I have said all these things to you so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble: but take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16.33
Daily reading in version Bible In Basic English - English


Joshua 5
Joshua 6
Acts 28.1-16

Joshua 5


1
Now when the news came to all the kings of the Amorites on the west side of Jordan, and all the kings of the Canaanites living by the sea, how the Lord had made the waters of Jordan dry before the children of Israel, till they had gone across, their hearts became like water, and there was no more spirit in them, because of the children of Israel.
2
At that time the Lord said to Joshua, Make yourself stone knives and give the children of Israel circumcision a second time.
3
So Joshua made stone knives and gave the children of Israel circumcision at Gibeath-ha-araloth.
4
And this is the reason why Joshua did so: all the males of the people who came out of Egypt, all the fighting-men, had been overtaken by death in the waste land on the way, after they came out of Egypt.
5
All the people who came out had undergone circumcision but all the people whose birth had taken place in the waste land on their journey from Egypt had not.
6
For the children of Israel were wandering in the waste land for forty years, till all the nation, that is, all the fighting-men, who had come out of Egypt, were dead, because they did not give ear to the voice of the Lord: to whom the Lord said, with an oath, that he would not let them see the land which the Lord had given his word to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey.
7
And their children, who came up in their place, now underwent circumcision by the hands of Joshua, not having had it before: for there had been no circumcision on the journey.
8
So when all the nation had undergone circumcision, they kept in their tents till they were well again.
9
And the Lord said to Joshua, Today the shame of Egypt has been rolled away from you. So that place was named Gilgal, to this day.
10
So the children of Israel put up their tents in Gilgal and they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening, in the lowlands of Jericho.
11
And on the day after the Passover, they had for their food the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and dry grain on the same day.
12
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
13
Now when Joshua was near Jericho, lifting up his eyes he saw a man in front of him, with his sword uncovered in his hand: and Joshua went up to him and said, Are you for us or against us?
14
And he said, No but I have come as captain of the armies of the Lord. Then Joshua, falling down with his face to the earth in worship, said, What has my lord to say to his servant?
15
And the captain of the Lord's army said to Joshua, Take off your shoes from your feet, for the place where you are is holy. And Joshua did so.

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Joshua 6


1
(Now Jericho was all shut up because of the children of Israel: there was no going out or coming in.)
2
And the Lord said to Joshua, See, I have given into your hands Jericho with its king and all its men of war.
3
Now let all your fighting-men make a circle round the town, going all round it once. Do this for six days.
4
And let seven priests go before the ark with seven loud-sounding horns in their hands: on the seventh day you are to go round the town seven times, the priests blowing their horns.
5
And at the sound of a long note on the horns, let all the people give a loud cry and the wall of the town will come down flat, and all the people are to go straight forward.
6
Then Joshua, the son of Nun, sent for the priests and said to them, Take up the ark of the agreement, and let seven priests take seven horns in their hands and go before the ark of the Lord.
7
And he said to the people, Go forward, circling the town, and let the armed men go before the ark of the Lord.
8
So after Joshua had said this to the people, the seven priests with their seven horns went forward before the Lord, blowing on their horns: and the ark of the Lord's agreement went after them.
9
And the armed men went before the priests who were blowing the horns, and the mass of the people went after the ark, blowing their horns.
10
And to the people Joshua gave an order, saying, You will give no cry, and make no sound, and let no word go out of your mouth till the day when I say, Give a loud cry then give a loud cry.
11
So he made the ark of the Lord go all round the town once: then they went back to the tents for the night.
12
And early in the morning Joshua got up, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord.
13
And the seven priests with their seven horns went on before the ark of the Lord, blowing their horns: the armed men went before them, and the mass of the people went after the ark of the Lord, blowing their horns.
14
The second day they went all round the town once, and then went back to their tents: and so they did for six days.
15
Then on the seventh day they got up early, at the dawn of the day, and went round the town in the same way, but that day they went round it seven times.
16
And the seventh time, at the sound of the priests' horns, Joshua said to the people, Now give a loud cry for the Lord has given you the town.
17
And the town will be put to the curse, and everything in it will be given to the Lord: only Rahab, the loose woman, and all who are in the house with her, will be kept safe, because she kept secret the men we sent.
18
And as for you, keep yourselves from the cursed thing, for fear that you may get a desire for it and take some of it for yourselves, and so be the cause of a curse and great trouble on the tents of Israel.
19
But all the silver and gold and the vessels of brass and iron are holy to the Lord: they are to come into the store-house of the Lord.
20
So the people gave a loud cry, and the horns were sounded and on hearing the horns the people gave a loud cry, and the wall came down flat, so that the people went up into the town, every man going straight before him, and they took the town.
21
And they put everything in the town to the curse men and women, young and old, ox and sheep and ass, they put to death without mercy.
22
Then Joshua said to the two men who had been sent to make a search through the land, Go into the house of the loose woman, and get her out, and all who are with her, as you gave her your oath.
23
So the searchers went in and got out Rahab and her father and mother and her brothers and all she had, and they got out all her family and they took them outside the tents of Israel.
24
Then, after burning up the town and everything in it, they put the silver and gold and the vessels of brass and iron into the store-house of the Lord's house.
25
But Joshua kept Rahab, the loose woman, and her father's family and all she had, from death, and so she got a living-place among the children of Israel to this day because she kept safe the men whom Joshua had sent to make a search through the land.
26
Then Joshua gave the people orders with an oath, saying, Let that man be cursed before the Lord who puts his hand to the building up of this town: with the loss of his first son will he put the first stone of it in place, and with the loss of his youngest son he will put up its doors.
27
So the Lord was with Joshua and news of him went through all the land.

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Acts 28

1-16
1
And when we were safe, we made the discovery that the island was named Melita.
2
And the simple people living there were uncommonly kind to us, for they made a fire for us, and took us in, because it was raining and cold.
3
But when Paul had got some sticks together and put them on the fire, a snake came out, because of the heat, and gave him a bite on the hand.
4
And when the people saw it hanging on his hand, they said to one another, Without doubt this man has put someone to death, and though he has got safely away from the sea, God will not let him go on living.
5
But shaking off the beast into the fire, he got no damage.
6
But they had the idea that they would see him becoming ill, or suddenly falling down dead but after waiting a long time, and seeing that no damage came to him, changing their opinion, they said he was a god.
7
Now near that place there was some land, the property of the chief man of the island, who was named Publius who very kindly took us into his house as his guests for three days.
8
And the father of Publius was ill, with a disease of the stomach to whom Paul went, and put his hands on him, with prayer, and made him well.
9
And when this took place, all the others in the island who had diseases came and were made well.
10
Then they gave us great honour, and, when we went away, they put into the ship whatever things we were in need of.
11
And after three months we went to sea in a ship of Alexandria sailing under the sign of the Dioscuri, which had been at the island for the winter.
12
And going into the harbour at Syracuse, we were waiting there for three days.
13
And from there, going about in a curve, we came to Rhegium: and after one day a south wind came up and on the day after we came to Puteoli:
14
Where we came across some of the brothers, who kept us with them for seven days and so we came to Rome.
15
And the brothers, when they had news of us, came out from town as far as Appii Forum and the Three Taverns to have a meeting with us: and Paul, seeing them, gave praise to God and took heart.
16
And when we came into Rome, they let Paul have a house for himself and the armed man who kept watch over him.

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