The People Complain

11 And ^(A)the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, ^(B)his anger was kindled, and ^(C)the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. ² Then ^(D)the people cried out to Moses, ^(E)and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down. ³ So the name of that place was called ^(F)Taberah,^[a] because the fire of the Lord burned among them.

⁴ Now the ^(G)rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also ^(H)wept again and said, ^(I)“Oh that we had meat to eat! ^5 (J)We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. ⁶ But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”

⁷ Now ^(K)the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. ^8 (L)The people went about and gathered it and ground it in handmills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. ^(M)And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. ^9 (N)When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it.

¹⁰ Moses heard the people ^(O)weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. ^11 (P)Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? ¹² Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ^(Q)‘Carry them in your bosom, as a ^(R)nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land ^(S)that you swore to give their fathers? ^13 (T)Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ ^14 (U)I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. ¹⁵ If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

Elders Appointed to Aid Moses

¹⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me ^(V)seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and ^(W)officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. ^17 (X)And I will come down and talk with you there. And ^(Y)I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and ^(Z)they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone. ¹⁸ And say to the people, ^(AA)‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat, for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? ^(AB)For it was better for us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. ¹⁹ You shall not eat just one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, ²⁰ but a whole month, ^(AC)until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before him, saying, ^(AD)“Why did we come out of Egypt?”’” ²¹ But Moses said, ^(AE)“The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot, and you have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month!’ ^22 (AF)Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, and be enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, and be enough for them?” ²³ And the Lord said to Moses, ^(AG)“Is the Lord's hand shortened? Now you shall see whether ^(AH)my word will come true for you or not.”

²⁴ So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. ^(AI)And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. ²⁵ Then ^(AJ)the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.

²⁶ Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the Spirit rested on them. They were among those registered, but they ^(AK)had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. ²⁷ And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” ²⁸ And ^(AL)Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, said, “My lord Moses, ^(AM)stop them.” ²⁹ But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? ^(AN)Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!” ³⁰ And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.

Quail and a Plague

³¹ Then a ^(AO)wind from the Lord sprang up, and it brought quail from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day's journey on this side and a day's journey on the other side, around the camp, and about two cubits^[b] above the ground. ³² And the people rose all that day and all night and all the next day, and gathered the quail. Those who gathered least gathered ten ^(AP)homers.^[c] And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. ^33 (AQ)While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and ^(AR)the Lord struck down the people with a very great plague. ³⁴ Therefore the name of that place was called ^(AS)Kibroth-hattaavah,^[d] because there they buried the people who had the craving. ^35 (AT)From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to ^(AU)Hazeroth, and they remained at ^(AV)Hazeroth.

Miriam and Aaron Oppose Moses

12 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. ² And they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? ^(AW)Has he not spoken through us also?” And ^(AX)the Lord heard it. ³ Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth. ⁴ And suddenly the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tent of meeting.” And the three of them came out. ⁵ And ^(AY)the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward. ⁶ And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him ^(AZ)in a vision; I speak with him ^(BA)in a dream. ⁷ Not so with ^(BB)my servant Moses. ^(BC)He is faithful in all my house. ⁸ With him I speak ^(BD)mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in ^(BE)riddles, and he beholds ^(BF)the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” ⁹ And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them, and he departed.

¹⁰ When the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, ^(BG)Miriam was ^(BH)leprous,^[e] like snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam, and behold, she was leprous. ¹¹ And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, ^(BI)do not punish us^[f] because we have done foolishly and have sinned. ¹² Let her not be as one dead, whose flesh is half eaten away when he comes out of his mother's womb.” ¹³ And Moses cried to the Lord, “O God, please heal her—please.” ¹⁴ But the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had but ^(BJ)spit in her face, should she not be shamed seven days? Let her be ^(BK)shut outside the camp seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.” ¹⁵ So Miriam ^(BL)was shut outside the camp seven days, and the people did not set out on the march till Miriam was brought in again. ¹⁶ After that the people set out from ^(BM)Hazeroth, and camped in ^(BN)the wilderness of Paran.

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

6 ^(A)He went away from there and came to ^(B)his hometown, and his disciples followed him. ² And ^(C)on the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and ^(D)many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? ^3 (E)Is not this ^(F)the carpenter, the son of Mary and ^(G)brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And ^(H)they took offense at him. ⁴ And Jesus said to them, ^(I)“A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” ⁵ And ^(J)he could do no mighty work there, except that ^(K)he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. ⁶ And ^(L)he marveled because of their unbelief.

^(M)And he went about among the villages teaching.

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Apostles

^7 (N)And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. ⁸ He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts— ⁹ but to ^(O)wear sandals and not put on two tunics.^{[a] 10} And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. ¹¹ And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, ^(P)shake off the dust that is on your feet ^(Q)as a testimony against them.” ^12 (R)So they went out and ^(S)proclaimed ^(T)that people should repent. ^13 (U)And they cast out many demons and ^(V)anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.

The Death of John the Baptist

^14 (W)King Herod heard of it, for Jesus'^[b] name had become known. Some^[c] said, ^(X)“John the Baptist^[d] has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” ^15 (Y)But others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is ^(Z)a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” ¹⁶ But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” ^17 (AA)For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and ^(AB)bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because he had married her. ^18 (AC)For John had been saying to Herod, ^(AD)“It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.” ¹⁹ And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, ²⁰ for Herod ^(AE)feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he ^(AF)heard him gladly.

²¹ But an opportunity came when Herod ^(AG)on his birthday ^(AH)gave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. ²² For when Herodias's daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” ²³ And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, ^(AI)up to half of my kingdom.” ²⁴ And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” ²⁵ And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” ²⁶ And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. ²⁷ And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John's^[e] head. He went and beheaded him in the prison ²⁸ and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. ²⁹ When his ^(AJ)disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

Joy Comes with the Morning

A Psalm of David. A song at the dedication of ^(A)the temple.