Then someone will ask him, 'What are these wounds on your chest?' and he will answer, 'Some that I received in the house of my friends.'

And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.

A day of the Lord is about to come when your possessions will be divided as plunder in your midst.

For I will get all the nations together to make war against Jerusalem; and the town will be overcome, and the goods taken from the houses, and the women taken by force: and half the town will go away as prisoners, and the rest of the people will not be cut off from the town.

Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

And it will be unbroken day, such as the Lord has knowledge of, without change of day and night, and even at nightfall it will be light.

And in that day living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea; it will be in summer as well as in winter.

The Lord will then be king over all the earth. In that day the Lord will be seen as one with a single name.

All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses.

And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.

And it shall come to pass, that, as for every one that is left out of all the nations that came against Jerusalem, that they shall come up, from year to year, to bow down to the king, Yahweh of hosts, and to celebrate the festival of booths.

In that day there is on bells of the horse, 'Holy to Jehovah,' And the pots in the house of Jehovah Have been as bowls before the altar.

“I have loved you,” says the Lord.

But you ask: “How have You loved us?”

“Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” This is the Lord’s declaration. “Even so, I loved Jacob,

Edom says, "Though we are devastated, we will once again build the ruined places." So the Lord who rules over all responds, "They indeed may build, but I will overthrow. They will be known as the land of evil, the people with whom the Lord is permanently displeased.

“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. But if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is your fear of Me? says Yahweh of Hosts to you priests, who despise My name.”

Yet you ask: “How have we despised Your name?”

You are presenting defiled food upon My altar. But you say, ‘How have we defiled You?’ By thinking that the table of the Lord is contemptible and may be despised.

And when ye bring near the blind as a sacrifice, saying - No harm! or when ye bring near the lame or the sick saying - No harm! Offer it, I pray you, unto thy pasha, Will he accept thee? or lift up thy countenance? saith Yahweh of hosts.

“But now will you not entreat God’s favor, that He may be gracious to us? With such an offering from your hand [as an imperfect animal for sacrifice], will He show favor to any of you?” says the Lord of hosts.

Who is there, even among you, that will shut the doors, so as not to set light to mine altar, for nothing? I can take no pleasure in you, saith Yahweh of hosts, and, your present, can I not accept at your hand.

And ye are polluting it in your saying, 'The table of Jehovah -- it is polluted, As to its fruit -- despicable is its food.'

You also say, ‘How tiresome this is!’ And you disdainfully sniff at it,” says the Lord of hosts, “and you bring what was taken by robbery, and the lame or the sick [animals]; this you bring as an offering! Should I receive it with pleasure from your hand?” says the Lord.

So shall ye know that I sent unto you this charge, - as being my covenant with Levi, saith Yahweh of hosts.

My covenant, was with him, Life and Well-being, so I gave them to him - I as One to be revered - and he did revere me, - and, before my Name, dismayed, was he.

But as for you, you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by the instruction; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi,” says the Lord of hosts.

Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.

“Do we not all have one father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously each against his brother so as to profane the covenant of our fathers?

Judah has been acting falsely, and a disgusting thing has been done in Jerusalem; for Judah has made unclean the holy place of the Lord which is dear to him, and has taken as his wife the daughter of a strange god.

May the Lord cut off from the community of Jacob every last person who does this, as well as the person who presents improper offerings to the Lord who rules over all!

And this you do {as well}: [you] cover the altar of Yahweh [with] tears, [with] weeping and [with] groaning, because he {no longer regards the offering} or accepts [it] [with] favor from your hand.

But you say, “Why [does He reject it]?” Because the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously. Yet she is your marriage companion and the wife of your covenant [made by your vows].

You have wearied Yahweh with your words, but you ask, "With what have we wearied [him]?" [You have done so] {when you say}, "Everyone who does evil [is] good in the {sight} of Yahweh, and in them he delights," or "Where [is] the God of justice?"

And who is bearing the day of his coming? And who is standing in his appearing? For he is as fire of a refiner, And as soap of a fuller.

And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.

“Since the days of your fathers, you have turned from My statutes; you have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Hosts.

But you ask: “How can we return?”

“Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me!”

You ask: “How do we rob You?”

“By not making the payments of the tenth and the contributions.

“Your words against Me are harsh,” says the Lord.

Yet you ask: “What have we spoken against You?”

