Wheat, Weeds, and the Gate of Heaven

¹⁰ Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.

¹¹ He came to a certain place, and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of the place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep.

¹² He dreamed and saw a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

¹³ Behold, Yahweh stood above it, and said, “I am Yahweh, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. I will give the land you lie on to you and to your offspring.

¹⁴ Your offspring will be as the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. In you and in your offspring, all the families of the earth will be blessed.

¹⁵ Behold, I am with you, and will keep you, wherever you go, and will bring you again into this land. For I will not leave you until I have done that which I have spoken of to you.”

¹⁶ Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, “Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I didn’t know it.”

¹⁷ He was afraid, and said, “How awesome this place is! This is none other than God’s house, and this is the gate of heaven.”

¹⁸ Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil on its top.

¹⁹ He called the name of that place Bethel,

¹ Yahweh, you have searched me,
 and you know me.

² You know my sitting down and my rising up.
 You perceive my thoughts from afar.

³ You search out my path and my lying down,
 and are acquainted with all my ways.

⁴ For there is not a word on my tongue,
 but behold, Yahweh, you know it altogether.

⁵ You hem me in behind and before.
 You laid your hand on me.

⁶ This knowledge is beyond me.
 It’s lofty.
 I can’t attain it.

⁷ Where could I go from your Spirit?
 Or where could I flee from your presence?

⁸ If I ascend up into heaven, you are there.
 If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you are there!

⁹ If I take the wings of the dawn,
 and settle in the uttermost parts of the sea,

¹⁰ even there your hand will lead me,
 and your right hand will hold me.

¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me.
 The light around me will be night,”

²² I hate them with perfect hatred.
 They have become my enemies.

²³ Search me, God, and know my heart.
 Try me, and know my thoughts.

¹³ For there isn’t any God beside you that cares for all,
 that you might show that you didn’t judge unrighteously.

¹⁶ For your strength is the source of righteousness,
 and your sovereignty over all makes you to forbear all.

¹⁷ For when men don’t believe that you are perfect in power, you show your strength,
 and in dealing with those who think this, you confuse their boldness.

¹⁸ But you, being sovereign in strength, judge in gentleness,
 and with great forbearance you govern us;
 for the power is yours whenever you desire it.

¹⁹ But you taught your people by such works as these,
 how the righteous must be kind.
You made your sons to have good hope,
 because you give repentance when men have sinned.

⁶ This is what Yahweh, the King of Israel,
 and his Redeemer, Yahweh of Armies, says:
“I am the first, and I am the last;
 and besides me there is no God.

⁷ Who is like me?
 Who will call,
 and will declare it,
 and set it in order for me,
 since I established the ancient people?
Let them declare the things that are coming,
 and that will happen.

⁸ Don’t fear,
 neither be afraid.
Haven’t I declared it to you long ago,
 and shown it?
You are my witnesses.
 Is there a God besides me?
Indeed, there is not.
 I don’t know any other Rock.”

¹¹ Teach me your way, Yahweh.
 I will walk in your truth.
 Make my heart undivided to fear your name.

¹² I will praise you, Lord my God, with my whole heart.
 I will glorify your name forever more.

¹³ For your loving kindness is great toward me.
 You have delivered my soul from the lowest Sheol.

¹⁴ God, the proud have risen up against me.
 A company of violent men have sought after my soul,
 and they don’t hold regard for you before them.

¹⁵ But you, Lord, are a merciful and gracious God,
 slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth.

¹⁶ Turn to me, and have mercy on me!
 Give your strength to your servant.
 Save the son of your servant.

¹⁷ Show me a sign of your goodness,
 that those who hate me may see it, and be shamed,
 because you, Yahweh, have helped me, and comforted me.

¹² So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.

¹³ For if you live after the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

¹⁴ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are children of God.

¹⁵ For you didn’t receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God;

¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified with him.

¹⁸ For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed toward us.

¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.

²⁰ For the creation was subjected to vanity, not of its own will, but because of him who subjected it, in hope

²¹ that the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of decay into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.

²² For we know that the whole creation groans and travails in pain together until now.

²³ Not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our body.

²⁴ For we were saved in hope, but hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for that which he sees?

²⁵ But if we hope for that which we don’t see, we wait for it with patience.

²⁴ He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field,

²⁵ but while people slept, his enemy came and sowed darnel weeds also among the wheat, and went away.

²⁶ But when the blade sprang up and produced grain, then the darnel weeds appeared also.

²⁷ The servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where did these darnel weeds come from?’

²⁸ “He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them up?’

²⁹ “But he said, ‘No, lest perhaps while you gather up the darnel weeds, you root up the wheat with them.

³⁰ Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the darnel weeds, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”

³⁶ Then Jesus sent the multitudes away, and went into the house. His disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the darnel weeds of the field.”

³⁷ He answered them, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man,

³⁸ the field is the world, the good seeds are the children of the Kingdom, and the darnel weeds are the children of the evil one.

³⁹ The enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.

⁴⁰ As therefore the darnel weeds are gathered up and burned with fire; so will it be at the end of this age.

⁴¹ The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather out of his Kingdom all things that cause stumbling and those who do iniquity,

⁴² and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

⁴³ Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.