The Parable of the Tenants

33 ^q“Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted ^ra vineyard ^sand put a fence around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and ^tleased it to tenants, and ^uwent into another country. 34 When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants¹ to the tenants ^tto get his fruit. 35 ^vAnd the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and ^wstoned another. 36 ^xAgain he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them. 37 Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ^y‘This is the heir. Come, ^zlet us kill him and have his inheritance.’ 39 And they took him and ^athrew him out of the vineyard and killed him. 40 ^bWhen therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 41 They said to him, ^c“He will put those wretches to a miserable death and ^dlet out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.”

42 Jesus said to them, ^e“Have you never read in the Scriptures:

43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God ^gwill be taken away from you and given to a people ^hproducing its fruits. 44 And ⁱthe one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and ^jwhen it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”³

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them. 46 And ^lalthough they were seeking to arrest him, ^mthey feared the crowds, because they held him to be ⁿa prophet.

God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness

18 For ^kthe wrath of God ^lis revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be ^mknown about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, ⁿhave been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,¹ in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they ^obecame futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 ^pClaiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and ^qexchanged the glory of ^rthe immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

24 Therefore ^sGod gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to ^tthe dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for ^ua lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, ^vwho is blessed forever! Amen.

26 For this reason ^wGod gave them up to ^xdishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, ^ymen committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, ^zGod gave them up to ^aa debased mind to do ^bwhat ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know ^cGod’s righteous decree that those who practice such things ^ddeserve to die, they not only do them but ^egive approval to those who practice them.

Why Should I Fear in Times of Trouble?

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of ^fthe Sons of Korah.

The Sons of Aaron

1 These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. 2 These are the names of the sons of Aaron: ^dNadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, ^ethe anointed priests, ^fwhom he ordained to serve as priests. 4 ^gBut Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

Duties of the Levites

5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 ^h“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. 7 They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, ⁱas they minister at the tabernacle. 8 They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. 9 And ^jyou shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are ^kwholly given to him from among the people of Israel. 10 And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and ^lthey shall guard their priesthood. But if ^many outsider comes near, he shall be put to death.”

11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Behold, ⁿI have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, 13 for ^oall the firstborn are mine. ^pOn the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast. They shall be mine: I am the Lord.”

14 And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, 15 “List the sons of Levi, by fathers’ houses and by clans; ^qevery male from a month old and upward you shall list.” 16 So Moses listed them according to the word of the Lord, as he was commanded. 17 ^rAnd these were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon and Kohath and Merari. 18 And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their clans: ^sLibni and Shimei. 19 And the sons of Kohath by their clans: ^tAmram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 20 And the sons of Merari by their clans: ^uMahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites, by their fathers’ houses.

21 To Gershon belonged the clan of the Libnites and the clan of the Shimeites; these were the clans of the Gershonites. 22 Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was¹ 7,500. 23 ^vThe clans of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle on the west, 24 with Eliasaph, the son of Lael as chief of the fathers’ house of the Gershonites. 25 And the ^wguard duty of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting involved ^xthe tabernacle, ^ythe tent with ^zits covering, ^athe screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting, 26 ^bthe hangings of the court, ^cthe screen for the door of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and ^dits cords—all the service connected with these.

27 To Kohath belonged the clan of the ^eAmramites and the clan of the Izharites and the clan of the Hebronites and the clan of the Uzzielites; these are the clans of the Kohathites. 28 According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were 8,600, keeping guard over the sanctuary. 29 The clans of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle, 30 with ^fElizaphan the son of Uzziel as chief of the fathers’ house of the clans of the Kohathites. 31 And their guard duty involved ^gthe ark, ^hthe table, ⁱthe lampstand, ^jthe altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the priests minister, and ^kthe screen; all the service connected with these. 32 And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the chiefs of the Levites, and to have oversight of those who kept guard over the sanctuary.

33 To Merari belonged the clan of the Mahlites and the clan of the Mushites: these are the clans of Merari. 34 Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was 6,200. 35 And the chief of the fathers’ house of the clans of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. 36 ^lAnd the appointed guard duty of the sons of Merari involved the ^mframes of the tabernacle, ⁿthe bars, ^othe pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service connected with these; 37 also ^pthe pillars around the court, with their bases and ^qpegs and ^rcords.

