1 Then it happened that, in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, he and his entire army, arrived against Jerusalem. And they encircled it, and they constructed fortifications all around it.
2 And the city was enclosed and besieged, even until the eleventh year of king Zedekiah,
3 on the ninth day of the month. And a famine prevailed in the city; neither was there bread for the people of the land.
4 And the city was breached. And all the men of war fled in the night along the way of the gate which is between the double wall at the garden of the king. Now the Chaldeans were besieging the city on all sides. And so Zedekiah fled along the way which leads to the plains of the wilderness.
5 And the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook him in the plains of Jericho. And all the warriors who were with him were dispersed, and they abandoned him.
6 Therefore, having apprehended him, they led the king to the king of Babylon at Riblah. And he was speaking with him in judgment.
7 Then he killed the sons of Zedekiah before him, and he dug out his eyes, and he bound him with chains, and he led him away to Babylon.
8 In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, the same is the nineteenth year of the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the army, a servant of the king of Babylon, went into Jerusalem.
9 And he set fire to the house of the Lord, and to the house of the king. And the houses of Jerusalem, and every great house, he burned with fire.
10 And the entire army of the Chaldeans, which was with the leader of the military, tore down the walls of Jerusalem all around.
11 Then Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, carried away the rest of the people, who had remained in the city, and the fugitives, who had fled over to the king of Babylon, and the remnant of the common people.
12 But he left behind some vinedressers and farmers from the poor of the land.
13 Now the pillars of brass which were in the temple of the Lord, and the bases, and the sea of brass, which was in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke apart. And they took all the brass to Babylon.
14 Also, they took away the cooking pots of brass, and the scoops, and the forks, and the cups, and the little mortars, and all the articles of brass with which they were ministering.
15 And the leader of the military even took away the censers and the bowls, whatever was of gold for the gold, and whatever was of silver for the silver,
16 and also the two pillars, the one sea, and the bases which Solomon had made for the temple of the Lord. The brass of all these items was beyond measure.
17 One pillar had eighteen cubits in height. And the head of brass upon it was three cubits in height. And the network and pomegranates upon the head of the pillar were all of brass. And the second pillar had a similar adornment.
18 Also, the leader of the military took away Seraiah, the chief priest, and Zephaniah, the second priest, and three doorkeepers,
19 and from the city, one eunuch, who was in charge of the men of war, and five men out of those who had stood before the king, whom he found in the city, and Sopher, the leader of the army who trained the young soldiers from the people of the land, and sixty men from the common people, who had been found in the city.
20 Taking them, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, led them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.
21 And the king of Babylon struck them and killed them at Riblah, in the land of Hamath. And Judah was taken away from his land.
22 But over the people who had remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had permitted, he appointed as ruler Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan.
23 And when all the commanders of the military had heard this, they and the men who were with them, specifically, that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah, they went to Gedaliah at Mizpah: Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan, the son of Kareah, and Seraiah, the son of Tanhumeth, the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah, the son of a Maacathite, they and their companions.
24 And Gedaliah swore to them and to their companions, saying: “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Remain in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.”
25 But it happened that, in the seventh month, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of royal offspring, and ten men with him, went and struck Gedaliah, who then died, along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah.
26 And all the people, from small to great, and the leaders of the military, rising up, went away to Egypt, fearing the Chaldeans.
27 Truly, it happened that, in the thirty-seventh year of the transmigration of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evilmerodach, the king of Babylon, in the year when he had begun to reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, from prison.
28 And he spoke kindly to him. And he set his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him at Babylon.
29 And he changed his garments that he had worn in prison. And he ate bread before him always, during all the days of his life.
30 Also, he appointed to him an allowance without ceasing, which also was given to him by the king, for each day, during all the days of his life.
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1 And these are the names of the tribes, from the parts of the north, beside the way of Hethlon, continuing on to Hamath, at the entrance of Enon, to the border of Damascus toward the north, beside the way of Hamath. And from the region of the east to the sea, there will be one portion for Dan.
2 And beyond the border of Dan, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Asher.
3 And beyond the border of Asher, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Naphtali.
4 And beyond the border of Naphtali, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Manasseh.
5 And beyond the border of Manasseh, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Ephraim.
6 And beyond the border of Ephraim, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Reuben.
7 And beyond the border of Reuben, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Judah.
8 And beyond the border of Judah, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be the first-fruits, which you shall separate, twenty-five thousand in width, and in length, the same as each one of the portions from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea. And the sanctuary shall be in its midst.
9 The first-fruits, which you shall separate to the Lord, shall be, in length, twenty-five thousand, and in width, ten thousand.
10 And these shall be the first-fruits for the sanctuary of the priests: toward the north, in length, twenty-five thousand, and toward the sea, in width, ten thousand, but also, toward the east, in width, ten thousand, and toward the south, in length, twenty-five thousand. And the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in its midst.
