1 You shall also make an altar, for the burning of incense, from setim wood,
2 having one cubit in length, and another in width, that is, four equal sides, and two cubits in height. Horns shall proceed from the same.
3 And you shall clothe it with the purest gold, both its grating and the walls around it, and also the horns. And you shall make for it a crown of gold in a circle,
4 and two gold rings under the crown on each side, so that the bars may be set in them and the altar may be carried.
5 Also, you shall make its bars of setim wood, and you shall overlay them with gold.
6 And you shall set the altar opposite the veil, which hangs in front of the ark of the testimony, before the propitiatory with which the testimony is covered, where I will speak to you.
7 And Aaron shall burn incense upon it, a sweet fragrance, in the morning. When he lights the lamps, he shall burn it.
8 And when he assembles them in the evening, he shall burn an everlasting incense before the Lord throughout your generations.
9 You shall not offer upon it incense of another composition, nor an oblation, nor a victim; neither shall you offer libations.
10 And Aaron shall pray over its horns once a year, with the blood of what was offered for sin. And he shall make atonement over it in your generations. It shall be the Holy of holies to the Lord.”
11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
12 When you have taken the sum of the sons of Israel, according to their number, each shall give a price for their souls to the Lord, and there will be no scourge among them, when they will be reviewed.
13 Then all those who pass shall give by name: one half shekel, according to the measure at the temple. A shekel has twenty obols. The half part of a shekel shall be offered to the Lord.
14 He who has been numbered from twenty years and above shall give the price.
15 The rich shall not add to the half shekel, and the poor shall diminish nothing.
16 And the money received, which was collected from the sons of Israel, you shall deliver for the uses of the tabernacle of the testimony, so that it may be a memorial of them before the Lord, and he may act favorably toward their souls.”
17 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
18 You shall also make a bronze washtub with its base to wash in; and you shall place it between the tabernacle of the testimony and the altar. And when water has been added,
19 Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and feet in it:
20 when they enter the tabernacle of the testimony, and when they approach to the altar so as to offer incense to the Lord upon it,
21 otherwise, they may die. This shall be an everlasting law to him, and to his offspring, throughout their successions.”
22 And the Lord spoke to Moses,
23 saying: “Take for yourself aromatics: of the first and best myrrh, five hundred shekels, and of cinnamon half as much, that is, two hundred and fifty shekels; of sweet flag similarly two hundred and fifty,
24 but of cassia, five hundred shekels by the weight of the sanctuary, and of the oil of olives the measure of a hin.
25 And you shall make the holy oil of unction, an ointment composed with the skills of a perfumer,
26 and with it you shall anoint the tabernacle of the testimony, and the ark of the testament,
27 and the table with its vessels, and the lampstand and it utensils, the altars of incense
28 and of holocaust, and all the items that pertain to their rituals.
29 And you shall sanctify everything, and they shall be the Holy of holies. He who will touch them must be sanctified.
30 You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and you shall sanctify them, so that they may exercise the priesthood for me.
31 Likewise, you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘This oil of unction will be holy to me throughout your generations.
32 The flesh of man shall not be anointed from it, and you shall not make any similar compound, for it has been sanctified and it shall be holy to you.
33 Whatever man will have composed such a thing and have given it to a stranger, he shall be exterminated from his people.’ “
34 And the Lord said to Moses: “Take to yourself aromatics: stacte, and onycha, galbanum of sweet odor, and the clearest frankincense, all these shall be of equal weight.
35 And you shall make incense composed with the skills of a perfumer, diligently mixed, and pure, and most worthy of sanctification.
36 And when you have crushed all these into a very fine powder, you shall place some of it before the tabernacle of the testimony, in the place where I will appear to you. The Holy of holies shall this incense be to you.
37 You shall not make such a compound for your own uses, because it is holy to the Lord.
38 Whatever man will have made anything similar, so as to thoroughly enjoy its smell, he shall perish from his people.”
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1 Pay attention, you islands, and listen closely, you far away peoples. The Lord has called me from the womb; from the womb of my mother, he has been mindful of my name.
2 And he has appointed my mouth as a sharp sword. In the shadow of his hand, he has protected me. And he has appointed me as an elect arrow. In his quiver, he has hidden me.
3 And he has said to me: “You are my servant, Israel. For in you, I will glory.”
4 And I said: “I have labored toward emptiness. I have consumed my strength without purpose and in vain. Therefore, my judgment is with the Lord, and my work is with my God.”
5 And now, says the Lord, who formed me from the womb as his servant, so that I may bring back Jacob to him, for Israel will not be gathered together, but I have been glorified in the eyes of the Lord and my God has become my strength,
6 and so he has said: “It is a small thing that you should be my servant so as to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and so as to convert the dregs of Israel. Behold, I have offered you as a light for the Gentiles, so that you may be my salvation, even to the furthest regions of the earth.”
