Bible Browser

Psalm 6

1  O Lord, rebuke me not in your wrath; ♦︎
   neither chasten me in your fierce anger.
2  Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am weak; ♦︎
   Lord, heal me, for my bones are racked.
3  My soul also shakes with terror; ♦︎
   how long, O Lord, how long?
4  Turn again, O Lord, and deliver my soul; ♦︎
   save me for your loving mercy’s sake.
5  For in death no one remembers you; ♦︎
   and who can give you thanks in the grave?
6  I am weary with my groaning; ♦︎
   every night I drench my pillow
      and flood my bed with my tears.
7  My eyes are wasted with grief ♦︎
   and worn away because of all my enemies.
8  Depart from me, all you that do evil, ♦︎
   for the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping.
9  The Lord has heard my supplication; ♦︎
   the Lord will receive my prayer.
10  All my enemies shall be put to shame and confusion; ♦︎
   they shall suddenly turn back in their shame.

Jeremiah in the Cistern

38Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was saying to all the people, ²Thus says the Lord, Those who stay in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but those who go out to the Chaldeans shall live; they shall have their lives as a prize of war, and live. ³Thus says the Lord, This city shall surely be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon and be taken. ⁴Then the officials said to the king, ‘This man ought to be put to death, because he is discouraging the soldiers who are left in this city, and all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man is not seeking the welfare of this people, but their harm.’ ⁵King Zedekiah said, ‘Here he is; he is in your hands; for the king is powerless against you.’ ⁶So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. Now there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.

Jeremiah Is Rescued by Ebed-melech

7 Ebed-melech the Ethiopian,^* a eunuch in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern. The king happened to be sitting at the Benjamin Gate, ⁸So Ebed-melech left the king’s house and spoke to the king, ⁹‘My lord king, these men have acted wickedly in all they did to the prophet Jeremiah by throwing him into the cistern to die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.’ ¹⁰Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian,^* ‘Take three men with you from here, and pull the prophet Jeremiah up from the cistern before he dies.’ ¹¹So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe of^* the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. ¹²Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian^* said to Jeremiah, ‘Just put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.’ Jeremiah did so. ¹³Then they drew Jeremiah up by the ropes and pulled him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

The Mission of the Twelve

5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: ‘Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, ⁶but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷As you go, proclaim the good news, “The kingdom of heaven has come near.”^{* 8}Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers,^* cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment. ⁹Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, ¹⁰no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for labourers deserve their food. ¹¹Whatever town or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave. ¹²As you enter the house, greet it. ¹³If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. ¹⁴If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. ¹⁵Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgement than for that town.

Coming Persecutions

16 ‘See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. ¹⁷Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; ¹⁸and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. ¹⁹When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; ²⁰for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. ²¹Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; ²²and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. ²³When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next; for truly I tell you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.