One Year Bible.

Balaam’s Third Oracle

¹And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not seek omens as on previous occasions, but he turned his face toward the wilderness. ²When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon him, ³and he lifted up an oracle, saying:

“This is the prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,

the prophecy of a man whose eyes are open,

⁴the prophecy of one who hears the words of God,

who sees a vision from the Almighty,

who bows down with eyes wide open:

⁵How lovely are your tents, O Jacob,

your dwellings, O Israel!

⁶They spread out like palm groves,

like gardens beside a stream,

like aloes the LORD has planted,

like cedars beside the waters.

⁷Water will flow from his buckets,

and his seed will have abundant water.

His king will be greater than Agag,

and his kingdom will be exalted.

⁸God brought him out of Egypt

with strength like a wild ox,

to devour hostile nations and crush their bones,

to pierce them with arrows.

⁹He crouches, he lies down like a lion,

like a lioness— who dares to rouse him?

Blessed are those who bless you

and cursed are those who curse you.”

Balak Dismisses Balaam

¹⁰Then Balak’s anger burned against Balaam, and he struck his hands together and said to Balaam, “I summoned you to curse my enemies, but behold, you have persisted in blessing them these three times. ¹¹Therefore , flee at once to your home! I said I would reward you richly, but instead the LORD has denied your reward.”

¹²Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not already tell the messengers you sent me ¹³that even if Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the command of the LORD? I must speak whatever the LORD says. ¹⁴Now I am going back to my people, but come, let me warn you what this people will do to your people in the days to come.”

Balaam’s Fourth Oracle

¹⁵Then Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying,

“This is the prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,

the prophecy of a man whose eyes are open,

¹⁶the prophecy of one who hears the words of God,

who has knowledge from the Most High,

who sees a vision from the Almighty,

who bows down with eyes wide open:

¹⁷I see him, but not now;

I behold him, but not near.

A star will come forth from Jacob,

and a scepter will arise from Israel.

He will crush the skulls of Moab

and strike down all the sons of Sheth.

¹⁸Edom will become a possession,

as will Seir, his enemy;

but Israel will perform with valor.

¹⁹A ruler will come from Jacob

and destroy the survivors of the city.”

Balaam’s Final Three Oracles

²⁰Then Balaam saw Amalek and lifted up an oracle, saying:

“Amalek was first among the nations,

but his end is destruction.”

²¹Next he saw the Kenites and lifted up an oracle, saying:

“Your dwelling place is secure,

and your nest is set in a cliff.

²²Yet Kain will be destroyed

when Asshur takes you captive.”

²³Once more Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying:

“Ah, who can live

unless God has ordained it?

²⁴Ships will come from the coasts of Cyprus;

they will subdue Asshur and Eber,

but they too will perish forever.”

²⁵Then Balaam arose and returned to his homeland, and Balak also went on his way.

Moab Seduces Israel

¹While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with the daughters of Moab, ²who also invited them to the sacrifices for their gods. And the people ate and bowed down to these gods. ³So Israel joined in worshiping Baal of Peor, and the anger of the LORD burned against them.

⁴Then the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the LORD, so that His fierce anger may turn away from Israel.”

⁵So Moses told the judges of Israel, “Each of you must kill all of his men who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor.”

The Zeal of Phinehas

⁶Just then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the whole congregation of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. ⁷On seeing this, Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand, ⁸followed the Israelite into the tent, and drove the spear through both of them— through the Israelite and on through the belly of the woman.

So the plague against the Israelites was halted, ⁹but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.

¹⁰Then the LORD said to Moses, ¹¹“Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned My wrath away from the Israelites; for he was zealous for My sake among them, so that I did not consume the Israelites in My zeal. ¹²Declare, therefore, that I am granting him My covenant of peace. ¹³It will be a covenant of permanent priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites.”

¹⁴The name of the Israelite who was slain with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family. ¹⁵And the name of the slain Midianite woman was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family.

