10:1 Jesus ¹  called his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits ²  so they could cast them out and heal every kind of disease and sickness. ³  10:2 Now these are the names of the twelve apostles: ⁴  first, Simon ⁵  (called Peter), and Andrew his brother; James son of Zebedee and John his brother; 10:3 Philip and Bartholomew; ⁶  Thomas ⁷  and Matthew the tax collector; ⁸  James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; ⁹  10:4 Simon the Zealot ¹⁰  and Judas Iscariot, ¹¹  who betrayed him. ¹² 

10:5 Jesus sent out these twelve, instructing them as follows: ¹³  “Do not go to Gentile regions ¹⁴  and do not enter any Samaritan town. ¹⁵  10:6 Go ¹⁶  instead to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 10:7 As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near!’ 10:8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, ¹⁷  cleanse lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. 10:9 Do not take gold, silver, or copper in your belts, 10:10 no bag ¹⁸  for the journey, or an extra tunic, ¹⁹  or sandals or staff, ²⁰  for the worker deserves his provisions. 10:11 Whenever ²¹  you enter a town or village, ²²  find out who is worthy there ²³  and stay with them ²⁴  until you leave. 10:12 As you enter the house, give it greetings. ²⁵  10:13 And if the house is worthy, let your peace come on it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. ²⁶  10:14 And if anyone will not welcome you or listen to your message, shake the dust off ²⁷  your feet as you leave that house or that town. 10:15 I tell you the truth, ²⁸  it will be more bearable for the region of Sodom and Gomorrah ²⁹  on the day of judgment than for that town!

10:16 “I ³⁰  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ³¹  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 10:17 Beware ³²  of people, because they will hand you over to councils ³³  and flog ³⁴  you in their synagogues. ³⁵  10:18 And you will be brought before governors and kings ³⁶  because of me, as a witness to them and the Gentiles. 10:19 Whenever ³⁷  they hand you over for trial, do not worry about how to speak or what to say, ³⁸  for what you should say will be given to you at that time. ³⁹  10:20 For it is not you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

10:21 “Brother ⁴⁰  will hand over brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against ⁴¹  parents and have them put to death. 10:22 And you will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 10:23 Whenever ⁴²  they persecute you in one place, ⁴³  flee to another. I tell you the truth, ⁴⁴  you will not finish going through all the towns ⁴⁵  of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

10:24 “A disciple is not greater than his teacher, nor a slave ⁴⁶  greater than his master. 10:25 It is enough for the disciple to become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house ‘Beelzebul,’ how much more will they defame the members of his household!

10:26 “Do ⁴⁷  not be afraid of them, for nothing is hidden ⁴⁸  that will not be revealed, ⁴⁹  and nothing is secret that will not be made known. 10:27 What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light, and what is whispered in your ear, ⁵⁰  proclaim from the housetops. ⁵¹  10:28 Do ⁵²  not be afraid of those who kill the body ⁵³  but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. ⁵⁴  10:29 Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? ⁵⁵  Yet not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. ⁵⁶  10:30 Even all the hairs on your head are numbered. 10:31 So do not be afraid; ⁵⁷  you are more valuable than many sparrows.

10:32 “Whoever, then, acknowledges ⁵⁸  me before people, I will acknowledge ⁵⁹  before my Father in heaven. 10:33 But whoever denies me before people, I will deny him also before my Father in heaven.

10:34 “Do not think that I have come to bring ⁶⁰  peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace but a sword. 10:35 For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, 10:36 and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. ⁶¹ 

10:37 “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 10:38 And whoever does not take up his cross ⁶²  and follow me is not worthy of me. 10:39 Whoever finds his life ⁶³  will lose it, ⁶⁴  and whoever loses his life because of me ⁶⁵  will find it.

10:40 “Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. ⁶⁶  10:41 Whoever receives a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward. Whoever ⁶⁷  receives a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. 10:42 And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple, I tell you the truth, ⁶⁸  he will never lose his reward.”

29:1 So Jacob moved on ¹  and came to the land of the eastern people. ²  29:2 He saw ³  in the field a well with ⁴  three flocks of sheep lying beside it, because the flocks were watered from that well. Now ⁵  a large stone covered the mouth of the well. 29:3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds ⁶  would roll the stone off the mouth of the well and water the sheep. Then they would put the stone back in its place over the well’s mouth.

29:4 Jacob asked them, “My brothers, where are you from?” They replied, “We’re from Haran.” 29:5 So he said to them, “Do you know Laban, the grandson ⁷  of Nahor?” “We know him,” ⁸  they said. 29:6 “Is he well?” ⁹  Jacob asked. They replied, “He is well. ¹⁰  Now look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.” 29:7 Then Jacob ¹¹  said, “Since it is still the middle of the day, ¹²  it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. You should water the sheep and then go and let them graze some more.” ¹³  29:8 “We can’t,” they said, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone is rolled off the mouth of the well. Then we water ¹⁴  the sheep.”

