Saturday, January 5, 2008

Genesis 10&11; Matthew 5

Genesis 10

1) This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah's sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.

2) The sons of Japheth:
Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras.

3) The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togarmah.

4) The sons of Javan:
Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittim and the Rodanim. 5) (From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.)

6) The sons of Ham:
Cush, Mizraim, Put and Canaan.

7) The sons of Cush:
Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteca.
The sons of Raamah:
Sheba and Dedan.

8) Cush was the father of Nimrod, who grew to be a mighty warrior on the earth. 9) He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, "Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD." 10) The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Erech, Akkad and Calneh, in Shinar. 11) From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah 12) and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city.13) Mizraim was the father of the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, 14) Pathrusites, Casluhites (from whom the Philistines came) and Caphtorites. 15) Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, 16) Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, 17) Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, 18) Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites. Later the Canaanite clans scattered 19) and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. 20) These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations. 21) Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.

22) The sons of Shem:
Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram.

23) The sons of Aram:
Uz, Hul, Gether and Meshech.

24) Arphaxad was the father of Shelah,
and Shelah the father of Eber.

25) Two sons were born to Eber:
One was named Peleg, because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan.

26) Joktan was the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27) Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28) Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29) Ophir, Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan. 30) The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country. 31) These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations. 32) These are the clans of Noah's sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood.

Genesis 11

1) Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2) As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.

3) They said to each other, "Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly." They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4) Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth." 5) But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. 6) The LORD said, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7) Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." 8) So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9) That is why it was called Babel —because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth. 10) This is the account of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad. 11) And after he became the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.12) When Arphaxad had lived 35 years, he became the father of Shelah. 13) And after he became the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.14) When Shelah had lived 30 years, he became the father of Eber. 15) And after he became the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters. 16) When Eber had lived 34 years, he became the father of Peleg. 17) And after he became the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.18) When Peleg had lived 30 years, he became the father of Reu. 19) And after he became the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters. 20) When Reu had lived 32 years, he became the father of Serug. 21) And after he became the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters. 22) When Serug had lived 30 years, he became the father of Nahor. 23) And after he became the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters. 24) When Nahor had lived 29 years, he became the father of Terah. 25) And after he became the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters. 26) After Terah had lived 70 years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. 27) This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. 28) While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth. 29) Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife was Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah. 30) Now Sarai was barren; she had no children. 31) Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32) Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran.

Matthew 5

1) Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2) and he began to teach them saying:
3) "Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4) Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5) Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7) Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8) Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9) Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
10) Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11) "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12) Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.13) "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.14) "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15) Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16) In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.17) "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18) I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19) Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20) For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven. 21) "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22) But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. 23) "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24) leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift. 25) "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26) I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. 27) "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' 28) But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29) If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30) And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. 31) "It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.' 32) But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery. 33) "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' 34) But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35) or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36) And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37) Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one. 38) "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' 39) But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40) And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41) If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42) Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. 43) "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44) But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45) that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46) If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47) And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48) Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.