Provision, Prosperity & Physical Needs

¹A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. ²He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. ³He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for the sake of His name. ⁴Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. ⁵You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ⁶Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

²⁵Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? ²⁸And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³²For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.

¹⁰Now I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. ¹¹I am not saying this out of need, for I have learned to be content regardless of my circumstances. ¹²I know how to live humbly, and I know how to abound. In any and every situation I have learned the secret of being filled and being hungry, of having plenty and having need. ¹³I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. ¹⁴Nevertheless, you have done well to share in my affliction. ¹⁵And as you Philippians know, in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church but you partnered with me in the matter of giving and receiving. ¹⁶For even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs again and again. ¹⁷Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that may be credited to your account. ¹⁸I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. ¹⁹And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

⁶Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not out of regret or compulsion. For God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. ⁹As it is written: “He has scattered abroad His gifts to the poor; His righteousness endures forever.” ¹⁰Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your store of seed and will increase the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹You will be enriched in every way to be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will produce thanksgiving to God.

⁶Of course, godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷For we brought nothing into the world, so we cannot carry anything out of it. ⁸But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. ⁹Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. ¹⁰For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. ¹⁷Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us to enjoy. ¹⁸Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, and to be generous and ready to share, ¹⁹treasuring up for themselves a firm foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

³Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. ⁴Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart. ⁵Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it. ⁶He will bring forth your righteousness like the dawn, your justice like the noonday sun. ⁷Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men prosper in their ways, when they carry out wicked schemes. ¹⁶Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked. ¹⁷For the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous. ¹⁸The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever. ¹⁹In the time of evil they will not be ashamed, and in the days of famine they will be satisfied. ²⁵I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread. ²⁶They are ever generous and quick to lend, and their children are a blessing.

¹³Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” ¹⁴But Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed Me judge or executor between you?” ¹⁵And He said to them, “Watch out! Guard yourselves against every form of greed, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” ¹⁶Then He told them a parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced an abundance. ¹⁷So he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, since I have nowhere to store my crops?’ ¹⁸Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and will build bigger ones, and there I will store up all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹Then I will say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry!”’ ²⁰But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’ ²¹This is how it will be for anyone who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich toward God.” ²²Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. ²³For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storehouse or barn; yet God feeds them. How much more valuable you are than the birds! ²⁵Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? ²⁶So if you cannot do such a small thing, why do you worry about the rest? ²⁷Consider how the lilies grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. ²⁸If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith! ²⁹And do not be concerned about what you will eat or drink. Do not worry about it. ³⁰For the Gentiles of the world strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added unto you. ³²Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom. ³³Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves with purses that will not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. ³⁴For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

²Remember that these forty years the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness, so that He might humble you and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commandments. ³He humbled you, and in your hunger He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so that you might understand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. ⁴Your clothing did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. ⁵So know in your heart that just as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you. ⁶Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, walking in His ways and fearing Him. ⁷For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks and fountains and springs that flow through the valleys and hills; ⁸a land of wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey; ⁹a land where you will eat food without scarcity, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and whose hills are ready to be mined for copper. ¹⁰When you eat and are satisfied, you are to bless the LORD your God for the good land that He has given you. ¹¹Be careful not to forget the LORD your God by failing to keep His commandments and ordinances and statutes, which I am giving you this day. ¹²Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses in which to dwell, ¹³and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all that you have is multiplied, ¹⁴then your heart will become proud, and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. ¹⁵He led you through the vast and terrifying wilderness with its venomous snakes and scorpions, a thirsty and waterless land. He brought you water from the rock of flint. ¹⁶He fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers had not known, in order to humble you and test you, so that in the end He might cause you to prosper.

¹⁷You might say in your heart, “The power and strength of my hands have made this wealth for me.” ¹⁸But remember that it is the LORD your God who gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers even to this day.

⁸Abraham answered, “God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two walked on together. ¹³Then Abraham looked up and saw behind him a ram in a thicket, caught by its horns. So he went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. ¹⁴And Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. So to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”

¹²Now Isaac sowed seed in the land, and that very year he reaped a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him, ¹³and he became richer and richer, until he was exceedingly wealthy. ¹⁴He owned so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him.

