Thematic Bible


Thematic Bible



Moreover, you shall choose able men from all the people -- "God-fearing men of truth who hate unjust gain -- "and place them over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, to be their rulers. And let them judge the people at all times; every great matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they shall judge. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. If you will do this, and God so commands you, you will be able to endure [the strain], and all these people also will go to their [tents] in peace. read more.
So Moses listened to and heeded the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said. Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. And they judged the people at all times; the hard cases they brought to Moses, but every small matter they decided themselves.

So I took the heads of your tribes, wise, experienced, and respected men, and made them heads over you, commanders of thousands, and hundreds, and fifties, and tens, and officers according to your tribes. And I charged your judges at that time: Hear the cases between your brethren and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the stranger or sojourner who is with him. You shall not be partial in judgment; but you shall hear the small as well as the great. You shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God's. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment -- "between one kind of bloodshed and another, between one legality and another, between one kind of assault and another, matters of controversy within your towns -- "then arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them and they shall make clear to you the decision. And you shall do according to the decision which they declare to you from that place which the Lord chooses; and you shall be watchful to do according to all that they tell you; read more.
According to the decision of the law which they shall teach you and the judgment which they shall announce to you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict they give you, either to the right hand or the left. The man who does presumptuously and will not listen to the priest who stands to minister there before the Lord your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel. And all the people shall hear and [reverently] fear, and not act presumptuously again.

He appointed judges throughout all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city, And said to the judges, Be careful what you do, for you judge not for man but for the Lord, and He is with you in the matter of judgment. So now let the reverence and fear of the Lord be upon you; take heed what you do, for there is no injustice with the Lord our God, or partiality or taking of bribes. read more.
Also in Jerusalem, Jehoshaphat set certain Levites, priests, and heads of families of Israel to give judgment for the Lord and decide controversies. When they [of the commission] returned to Jerusalem, The king charged them, Do this in the fear of the Lord, faithfully, with integrity and a blameless heart. Whenever any controversy shall come to you from your brethren who dwell in their cities, between blood and blood, between law and commandment, statutes and judgments, you shall warn and instruct them that they may not be guilty before the Lord; otherwise wrath will come upon you and your brethren. Do this and you will not be guilty.

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment -- "between one kind of bloodshed and another, between one legality and another, between one kind of assault and another, matters of controversy within your towns -- "then arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them and they shall make clear to you the decision. And you shall do according to the decision which they declare to you from that place which the Lord chooses; and you shall be watchful to do according to all that they tell you; read more.
According to the decision of the law which they shall teach you and the judgment which they shall announce to you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict they give you, either to the right hand or the left. The man who does presumptuously and will not listen to the priest who stands to minister there before the Lord your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel. And all the people shall hear and [reverently] fear, and not act presumptuously again.

“Now gather yourself in troops, O daughter of troops;
A state of siege has been placed against us.
They shall strike the ruler of Israel on the cheek with a rod (scepter).
Verse ConceptsCheeksRulersNames And Titles For ChristChrist, Names ForSmitten CheeksMustering TroopsStriking People With A StaffNations Attacking IsraelMessianic Prophecies

Then Paul, gazing earnestly at the council (Sanhedrin), said, Brethren, I have lived before God, doing my duty with a perfectly good conscience until this very day [ as a citizen, a true and loyal Jew]. At this the high priest Ananias ordered those who stood near him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, God is about to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit as a judge to try me in accordance with the Law, and yet in defiance of the Law you order me to be struck? read more.
Those who stood near exclaimed, Do you rail at and insult the high priest of God? And Paul said, I was not conscious, brethren, that he was a high priest; for the Scripture says, You shall not speak ill of a ruler of your people.

then the man shall bring his wife to the priest, and he shall bring as an offering for her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it nor put frankincense on it [the symbols of favor and joy], because it is a grain offering of jealousy, a memorial grain offering, a reminder of [the consequences of] wickedness. Verse ConceptsGrain OfferingOilAnimal Sacrifices, Meal OfferingOil On SacrificesEphah [Ten Omers]Regulations For Cereal OfferingsThose Jealous For People

Those who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) had gathered [illegally] together. Verse ConceptsArrestingOld Age, Attitudes ToAssembling LeadersRivers

