and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,

Then his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them.

"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'

But I say to you, do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne;

And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black.

Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A sower went out to sow his seed.

"Hear then the parable of the sower:

And the servants of the householder came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then has it weeds?'

Then he went to the second and said the same thing. And he answered, 'I go, sir,' but he did not go.

Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, "I do not know the man." And immediately the rooster crowed.

and said, "Sir, we remember how that deceiver said, while he was still alive, 'After three days I will rise again.'

"Listen! A sower went out to sow.

The sower sows the word.

But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, "I do not know this man of whom you speak."

the oath which he swore to our father Abraham:

This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.

"A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.

And he answered him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.

And the servant said, 'Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.'

When he rose from prayer, and came to his disciples, he found them sleeping from sorrow.

The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?

The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."

The woman said to him, "Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet.

And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.

The official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me."

He answered, "Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"

Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."

But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.

Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.

When a woman is in labor she has sorrow, because her hour has come; but as soon as she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a child has been born into the world.

So you have sorrow now, but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Now we are sure that you know all things, and have no need for anyone to question you. By this we believe that you came from God."

Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away."

When Peter came to himself, he said, "Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting."

As for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to decay, he spoke in this way: 'I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.'

and they sent the following letter with them: "The apostles and the brethren who are elders, to the brethren in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia who are from the Gentiles, greetings.

And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

After this Paul stayed many days longer, and then took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. In Cenchrea he had his hair cut, for he had taken a vow.

There he spent three months, and when a plot was made against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia.

When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left we sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre; for there the ship was to unload its cargo.

and if you are sure that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness,

And he did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb.

that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.

For this is what the promise said: "About this time I will return and Sarah shall have a son."

Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a double benefit.

so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.

now I rejoice, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance; for you became sorrowful as God intended, so that you suffered no loss through us.

For godly sorrow produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly sorrow produces death.

For behold what this very thing, godly sorrow, has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what zeal, what readiness to see justice done! At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.

Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will multiply the harvest of your righteousness.

Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.

Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.

For of this you can be sure, that no immoral, impure, or covetous personsuch a man is an idolaterhas any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.

For I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure is in you as well.

he must hold firm to the sure word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to refute those who contradict it.

As I swore in my wrath, 'They shall never enter my rest.'"

And to whom did he swear that they would never enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient?

For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, "As I swore in my wrath, 'They shall never enter my rest,'" although his works were finished from the foundation of the world.

For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself,

Men swear by one greater than themselves, and in all their disputes the oath is final for confirmation.

We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner sanctuary behind the curtain,

By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, because she considered him faithful who had promised.

Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a clear conscience, desiring to live honorably in all things.

But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath, but let your yes be yes and your no be no, that you may not fall under condemnation.

just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children if you do what is right and are not frightened by any fear.

Therefore, brethren, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall;

And we have the prophetic word made more sure, and you will do well to pay attention to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

I said to him, "Sir, you know." And he said to me, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

and swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created heaven and the things in it, the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, that there will be no more delay,