¹⁶And the LORD said to Moses, ¹⁷“Attack the Midianites and strike them dead. ¹⁸For they assailed you deceitfully when they seduced you in the matter of Peor and their sister Cozbi, the daughter of the Midianite leader, the woman who was killed on the day the plague came because of Peor.”

The Second Census of Israel

¹After the plague had ended, the LORD said to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, ²“Take a census of the whole congregation of Israel by the houses of their fathers — all those twenty years of age or older who can serve in the army of Israel.”

³So on the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho, Moses and Eleazar the priest issued the instruction, ⁴“Take a census of the men twenty years of age or older, as the LORD has commanded Moses.”

And these were the Israelites who came out of the land of Egypt:

The Tribe of Reuben

⁵Reuben was the firstborn of Israel. These were the descendants of Reuben:

The Hanochite clan from Hanoch,

the Palluite clan from Pallu,

⁶the Hezronite clan from Hezron,

and the Carmite clan from Carmi.

⁷These were the clans of Reuben, and their registration numbered 43,730.

⁸Now the son of Pallu was Eliab, ⁹and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram.

It was Dathan and Abiram, chosen by the congregation, who rebelled against Moses and Aaron with the followers of Korah who rebelled against the LORD. ¹⁰And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign. ¹¹However, the line of Korah did not die out.

The Tribe of Simeon

¹²These were the descendants of Simeon by their clans:

The Nemuelite clan from Nemuel,

the Jaminite clan from Jamin,

the Jachinite clan from Jachin,

¹³the Zerahite clan from Zerah,

and the Shaulite clan from Shaul.

¹⁴These were the clans of Simeon, and there were 22,200 men.

The Tribe of Gad

¹⁵These were the descendants of Gad by their clans:

The Zephonite clan from Zephon,

the Haggite clan from Haggi,

the Shunite clan from Shuni,

¹⁶the Oznite clan from Ozni,

the Erite clan from Eri,

¹⁷the Arodite clan from Arod,

and the Arelite clan from Areli.

¹⁸These were the clans of Gad, and their registration numbered . . . 40,500.

The Tribe of Judah

¹⁹The sons of Judah were Er and Onan, but they died in the land of Canaan. ²⁰These were the descendants of Judah by their clans:

The Shelanite clan from Shelah,

the Perezite clan from Perez,

and the Zerahite clan from Zerah.

²¹And these were the descendants of Perez:

the Hezronite clan from Hezron

and the Hamulite clan from Hamul.

²²These were the clans of Judah, and their registration numbered . . . 76,500.

The Tribe of Issachar

²³These were the descendants of Issachar by their clans:

The Tolaite clan from Tola,

the Punite clan from Puvah,

²⁴the Jashubite clan from Jashub,

and the Shimronite clan from Shimron.

²⁵These were the clans of Issachar, and their registration numbered . . . 64,300.

The Tribe of Zebulun

²⁶These were the descendants of Zebulun by their clans:

The Seredite clan from Sered,

the Elonite clan from Elon,

and the Jahleelite clan from Jahleel.

²⁷These were the clans of Zebulun, and their registration numbered . . . 60,500.

The Tribe of Manasseh

²⁸The descendants of Joseph included the clans of Manasseh and Ephraim.

²⁹These were the descendants of Manasseh:

The Machirite clan from Machir, the father of Gilead,

and the Gileadite clan from Gilead.

³⁰These were the descendants of Gilead:

the Iezerite clan from Iezer,

the Helekite clan from Helek,

³¹the Asrielite clan from Asriel,

the Shechemite clan from Shechem,

³²the Shemidaite clan from Shemida,

and the Hepherite clan from Hepher.

³³Now Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons but only daughters. The names of his daughters were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

³⁴These were the clans of Manasseh, and their registration numbered . . . 52,700.

The Tribe of Ephraim

³⁵These were the descendants of Ephraim by their clans:

The Shuthelahite clan from Shuthelah,

the Becherite clan from Becher,

and the Tahanite clan from Tahan.