Jesus said to Judas, “Friend, do what you came for.” Then they came and seized Jesus and arrested Him. Verse ConceptsArresting ChristFriends FailingMan's Work FinishedFriendship Kjv

When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell off the seat backwards by the side of the [city] gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was old and heavy. He had judged Israel for forty years. Verse ConceptsLeaders, SpiritualThe Number Forty40 To 50 YearsBackwardsPeople Tumblinglosing a loved oneDeath Of A Family MemberDeath Of A FatherLeadership QualitiesFalling Backwards

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment -- "between one kind of bloodshed and another, between one legality and another, between one kind of assault and another, matters of controversy within your towns -- "then arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them and they shall make clear to you the decision. And you shall do according to the decision which they declare to you from that place which the Lord chooses; and you shall be watchful to do according to all that they tell you; read more.
According to the decision of the law which they shall teach you and the judgment which they shall announce to you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict they give you, either to the right hand or the left. The man who does presumptuously and will not listen to the priest who stands to minister there before the Lord your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel. And all the people shall hear and [reverently] fear, and not act presumptuously again.

Then Paul, gazing earnestly at the council (Sanhedrin), said, Brethren, I have lived before God, doing my duty with a perfectly good conscience until this very day [ as a citizen, a true and loyal Jew]. At this the high priest Ananias ordered those who stood near him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, God is about to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit as a judge to try me in accordance with the Law, and yet in defiance of the Law you order me to be struck? read more.
Those who stood near exclaimed, Do you rail at and insult the high priest of God? And Paul said, I was not conscious, brethren, that he was a high priest; for the Scripture says, You shall not speak ill of a ruler of your people.

Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the courtyard of the [elegant home of the Jewish] high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, Verse ConceptsScribesChrist Would Be KilledThe Elderlypriests

And when they heard this, they accordingly went into the temple about daybreak and began to teach. Now the high priest and his supporters who were with him arrived and called together the council (Sanhedrin), even all the senate of the sons of Israel, and they sent to the prison to have [the apostles] brought. But when the attendants arrived there, they failed to find them in the jail; so they came back and reported, We found the prison quite safely locked up and the guards were on duty outside the doors, but when we opened [it], we found no one on the inside. read more.
Now when the military leader of the temple area and the chief priests heard these facts, they were much perplexed and thoroughly at a loss about them, wondering into what this might grow. But some man came and reported to them, saying, Listen! The men whom you put in jail are standing [right here] in the temple and teaching the people! Then the military leader went with the attendants and brought [the prisoners], but without violence, for they dreaded the people lest they be stoned by them. So they brought them and set them before the council (Sanhedrin). And the high priest examined them by questioning, Saying, We definitely commanded and strictly charged you not to teach in or about this Name; yet here you have flooded Jerusalem with your doctrine and you intend to bring this Man's blood upon us.

The high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Have You no answer to give? What is it that these men are testifying against You?” Verse ConceptsOthers Not AnsweringPeople Getting UpRivers


Yet let no one find fault, nor let any rebuke [others];
For your people are like those who contend with the priest.
Verse ConceptsAvoid Quarrelsstrivingaccusationspriests

Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall approach, for the Lord your God has chosen them to serve Him and to bless in the Name (Presence) of the Lord; and every dispute and every assault (violent crime) shall be settled by them. Verse Conceptselection, responsibilities ofBenedictionsPriests, Function In Ot TimesPeople Involved In JudgementPeople Blessing

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment -- "between one kind of bloodshed and another, between one legality and another, between one kind of assault and another, matters of controversy within your towns -- "then arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them and they shall make clear to you the decision. And you shall do according to the decision which they declare to you from that place which the Lord chooses; and you shall be watchful to do according to all that they tell you; read more.
According to the decision of the law which they shall teach you and the judgment which they shall announce to you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict they give you, either to the right hand or the left. The man who does presumptuously and will not listen to the priest who stands to minister there before the Lord your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel. And all the people shall hear and [reverently] fear, and not act presumptuously again.

