Daily Bible GNT March 10 Scroll

The Parable of the Sower
(Mark 4.1-9; Luke 8.4-8)

Matthew 13 That same day Jesus left the house and went to the lakeside, where he sat down to teach. ²The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it, while the crowd stood on the shore. ³He used parables to tell them many things.

"Once there was a man who went out to sow grain. ⁴As he scattered the seed in the field, some of it fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵Some of it fell on rocky ground, where there was little soil. The seeds soon sprouted, because the soil wasn't deep. ⁶But when the sun came up, it burned the young plants; and because the roots had not grown deep enough, the plants soon dried up. ⁷Some of the seed fell among thorn bushes, which grew up and choked the plants. ⁸But some seeds fell in good soil, and the plants bore grain: some had one hundred grains, others sixty, and others thirty."

⁹And Jesus concluded, "Listen, then, if you have ears!"

The Purpose of the Parables
(Mark 4.10-12; Luke 8.9, 10)

¹⁰Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, "Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?"

¹¹Jesus answered, "The knowledge about the secrets of the Kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. ¹²For the person who has something will be given more, so that he will have more than enough; but the person who has nothing will have taken away from him even the little he has. ¹³The reason I use parables in talking to them is that they look, but do not see, and they listen, but do not hear or understand. ¹⁴So the prophecy of Isaiah applies to them:

'This people will listen and listen, but not understand;

they will look and look, but not see,

¹⁵because their minds are dull,

and they have stopped up their ears

and have closed their eyes.

Otherwise, their eyes would see,

their ears would hear,

their minds would understand,

and they would turn to me, says God,

and I would heal them.'

¹⁶"As for you, how fortunate you are! Your eyes see and your ears hear. ¹⁷I assure you that many prophets and many of God's people wanted very much to see what you see, but they could not, and to hear what you hear, but they did not.

Jesus Explains the Parable of the Sower
(Mark 4.13-20; Luke 8.11-15)

¹⁸"Listen, then, and learn what the parable of the sower means. ¹⁹Those who hear the message about the Kingdom but do not understand it are like the seeds that fell along the path. The Evil One comes and snatches away what was sown in them. ²⁰The seeds that fell on rocky ground stand for those who receive the message gladly as soon as they hear it. ²¹But it does not sink deep into them, and they don't last long. So when trouble or persecution comes because of the message, they give up at once. ²²The seeds that fell among thorn bushes stand for those who hear the message; but the worries about this life and the love for riches choke the message, and they don't bear fruit. ²³And the seeds sown in the good soil stand for those who hear the message and understand it: they bear fruit, some as much as one hundred, others sixty, and others thirty."

The Sacredness of Blood

Leviticus 17 The LORD commanded Moses ²to give Aaron and his sons and all the people of Israel the following regulations. ^3-4Any Israelites who kill a cow or a sheep or a goat as an offering to the LORD anywhere except at the entrance of the Tent of the LORD's presence have broken the Law. They have shed blood and shall no longer be considered God's people. ⁵The meaning of this command is that the people of Israel shall now bring to the LORD the animals which they used to kill in the open country. They shall now bring them to the priest at the entrance of the Tent and kill them as fellowship offerings. ⁶The priest shall throw the blood against the sides of the altar at the entrance of the Tent and burn the fat to produce an odor that is pleasing to the LORD. ⁷The people of Israel must no longer be unfaithful to the LORD by killing their animals in the fields as sacrifices to the goat demons. The people of Israel must keep this regulation for all time to come.

⁸Any Israelites or any foreigners living in the community who offer a burnt offering or any other sacrifice ⁹as an offering to the LORD anywhere except at the entrance of the Tent shall no longer be considered God's people.

¹⁰If any Israelites or any foreigners living in the community eat meat with blood still in it, the LORD will turn against them and no longer consider them his people. ¹¹The life of every living thing is in the blood, and that is why the LORD has commanded that all blood be poured out on the altar to take away the people's sins. Blood, which is life, takes away sins. ¹²That is why the LORD has told the people of Israel that neither they nor any foreigner living among them shall eat any meat with blood still in it.

¹³If any Israelites or any foreigners living in the community catch an animal or a bird which is ritually clean, they must pour its blood out on the ground and cover it with dirt. ¹⁴The life of every living thing is in the blood, and that is why the LORD has told the people of Israel that they shall not eat any meat with blood still in it and that anyone who does so will no longer be considered one of his people.

¹⁵Any people, Israelites or foreigners, who eat meat from an animal that has died a natural death or has been killed by wild animals must wash their clothes, take a bath, and wait until evening before they are ritually clean. ¹⁶If they do not, they must suffer the consequences.

Forbidden Sexual Practices

Leviticus 18 The LORD told Moses ²to say to the people of Israel, "I am the LORD your God. ³Do not follow the practices of the people of Egypt, where you once lived, or of the people in the land of Canaan, where I am now taking you. ⁴Obey my laws and do what I command. I am the LORD your God. ⁵Follow the practices and the laws that I give you; you will save your life by doing so. I am the LORD."

