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Genesis 14

14. Abram Rescues Lot

²⁴ I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share that belongs to the men who went with me—to Aner, Eshkol and Mamre. Let them have their share.”

²³ that I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or the strap of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ ²² But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “With raised hand I have sworn an oath to the LORD, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, ²¹ The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people and keep the goods for yourself.”

   
²⁰ And praise be to God Most High,
   who delivered your enemies into your hand.”

   Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

    ¹⁹ and he blessed Abram, saying,

   “Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
   Creator of heaven and earth. ¹⁸ Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, ¹⁷ After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).

    ¹⁶ He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.

    ¹⁵ During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. ¹⁴ When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. ¹³ A man who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite, a brother Or a relative; or an ally of Eshkol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. ¹² They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.

    ¹¹ The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. ¹⁰ Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of the men fell into them and the rest fled to the hills. ⁹ against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goyim, Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. ⁸ Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboyim and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) marched out and drew up their battle lines in the Valley of Siddim ⁷ Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and they conquered the whole territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who were living in Hazezon Tamar.

    ⁶ and the Horites in the hill country of Seir, as far as El Paran near the desert. ⁵ In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him went out and defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim ⁴ For twelve years they had been subject to Kedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

    ³ All these latter kings joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Dead Sea Valley). ² these kings went to war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboyim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). ¹ At the time when Amraphel was king of Shinar, That is, Babylonia; also in verse 9 Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goyim,

Mark 6:14-29

6. Teachings and Miracles

¹⁴ King Herod heard about this, for Jesus’ name had become well known. Some were saying, Some early manuscripts He was saying “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”

    ¹⁵ Others said, “He is Elijah.”

   And still others claimed, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago.”

    ¹⁶ But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!”

    ¹⁷ For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, whom he had married. ¹⁸ For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” ¹⁹ So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to, ²⁰ because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled Some early manuscripts he did many things; yet he liked to listen to him.

    ²¹ Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. ²² When the daughter of Some early manuscripts When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests.

   The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.” ²³ And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”

    ²⁴ She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?”

   “The head of John the Baptist,” she answered.

    ²⁵ At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

    ²⁶ The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷ So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison, ²⁸ and brought back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother. ²⁹ On hearing of this, John’s disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

   

Psalm 72

72. Psalm 72

¹ Endow the king with your justice, O God,
   the royal son with your righteousness.
² May he judge your people in righteousness,
   your afflicted ones with justice.

    ³ May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
   the hills the fruit of righteousness.
⁴ May he defend the afflicted among the people
   and save the children of the needy;
   may he crush the oppressor.
⁵ May he endure Septuagint; Hebrew You will be feared as long as the sun,
   as long as the moon, through all generations.
⁶ May he be like rain falling on a mown field,
   like showers watering the earth.
⁷ In his days may the righteous flourish
   and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.

    ⁸ May he rule from sea to sea
   and from the River That is, the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
⁹ May the desert tribes bow before him
   and his enemies lick the dust.
¹⁰ May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores
   bring tribute to him.
May the kings of Sheba and Seba
   present him gifts.
¹¹ May all kings bow down to him
   and all nations serve him.

    ¹² For he will deliver the needy who cry out,
   the afflicted who have no one to help.
¹³ He will take pity on the weak and the needy
   and save the needy from death.
¹⁴ He will rescue them from oppression and violence,
   for precious is their blood in his sight.

    ¹⁵ Long may he live!
   May gold from Sheba be given him.
May people ever pray for him
   and bless him all day long.
¹⁶ May grain abound throughout the land;
   on the tops of the hills may it sway.
May the crops flourish like Lebanon
   and thrive Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text Lebanon, / from the city like the grass of the field.
¹⁷ May his name endure forever;
   may it continue as long as the sun.

   Then all nations will be blessed through him, Or will use his name in blessings (see Gen. 48:20)
   and they will call him blessed.

    ¹⁸ Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel,
   who alone does marvelous deeds.
¹⁹ Praise be to his glorious name forever;
   may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen.

    ²⁰ This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.