Numbers 29; Numbers 30; Numbers 31; Mark 9:1-29

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Numbers 29

1 " 'On the first day of the seventh month, come together for a special service. Do not do any regular work. Blow the trumpets on that day.

2 " 'Prepare a burnt offering. It will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord. Prepare one young bull and one ram. Also prepare seven male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

3 " 'Prepare a grain offering along with the bull. It must have 24 cups of fine flour. Mix it with olive oil. Offer 16 cups along with the ram.

4 Offer eight cups along with each of the seven lambs.

5 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It will pay for your sin.

6 " 'Each month and each day you must bring burnt offerings. Bring them along with their grain offerings and drink offerings as they are required. " 'The offerings for the Feast of Trumpets are in addition to them. They are offerings that are made to the LORD with fire. They have a pleasant smell.

7 " 'On the tenth day of the seventh month, come together for a special service. You must not eat anything on that day. You must not do any work on it.

8 " 'Bring a burnt offering. It will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord. Bring one young bull and one ram. Also bring seven male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

9 " 'Prepare a grain offering along with the bull. It must have 24 cups of fine flour. Mix it with olive oil. Offer 16 cups along with the ram.

10 Offer eight cups along with each of the seven lambs.

11 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the offering that pays for sin. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering along with its grain offering. It is also in addition to their drink offerings.

12 " 'On the 15th day of the seventh month, come together for a special service. Do not do any regular work. Celebrate the Feast of Booths in honor of the LORD for seven days.

13 " 'Bring an offering that is made with fire. It will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord. Bring a burnt offering of 13 young bulls and two rams. Also bring 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

14 " 'Prepare a grain offering along with each of the 13 bulls. It must have 24 cups of fine flour. Mix it with olive oil. Offer 16 cups along with each of the two rams.

15 Offer eight cups along with each of the 14 lambs.

16 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to its grain offering and drink offering.

17 " 'On the second day prepare 12 young bulls and two rams. Also prepare 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

18 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bulls, rams and lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

19 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering along with its grain offering. It is also in addition to their drink offerings.

20 " 'On the third day prepare 11 bulls and two rams. Also prepare 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

21 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bulls, rams and lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

22 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to its grain offering and drink offering.

23 " 'On the fourth day prepare ten bulls and two rams. Also prepare 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

24 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bulls, rams and lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

25 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to its grain offering and drink offering.

26 " 'On the fifth day prepare nine bulls and two rams. Also prepare 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

27 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bulls, rams and lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

28 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to its grain offering and drink offering.

29 " 'On the sixth day prepare eight bulls and two rams. Also prepare 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

30 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bulls, rams and lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

31 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to its grain offering and drink offering.

32 " 'On the seventh day prepare seven bulls and two rams. Also prepare 14 male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

33 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bulls, rams and lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

34 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to its grain offering and drink offering.

35 " 'On the eighth day come together for a sacred service. Do not do any regular work.

36 " 'Bring an offering that is made with fire. It will give a smell that is pleasant to the Lord. Bring a burnt offering of one bull and one ram. Also bring seven male lambs that are a year old. They must not have any flaws.

37 " 'Prepare their grain offerings and drink offerings. Prepare them along with the bull, the ram and the lambs. Prepare them in keeping with the required number.

38 " 'Include a male goat as a sin offering. It is in addition to the regular burnt offering. It is also in addition to the grain offering and drink offering.

39 " 'Here are the offerings you must prepare for the LORD at your appointed feasts. They are burnt offerings, grain offerings, drink offerings and friendship offerings. They are in addition to the offerings you bring to keep a special promise you make to the Lord. They are also in addition to the offerings you choose to give.' "

40 Moses told the people of Israel everything the LORD had commanded him.

Numbers 30

1 Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of Israel. He said, "Here is what the LORD commands.

2 Suppose a man makes a special promise to the Lord. Or suppose he takes an oath and agrees to do something. Then he must keep his promise. He must do everything he said he would do.

3 "Suppose a young woman is still living in her father's house. She makes a special promise to the Lord. Or she takes an oath and agrees to do something.

4 "Suppose her father hears about her promise or oath. And he doesn't say anything to her about it. Then she must keep her promise. She must do what she agreed to do.

5 "But suppose her father doesn't allow her to keep her promises when he hears about them. Then she doesn't have to do what she promised or agreed to do. The LORD will set her free. He'll do it because her father hasn't allowed her to keep her promises.

6 "Suppose she gets married after she makes a special promise. Or she gets married after agreeing to do something without thinking it through.

7 Suppose her husband hears about what she did. And he doesn't say anything to her about it. Then she must keep her promise. She must do what she agreed to do.