⁵And now, do not be distressed or angry with yourselves that you sold me into this place, because it was to save lives that God sent me before you. ⁶For the famine has covered the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. ⁷God sent me before you to preserve you as a remnant on the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. ⁸Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God, who has made me a father to Pharaoh—lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt. ⁹Now return quickly to my father and tell him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me without delay. ¹⁰You shall settle in the land of Goshen and be near me—you and your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and everything you own. ¹¹And there I will provide for you, because there will be five more years of famine. Otherwise, you and your household and everything you own will come to destitution.’

⁴Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test whether or not they will follow My instructions. ⁵Then on the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on the other days.” ⁶So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “This evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, ⁷and in the morning you will see the LORD’s glory, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. For who are we, that you should grumble against us?” ⁸And Moses added, “The LORD will give you meat to eat this evening and bread to fill you in the morning, for He has heard your grumbling against Him. Who are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the LORD.” ⁹Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell the whole congregation of Israel, ‘Come before the LORD, for He has heard your grumbling.’” ¹⁰And as Aaron was speaking to the whole congregation of Israel, they looked toward the desert, and there in a cloud the glory of the LORD appeared. ¹¹Then the LORD said to Moses, ¹²“I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’” ¹³That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. ¹⁴When the layer of dew had evaporated, there were thin flakes on the desert floor, as fine as frost on the ground. ¹⁵When the Israelites saw it, they asked one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. So Moses told them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat. ¹⁶This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Each one is to gather as much as he needs. You may take an omer for each person in your tent.’” ¹⁷So the Israelites did this. Some gathered more, and some less. ¹⁸When they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much had no excess, and he who gathered little had no shortfall. Each one gathered as much as he needed to eat.

²⁵So you shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take away sickness from among you.

⁹When you reap the harvest of your land, you are not to reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. ¹⁰You must not strip your vineyard bare or gather its fallen grapes. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God.

⁷Indeed, the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness. The LORD your God has been with you these forty years, and you have lacked nothing.

⁷If there is a poor man among your brothers within any of the gates in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, then you are not to harden your heart or shut your hand from your poor brother. ⁸Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him whatever he needs. ⁹Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought in your heart: “The seventh year, the year of release, is near,” so that you look upon your poor brother begrudgingly and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin. ¹⁰Give generously to him, and do not let your heart be grieved when you do so. And because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything to which you put your hand. ¹¹For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is why I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land.

¹⁹If you are harvesting in your field and forget a sheaf there, do not go back to get it. It is to be left for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. ²⁰When you beat the olives from your trees, you must not go over the branches again. What remains will be for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. ²¹When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you must not go over the vines again. What remains will be for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. ²²Remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt. Therefore I am commanding you to do this.

⁸The LORD will decree a blessing on your barns and on everything to which you put your hand; the LORD your God will bless you in the land He is giving you. ⁹The LORD will establish you as His holy people, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways. ¹⁰Then all the peoples of the earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will stand in awe of you. ¹¹The LORD will make you prosper abundantly—in the fruit of your womb, the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your land—in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. ¹²The LORD will open the heavens, His abundant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow from none.

²Then a revelation from the LORD came to Elijah: ³“Leave here, turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Brook of Cherith, east of the Jordan. ⁴And you are to drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” ⁵So Elijah did what the LORD had told him, and he went and lived by the Brook of Cherith, east of the Jordan. ⁶The ravens would bring him bread and meat in the morning and evening, and he would drink from the brook. ⁷Some time later, however, the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. ⁸Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah: ⁹“Get up and go to Zarephath of Sidon, and stay there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” ¹⁰So Elijah got up and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the city gate, there was a widow gathering sticks. Elijah called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, so that I may drink.” ¹¹And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread.” ¹²But she replied, “As surely as the LORD your God lives, I have no bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. Look, I am gathering a couple of sticks to take home and prepare a meal for myself and my son, so that we may eat it and die.” ¹³“Do not be afraid,” Elijah said to her. “Go and do as you have said. But first make me a small cake of bread from what you have, and bring it out to me. Afterward, make some for yourself and your son, ¹⁴for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be exhausted and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain upon the face of the earth.’” ¹⁵So she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and there was food every day for Elijah and the woman and her household. ¹⁶The jar of flour was not exhausted and the jug of oil did not run dry, according to the word that the LORD had spoken through Elijah.

