Sow your seed in the morning, and do not rest your hands in the evening, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or if both will equally prosper.

He who watches the wind will fail to sow, and he who observes the clouds will fail to reap.

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. Such large crowds gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat down, while all the people stood on the shore. And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed. And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. . . .

You are to keep My statutes. You shall not crossbreed two different kinds of livestock; you shall not sow your fields with two kinds of seed; and you shall not wear clothing made of two kinds of material.

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. Such large crowds gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat down, while all the people stood on the shore. And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed. And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. . . .

to console the mourners in Zion—to give them a crown of beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and a garment of praise for a spirit of despair. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. . . .

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’”

When you sit down to dine with a ruler, consider carefully what is set before you, and put a knife to your throat if you possess a great appetite. Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive. Do not wear yourself out to get rich; be wise enough to restrain yourself. When you glance at wealth, it disappears, for it makes wings for itself and flies like an eagle to the sky. . . .

Crowds also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and all of them were healed.

God exalted Him to His right hand as Prince and Savior, in order to grant repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace and peace to you from God our Father. We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all the saints— the faith and love proceeding from the hope stored up for you in heaven, of which you have already heard in the word of truth, the gospel . . .

You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

For six days work may be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a Sabbath of complete rest to the LORD. Whoever does any work on that day must be put to death.

Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; break forth in song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people, and He will have compassion on His afflicted ones.

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him.” Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. . . .

The entrails and legs must be washed with water, and the priest shall burn all of it on the altar as a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

But the following among all the teeming life and creatures in the water are detestable to you: everything in the seas or streams that does not have fins and scales.

The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.

When a woman has a discharge consisting of blood from her body, she will be unclean due to her menstruation for seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean until evening. Anything on which she lies or sits during her menstruation will be unclean, and anyone who touches her bed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening. Whoever touches any furniture on which she was sitting must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening. And whether it is a bed or furniture on which she was sitting, whoever touches it will be unclean until evening. . . .

You must not lie with a man as with a woman; that is an abomination.

You must not cut off the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.

If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is depraved. Both he and they must be burned in the fire, so that there will be no depravity among you.

The woman he marries must be a virgin.

or who is a hunchback or dwarf, or who has an eye defect, a festering rash, scabs, or a crushed testicle.

Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse. So they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) They placed him in custody until the will of the LORD should be made clear to them. Then the LORD said to Moses, “Take the blasphemer outside the camp, and have all who heard him lay their hands on his head; then have the whole assembly stone him. . . .

Your menservants and maidservants shall come from the nations around you, from whom you may purchase them.

Jesus also said to His disciples, “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. So he called him in to ask, ‘What is this I hear about you? Turn in an account of your management, for you cannot be manager any longer.’ The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, now that my master is taking away my position? I am too weak to dig and too ashamed to beg. I know what I will do, so that after my removal from management, people will welcome me into their homes.’ And he called in each one of his master’s debtors. ‘How much do you owe my master?’ he asked the first. . . .

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

I testify to everyone who hears the words of prophecy in this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book.

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, and set apart for the gospel of God— the gospel He promised beforehand through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, regarding His Son, who was a descendant of David according to the flesh, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. Through Him and on behalf of His name, we received grace and apostleship to call all those among the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. . . .

Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a kinsman-redeemer. May his name become famous in Israel.