In Jerusalem also Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites, priests, and heads of the fathers’ households of Israel to render the judgment of the Lord and to judge disputes among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Verse ConceptsPriests, Function In Ot Times

The priests shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the common or profane, and cause them to distinguish between the unclean and the clean. And in a controversy they shall act as judges, and they shall judge according to My judgments; and they shall keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed feasts, and they shall keep My Sabbaths holy.

And if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he is jealous and suspicious of his wife who has defiled herself -- "or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he is jealous and suspicious of his wife though she has not defiled herself -- " Then shall the man bring his wife to the priest, and he shall bring the offering required of her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal; but he shall pour no oil upon it nor put frankincense on it [symbols of favor and joy], for it is a cereal offering of jealousy and suspicion, a memorial offering bringing iniquity to remembrance. And the priest shall bring her near and set her before the Lord. read more.
And the priest shall take holy water [probably from the sacred laver] in an earthen vessel and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it in the water. And the priest shall set the woman before the Lord, and let the hair of the woman's head hang loose, and put the meal offering of remembrance in her hands, which is the jealousy and suspicion offering. And the priest shall have in his hand the water of bitterness that brings the curse. Then the priest shall make her take an oath, and say to the woman, If no man has lain with you and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness with another instead of your husband, then be free from any effect of this water of bitterness which brings the curse. But if you have gone astray and you are defiled, some man having lain with you beside your husband, Then the priest shall make the woman take the oath of the curse, and say to the woman, The Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people when the Lord makes your thigh fall away and your body swell. May this water that brings the curse go into your bowels and make your body swell and your thigh fall away. And the woman shall say, So let it be, so let it be. The priest shall then write these curses in a book and shall wash them off into the water of bitterness; And he shall cause the woman to drink the water of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter into her [to try her] bitterly. Then the priest shall take the cereal offering of jealousy and suspicion out of the woman's hand and shall wave the offering before the Lord and offer it upon the altar. And the priest shall take a handful of the cereal offering as the memorial portion of it and burn it on the altar, and afterward shall cause the woman to drink the water. And when he has made her drink the water, then if she is defiled and has committed a trespass against her husband, the curse water which she drank shall be bitterness and cause her body to swell and her thigh to fall away, and the woman shall be a curse among her people. But if the woman is not defiled and is clean, then she shall be free [from the curse] and be able to have children. This is the law of jealousy and suspicion when a wife goes aside to another instead of her husband and is defiled, Or when the spirit of jealousy and suspicion comes upon a man and he is jealous and suspicious of his wife; then shall he set the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute on her all this law. The [husband] shall be free from iniquity and guilt, and that woman [if guilty] shall bear her iniquity.

then both parties to the controversy shall stand before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who will be in office at that time. Verse ConceptsPriests, Function In Ot TimesStanding

Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall approach, for the Lord your God has chosen them to serve Him and to bless in the Name (Presence) of the Lord; and every dispute and every assault (violent crime) shall be settled by them. Verse Conceptselection, responsibilities ofBenedictionsPriests, Function In Ot TimesPeople Involved In JudgementPeople Blessing

If there arises a matter too hard for you in judgment -- "between one kind of bloodshed and another, between one legality and another, between one kind of assault and another, matters of controversy within your towns -- "then arise and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them and they shall make clear to you the decision. And you shall do according to the decision which they declare to you from that place which the Lord chooses; and you shall be watchful to do according to all that they tell you; read more.
According to the decision of the law which they shall teach you and the judgment which they shall announce to you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside from the verdict they give you, either to the right hand or the left. The man who does presumptuously and will not listen to the priest who stands to minister there before the Lord your God or to the judge, that man shall die; so you shall purge the evil from Israel. And all the people shall hear and [reverently] fear, and not act presumptuously again.


