Through the Bible – Day 60

₁₅When God spoke to you from the fire, he was invisible. So be careful ₁₆not to commit the sin of worshipping idols. Don't make idols to be worshipped, whether they are shaped like men, women, ₁₇animals, birds, ₁₈reptiles, or fish. ₁₉And when you see the sun or moon or stars, don't be tempted to bow down and worship them. The LORD put them there for all the other nations to worship. ₂₀But you are the LORD's people, because he led you through fiery trials and rescued you from Egypt.

₂₁The LORD was angry with me because of what you said, and he told me that he would not let me cross the River Jordan into the good land that he is giving you. ₂₂So I must stay here and die on this side of the Jordan, but you will cross the river and take the land.

₂₃Always remember the agreement that the LORD your God made with you, and don't make an idol in any shape or form. ₂₄The LORD will be angry if you worship other gods, and he can be like a fire destroying everything in its path.

_25-26Soon you will cross the River Jordan and settle down in the land. Then in the years to come, you will have children, and they will give you grandchildren. After many years, you might lose your sense of right and wrong and make idols, even though the LORD your God hates them. So I am giving you fair warning today, and I call the earth and the sky as witnesses. If you ever make idols, the LORD will be angry, and you won't have long to live, because the LORD will let you be wiped out. ₂₇Only a few of you will survive, and the LORD will force you to leave the land and will scatter you among the nations. ₂₈There you will have to worship gods made of wood and stone, and these are nothing but idols that can't see or hear or eat or smell.

_29-30In all your troubles, you may finally decide that you want to worship only the LORD. And if you turn back to him and obey him completely, he will again be your God. ₃₁The LORD your God will have mercy—he won't destroy you or desert you. The LORD will remember his promise, and he will keep the agreement he made with your ancestors.

_32-34When the LORD your God brought you out of Egypt, you saw how he fought for you and showed his great power by performing terrifying miracles. You became his people, and at Mount Sinai you heard him talking to you out of fiery flames. And yet you are still alive! Has anything like this ever happened since the time God created humans? No matter where you go or who you ask, you will get the same answer. No one has ever heard of another god even trying to do such things as the LORD your God has done for you.

_35-36The LORD wants you to know he is the only true God, and he wants you to obey him. That's why he let you see his mighty miracles and his fierce fire on earth, and why you heard his voice from that fire and from the sky.

₃₇The LORD loved your ancestors and decided that you would be his people. So the LORD used his great power to bring you out of Egypt. ₃₈Now you face other nations more powerful than you are, but the LORD has already started forcing them out of their land and giving it to you.

₃₉So remember that the LORD is the only true God, whether in the sky above or on the earth below. ₄₀Today I am explaining his laws and teachings. And if you always obey them, you and your descendants will live long and be successful in the land the LORD is giving you.

_41-43Moses said, “People of Israel, you must set aside the following three towns east of the River Jordan as Safe Towns: Bezer in the desert highlands belonging to the Reuben tribe; Ramoth in Gilead, belonging to the Gad tribe; and Golan in Bashan, belonging to the Manasseh tribe. If you kill a neighbour without meaning to, and if you had not been angry with that person, you can run to one of these towns and find safety.”

_44-46The Israelites had come from Egypt and were camped east of the River Jordan near Beth-Peor, when Moses gave these laws and teachings. The land around their camp had once belonged to King Sihon of Heshbon. But Moses and the Israelites defeated him ₄₇and King Og of Bashan, and took their lands. These two Amorite kings had ruled the territory east of the River Jordan ₄₈from the town of Aroer on the edge of the gorge of the River Arnon, north to Mount Hermon. ₄₉Their land included the eastern side of the Jordan valley, as far south as the Dead Sea below the slopes of Mount Pisgah.

₁Moses called together the people of Israel and said:

Today I am telling you the laws and teachings that you must follow, so listen carefully. ₂The LORD our God made an agreement with our nation at Mount Sinai. ₃That agreement wasn't only with our ancestors but with us, who are here today. ₄The LORD himself spoke to you out of the fire, ₅but you were afraid of the fire and refused to go up the mountain. So I spoke with the LORD for you, then I told you that he had said:

₂₂When we were gathered on the mountain, the LORD spoke to us in a loud voice from the dark fiery cloud. The LORD gave us these commands, and only these. Then he wrote them on two flat stones and gave them to me.

₂₃When fire blazed from the mountain, and you heard the voice coming from the darkness, your tribal leaders came to me ₂₄and said:

₂₈The LORD heard you and said:

₃₂Israel, you must carefully obey the LORD's commands. ₃₃Follow them, because they make a path that will lead to a long successful life in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

₃₀After the apostles returned to Jesus, they told him everything they had done and taught. ₃₁But so many people were coming and going that Jesus and the apostles did not even have a chance to eat. Then Jesus said, “Let's go to a place where we can be alone and get some rest.” ₃₂They left in a boat for a place where they could be alone. ₃₃But many people saw them leave and worked out where they were going. So people from every town ran on ahead and got there first.

₃₄When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw the large crowd that was like sheep without a shepherd. He felt sorry for the people and started teaching them many things.

₃₅That evening the disciples came to Jesus and said, “This place is like a desert, and it is already late. ₃₆Let the crowds leave, so they can go to the farms and villages near here and buy something to eat.”

₃₇Jesus replied, “You give them something to eat.”

But they asked him, “Don't you know that it would take almost a year's wages to buy all these people something to eat?”

₃₈Then Jesus said, “How much bread do you have? Go and see!”

They found out and answered, “We have five small loaves of bread and two fish.” ₃₉Jesus told his disciples to make the people sit down on the green grass. ₄₀They sat down in groups of a hundred and groups of fifty.

₄₁Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish. He looked up towards heaven and blessed the food. Then he broke the bread and handed it to his disciples to give to the people. He also divided the two fish, so that everyone could have some.

₄₂After everyone had eaten all they wanted, ₄₃Jesus' disciples picked up twelve large baskets of leftover bread and fish.

₄₄There were five thousand men who ate the food.

₄₅Straight away, Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and start back across to Bethsaida. But he stayed until he had sent the crowds away. ₄₆Then he said goodbye to them and went up on the side of a mountain to pray.

₄₇Later that evening he was still there by himself, and the boat was somewhere in the middle of the lake. ₄₈He could see that the disciples were struggling hard, because they were rowing against the wind. Not long before morning, Jesus came towards them. He was walking on the water and was about to pass the boat.

₄₉When the disciples saw Jesus walking on the water, they thought he was a ghost, and they started screaming. ₅₀All of them saw him and were terrified. But at that same time he said, “Don't worry! I am Jesus. Don't be afraid.” ₅₁He then got into the boat with them, and the wind died down. The disciples were completely confused. ₅₂Their minds were closed, and they could not understand the true meaning of the loaves of bread.