29:9 While he was still speaking with them, Rachel arrived with her father’s sheep, for she was tending them. ¹⁵  29:10 When Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of his uncle Laban, ¹⁶  and the sheep of his uncle Laban, he ¹⁷  went over ¹⁸  and rolled the stone off the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of his uncle Laban. ¹⁹  29:11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep loudly. ²⁰  29:12 When Jacob explained ²¹  to Rachel that he was a relative of her father ²²  and the son of Rebekah, she ran and told her father. 29:13 When Laban heard this news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he rushed out to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob ²³  told Laban how he was related to him. ²⁴  29:14 Then Laban said to him, “You are indeed my own flesh and blood.” ²⁵  So Jacob ²⁶  stayed with him for a month. ²⁷ 

29:15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Should you work ²⁸  for me for nothing because you are my relative? ²⁹  Tell me what your wages should be.” 29:16 (Now Laban had two daughters; ³⁰  the older one was named Leah, and the younger one Rachel. 29:17 Leah’s eyes were tender, ³¹  but Rachel had a lovely figure and beautiful appearance.) ³²  29:18 Since Jacob had fallen in love with ³³  Rachel, he said, “I’ll serve you seven years in exchange for your younger daughter Rachel.” 29:19 Laban replied, “I’d rather give her to you than to another man. ³⁴  Stay with me.” 29:20 So Jacob worked for seven years to acquire Rachel. ³⁵  But they seemed like only a few days to him ³⁶  because his love for her was so great. ³⁷ 

29:21 Finally Jacob said ³⁸  to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my time of service is up. ³⁹  I want to have marital relations with her.” ⁴⁰  29:22 So Laban invited all the people ⁴¹  of that place and prepared a feast. 29:23 In the evening he brought his daughter Leah ⁴²  to Jacob, ⁴³  and Jacob ⁴⁴  had marital relations with her. ⁴⁵  29:24 (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) ⁴⁶ 

29:25 In the morning Jacob discovered it was Leah! ⁴⁷  So Jacob ⁴⁸  said to Laban, “What in the world have you done to me! ⁴⁹  Didn’t I work for you in exchange for Rachel? Why have you tricked ⁵⁰  me?” 29:26 “It is not our custom here,” ⁵¹  Laban replied, “to give the younger daughter in marriage ⁵²  before the firstborn. 29:27 Complete my older daughter’s bridal week. ⁵³  Then we will give you the younger one ⁵⁴  too, in exchange for seven more years of work.” ⁵⁵ 

29:28 Jacob did as Laban said. ⁵⁶  When Jacob ⁵⁷  completed Leah’s bridal week, ⁵⁸  Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. ⁵⁹  29:29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) ⁶⁰  29:30 Jacob ⁶¹  had marital relations ⁶²  with Rachel as well. He loved Rachel more than Leah, so he worked for Laban ⁶³  for seven more years. ⁶⁴ 

29:31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, ⁶⁵  he enabled her to become pregnant ⁶⁶  while Rachel remained childless. 29:32 So Leah became pregnant ⁶⁷  and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, ⁶⁸  for she said, “The Lord has looked with pity on my oppressed condition. ⁶⁹  Surely my husband will love me now.”

29:33 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Because the Lord heard that I was unloved, ⁷⁰  he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. ⁷¹ 

29:34 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Now this time my husband will show me affection, ⁷²  because I have given birth to three sons for him.” That is why he was named Levi. ⁷³ 

29:35 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” That is why she named him Judah. ⁷⁴  Then she stopped having children.

30:1 When Rachel saw that she could not give Jacob children, she ⁷⁵  became jealous of her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children ⁷⁶  or I’ll die!” 30:2 Jacob became furious ⁷⁷  with Rachel and exclaimed, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?” ⁷⁸  30:3 She replied, “Here is my servant Bilhah! Have sexual relations with ⁷⁹  her so that she can bear ⁸⁰  children ⁸¹  for me ⁸²  and I can have a family through her.” ⁸³ 

30:4 So Rachel ⁸⁴  gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob had marital relations with ⁸⁵  her. 30:5 Bilhah became pregnant ⁸⁶  and gave Jacob a son. ⁸⁷  30:6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me. He has responded to my prayer ⁸⁸  and given me a son.” That is why ⁸⁹  she named him Dan. ⁹⁰ 

30:7 Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, became pregnant again and gave Jacob another son. ⁹¹  30:8 Then Rachel said, “I have fought a desperate struggle with my sister, but I have won.” ⁹²  So she named him Naphtali. ⁹³ 

30:9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave ⁹⁴  her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife. 30:10 Soon Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob a son. ⁹⁵  30:11 Leah said, “How fortunate!” ⁹⁶  So she named him Gad. ⁹⁷ 

