Reflective Bible Study

¹ “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.

² Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ³ For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴ but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

⁵ As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. ⁶ But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 

⁷ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. ⁸ And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 

⁹ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’

¹⁰ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 

¹¹ Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’

¹² But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 

¹³ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Read Matthew 25:1-13 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

²⁴ When Jesus and the others arrived in Capernaum, the collectors for the temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Does your teacher pay the temple tax?”

²⁵ “Yes, he does,” Peter answered.

After they had returned home, Jesus went up to Peter and asked him, “Simon, what do you think? Do the kings of this earth collect taxes and fees from their own people or from foreigners?”

²⁶ Peter answered, “From foreigners.”

Jesus replied, “Then their own people don’t have to pay. ²⁷ But we don’t want to cause trouble. So go cast a line into the lake and pull out the first fish you hook. Open its mouth, and you will find a coin. Use it to pay your taxes and mine.”

Read Matthew 17:24-27 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

¹⁵ The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden. He put him there to work its ground and to take care of it.

¹⁶ The Lord God gave the man a command. He said, “You can eat the fruit of any tree that is in the garden. ¹⁷ But you must not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you do, you can be sure that you will die.”

^3:1 The serpent was more clever than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. The serpent said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat the fruit of any tree that is in the garden’?”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We can eat the fruit of the trees that are in the garden. ³ But God did say, ‘You must not eat the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden. Do not even touch it. If you do, you will die.’”

⁴ “You can be sure that you won’t die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “God knows that when you eat the fruit of that tree, you will know things you have never known before. You will be able to tell the difference between good and evil. You will be like God.”

⁶ The woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good to eat. It was also pleasing to look at. And it would make a person wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her. And he ate it.

⁷ Then both of them knew things they had never known before. They realized they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made clothes for themselves.

⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking in the garden. It was the coolest time of the day. They hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

⁹ But the Lord God called out to the man. “Where are you?” he asked.

¹⁰ “I heard you in the garden,” the man answered. “I was afraid. I was naked, so I hid.”

¹¹ The Lord God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten the fruit of the tree I commanded you not to eat?”

¹² The man said, “It was the woman you put here with me. She gave me some fruit from the tree. And I ate it.”

¹³ Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What have you done?”

The woman said, “The serpent tricked me. That’s why I ate the fruit.”

¹⁴ So the Lord God spoke to the serpent. He said, “Because you have done this,

¹⁶ The Lord God said to the woman,

¹⁷ The Lord God said to Adam, “You listened to your wife. You ate the fruit of the tree that I commanded you about. I said, ‘You must not eat its fruit.’

²⁰ Adam named his wife Eve. She would become the mother of every living person.

²¹ The Lord God made clothes out of animal skins for Adam and his wife to wear. ²² The Lord God said, “The man has become like one of us. He can now tell the difference between good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and pick fruit from the tree of life and eat it. If he does, he will live forever.”

Read Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-22 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

⁵ When Herod was king of Judea, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He was a member of the priestly order of Abijah, and his wife, Elizabeth, was also from the priestly line of Aaron. ⁶ Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous in God’s eyes, careful to obey all of the Lord’s commandments and regulations. ⁷ They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive, and they were both very old.

⁸ One day Zechariah was serving God in the Temple, for his order was on duty that week. ⁹ As was the custom of the priests, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰ While the incense was being burned, a great crowd stood outside, praying.

¹¹ While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar. ¹² Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him. ¹³ But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. ¹⁴ You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, ¹⁵ for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth. ¹⁶ And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. ¹⁷ He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.”

¹⁸ Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.”

¹⁹ Then the angel said, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! ²⁰ But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.”

²¹ Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah to come out of the sanctuary, wondering why he was taking so long. ²² When he finally did come out, he couldn’t speak to them. Then they realized from his gestures and his silence that he must have seen a vision in the sanctuary.

²³ When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home. ²⁴ Soon afterward his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months. ²⁵ “How kind the Lord is!” she exclaimed. “He has taken away my disgrace of having no children.”

Read Luke 1:5-25 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!