³⁶And the descendants of Shuthelah were the Eranite clan from Eran.

³⁷These were the clans of Ephraim, and their registration numbered . . . 32,500.

These clans were the descendants of Joseph.

The Tribe of Benjamin

³⁸These were the descendants of Benjamin by their clans:

The Belaite clan from Bela,

the Ashbelite clan from Ashbel,

the Ahiramite clan from Ahiram,

³⁹the Shuphamite clan from Shupham,

and the Huphamite clan from Hupham.

⁴⁰And the descendants of Bela from Ard and Naaman were the Ardite clan from Ard and the Naamite clan from Naaman.

⁴¹These were the clans of Benjamin, and their registration numbered . . . 45,600.

The Tribe of Dan

⁴²These were the descendants of Dan by their clans:

The Shuhamite clan from Shuham.

These were the clans of Dan. ⁴³All of them were Shuhamite clans, and their registration numbered . . . 64,400.

The Tribe of Asher

⁴⁴These were the descendants of Asher by their clans:

The Imnite clan from Imnah,

the Ishvite clan from Ishvi,

and the Beriite clan from Beriah.

⁴⁵And these were the descendants of Beriah:

the Heberite clan from Heber

and the Malchielite clan from Malchiel.

⁴⁶And the name of Asher’s daughter was Serah.

⁴⁷These were the clans of Asher, and their registration numbered . . . 53,400.

The Tribe of Naphtali

⁴⁸These were the descendants of Naphtali by their clans:

The Jahzeelite clan from Jahzeel,

the Gunite clan from Guni,

⁴⁹the Jezerite clan from Jezer,

and the Shillemite clan from Shillem.

⁵⁰These were the clans of Naphtali, and their registration numbered . . . 45,400.

⁵¹These men of Israel numbered 601,730 in all.

Inheritance by Lot

⁵²Then the LORD said to Moses, ⁵³“The land is to be divided among the tribes as an inheritance, according to the number of names. ⁵⁴Increase the inheritance for a large tribe and decrease it for a small one; each tribe is to receive its inheritance according to the number of those registered.

⁵⁵Indeed, the land must be divided by lot; they shall receive their inheritance according to the names of the tribes of their fathers. ⁵⁶Each inheritance is to be divided by lot among the larger and smaller tribes.”

The Levites Numbered

⁵⁷Now these were the Levites numbered by their clans:

The Gershonite clan from Gershon,

the Kohathite clan from Kohath,

and the Merarite clan from Merari.

⁵⁸These were the families of the Levites:

The Libnite clan,

the Hebronite clan,

the Mahlite clan,

the Mushite clan,

and the Korahite clan.

Now Kohath was the father of Amram, ⁵⁹and Amram’s wife was named Jochebed. She was also a daughter of Levi, born to Levi in Egypt. To Amram she bore Aaron, Moses, and their sister Miriam. ⁶⁰Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar were born to Aaron, ⁶¹but Nadab and Abihu died when they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD.

⁶²The registration of the Levites totaled 23,000, every male a month old or more; they were not numbered among the other Israelites, because no inheritance was given to them among the Israelites.

Only Caleb and Joshua Remain

⁶³These were the ones numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest when they counted the Israelites on the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho.

⁶⁴Among all these, however, there was not one who had been numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest when they counted the Israelites in the Wilderness of Sinai. ⁶⁵For the LORD had told them that they would surely die in the wilderness. Not one was left except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.

The Parable of the Cooking Pot

¹In the ninth year, on the tenth day of the tenth month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ²“Son of man, write down today’s date, for on this very day the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem. ³Now speak a parable to this rebellious house and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says:

‘Put the pot on the fire;

put it on and pour in the water.

⁴Put in the pieces of meat,

every good piece—

thigh and shoulder —

fill it with choice bones.

⁵Take the choicest of the flock

and pile the fuel beneath it.

Bring it to a boil

and cook the bones in it.’