⁵Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” ⁶And he looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again. ⁷A second time the angel of the LORD returned and touched him, saying, “Get up and eat, or the journey will be too much for you.” ⁸So he got up and ate and drank. And strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

¹Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant, my husband, is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD. And now his creditor is coming to take my two children as his slaves!” ²“How can I help you?” asked Elisha. “Tell me, what do you have in the house?” She answered, “Your servant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil.” ³“Go,” said Elisha, “borrow empty jars from all your neighbors. Do not gather just a few. ⁴Then go inside, shut the door behind you and your sons, and pour oil into all these jars, setting the full ones aside.” ⁵So she left him, and after she had shut the door behind her and her sons, they kept bringing jars to her, and she kept pouring. ⁶When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another.” But he replied, “There are no more jars.” Then the oil stopped flowing. ⁷She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil, and pay your debt. Then you and your sons can live on the remainder.”

⁴²Now a man from Baal-shalishah came to the man of God with a sack of twenty loaves of barley bread from the first ripe grain. “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha. ⁴³But his servant asked, “How am I to set twenty loaves before a hundred men?” “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha, “for this is what the LORD says: ‘They will eat and have some left over.’” ⁴⁴So he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD.

¹⁰Then David blessed the LORD in the sight of all the assembly and said: “May You be blessed, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. ¹¹Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the splendor and the majesty, for everything in heaven and on earth belongs to You. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom, and You are exalted as head over all. ¹²Both riches and honor come from You, and You are the ruler over all. In Your hands are power and might to exalt and give strength to all. ¹³Now therefore, our God, we give You thanks, and we praise Your glorious name. ¹⁴But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? For everything comes from You, and from Your own hand we have given to You. ¹⁵For we are foreigners and strangers in Your presence, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. ¹⁶O LORD our God, from Your hand comes all this abundance that we have provided to build You a house for Your holy Name, and all of it belongs to You.

⁸Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! ⁹Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. ¹⁰Young lions go lacking and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

⁹You attend to the earth and water it; with abundance You enrich it. The streams of God are full of water, for You prepare our grain by providing for the earth. ¹⁰You soak its furrows and level its ridges; You soften it with showers and bless its growth. ¹¹You crown the year with Your bounty, and Your paths overflow with plenty. ¹²The pastures of the wilderness overflow; the hills are robed with joy. ¹³The pastures are clothed with flocks, and the valleys are decked with grain. They shout in triumph; indeed, they sing.

¹¹For the LORD God is a sun and a shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.

⁵He provides food for those who fear Him; He remembers His covenant forever.

¹Hallelujah! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in His commandments. ²His descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. ³Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever. ⁴Light dawns in the darkness for the upright—for the gracious, compassionate, and righteous. ⁵It is well with the man who is generous and lends freely, whose affairs are guided by justice. ⁶Surely he will never be shaken; the righteous man will be remembered forever. ⁷He does not fear bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. ⁸His heart is assured; he does not fear, until he looks in triumph on his foes. ⁹He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever; his horn will be lifted high in honor.

¹A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain. ²In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for bread to eat—for He gives sleep to His beloved.

²⁵He gives food to every creature. His loving devotion endures forever.

¹⁴The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. ¹⁵The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in season. ¹⁶You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.

⁵Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, ⁶the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He remains faithful forever. ⁷He executes justice for the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free, ⁸the LORD opens the eyes of the blind, the LORD lifts those who are weighed down, the LORD loves the righteous. ⁹The LORD protects foreigners; He sustains the fatherless and the widow, but the ways of the wicked He frustrates.