⁶The LORD gave the following regulations. Do not have sexual intercourse with any of your relatives. ⁷Do not disgrace your father by having intercourse with your mother. You must not disgrace your own mother. ⁸Do not disgrace your father by having intercourse with any of his other wives. ⁹Do not have intercourse with your sister or your stepsister, whether or not she was brought up in the same house with you. ¹⁰Do not have intercourse with your granddaughter; that would be a disgrace to you. ¹¹Do not have intercourse with a half sister; she, too, is your sister. ^12-13Do not have intercourse with an aunt, whether she is your father's sister or your mother's sister. ¹⁴Do not have intercourse with your uncle's wife; she, too, is your aunt. ¹⁵Do not have intercourse with your daughter-in-law ¹⁶or with your brother's wife. ¹⁷Do not have intercourse with the daughter or granddaughter of a woman with whom you have had intercourse; they may be related to you, and that would be incest. ¹⁸Do not take your wife's sister as one of your wives, as long as your wife is living.

¹⁹Do not have intercourse with a woman during her monthly period, because she is ritually unclean. ²⁰Do not have intercourse with another man's wife; that would make you ritually unclean. ²¹Do not hand over any of your children to be used in the worship of the god Molech, because that would bring disgrace on the name of God, the LORD. ²²No man is to have sexual relations with another man; God hates that. ²³No man or woman is to have sexual relations with an animal; that perversion makes you ritually unclean.

²⁴Do not make yourselves unclean by any of these acts, for that is how the pagans made themselves unclean, those pagans who lived in the land before you and whom the LORD is driving out so that you can go in. ²⁵Their actions made the land unclean, and so the LORD is punishing the land and making it reject the people who lived there. ^26-27They did all these disgusting things and made the land unclean, but you must not do them. All of you, whether Israelites or foreigners living with you, must keep the LORD's laws and commands, ²⁸and then the land will not reject you, as it rejected the pagans who lived there before you. ²⁹You know that whoever does any of these disgusting things will no longer be considered one of God's people.

³⁰And the LORD said, "Obey the commands I give and do not follow the practices of the people who lived in the land before you, and do not make yourselves unclean by doing any of these things. I am the LORD your God."

Proverbs 28 The wicked run when no one is chasing them, but an honest person is as brave as a lion.

²When a nation sins, it will have one ruler after another. But a nation will be strong and endure when it has intelligent, sensible leaders.

³Someone in authority who oppresses poor people is like a driving rain that destroys the crops.

⁴If you have no regard for the law, you are on the side of the wicked; but if you obey it, you are against them.

⁵Evil people do not know what justice is, but those who worship the LORD understand it well.

⁶Better to be poor and honest than rich and dishonest.

⁷Young people who obey the law are intelligent. Those who make friends with good-for-nothings are a disgrace to their parents.

⁸If you get rich by charging interest and taking advantage of people, your wealth will go to someone who is kind to the poor.

⁹If you do not obey the law, God will find your prayers too hateful to hear.

¹⁰If you trick an honest person into doing evil, you will fall into your own trap.

The innocent will be well rewarded.

¹¹Rich people always think they are wise, but a poor person who has insight into character knows better.

¹²When good people come to power, everybody celebrates, but when bad people rule, people stay in hiding.

¹³You will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins. Confess them and give them up; then God will show mercy to you.

¹⁴Always obey the LORD and you will be happy. If you are stubborn, you will be ruined.

¹⁵Poor people are helpless against a wicked ruler; he is as dangerous as a growling lion or a prowling bear.

¹⁶A ruler without good sense will be a cruel tyrant. One who hates dishonesty will rule a long time.

¹⁷Someone guilty of murder is digging his own grave as fast as he can. Don't try to stop him.

¹⁸Be honest and you will be safe. If you are dishonest, you will suddenly fall.

¹⁹A hard-working farmer has plenty to eat. People who waste time will always be poor.

²⁰Honest people will lead a full, happy life. But if you are in a hurry to get rich, you are going to be punished.

²¹Prejudice is wrong. But some judges will do wrong to get even the smallest bribe.

²²Selfish people are in such a hurry to get rich that they do not know when poverty is about to strike.

²³Correct someone, and afterward he will appreciate it more than flattery.

²⁴Anyone who thinks it isn't wrong to steal from his parents is no better than a common thief.

²⁵Selfishness only causes trouble. You are much better off to trust the LORD.

²⁶It is foolish to follow your own opinions. Be safe, and follow the teachings of wiser people.

²⁷Give to the poor and you will never be in need. If you close your eyes to the poor, many people will curse you.

²⁸People stay in hiding when the wicked come to power. But when they fall from power, the righteous will rule again.

This reading is from The Holy Bible, Today's English Version, Second Edition copyright © American Bible Society, 1992;
Old Testament copyright © American Bible Society, 1976, 1992; New Testament © American Bible Society, 1966, 1971, 1976, 1992.

These daily Bible readings from the Good News Translation (GNT), formerly the Today's English Version (TEV), are published by BibleNetUSA. The web site and BibleCard® designs are by iCreative. All BibleCard® images are copyrighted by iCreative. All rights reserved.