Numbers 14, Psalm 50, Isaiah 3, 4, Hebrews 11

Numbers 14,

1 That night all the people of the community raised their voices and wept aloud.
 
2 All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert!
 
3 Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?"
 
4 And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt."
 
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there.
 
6 Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes
 
7 and said to the entire Israelite assembly, "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good.
 
8 If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us.
 
9 Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them."
 
10 But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the LORD appeared at the Tent of Meeting to all the Israelites.
 
11 The LORD said to Moses, "How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the miraculous signs I have performed among them?
 
12 I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they."
 
13 Moses said to the LORD, "Then the Egyptians will hear about it! By your power you brought these people up from among them.
 
14 And they will tell the inhabitants of this land about it. They have already heard that you, O LORD, are with these people and that you, O LORD, have been seen face to face, that your cloud stays over them, and that you go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
 
15 If you put these people to death all at one time, the nations who have heard this report about you will say,
 
16 'The LORD was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath; so he slaughtered them in the desert.'
 
17 "Now may the Lord's strength be displayed, just as you have declared:
 
18 'The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.'
 
19 In accordance with your great love, forgive the sin of these people, just as you have pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now."
 
20 The LORD replied, "I have forgiven them, as you asked.
 
21 Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth,
 
22 not one of the men who saw my glory and the miraculous signs I performed in Egypt and in the desert but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times-
 
23 not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their forefathers. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it.
 
24 But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.
 
25 Since the Amalekites and Canaanites are living in the valleys, turn back tomorrow and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea."
 
26 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron:
 
27 "How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites.
 
28 So tell them, 'As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you the very things I heard you say:
 
29 In this desert your bodies will fall-every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me.
 
30 Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.
 
31 As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected.
 
32 But you-your bodies will fall in this desert.
 
33 Your children will be shepherds here for forty years, suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the desert.
 
34 For forty years-one year for each of the forty days you explored the land-you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.'
 
35 I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this desert; here they will die."
 
36 So the men Moses had sent to explore the land, who returned and made the whole community grumble against him by spreading a bad report about it-
 
37 these men responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the LORD.
 
38 Of the men who went to explore the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh survived.
 
39 When Moses reported this to all the Israelites, they mourned bitterly.
 
40 Early the next morning they went up toward the high hill country. "We have sinned," they said. "We will go up to the place the LORD promised."
 
41 But Moses said, "Why are you disobeying the LORD's command? This will not succeed!
 
42 Do not go up, because the LORD is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies,
 
43 for the Amalekites and Canaanites will face you there. Because you have turned away from the LORD, he will not be with you and you will fall by the sword."
 
44 Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up toward the high hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the LORD's covenant moved from the camp.
 
45 Then the Amalekites and Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and attacked them and beat them down all the way to Hormah.

Psalm 50,

1 The Mighty One, God, the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.
 
2 From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth.
 
3 Our God comes and will not be silent; a fire devours before him, and around him a tempest rages.
 
4 He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people:
 
5 "Gather to me my consecrated ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice."
 
6 And the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for God himself is judge. Selah
 
7 "Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you: I am God, your God.
 
8 I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
 
9 I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens,
 
10 for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.
 
11 I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine.
 
12 If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
 
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
 
14 Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High,
 
15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me."
 
16 But to the wicked, God says: "What right have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips?
 
17 You hate my instruction and cast my words behind you.
 
18 When you see a thief, you join with him; you throw in your lot with adulterers.
 
19 You use your mouth for evil and harness your tongue to deceit.
 
20 You speak continually against your brother and slander your own mother's son.
 
21 These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought I was altogether like you. But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face.
 
22 "Consider this, you who forget God, or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue:
 
23 He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God."

Isaiah 3, 4,

1 See now, the Lord, the LORD Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water,
 
2 the hero and warrior, the judge and prophet, the soothsayer and elder,
 
3 the captain of fifty and man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter.
 
4 I will make boys their officials; mere children will govern them.
 
5 People will oppress each other-man against man, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the base against the honorable.
 
6 A man will seize one of his brothers at his father's home, and say, "You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!"
 
7 But in that day he will cry out, "I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people."
 
8 Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence.
 
9 The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.
 
10 Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.
 
11 Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them! They will be paid back for what their hands have done.
 
12 Youths oppress my people, women rule over them. O my people, your guides lead you astray; they turn you from the path.
 
13 The LORD takes his place in court; he rises to judge the people.
 
14 The LORD enters into judgment against the elders and leaders of his people: "It is you who have ruined my vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses.
 
15 What do you mean by crushing my people and grinding the faces of the poor?" declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty.
 
16 The LORD says, "The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, tripping along with mincing steps, with ornaments jingling on their ankles
 
17 Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion; the LORD will make their scalps bald."
 
18 In that day the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces,
 
19 the earrings and bracelets and veils,
 
20 the headdresses and ankle chains and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms,
 
21 the signet rings and nose rings,
 
22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks, the purses
 
23 and mirrors, and the linen garments and tiaras and shawls.
 
24 Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-dressed hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding.
 
25 Your men will fall by the sword, your warriors in battle.
 
26 The gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.

1 In that day seven women will take hold of one man and say, "We will eat our own food and provide our own clothes; only let us be called by your name. Take away our disgrace!"
 
2 In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.
 
3 Those who are left in Zion, who remain in Jerusalem, will be called holy, all who are recorded among the living in Jerusalem.
 
4 The Lord will wash away the filth of the women of Zion; he will cleanse the bloodstains from Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire.
 
5 Then the LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over all the glory will be a canopy.
 
6 It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.

Hebrews 11

1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
 
2 This is what the ancients were commended for.
 
3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
 
4 By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.
 
5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.
 
6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
 
7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.
 
8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
 
9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
 
10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
 
11 By faith Abraham, even though he was past age-and Sarah herself was barren-was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise.
 
12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
 
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.
 
14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own.
 
15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.
 
16 Instead, they were longing for a better country-a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
 
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son,
 
18 even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned."
 
19 Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.
 
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.
 
21 By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph's sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.
 
22 By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones.
 
23 By faith Moses" parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king"s edict.
 
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter.
 
25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time.
 
26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
 
27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.
 
28 By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.
 
29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.
 
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days.
 
31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.
 
32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets,
 
33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,
 
34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.
 
35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection.
 
36 Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison.
 
37 They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated-
 
38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
 
39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.
 
40 God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.