A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,
And a rod for the backs of fools [who refuse to learn].
Verse ConceptsFolly, Effects OfBridlesBackBeatingsWhipsWhippingBinding As Animals

Then all the men of his city shall stone him to death; so you shall remove the evil from among you, and all Israel will hear of it and be afraid. Verse Conceptsevil, warnings againstBanishmentPunishment, Legal Aspects OfSelf WillChildren, UngratefulFear Is DueInstructions About Stoning



When the scoffer is punished, the naive [observes the lesson and] becomes wise;
But when the wise and teachable person is instructed, he receives knowledge.
Verse ConceptsFolly, Effects OfMockeryScornersAcquiring KnowledgeJudicial PunishmentMan's Wisdommockers

But if you will not hearken to Me and will not do all these commandments, And if you spurn and despise My statutes, and if your soul despises and rejects My ordinances, so that you will not do all My commandments, but break My covenant, I will do this: I will appoint over you [sudden] terror (trembling, trouble), even consumption and fever that consume and waste the eyes and make the [physical] life pine away. You shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. read more.
I [the Lord] will set My face against you and you shall be defeated and slain before your enemies; they who hate you shall rule over you; you shall flee when no one pursues you. And if in spite of all this you still will not listen and be obedient to Me, then I will chastise and discipline you seven times more for your sins. And I will break and humble your pride in your power, and I will make your heavens as iron [yielding no answer, no blessing, no rain] and your earth [as sterile] as brass. And your strength shall be spent in vain, for your land shall not yield its increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruit. If you walk contrary to Me and will not heed Me, I will bring seven times more plagues upon you, according to your sins. I will loose the wild beasts of the field among you, which shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few so that your roads shall be deserted and desolate. If by these means you are not turned to Me but determine to walk contrary to Me, I also will walk contrary to you, and I will smite you seven times for your sins. And I will bring a sword upon you that shall execute the vengeance [for the breaking] of My covenant; and you shall be gathered together within your cities, and I will send the pestilence among you, and you shall be delivered into the hands of the enemy. When I break your staff of bread and cut off your supply of food, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall ration your bread and deliver it again by weight; and you shall eat, and not be satisfied. And if in spite of all this you will not listen and give heed to Me but walk contrary to Me, Then I will walk contrary to you in wrath, and I also will chastise you seven times for your sins. You shall eat the flesh of your sons and of your daughters. And I will destroy your high places [devoted to idolatrous worship], and cut down your sun-images, and throw your dead bodies upon the [wrecked] bodies of your idols, and My soul shall abhor you [with deep and unutterable loathing]. I will lay your cities waste, bring your sanctuaries to desolation, and I will not smell the fragrance of your sweet and soothing odors [of offerings made by fire]. And I will bring the land into desolation, and your enemies who dwell in it shall be astonished at it. I will scatter you among the nations and draw out [your enemies'] sword after you; and your land shall be desolate and your cities a waste. Then shall the land [of Israel have the opportunity to] enjoy its sabbaths as long as it lies desolate and you are in your enemies' land; then shall the land rest, to enjoy and receive payments for its sabbaths [divinely ordained for it]. As long as it lies desolate and waste, it shall have rest, the rest it did not have in your sabbaths when you dwelt upon it. As for those who are left of you, I will send dejection (lack of courage, a faintness) into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; the sound of a driven leaf shall put them to hasty and tumultuous flight, and they shall flee as if from the sword, and fall when no one pursues them. They shall stumble over one another as if to escape a sword when no one pursues them; and you shall have no power to stand before your enemies. You shall perish among the nations; the land of your enemies shall eat you up. And those of you who are left shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemies' lands; also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away like them.


Strike a scoffer [for refusing to learn], and the naive may [be warned and] become prudent;
Reprimand one who has understanding and a teachable spirit, and he will gain knowledge and insight.
Verse ConceptsFolly, Effects OfFloggingMockeryRebukeScornersAdvice On Beating PeopleReproving Peoplemockers

You shall have no other gods before or besides Me. You shall not make yourself any graven image [to worship it] or any likeness of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; You shall not bow down yourself to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me,

And you shall stone him to death with stones, because he has tried to draw you away from the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. And all Israel shall hear and [reverently] fear, and shall never again do any such wickedness as this among you.

Then all the people will hear and be afraid, and will not act presumptuously again. Verse ConceptsFear Is Due

Those who remain will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such an evil thing among you. Verse ConceptsFear Is Due

Then all the people will hear and be afraid, and will not act presumptuously again. Verse ConceptsFear Is Due

Those who remain will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such an evil thing among you. Verse ConceptsFear Is Due

Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such a wicked thing among you. Verse ConceptsFear Will Come