7 Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to a contemptible soul, to an abominable nation, to the servant of lords: The kings will see, and the princes will rise up, and they will adore, because of the Lord. For he is faithful, and he is the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.
8 Thus says the Lord: In a pleasing time, I have heeded you, and in the day of salvation, I have assisted you. And I have preserved you, and I have presented you as a covenant of the people, so that you would lift up the earth, and possess the scattered inheritances,
9 so that you would say to those who are bound, “Go forth!” and to those who are in darkness, “Be released!” They will pasture along the roads, and their pastures will be in every open place.
10 They will not hunger or thirst, nor will the heat of the sun beat down upon them. For the one who takes pity on them will rule them, and he will give them to drink from fountains of waters.
11 And I will make all my mountains into a road, and my paths will be exalted.
12 Behold, some will come from far away, and behold, others from the north and from the sea, and still others from the land of the south.
13 Give praise, O heavens! And exult, O earth! Let the mountains give praise with jubilation! For the Lord has consoled his people, and he will take pity on his poor ones.
14 And Zion said: “The Lord has abandoned me, and the Lord has forgotten me.”
15 Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to take pity on the child of her womb? But even if she would forget, still I shall never forget you.
16 Behold, I have engraved you on my hands. Your walls are always before my eyes.
17 Your builders have arrived. Those who would tear you down and destroy you, they will depart from you.
18 Lift up your eyes all around, and see: all these have been gathered together; they have come to you. As I live, says the Lord, you shall be clothed with all these things, as if with an ornament. And like a bride, you shall wrap these things all around you.
19 For your deserts, and your solitary places, and the land of your ruination will now be too narrow, because of all the inhabitants. And those who devoured you will be chased far away.
20 Even the children of your barrenness will say in your ears: “This place is too narrow for me. Make me a spacious place in which to dwell.”
21 And you will say in your heart: “Who has conceived them? I was barren and unable to give birth. I was taken away and held captive. And so, who has raised them? I was destitute and alone. And so, where have they been?”
22 Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up my hand to the Gentiles, and I will exalt my sign before the peoples. And they will carry your sons in their arms, and they will bear your daughters on their shoulders.
23 And kings will be your caretakers, and queens will be your nursemaids. They will reverence you with their face to the ground, and they will lick the dust at your feet. And you will know that I am the Lord. For those who hope in him will not be confounded.
24 Can prey be taken from the strong? Or is anything taken captive by the powerful able to be saved?
25 For thus says the Lord: Certainly, even the captives will be taken away from the strong, even what has been taken by the powerful will be saved. And truly, I will judge those who have judged you, and I will save your children.
26 And I will feed your enemies their own flesh. And they will be inebriated with their own blood, as with new wine. And all flesh will know that I am the Lord, who saves you, and your Redeemer, the Strong One of Jacob.
13 His soul shall dwell in good things: and his seed shall inherit the land.
14 The Lord is a firmament to them that fear him: and his covenant shall be made manifest to them.
15 My eyes are ever towards the Lord: for he shall pluck my feet out of the snare.
16 Look thou upon me, and have mercy on me; for I am alone and poor.
17 The troubles of my heart are multiplied: deliver me from my necessities.
18 See my abjection and my labour; and forgive me all my sins.
19 Consider my enemies for they are multiplied, and have hated me with an unjust hatred.
20 Keep thou my soul, and deliver me: I shall not be ashamed, for I have hoped in thee.
21 The innocent and the upright have adhered to me: because I have waited on thee.
22 Deliver Israel, O God, from all his tribulations.
1 The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2 As it has been written by the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, I send my Angel before your face, who shall prepare your way before you.
3 The voice of one crying out in the desert: Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight his paths.”
4 John was in the desert, baptizing and preaching a baptism of repentance, as a remission of sins.
5 And there went out to him all the region of Judea and all those of Jerusalem, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
6 And John was clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist. And he ate locusts and wild honey.
7 And he preached, saying: “A stronger one comes after me. I am not worthy to reach down and loosen the laces of his shoes.
8 I have baptized you with water. Yet truly, he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
9 And it happened that, in those days, Jesus arrived from Nazareth of Galilee. And he was baptized by John in the Jordan.
10 And immediately, upon ascending from the water, he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit, like a dove, descending, and remaining with him.
11 And there was a voice from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased.”
12 And immediately the Spirit prompted him into the desert.
13 And he was in the desert for forty days and forty nights. And he was tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the Angels ministered to him.
14 Then, after John was handed over, Jesus went into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 and saying: “For the time has been fulfilled and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
16 And passing by the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew, casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen.
17 And Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
18 And at once abandoning their nets, they followed him.
19 And continuing on a little ways from there, he saw James of Zebedee and his brother John, and they were mending their nets in a boat.