8 "But suppose her husband doesn't allow her to keep her promises when he hears about them. Then she doesn't have to do what she promised. She doesn't have to do what she agreed to do without thinking it through. The LORD will set her free.

9 "Suppose a widow makes a special promise. Or suppose she takes an oath and agrees to do something. Then she must keep her promise. She must do what she agreed to do. The same rules apply to a woman who has been divorced.

10 "Suppose a woman who is living with her husband makes a special promise. Or she takes an oath and agrees to do something.

11 Suppose her husband hears about what she did. He doesn't say anything to her about it. And he doesn't try to stop her from keeping her promises. Then she must keep her promise. She must do what she agreed to do.

12 "But suppose her husband doesn't allow her to keep her promises when he hears about them. Then she doesn't have to do what she promised. She doesn't have to do what she agreed to do. Her husband has kept her from doing what she said she would do. The LORD will set her free.

13 "Her husband can let her keep any special promise she makes. Or he can refuse to let her keep it. "Suppose she takes an oath and agrees not to eat anything. Then her husband can let her keep her promise. Or he can refuse to let her keep it.

14 "But suppose day after day her husband doesn't say anything to her about what she did. Then he lets her keep all of her promises. He lets her do everything she agreed to do. That's because he didn't say anything to her when he heard about what she had done.

15 "But suppose some time after he hears about her promises he doesn't let her keep them. Then she will be guilty. But he will be held accountable for it."

16 Those are the rules the LORD gave Moses about a man and his wife. And those are the rules the LORD gave about a father and his young daughter who is still living in his house.

Numbers 31

1 The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

2 "Pay the people of Midian back for what they did to the Israelites. After that, you will join the members of your family who have already died."

3 So Moses said to the people, "Prepare some of your men for battle. They must go to war against Midian. They will carry out the LORD's plan to punish Midian.

4 Send 1,000 men from each of the tribes of Israel into battle."

5 So Moses prepared 12,000 men for battle. There were 1,000 from each tribe. They came from the families of Israel.

6 Moses sent them into battle. He sent 1,000 from each tribe. The priest Phinehas went along with them. Phinehas was the son of Eleazar. Phinehas took some articles from the sacred tent with him. He also took the trumpets. The trumpet blasts would tell the people what to do and when to do it.

7 They fought against Midian, just as the LORD had commanded Moses. They killed every man.

8 Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba were among the men they killed. Those men were the five kings of Midian. The people of Israel also killed Balaam, the son of Beor, with a sword.

9 They captured the women and children of Midian. They took for themselves all of the herds, flocks and goods.

10 They burned up all of the towns where the people of Midian had settled. They also burned up all of their camps.

11 They carried off everything they had taken. That included the people and the animals.

12 They brought back to Israel's camp the prisoners and everything else they had taken. They took them to Moses and to the priest Eleazar. They brought them to the whole community. Israel was camped on the flatlands of Moab. They were by the Jordan River across from Jericho.

13 Moses and the priest Eleazar went to meet them outside the camp. So did all of the leaders of the community.

14 Moses was angry with the officers of the army who had returned from the battle. Some of them were the commanders of thousands of men. Others were the commanders of hundreds.

15 "Have you let all of the women remain alive?" Moses asked them.

16 "The women followed Balaam's advice. They caused the people of Israel to turn away from the Lord. The people worshiped the god Baal that was worshiped at Peor. So a plague struck them.

17 Kill all of the boys. And kill every woman who has made love to a man.

18 But save for yourselves every woman who has never made love to a man.

19 "All of you who have killed anyone must stay outside the camp for seven days. And all of you who have touched anyone who was killed must do the same thing. On the third and seventh days you must make yourselves pure. You must also make your prisoners pure.

20 Make all of your clothes pure and clean. Everything that is made out of leather, goat hair or wood must be made pure."

21 Then the priest Eleazar spoke to the soldiers who had gone into battle. He said, "Here is what the law the LORD gave Moses requires.

22 All of your gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin and lead

23 must be put through fire. So must everything else that doesn't burn up. Then those things will be 'clean.' But they must also be made pure with the special water. In fact, everything that won't burn up must be put through that water.

24 On the seventh day wash your clothes. And you will be 'clean.' Then you can come into the camp."

25 The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

26 "Here is what you and the priest Eleazar and the family heads of the community must do. You must count all of the people and animals you took.

27 Divide up some of what you took with the soldiers who fought in the battle. Divide up the rest with the others in the community.

28 "Set apart a gift for me. Take something from the soldiers who fought in the battle. Set apart one out of every 500 people, cattle, donkeys, sheep and goats.