11 The sanctuary shall be for the priests from the sons of Zadok, who observed my ceremonies and did not go astray, when the sons of Israel went astray, just as the Levites also went astray.
12 And so the foremost of the first-fruits of the land, the Holy of Holies, beside the border of the Levites, shall be for them.
21 I have found David my servant: with my holy oil I have anointed him.
22 For my hand shall help him: and my arm shall strengthen him.
23 The enemy shall have no advantage over him: nor the son of iniquity have power to hurt him.
24 And I will cut down his enemies before his face; and them that hate him I will put to flight.
25 And my truth and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted.
26 And I will set his hand in the sea; and his right hand in the rivers.
27 He shall cry out to me: Thou art my father: my God, and the support of my salvation.
1 Then Paul, gazing intently at the council, said, “Noble brothers, I have spoken with all good conscience before God, even to this present day.”
2 And the high priest, Ananias, instructed those who were standing nearby to strike him on the mouth.
3 Then Paul said to him: “God shall strike you, you whitewashed wall! For would you sit and judge me according to the law, when, contrary to the law, you order me to be struck?”
4 And those who were standing nearby said, “Are you speaking evil about the high priest of God?”
5 And Paul said: “I did not know, brothers, that he is the high priest. For it is written: ‘You shall not speak evil of the leader of your people.’ “
6 Now Paul, knowing that one group were Sadducees and the other were Pharisees, exclaimed in the council: “Noble brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees! It is over the hope and resurrection of the dead that I am being judged.”
7 And when he had said this, a dissension occurred between the Pharisees and the Sadducees. And the multitude was divided.
8 For the Sadducees claim that there is no resurrection, and neither angels, nor spirits. But the Pharisees confess both of these.
9 Then there occurred a great clamor. And some of the Pharisees, rising up, were fighting, saying: “We find nothing evil in this man. What if a spirit has spoken to him, or an angel?”
10 And since a great dissension had been made, the tribune, fearing that Paul might be torn apart by them, ordered the soldiers to descend and to seize him from their midst, and to bring him into the fortress.
11 Then, on the following night, the Lord stood near him and said: “Be constant. For just as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so also it is necessary for you to testify at Rome.”
12 And when daylight arrived, some of the Jews gathered together and bound themselves with an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.
13 Now there were more than forty men who had taken this oath together.
14 And they approached the leaders of the priests, and the elders, and they said: “We have sworn ourselves by an oath, so that we will taste nothing, until we have killed Paul.
15 Therefore, with the council, you should now give notice to the tribune, so that he may bring him to you, as if you intended to determine something else about him. But before he approaches, we have made preparations to put him to death.”
16 But when Paul’s sister’s son had heard of this, about their treachery, he went and entered into the fortress, and he reported it to Paul.
17 And Paul, calling to him one of the centurions, said: “Lead this young man to the tribune. For he has something to tell him.”
18 And indeed, he took him and led him to the tribune, and he said, “Paul, the prisoner, asked me to lead this young man to you, since he has something to say to you.”
19 Then the tribune, taking him by the hand, withdrew with him by themselves, and he asked him: “What is it that you have to tell me?”
20 Then he said: “The Jews have met to ask you to bring Paul tomorrow to the council, as if they intended to question him about something else.
21 But truly, you should not believe them, for they would ambush him with more than forty men from among them, who have bound themselves by an oath neither to eat, nor to drink, until they have put him to death. And they are now prepared, hoping for an affirmation from you.”
22 And then the tribune dismissed the young man, instructing him not to tell anyone that he had made known these things to him.
23 Then, having called two centurions, he said to them: “Prepare two hundred soldiers, so that they may go as far as Caesarea, and seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen, for the third hour of the night.
24 And prepare beasts of burden to carry Paul, so that they may lead him safely to Felix, the governor.”
25 For he was afraid, lest perhaps the Jews might seize him and kill him, and that afterwards he would be falsely accused, as if he had accepted a bribe. And so he wrote a letter containing the following:
26 Claudius Lysias, to the most excellent governor, Felix: greetings.
27 This man, having been apprehended by the Jews and being about to be put to death by them, I rescued, overwhelming them with soldiers, since I realized that he is a Roman.
28 And wanting to know the reason that they objected to him, I brought him into their council.
29 And I discovered him to be accused about questions of their law. Yet truly, nothing deserving of death or imprisonment was within the accusation.
30 And when I had been given news of ambushes, which they had prepared against him, I sent him to you, notifying his accusers also, so that they may plead their accusations before you. Farewell.”
31 Therefore the soldiers, taking Paul according to their orders, brought him by night to Antipatris.
32 And the next day, sending the horsemen to go with him, they returned to the fortress.
33 And when they had arrived at Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul before him.
34 And when he had read it and had asked which province he was from, realizing that he was from Cilicia, he said:
35 I will hear you, when your accusers have arrived. And he ordered him to be kept in the praetorium of Herod.