⁶Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says:

‘Woe to the city of bloodshed,

to the pot now rusted,

whose rust will not come off!

Empty it piece by piece;

cast no lots for its contents.

⁷For the blood she shed is still within her;

she poured it out on the bare rock;

she did not pour it on the ground

to cover it with dust.

⁸In order to stir up wrath

and take vengeance,

I have placed her blood on the bare rock,

so that it would not be covered.’

⁹Yes, this is what the Lord GOD says:

‘Woe to the city of bloodshed!

I, too, will pile the kindling high.

¹⁰Pile on the logs and kindle the fire;

cook the meat well

and mix in the spices;

let the bones be burned.

¹¹Set the empty pot on its coals

until it becomes hot and its copper glows.

Then its impurity will melt within;

its rust will be consumed.

¹²It has frustrated every effort;

its thick rust has not been removed,

even by the fire.

¹³Because of the indecency of your uncleanness

I tried to cleanse you,

but you would not be purified

from your filthiness.

You will not be pure again

until My wrath against you has subsided.

¹⁴I, the LORD, have spoken;

the time is coming, and I will act.

I will not refrain or show pity,

nor will I relent.

I will judge you

according to your ways and deeds,’

declares the Lord GOD.”

Ezekiel’s Wife Dies

¹⁵Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ¹⁶“Son of man, behold, I am about to take away the desire of your eyes with a fatal blow. But you must not mourn or weep or let your tears flow. ¹⁷Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Put on your turban and strap your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips or eat the bread of mourners.”

¹⁸So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. And the next morning I did as I had been commanded.

¹⁹Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things you are doing mean to us?”

²⁰So I answered them, “The word of the LORD came to me, saying: ²¹Tell the house of Israel that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I am about to desecrate My sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and the delight of your soul. And the sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword.’

²²Then you will do as I have done: You will not cover your lips or eat the bread of mourners. ²³Your turbans will remain on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins, and you will groan among yourselves.

²⁴‘Thus Ezekiel will be a sign for you; you will do everything that he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Lord GOD.’

²⁵And you, son of man, know that on the day I take away their stronghold, their pride and joy — the desire of their eyes which uplifted their souls — and their sons and daughters as well, ²⁶on that day a fugitive will come and tell you the news. ²⁷On that day your mouth will be opened to him who has escaped; you will speak and no longer be mute. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD.”

The Fifth Trumpet

¹Then the fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from heaven to earth, and it was given the key to the pit of the Abyss. ²The star opened the pit of the Abyss, and smoke rose out of it like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke from the pit.

³And out of the smoke, locusts descended on the earth, and they were given power like that of the scorpions of the earth. ⁴They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. ⁵The locusts were not given power to kill them, but only to torment them for five months, and their torment was like the stinging of a scorpion. ⁶In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, but death will escape them.

⁷And the locusts looked like horses prepared for battle, with something like crowns of gold on their heads; and their faces were like the faces of men. ⁸They had hair like that of women, and teeth like those of lions. ⁹They also had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the roar of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. ¹⁰They had tails with stingers like scorpions, which had the power to injure people for five months. ¹¹They were ruled by a king, the angel of the Abyss. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek it is Apollyon.

¹²The first woe has passed. Behold, two woes are still to follow.

The Sixth Trumpet

¹³Then the sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God ¹⁴saying to the sixth angel with the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”

¹⁵So the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. ¹⁶And the number of mounted troops was two hundred million; I heard their number.

¹⁷Now the horses and riders in my vision looked like this: The riders had breastplates the colors of fire, sapphire, and sulfur. The heads of the horses were like the heads of lions, and out of their mouths proceeded fire, smoke, and sulfur. ¹⁸A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke, and sulfur that proceeded from their mouths. ¹⁹For the power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; indeed, their tails were like snakes, having heads with which to inflict harm.

²⁰Now the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the works of their hands. They did not stop worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk. ²¹Furthermore, they did not repent of their murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, and theft.