Ezekiel 17:1-24

(1)  The word of the LORD came to me:

(2)  "Son of man, propound a riddle, and speak a parable to the house of Israel;

(3)  say, Thus says the Lord GOD: A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, rich in plumage of many colors, came to Lebanon and took the top of the cedar.

(4)  He broke off the topmost of its young twigs and carried it to a land of trade and set it in a city of merchants.

(5)  Then he took of the seed of the land and planted it in fertile soil. He placed it beside abundant waters. He set it like a willow twig,

(6)  and it sprouted and became a low spreading vine, and its branches turned toward him, and its roots remained where it stood. So it became a vine and produced branches and put out boughs.

(7)  "And there was another great eagle with great wings and much plumage, and behold, this vine bent its roots toward him and shot forth its branches toward him from the bed where it was planted, that he might water it.

(8)  It had been planted on good soil by abundant waters, that it might produce branches and bear fruit and become a noble vine.

(9)  "Say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit, so that it withers, so that all its fresh sprouting leaves wither? It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it from its roots.

(10)  Behold, it is planted; will it thrive? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind strikes it--wither away on the bed where it sprouted?"

(11)  Then the word of the LORD came to me:

(12)  "Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took her king and her princes and brought them to him to Babylon.

(13)  And he took one of the royal offspring and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath (the chief men of the land he had taken away),

(14)  that the kingdom might be humble and not lift itself up, and keep his covenant that it might stand.

(15)  But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and a large army. Will he thrive? Can one escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant and yet escape?

(16)  "As I live, declares the Lord GOD, surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die.

(17)  Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives.

(18)  He despised the oath in breaking the covenant, and behold, he gave his hand and did all these things; he shall not escape.

(19)  Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: As I live, surely it is my oath that he despised, and my covenant that he broke. I will return it upon his head.

(20)  I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon and enter into judgment with him there for the treachery he has committed against me.

(21)  And all the pick of his troops shall fall by the sword, and the survivors shall be scattered to every wind, and you shall know that I am the LORD; I have spoken."

(22)  Thus says the Lord GOD: "I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.

(23)  On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bear branches and produce fruit and become a noble cedar. And under it will dwell every kind of bird; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest.

(24)  And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the LORD; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it."

Matthew 4:1-25

(1)  Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

(2)  And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.

(3)  And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread."

(4)  But he answered, "It is written, "'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

(5)  Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple

(6)  and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, "'He will command his angels concerning you,' and "'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'"

(7)  Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

(8)  Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.

(9)  And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me."

(10)  Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written, "'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'"

(11)  Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

(12)  Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee.

(13)  And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali,

(14)  so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

(15)  "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles--

(16)  the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned."

(17)  From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

(18)  While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.

(19)  And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."

(20)  Immediately they left their nets and followed him.

(21)  And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them.

(22)  Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

(23)  And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.

(24)  So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them.

(25)  And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

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