⁸who covers the sky with clouds, who prepares rain for the earth, who makes grass to grow on the hills. ⁹He provides food for the animals, and for the young ravens when they call.

⁹Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your crops; ¹⁰then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine.

⁶Walk in the manner of the ant, O slacker; observe its ways and become wise. ⁷Without a commander, without an overseer or ruler, ⁸it prepares its provisions in summer; it gathers its food at harvest. ⁹How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep? ¹⁰A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, ¹¹and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

³The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but He denies the craving of the wicked. ⁴Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring wealth. ⁵He who gathers in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son. ²²The blessing of the LORD enriches, and He adds no sorrow to it.

²⁴One gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds what is right, only to become poor. ²⁵A generous soul will prosper, and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. ²⁶The people will curse the hoarder of grain, but blessing will crown the one who sells it. ²⁷He who searches out good finds favor, but evil will come to him who seeks it. ²⁸He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like foliage.

⁴The slacker craves yet has nothing, but the soul of the diligent is fully satisfied. ¹¹Dishonest wealth will dwindle, but what is earned through hard work will be multiplied.

²³There is profit in all labor, but mere talk leads only to poverty.

¹⁷Kindness to the poor is a loan to the LORD, and He will repay the lender.

⁵The plans of the diligent bring plenty, as surely as haste leads to poverty.

⁹A generous man will be blessed, for he shares his bread with the poor.

¹⁹The one who works his land will have plenty of food, but whoever chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty. ²⁰A faithful man will abound with blessings, but one eager to be rich will not go unpunished. ²⁷Whoever gives to the poor will not be in need, but he who hides his eyes will receive many curses.

⁷Two things I ask of You—do not refuse me before I die: ⁸Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me. Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the bread that is my portion. ⁹Otherwise, I may have too much and deny You, saying, ‘Who is the LORD?’ Or I may become poor and steal, profaning the name of my God.

¹⁰He who loves money is never satisfied by money, and he who loves wealth is never satisfied by income. This too is futile. ¹¹When good things increase, so do those who consume them; what then is the profit to the owner, except to behold them with his eyes? ¹²The sleep of the worker is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of the rich man permits him no sleep. ¹⁸Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of life that God has given him—for this is his lot. ¹⁹Furthermore, God has given riches and wealth to every man, and He has enabled him to enjoy them, to accept his lot, and to rejoice in his labor. This is a gift from God. ²⁰For a man seldom considers the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with the joy of his heart.

¹“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you without money, come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost! ²Why spend money on that which is not bread, and your labor on that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of foods. ³Incline your ear and come to Me; listen, so that your soul may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant—My loving devotion promised to David.

⁶Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke? ⁷Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? ⁸Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. ⁹Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you remove the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger and malicious talk, ¹⁰and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light will go forth in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday. ¹¹The LORD will always guide you; He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land and strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

¹¹Give us this day our daily bread.

⁷Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. ⁹Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

¹³When Jesus heard about John, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. But the crowds found out about it and followed Him on foot from the towns. ¹⁴When He stepped ashore and saw a large crowd, He had compassion on them and healed their sick. ¹⁵When evening came, the disciples came to Him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late. Dismiss the crowds so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” ¹⁶“They do not need to go away,” Jesus replied. “You give them something to eat.” ¹⁷“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. ¹⁸“Bring them here to Me,” Jesus said. ¹⁹And He directed the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He spoke a blessing. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. ²⁰They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. ²¹About five thousand men were fed, besides women and children.

³²Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “I have compassion for this crowd, because they have already been with Me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may faint along the way.” ³³The disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could we find enough bread to feed such a large crowd?” ³⁴“How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.” ³⁵And He instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground. ³⁶Taking the seven loaves and the fish, He gave thanks and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. ³⁷They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. ³⁸A total of four thousand men were fed, besides women and children.

