He will speak words against the Most High. He will harass ¹  the holy ones of the Most High continually. His intention ²  will be to change times established by law. ³  They will be delivered into his hand For a time, times, ⁴  and half a time.

Because of all their evil in Gilgal, I hate them there. On account of their evil deeds, I will drive them out of my land. ¹  I will no longer love them; all their rulers are rebels.

You say, “When will the new moon festival ¹  be over, ²  so we can sell grain? When will the Sabbath end, ³  so we can open up the grain bins? ⁴  We’re eager ⁵  to sell less for a higher price, ⁶  and to cheat the buyer with rigged scales! ⁷ 

I will take away their abominable religious practices; ¹  then those who survive will become a community of believers in our God, ²  like a clan in Judah, and Ekron will be like the Jebusites.

So anyone who breaks one of the least of these commands and teaches others ¹  to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever obeys them and teaches others to do so will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

“When ¹  you fast, do not look sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive ²  so that people will see them fasting. I tell you the truth, ³  they have their reward.

Now ¹  John’s ²  disciples and the Pharisees ³  were fasting. ⁴  So ⁵  they came to Jesus ⁶  and said, “Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples don’t fast?”

“But woe to you Pharisees! ¹  You give a tenth ²  of your mint, ³  rue, ⁴  and every herb, yet you neglect justice ⁵  and love for God! But you should have done these things without neglecting the others. ⁶ 

Then ¹  the Judeans ²  responded, ³  “Now we know you’re possessed by a demon! ⁴  Both Abraham and the prophets died, and yet ⁵  you say, ‘If anyone obeys ⁶  my teaching, ⁷  he will never experience ⁸  death.’ ⁹ 

For all who ¹  rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the book of the law.” ² 

Even though they have the appearance of wisdom ¹  with their self-imposed worship and false humility ²  achieved by an ³  unsparing treatment of the body – a wisdom with no true value – they in reality result in fleshly indulgence. ⁴ 

When he says above, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sin-offerings you did not desire nor did you take delight in them” ¹  (which are offered according to the law),

So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness. ¹ 

not like Cain ¹  who was of the evil one and brutally ²  murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his deeds were evil, but his brother’s were righteous.

And the sound of the harpists, musicians, flute players, and trumpeters will never be heard in you ¹  again. No ²  craftsman ³  who practices any trade will ever be found in you again; the noise of a mill ⁴  will never be heard in you again.

But ¹  he said to me, “Do not do this! ²  I am a fellow servant ³  with you and with your brothers the prophets, and with those who obey ⁴  the words of this book. Worship God!”

The evildoer must continue to do evil, ¹  and the one who is morally filthy ²  must continue to be filthy. The ³  one who is righteous must continue to act righteously, and the one who is holy must continue to be holy.”

¹ The Lord said to Moses, “I will bring one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt; after that he will release you from this place. When he releases you, ²  he will drive you out completely ³  from this place.

They rejected his rules, the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the laws he had commanded them to obey. ¹  They paid allegiance to ²  worthless idols, and so became worthless to the Lord. ³  They copied the practices of the surrounding nations in blatant disregard of the Lord’s command. ⁴ 

He eliminated the high places, smashed the sacred pillars to bits, and cut down the Asherah pole. ¹  He also demolished the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for up to that time ²  the Israelites had been offering incense to it; it was called Nehushtan. ³