And they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to Him,

And said to Him, By what authority do You do these things, or who gave You this authority to do these things?

And Jesus said to them, I will question you about one thing; answer Me and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

The baptism of John, was it from heaven or from men? Answer Me.

And they reasoned with one another saying, If we say, From heaven, He will say, Why then did you not believe him?

But should we say, From men? — they feared the crowd, for all held that John was really a prophet.

And they answered Jesus and said, We do  ¹not know. And Jesus said to them,  ²Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.

 ¹And He began to speak to them in parables: A man planted a vineyard and put a hedge around it and dug a vat for a winepress and built a tower; and he leased it out to vinedressers and went abroad.

And he sent a slave to the vinedressers at the proper time so that from the vinedressers he might take of the fruit of the vineyard.

And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.

And again he sent to them another slave; and that one they struck on the head and dishonored.

And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others.

He had yet one, a beloved son; he sent him to them last, saying, They will respect my son.

But those vinedressers said to one another, This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!

And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.

What then will the master of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers and will give the vineyard to  ¹others.

Have you not even read this Scripture, "The stone which the builders rejected, this has become the head of the  ¹corner.

This was from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes”?

And they sought to seize Him, yet they feared the crowd, for they perceived that it was with them in view that He spoke the parable. And leaving Him, they went away.

 ¹And they sent to Him some of the  ²Pharisees and Herodians that they might catch Him in His speech.

And they came and said to Him, Teacher, we know that You are true and  ¹do not fear anyone, for You do not regard the  ²person of men, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not? Should we give, or should we not give?

But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, Why do you tempt Me? Bring Me a denarius that I may look at it.

And they brought one. And He said to them, Whose is this image and inscription? And they said to Him, Caesar's.

And Jesus said to them, The things that are Caesar's render to Caesar, and the things that are God's to God. And they marveled greatly at Him.

And in the morning Balak took Balaam and brought him up to  ¹Bamoth-baal, and he saw from there the edge of the people.

Then Balaam said to Balak, Build me seven altars here, and have seven bulls and seven rams ready for me here.

And Balak did just as Balaam had spoken. And Balak and Balaam  ¹offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.

And Balaam said to Balak, Stand near your burnt offering, and I will go; perhaps Jehovah will come to meet me; and whatever He shows me I will tell you. And he went to a bare height.

And God met Balaam, and he said to Him, I have prepared the seven altars, and I have offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.

And Jehovah put a word in Balaam's mouth and said, Return to Balak, and you shall speak this.

When he returned to him, there he was, standing beside his burnt offering, he and all the rulers of Moab.

And he took up his  ¹parable and said,
From Aram Balak brought me,
The king of Moab from the mountains of the East.
Come, curse Jacob for me;
And come, denounce Israel!

How shall I curse whom God has not cursed?
And how can I denounce whom Jehovah has not denounced?

For from the top of the rocks I see him,
And from the hills I behold him.
Here is a people who live  ¹alone
And do not reckon themselves among the nations.

Who can count the  ¹dust of Jacob,
Or number the fourth part of Israel?
Let  ²me die the death of the upright,
And let my latter end be like theirs!

And Balak said to Balaam, What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, but now you have altogether blessed them.

And he answered and said, Shall I not take care to speak what Jehovah puts in my mouth?

And Balak said to him, Come now with me to another place from which you may see them. You will see only the outside edge of them and not see them all; then curse them for me from there.

So he took him into the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars and offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.

And he said to Balak, Stand here near your burnt offering while I meet Jehovah there.

And Jehovah met Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, Return to Balak, and you shall speak this.

When he came to him, there he was, standing beside his burnt offering, and the rulers of Moab with him. And Balak said to him, What has Jehovah spoken?

And he took up his parable and said,
Arise, O Balak, and hear;
Listen to me, O son of Zippor:

God is not a man, that He should  ¹lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do it?
Or has He spoken, and will He not establish it?

Now I have received a word to bless;
Since He has blessed, then I cannot reverse it.

He has not beheld  ¹iniquity in Jacob,
Nor has He seen trouble in Israel;
Jehovah their God is with them,
And the shout of a  ²king is among them.

God is the One who brought them forth out of Egypt;  ¹He has as it were the  ²horns of the wild ox.

Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob,
Nor is there any divination against Israel.
Now it shall be said of Jacob
And of Israel, What has God wrought!

See, a people rises up like a lioness,
And like a lion they lift themselves up.
They shall not lie down until they eat the prey
And drink the blood of the slain.

And Balak said to Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all.

