5 And whoever welcomes a child like this in my name welcomes me.

6 "These little ones believe in me. It would be best for the person who causes one of them to lose faith to be drowned in the sea with a large stone hung around his neck.

7 How horrible it will be for the world because it causes people to lose their faith. Situations that cause people to lose their faith will arise. How horrible it will be for the person who causes someone to lose his faith!

8 "If your hand or your foot causes you to lose your faith, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life disabled or injured than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into everlasting fire.

9 If your eye causes you to lose your faith, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hellfire.

10 "Be careful not to despise these little ones. I can guarantee that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father, who is in heaven.

11

12 "What do you think? Suppose a man has 100 sheep and one of them strays. Won't he leave the 99 sheep in the hills to look for the one that has strayed?

13 I can guarantee this truth: If he finds it, he is happier about it than about the 99 that have not strayed.

14 In the same way, your Father in heaven does not want one of these little ones to be lost.

15 "If a believer does something wrong, go, confront him when the two of you are alone. If he listens to you, you have won back that believer.

16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others with you so that every accusation may be verified by two or three witnesses.

17 If he ignores these witnesses, tell it to the community of believers. If he also ignores the community, deal with him as you would a heathen or a tax collector.

18 I can guarantee this truth: Whatever you imprison, God will imprison. And whatever you set free, God will set free.

19 "I can guarantee again that if two of you agree on anything here on earth, my Father in heaven will accept it.

20 Where two or three have come together in my name, I am there among them."