You have said, ‘It is useless to serve God. What profit is it if we keep His ordinances, and walk around like mourners before the Lord of hosts?

Then, they who revered Yahweh, conversed, one with another, - and Yahweh hearkened, and heard, and there was written a book of remembrance before him, for them who revered Yahweh, and for such as thought of his Name.

And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.

For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;

And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

As Joseph her husband was a just man but unwilling to disgrace her, he resolved to divorce her secretly;

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

but he kept her a virgin until she had given birth to a Son [her firstborn child]; and he named Him Jesus (The Lord is salvation).

When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed, as was all of Jerusalem.

And he got together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, questioning them as to where the birth-place of the Christ would be.

And they told him. "At Bethlehem in Judea, as it is written in the prophet.

and sending them to Bethlehem, said - Go search out accurately concerning the child, - and, as soon as ye find it, bring report unto me, that, I also, may come and bow myself down to it.

As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down and worshiped him. They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Then, as they had been divinely warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by a different road.

Now when they had gone an angel from the Lord appeared to Joseph in a [supernatural] dream, saying, "Get up and take the young child and His mother and hurry to Egypt. Stay there for as long as I tell you to, for Herod will be looking for the young child in order to kill Him."

he stayed there until Herod's death, so as to fulfill what the Lord had said by the prophet, "Out of Egypt I called my Son."

Then Herod, perceiving that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, as many as were two years old and under according to the time which he had diligently searched out of the wise men.

But, hearing that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as King of Judea, he was afraid to go back there; and having been warned in a dream, he went into the part of the country called Galilee.

Then people from Jerusalem, as well as all Judea and all the region around the Jordan, were going out to him,

and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River [as they] confessed their sins.

And do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham [as] father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones!

I am baptizing you with water as evidence of repentance, but the one who is coming after me is stronger than I am, and I am not worthy to carry his sandals. It is he who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

And Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway from the water: and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him;

and saith unto Him, If thou art the Son of God, cast thyself down; for it is written, He will give his angels charge concerning thee, and they shall bear thee up as in their hands, least at any time thou shouldst dash thy foot against a stone:

As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He noticed two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.

And He said to them, “Follow Me [as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk], and I will make you fishers of men.”

So they immediately left their nets and followed Him. As He went further on,

[As] Jesus went from there He saw two [other] brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in the boat with their father Zebedee, repairing their nets. He called them,

Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him [becoming His disciples, believing and trusting in Him and following His example].

Then He went all over Galilee, as He continued teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and curing any disease or malady among the people.

And he began to teach them as follows:

"Blessed are the meek, for they as heirs shall obtain possession of the earth.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for it is they who will be recognized as sons of God.

For I tell you, as long as heaven and earth endure, not one dotting of an i or crossing of a t will be dropped from the Law until it is all observed.

Whoever therefore breaks one of these least commandments and teaches others to break them, will be called the least in the Kingdom of the Heavens; but whoever practises them and teaches them, he will be acknowledged as great in the Kingdom of the Heavens.

[In another case], come to terms with the person suing you as soon as possible, [even] on your way [to court], so he does not take you before the judge, and then the judge turn you over to the officer and you be sent to prison.

but I say to you that everyone who [so much as] looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

If your right eye makes you stumble and leads you to sin, tear it out and throw it away [that is, remove yourself from the source of temptation]; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

If your right hand makes you stumble and leads you to sin, cut it off and throw it away [that is, remove yourself from the source of temptation]; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

But I say to you that everyone who puts away his wife for any other cause but the loss of her virtue, makes her false to her husband; and whoever takes her as his wife after she is put away, is no true husband to her.

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not make false vows, but you shall fulfill your vows to the Lord [as a religious duty].’

But I tell you not to resist a wicked man, but if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other to him as well.

As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt, let him have your coat as well.

that so you may become true sons of your Father in Heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the wicked as well as the good, and sends rain upon those who do right and those who do wrong.

For if you love only those who love you, what reward do you get for that? do not the very taxgatherers do as much?

and if you only salute your friends, what is special about that? do not the very pagans do as much?

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

so as to keep your alms secret; then your Father who sees what is secret will reward you openly.

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

Therefore you pray in this way: "Our Father who is in heaven, may your name be treated as holy.

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

“For if you forgive people their wrongdoing, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well.

Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

so that you will not be seen by people as fasting, but to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.