⁵When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” ⁶But He was asking this to test him, for He knew what He was about to do. ⁷Philip answered, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to have a small piece.” ⁸One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, ⁹“Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish. But what difference will these make among so many?” ¹⁰“Have the people sit down,” Jesus said. Now there was plenty of grass in that place, so the men sat down, about five thousand of them. ¹¹Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. ¹²And when everyone was full, He said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” ¹³So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.

⁴⁴All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need. ⁴⁶With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart, ⁴⁷praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

³²The multitude of believers was one in heart and soul. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they owned. ³³With great power the apostles continued to give their testimony about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And abundant grace was upon them all. ³⁴There were no needy ones among them, because those who owned lands or houses would sell their property, bring the proceeds from the sales, ³⁵and lay them at the apostles’ feet for distribution to anyone as he had need.

²⁷In those days some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. ²⁸One of them named Agabus stood up and predicted through the Spirit that a great famine would sweep across the whole world. (This happened under Claudius.) ²⁹So the disciples, each according to his ability, decided to send relief to the brothers living in Judea. ³⁰This they did, sending their gifts to the elders with Barnabas and Saul.

³³I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. ³⁴You yourselves know that these hands of mine have ministered to my own needs and those of my companions. ³⁵In everything, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus Himself: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

³²He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?

¹³Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality.

⁷Pay everyone what you owe him: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due. ⁸Be indebted to no one, except to one another in love. For he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

¹Now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the churches of Macedonia. ²In the terrible ordeal they suffered, their abundant joy and deep poverty overflowed into rich generosity. ³For I testify that they gave according to their ability and even beyond it. Of their own accord, ⁴they earnestly pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. ⁵And not only did they do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us, through the will of God. ⁶So we urged Titus to help complete your act of grace, just as he had started it. ⁷But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness, and in the love we inspired in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving. ⁸I am not giving a command, but I am testing the sincerity of your love through the earnestness of others. ⁹For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. ¹⁰And this is my opinion about what is helpful for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give, but even to have such a desire. ¹¹Now finish the work, so that you may complete it with the same eager desire, according to your means. ¹²For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have. ¹³It is not our intention that others may be relieved while you are burdened, but that there may be equality. ¹⁴At the present time, your surplus will meet their need, so that in turn their surplus will meet your need. This way there will be equality. ¹⁵As it is written: “He who gathered much had no excess, and he who gathered little had no shortfall.”

¹¹and to aspire to live quietly, to attend to your own matters, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you. ¹²Then you will behave properly toward outsiders, without being dependent on anyone.

¹⁰For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.” ¹¹For we hear that some of you are leading undisciplined lives, accomplishing nothing, but being busybodies. ¹²We command and urge such people by our Lord Jesus Christ to begin working quietly to earn their own living. ¹³But as for you, brothers, do not grow weary in well-doing.

⁸If anyone does not provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

⁵Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” ⁶So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” ¹⁶And do not neglect to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

¹⁷Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.

¹⁴What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith, but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that? ¹⁷So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action, is dead.

¹⁶By this we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. ¹⁷If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him? ¹⁸Little children, let us love not in word and speech, but in action and truth.

³If you follow My statutes and carefully keep My commandments, ⁴I will give you rains in their season, and the land will yield its produce, and the trees of the field will bear their fruit. ⁵Your threshing will continue until the grape harvest, and the grape harvest will continue until sowing time; you will have your fill of food to eat and will dwell securely in your land.

¹²If you listen to these ordinances and keep them carefully, then the LORD your God will keep His covenant and the loving devotion that He swore to your fathers. ¹³He will love you and bless you and multiply you. He will bless the fruit of your womb and the produce of your land—your grain, new wine, and oil, the young of your herds and the lambs of your flocks—in the land that He swore to your fathers to give you.

¹¹But the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks in the rain from heaven. ¹²It is a land for which the LORD your God cares; the eyes of the LORD your God are always on it, from the beginning to the end of the year. ¹³So if you carefully obey the commandments I am giving you today, to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, ¹⁴then I will provide rain for your land in season, the autumn and spring rains, that you may gather your grain, new wine, and oil. ¹⁵And I will provide grass in the fields for your livestock, and you will eat and be satisfied.