But Balaam answered and said to Balak, Did I not tell you, saying, All that Jehovah speaks, that I must do?

And Balak said to Balaam, Come now, I will take you to another place; perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there.

And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which looks down upon the desert.

And Balaam said to Balak, Build me seven altars here, and have seven bulls and seven rams ready for me here.

And Balak did just as Balaam had said, and he offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.

And when Balaam saw that it pleased Jehovah to bless Israel, he did not go as at the other times to meet with enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness.

And Balaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes, and the Spirit of God came upon him.

And he took up his parable and said,
Balaam the son of Beor declares,
And the man whose eye is  ¹opened declares;

He declares, he who hears the words of God,
Who sees the vision of the All-sufficient One,
Falling down, but having his eyes uncovered:

How  ¹fair are your tents, O Jacob,
Your tabernacles, O Israel!

Like  ¹valleys they are spread forth,
Like gardens beside a river,
Like  ²aloes which Jehovah has planted,
Like cedars beside water.

Water shall flow from his buckets,
And his seed shall be in many waters,
And his  ¹king shall be higher than Agag,
And his kingdom shall be exalted.

God is the One who brought him forth out of Egypt;
He has as it were the  ¹horns of the wild ox.
He shall eat up the nations, his adversaries,
And shall break their bones in pieces,
And shatter them with his arrows.

He couches; he lies down like a lion
And like a lioness; who will rouse him up?
 ¹Blessed is everyone who blesses you, And cursed is everyone who curses you.

Then Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam, and he struck his hands together. And Balak said to Balaam, I called you to curse my enemies, but now you have altogether blessed them these three times.

Therefore now flee to your place! I said I would greatly honor you, but now Jehovah has kept you away from honor.

And Balaam said to Balak, Did I not also speak to your messengers whom you sent to me, saying,

Even if Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of Jehovah, to do either good or bad from my own heart? What Jehovah speaks, that I will speak.

And now therefore, I am going to my people. Come, let me give you counsel as to what this people will do to your people in the last days.

And he took up his parable and said,
Balaam the son of Beor declares,
And the man whose eye is opened declares;

He declares, he who hears the words of God
And obtains the knowledge of the Most High,
Who sees the vision of the All-sufficient One,
Falling down, but having his eyes uncovered:

I see Him, but not now;
I behold Him, but not near.
There shall  ¹come forth a  ²Star out of Jacob,
And a  ²Scepter shall rise out of Israel,
And He shall crush the corners of Moab
And break down all the sons of Sheth.

And Edom shall be dispossessed —
Seir, His  ¹enemies, shall also be dispossessed —
While Israel does valiantly.

And One from Jacob shall have dominion
And destroy the remnant from  ¹the city.

And he looked on  ¹Amalek and took up his parable and said,
Amalek was the first of the nations,
But his latter end shall come to destruction.

And he looked on the Kenites and took up his parable and said,
Strong is your dwelling place,
And your nest is set in the rock.

Nevertheless Kain shall be burned
Until Asshur carry you away captive.

And he took up his parable and said,
Alas, who shall live when God does this?

But ships shall come from the coast of Kittim,
And they shall afflict Asshur and shall afflict Eber;
And he also shall come to destruction.

And Balaam rose up and went back to his place, and Balak also went his way.

While Israel dwelt in Shittim, the people began to commit  ¹fornication with the daughters of Moab.

For they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods.

And Israel joined itself to Baal-peor, and the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel.

And Jehovah said to Moses, Take all the leaders of the people and hang them up to Jehovah before the sun, so that the fierce anger of Jehovah may turn away from Israel.

And Moses said to the judges of Israel, Each of you slay his men who have joined themselves to Baal-peor.

Just then one of the children of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his brothers in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole assembly of the children of Israel, while they were weeping at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting.

And when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the assembly and took a spear in his hand,

And he went after the man of Israel into the tent and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her stomach. So the plague among the children of Israel was stopped.

And those who died by the  ¹plague were twenty-four thousand.

Then Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned My wrath away from the children of Israel, in that he was jealous with My jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the children of Israel in My jealousy.

Therefore say, I now give him My covenant of peace;

And it shall be to him and to his seed after him the covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made expiation for the children of Israel.

Now the name of the slain man of Israel, who was slain with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader of a father's household among the Simeonites.

And the name of the Midianite woman who was slain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, head of the people of a father's household in Midian.

Then Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

Harass the Midianites and strike them;

For they have harassed you with their deception with which they have deceived you in the matter of Peor and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the prince of Midian, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague in the matter of Peor.