30:12 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob another son. ⁹⁸  30:13 Leah said, “How happy I am, ⁹⁹  for women ¹⁰⁰  will call me happy!” So she named him Asher. ¹⁰¹ 

30:14 At the time ¹⁰²  of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants ¹⁰³  in a field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 30:15 But Leah replied, ¹⁰⁴  “Wasn’t it enough that you’ve taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes too?” “All right,” ¹⁰⁵  Rachel said, “he may sleep ¹⁰⁶  with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” 30:16 When Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must sleep ¹⁰⁷  with me because I have paid for your services ¹⁰⁸  with my son’s mandrakes.” So he had marital relations ¹⁰⁹  with her that night. 30:17 God paid attention ¹¹⁰  to Leah; she became pregnant ¹¹¹  and gave Jacob a son for the fifth time. ¹¹²  30:18 Then Leah said, “God has granted me a reward ¹¹³  because I gave my servant to my husband as a wife.” ¹¹⁴  So she named him Issachar. ¹¹⁵ 

30:19 Leah became pregnant again and gave Jacob a son for the sixth time. ¹¹⁶  30:20 Then Leah said, “God has given me a good gift. Now my husband will honor me because I have given him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun. ¹¹⁷ 

30:21 After that she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.

30:22 Then God took note of ¹¹⁸  Rachel. He paid attention to her and enabled her to become pregnant. ¹¹⁹  30:23 She became pregnant ¹²⁰  and gave birth to a son. Then she said, “God has taken away my shame.” ¹²¹  30:24 She named him Joseph, ¹²²  saying, “May the Lord give me yet another son.”

30:25 After Rachel had given birth ¹²³  to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send ¹²⁴  me on my way so that I can go ¹²⁵  home to my own country. ¹²⁶  30:26 Let me take my wives and my children whom I have acquired by working for you. ¹²⁷  Then I’ll depart, ¹²⁸  because you know how hard I’ve worked for you.” ¹²⁹ 

30:27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your sight, please stay here, ¹³⁰  for I have learned by divination ¹³¹  that the Lord has blessed me on account of you.” 30:28 He added, “Just name your wages – I’ll pay whatever you want.” ¹³² 

30:29 “You know how I have worked for you,” Jacob replied, ¹³³  “and how well your livestock have fared under my care. ¹³⁴  30:30 Indeed, ¹³⁵  you had little before I arrived, ¹³⁶  but now your possessions have increased many times over. ¹³⁷  The Lord has blessed you wherever I worked. ¹³⁸  But now, how long must it be before I do something for my own family too?” ¹³⁹ 

30:31 So Laban asked, ¹⁴⁰  “What should I give you?” “You don’t need to give me a thing,” ¹⁴¹  Jacob replied, ¹⁴²  “but if you agree to this one condition, ¹⁴³  I will continue to care for ¹⁴⁴  your flocks and protect them: 30:32 Let me walk among ¹⁴⁵  all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, ¹⁴⁶  and the spotted or speckled goats. ¹⁴⁷  These animals will be my wages. ¹⁴⁸  30:33 My integrity will testify for me ¹⁴⁹  later on. ¹⁵⁰  When you come to verify that I’ve taken only the wages we agreed on, ¹⁵¹  if I have in my possession any goat that is not speckled or spotted or any sheep that is not dark-colored, it will be considered stolen.” ¹⁵²  30:34 “Agreed!” said Laban, “It will be as you say.” ¹⁵³ 

30:35 So that day Laban ¹⁵⁴  removed the male goats that were streaked or spotted, all the female goats that were speckled or spotted (all that had any white on them), and all the dark-colored lambs, and put them in the care ¹⁵⁵  of his sons. 30:36 Then he separated them from Jacob by a three-day journey, ¹⁵⁶  while ¹⁵⁷  Jacob was taking care of the rest of Laban’s flocks.

30:37 But Jacob took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees. He made white streaks by peeling them, making the white inner wood in the branches visible. 30:38 Then he set up the peeled branches in all the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. He set up the branches in front of the flocks when they were in heat and came to drink. ¹⁵⁸  30:39 When the sheep mated ¹⁵⁹  in front of the branches, they ¹⁶⁰  gave birth to young that were streaked or speckled or spotted. 30:40 Jacob removed these lambs, but he made the rest of the flock face ¹⁶¹  the streaked and completely dark-colored animals in Laban’s flock. So he made separate flocks for himself and did not mix them with Laban’s flocks. 30:41 When the stronger females were in heat, ¹⁶²  Jacob would set up the branches in the troughs in front of the flock, so they would mate near the branches. 30:42 But if the animals were weaker, he did not set the branches there. ¹⁶³  So the weaker animals ended up belonging to Laban ¹⁶⁴  and the stronger animals to Jacob. 30:43 In this way Jacob ¹⁶⁵  became extremely prosperous. He owned ¹⁶⁶  large flocks, male and female servants, camels, and donkeys.