¹“Now if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God and are careful to follow all His commandments I am giving you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. ²And all these blessings will come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the voice of the LORD your God: ³You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. ⁴The fruit of your womb will be blessed, as well as the produce of your land and the offspring of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. ⁵Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed. ⁶You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. ¹³The LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you will only move upward and never downward, if you hear and carefully follow the commandments of the LORD your God, which I am giving you today. ¹⁴Do not turn aside to the right or to the left from any of the words I command you today, and do not go after other gods to serve them.

⁸And you will again obey the voice of the LORD and follow all His commandments I am giving you today. ⁹So the LORD your God will make you abound in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your land. Indeed, the LORD will again delight in your prosperity, as He delighted in that of your fathers, ¹⁰if you obey the LORD your God by keeping His commandments and statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, and if you turn to Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

¹⁰Loving devotion and faithfulness have joined together; righteousness and peace have kissed. ¹¹Faithfulness sprouts from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. ¹²The LORD will indeed provide what is good, and our land will yield its increase. ¹³Righteousness will go before Him to prepare the way for His steps.

¹³For the LORD has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His home: ¹⁴“This is My resting place forever and ever; here I will dwell, for I have desired this home. ¹⁵I will bless her with abundant provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread.

¹⁵“Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them. ¹⁶In past generations, He let all nations go their own way. ¹⁷Yet He has not left Himself without testimony to His goodness: He gives you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.”

⁶Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word must share in all good things with his instructor. ⁷Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. ⁸The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. ⁹Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. ¹⁰Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith.

¹⁷May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish for us the work of our hands—yes, establish the work of our hands!

²⁹Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit contains seed. They will be yours for food. ³⁰And to every beast of the earth and every bird of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth—everything that has the breath of life in it—I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.

¹⁴He makes the grass grow for the livestock and provides crops for man to cultivate, bringing forth food from the earth: ¹⁵wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil that makes his face to shine, and bread that sustains his heart. ²⁷All creatures look to You to give them their food in due season. ²⁸When You give it to them, they gather it up; when You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good things.

²⁰You gave Your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold Your manna from their mouths, and You gave them water for their thirst. ²¹For forty years You sustained them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.

³⁵Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you out without purse or bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.

²⁸He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need.

³⁴Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. ³⁵For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, ³⁶I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’ ³⁷Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? ³⁸When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? ³⁹When did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?’ ⁴⁰And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’

²⁷Do not withhold good from the deserving when it is within your power to act. ²⁸Do not tell your neighbor, “Come back tomorrow and I will provide”—when you already have the means.

¹⁵He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity, who refuses gain from extortion, whose hand never takes a bribe, who stops his ears against murderous plots and shuts his eyes tightly against evil— ¹⁶he will dwell on the heights; the mountain fortress will be his refuge; his food will be provided and his water assured.

¹A song of ascents. Blessed are all who fear the LORD, who walk in His ways! ²For when you eat the fruit of your labor, blessings and prosperity will be yours.

¹⁰Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. ¹¹So if you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will entrust you with true riches? ¹²And if you have not been faithful with the belongings of another, who will give you belongings of your own? ¹³No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

¹⁹Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God of our salvation. Selah

¹⁰Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure. ¹¹I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your land, and the vine in your field will not fail to produce fruit,” says the LORD of Hosts. ¹²“Then all the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight,” says the LORD of Hosts.

¹Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you. ²Your riches have rotted and moths have eaten your clothes. ³Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and consume your flesh like fire. You have hoarded treasure in the last days. ⁴Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts. ⁵You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter. ⁶You have condemned and murdered the righteous, who did not resist you.

¹⁶Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil! ¹⁷Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.” ¹⁸“Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they will become like wool. ¹⁹If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land. ²⁰But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

²⁸Peter began to say to Him, “Look, we have left everything and followed You.” ²⁹“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for My sake and for the gospel ³⁰will fail to receive a hundredfold in the present age—houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and fields, along with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life. ³¹But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”

⁵Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.