29 Take my gift from the soldiers' half. Give it to the priest Eleazar. It is my share.

30 "Also take something from the half that belongs to the people of Israel. Choose one out of every 50 people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, goats or other animals. Give them to the Levites. They are accountable for taking care of my holy tent."

31 So Moses and the priest Eleazar did just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

32 What the soldiers took included 675,000 sheep.

33 There were also 72,000 cattle

34 and 61,000 donkeys.

35 And there were 32,000 women who had never made love to a man.

36 Here is the half that belonged to those who had fought in the battle. There were 337,500 sheep.

37 From among them, the LORD's gift was 675.

38 There were 36,000 cattle. From among them, the LORD's gift was 72.

39 There were 30,500 donkeys. From among them, the LORD's gift was 61.

40 There were 16,000 women. From among them, the LORD's gift was 32.

41 Moses gave the gift to the priest Eleazar. It was the LORD's share. Moses did just as the LORD had commanded him.

42 The other half belonged to the people of Israel. Moses set it apart from what belonged to the fighting men.

43 The community's half was 337,500 sheep,

44 36,000 cattle,

45 30,500 donkeys

46 and 16,000 women.

47 Moses chose one out of every 50 people and animals. He gave them to the Levites. They were accountable for taking care of the LORD's holy tent. Moses did just as the LORD had commanded him.

48 Then the army officers went to Moses. Some of them were the commanders of thousands of men. Others were the commanders of hundreds.

49 All of them said to Moses, "We have counted the soldiers under our command. Not a single one is missing.

50 "So we've brought an offering to the Lord. We've brought the gold articles each of us took in the battle. We've also brought armbands, bracelets, rings, earrings and necklaces. We've brought them to pay for our sin in the sight of the Lord."

51 Moses and the priest Eleazar accepted the beautiful gold articles from the army officers.

52 The gold that was received from the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds weighed 420 pounds. Moses and Eleazar offered all of it as a gift to the Lord.

53 Each soldier had taken things from the battle for himself.

54 Moses and the priest Eleazar accepted the gold from all of the commanders. They brought it into the Tent of Meeting. It reminded the LORD of the people of Israel.

Mark 9:1-29

1 Jesus said to them, "What I'm about to tell you is true. Some who are standing here will not die before they see God's kingdom coming with power."

2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him. He led them up a high mountain. They were all alone. There in front of them his appearance was changed.

3 His clothes became so white they shone. They were whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them.

4 Elijah and Moses appeared in front of Jesus and his disciples. The two of them were talking with Jesus.

5 Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters. One will be for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

6 Peter didn't really know what to say, because they were so afraid.

7 Then a cloud appeared and surrounded them. A voice came from the cloud. It said, "This is my Son, and I love him. Listen to him!"

8 They looked around. Suddenly they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

9 They came down the mountain. On the way down, Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone what they had seen. He told them to wait until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

10 So they kept the matter to themselves. But they asked each other what "rising from the dead" meant.

11 Then they asked Jesus, "Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah has to come first?"

12 Jesus replied, "That's right. Elijah does come first. He makes all things new again. So why is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and not be accepted?

13 I tell you, Elijah has come. They have done to him everything they wanted to do. They did it just as it is written about him."

14 When Jesus and those who were with him came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them. The teachers of the law were arguing with them.

15 When all the people saw Jesus, they were filled with wonder. And they ran to greet him.

16 "What are you arguing with them about?" Jesus asked.

17 A man in the crowd answered. "Teacher," he said, "I brought you my son. He is controlled by a spirit. Because of this, my son can't speak anymore.

18 When the spirit takes hold of him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth. He grinds his teeth. And his body becomes stiff. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit. But they couldn't do it."

19 "You unbelieving people!" Jesus replied. "How long do I have to stay with you? How long do I have to put up with you? Bring the boy to me."

20 So they brought him. As soon as the spirit saw Jesus, it threw the boy into a fit. He fell to the ground. He rolled around and foamed at the mouth.

21 Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" "Since he was a child," he answered.

22 "The spirit has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us. Please help us."

23 " 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for the one who believes."

24 Right away the boy's father cried out, "I do believe! Help me overcome my unbelief!"

25 Jesus saw that a crowd was running over to see what was happening. Then he ordered the evil spirit to leave the boy. "You spirit that makes him unable to hear and speak!" he said. "I command you, come out of him. Never enter him again."

26 The spirit screamed. It shook the boy wildly. Then it came out of him. The boy looked so lifeless that many people said, "He's dead."

27 But Jesus took him by the hand. He lifted the boy to his feet, and the boy stood up.

28 Jesus went indoors. Then his disciples asked him in private, "Why couldn't we drive out the evil spirit?"

29 He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer."