23  So a time was set, and on that day a large number of people came to Paul’s lodging. He explained and testified about the Kingdom of God and tried to persuade them about Jesus from the Scriptures. Using the law of Moses and the books of the prophets, he spoke to them from morning until evening. 

24  Some were persuaded by the things he said, but others did not believe. 

25  And after they had argued back and forth among themselves, they left with this final word from Paul: “The Holy Spirit was right when he said to your ancestors through Isaiah the prophet,

26  ‘Go and say to this people: When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend.

27  For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes— so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’

28  So I want you to know that this salvation from God has also been offered to the Gentiles, and they will accept it.”

30  For the next two years, Paul lived in Rome at his own expense. He welcomed all who visited him, 

31  boldly proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ. And no one tried to stop him.

1    Please listen, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph’s descendants like a flock. O God, enthroned above the cherubim, display your radiant glory

2    to Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh. Show us your mighty power. Come to rescue us!

3    Turn us again to yourself, O God. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.

4    O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, how long will you be angry with our prayers?

5    You have fed us with sorrow and made us drink tears by the bucketful.

6    You have made us the scorn of neighboring nations. Our enemies treat us as a joke.

7    Turn us again to yourself, O God of Heaven’s Armies. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.

13  Later the leaders sent some Pharisees and supporters of Herod to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested. 

14  “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully. Now tell us—is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? 

15  Should we pay them, or shouldn’t we?” Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, “Why are you trying to trap me? Show me a Roman coin, and I’ll tell you.” 

16  When they handed it to him, he asked, “Whose picture and title are stamped on it?” “Caesar’s,” they replied.

17  “Well, then,” Jesus said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” His reply completely amazed them.

1    Send your grain across the seas, and in time, profits will flow back to you.

2    But divide your investments among many places, for you do not know what risks might lie ahead.

3    When clouds are heavy, the rains come down. Whether a tree falls north or south, it stays where it falls.

4    Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.

5    Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.

6    Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both.

7    Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning.

8    When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days. Everything still to come is meaningless.

9    Young people, it’s wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do.
10  So refuse to worry, and keep your body healthy. But remember that youth, with a whole life before you, is meaningless.

19  This is the account of the family of Isaac, the son of Abraham. 

20  When Isaac was forty years old, he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-aram and the sister of Laban the Aramean.

21  Isaac pleaded with the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was unable to have children. The Lord answered Isaac’s prayer, and Rebekah became pregnant with twins. 

22  But the two children struggled with each other in her womb. So she went to ask the Lord about it. “Why is this happening to me?” she asked.

23  And the Lord told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son.”

24  And when the time came to give birth, Rebekah discovered that she did indeed have twins! 

25  The first one was very red at birth and covered with thick hair like a fur coat. So they named him Esau. 

26  Then the other twin was born with his hand grasping Esau’s heel. So they named him Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when the twins were born.

27  As the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter. He was an outdoorsman, but Jacob had a quiet temperament, preferring to stay at home. 

28  Isaac loved Esau because he enjoyed eating the wild game Esau brought home, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

11  For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. 

12  And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, 

13  while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. 

14  He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.

4  Shout to the Lord, all the earth; break out in praise and sing for joy!

5  Sing your praise to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and melodious song,

6  with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn. Make a joyful symphony before the Lord, the King!

7  Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the earth and all living things join in.

8  Let the rivers clap their hands in glee! Let the hills sing out their songs of joy

9  before the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with justice, and the nations with fairness.

28  One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29  Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 

30  And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ 

31  The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

32  The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. 

33  And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.”

34  Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.

1    Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.” 

2    Remember him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky. 

3    Remember him before your legs—the guards of your house—start to tremble; and before your shoulders—the strong men—stoop. Remember him before your teeth—your few remaining servants—stop grinding; and before your eyes—the women looking through the windows—see dimly.

4    Remember him before the door to life’s opportunities is closed and the sound of work fades. Now you rise at the first chirping of the birds, but then all their sounds will grow faint.

5    Remember him before you become fearful of falling and worry about danger in the streets; before your hair turns white like an almond tree in bloom, and you drag along without energy like a dying grasshopper, and the caperberry no longer inspires sexual desire. Remember him before you near the grave, your everlasting home, when the mourners will weep at your funeral.

6    Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don’t wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well. 

7    For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.

8    “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless.”

9    Keep this in mind: The Teacher was considered wise, and he taught the people everything he knew. He listened carefully to many proverbs, studying and classifying them. 

10  The Teacher sought to find just the right words to express truths clearly.

11  The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.

12  But, my child, let me give you some further advice: Be careful, for writing books is endless, and much study wears you out.

13  That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. 

14  God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.

7    That night God appeared to Solomon and said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”

8    Solomon replied to God, “You showed great and faithful love to David, my father, and now you have made me king in his place. 

9    O Lord God, please continue to keep your promise to David my father, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth! 

10  Give me the wisdom and knowledge to lead them properly, for who could possibly govern this great people of yours?”

11  God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people— 

12  I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!”

13  Then Solomon returned to Jerusalem from the Tabernacle at the place of worship in Gibeon, and he reigned over Israel.