38 Those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, ^sguarding the sanctuary itself, to protect² the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death. 39 All those listed among the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron listed at the commandment of the Lord, by clans, all the males from a month old and upward, were ^t22,000.

Redemption of the Firstborn

40 And the Lord said to Moses, “List all the firstborn males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking the number of their names. 41 ^uAnd you shall take the Levites for me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the cattle of the people of Israel.” 42 So Moses listed all the firstborn among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. 43 And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names, from a month old and upward as listed were 22,273.

44 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 45 ^v“Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle. The Levites shall be mine: I am the Lord. 46 And ^was the redemption price for the 273 of the firstborn of the people of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, 47 you shall take ^xfive shekels³ per head; you shall take them according to ^ythe shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel of twenty gerahs⁴), 48 and give the money to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for those who are over.” 49 So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those redeemed by the Levites. 50 From the firstborn of the people of Israel he took the money, ^z1,365 shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary. 51 And Moses ^agave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Duties of the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites

1 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 2 “Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their clans and their fathers’ houses, 3 ^bfrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can come on duty, to do the work in the tent of meeting. 4 This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: ^cthe most holy things. 5 When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down ^dthe veil of the screen and cover ^ethe ark of the testimony with it. 6 Then they shall put on it a covering of goatskin⁵ and spread on top of that a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its ^fpoles. 7 And over the ^gtable of the bread of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue and put on it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; ^hthe regular showbread also shall be on it. 8 Then they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet and cover the same with a covering of goatskin, and shall ⁱput in its poles. 9 And they shall take a cloth of blue and cover ^jthe lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its tongs, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied. 10 And they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it on the carrying frame. 11 And over ^kthe golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. 12 And they shall take all ^lthe vessels of the service that are used in the sanctuary and put them in a cloth of blue and cover them with a covering of goatskin and put them on the carrying frame. 13 And they shall take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it. 14 And they shall put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the fire pans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. 15 And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that ^mthe sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, ⁿbut they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

16 “And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of ^othe oil for the light, the ^pfragrant incense, ^qthe regular grain offering, and ^rthe anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

17 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 18 “Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites, 19 but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to ^sthe most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, 20 ^tbut they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

21 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 22 “Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers’ houses and by their clans. 23 ^uFrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, all who can ^vcome to do duty, to do service in the tent of meeting. 24 This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: 25 ^wthey shall carry ^xthe curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with ^yits covering and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting 26 and the hangings of the court and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords and all the equipment for their service. And they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them. 27 All the service of the sons of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do. And you shall assign to their charge all that they are to carry. 28 This is the service of the clans of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their guard duty is to be ^zunder the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

29 “As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans and their fathers’ houses. 30 ^uFrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, everyone who can come on duty, to do the service of the tent of meeting. 31 And ^athis is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases, 32 and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall ^blist by name the objects that they are required to carry. 33 This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their service in the tent of meeting, ^cunder the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

34 And Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of the congregation listed the sons of the Kohathites, by their clans and their fathers’ houses, 35 ^ufrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting; 36 and those listed by clans were 2,750. 37 ^dThis was the list of the clans of the Kohathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

38 Those listed of the sons of Gershon, by their clans and their fathers’ houses, 39 ^ufrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the tent of meeting— 40 those listed by their clans and their fathers’ houses were 2,630. 41 ^eThis was the list of the clans of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord.

42 Those listed of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans and their fathers’ houses, 43 ^ufrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting— 44 those listed by clans were 3,200. 45 ^fThis was the list of the clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

46 All those who were listed of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of Israel listed, by their clans and their fathers’ houses, 47 ^ufrom thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come to do the service of ministry and the service of bearing burdens in the tent of meeting, 48 those listed were 8,580. 49 According to the commandment of the Lord through Moses they were listed, ^geach one with his task of serving or carrying. Thus they were listed by him, ^has the Lord commanded Moses.